Eliza Doolittle is the debut album by British recording artist Eliza Doolittle. It was released by Parlophone Records on 12 July 2010 in the United Kingdom. The first single, "Skinny Genes", was released on 11 April 2010. The second single, "Pack Up", was released on 5 July 2010. The album was released in the United States on 19 April 2011.
Critical reception
Upon release, Eliza Doolittle received positive reviews from music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album has an average score of 68 based on 6 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews". Michael Hann, writing for The Guardian, called Eliza Doolittle "a coherent and effortless-sounding debut album [...] It's a delicious soufflé [...] that feels as light as air, melting on your tongue. Admittedly, that also means that as soon as it is over it has disappeared without a trace, but do picnic soundtracks really need to be weighed down with pretensions to significance?" Steve Horowitz from PopMatters fount that the album "mostly succeeds. The baker's dozen worth of tracks here are delightfully sweet, if maybe a bit light in content. This is ear candy that's meant to be pleasing rather than personal, and avoids political or controversial topics."
AllMusic editor by Jon O'Brien found that the "formula of brush-stroke percussion, bluesy guitars, and light airy melodies is repeated throughout the entire 13 tracks, but Doolittle's timeless and effortlessly dreamy tones make the slight repetitiveness a lot easier to endure [...] While its relentless chirpiness may be a little too twee for some, Eliza Doolittle is still a beguiling debut that would undoubtedly have found an audience even without the benefit of her showbiz background." Fraser McAlpine of BBC wrote that "if you can handle a lot of wacky in your pop music, there's a lovely album here waiting for you."
Chart performance Eliza Doolitte peaked at number three on the UK Albums Chart. On 7 January 2011, it was announced by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) that the album had been certified Platinum for sales of 300,000 in the UK.
Track listing
Notes "Missing" features a sample from the 1959 The Fleetwoods hit "Come Softly to Me" "Pack Up" features uncredited vocals from Lloyd Wade and contains elements of "Pack Up Your Troubles in Your Old Kit-Bag"
Personnel
Eliza Doolittle – lead vocals, composer, original concept George Asaf – composer Avigail – stylist John Beck – composer, keyboards Andy Bradfield – mixing Ian Brudge – cello Steve Chrisanthou – bass, composer, engineer, guitar, mixing, producer, programming Lauren Christy – composer Pete Davis – programming Craigie Dodds – bass, composer, drums, guitar, keyboards, mixing, piano, producer, programming, ukulele, backing vocals, whistle Grippa – mixing Mads Hauge – bass, composer, engineer, hand clapping, mandolin, maracas, melodica, producer, whistle Simon Helm – art direction, design Dean James – engineer, percussion Will Johnstone – composer, engineer, mellotron Jonny $. – bass, composer, guitar, mixing, percussion, producer Greg Kurstin – composer, engineer, guitar, keyboards, mixing, producer, programming Arnulf Lindner – double bass Tom Meadows – drums Jimmy Napes – mixing, producer James Napier – bass, composer, drums, guitar Jake Newman – double bass Felix Powell – composer Matt Prime – composer, guitar, keyboards, mixing, producer, programming, backing vocals Dan Sanders – art direction Ash Soan – drums The PSM – drums, percussion Liz Taw – hair stylist Phil Thornalley – composer, glockenspiel, guitar, handclapping, piano, producer Lloyd Wade – vocals Andy Whitton – photography Paul Williams – guitar Tim Woodcock – composer, backing vocals Christian Wright – mastering
Charts
Weekly charts Chart (2010)PeakpositionCanada (Canoe)89
Year-end charts Chart (2010)PositionUK Albums (OCC)44Chart (2011)PositionUK Albums (OCC)74
Certifications
Release history + List of release dates, showing region, formats, label, and editions Region Date Format(s) Label Edition United Kingdom 12 July 2010 ParlophoneStandard Brazil 15 September 2010 EMIStandardItaly 28 September 2010 Standard Canada 8 February 2011 StandardUnited States 19 April 2011 Digital downloadCapitol RecordsStandard
References