A Comfortable Man

A Comfortable Man is the debut studio album by British singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Cathal Smyth. It was produced by Charlie Andrew and Kirsty Mangan. The album was first made available in 2014 as a vinyl LP, limited to 1,000 copies and sold during Smyth's three night performance at Wilton's Music Hall.[7][1] It was given a full release by the Phoenix Rising Recording Co. in 2015, reaching No. 68 on the UK Albums Chart and No. 10 on the Independent Albums Chart.[8][9]

A Comfortable Man
Studio album by
Cathal Smyth
Released7 October 2014 (limited LP release)[1]
11 May 2015[2]
Studio
GenrePop[3]
Length46:10
LabelPhoenix Rising Recording Co.
Producer
Singles from A Comfortable Man
  1. "You're Not Alone"
    Released: 9 March 2015[4]
  2. "Do You Believe in Love?"
    Released: 11 May 2015[5]
  3. "Are the Children Happy?"
    Released: 5 May 2015[6]

Many tracks on A Comfortable Man were written following the breakdown of Smyth's 28-year marriage in 2005. After completing the recording of the album, Smyth departed Madness to embark on his solo career.[10] Speaking of the album to the BBC in 2015, Smyth said: "The cycle of songs started with "Are the Children Happy?" and "Love Song No. 7". It was a very emotional time, it was a very cathartic act writing those songs. I decided I wanted to sit on them for some time to let the dust settle. When you're in Madness and you're writing, it keeps you occupied. It's [was] a very personal project on the sidelines. And I always think timing is essential and when it feels right."[11]

A music video for "You're Not Alone" was released in September 2014.[12] The song was released as a download single in March 2015, followed by "Do You Believe in Love?" and "Are the Children Happy?".[5]

Critical reception
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
The Irish Times[3]
Mojo[13]
The Timespositive[14]
Uncut[15]

Upon release, Tony Clayton-Lea of The Irish Times stated: "A Comfortable Man is a cathartic exercise. Smyth has taken the opportunity to lay bare his thoughts about personal matters across a sequence of gently wrought, beautifully orchestrated balladic pop songs with rather morose titles."[3] The Times picked A Comfortable Man as their album of the week and commented: "Smyth's simple, honest lyrics and straightforward delivery mean that songs such as "Are the Children Happy?" make a real emotional connection with the listener, while his gift for a pop melody allows for light relief on the upbeat numbers."[14]

Mojo wrote: "...the musical document of his journey is appropriately desolate but altogether rather moving. Essentially it's Smyth playing Victorian parlour piano accompanied by mournful strings and celestial backing vocals."[13] Uncut commented: "The LP springs to life when Smyth ignores the ponderous ballads and hits the pop jugular. "Do You Believe in Love?" and "She's Got the Light" are joyous naif: "Love Song No. 7" tugs effectively at the heart strings, while "Are the Children Happy?" is the most gut wrenchingly poignant divorce song you'll ever hear."[15][16]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Cathal Smyth

No.TitleLength
1."You're Not Alone"4:44
2."Shabat She Comes"3:55
3."A Comfortable Man"3:24
4."Goodbye Planet Earth"4:49
5."Do You Believe in Love?"3:41
6."Love Song No. 7"4:03
7."She's Got the Light"3:27
8."A Requiem for Common Sense"5:25
9."Are the Children Happy?"3:10
10."Love Song No. 9"3:47
11."All My Lovin'"3:07
12."The Wren's Burial"2:31

Charts
Chart (2015) Peak
position
UK Independent Albums Breakers Chart[17] 1
UK Independent Albums Chart[9] 10
UK Albums Chart[8] 68

Personnel

Adapted from the album liners notes.[18]

Musicians
  • Cathal Smyth – vocals, backing vocals, piano (1, 8, 9, 12), whistling (4)
  • Charlie Andrew – drums (2, 4, 5, 7), percussion (2-5, 7, 10, 11), bass (2), synthesizer (4), backing vocals (4, 6), arrangements
  • Kirsty Mangan – violin (1-6, 8, 10-12), piano (3, 4, 6, 7, 10), backing vocals (2, 4, 5, 7, 8), viola (3, 6, 12), dilruba (3), Hammond organ (7), Rhodes (10), arrangements
  • Tim Adam-Smith – guitar (2-5, 7, 10, 11), piano (5)
  • Adrian Acolatse – double bass (2, 5-8, 10, 11)
  • Paul Powell – bass (8, 12)
  • Sarah Bateson – ukulele (2, 4, 6, 7, 11), backing vocals (2)
  • Robert Cherry – accordion (5, 7, 11)
  • Rachael Lander – cello (3, 6, 12)
  • Jo Archard – violin (1)
  • Benedict Taylor – viola (1)
  • Rhian Porter – cello (1)
  • Madeleine Kate Hylland – additional vocals (1, 8)
  • The Noctis Chamber Choir – choir (1, 3, 6, 8, 11)
  • Jordan Florence Hess – children backing vocals (8)
  • Sophie Rose Davidson – children backing vocals (8)
  • Lily Charlotte Davidson – children backing vocals (8)
  • Joe Duddell – choir (1, 3, 6, 8, 11) and strings arrangements (1)
Production
  • Charlie Andrew – production (2-7, 9-11), additional production (8, 12), recording (2-7, 10, 11), strings recording (8)
  • Kirsty Mangan – production (2-7, 9-11), additional production (8, 12)
  • Paul Powell – production (1), main vocal production and recording (from original demo) (11)
  • Felix Quine – production (8, 12), recording (8, 12)
  • Alan Winstanley – recording (1), mixing (1-12)
  • Cameron Gower Poole – engineer (1)
  • Tom Campbell – assistant engineer (1)
  • Jason Howes – recording (9)
  • Simon Halfon – sleeve design
  • Raquel Martinez Royo – cover and colour photography
  • Simon Pantling – black and white photography

References
  1. "Cathal Smyth* - A Comfortable Man (Vinyl, LP, Album) at Discogs". Discogs.com. 2014-10-07. Retrieved 2018-07-31.
  2. Paul Stokes (2015-05-06). "Listen to Cathal Smyth's A Comfortable Man – plus read his guide to the album — Q Magazine". Qthemusic.com. Retrieved 2018-07-31.
  3. Tony Clayton-Lea (2015-05-08). "Cathal Smyth: A Comfortable Man | Album Review". Irishtimes.com. Retrieved 2018-07-31.
  4. "You Are Not Alone - Single". Apple Music. Retrieved 4 May 2023.
  5. Nissim, Mayer (25 March 2015). "Madness star Cathal Smyth unveils new song 'Do You Believe In Love?'". Digitalspy.com. Retrieved 2018-07-31.
  6. "Are the Children Happy? - Single". Spotify. Retrieved 4 May 2023.
  7. "Madness Information Service Newsletter 805". Madness-mis.com. 13 October 2014. Retrieved 2018-07-31.
  8. "CATHAL SMYTH | full Official Chart History | Official Charts Company". Officialcharts.com. 2015-05-23. Retrieved 2018-07-31.
  9. "Official Independent Albums Chart Top 50 | Official Charts Company". Officialcharts.com. Retrieved 2018-07-31.
  10. Nick Duerden (4 October 2014). "Chas Smash | After the madness, going solo | Life and style". The Guardian. Retrieved 2018-07-31.
  11. "Cathal Smyth: On heartbreak and Madness - BBC News". Bbc.co.uk. 2015-05-12. Retrieved 2018-07-31.
  12. "Cathal Smyth 'You're Not Alone' Official Video". YouTube. 2015-05-12. Retrieved 2018-07-31.
  13. "MOJO 258 / May 2015 — Mojo". Mojo4music.com. 2015-03-26. Retrieved 2018-07-31.
  14. Dan Cairns; Mark Edwards; Lisa Verrico; Clive Davis (2015-05-10). "Rock, Pop and Jazz, May 10". The Sunday Times. Retrieved 2018-07-31.
  15. "May 2015 - Uncut". Archived from the original on 2018-08-01. Retrieved 2018-07-31.
  16. "Madness Information Service Newsletter 837". Madness-mis.com. 25 May 2015. Retrieved 2018-07-31.
  17. "Official Independent Album Breakers Chart Top 20 | Official Charts Company". Officialcharts.com. Retrieved 2018-07-31.
  18. A Comfortable Man (Media notes). Cathal Smyth. Phoenix Rising Recording Co. 2015. TPPRC01CD.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
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