Figure 8 (album)

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Figure 8
Studio album by Elliott Smith
Released	April 18, 2000
Recorded	Abbey Road Studios, London Capitol Studios, Hollywood Sonora Studios, LA Sunset Sound Recorders, Hollywood
Genre	Indie rock
Length	52:06
Label	DreamWorks Records
Producer	Tom Rothrock Rob Schnapf Elliott Smith
Professional reviews
All Music Guide link Pitchfork (6.9/10) 4/1/2000 Robert Christgau link Rolling Stone 4/27/2000 Feel The Word (favorable) link
Elliott Smith chronology
XO (1998) Figure 8 (2000) From a Basement on the Hill (2004)

Figure 8 is the fifth studio album by American singer-songwriter Elliott Smith. Released by DreamWorks Records on April 18, 2000, it became Smith's second release on a major label and the last album he would complete before his death. It was recorded at Sunset Sound in Hollywood, Sonora Studios in Los Angeles, Capitol Studios in Hollywood, and Abbey Road Studios in London ("Stupidity Tries", "In the Lost and Found (Honky Bach)" and "Pretty Mary K"). The album was also released on double vinyl 12" on Bong Load Custom Records, and later rereleased by Plain Records in 2008. It is also available as a digital download.

The title is thought to be taken from a song by Schoolhouse Rock!;^[1] Smith covered this song, but it did not make the final track listing.

Compared to Smith's earlier work, Figure 8 is more instrumentally ornate, and the lyrics are more impressionistic. Smith described the songs on the album as "more...fragmented and dreamlike".^[2]

Contents 1 Additional musicians 2 Track listing 3 Alternate releases 4 Outtakes, b-sides, and other non-album tracks 4.1 Officially released 4.2 Posthumously released 4.3 Unofficially released 4.4 Other Figure 8-era tracks 5 Cover photo 6 References 7 External links

[edit] Additional musicians

• Sam Coomes - bass on "Everything Means Nothing to Me," "In the Lost and Found (Honky Bach)," "Stupidity Tries," and "Pretty Mary K"
• Pete Thomas - drums on "Junk Bond Trader," "Wouldn't Mama Be Proud?" and "Can't Make a Sound"
• Joey Waronker - drums on "Stupidity Tries"
• Jon Brion - backup vocals on "Happiness/The Gondola Man"

[edit] Track listing

(All songs written by Elliott Smith)

1. "Son of Sam" sample (help·info) – 3:04
2. "Somebody That I Used to Know" – 2:09
3. "Junk Bond Trader" – 3:49
4. "Everything Reminds Me of Her" – 2:37
5. "Everything Means Nothing to Me" – 2:24
6. "L.A." – 3:14
7. "In the Lost and Found (Honky Bach)/The Roost" – 4:32
8. "Stupidity Tries" – 4:23
9. "Easy Way Out" – 2:44
10. "Wouldn't Mama Be Proud?" – 3:25
11. "Color Bars" – 2:19
12. "Happiness/The Gondola Man" – 5:04
13. "Pretty Mary K" – 2:36
14. "I Better Be Quiet Now" – 3:35
15. "Can't Make a Sound" – 4:18
16. "Bye" – 1:53

Available on CD, cassette and LP. A DreamWorks Records release.

Produced by Tom Rothrock, Rob Schnapf and Elliott Smith.

Recorded and mixed at Abbey Road, Capitol, Sunset Sound, and Sonora Studios.

Songs and all strings arranged by Elliott Smith. Strings orchestrated by Suzie Katayama.

Photos by Autumn deWilde. Art direction and design by Autumn deWilde and Dale Smith.

Elliott's second record released by DreamWorks. A good number of the tracks off from the album were played live before the record came out giving fans an idea what it would sound like. They were also demoed/recorded during recording sessions with Elliott stopping by the famous Abbey Road Studios.

Elliott plays on the piano that The Beatles' "Fool on the Hill" was recorded on for one track.

"Somebody That I Used to Know" almost didn't make it on the record. Originally, it was slated to be released on the reissue of the Division Day single on CD. Elliott decided to use the song for the album instead.

A music video for "Son of Sam" was released, directed by Autumn deWilde.

[edit] Alternate releases

The Japanese release of this album included Smith's cover of The Beatles' song "Because" and "Figure 8", an abridged cover of a Schoolhouse Rock! song.

The promotional CD for Figure 8 featured cover artwork by Mike Mills, director of Thumbsucker. Smith contributed songs to the Thumbsucker soundtrack.

[edit] Outtakes, b-sides, and other non-album tracks

[edit] Officially released

• "A Living Will" - Included on the "Son of Sam" single.
• "Figure 8" - Schoolhouse Rock! cover, included on the "Son of Sam" single.
• "I Can't Answer You Anymore" - Included on the French 3 Titres Inedits promo.

[edit] Posthumously released

[edit] Unofficially released

• "Brand New Game" - Two different mixes have leaked.
• "No Life"
• "Place Pigalle" - from this era, may have been recorded later.
• "Sorry My Mistake" - Instrumental only, thought to have had vocals recorded.
• "Stained Glass Eyes"
• "Tiny Time Machine" - Instrumental, worked on later as "Suicide Machine" for Smith's next album, From a Basement on the Hill)

[edit] Other Figure 8-era tracks

• "Confidence Artist" - Played live in 1999. Unknown if a studio recording exists.
• "Flowers For Charlie" - Played live in 1999 and 2000. Unknown if a studio recording exists.

[edit] Cover photo

The wall Smith stands in front of in Autumn de Wilde's photograph on the cover of the album exists in Los Angeles, and since his death it has become a memorial to him. It is covered with graffiti and written messages containing lyrics and personal messages to Smith. It is located at 4334 W. Sunset Boulevard, which is a store by the name of: "Solutions" Audio-Video Repair, just south of the intersection of Sunset Boulevard and Fountain Avenue.

[edit] References

1. ^ sweet adeline | figure 8
2. ^ Carsten Wohlfeld. "Elliott Smith: The Hamburger Interview", Luna Kafe E-Zine, 2000. Retrieved on 2008-03-30. 

[edit] External links

• Sweet Adeline: The Official Elliott Smith website
• The Official Elliott Smith online store
• Figure 8 on Amazon.com
• Trash Treasury - Download hub and webforum; largest collection of live recordings on the web.

v • d • e Elliott Smith Discography Albums: Roman Candle · Elliott Smith  · Either/Or · XO · Figure 8  · From a Basement on the Hill Posthumous collections: New Moon Songs: "No Confidence Man" · "Needle in the Hay" · "Say Yes" · "Miss Misery" · "Baby Britain" · "Happiness" · "Son of Sam" Films: Lucky Three · Strange Parallel Associated acts: Heatmiser