Puneet Varma (Editor)

A Rock in the Weary Land

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Recorded
  
1998–2000

Release date
  
25 September 2000

Label
  
RCA Records

Artist
  
The Waterboys

Producer
  
Mike Scott

Genre
  
Rock music

A Rock in the Weary Land httpsuploadwikimediaorgwikipediaenbbeAR

Released
  
25 September 2000 (2000-09-25)

A Rock in the Weary Land (2000)
  
Too Close to Heaven (2002)

Similar
  
The Waterboys albums, Rock music albums

The waterboys let it happen


A Rock in the Weary Land was an album released in 2000 (see 2000 in music) by The Waterboys. It was their first album after a seven-year break. The album cover photography is by Steve Gullick.

Contents

Critic John Mulvey, writing for NME, describes the album as "largely excellent" except for "We Are Jonah", which he describes as "appallingly cheery Christian rock".

The waterboys let it happen


Track listing

All songs written by Mike Scott, unless otherwise noted.

  1. "Let It Happen" – 6:20
  2. "My Love Is My Rock in the Weary Land" – 8:16
  3. "It's All Gone" – 2:15
  4. "Is She Conscious?" – 4:41
  5. "We Are Jonah" – 5:08
  6. "Malediction" – 4:16
  7. "Dumbing Down the World" – 3:06
  8. "His Word Is Not His Bond" – 3:59
  9. "Night Falls on London" – 0:48
  10. "The Charlatan's Lament" – 6:52
  11. "The Wind in the Wires" – 5:33
  12. "Crown" – 7:04

Extra tracks release

A North American version of the album with two extra tracks was released August 21, 2001.

  1. "Let It Happen" – 6:20
  2. "The Charlatan's Lament" – 6:52
  3. "Is She Conscious?" – 4:41
  4. "We Are Jonah" – 5:08
  5. "It's All Gone" – 2:15
  6. "My Love Is My Rock in the Weary Land" – 8:16
  7. "Lucky Day/Bad Advice" (Grant, Scott) – 3:06
  8. "His Word Is Not His Bond" – 3:59
  9. "Malediction" – 4:16
  10. "Dumbing Down the World" – 3:06
  11. "The Wind in the Wires" – 5:33
  12. "Night Falls on London" – 0:48
  13. "Crown" – 7:04
  14. "My Lord What a Morning" (Harry Belafonte, Cormun, Okun) – 2:27

Japanese editions

The standard Japanese release of the album contains the songs "Time, Space and the Bride's Bed", "Trouble Down Yonder" and "Send Him Down to Waco", but not "My Lord What a Morning".

A limited two-disc edition was also issued in Japan by BMG International. The track list of the first disc is identical to the standard track list, above. The track list of the second disc, which is entitled "The Weary Land EP", is as follows:

  1. "Lucky Day/Bad Advice" – 3:14
  2. "Time, Space, and the Bride's Bed" – 5:38
  3. "Trouble Down Yonder" – 1:05
  4. "Send Him Down to Waco" – 7:34

Singles

Prior to the album's release, BMG issued a six-track EP containing the single "Is She Conscious?". The single also contained a video for the song.

  1. "Is She Conscious?" – 4:51
  2. "Sad Procession" – 7:22
  3. "The Faeries' Prisoner" – 2:10
  4. "Is She Conscious?" (Acoustic) – 4:31
  5. "Savage Earth Heart" (Sound-Desk Recording) – 16:01
  6. "My Lord, What A Morning" – 2:27

BMG also issued and almost immediately recalled two singles each (separately packaged) for "A Rock in the Weary Land" and "We Are Jonah". These are considered collector's items by some Waterboys fans and command high resale prices.

Personnel

  • Gilad Atzmon – saxophone
  • Paul Beavis – drums
  • Livingston Brown - bass guitar
  • Jody Linscott – drums
  • The London Community Gospel Choir
  • Cameron Miller – bass guitar
  • Richard Naiff – piano
  • Claire Nicholson - background vocals
  • Dave Ruffy – tambourine, drum programming
  • Mike Scott – organ, synthesizer, acoustic guitar, piano, electric guitar, vocals, bellzouki
  • Robin Scott – background vocals
  • Mark Smith – bass guitar
  • Jeremy Stacey – drums
  • Rowan Stigner – drum programming
  • Chris Taggart - drums
  • Thighpaulsandra – synthesizer, trumpet, keyboards, mellotron
  • Anthony Thistlethwaite – mandolin, slide mandolin
  • Kevin Wilkinson – drums
  • Songs

    1Let It Happen6:21
    2My Love Is My Rock in the Weary Land8:16
    3It's All Gone2:16

    References

    A Rock in the Weary Land Wikipedia