''Encore'' is a

live 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 ...

by American singer

Lionel Richie Lionel Brockman Richie Jr. (born June 20, 1949) is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and television personality. He rose to fame in the 1970s as a songwriter and the co-lead singer of funk band the Commodores; writing and recordi ...

. It was released by

Island Records Island Records is a multinational record label owned by Universal Music Group. It was founded in 1959 by Chris Blackwell, Graeme Goodall, and Leslie Kong in Jamaica, and was eventually sold to PolyGram in 1989. Island and A&M Records, anoth ...

first on November 26, 2002 in Europe. The album features his May 2001 concert at

Wembley Arena Wembley Arena (originally the Empire Pool, now known as OVO Arena Wembley for sponsorship reasons) is an indoor arena next to Wembley Stadium in Wembley, London, England, used for music, comedy, family entertainment and sport. The 12,500-sea ...

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

, as part of his tour in support of his sixth solo studio album ''

Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history marking the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and covering the 15th and 16th centuries, characterized by an effort to revive and surpass ideas ...

'' (2000). Most of the songs on ''Encore'' originate from previous studio albums as well as from Richie's repertoire with his former band

The Commodores Commodores are an American funk and Soul music, soul band, which were at their peak in the late 1970s through the mid 1980s. The members of the group met as mostly freshmen at Tuskegee Institute (now Tuskegee University) in 1968, and signed wit ...

, although he also performed the songs "

Angel In various theistic religious traditions an angel is a supernatural spiritual being who serves God. Abrahamic religions often depict angels as benevolent celestial intermediaries between God (or Heaven) and humanity. Other roles include ...

," "Tender Heart" and " Don't Stop the Music" from the ''Renaissance'' album Upon release, the album earned a mixed response, with some American reviewers criticizing Island's decision to omit two previously unreleased original tracks, the

Ric Wake Ric Wake is an American record producer who has won four Grammy Awards and two Oscar Awards. During his tenure as staff producer with Sony Music Entertainment he has worked with vocalists such as Celine Dion, Whitney Houston, Lucero, Taylor D ...

-produced "Goodbye" and "

To Love a Woman "To Love a Woman" is a song by American singer Lionel Richie, featuring vocals from Spanish singer Enrique Iglesias. It was written by Richie, Iglesias and Paul Barry (songwriter), Paul Barry for Richie's live album ''Encore (Lionel Richie album), ...

," a duet with Spanish singer

Enrique Iglesias Enrique Miguel Iglesias Preysler (; (born 8 May 1975) is a Spanish singer and songwriter. He started his recording career in the mid-1990s on the Mexican indie label Fonovisa and became the bestselling Spanish-language act of the decade. By the ...

, from US editions of ''Encore''. A commercial success, the live album reached the top ten in Austria, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom. It was certified double platinum by the

British Phonographic Industry British Phonographic Industry (BPI) is the British recorded music industry's Trade association. It runs the BRIT Awards, the Classic BRIT Awards, National Album Day, is home to the Mercury Prize, and co-owns the Official Charts Company with th ...

(BPI) and gold by the Swiss arm of the

International Federation of the Phonographic Industry The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) is the organisation that represents the interests of the recording industry worldwide. It is a non-profit members' organisation registered in Switzerland and founded in Italy in 19 ...

(IFPI).

Critical reception

Allmusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

editor William Ruhlmann found that "Richie is an engaging cheerleader of a frontman, endlessly encouraging his already enthusiastic listeners with such interjections as "C'mon!," "Yeah!," and "Let's go!." ..No doubt this show was more enjoyable for Richie fans in the arena than it will be for those listening at home ..This is a performer who is playing much more to the audience in front of him than to the one that will hear the concert later on disc. Even leaving aside the truncated form of this version of the collection, this is not a memorable live album."

Track listing

Notes * signifies a co-producer * signifies an additional producer

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

References

{{Authority control Lionel Richie live albums 2002 live albums Island Records live albums