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The Greatest (Cat Power album)

"Empty Shell" redirects here. For the fraudulent use of shell corporations, see shell corporation.

The Greatest is the seventh studio album by Cat Power, the stage name and eponymous band of American singer-songwriter Chan Marshall. All tracks on the album were written by Marshall, making it her first album not to include any cover songs. The Memphis Rhythm Band includes Roy Brewer, Teenie Hodges, Steve Potts, Dave Smith, Rick Steff, Doug Easley, Jim Spake, Scott Thompson and Susan Marshall. String arrangements were contributed by Harlan T. Bobo and Jonathan Kirkscey.

The Greatest
Standard cover. Slipcover editions feature a picture of Marshall on each one.
Studio album by
Cat Power
ReleasedJanuary 20, 2006
RecordedMay 2005
StudioArdent Studios, Memphis
Genre
Length44:34
LabelMatador
ProducerStuart Sikes
Cat Power chronology
You Are Free
(2003) 		The Greatest
(2006) 		Jukebox
(2008)

The Greatest debuted at #34 on the Billboard 200, her highest charting album at the time. It also won the 2006 Shortlist Music Prize, making Marshall the first woman to win the honor. It was also named the 6th best album of 2006 by Rolling Stone, as well as the 26th best album of the decade.[1][2]

Critical reception

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Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic80/100[3]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic     [4]
The A.V. ClubA−[5]
Entertainment WeeklyB+[6]
The Guardian     [7]
Los Angeles Times    [8]
NME8/10[9]
Pitchfork7.9/10[10]
Q     [11]
Rolling Stone     [12]
SpinA[13]

The Greatest has received a very positive response since its release. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 80, based on 35 reviews, which indicates "generally favorable reviews".[3]

Rhapsody ranked the album #6 on its "Alt/Indie’s Best Albums of the Decade" list.[14] "The mercurial Chan Marshall returned to her Southern roots and recorded this blissful album in Memphis. The Greatest glows with a new ease, and the music itself -- which features many of the greatest soul musicians in history -- is sunny and open. There's a sense of joy coming through here that you'll want to share with friends."

Track listing

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All tracks are written by Chan Marshall

No.TitleLength
1."The Greatest"3:22
2."Living Proof"3:11
3."Lived in Bars"3:44
4."Could We"2:21
5."Empty Shell"3:04
6."Willie"5:57
7."Where Is My Love"2:53
8."The Moon"3:45
9."Islands"1:44
10."After It All"3:31
11."Hate"3:38
12."Love & Communication"4:34
Limited edition
No.TitleLength
13."Up and Gone"2:15
Japanese bonus track
No.TitleLength
13."Dreams" (Felice & Boudleaux Bryant's "All I Have to Do Is Dream")2:46

Personnel

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Chart positions

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The album debuted at number 34 on the U.S. Billboard 200 chart, selling about 23,000 copies in its first week.[15] As of 2009, the album has tallied 125,000 copies in the United States alone, according to Nielsen SoundScan.[16] It was awarded a gold certification from the Independent Music Companies Association,[17] which indicated sales of at least 100,000 copies throughout Europe.[18]

Chart Peak
position
Australian Albums (ARIA Charts)[19] 25
Belgium Album Chart 25
France Album Chart 20
Ireland Album Chart 44
Italy Album Chart 37
Norway Album Chart 35
Swiss Album Chart 57
Sweden Album Chart 50
UK Album Chart 45
U.S. Billboard 200 34
U.S. Top Independent Albums 1

Certifications and sales

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Region Certification Certified units/sales
United Kingdom (BPI)[20] Silver 60,000‡
United States — 125,000[16]
Summaries
Europe — 100,000[18]

‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

References

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  1. ^ The Top 50 Albums of 2006 : Rolling Stone
  2. ^ Rollingstone
  3. ^ a b "Reviews for The Greatest by Cat Power". Metacritic. Retrieved May 13, 2015.
  4. ^ Phares, Heather. "The Greatest – Cat Power". AllMusic. Retrieved June 4, 2016.
  5. ^ Modell, Josh (January 25, 2006). "Cat Power: The Greatest". The A.V. Club. Retrieved June 4, 2016.
  6. ^ Browne, David (January 23, 2006). "The Greatest". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on November 7, 2016. Retrieved June 4, 2016.
  7. ^ Clarke, Betty (January 20, 2006). "Cat Power, The Greatest". The Guardian. Retrieved June 4, 2016.
  8. ^ Nichols, Natalie (January 22, 2006). "Stylish and soulful just the same". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved June 4, 2016.
  9. ^ "Cat Power: The Greatest". NME: 33. January 21, 2006.
  10. ^ Phillips, Amy (January 22, 2006). "Cat Power: The Greatest". Pitchfork. Retrieved June 4, 2016.
  11. ^ "Cat Power: The Greatest". Q (235): 102. February 2006.
  12. ^ Hoard, Christian (January 23, 2006). "The Greatest". Rolling Stone. Retrieved June 4, 2016.
  13. ^ Hermes, Will (February 2006). "Memphis Belle". Spin. 22 (2): 84. Retrieved June 4, 2016.
  14. ^ "Alt/Indie’s Best Albums of the Decade" Retrieved 12 January 2010.
  15. ^ Katie Hasty, "'Juno' Unseats Keys From Atop Album Chart", Billboard.com, January 30, 2008.
  16. ^ a b Martens, Todd (September 30, 2006). "UpFront | Pulling In New Fans, Placating Old Ones". Billboard. Vol. 118, no. 39. p. 18. ISSN 0006-2510. Retrieved August 9, 2017.
  17. ^ "Prodigy, Hives and Cat Power top Impala Sales Awards". Music Week. May 9, 2006. Retrieved August 4, 2017.
  18. ^ a b "Impala Press Release - Brussels, Friday, 15 June 2007". Independent Music Companies Association. Archived from the original on 5 August 2017. Retrieved August 4, 2017.
  19. ^ Ryan, Gavin (2011). Australia's Music Charts 1988–2010 (pdf ed.). Mt. Martha, VIC, Australia: Moonlight Publishing. p. 52.
  20. ^ "British album certifications – Cat Power – The Greatest". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved November 1, 2024.
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