When songstress Corinne Bailey Rae released her sashaying single "Put Your Records On" in her native U.K. it was a feel-good adult alternative phenomenon -- a kind of Norah Jones, Joss Stone, David Gray, or Macy Gray phenomenon. One listen to her breakout soft soul anthem and it's easy to hear why, since Rae is a mix of all the above but not a contrived one concocted by some major label's scientist. Her self-titled debut sounds a wee rushed and sometimes meanders its way into background music territory, but this comfortable effort is pleasingly homegrown, warm, and poignant in parts, especially when Rae doesn't weaken her strong lyrics with space-filling "doo de do do do"s and "mmmmmmm"s. So if she doesn't make an Alicia Keys-size splash with her debut, she's still a breath of fresh air, and hardly a one-hit wonder. It's risky to open an album with a lazy ballad, but the great "Like a Star" paints Rae as Billie Holiday's pop-influenced granddaughter. Mellowing Style Council or Brand New Heavies fans should dig "Trouble Sleeping," while "Butterfly" beautifully captures the full range of emotions that come with leaving the nest. The well-written and direct "Butterfly" suggests Rae could release a more accomplished full-length someday, but attention to "feel" often seems like the driving force in this album's creation. Adjust your expectations accordingly and Rae's languid debut is very rewarding. ~ David Jeffries, All Music Guide
Jess Bailey (Organ (Hammond)), Jess Bailey (Wurlitzer), John Beck (Keyboards), Rod Bowkett (Guitar (Acoustic)), Rod Bowkett (Bass), Rod Bowkett (Producer), Tommy D (Keyboards), Tommy D (Drum Programming), Andrew Hale (Programming), Andrew Hale (Producer), Andrew Hale (Piano (Grand)), Kenji Jammer (Guitar (Acoustic)), Kenji Jammer (Guitar (Electric)), Peter Lewinson (Drums), The London Session Orchestra (Strings), Mike Pela (Mixing), Gavyn Wright (Orchestra Director), Gavyn Wright (String Director), Yvonne Ellis (Programming), Yvonne Ellis (Engineer), Jeremy Wheatley (Mixing), Will Malone (String Arrangements), Will Malone (String Conductor), Steve Brown (Organ (Hammond)), Steve Brown (Vocals (Background)), Steve Brown (Producer), Steve Brown (Engineer), Steve Brown (Fender Rhodes), Steve Brown (Wurlitzer), Steve Brown (Jupiter), Darren Lewis (Artwork), Cara Robinson (Vocals (Background)), Ian Duncan (Engineer), Aubrey Nunn (Guitar (Bass)), Tommy D. (Keyboards), Tommy D. (Producer), Tommy D. (Drum Programming), Tommy D. (Mixing), Steve Bush (Bass), Steve Bush (Guitar (Electric)), Steve Bush (Programming), Steve Bush (Producer), Paul Herman (Guitar (Acoustic)), Paul Herman (Guitar), Paul Herman (Guitar (Electric)), Paul Herman (Producer), Paul Herman (Engineer), Paul Herman (Drum Programming), Paul Herman (Mixing), Malcolm Strachan (Trumpet), Jimmy Hogarth (Producer), Jason Rae (Flute), Jason Rae (Sax (Alto)), Jason Rae (Sax (Baritone)), Daniel Hope (Engineer), Corinne Bailey Rae (Guitar (Acoustic)), Corinne Bailey Rae (Bass), Corinne Bailey Rae (Percussion), Corinne Bailey Rae (Piano), Corinne Bailey Rae (Guitar (Electric)), Corinne Bailey Rae (Keyboards), Corinne Bailey Rae (Vocals), Corinne Bailey Rae (Vocals (Background)), Corinne Bailey Rae (Moog Synthesizer), Corinne Bailey Rae (Spanish Guitar), Jim Corry (Sax (Tenor)), Steve Chrisanthou (Organ), Steve Chrisanthou (Percussion), Steve Chrisanthou (Piano), Steve Chrisanthou (Guitar (Electric)), Steve Chrisanthou (Programming), Steve Chrisanthou (Producer), Steve Chrisanthou (Engineer), Steve Chrisanthou (Spanish Guitar), Steve Chrisanthou (Mixing), Steve Chrisanthou (Horn Samples)
Corinne Bailey Rae is the eponymous debut album by English singer-songwriter Corinne Bailey Rae, released in the United Kingdom and Ireland in February 2006 and in continental Europe in March 2006. It went straight in at number one on both the UK Albums Chart and the UK R&B Albums Chart.
"Like a Star" was the lead single off the album. It was released in a limited-edition format in 2005, peaking inside the UK Singles Chart at number thirty-four. The second single, "Put Your Records On", went straight to number two in February 2006 and also hit number one on the UK R&B Singles chart. The follow-up single, "Trouble Sleeping", was released in May 2006, peaking at number forty in the UK and the fourth single was a re-release of "Like a Star", which peaked at thirty-two. The fifth single (fourth song released as a single) was "I'd Like To", released in the UK on 12 February 2007. Also on this date, the album was re-released with a bonus disc including some of the B-sides and remixes used on previous singles, as well as three new tracks, one of which, a cover of Björk's 1993 song "Venus as a Boy", which only previously appeared on a covermount for Q magazine. Several songs from the album appear in the 2006 film Venus starring Peter O'Toole.
The album was the UK's thirteenth best-selling album in 2006, with sales of over 739,000 copies.[1] Rae's Live in London & New York official website announced that the album has sold over three million copies worldwide.[2] The album was featured in an episode of Scrubs being sold by the Janitor at Coffeebucks.
