The Seldom Seen Kid
| The Seldom Seen Kid | ||||
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| Studio album by Elbow | ||||
| Released | 17 March 2008 | |||
| Recorded | 2006–2008 at Blueprint Studios, Manchester | |||
| Genre | Alternative rock, art rock | |||
| Length | 54:32 | |||
| Label | Fiction, Polydor, Geffen | |||
| Producer | Craig Potter, Elbow | |||
| Elbow chronology | ||||
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| Singles from The Seldom Seen Kid | ||||
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| Professional ratings | |
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| Aggregate scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Metacritic | 82/100 |
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   |
| The A.V. Club | B+ |
| The Guardian | |
| The Independent | |
| NME | 9/10 |
| Pitchfork Media | 7.8/10 |
| Q | |
| Spin | |
| The Times | |
| Uncut | |
| The Seldom Seen Kid Live at Abbey Road | ||||
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| Live album by Elbow | ||||
| Released | 30 March 2009 | |||
| Recorded | 17 January 2009 Abbey Road Studios |
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| Genre | Alternative rock | |||
| Length | 59:11 | |||
| Label | Fiction/Polydor | |||
| Producer | Elbow | |||
| Elbow chronology | ||||
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The Seldom Seen Kid is the fourth studio album by English rock band Elbow. It was released by Fiction Records on 17 March 2008 in the United Kingdom and was released by Geffen Records on 22 April 2008 in the United States. The album debuted at number five on the UK Albums Chart and won the Mercury Prize in 2008.
The album was recorded at Blueprint Studios in Manchester, and is the first Elbow album to be entirely self-produced, mixed and recorded without any outside help. The bulk of the record was written and performed by the band, aside from a guest appearance from singer-songwriter Richard Hawley, who contributes guest vocals, lead guitar and co-songwriting on "The Fix". The Seldom Seen Kid also incorporated dynamic range and made note of this in its packaging, by promoting Turn Me Up! in the album's packaging.
The title of the album is taken from one of the characters who appears in US author Damon Runyon's humorous, idiosyncratic tales of gangster life on New York's Broadway in the 1920s. In addition to appearing as a lyric within the album's first single, "Grounds for Divorce", The Seldom Seen Kid is also a nickname, given by Guy Garvey's father, to Bryan Glancy, a fellow Mancunian musician and friend of the band who died suddenly in 2006. The closing track, "Friend of Ours", as well as the liner notes of the album, are dedicated in his memory.
The album debuted at number five on the UK Albums Chart, the highest charting position of the band's career so far. The album was released in the UK in three versions: a regular CD in a super-jewel box, a digipack CD (both with one bonus track, "We're Away") and a double 12" vinyl LP.
The song "Grounds for Divorce" was featured in a TV ad for the video game Left 4 Dead. It is also featured in the trailer for the 2008 Coen Brothers film Burn After Reading. Samples of the song are also featured on the motoring series Top Gear. Furthermore, "Grounds For Divorce" has also been featured in a promo-ad for the 6th season of the hit TV-show House, as well as the Rescue Me season 5 episode Jump on 25 August 2009. It was also featured in the soundtrack for Colin McRae: Dirt 2. "Grounds For Divorce" was also a background track in the 2011 season finale of "In Plain Sight" on USA Network. The song also appears on the soundtrack for the video game Driver: San Francisco in 2011.
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