50 Song Memoir

50 Song Memoir
50 Song Memoir album cover
Studio album by The Magnetic Fields
Released March 10, 2017 (2017-03-10)
Genre Indie pop
Length 2:30:15
Label Nonesuch
Producer Stephin Merritt
Thomas Bartlett
Charles Newman
The Magnetic Fields chronology
Love at the Bottom of the Sea
(2012)		 50 Song Memoir
(2017)

50 Song Memoir is the eleventh studio album by American indie pop band The Magnetic Fields, released on March 10, 2017. 50 Song Memoir is an autobiographical concept album that chronicles the first fifty years of lyricist Stephin Merritt's life, with one song for each year that he has lived.[1]

Recording

Stephin Merritt began recording on his fiftieth birthday on February 9th, 2015. The album was produced by Merritt with additional production by Thomas Bartlett and Charles Newman. Merritt sings on all fifty tracks.

Tour

The fully staged live shows in support of 50 Song Memoir are directed by José Zayas.[2] The Magnetic Fields have been expanded to include an additional three musicians for the tour, with each of the seven playing seven different instruments. On the tour the band play the entirety of 50 Song Memoir in two halves across two nights at each venue.[3]

Release

50 Song Memoir is available in five-L.P. and five-C.D. editions that include an interview by Daniel Handler and facsimile handwritten lyrics by Stephin Merritt, and as a bound book.

Reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic86/100[4]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[5]
The A.V. ClubA−[6]
The Guardian[7]
The Independent[8]
Mojo[9]
The Observer[10]
Pitchfork7.4/10[11]
Q[12]
Uncut9/10[13]
ViceA−[14]

Upon release, the album received near universal acclaim, with the average critical score being a 86 out of 100 according to review aggregator website Metacritic.[4]

Accolades

Publication Accolade Year Rank Ref.
Uncut Albums of the Year 2017
67

Track listing

All tracks written by Stephin Merritt.

Personnel

The Magnetic Fields

Additional personnel

Charts

Chart (2017) Peak
position
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[16] 155
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[17] 77
Portuguese Albums (AFP)[18] 29
Scottish Albums (OCC)[19] 96

References

  1. ↑ "The Magnetic Fields 50 Song Memoir". Nonesuch. 17 November 2016. Retrieved 18 November 2016.
  2. ↑ "Magnetic Fields Roll Out 2017 US Tour Schedule for 50 Song Memoir". The House of Tomorrow. 18 October 2016. Retrieved 18 November 2016.
  3. ↑ Yoo, Noah (20 October 2016). "The Magnetic Fields Announce Tour". Pitchfork. Retrieved 18 November 2016.
  4. 1 2 "Reviews for 50 Song Memoir by Magnetic Fields". Metacritic. Retrieved March 24, 2017.
  5. ↑ Deming, Mark. "50 Song Memoir – Magnetic Fields". AllMusic. Retrieved March 12, 2017.
  6. ↑ Colburn, Randall (March 3, 2017). "Stephin Merritt is his charming, morose self on The Magnetic Fields' sprawling, autobiographical 50 Song Memoir". The A.V. Club. Retrieved March 12, 2017.
  7. ↑ Simpson, Dave (March 9, 2017). "The Magnetic Fields: 50 Song Memoir review – Stephin Merritt's richly observed life". The Guardian. Retrieved March 12, 2017.
  8. ↑ Gill, Andy (March 8, 2017). "Album reviews: The Shins – Heartworms, The Magnetic Fields – 50 Song Memoir, Valerie June – The Order of Time and more". The Independent. Retrieved March 12, 2017.
  9. ↑ Farber, Jim (April 2017). "Fifty shades darker". Mojo (281): 94.
  10. ↑ Empire, Kitty (March 12, 2017). "The Magnetic Fields: 50 Song Memoir review – the joys are many". The Observer. Retrieved March 12, 2017.
  11. ↑ Sodomsky, Sam (March 6, 2017). "The Magnetic Fields: 50 Song Memoir". Pitchfork. Retrieved March 12, 2017.
  12. ↑ Harrison, Ian (April 2017). "The Magnetic Fields: 50 Song Memoir". Q (370): 115.
  13. ↑ Anderson, Jason (April 2017). "The Magnetic Fields: 50 Song Memoir". Uncut (239): 32.
  14. ↑ Christgau, Robert (March 24, 2017). "Stephin Merritt's Exceptional Life and Janet Weiss's Genius: Expert Witness with Robert Christgau". Vice. Retrieved March 24, 2017.
  15. ↑ "Uncut's 75 Best Albums of 2017". Uncut. November 21, 2017. Retrieved November 21, 2017.
  16. ↑ "Ultratop.be – The Magnetic Fields – 50 Song Memoir" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved March 18, 2017.
  17. ↑ "Offiziellecharts.de – The Magnetic Fields – 50 Song Memoir" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved March 18, 2017.
  18. ↑ "Portuguesecharts.com – The Magnetic Fields – 50 Song Memoir". Hung Medien. Retrieved March 23, 2017.
  19. ↑ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved March 18, 2017.
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