Night Owl (album)
Night Owl is the third studio album by Scottish musician Gerry Rafferty. It was released a year after Rafferty's Platinum-selling album City to City. While not quite performing as well as its predecessor, Night Owl still managed enough sales to achieve platinum status in Canada, gold in the United Kingdom, and gold status in the U.S. The title song reached No. 5 on the UK charts. The album made the UK Top 10.
Night Owl | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | June 1979 | |||
Recorded | 1978–1979 | |||
Studio | Chipping Norton Recording Studios, Lansdowne Recording Studios | |||
Genre | Folk rock | |||
Length | 54:42 | |||
Label | United Artists | |||
Producer | Hugh Murphy, Gerry Rafferty | |||
Gerry Rafferty chronology | ||||
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Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
Smash Hits | 7/10[1] |
The album was recorded at Chipping Norton Recording Studios, Chipping Norton, England.
"Take the Money and Run" appears on the 1980 release Free Fall as "Take the Money."
Re-releases
On 30 January 2007 Collectables Records released City To City and Night Owl as a two-disc set.
Track listing
All tracks are written by Gerry Rafferty
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
1. | "Days Gone Down (Still Got the Light in Your Eyes)" | 6:31 |
2. | "Night Owl" | 6:11 |
3. | "The Way That You Do It" | 5:08 |
4. | "Why Won't You Talk To Me?" | 3:59 |
5. | "Get It Right Next Time" | 4:40 |
6. | "Take the Money and Run" | 5:48 |
7. | "Family Tree" | 5:55 |
8. | "Already Gone" | 4:54 |
9. | "The Tourist" | 4:14 |
10. | "It's Gonna Be a Long Night" | 4:22 |
Personnel
- Gerry Rafferty – vocals, acoustic piano (2, 9) Polymoog (2), acoustic guitar (3–8, 10), string arrangements
- Graham Preskett – acoustic piano (1, 4, 10), electric piano (2), string synthesizer (2), keyboards (6, 7), fiddles (6, 7), mandolin (10), string arrangements, string scoring and conductor
- Pete Wingfield – organ (1, 2, 3)
- Tommy Eyre – acoustic piano (3), electric piano (5), synthesizers (5)
- John Kirkpatrick – accordion (4, 6, 7)
- Richard Brunton – electric guitar (1, 3, 6, 7), lap steel guitar (1, 4, 10), acoustic guitar (3, 4, 7–10), guitar solo (7), guitars (10)
- Hugh Burns – electric guitar (1, 4), rhythm guitar (1, 9), guitar solo (1, 9), guitars (2, 5)
- Richard Thompson –mandolin (4), electric guitars (7, 8)
- Mo Foster – bass (1, 2, 4, 6–10)
- Gary Taylor – bass (3, 5)
- Liam Genockey – drums
- Frank Ricotti – percussion (1, 2, 5, 6, 8, 9)
- Raphael Ravenscroft – Lyricon (2), saxophone (5, 6, 9, 10)
- Richard Harvey – penny whistle (6), pipe organ (7), recorders (7), synthesizers (8, 9)
- Gavyn Wright – string leader
- Betsy Cook – backing vocals (1, 3)
- Barbara Dickson – backing vocals (1, 3, 7)
- Linda Thompson – backing vocals (1, 3)
Production
- Gerry Rafferty – producer
- Hugh Murphy – producer
- Barry Hammond – engineer (1, 2, 4, 6–10)
- Nick Patrick – engineer (3, 5)
- John Patrick Byrne – front cover painting
- Robert Ellis – photography
Charts
Album
Chart (1979) | Position |
---|---|
Australia (Kent Music Report)[2] | 18 |
Billboard Pop Albums | 29 |
Single
Year | Song | Chart | Position |
---|---|---|---|
1979 | "Night Owl" | UK Top 40 | 5 |
1979 | "Night Owl" | Ireland | 5 |
1979 | "Days Gone Down (Still Got the Light in Your Eyes)" | U.S. Billboard Pop Singles | 17 |
1979 | "Days Gone Down (Still Got the Light in Your Eyes)" | Canada RPM Adult Contemporary[3] | 8 |
1979 | "Days Gone Down (Still Got the Light in Your Eyes)" | Canada RPM Top Singles[4] | 19 |
1979 | "Days Gone Down (Still Got the Light in Your Eyes)" | U.S. Billboard Adult Contemporary | 17 |
1979 | "Get It Right Next Time" | U.S. Billboard Pop Singles | 21 |
1979 | "Get It Right Next Time" | U.S. Billboard Adult Contemporary | 15 |
1979 | "Get It Right Next Time" | UK Top 40 | 30 |
1979 | "Get It Right Next Time" | Ireland | 2 |
1979 | "Get It Right Next Time" | Canada RPM Top Singles[5] | 52 |
Certifications
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
United Kingdom (BPI)[6] | Gold | 100,000^ |
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. |
References
- Starr, Red. "Albums". Smash Hits (28 June – 11 July 1979): 25.
- Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 244. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
- RPM Adult Contemporary, 11 August 1979
- RPM Top Singles, 4 August 1979
- RPM Top Singles, 17 November 1979
- "British album certifications – Gerry Rafferty – Night Owl". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 25 July 2022.