''Down in Albion'' is the debut

album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as Digital distribution#Music, digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early ...

Babyshambles Babyshambles were an English rock band established in London. The band was formed by Pete Doherty (lead vocals, rhythm guitar) during a hiatus from the Libertines. As of 2013 the band includes Mick Whitnall (lead guitar), Drew McConnell (bas ...

Pete Doherty Peter Doherty (born 12 March 1979) is an English musician, songwriter, actor, poet, writer, and artist. He is best known for being co-frontman of The Libertines, which he formed with Carl Barât in 1997. His other musical projects are indie b ...

's post-

Libertines A libertine is a person devoid of most moral principles, a sense of responsibility, or sexual restraints, which they see as unnecessary or undesirable, and is especially someone who ignores or even spurns accepted morals and forms of behaviour ob ...

band. ''Down in Albion'' was released on 14 November 2005 on

Rough Trade Records Rough Trade Records is an independent record label based in London, England. It was formed in 1976 by Geoff Travis who had opened a record store off Ladbroke Grove. Having successfully promoted and sold records by punk rock and early post-pun ...

, although it was leaked on to the Internet on 19 October 2005. Produced by Mick Jones, ''Down in Albion'' contains a rerecorded version of their second single "

Killamangiro "Killamangiro" is a song by English band, Babyshambles, released in November 2004 through Rough Trade Records. It achieved respectable chart success, peaking at #8 on the UK Singles Chart. The song itself features an unusual opening beat from ...

" as well as a

reggae Reggae () is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1960s. The term also denotes the modern popular music of Jamaica and its diaspora. A 1968 single by Toots and the Maytals, " Do the Reggay" was the first popular song to use ...

track, "Pentonville". The influence of

The Clash The Clash were an English rock band formed in London in 1976 who were key players in the original wave of British punk rock. Billed as "The Only Band That Matters", they also contributed to the and new wave movements that emerged in the wa ...

has been noted on songs such as "À rebours" and "The 32nd of December". The inclusion of "Albion" is controversial among fans, due to the song's history as a fan favorite from the days of The Libertines. The first track, "La Belle et la Bête" ( French for "Beauty and the Beast"), features the vocals of Doherty's then-girlfriend

Kate Moss Katherine Ann Moss (born 16 January 1974) is a British model. Arriving at the end of the "supermodel era", Moss rose to fame in the early 1990s as part of the heroin chic fashion trend. Her collaborations with Calvin Klein brought her to fas ...

, and "Pentonville" was written by Doherty and The General, a friend he met whilst an inmate in

Pentonville Prison HM Prison Pentonville (informally "The Ville") is an English Category B men's prison, operated by His Majesty's Prison Service. Pentonville Prison is not in Pentonville, but is located further north, on the Caledonian Road in the Barnsbury ar ...

. The album was seen as a move away from The Libertines' style of music. The artwork for the album was created by Doherty.

Track listing

All tracks by

unless otherwise stated. # "La Belle et la Bête" (featuring

) (

, Chevalley, Peter Wolfe) – 5:05 # "

Fuck Forever "Fuck Forever" is a song by English rock band Babyshambles. It was released as a single on 15 August 2005 and is their highest-charting single, peaking at number four on the UK Singles Chart. The song was negatively targeted due to its controve ...

" (Doherty,

Patrick Walden Patrick George Walden (born 5 October 1978 in Islington, London) is best known as the former guitarist for Babyshambles. Prior to joining Babyshambles, Walden belonged to a variety of London groups, among which were Fluid, the Six Cold Thousand ...

) – 4:37 # "À rebours" – 3:23 # "The 32nd of December" – 3:08 # "Pipedown" (Doherty, Walden) – 2:35 # "Sticks and Stones" (Doherty, Wolfe) – 4:51 # "

" – 3:13 # "8 Dead Boys" – 4:16 # "In Love with a Feeling" – 2:51 # "Pentonville" Feat. The General (General Santana) – 3:49 # "What Katy Did Next" (Doherty, Alan Wass) – 3:07 # "

Albion Albion is an alternative name for Great Britain. The oldest attestation of the toponym comes from the Greek language. It is sometimes used poetically and generally to refer to the island, but is less common than 'Britain' today. The name for Scot ...

" – 5:24 # "Back from the Dead" (Doherty, Wolfe) – 2:52 # "Loyalty Song" (Doherty, Walden) – 3:32 # "Up the Morning" – 5:43 # "Merry Go Round" – 5:22

Personnel

* Peter Doherty –

vocals Singing is the act of creating musical sounds with the voice. A person who sings is called a singer, artist or vocalist (in jazz and/or popular music). Singers perform music (arias, recitatives, songs, etc.) that can be sung with or without ...

guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected stri ...

, artwork *

–

Lead guitar Lead guitar (also known as solo guitar) is a musical part for a guitar in which the guitarist plays melody lines, instrumental fill passages, guitar solos, and occasionally, some riffs and chords within a song structure. The lead is the featur ...

Adam Ficek Adam Steven Ficek (born 8 March 1974) is an English musician and psychotherapist who performs under the Roses Kings Castles name. He is a songwriter and member of Babyshambles. Ficek joined Babyshambles in 2005 with former The White Sport ban ...

–

drums A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other Percussion instrument, auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair o ...

Drew McConnell Drew McConnell (born 10 November 1978 in Dublin, Ireland) is the bass guitarist and backing vocalist with Babyshambles, the band formed and fronted by frontman of the Libertines, Pete Doherty, and for former Oasis frontman Liam Gallagher's band ...

–

bass guitar The bass guitar, electric bass or simply bass (), is the lowest-pitched member of the string family. It is a plucked string instrument similar in appearance and construction to an electric or an acoustic guitar, but with a longer neck and ...

– vocals on track 1 * General Santana – vocals on track 10 *

Barriemore Barlow Barrie "Barriemore" Barlow (born 10 September 1949, Birmingham) is an English musician, best known as the drummer and percussionist for the rock band Jethro Tull, from May 1971 to June 1980. Christened Barrie, 'Barriemore' was an affectation ...

–

gong A gongFrom Indonesian and ms, gong; jv, ꦒꦺꦴꦁ ; zh, c=鑼, p=luó; ja, , dora; km, គង ; th, ฆ้อง ; vi, cồng chiêng; as, কাঁহ is a percussion instrument originating in East Asia and Southeast Asia. Gongs ...

on track 6 ;Technical * Mick Jones – producer * Bill Price – mixing, recorded by * Adam Fuest – recorded by * Iain Gore – recorded by * Daniel Parry – assistant engineer * George Williams – assistant engineer * Matt Paul – assistant engineer * Jeff Teader – layout *

Hedi Slimane Hedi Slimane (; born July 5, 1968) is a French photographer and grand couturier. From 2000 to 2007, he held the position of creative director for Dior Homme (the menswear line of Christian Dior S.A., Christian Dior). From 2012 to 2016, he was the ...

– photos

Singles

(11 November), (2004), ( Rough Trade) UK #8 *

(15 August), (2005), (Rough Trade) UK #4 *

(28 November), (2005), (Rough Trade) UK #8

Chart performance

References

{{Authority control 2005 debut albums Babyshambles albums Rough Trade Records albums

Track listing

Personnel

Singles

Chart performance

See also

References