Mutineers (album)

2014 studio album by David Gray

Mutineers

Studio album by

David Gray

Released| 17 June 2014
Recorded| November 2013–March 2014
Studio| The Church Studios
Genre| Folk rock
Length| 48:22
Label| Good Soldier Songs
Producer| Andy Barlow
David Gray chronology
| Foundling
(2010)  | Mutineers
(2014)  | Gold in a Brass Age
(2019)

|
|

Professional ratingsAggregate scores

Source| Rating
Metacritic| 72/100[1]
Review scores
Source| Rating

Mutineers is the tenth studio album by English singer-songwriter David Gray, released on 17 June 2014 on IHT Records, with "Back in the World" as its first single. It was Gray's fifth consecutive US Top 20 album.[2] A decade after its release, Gray said that he is "super proud" of what was "a purposeful first step into the current creative zone, both sonically and thematically".[3]

## Background

[edit]

In the years leading up to the recording of the album, Gray had become exhausted and disillusioned. "Coming out of the noughties, I just felt beat up, physically and mentally", he told critic Tony Clayton-Lea. "And bored".[4] Gray recounted that he "needed someone else in the studio to help me find the keys to the city; someone who would take me to a place that I hadn't heard before. And that person was Andy Barlow", a producer and musician. He described the collaboration as "a beautiful agony". The pair established a "stringent recording schedule", which unlocked a "creative spontaneity" that Gray found "priceless", and which ultimately "rehumanised" him.[4]

## Release

[edit]

On 1 April 2014, the video for "Gulls" premiered on both the Myles O'Reilly website and Gray's official YouTube channel, with O'Reilly being the director.[5][6] On 10 April, "Back in the World" was uploaded onto Gray's official YouTube channel.[7] A day later, the song was played by radio presenter Chris Evans on BBC Radio 2 for The Chris Evans Breakfast Show.[8]

## Critical reception

[edit]

Tony Clayton-Lea found that the album saw Gray "reconnect with a fervour" that had been absent since the artist had found massive commercial success with White Ladder.[4] Writing in The Irish Times, the critic said that it was "yet another departure point" for the artist. The Guardian noted "a timeworn quality that's charismatic", in an album where "[optimism] is the overriding theme".[9] It was "the sound of a man gently recuperating from a decade of being defined by his multimillion-selling 1998 album, White Ladder". PopMatters saw it as an overdue sequel, "the kind of follow-up to 1998's smash White Ladder for which longtime fans have been waiting some 16 years", and "the most comfortable Gray has sounded in years".[10]

## Track listing

[edit]

All tracks are written by David Gray except where noted.

Mutineers track listingNo.| Title| Writer(s)| Length

|
|
|

1.| "Back in the World"| Gray, Andy Barlow| 3:57
2.| "As the Crow Flies"| Gray, Barlow| 4:13
3.| "Mutineers"|  | 5:01
4.| "Beautiful Agony"| Gray, Barlow| 4:04
5.| "Last Summer"|  | 4:13
6.| "Snow in Vegas"|  | 4:21
7.| "Cake and Eat It"|  | 2:33
8.| "Birds of the High Arctic"| Gray, Barlow| 6:24
9.| "The Incredible"| Gray, Robbie Malone| 3:23
10.| "Girl Like You"|  | 5:18
11.| "Gulls"|  | 4:55
Total length:| 48:22

Bonus track versionNo.| Title| Length

|
|

12.| "Nearly Midnight"| 3:51
Total length:| 52:13

## Personnel

[edit]

* David Gray – vocals, pianos, guitars, keyboards, harp, harmonica, Juno synthesizer
* Rob Malone – bass, acoustic, electric and nylon string guitars, e-bow, high strung guitar
* Keith Prior – drums, percussion
* Caroline Dale – cello
* Andy Barlow – programming

## Charts

[edit]

Chart performance for Mutineers Chart (2014)  | Peak
position

|

Australian Albums (ARIA)[11] | 22
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[12] | 67
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[13] | 57
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[14] | 31
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[15] | 53
Irish Albums (IRMA)[16] | 7
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[17] | 36
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[18] | 27
UK Albums (OCC)[19] | 10
US Billboard 200[20] | 15

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "Reviews for Mutineers by David Gray". Metacritic. Retrieved 19 April 2017.
2. ^ "David Gray: Billboard 200". Billboard.com. Retrieved 14 July 2024.
3. ^ David, Gray (17 June 2024). "Mutineers is Ten Today!". @DavidGray X.com.
4. ^ a b c Clayton-Lea, Tony (18 June 2014). "David Gray: the beautiful agony of Mutineers". IrishTimes.com. Retrieved 14 July 2024.
5. ^ David Gray (1 April 2014). "David Gray – Gulls (Official Video)" - via YouTube.
6. ^ "David Gray: Gulls". 1 April 2014.
7. ^ David Gray (10 April 2014). "David Gray – Back in the World (Audio)" - via YouTube.
8. ^ "Instagram photo by David Gray • Apr 11, 2014 at 3:41pm UTC". Archived from the original on 25 December 2021.
9. ^ Gibsone, Harriet (26 June 2014). "David Gray: Mutineers review – a timeworn quality that's charismatic". TheGuardian.com. Retrieved 14 July 2024.
10. ^ Maguire, Colin (23 July 2024). "David Gray: Mutineers". PopMatters.com. Retrieved 14 July 2024.
11. ^ "Australiancharts.com – David Gray – Mutineers". Hung Medien. Retrieved 24 April 2021.
12. ^ "Austriancharts.at – David Gray – Mutineers" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved 24 April 2021.
13. ^ "Ultratop.be – David Gray – Mutineers" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 24 April 2021.
14. ^ "Dutchcharts.nl – David Gray – Mutineers" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 24 April 2021.
15. ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – David Gray – Mutineers" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 24 April 2021.
16. ^ "Irish-charts.com – Discography David Gray". Hung Medien. Retrieved 24 April 2021.
17. ^ "Charts.nz – David Gray – Mutineers". Hung Medien. Retrieved 24 April 2021.
18. ^ "Swisscharts.com – David Gray – Mutineers". Hung Medien. Retrieved 24 April 2021.
19. ^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 24 April 2021.
20. ^ "David Gray Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved 24 April 2021.

* v
* t
* e

David Gray

Studio albums|

* A Century Ends
* Flesh
* Sell, Sell, Sell
* White Ladder
* Lost Songs 95–98
* A New Day at Midnight
* Life in Slow Motion
* Draw the Line
* Foundling
* Mutineers
* Gold in a Brass Age
* Skellig

Compilations|

* The EPs 1992–1994
* Shine: The Best of the Early Years
* A Thousand Miles Behind
* Greatest Hits

Singles|

* "Birds Without Wings"
* "Wisdom"
* "This Year's Love"
* "Babylon"
* "Please Forgive Me"
* "Sail Away"
* "Say Hello Wave Goodbye"
* "The Other Side"
* "Be Mine"
* "The One I Love"
* "Hospital Food"
* "Alibi"
* "You're the World to Me"
* "Fugitive"
* "Full Steam"
* "A Moment Changes Everything"

Videos|

* David Gray: Live
* Live in Slow Motion

Related articles|

* Discography
* Music videos
* This Year's Love

Authority control databases |

* MusicBrainz release group
* 2

|

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