Cornerstone (song)
"Cornerstone" | ||||
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Single by Arctic Monkeys | ||||
from the album Humbug | ||||
Released | 16 November 2009 | |||
Length | 3:17 | |||
Label | Domino | |||
Songwriter(s) |
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Producer(s) | James Ford | |||
Arctic Monkeys singles chronology | ||||
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Music video | ||||
"Cornerstone" on YouTube |
"Cornerstone" is a song by the English indie rock band Arctic Monkeys, released as the second single from their third album Humbug. It was released on 16 November 2009. Like the previous single "Crying Lightning", the vinyl was made available in Oxfam shops.[1] Alex Turner told Uncut magazine that he wrote this song, "one morning, quite quickly." He added: "There's something to be said for writing in the morning. At other points in the day you're a bit more defensive. I saw it as a challenge to write something in a major key, but that wasn't cheesy."[2] It was originally written in the key of A major. In October 2013, it was sampled by the rapper Dom Kennedy for the song "Pleeze" on his album Get Home Safely.
Music video[]
The music video for the single debuted on Channel 4 in the UK on 15 October 2009.
The music video, directed by Richard Ayoade, who worked on the videos of "Fluorescent Adolescent", "Crying Lightning" and their At the Apollo DVD, shows frontman Alex Turner singing the song alone in a white room holding a cassette recorder and microphone during the whole video.[3] The other members of the band (Jamie Cook, Matt Helders and Nick O'Malley) are not present in the video.
Track listing[]
All tracks are written by Alex Turner.
No. | Title | Length |
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1. | "Cornerstone" | 3:20 |
2. | "Catapult" | 3:28 |
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
1. | "Cornerstone" | 3:20 |
2. | "Catapult" | 3:28 |
3. | "Sketchead" | 2:02 |
4. | "Fright Lined Dining Room" | 3:26 |
Credits and personnel[]
- Arctic Monkeys
- Alex Turner – lead vocals and acoustic guitars
- Jamie Cook – lead guitars
- Nick O'Malley – bass guitar
- Matt Helders – drums, percussion
- Additional musicians
- James Ford – keyboards
Charts[]
Being released as an EP in Oxfam shops, the single charted at number 94 in the UK charts and charted at number seven on the UK indie charts. It also debuted at number seven on the SoundScan singles charts for sales in Canada. One of the single's B-sides, "Sketchead", peaked at number 80 on the UK Singles Chart, fourteen places higher than "Cornerstone"'s peak position.[4]
Charts (2009) | Peak position |
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Belgium Singles Chart (Flanders)[5] | 68 |
Canadian Singles Chart | 7 |
French Singles Chart[6] | 42 |
UK Singles Chart | 94 |
UK Indie Chart | 7 |
Certifications[]
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
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United Kingdom (BPI)[7] | Silver | 200,000![]() |
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References[]
- ^ "New single announcement". Archived from the original on 7 July 2011. Retrieved 15 October 2009.
- ^ Cornerstone Songfacts
- ^ "Arctic Monkeys - 'Cornerstone' (Official Video) (2009)" – via YouTube.
- ^ Zywietz, Tobias. "Chart Log UK: A - Azzido Da Bass". Zobbel. Retrieved 15 November 2011.
- ^ Belgium Flanders Singles Chart
- ^ French Singles Chart
- ^ "British single certifications – Arctic Monkeys – Cornerstone". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 16 April 2021.
External links[]
- 2009 singles
- 2009 songs
- Arctic Monkeys songs
- Charity singles
- Songs about loneliness
- Song recordings produced by James Ford (musician)
- Songs written by Alex Turner (musician)