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Dear Catastrophe Waitress

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Dear Catastrophe Waitress
Studio album by
Belle & Sebastian
Released6 October 2003
RecordedSummer 2003
StudioSarm West (London)
GenreBaroque pop
Length48:17
LabelRough Trade
ProducerTrevor Horn
Belle & Sebastian chronology
Storytelling
(2002) 		Dear Catastrophe Waitress
(2003) 		Push Barman to Open Old Wounds
(2005)
Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic79/100[1]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[2]
Blender[3]
Entertainment WeeklyC+[4]
The Guardian[5]
Mojo[6]
NME8/10[7]
Pitchfork7.5/10[8]
Rolling Stone[9]
SpinB+[10]
Uncut[11]

Dear Catastrophe Waitress is the sixth studio album by the Scottish indie pop band Belle & Sebastian, released on 6 October 2003 on Rough Trade Records.

It was produced by Trevor Horn, who created a more polished pop sound, in contrast with their previous lo-fi, folky albums (although songs like "Lord Anthony" hearkened back to their old sound). In particular, the danceable track "Stay Loose" proved to be the first in a series of songs (such as "Your Cover's Blown" and "Sukie in the Graveyard") that further diverged from their roots.

"Stay Loose" was released to radio on 24 February 2004.[12] The album was nominated for the 2004 Mercury Music Prize, while the song "Step into My Office, Baby" was shortlisted for an Ivor Novello Award in the Best Song category. As of 2007, Dear Catastrophe Waitress had sold 138,000 copies in the US.[13]

Recording

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The producer Trevor Horn became a fan of Belle & Sebastian through his teenage daughter, and particularly admired the lyrics. When the band heard he was a fan, they invited him to produce their new album. They recorded traditionally, rehearsing extensively and then recording live rather than using overdubs.[14]

Track listing

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Dear Catastrophe Waitress track listing
No.TitleLength
1."Step into My Office, Baby"4:12
2."Dear Catastrophe Waitress"2:22
3."If She Wants Me"5:05
4."Piazza, New York Catcher"3:03
5."Asleep on a Sunbeam"3:22
6."I'm a Cuckoo"5:26
7."You Don't Send Me"3:08
8."Wrapped Up in Books"3:34
9."Lord Anthony"4:14
10."If You Find Yourself Caught in Love"4:15
11."Roy Walker"2:57
12."Stay Loose"6:41
Total length:48:17

Charts

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Chart performance for Dear Catastrophe Waitress
Chart (2003) Peak
position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[15] 88
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[16] 58
French Albums (SNEP)[17] 76
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[18] 64
Irish Albums (IRMA)[19] 25
Italian Albums (FIMI)[20] 46
Norwegian Albums (VG-lista)[21] 10
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[22] 16
UK Albums (OCC)[23] 21
US Billboard 200[24] 84

References

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  1. ^ "Reviews for Dear Catastrophe Waitress by Belle and Sebastian". Metacritic. Retrieved 26 June 2019.
  2. ^ Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Dear Catastrophe Waitress – Belle and Sebastian". AllMusic. Retrieved 26 February 2016.
  3. ^ Wolk, Douglas (November 2003). "Belle & Sebastian: Dear Catastrophe Waitress". Blender (21): 109. Archived from the original on 20 February 2009. Retrieved 26 February 2016.
  4. ^ Browne, David (10 October 2003). "Dear Catastrophe Waitress". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on 13 April 2016. Retrieved 26 February 2016.
  5. ^ Lynskey, Dorian (3 October 2003). "Belle and Sebastian, Dear Catastrophe Waitress". The Guardian. Retrieved 26 February 2016.
  6. ^ "Belle & Sebastian: Dear Catastrophe Waitress". Mojo (120): 123. November 2003.
  7. ^ Thornton, Anthony (8 October 2003). "Belle & Sebastian : Dear Catastrophe Waitress". NME. Archived from the original on 6 November 2012. Retrieved 26 February 2016.
  8. ^ Plagenhoef, Scott (5 October 2003). "Belle and Sebastian: Dear Catastrophe Waitress". Pitchfork. Retrieved 26 February 2016.
  9. ^ Walters, Barry (8 October 2003). "Dear Catastrophe Waitress". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 26 February 2016.
  10. ^ Hermes, Will (November 2003). "Liberty Belle". Spin. 19 (11): 109–10. Retrieved 26 February 2016.
  11. ^ "Belle & Sebastian: Dear Catastrophe Waitress". Uncut (78): 114. November 2003.
  12. ^ "FMQB Airplay Archive: Modern Rock". Friday Morning Quarterback Album Report, Incorporated. Archived from the original on 22 March 2013. Retrieved 30 October 2016.
  13. ^ Plagenhoef, Scott (2007). Belle & Sebastian's If You're Feeling Sinister. Bloomsbury. p. 40. ISBN 9781441194909. Retrieved 7 December 2018.
  14. ^ Horn, Trevor (13 October 2022). Adventures in Modern Recording: From ABC to ZTT (first ed.). Nine Eight Books. ISBN 9781788706032.
  15. ^ Ryan, Gavin (2011). Australia's Music Charts 1988–2010 (PDF ed.). Mt Martha, Victoria, Australia: Moonlight Publishing. p. 28.
  16. ^ "Dutchcharts.nl – Belle & Sebastian – Dear Catastrophe Waitress" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 26 June 2021.
  17. ^ "Lescharts.com – Belle & Sebastian – Dear Catastrophe Waitress". Hung Medien. Retrieved 26 June 2021.
  18. ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – Belle & Sebastian – Dear Catastrophe Waitress" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 26 June 2021.
  19. ^ "Top 75 Artist Album, Week Ending 16 October 2003". GfK Chart-Track. Archived from the original on 2 May 2018. Retrieved 4 August 2022.
  20. ^ "Italiancharts.com – Belle & Sebastian – Dear Catastrophe Waitress". Hung Medien. Retrieved 26 June 2021.
  21. ^ "Norwegiancharts.com – Belle & Sebastian – Dear Catastrophe Waitress". Hung Medien. Retrieved 26 June 2021.
  22. ^ "Swedishcharts.com – Belle & Sebastian – Dear Catastrophe Waitress". Hung Medien. Retrieved 26 June 2021.
  23. ^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 26 June 2021.
  24. ^ "Belle and Sebastian Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved 26 June 2021.
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