''These Foolish Things'' is the debut solo studio

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 ...

Bryan Ferry Bryan Ferry (born 26 September 1945) is an English singer and songwriter. He became known as the frontman of the band Roxy Music and also launched a solo career. His voice has been described as an "elegant, seductive croon". He also established ...

, who at the time was still

Roxy Music Roxy Music are an English rock music, rock band formed in 1970 by Bryan Ferry (lead vocals/keyboards/principal songwriter) and Graham Simpson (musician), Graham Simpson (bass). By the time the band recorded their Roxy Music (album), first albu ...

's lead vocalist. The album was released in October 1973 on

Island Records Island Records is a multinational record label owned by Universal Music Group. It was founded in Jamaica by Chris Blackwell, Graeme Goodall, and Leslie Kong in 1959, and was eventually sold to PolyGram in 1989. Island and A&M Records, another ...

in the United Kingdom and

Atlantic Records Atlantic Recording Corporation (simply known as Atlantic Records) is an American record label founded in October 1947 by Ahmet Ertegun and Herb Abramson. Over the course of its first two decades, starting from the release of its first recor ...

in the United States. It is considered to be a departure from Roxy Music's sound, being made up of far more 'straight' versions of standards. Additionally, where Roxy Music's albums were of songs composed by the band, ''These Foolish Things'' was a covers album. It was a commercial and critical success, peaking at number five on the

UK Albums Chart The Official Albums Chart is the United Kingdom's industry-recognised national record chart for album, albums. Entries are ranked by sales and audio streaming. It was published for the first time on 22 July 1956 and is compiled every week by the O ...

. It received a gold

certification Certification is part of testing, inspection and certification and the provision by an independent body of written assurance (a certificate) that the product, service or system in question meets specific requirements. It is the formal attestatio ...

from the

British Phonographic Industry BPI (British Recorded Music Industry) Limited, trading as British Phonographic Industry (BPI), is the British recorded music industry's trade association. It runs the BRIT Awards; is home to the Mercury Prize; co-owns the Official Charts C ...

in May 1974. Most of the tracks on the album were personal favorites of Ferry's, and spanned several decades from 1930s standards such as the title track through 1950s

Elvis Presley Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977) was an American singer and actor. Referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Elvis Presley, one of the most significant cultural figures of the ...

Bob Dylan Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan; born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Described as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture over his nearly 70-year ...

and

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 ...

. "

A Hard Rain's a-Gonna Fall "A Hard Rain's a-Gonna Fall" is a song written by American musician and Nobel laureate Bob Dylan in the summer of 1962 and recorded later that year for his second studio album, '' The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan'' (1963). Its lyrical structure is based ...

" was released as a single and reached number 10 in the UK Singles Chart in September 1973.

Composition

Speaking about the album in 1973, Ferry said: "It's a very catholic selection, I've given up trying to please all of the people all of the time. Some will like it for one reason, some for another. And some will presumably dislike it for the wrong reasons though I hope the general point of it will be understood. It's amusement value. I think."

Critical reception

Robert Christgau Robert Thomas Christgau ( ; born April 18, 1942) is an American music journalist and essayist. Among the most influential music critics, he began his career in the late 1960s as one of the earliest professional rock critics and later became a ...

found that Ferry "both undercuts the inflated idealism of [Bob Dylan's '

'] and reaffirms its essential power", establishes Lesley Gore's "It's My Party (Lesley Gore song), It's My Party" as a protest song, and with his cover of "These Foolish Things", "reminds us that pop is only, well, foolish things, many of which predate not only

Andy Warhol Andy Warhol (;''Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary''"Warhol" born Andrew Warhola Jr.; August 6, 1928 – February 22, 1987) was an American visual artist, film director and producer. A leading figure in the pop art movement, Warhol ...

but rock and roll itself." In 1983's ''

The New Rolling Stone Record Guide ''The Rolling Stone Album Guide'', previously known as ''The Rolling Stone Record Guide'', is a book that contains professional music reviews written and edited by staff members from ''Rolling Stone'' magazine. Its first edition was published in 1 ...

'',

Dave Marsh Dave Marsh (born ) is an American music critic and radio talk show host. He was an early editor of '' Creem'' magazine, has written for various publications such as ''Newsday'', ''The Village Voice'', and ''Rolling Stone'', and has published num ...

wrote: In

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

, critic Ned Raggett said that throughout ''These Foolish Things'', "Ferry's instantly recognizable croon carries everything to a tee, and the overall mood is playful and celebratory", calling the album "one of the best of its kind by any artist."

Rob Sheffield Robert James Sheffield (born February 2, 1966) is an American music journalist and author. He is a long time contributing editor at ''Rolling Stone'', writing about music, TV, and pop culture. Previously, he was a contributing editor at '' Blen ...

, in 2004's ''

The New Rolling Stone Album Guide ''The Rolling Stone Album Guide'', previously known as ''The Rolling Stone Record Guide'', is a book that contains professional music reviews written and edited by staff members from ''Rolling Stone'' magazine. Its first edition was published in 1 ...

'', praised it as a "conceptual and musical tour de force". In 2010, Rhapsody listed ''These Foolish Things'' as one of the best covers albums.

Track listing

Personnel

Musicians

*Bryan Ferry – lead vocals, acoustic piano *

Eddie Jobson Edwin Jobson (born 28 April 1955) is an English musician who has been a member of several progressive rock bands, including Curved Air, Roxy Music, U.K. and Jethro Tull. He was also part of Frank Zappa's band in 1976–77. Noted for his key ...

– keyboards, synthesizers, violin * David Skinner – acoustic piano * John Porter – guitars, bass *

Phil Manzanera Phillip Geoffrey Targett-Adams (born 31 January 1951), known professionally as Phil Manzanera, is an English musician, songwriter and record producer. He is the lead guitarist with Roxy Music, and was the lead guitarist with 801 and Quiet Sun. ...

– guitar solo (10) *

Paul Thompson Paul Thompson may refer to: Education *Paul Thompson (professor) (born 1951), British management professor at the University of Strathclyde *Paul B. Thompson (philosopher) (born 1951), American philosopher at Michigan State University *Paul H. Tho ...

– drums *

John Punter John Punter (born 27 January 1949) is an English and Canadian former record producer and recording engineer. He has worked with many bands and musicians, such as Spoons, Japan, Procol Harum, Roxy Music, Bryan Ferry, Re-Flex, Doctors of Madness, ...

– additional drums (7, 8) * Roger Ball – alto saxophone, baritone saxophone, horn arrangements *Ruan O'Lochlainn – alto saxophone solo (11) * Malcolm Duncan – tenor saxophone * Henry Lowther – trumpet *

Robbie Montgomery Robbie Montgomery (born June 16, 1940) is an American singer and restaurateur. She is noted for being one of the original Ikettes in the Ike & Tina Turner Revue in the 1960s. After her tenure as an Ikette, she was a member of the Mirettes, and ...

– backing vocals (1, 8) * Jessie Davis – backing vocals (1, 8) * The Angelettes – backing vocals (2–7, 9–13)

Production

*Bryan Ferry – producer * John Porter – producer *

– producer, engineer *

Steve Nye Steve Nye is an English music producer for several artists. Career Nye started out as a tape op at AIR Studios in London in 1971, where producer Rupert Hine discovered him. There he got into engineering (and later producing) many well-known ...

– engineer *Andy Arthurs – assistant engineer * Nicholas De Ville – cover design *Karl Stoecker – photography

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

References

{{Authority control Bryan Ferry albums 1973 debut albums 1970s covers albums Island Records albums Albums produced by John Punter Albums produced by John Porter (musician, born 1947) Albums recorded at AIR Studios