Gravity is the tenth studio album release by the Irish boy band Westlife and it was released on 19 November 2010 in the United Kingdom. John Shanks produced each song, barring the bonus track on the Japanese edition. The album was preceded by the lead single, "Safe", which was released on 14 November 2010.
This is the group's final album under Syco Music, as well as their final album before their initial split in 2012. As of November 2011, the album had sold 358,943 copies in the UK.
Background
The recording process for the album started in July 2010; its recording and mixing was finished in October 2010. They recorded the songs in Los Angeles, California, Dublin, Ireland, and London, England.
On 19 July 2010, it was reported by RTÉ that the group would work with producer John Shanks.Westlife team up with Take That producer - RTÉ Ten. Rte.ie (19 July 2010). Retrieved on 28 November 2010. Westlife told Digital Spy: "We'd wanted to work with him for a long time, but all his loyalty was to Take That and he didn't want to work with another boyband."Music - News - Westlife promise "step up" for new album. Digital Spy (20 October 2010). Retrieved on 28 November 2010. On 17 September 2010, Egan said that the first single for the album was picked by Cowell and a 30-second snippet was played on X Factor UK.Twitter / Kian Egan: Westlife's first single ha. Twitter.com. Retrieved on 28 November 2010. On 1 November 2010, Mark confirmed two cover songs on the album are "Chances" by Athlete and "The Reason" by Hoobastank.
Album name and artwork On 22 October 2010, the band released a video of the album photo shoot on their official sites.Official News (GLOBAL) - Exclusive Behind The Scenes Video Of The 'Gravity' Album Photoshoot! . Westlife (22 October 2010). Retrieved on 28 November 2010. The official photographer of the shoot was Kevin McDaid and Feehily as the creative director.Official News (GLOBAL) - Westlife Unveil The New Artwork For "Gravity" "Safe" . Westlife (25 October 2010). Retrieved on 28 November 2010.
On 13 October 2010, they announced the album title Gravity and trended worldwide on Twitter as #westlifegravity after the announcement.Twitter / Nicky Byrne: So you've all heard the ti. Twitter.com. Retrieved on 28 November 2010. The album title was suggested by a fan.Music - News - Westlife announce fan-chosen LP title. Digital Spy (13 October 2010). Retrieved on 28 November 2010.
Promotion
Singles "Safe" was the lead single from the album, released on 14 November in the UK. Their debut performance of the track was on the X Factor the day or release. It peaked at No. 10 in its first week consequently making it their lowest charting lead single to date in the UK, as well as their lowest sales for a lead single.
It was later confirmed on 1 February 2011 that there would be no second single for Gravity. Byrne stated that it was Syco's decision. On 14 March 2011, Westlife confirmed that they had left Syco Music and moved to another Sony division, RCA, with the group citing the decision not to release a second single as the reason.
"I Will Reach You" was released as a promotional single on 17 February 2011 in Indonesia, Ireland, and the Philippines.
Critical reception
OK! found that Gravity was Westlife's "most varied and daring album yet, mixing classic pop and rock with subtle electro wizardry." The magazine also praised standout tracks such as "Safe" and "Chances," concluding that the record was "soaring stuff" and a strong addition to the band's catalogue. Hannah Spencer from Contactmusic characterised Gravity as continuing their "well-perfected" formula of "cheesy, romantic" pop ballads. She concluded that the album "doesn’t offer anything groundbreaking," instead representing "a good, strong consistent if safe effort," noting its reliance on familiar songwriting patterns. Entertainment Focuss Sarah Bargiela described Gravity as showing Westlife continuing their established formula, while noting that the opening track "could easily be released as a single" and represents "the Westlife we fell in love with a decade ago." She observed that the album relies heavily on their "classic style" of building ballads and familiar structures, concluding that while there are "outstanding tracks," there is also "a lack of variety."
BBC's Natalie Shaw found that Gravity was "the musical equivalent of greetings-card copy," calling it predictable and "outside of the realms of ambition, place and time." She concluded that it was "questionable what this album has to offer to anyone other than a completist," criticising its formulaic songwriting and lack of originality. Entertainment.ie described Gravity as "drudgery of the highest order," noting a limited attempt to introduce "a little bit of fun" through a few upbeat tracks. It concluded that the album was "still a fair way off being a halfway decent record," though "it could have been a lot worse," criticising its formulaic songwriting and reliance on clichés. Jacqueline Smith from Time Out argued that the album's reliance on Hoobastank's "The Reason" as its strongest track "is a good indicator of what the rest of the album holds." She concluded that while "devout collectors might be pleased with the predictability," others would find the songs "melodically sound but not-the-slightest-bit-inspiring," criticising its lack of originality and inspiration. Writing for The Daily Star, Sarah-Louise James felt that Gravity represented "the sound of the ‘Loife on the way up rather than the way down," marking a shift towards a "tougher and moodier" sound as the band moved on from their established template of ballads and covers. She concluded that "they pull it off with aplomb."
Track listing All tracks produced by John Shanks except noted tracks.
Credits Mark Feehily – art direction, creative direction Shari Sutcliffe – contract musician, production coordinator Steve Stacey – design Bob Ludwig – mastering Kevin McDaid – photography
Charts
Weekly charts + Weekly chart performance for GravityChart (2010)PeakpositionDutch Albums (MegaCharts)76European Albums Chart12Irish Albums (IRMA)1Japanese Albums (Oricon)91Mexican Albums (AMPROFON)90New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)22Scottish Albums (OCC)4South Korean Albums (Gaon)7Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)46Swiss Albums (Swiss Hitparade)50Taiwanese Albums (Five Music) Click Western Music and scroll to 2010, Week 48.3UK Albums (OCC)3
Year-end charts + 2009 year-end chart performance for GravityChart (2009)PositionIrish Albums (IRMA)15UK Albums (OCC)34
Certifications and sales
Release history
Main release Country / region Date Format Label Catalogue EuropeGravity - Westlife - Music - CDON.COM . Cdon.eu. Retrieved on 28 November 2010.19 November 2010 CD, Digital download RCA Records, Sony Music88697724482 IrelandSony Music Ireland NetherlandsGravity, Westlife | Muziek . bol.com (18 November 2010). Retrieved on 28 November 2010. Philippines Sony Music Entertainment, Ivory Music and Video Sweden. Sonymusic.se. Retrieved on 28 November 2010.Sony Music Entertainment ThailandWestlife: Gravity . BoomerangShop.com (19 November 2010). Retrieved on 28 November 2010. DenmarkWESTLIFE - GRAVITY - POP - CD - køb den hos . Billigcd.dk (22 November 2010). Retrieved on 28 November 2010.22 November 2010 Hong KongWestlife / Gravity - Hmv Hong Kong . Hmv.com.hk. Retrieved on 28 November 2010. MalaysiaSony Music. Sony Music (16 November 2010). Retrieved on 28 November 2010. Poland. Muzyka.onet.pl. Retrieved on 28 November 2010. South AfricaWestlife - Gravity (CD) - Music . Take 2 (19 November 2010). Retrieved on 28 November 2010. United KingdomWestlife - Gravity - CDs at Play.com (UK) . Play.com. Retrieved on 28 November 2010.S/Syco Music South Korea [인터넷 교보문고] Gravity[포스터+포스터케이스무료증정]. Kyobobook.co.kr. Retrieved on 28 November 2010. 23 November 2010Sony Music Entertainment FinlandWestlife : Gravity - Levykauppa Äx . Levykauppax.fi. Retrieved on 28 November 2010. 24 November 2010 MexicoMixup Music Store . Mixup.com.mx (25 November 2009). Retrieved on 28 November 2010. 26 November 2010 Taiwan 30 November 2010 GermanyGravity: Westlife: Amazon.de: Musik. Amazon.de. Retrieved on 28 November 2010. 3 December 2010 JapanGravity【CD】-Westlife｜Popular Rock｜Rock & Pop｜Music｜HMV ONLINE Online Shopping & Information Site. Hmv.co.jp. Retrieved on 28 November 2010. 15 December 2010 Sony Music Japan International SICP-2929
Import release Country / region Date Format Label Catalogue JapanAmazon.co.jp： Gravity: Westlife: 音楽. Amazon.co.jp. Retrieved on 28 November 2010. 22 November 2010 CD, Digital download RCA Records,Sony Music, Syco Music88697724482 CanadaGravity: Westlife: Amazon.ca: Music. Amazon.ca (23 November 2010). Retrieved on 28 November 2010.23 November 2010 FranceGravity: Westlife: Amazon.fr: Musique. Amazon.fr. Retrieved on 27 June 2013. United StatesGravity: Westlife: Music. Amazon.com. Retrieved on 28 November 2010.
References