| Friday the Thirteenth | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Live album by | ||||
| Released | 1997 | |||
| Recorded | 13 June 1997 | |||
| Venue | Royal Albert Hall, London | |||
| Genre | Rock | |||
| Length | 66:04 | |||
| Label | Eagle | |||
| The Stranglers live albums chronology | ||||
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Friday the Thirteenth is a live album by the English rock band the Stranglers, released in 1997 by Eagle Records.[1]
To mark the twenty-first anniversary of their original recording contract with United Artists Records, the Stranglers played to a sold out Royal Albert Hall (London, UK) with an eighteen-piece string orchestra (the Electra Strings). Friday the Thirteenth presents part of the set (these songs, plus the remainder of the set can be found on the accompanying DVD release). Composer and musician Jocelyn Pook makes contributions to the songs "Waltz in Black", "Valley of the Birds", "Daddy's Riding the Range", "Golden Brown" and "No More Heroes".
Critical reception
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |    [2] |
Jack Rabid, writing for AllMusic, gave the album a negative one-and-a-half star review, calling its sound "clear but dull, flat, and lifeless," and the production "soulless." He also criticised vocalist Paul Roberts' performance, clearly not satisfied with him as replacement for original singer Hugh Cornwell, calling him a "facile, slick hack." Rabid wrote, "hearing some damn great material butchered [by Roberts] is rock and roll sacrilege." On a positive note, Rabid felt that "the lovely string section adds a nice dimension, and the original three members remain solid and fierce." Rabid concluded that Friday the Thirteenth "is as welcome as vomit on the Albert Hall's beautiful red carpets."[2]
Track listing
All tracks are written by Jet Black, Jean-Jacques Burnel, Hugh Cornwell and Dave Greenfield, except where noted
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Waltzinblack" (strings only) | 2:21 | |
| 2. | "Valley of the Birds" | Black, Burnel, John Ellis, Greenfield, Paul Roberts | 2:39 |
| 3. | "Skin Deep" | 4:42 | |
| 4. | "Always the Sun" | 4:06 | |
| 5. | "Face" | Black, Burnel, Ellis, Greenfield, Roberts | 3:08 |
| 6. | "Daddy's Riding the Range" | Black, Burnel, Ellis, Greenfield, Roberts | 4:42 |
| 7. | "Strange Little Girl" | Cornwell, Burnel, Greenfield, Black, Hans Wärmling | 2:45 |
| 8. | "Still Life" | Black, Burnel, Ellis, Greenfield, Roberts | 5:16 |
| 9. | "Let Me Down Easy" | 4:25 | |
| 10. | "Golden Brown" | 4:13 | |
| 11. | "Lies and Deception" | Black, Burnel, Ellis, Greenfield, Roberts | 3:45 |
| 12. | "European Female" | 3:55 | |
| 13. | "All Day and All of the Night" | Ray Davies | 3:10 |
| 14. | "Duchess" | 2:20 | |
| 15. | "Down in the Sewer" | 7:10 | |
| 16. | "5 Minutes" | 3:37 | |
| 17. | "No More Heroes" | 3:58 |
- 2007 Japanese reissue bonus tracks
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 18. | "Summer in the City" | John Sebastian, Mark Sebastian, Steve Boone | |
| 19. | "Wonderful Land" | Black, Burnel, Ellis, Greenfield, Roberts |
Extra tracks on DVD release
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6. | "Heaven or Hell" (between "Face" and "Midnight Summer Dream") | Black, Burnel, Ellis, Greenfield, Roberts | |
| 7. | "Midnight Summer Dream" (between "Heaven or Hell" and "Daddy's Riding the Range") | ||
| 13. | "Sinister" (between "Golden Brown" and "Lies and Deception") | Black, Burnel, Ellis, Greenfield, Roberts | |
| 16. | "Thrown Away" (between "European Female" and "All Day and All of the Night") | ||
| 21. | "96 Tears" (between "5 Minutes" and "No More Heroes") | Rudy Martinez | |
| 23. | "Summer in the City" (last track after "No More Heroes") | Sebastian, Sebastian, Boone |
Personnel
Credits adapted from the album liner notes.[5]
- The Stranglers
- Paul Roberts – vocals
- Jean-Jacques Burnel – bass, vocals
- John Ellis – guitar, vocals
- Dave Greenfield – keyboards, vocals
- Jet Black – drums
- Additional musicians
- The Electra Strings – strings
- Jocelyn Pook – string co-ordination
- Technical
- Recorded by the Manor Mobile
- Max Bisgrove – mixing
- Dave Conroy – digital editing
- John McMurtie – photography
- Mark Cunningham – additional photography
References
- ^ "The Stranglers: Worldwide Discography - UK Live LPs". stranglers.org.uk. Retrieved 29 January 2022.
- ^ a b https://www.allmusic.com/album/r340041
- ^ "The Stranglers - Friday The Thirteenth (Japan 2007)". Discogs. Retrieved 29 January 2022.
- ^ "The Stranglers - Friday The Thirteenth (DVD)". Discogs. Retrieved 29 January 2022.
- ^ "The Stranglers - Friday The Thirteenth (UK 1997)". Discogs. 5 December 1997. Retrieved 29 January 2022.
