Trouble been doggin' my soul since the day I was born

Continuing my trip back through the 2006 album charts.

06/08/06 : Trouble - Ray LaMontagne

I remember the title track - he's got a nice enough voice but it consists almost entirely of him singing "Woah trouble" over a pretty simple backing track, but was somehow ridiculously popular (I blame dinner parties).  So I think it's fair to say my expectations are not high for a whole album of that...

And yeah, that's pretty much what we've got.  I'm sure I'll be told I'm missing subtle variation and nuance, but for me it all sounds exactly the same.  It's not hateful - just utterly, utterly pointless.  Who would want to listen to this?

And yet, we're at #5 in the charts (its peak position) on the seventh week of a 23 week run - and then it came back for another 12 week run in the new year.  What do I know, eh?  (very little, as I prove on a daily basis).  The rest of the top five are James Morrison (a new entry), Razorlight, Snow Patrol (which, amusingly, I initially typed as Paw Patrol) and The Kooks - the next highest entry is The Puppini Sisters (#16) who I actually know because I like their version of Crazy In Love, but I think a whole album would prove too much for the likes of me.

Wikipedia has more than I'd expect on the album, but nearly all of it is just telling me which random US TV episode used which random track.  But, there is a fact of interest in there - the album was actually released in September '04 but only charted in France at that time, reaching the dizzy heights of #164.  It then had its moment in the spotlight in the UK and Ireland in '06 - and finally charted in the US in '15, also reaching #164.  His entry tells me he's still going and has actually been pretty successful in the US over the years, having three consecutive albums reaching #3 between '08 and '14.

"Customers also listened to" Ryan Adams (who I find similarly pointless) and a load of people I don't know, but they look like they'd sound like Ray.  I quite like his voice, but this is just harmless but pointless for me I'm afraid.

30/07/06 - Not as immediate as I was hoping for
13/08/06 - A pleasant stroll down memory lane

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