A Life of Sundays

"A Life of Sundays" is a song by the Scottish-Irish folk rock band The Waterboys, released in 1990 as a track on their fifth studio album Room to Roam. It was written by Mike Scott and produced by Barry Beckett and Scott.[1] In the United States, the song reached No. 15 on Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart and remained on the chart for nine weeks.[2]

"A Life of Sundays"
Song by The Waterboys
from the album Room to Roam
Released1990
Length6:18
LabelChrysalis
Ensign
Songwriter(s)Mike Scott
Producer(s)Barry Beckett
Mike Scott

Describing the song on the official Waterboys website, Scott said: "Across its six minute span, "A Life of Sundays" features rock 'n' roll, blues, soul, African, psychedelia, punk or glam, Irish literature and no-nonsense trad." The song was recorded at Spiddal House, Spiddal, County Galway, Ireland in 1990.[3]

Reception

In a review of Room to Roam, Bruce Dessau of The Guardian commented: ""A Life of Sundays", with its talk of a "sense of wonder", harks back to both the original Celtic pop mystic Van Morrison and the love-stricken metaphysical poets."[4] Neil McKay of Sunday Life said of the album: "It's all quite enjoyable in its own way, but the record only comes alive when Scott unobtrusively assimilates the folk influences in outstanding songs like "A Life of Sundays"."[5] John Mulvey of Uncut described the song as an "ecstatic rocker".[6]

John Milward of The Philadelphia Inquirer commented: "It's the frantic edge of Steve Wickham's fiddle that puts the adrenaline into ruminative rockers such as "A Life of Sundays"."[7] Gene Armstrong of the Arizona Daily Star commented: "With its 5-minute length, rumbling rhythm section, squawking horn and riffing guitars, "A Life of Sundays" is the album's rock single, if in fact this band cares about such things anymore."[8] Brant Houston of the Hartford Courant described the song as "semi-psychedelic" and "solely The Waterboys" in its style.[9]

Musician described the song as a "college radio-ready rocker" which "devolves into a wonderfully unwieldy guitar frenzy".[10] Mike Curtin of The Post-Star wrote: "Only on the most fully developed material, notably "Further Up, Further In" and "A Life of Sundays," do Scott and company fulfill their promise of a satisfying synthesis of traditional and modern styles."[11] Eric McClary of the Reno Gazette-Journal said: "Unfortunately, only "A Life of Sundays" comes close to the visionary wanderings of the last Waterboys album, Fisherman's Blues."[12]

Personnel

The Waterboys

Production

  • Barry Beckett, Mike Scott - producers
  • Tim Martin - engineer
  • Robbie Adams - assistant engineer

Charts
Chart (1990) Peak
position
US Billboard Modern Rock Tracks[2] 15

References
  1. AllMusic Review by James Christopher Monger. "Room to Roam - The Waterboys | Songs, Reviews, Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved 2019-06-15.
  2. Billboard. "The Waterboys A Life Of Sundays Chart History". Billboard. Retrieved 2019-06-15.
  3. "The Waterboys". Mikescottwaterboys.com. Retrieved 2019-06-15.
  4. Dessau, Bruce (14 September 1990). "Mike finds peace with his muse". The Guardian.
  5. McKay, Neil (21 October 1990). "Tracks of pure joy". Sunday Life.
  6. "The Waterboys - Room to Roam (Collectors Edition)". Uncut. Retrieved 2019-06-15.
  7. Milward, John (16 November 1990). "The Waterboys adopt Ireland and its sounds for new album". The Philadelphia Inquirer.
  8. Armstrong, Gene (2 November 1990). "Waterboys triumph in 'Room to Roam'". The Arizona Daily Star.
  9. Houston, Brant (25 October 1990). "Records: ZZ Top recycles classics from the past; diverse Midler LP". The Hartford Courant.
  10. "Musician - Google Books". Books.google.co.uk. 2010-05-26. Retrieved 2019-06-15.
  11. Curtin, Mike (28 October 1990). "Fall harvest yields bumper crop". The Post-Star.
  12. McClary, Eric (25 November 1990). "On the record". Reno Gazette-Journal.
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