''Exile on Coldharbour Lane'' is the debut

album An album is a collection of audio recordings (e.g., music) issued on a medium such as compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl (record), audio tape (like 8-track cartridge, 8-track or Cassette tape, cassette), or digital distribution, dig ...

Alabama 3 Alabama 3 are a British musical group founded in Brixton, Brixton, London, in 1995. Their track "Woke Up This Morning" was used for the opening credits of the TV series ''The Sopranos''. In the United States, the band is known as A3, to avoid ...

, released on 11 November 1997 on

One Little Indian One Little Independent Records (formerly One Little Indian Records) is an English independent record label. It was set up in 1985 by members of various anarcho-punk bands, and managed by former Flux of Pink Indians bassist Derek Birkett. In t ...

and Geffen. The name and cover are references to '' Exile on Main St.'' by

The Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for over six decades, they are one of the most popular, influential, and enduring bands of the Album era, rock era. In the early 1960s, the band pione ...

and Coldharbour Lane a major street in

Brixton Brixton is an area of South London, part of the London Borough of Lambeth, England. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London. Brixton experienced a rapid rise in population during the 19th century ...

South London South London is the southern part of Greater London, England, south of the River Thames. The region consists of the Districts of England, boroughs, in whole or in part, of London Borough of Bexley, Bexley, London Borough of Bromley, Bromley, Lon ...

best known for containing several after-hours clubs and not a few drug dealers. Recording sessions took place from March to June 1997. ''Exile on Coldharbour Lane'' did not chart on any album charts in the United States. The song "Sister Rosetta" was featured in the film '' Barnyard''. " Woke Up This Morning" is best known as the opening theme music for the television series, ''

The Sopranos ''The Sopranos'' is an American Crime film#Crime drama, crime drama television series created by David Chase. The series follows Tony Soprano (James Gandolfini), a New Jersey American Mafia, Mafia boss who suffers from panic attacks. He reluct ...

'', which used the "Chosen One Mix" of that song. "Woke Up This Morning" was later sampled by

Nas Nas (born 1973) is the stage name of American rapper Nasir Jones. Nas, NaS, or NAS may also refer to: Aviation * Nasair, a low-cost airline carrier and subsidiary based in Eritrea * National Air Services, an airline in Saudi Arabia ** Nas Air (S ...

on " Got Ur Self A..." from the album ''

Stillmatic ''Stillmatic'' is the fifth studio album by American rapper Nas, released on December 18, 2001, by Ill Will and Columbia Records. In contrast to his previous work's gangsta rap themes, the album contains socially conscious and philosophical them ...

''.

Reception

Upon its release, ''Exile on Coldharbour Lane'' received favorable reviews, including an 8.9 review from

Pitchfork Media ''Pitchfork'' (formerly ''Pitchfork Media'') is an American online music magazine founded in 1996 by Ryan Schreiber in Minneapolis. It originally covered Alternative rock, alternative and independent music, and expanded to cover genres includin ...

. A review in '' Cherwell'' said there were "many highlights on this bizarre journey of an album", praising 'Ain't Going To Goa' and 'Mao Tse Tung Said' but describing 'Purple Tin' as "awful ..pure bar room schmaltz". In a 2008 article in ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

'',

Irvine Welsh Irvine Welsh (born 27 September 1958) is a Scottish novelist and short story writer. His 1993 novel ''Trainspotting (novel), Trainspotting'' was made into a Trainspotting (film), film of the same name. He has also written plays and screenplays, ...

said the

techno Techno is a genre of electronic dance music (EDM) which is generally produced for use in a continuous DJ set, with tempos being in the range from 120 to 150 beats per minute (bpm). The central rhythm is typically in common time ( ) and often ...

and

country and western A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. When referring to a specific polity, the term "country" may refer to a sovereign state, state with limited recognition, constituent country, or d ...

fusion was "astonishingly bold" and called it an "incendiary debut album".

Track listing

Personnel

Alabama 3 *Larry Love (Rob Spragg) – vocals * The Very Reverend Dr. D. Wayne Love (First Minister of the First Presleyterian Church of Elvis the Divine (UK)) (Jake Black) – vocals *The Mountain of Love (Piers Marsh) – analogue terrorism, harmonica, jaw's harp & vocals *Sir Real "Congaman" Love L.S.D. O.P.T. (Simon Edwards) – percussion, acoustic guitar *Mississippi Guitar Love – guitar *L.B. Dope (Johnny Delafons) – drums *The Spirit (Orlando Harrison) – keyboards *The Book of Love (Security), I.V. Lenin (Socialism in the Mainline), Lady Love and Little Eye Tie – D. Wayne's Ladies Technical *Produced by The Ministers at Work and Boss Hogg *Engineered by John Wilkinson at The Steamroom and The Dairy *Mixed by Andy Wallace at The Town House **Track 3 contains an element of "Tell Me" performed by Howlin Wolf, a sample from "Standing at the Burying Ground" by

Mississippi Fred McDowell Fred McDowell (January 12, 1904 – July 3, 1972), known by his stage name Mississippi Fred McDowell, was an American singer-songwriter and guitarist of hill country blues music. Career McDowell was born in Rossville, Tennessee. His parents we ...

and a sample from "Mannish Boy" by

Muddy Waters McKinley Morganfield (April 4, 1913April 30, 1983), better known as Muddy Waters, was an American blues singer-songwriter and musician who was an important figure in the post-World War II blues scene, and is often cited as the "father of moder ...

. **Track 8 contains elements from "Honey Hush" performed by Johnny Burnett & The Rock 'n' Roll Trio. **Track 11 contains samples from "Oh in That Morning" by The Reverend BC Campbell and "Wrapped Up and Tangled Up" by The Reverend Charlie Jackson.

Notes

*" Woke Up This Morning" is well known as the opening theme music for the

HBO Home Box Office (HBO) is an American pay television service, which is the flagship property of namesake parent-subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is based a ...

drama series ''

'', although the mix used for the show is different from the one on this album. This version is called ''Chosen One Mix''. *"Mao Tse Tung Said" features a lengthy sample from the

cult Cults are social groups which have unusual, and often extreme, religious, spiritual, or philosophical beliefs and rituals. Extreme devotion to a particular person, object, or goal is another characteristic often ascribed to cults. The term ...

leader

Jim Jones James Warren Jones (May 13, 1931 – November 18, 1978) was an American cult leader, preacher and mass murderer who founded and led the Peoples Temple between 1955 and 1978. Jones and the members of his inner circle planned and orchestrat ...

. *The second track is a

cover version In popular music, a cover version, cover song, remake, revival, or simply cover is a new performance or recording by a musician other than the original performer or composer of the song. Originally, it referred to a version of a song release ...

John Prine John Edward Prine (; October 10, 1946 – April 7, 2020) was an American singer-songwriter of country-folk music. Widely cited as one of the most influential songwriters of his generation, Prine was known for his signature blend of humoro ...

's "Speed of the Sound of Loneliness". *"The Old Purple Tin (9% of Pure Heaven)" is about Tennent's Super, a 9% a.b.v. Scottish beer that comes in a purple can, which makes its consumers appear purple when aged and weathered, and thus deserves its reputation for being the drink of choice of the vagrant. *"Ain't Goin' to Goa" features the Reverend D. Wayne Love's description of A3's style: "sweet, pretty, country acid house music."

Reception

Track listing

Personnel

Notes

Charts

References

See also