America (Razorlight song)

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"America"
Single by Razorlight
from the album Razorlight
B-side
  • "Down to the Coast" (demo)
  • "Wilfred Owen" (demo)
Released2 October 2006 (2006-10-02)[1]
GenreSoft rock
Length4:10
Label
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)Chris Thomas
Razorlight singles chronology
"In the Morning"
(2006) 		"America"
(2006) 		"Before I Fall to Pieces"
(2006)
Music video
"America" on YouTube

"America" is a song by English indie rock band Razorlight, included as the fourth track on their self-titled second studio album (2006). It was written by Johnny Borrell and Andy Burrows (credited to Borrell, Burrows, and Razorlight) and was also released as the second single from that album on 2 October 2006.

The song garnered a negative reception from critics for its attempt at both political commentary and transatlantic crossover appeal. Nevertheless, "America" became the band's first and only number-one single in the United Kingdom and was the country's 17th best selling single of that year. The song also peaked within the top 10 in Ireland, the Netherlands and New Zealand, and within the top 40 in Austria, Belgium, France, Switzerland and Germany.

Critical reception[edit]

"America" received generally negative reviews from music critics, who found its attempt at serious commentary laughable and pretentious. Adam Zacharias of Drowned in Sound panned the song for cribbing the same lyrics from the previous single "In the Morning" and for coming off as trite commentary for the mass public, calling it "a terrible piece of faux-sentiment".[2] Liz Colville of Stylus Magazine criticised the song's attempt at being a blue-collar anthem in the vein of Bruce Springsteen but without his particular musicianship.[3] Michael Lomas of PopMatters called the song "soft rock hell".[4]

John Murphy of MusicOMH was mixed towards the song, saying that it has the right amount of intimacy but found the lyrics "facile at best".[5] Doug Kamin of ARTISTdirect praised Borrell's delivery of the song's overall message, saying that, "It's sung without judgment or criticism and could grab the ears of rock and pop lovers on both sides of the pond."[6]

Track listings[edit]

Charts[edit]

Certifications[edit]

Region Certification Certified units/sales
United Kingdom (BPI)[31] 2× Platinum 1,200,000‡

‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "New Releases: Singles". Music Week. 30 September 2006. p. 37.
  2. ^ Zacharias, Adam (12 October 2006). "Single Review: Razorlight – America". Drowned in Sound. Archived from the original on 25 October 2015. Retrieved 6 January 2016.
  3. ^ Colville, Liz (1 August 2006). "Razorlight – Razorlight". Stylus Magazine. Archived from the original on 30 March 2014. Retrieved 6 January 2016.
  4. ^ Lomas, Michael (29 September 2006). "Razorlight: Razorlight". PopMatters. Retrieved 6 January 2016.
  5. ^ Murphy, John (17 July 2006). "Razorlight – Razorlight". MusicOMH. Retrieved 6 January 2016.
  6. ^ Kamin, Doug. "Razoright by Razorlight". ARTISTdirect. Retrieved 6 January 2016.
  7. ^ America (UK 7-inch single sleeve). Razorlight. Vertigo Records. 2006. 1705369.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  8. ^ America (UK limited 7-inch single sleeve). Razorlight. Vertigo Records. 2006. 1705367.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  9. ^ America (UK maxi-CD single liner notes). Razorlight. Vertigo Records. 2006. 1705368.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  10. ^ America (European CD single liner notes). Razorlight. Vertigo Records. 2006. 1705367.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  11. ^ "Razorlight – America" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40.
  12. ^ "Razorlight – America" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50.
  13. ^ "Razorlight – America" (in French). Ultratop 50.
  14. ^ "ČNS IFPI" (in Czech). Hitparáda – Radio Top 100 Oficiální. IFPI Czech Republic. Note: Change the chart to CZ – RADIO – TOP 100 and insert 200744 into search. Retrieved 4 September 2018.
  15. ^ "Hits of the World – Eurocharts" (PDF). Billboard. Vol. 118, no. 42. 21 October 2006. p. 107. Retrieved 27 July 2020.
  16. ^ "Razorlight – America" (in French). Les classement single.
  17. ^ "Razorlight – America" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved 13 February 2019.
  18. ^ "The Irish Charts – Search Results – America". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved 16 July 2022.
  19. ^ "Nederlandse Top 40 – week 46, 2006" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40.
  20. ^ "Razorlight – America" (in Dutch). Single Top 100.
  21. ^ "Razorlight – America". Top 40 Singles.
  22. ^ "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 27 July 2020.
  23. ^ "ČNS IFPI" (in Slovak). Hitparáda – Radio Top 100 Oficiálna. IFPI Czech Republic. Note: insert 200652 into search. Retrieved 1 December 2020.
  24. ^ "Razorlight – America". Swiss Singles Chart.
  25. ^ "Razorlight: Artist Chart History". Official Charts Company.
  26. ^ "European Hot 100 Songs". Billboard. Archived from the original on 14 November 2007. Retrieved 9 January 2022.
  27. ^ "Top 100–Jaaroverzicht van 2006". Dutch Top 40. Retrieved 8 April 2020.
  28. ^ "End of Year Singles Chart Top 100 – 2007". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 14 April 2021.
  29. ^ "European Hot 100 Singles". Billboard. Archived from the original on 13 May 2009. Retrieved 9 January 2022.
  30. ^ "Schweizer Jahreshitparade 2007". hitparade.ch (in German). Retrieved 30 April 2020.
  31. ^ "British single certifications – Razorlight – America". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 31 March 2023.
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