Forth (album)

Forth
Studio album by The Verve
Released	25 August 2008 (See release history)
Recorded	2007–2008, at State of the Ark in Richmond, London[1]
Genre	Alternative rock
Length	64:18
Label	Parlophone, Megaforce, EMI
Producer	Chris Potter, Tim Bran, The Verve
The Verve chronology
This Is Music: The Singles 92–98 (2004) Forth (2008)
Singles from Forth
"Love Is Noise" Released: 11 August 2008 "Rather Be" Released: 17 November 2008

Forth is the fourth and final studio album by the English alternative rock band The Verve. It was released internationally on 25 August 2008 on EMI, and a day later in North America on the On Your Own label.^[2] The band reformed in 2007, having broken up in 1999. Forth is their first album of new material since their 1997 album Urban Hymns.

The album's first single, "Love Is Noise", received its first airplay on BBC Radio 1 on 23 June 2008.^[3] The song reached No. 4 on the UK Singles Chart and became a summer hit in Europe. The band also released a non-album track, "Mover", as a free digital download a week later.

Background

The band recorded new songs in Richmond between 2007 and 2008. Most of the backing tracks were done before touring the UK in November and December. Then, recording continued between February and the start of their summer dates in April and some final work was done after the mini US-tour done between April and May before their summer festival appearances in Europe and Japan.^[4] Jonathan Cohen of Billboard states that Forth is "[A] bracing blend of the experimentalism of the group's early work and the more structured songwriting of its last two efforts."^[5]

"Sit and Wonder" and "Love Is Noise" have been played live during the band's festival appearances, including the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in April 2008; "Rather Be" also received select live airings throughout the summer, notably as part of the band's headlining set at the V Festival in August 2008. "I See Houses" was played live once, at the Eden Project in Cornwall in August 2008.

Release and reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
Allmusic	[6]
BBC	(favorable)[7]
The Guardian	[8]
NME	8/10[9]
Pitchfork Media	(5.0/10.0)[10]
Q	[11]
Rolling Stone	[12]
Spin	[13]
Uncut	[14]

Like The Verve's previous studio album Urban Hymns, Forth peaked on the UK Albums Chart at number one, and at number 23 on the US Billboard 200.^[15] Forth was certified gold by the British Phonographic Industry.^[16] The album sold about 21,000 copies in its first week of release in the US,^[15] and as of January 2009 has sold about 53,000 copies in the U.S.^[17]

Forth was named No. 47 in Q's "50 Best Albums of the Year" for 2008.^[18]

Track listing

All songs written by The Verve, except where noted.

1. "Sit and Wonder" – 6:52
2. "Love Is Noise" (Richard Ashcroft, The Verve) – 5:29
3. "Rather Be" (Ashcroft) – 5:38
4. "Judas" – 6:18
5. "Numbness" – 6:34
6. "I See Houses" (Ashcroft) – 5:37
7. "Noise Epic" – 8:13
8. "Valium Skies" (Ashcroft) – 4:34
9. "Columbo" – 7:30
10. "Appalachian Springs" (Ashcroft) – 7:33

The album contains two extra songs that are only on the LP: "Ma Ma Soul"and "Muhammad Ali."

Bonus track

• "Let the Damage Begin" – 4:09 (Amazon.com exclusive bonus track – live version from 2007 originally released as a B-side to "Love Is Noise")

Special edition DVD

• Space & Time: The Verve Documentary^[19]
• The Verve: Live at Coachella, April 2008^[19]
  1. "Sonnet"
  2. "This Is Music"
  3. "The Rolling People"
  4. "Lucky Man"
  5. "Love Is Noise"

B-sides and rarities

1. "The Thaw Session"
2. "Mover"
3. "Blue Pacific Ocean"
4. "Chic Dub"
5. "Love Is Noise (Tom Middleton Remix)"
6. "All Night Long"
7. "Major Force"
8. "Man Called Sun (Live Barrowlands Glasgow)"
9. "Let The Damage Begin (Live Barrowlands Glasgow)"

Personnel

The Verve Richard Ashcroft – vocals, acoustic guitars, keyboards Nick McCabe – lead guitar, keyboards, vibraphone, autoharp Simon Jones – bass guitar Peter Salisbury – drums, percussion

Additional personnel Davide Rossi – string arrangements, violins (tracks 1, 2, 3, 4, 6 and 8) The Verve – producer Cameron Jenkins – mixing, recording Chris Potter – producer, mixing, recording (tracks 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 8 and 10) Tim Bran – producer, mixing (tracks 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 9 and 10) Jazz Summers and Tim Parry for The Big Life Music Company – management Dean Chalkley – portrait photography Studio Fury – design & art direction

Charts

Charts (2008)	Peak position
UK Albums Chart	1
ARIA Top 50 Albums Chart	20
Austrian Albums Chart	11
Dutch Albums Chart	16
Irish Albums Chart[20]	2
Italian Albums Chart	4
Japanese Albums Chart[21]	10
New Zealand Top 40 Albums	10
Polish Albums Chart[22]	32
Portuguese Albums Chart	20
Swedish Albums Chart	34
Swiss Albums Chart[23]	6
US Billboard 200[15]	23

Release history

Country	Date	Label	Format	Catalog number
Germany	22 August 2008	EMI	CD Link
United Kingdom	25 August 2008	Parlophone	CD
			CD with bonus DVD[24]
			Double LP with bonus tracks[25]	5099923558410
			Luxury box set containing Double LP with bonus tracks,[25] CD and bonus DVD[24]
North America	26 August 2008	On Your Own Records	CD	VER01 / 0 20286 12522 8
Japan	3 September 2008	EMI Music Japan	CD with 2 bonus tracks ("Muhammad Ali" and "Ma Ma Soul")[26]	TOCP-66825
			CD with 2 bonus tracks[26] and bonus DVD[24]	TOCP-66824

References

1. Menhinnitt, Dan (20 October 2007). "The Verve record new tracks in Richmond studio". Richmond and Twickenham Times. Retrieved 26 August 2008.
2. Cohen, Jonathan (23 June 2008). "The Verve Readies First Album Since 1997". Billboard. Retrieved 30 June 2008.
3. "''Zane plays the new Verve single, avail until 30 Jun 08'". Bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 5 October 2011.
4. "A dark music webzine". Reflections of Darkness. 19 August 2008. Retrieved 5 October 2011.
5. Cohen, Jonathan. "The Verve Storms Back on Fourth Album". billboard.com. 1 August 2008.
6. Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. Forth (album) at AllMusic. Retrieved 20 June 2011.
7. Jones, Chris (8 August 2002). "The Verve Forth Review". BBC. Archived from the original on 20 June 2011. Retrieved 20 June 2011.
8. Costa, Maddy (22 August 2008). "Rock Review: The Verve, Forth". guardian.co.uk. Guardian Media Group. Retrieved 20 June 2011.
9. Stokes, Paul (14 August 2008). "The Verve – Forth". NME.com. IPC Media. Archived from the original on 20 June 2011. Retrieved 20 June 2011.
11. Q, August 2008
12. http://www.rollingstone.com/reviews/album/22684336/review/22694615/forth Archived 27 August 2008 at the Wayback Machine.
13. Wood, Mikael. "The Verve, 'Forth' (On Your Own/Megaforce)". SPIN.com. Retrieved 5 October 2011.
14. "Album review: The Verve – Forth – Review". Uncut.co.uk. Retrieved 5 October 2011.
15. Hasty, Katie. "Slipknot Edges The Game Atop Billboard 200". billboard.com. 3 September 2008.
16. "Forth British sales certification". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 21 January 2009.
17. Trust, Gary. "Ask Billboard: "English Beat". billboard.com. 23 January 2009.
18. "The 50 Best Albums of 2008". Q. January 2009: 81.
19. "Verve, The – Forth (CD, Album) at Discogs". Discogs.com. 26 August 2008. Retrieved 5 October 2011.
20. ">> IRMA << Irish Charts - Singles, Albums & Compilations >>". Irma.ie. 29 September 2011. Retrieved 5 October 2011.
21. "The Verve（ザ・ヴァーヴ）Official Web Site". Emimusic.jp. Retrieved 5 October 2011.
22. "OLiS: sales for the period 25.08.2008 – 31.08.2008". OLiS.
23. Love is Noise at Hitparade.ch (German)
24. "(UK) : The Verve – Forth (Special Edition CD & DVD book)". Play.com. Retrieved 5 October 2011.
25. "The Verve Forth UK DOUBLE LP (440105)". Eil.com. Retrieved 5 October 2011.
26. "The Verve Forth Japanese Edition". Cdjapan.co.jp. 22 July 2009. Retrieved 5 October 2011.

External links

• Forth at YouTube (streamed copy where licensed)