''Fires'' is the second album by

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 ...

-born singer-songwriter

Nerina Pallot Nerina Natasha Georgina Pallot (born 26 April 1974) is an English singer, songwriter and producer, who has released six albums and over a dozen EPs. She was nominated for British Female Solo Artist at the 2007 BRIT Awards and nominated for an I ...

. First released in April 2005 on her own independent record label, Idaho Records, ''Fires'' was met with much critical acclaim but did not gain commercial recognition. After working as a support act for artists such as

Sheryl Crow Sheryl Suzanne Crow (born February 11, 1962) is an American musician, singer, songwriter and actress. Her music incorporates elements of rock, pop, country, folk, and blues. She has released eleven studio albums, five compilations and three li ...

and

Suzanne Vega Suzanne Nadine Vega ( Peck; born July 11, 1959) is an American singer-songwriter best known for her folk-inspired music. Vega's music career spans almost 40 years. She came to prominence in the mid-1980s, releasing four singles that entered the ...

, Pallot was signed up to 14th Floor Records, who were impressed with the audience response and after-show sales of her album. Thus, ''Fires'' was reissued in late April 2006 with revamped artwork and some slight remixes on some of Pallot's songs. The album entered at UK #41 and later, on the strength of the popular single "

Everybody's Gone to War "Everybody's Gone to War" is a song written and performed by British singer-songwriter Nerina Pallot. The song, an anti-war protest, was written during the early stages of the Iraq War in 2003 and was composed on bass guitar by Pallot. Originally ...

", made it as far as #21. To date, the album has been certified

gold Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au (from la, aurum) and atomic number 79. This makes it one of the higher atomic number elements that occur naturally. It is a bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile met ...

in the UK for sales of over 100,000, and has earned Pallot a nomination at the

2007 BRIT Awards Brit Awards 2007 was the 27th edition of the Brit Awards, an annual pop music awards ceremony in the United Kingdom. It was organised by the British Phonographic Industry and took place on 14 February 2007 at Earls Court in London. The show, wh ...

for Best British Female. As of 4 October 2009, the album has sold 138,563 copies in the UK.

Track listing

All songs written by Nerina Pallot. #"

" – 3:54 #"Halfway Home" – 4:26 #"Damascus" – 4:42 #"Idaho" – 4:29 #"All Good People" – 4:16 #"Mr King" – 4:22 #"Geek Love" – 4:00 #" Sophia" – 3:40 #" Learning to Breathe" – 4:09 #"Heart Attack" – 3:25 #"Nickindia" – 5:28

Singles

The original release of the album was preceded by a download-only single, "

". Two further singles, "Damascus" (June 2005) and "All Good People" (September 2005), the latter a

BBC Radio 2 BBC Radio 2 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It is the most popular station in the United Kingdom with over 15 million weekly listeners. Since launching in 1967, the station broadcasts a wide range of content. ...

Single of the Week, failed to dent the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

. "All Good People" did, however, peak at #21 on the UK Airplay Chart in August 2005 and spent four weeks inside the Airplay Top 30. After Pallot's success on the support slot circuit in 2005 led to her signing with 14th Floor Records, "Everybody's Gone to War" was re-released on download, CD, and 7" vinyl on 22 May 2006. With a memorable video directed by

Marc Klasfeld Marc Klasfeld is an American music video director. He has directed over two hundred music videos for artists such as Slipknot, Sum 41, Katy Perry, Jay-Z, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Britney Spears, Kid Rock, Michael Bublé, Nelly, Foo Fighters, Kelly ...

and high-profile UK TV appearances, the song peaked at UK #14 and also peaked at #3 on the UK Airplay Chart. A remixed version of " Sophia" followed on download, CD, and 7" vinyl after much delay on 2 October 2006, peaking at UK #32 (and #12 on the UK Airplay Chart). A fifth and final single from ''Fires'', " Learning to Breathe", peaked at UK #70 following its release on 8 January 2007, but fared significantly better on the UK Airplay Chart, peaking at #22.

Chart statistics

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fires (Album) 2005 albums Nerina Pallot albums