Acoustic Hymns Vol 1

Acoustic Hymns Vol 1
Studio album by
Richard Ashcroft
Released29 October 2021 (2021-10-29)
Recorded2020–2021
StudioAbbey Road Studios, London
GenreAlternative rock, pop rock
Length60:35
Label
  • BMG
  • Righteous Phonographic Association
Producer
Richard Ashcroft chronology
Natural Rebel
(2018) 		Acoustic Hymns Vol 1
(2021) 		Lovin' You
(2025)
Singles from Acoustic Hymns Vol 1
  1. "Bitter Sweet Symphony (Edit)"
    Released: 8 September 2021
  2. "This Thing Called Life (Edit)"
    Released: 22 September 2021
  3. "C'mon People (We're Making It Now)"
    Released: 21 November 2021
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
The Line of Best Fit7/10[1]
NMEStarStarStar[2]
Under the Radar7.5/10[3]

Acoustic Hymns Vol 1 is the sixth studio album by English singer and musician Richard Ashcroft. The album was released on 29 October 2021 through Righteous Phonographic Association and BMG Rights Management. Ashcroft's longtime collaborator Chris Potter returned for production duties after not being involved on the previous album Natural Rebel. The album consists of new versions of songs from Ashcroft's back catalogue, spanning both his solo career and his time with the Verve, mainly from 1997's Urban Hymns. The album debuted at number two on the UK Albums Chart, Ashcroft's highest chart position since 2006's Keys to the World.

Background

This project started after the COVID-19 pandemic was over, bringing Ashcroft's regular collaborators together again. Some of the songs maintained their original arrangements, while other songs took on new approaches. The album was produced by Ashcroft with regular collaborator Chris Potter. It featured his regular live band with some special collaborators. Wil Malone provided the string arrangements, recorded at Abbey Road Studios. Chuck Leavell (The Allman Brothers, The Rolling Stones) performed piano, Roddy Bloomfield lead the brass section and Steve Wyreman contributed with acoustic guitar and backing vocals.[4] Liam Gallagher provides co-lead vocals on "C'mon People (We're Making It Now)".

Track listing

All tracks are written by Richard Ashcroft.

Acoustic Hymns Vol 1 track listing
No.TitleLength
1."Bitter Sweet Symphony"7:11
2."A Song for the Lovers"5:06
3."Sonnet"4:20
4."C'mon People (We're Making It Now)" (featuring Liam Gallagher)4:55
5."Weeping Willow"4:06
6."Lucky Man"4:38
7."This Thing Called Life"5:27
8."Space & Time"5:00
9."Velvet Morning"5:03
10."Break the Night with Colour"4:34
11."One Day"4:35
12."The Drugs Don't Work"5:40
Total length:60:35

Personnel

Credits adapted from Tidal.[5]

  • Richard Ashcroft – lead vocals, production, engineering (all tracks); piano (tracks 1–7, 9, 11, 12), acoustic guitar (1–3, 6, 9–11), guitar (5, 8), percussion (5–7, 10–12), keyboards (7, 10), sleeve design
  • Chris Potter – production, engineering (all tracks); percussion (1, 2, 4, 7, 10, 12), bass (4)
  • Miles Showell – mastering
  • John Barrett – engineering
  • Ramera Abraham – engineering
  • Rob Evans – piano engineering
  • Chris Parker – studio assistance
  • Kayla Hopkins – coordination
  • Tori Sunnucks – coordination
  • Steve Sidelnyk – drums, percussion, artwork
  • Kate Lamont – backing vocals
  • Steve Wyreman – acoustic guitar (1–4, 6–11); bass, piano (7)
  • Ben Trigg – strings conductor (1–4, 6, 9, 12), cimbalom (2), cello (4, 8–11)
  • Wil Malone – arrangement (1–4, 6, 9, 12)
  • Chris Worsey – cello (1–4, 6, 9, 12)
  • Ian Burdge – cello (1–4, 6, 9, 12)
  • Nerys Richards – cello (1–4, 6, 9, 12)
  • Bruce White – viola (1–4, 6, 9, 12)
  • Reiad Chibah – viola (1–4, 6, 9, 12)
  • Triona Milne – viola (1–4, 6, 9, 12)
  • Marianne Haynes – violin (1–4, 6, 9, 12), string coordination
  • Charlie Brown – violin (1–4, 6, 9, 12)
  • Ciaran McCabe – violin (1–4, 6, 9, 12)
  • Debbie Widdup – violin (1–4, 6, 9, 12)
  • Everton Nelson – violin (1–4, 6, 9, 12)
  • Jackie Shave – violin (1–4, 6, 9, 12)
  • Natalia Bonner – violin (1–4, 6, 9, 12)
  • Oli Langford – violin (1–4, 6, 9, 12)
  • Patrick Kiernan – violin (1–4, 6, 9, 12)
  • Phillip Granell – violin (1–4, 6, 9, 12)
  • Tom Piggot-Smith – violin (1–4, 6, 9, 12)
  • Effie Zilch – backing vocals (1–4, 7, 8)
  • Miko Marks – backing vocals (1–4, 7, 8)
  • Damon Minchella – bass (1–3, 5, 6, 8–11)
  • Laurence Ungless – bass (1–3, 6, 9)
  • Chuck Leavell – piano (1, 2, 12)
  • Sonny Ashcroft – acoustic guitar (1, 3, 6)
  • Adam Phillips – acoustic guitar (2–4, 6, 8–10)
  • Dominic Glover – trumpet (2, 8, 10)
  • Liam Gallagher – featured vocals (4)
  • Justin Phipps – tambourine (4)
  • Jim Hunt – saxophone (8, 10)
  • Trevor Mires – trombone (8, 10)
  • Amy May – viola (9)
  • Wolfie Kutner – sleeve photo

Charts

Chart performance for Acoustic Hymns Vol 1
Chart (2021) Peak
position
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[6] 64
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[7] 60
French Albums (SNEP)[8] 194
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[9] 37
Irish Albums (OCC)[10] 23
Scottish Albums (OCC)[11] 2
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[12] 39
UK Albums (OCC)[13] 2

References

  1. ^ Macadie, Kieran (27 October 2021). "Richard Ashcroft pleases die hard fans with the blissful Acoustic Hymns Vol 1". The Line of Best Fit. Retrieved 18 November 2022.
  2. ^ Jones, Damian (29 October 2021). "Richard Ashcroft – Acoustic Hymns Vol. 1 review: stripped-back re-imaginings of indie classics". NME. Retrieved 18 November 2022.
  3. ^ Berlyant, Matthew (24 November 2021). "Richard Ashcroft – Acoustic Hymns Vol 1". Under the Radar. Retrieved 18 November 2022.
  4. ^ "Acoustic Hymns Vol. 1". 29 October 2021.
  5. ^ "Acoustic Hymns, Vol. 1 / Richard Ashchroft / Credits". Tidal. Retrieved 5 October 2025.
  6. ^ "Austriancharts.at – Richard Ashcroft – Acoustic Hymns Vol 1" (in German). Hung Medien.
  7. ^ "Ultratop.be – Richard Ashcroft – Acoustic Hymns Vol 1" (in French). Hung Medien.
  8. ^ "Lescharts.com – Richard Ashcroft – Acoustic Hymns Vol 1". Hung Medien.
  9. ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – Richard Ashcroft – Acoustic Hymns Vol 1" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts.
  10. ^ "Official Irish Albums Chart on 5/11/2021 – Top 50". Official Charts Company.
  11. ^ "Official Scottish Albums Chart on 5/11/2021 – Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 23 December 2022.
  12. ^ "Swisscharts.com – Richard Ashcroft – Acoustic Hymns Vol 1". Hung Medien.
  13. ^ "Official Albums Chart on 5/11/2021 – Top 100". Official Charts Company.
allikas: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acoustic_Hymns_Vol_1