After the Fall (Mary Coughlan album)

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After the Fall
Studio album by
Mary Coughlan
Released1997
LabelBig Cat/V2[1]
ProducerErik Visser
Mary Coughlan chronology
Live in Galway
(1996) 		After the Fall
(1997) 		Long Honeymoon
(1999)

After the Fall is an album by the Irish musician Mary Coughlan, released in 1997.[2][3] It followed a tumultuous period in her life, after which she embraced sobriety.[4][5]

After the Fall was Coughlan's first studio album to be widely distributed in the United States.[6] A video was produced for "When I Am Laid in Earth", which was shot at Neil Jordan's former house.[7]

Production[edit]

Recorded in Ireland, the album was produced by Erik Visser.[8][9][10] The lyrics to "Dilemma" were based on a poem by Dorothy Parker.[11] "Saint Judy" was written by Marc Almond.[12] "Poison Words" is about domestic violence.[13] "When I Am Laid in Earth" is based on the composition by Henry Purcell.[14]

Critical reception[edit]

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[15]
The Buffalo News[4]
Robert Christgau(choice cut)[16]
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music[17]
MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide[9]
The State[5]

New Internationalist called "Woman Undone" "a stunningly well-wrought take on the lapsarian fable... Powered along by plucked strings and an airy, expansive feel, it's both wry and angry."[18] The Morning Call determined that Coughlan weaves "this chronicle of bouts with addiction and depression and the pain of divorce with coal-black humor."[19] Robert Christgau praised "Sunburn".[16]

Newsday stated: "A quietly smoldering singer whose authoritative voice is tinged with smoky traces of blues and jazz, Coughlan makes adult pop music about adult problems."[6] The Guardian concluded that "the enervated piano/sax backing is classic torch."[20] The St. Paul Pioneer Press deemed After the Fall "a stunning album that should be heard by anyone who thinks that the music industry doesn't have time for quality anymore and that 'women's music' is relegated to airbrushed pop and video-friendly babes."[21]

AllMusic wrote: "Inflected with whimsy, wonder and cynicism, Coughlan wends her way through torch songs and laments of women undone, men unemployed and the world in confusion."[15]

Track listing[edit]

No.TitleLength
1."Woman Undone" 
2."Sunburn" 
3."Still in Love" 
4."Lucy's Dream" 
5."John Fell Off the Work Around" 
6."Dilemma" 
7."Poison Words" 
8."Run Away Teddy" 
9."That Face" 
10."Nobody" 
11."The Black Crow" 
12."Saint Judy" 
13."When I Am Laid in Earth" 

References[edit]

  1. ^ Zwerin, Mike (28 May 1997). "Mary Coughlan's Long Road Back to Cult Status". Features. International Herald Tribune. p. 32.
  2. ^ "Mary Coughlan Biography, Songs, & Albums". AllMusic.
  3. ^ "Irish Torch Songs". NPR.
  4. ^ a b Violanti, Anthony (September 12, 1997). "Mary Coughlan has way of turning Irish blues and folk music...". The Buffalo News. p. G29.
  5. ^ a b Miller, Michael (March 13, 1998). "Mary Coughlan Survives to Sing Another Day". Weekend. The State. p. 12.
  6. ^ a b Young, Jon (14 Sep 1997). "Mary Coughlan 'After the Fall'". Newsday. p. D32.
  7. ^ Clayton Lea, Tony (March 7, 1997). "Taking Control". Culture. The Irish Times.
  8. ^ White, Declan (March 23, 1997). "The Biz". Features. Daily Mirror. p. 14.
  9. ^ a b MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide. Visible Ink Press. 1999. p. 277.
  10. ^ Verna, Paul (Aug 23, 1997). "After the Fall". Billboard. Vol. 109, no. 34. p. 91.
  11. ^ Morse, Steve (19 Sep 1997). "Kendall happening". The Boston Globe. p. E16.
  12. ^ Wolff, Carlo (6 Nov 1997). "Mary Coughlan After the Fall". Calendar. The Boston Globe. p. 27:3.
  13. ^ Hilpern, Kate (March 7, 1997). "A sober tale". The Independent.
  14. ^ Schieber, Curtis (January 8, 1998). "After the Fall, Mary Coughlan". Weekender. The Columbus Dispatch. p. 5.
  15. ^ a b "After the Fall". AllMusic.
  16. ^ a b "Mary Coughlan". Robert Christgau.
  17. ^ Larkin, Colin (2006). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Vol. 2. MUZE. p. 571.
  18. ^ "After the Fall by Mary Coughlan". New Internationalist. No. 290. May 1997. p. 32.
  19. ^ Righi, Len (27 Dec 1997). "1997: The Year in Pop Music: Best". The Morning Call. p. A33.
  20. ^ Sullivan, Caroline (5 Dec 1997). "Best Pop CDs". The Guardian. p. T27.
  21. ^ Walsh, Jim (August 2, 1997). "The Best of July". St. Paul Pioneer Press. p. 10D.
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