Friends and Lovers (album)

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Friends and Lovers
FriendsandLovers.jpg
Studio album by
Bernard Butler
Released25 October 1999
RecordedWinter 1998/99
StudioRAK Studios, Konk Studios, London; Chipping Norton Recording Studio
GenreRock[1]
Length50:13
LabelCreation
ProducerBernard Butler
Bernard Butler chronology
People Move On
(1998) 		Friends and Lovers
(1999)
Singles from Friends and Lovers
  1. "Friends and Lovers"
    Released: 20 August 1999
  2. "You Must Go On"
    Released: 6 October 1999
  3. "I'd Do It Again If I Could"
    Released: 20 February 2000 (U.S. only)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic4/5 stars[2]
Dayton Daily NewsB-[3]
The Guardian3/5 stars[4]
NME6/10[5]
The Phoenix3.5/4 stars[6]
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette3/4 stars[7]
PopMatters6/10 discs[8]
Q3/5 stars[9]
Sunday Herald3/5 stars[10]
The Times3/5 stars[11]

Friends and Lovers is the second and to date, most recent album from English singer-songwriter and musician Bernard Butler released in 1999.

Background[]

The album is a lot different from his debut, displaying a more upbeat and pop-rock sound. Butler trimmed away the soft rock elements from People Move On, which used a lot of string instrumentation. Instead, Friends and Lovers sees Butler bring the guitar to the forefront of the musical output. Butler has described the record as: "More direct, more concise, no strings."[12] The album was recorded in London and Chipping Norton, and mixed in New York by Andy Wallace.[13]

David Simutis of Phoenix New Times concurred that the record is an upbeat affair. He wrote that "the main emotion captured on Friends & Lovers is happiness. From the up-tempo power chords, organ and handclaps of 'I'd Do It Again If I Could,' to the bouncing beat and guitar textures of 'What Happened to Me,' it's a powerful record of hope."[14]

Singles released from the album were "Friends and Lovers" and "You Must Go On". "You Must Go On" charted at number 44 on the UK Singles Chart.[15] The album had a delayed release on Columbia Records in the US the following year 1 February 2000.[16] The only US single release from the album, "I'd Do It Again If I Could" followed shortly after.[17]

Reception[]

Some critics saw it as a step forward from his debut. Sarah Zupko of PopMatters wrote: "Friends and Lovers is more anthemic and self-assured than People Move On, as though Butler has been steadily gaining confidence in himself as a frontman."[8] Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic felt that Butler has greater focus on this record, however felt that the music needed "a larger-than-life personality, a vocalist on the level of Brett Anderson."[2] Ed Masley of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette remarked: "With Anderson on vocals, this could be the strongest Suede release since Dog Man Star," and stated that: "Throughout, the hooks are irresistible."[7]

Jay Hedblade of the Chicago Tribune had a more mixed sentiment, saying: "Bernard Butler offers more textured, palatable rock cast in a classic mode. Like his debut, People Move On, Butler demonstrates he's adept at building gorgeous mile-high melodies that hit all the right buttons, yet as agreeable as it is, there's still a nagging feeling that something's missing." Although he did say the album had "brilliant moments", he concluded by saying: "elsewhere Butler spends too much time waxing poetic without the verbal dexterity to hold up the grand nature of the tunes."[18]

The album was not a commercial success, this was mainly due to the breakup of Creation Records shortly before Butler was due to embark on a UK tour. As a result, the tour was cancelled and he was unable to fully complete his promotional duties for the album.[19] The album charted at number 43 on the UK Albums Chart.[15]

Track listing[]

All songs written by Bernard Butler

No.TitleLength
1."Friends and Lovers"4:13
2."I'd Do It Again If I Could"3:26
3."Cocoon"4:17
4."Smile"4:02
5."You Must Go On"3:25
6."No Easy Way Out"4:26
7."Everyone I Know is Falling Apart"4:18
8."What Happened to Me"3:18
9."Let's Go Away"4:03
10."Precious"3:54
11."Has Your Mind Got Away?"8:12
12."You'll Feel It When You're Mine"2:31
13."70 Miles" (bonus track on Japanese editions)4:23

Personnel[]

  • Bernard Butler - guitar, vocals
  • Chris Bowers - bass
  • Terry Miles - keyboards
  • Makoto Sakamoto - drums, percussion
  • Noel Thompson - body percussion (applause)
  • The Terence Miles Trio - backing and harmony vocals

with:

  • Gonzo Lagonda - cello on "Cocoon" and "Smile"
  • Billy McGhee - double bass on "Smile" and "Everyone I Know is Falling Apart"
  • Neil Halstead - on "Has Your Mind Got Away"

References[]

  1. ^ "This Week's Album Releases: Tha Eastsidaz, Tina Turner, Michael Penn". mtv.com. 28 January 2000. Retrieved 30 March 2021.
  2. ^ Jump up to: a b Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Friends and Lovers review". AllMusic.
  3. ^ Kizirnis, Kathi (18 February 2000). "Recordings in Brief". Dayton Daily News. Cox Enterprises. Retrieved 24 June 2013 – via NewsBank.
  4. ^ Sweeting, Adam (22 October 1999). "CD Releases". The Guardian. p. B17.
  5. ^ Segal, Victoria (19 October 1999). "Friends And Lovers - He might have the last laugh, after all..." NME. Retrieved 24 June 2013.
  6. ^ Laban, Linda (3 February 2000). "Off The Record - Friends And Lovers". The Phoenix. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 24 June 2013.
  7. ^ Jump up to: a b Masley, Ed (11 February 2000). "New Discs". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. p. 118. Retrieved 5 February 2017 – via Google News Archive.
  8. ^ Jump up to: a b Zupko, Sarah. "Bernard Butler: Friends and Lovers". PopMatters. Archived from the original on 18 October 2012.
  9. ^ Maconie, Stuart (December 1999). "He's found his niche and he's sticking to it". Q (159). Archived from the original on 23 January 2000. Retrieved 10 October 2018.
  10. ^ Virtue, Graeme (24 October 1999). "Friends And Lovers - Bernard Butler (Creation)". Sunday Herald. Archived from the original on 19 November 2018 – via HighBeam Research.
  11. ^ Cowan, Amber (23 October 1999). "New album releases". The Times. p. 11.
  12. ^ "The Butler Did It (Nearly)". NME. 18 January 1999. Retrieved 19 December 2016.
  13. ^ "The Butler Done It". NME. 6 June 1999. Retrieved 19 December 2016.
  14. ^ Simutis, David (3 February 2000). "Coming Up". Phoenix New Times. Retrieved 12 July 2017.
  15. ^ Jump up to: a b "Artist Chart History: Bernard Butler". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 15 June 2013.
  16. ^ "Upcoming Releases". CMJ New Music Report. Vol. 61 no. 647. 20 December 1999. p. 33. Retrieved 29 May 2019.
  17. ^ "Reviews & Previews". Billboard. Vol. 112 no. 8. 19 February 2000. p. 24. Retrieved 29 May 2019.
  18. ^ Hedblabe, Jay (5 March 2000). "Bernard Butler Friends & Lovers (Columbia)". Chicago Tribune. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 30 June 2013.
  19. ^ "Butler to abandon stage for baize?". NME. 22 March 2000. Retrieved 19 December 2016.

External links[]

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