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How to Save a Life

 
Album Review: How to Save a Life
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How to Save a Life

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  • Artist: The Fray
  • Rating: StarStarHalf Star
  • Release Date: September 13, 2005
  • Type: Lyrics are included with the album
  • Genre: Rock

Review

The Fray were among the first of the flood of bands that combined the influence of British neo-stadium acts like Coldplay and Keane, the retro-AOR bands of the mid-'90s -- chief among them Counting Crows and the Wallflowers -- and American emo-pop bands like Something Corporate and Jimmy Eat World. The Denver four-piece has the requisite piano and flag-waving choruses of the Brits, the slick sound and unfailing conservatism of the AOR bands, and the over-emoted vocals and confessional nature that are cornerstones of emo. All the songs on their debut, How to Save a Life, sound almost exactly alike and also exactly like you would expect -- sincere, melodic, authentic, and bereft of anything surprising or exciting. This doesn't make for the kind of record that people will want to listen to over and over again but for modern rock, it isn't half-bad. A couple of songs, like "Over My Head (Cable Car)" and "Dead Wrong," might even sound good in the background of a WB teen drama. ~ Tim Sendra, All Music Guide

Tracks

Track TitleComposersPerformersTime
She Is (Lyrics) Isaac Slade, Joe King The Fray (3:58)
Over My Head (Cable Car) Isaac Slade, Joe King The Fray (3:58)
How to Save a Life (Lyrics) Isaac Slade, Joe King The Fray (4:23)
All at Once (Lyrics) Isaac Slade, Joe King The Fray (3:48)
Fall Away (Lyrics) Isaac Slade, Joe King The Fray (4:23)
Heaven Forbid (Lyrics) Isaac Slade, Joe King The Fray (4:01)
Look After You (Lyrics) Isaac Slade, Joe King The Fray (4:28)
Hundred (Lyrics) Isaac Slade The Fray (4:14)
Vienna (Lyrics) Isaac Slade, Joe King The Fray (3:51)
Dead Wrong (Lyrics) Isaac Slade, Joe King The Fray (3:06)
Little House (Lyrics) Isaac Slade, Joe King The Fray (2:31)
Trust Me (Lyrics) Isaac Slade, Joe King The Fray (3:22)

Credits

Paul Mahern (Engineer), Paul Mahern (Digital Editing), Stephen Marcussen (Mastering), Mark Endert (Mixing), Greg Latterman (Management), Aaron Johnson (Producer), Aaron Johnson (Engineer), Warren Huart (Digital Editing), Mike Flynn (Producer), Mike Flynn (A&R), Michelle Holme (Art Direction), Alex Uychocde (Mixing Assistant), Kevin Loyal (Assistant Engineer), Nathan Johnson (Cover Art), Tim Hoagland (Engineer), Jason Ienner (Management), James Masterson (Assistant Engineer)
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Wikipedia: How to Save a Life
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Home > Library > Miscellaneous > Wikipedia
This article is about the album. For the song, see How to Save a Life (song).
How to Save a Life
by The Fray
Released September 13, 2005 (US)
April 20, 2007 (Europe)
April 21, 2007 (Australia)
April 23, 2007 (UK)
Recorded Echo Park Studios: 2004 - 2005
Genre Piano rock, pop rock
Length 45:49
Label Epic Records
Producer Aaron Johnson, Mike Flynn
Professional reviews
The Fray chronology
Reason EP
(2003)		 How to Save a Life
(2005)		 Live at the Electric Factory: Bootleg No. 1
(2006)

How to Save a Life is the first full-length studio album from Denver-based piano rock band The Fray. Released in North America and Oceania on September 13, 2005 by Epic Records, the album became a top 15 hit on the Billboard 200 and sold over 2 million copies. It became the best-selling digital album of all time in January 2007.[2] Four singles have been released from the album, and two of them have hit the top 10 of the Billboard Hot 100. "Over My Head (Cable Car)" peaked at number 8 and was also a top 25 hit in several other countries, while the song "How to Save a Life" hit the top three in the US. As of 2009, the album has sold over 4 million copies worldwide.

Contents

History

After independently releasing two EPs, The Fray were looking for a record company to release a full-length album. The band released their song "Cable Car" to Denver radio station KTCL, and the song saw significant airplay.[3] Denver alternative newsweekly Westword named the band "Best New Band" in 2004, and this prompted Epic Records A&R man Mike Flynn to sign the band to a recording contract on December 17, 2004.[4] The album was recorded over six weeks in Echo Park Studios in Bloomington, Indiana, and was produced by Aaron Johnson and Mike Flynn.

Critical reception

Overall, critical reception for the album was mixed to moderately positive. The piano-oriented sound of the album drew comparisons with British alternative rock bands such as Coldplay and Keane.[5][6] Rolling Stone, Blender, and Allmusic all gave the album three stars out of five.[6][7][8]

Track listing

All tracks co-written by Isaac Slade and Joe King except where stated.

  1. "She Is" (Slade, King) – 3:56
  2. "Over My Head (Cable Car)" (Slade, King) – 3:58
  3. "How to Save a Life" (Slade, King) – 4:23
  4. "All At Once" (Slade, King, Aaron Johnson) – 3:47
  5. "Fall Away" (Slade, King, Dan Battenhouse) – 4:23
  6. "Heaven Forbid" (Slade, King) – 3:59
  7. "Look After You" (Slade, King) – 4:28
  8. "Hundred" (Slade) – 4:13
  9. "Vienna" (Slade, King, Dan Battenhouse) – 3:51
  10. "Dead Wrong" (Slade, King) – 3:05
  11. "Little House" (Slade, King) – 2:30
  12. "Trust Me" (Slade, King) – 3:22

In later editions an extra track was added:

13. "Unsaid" (Slade, King) – 3:04

Bonus CD

  1. "Over My Head (Cable Car)" - Live at the Gothic (05.20.05)
  2. "How to Save a Life" - Live for MTV.com & VH1.com (07.14.05)
  3. "Look After You" - Live at Red Rocks (08.12.05)
  4. "Heaven Forbid" - Live at Red Rocks (08.12.05)

Bonus DVD

  1. How to Save a Life - The story.
  2. On The Road '06 - documentary.
  3. "Over My Head (Cable Car)" music video.
  4. The Making of "Over My Head (Cable Car)" music video.
    • Total running time: approximately 45 minutes.

Personnel

  • Isaac Slade — lead vocals, piano.
  • Joe King — guitar, backing vocals, lead vocals on "Heaven Forbid."
  • Dave Welsh — lead guitar.
  • Ben Wysocki — drums, percussion.
  • Aaron Johnson - Production, Engineering.
  • Mike Flynn - Production, Artist & Repertoire.
  • James Masterton & Kevin Loyal - Assistance.
  • Tim Hoagland - Engineering.
  • Mark Endert & Alex Uychocde - Mixing.
  • Paul Mahern & Warren Huart - Pro tools editing.
  • Warren Huart - Engineering.
  • Stephen Marcussen - Mastering.
  • Nathan Johnson - Artwork.
  • Michelle Holme - Art Direction.
  • Zack Johnson - Hand Lettering.
  • Jason Ienner & Gregg Latterman - Management.
  • Jimmy Stofer - Bass.
  • Rod Blackhurst - Director & Cinematographer On the Road '06 Documentary.

Singles

Charts

Album

Year Chart Position
2006 ARIA Australian Albums Chart 1 (Platinum)
2006 New Zealand Albums Chart 2 (Platinum)
2007 UK Album Charts 4 (Platinum)
2007 Irish Album Charts 4
2006 Canadian Albums Chart 9 (Platinum)[9]
2006 The Billboard 200 14 (2x Platinum)
2007 Belgium Albums Chart 47
2007 Dutch Albums Chart 50
2007 Swiss Albums Chart 57
2007 Spanish Albums Chart 21
2007 Italian Albums Chart 85
2007 French Album Chart 86

Singles

Year Single Chart Position
2005 "Over My Head (Cable Car)" Modern Rock Tracks 37
2006 "Over My Head (Cable Car)" The Billboard Hot 100 8
2006 "Over My Head (Cable Car)" Pop 100 8
2006 "Over My Head (Cable Car)" Adult Contemporary 16
2006 "How to Save a Life" The Billboard Hot 100 3
2006 "How to Save a Life" Pop 100 4
2006 "How to Save a Life" Modern Rock Tracks 31
2006 "How to Save a Life" Adult Top 40 1
2006 "How to Save a Life" Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks 1
2007 "Look After You" The Billboard Hot 100 59
2007 "Look After You" Pop 100 49
2007 "Look After You" Adult Top 40 12
2007 "All at Once" Adult Top 40 29

Samples
"How to Save a Life"
Sample of "How to Save a Life"
"Over My Head (Cable Car)"
Sample of "Over My Head (Cable Car)"
Problems listening to these files? See media help.

Uses in Media

References

  1. ^ Callaway, Chris (January/February 2007). "The Fray How to Save a Life". HM Magazine (123): 64. ISSN 1066-6923. 
  2. ^ "The Fray: 'How To Save A Life' Now The Biggest Selling Digital Album Of All Time!". Sony BMG. http://www.sonybmg.com.au/news/details.do?newsId=20030829004122. 
  3. ^ Smith, Dane (March 30, 2006). "The Fray Live the High "Life"". Rolling Stone. http://www.rollingstone.com/news/story/9550361/the_fray_live_the_high_life. 
  4. ^ "Completely Frayed". Longmont Daily Times-Call. May 12, 2006. 
  5. ^ Gardner, Elysa (July 12, 2006). "Debut 'How to Save a Life' takes on a life of its own". USA Today. http://www.usatoday.com/life/music/news/2006-07-12-otv-the-fray_x.htm. 
  6. ^ a b "Review: The Fray - How to Save a Life". Rolling Stone. September 22, 2005. http://www.rollingstone.com/reviews/album/7568270/how_to_save_a_life. 
  7. ^ Hunter, James (November 2005). "Review: The Fray - How to Save a Life". Blender. 
  8. ^ Sendra, Tim. "Review: The Fray - How to Save a Life". http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=10:zyd3vwrwa9qk.  Last accessed October 23, 2006
  9. ^ CRIA Gold & Platinum certifications for January 2007. Retrieved July 25, 2007.

External links

Preceded by
Extreme Behavior by Hinder		 Australian ARIA Albums Chart number-one album
March 5 - March 18, 2007		 Succeeded by
Grand National by The John Butler Trio
v • d • e
The Fray
Isaac Slade · Joe King · Dave Welsh · Ben Wysocki
Studio albums
How to Save a Life · The Fray
Live albums
EPs
Singles
Other songs
Related articles

This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)

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Album Review. Copyright © 2009 All Media Guide, LLC. Content provided by All Music Guide ®, a trademark of All Media Guide, LLC. All rights reserved.  Read more
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