''Hi Fi'' is the fourth studio album by

Hugh Cornwell Hugh Alan Cornwell (born 28 August 1949) is an English musician, singer-songwriter and writer, best known for being the lead vocalist and lead guitarist for the punk rock and new wave band the Stranglers from 1974 to 1990. Since leaving the ...

, released on 2 October 2000 by

Koch Entertainment Koch Entertainment was an American record label and a distributor of film, television, and music. It was purchased by Canadian entertainment company Entertainment One in 2005. History First years The company began in 1975 as part of Koch Intern ...

. It is produced by

Laurie Latham Laurie Latham (born 1955) is a British rock producer who worked with Glenn Tilbrook, Paul Young and others. He has produced albums by Ian Dury & the Blockheads, Echo & the Bunnymen, Squeeze, The Stranglers, The Christians and Slapp Happy. Ca ...

, who also worked on Cornwell's previous album ''

Guilty Guilty or The Guilty may refer to: * Guilt (emotion), an experience that occurs when a person believes they have violated a moral standard Law *Culpability, the degree to which an agent can be held responsible for action or inaction *Guilt (law) ...

'' (1997). All instrumentation is by Cornwell with appearances from Justin Chapman (drums), Michelle Marti (bass) and Mike Polson (guitar) from his touring band, a string quartet, and harmonica player John Dominic (ex-

the Bo Street Runners The Bo Street Runners were an English R&B band formed in Harrow. England, during 1964. The band released four singles and an extended play record. They gained prominence in the United Kingdom after winning the ''Ready Steady Win!'' band contest ...

, Deborah Bonham Band). In 2001, the album was released in the US ( Koch) and Europe (

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) under the same title but with different artwork, an additional version of "Gingerbread Girl" and two live tracks. A remixed and remastered vinyl edition of ''Hi Fi'' was released by Cornwell's own HIS Records in 2021. It was released in a limited edition of 500 copies, with new cover art work, and with the original track listing.

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 ...

's Mark Deming found the album "pleasingly tuneful, with strong pop melodies," and a "winning psychedelic undertow" on certain tracks. He felt it "ranks with the most confident and accessible work of ornwell'scareer," with Cornwell's vocals and songwriting being "in fine shape", and Laurie Latham's production serving the material well.

Track listing

US/European 2001 release

Duration of some tracks differ from the UK version. * Track 2: additional production and mixing by the Black Dog at Black Dog Towers, London. * Tracks 11 and 12: solo acoustic live recordings; no date or location is given.

Personnel

Credits adapted from the album liner notes. ;Musicians *Hugh Cornwell – vocals, instrumentation *Justin Chapman – drums (1, 3–8) *Michelle Marti – bass (1, 4–8) *Mike Polson – additional guitar (1, 5, 7, 8) *Sumyungstrings: :Gita Langley – violin :Jesse Murphy – violin :Rachel Helleur – cello :Una Palliser – viola (8, 9) *John Dominic – harmonica (7, 10) ;Technical *

– producer, engineer *

Jon Astley Jon Astley is a British record producer who has also recorded and released two albums as a singer-songwriter in the late 1980s. His most commercially successful song was "Jane's Getting Serious", later popularized by a Heinz ketchup television ...

– mastering *AL at Spot On Design – design, artwork *Gary Bryan – cover photography ;2001 US/European release *Steve "Hotdog" Ash – engineer (2) *Jeff Chenault – art direction, design ;2021 vinyl reissue *Hugh Cornwell – remixing, artwork *Phil Andrews – remixing *Barry Grint – remastering *Nick Stone – artwork *Andrew J. Davies – photography

References

{{Authority control 2000 albums Hugh Cornwell albums Albums produced by Laurie Latham