''No Ordinary World'' is the seventeenth studio album by
Joe Cocker
John Robert "Joe" Cocker (20 May 1944 – 22 December 2014) was an English singer known for his gritty, bluesy voice and dynamic stage performances that featured expressive body movements. Most of his best known singles were recordings of son ...
, released on 9 September 1999 in Europe and on 22 August 2000 in USA. The US edition of the album features two bonus tracks and has different cover artwork. Notable songs on the album include a cover of
Leonard Cohen's "First We Take Manhattan" and "She Believes in Me" co-written by
Bryan Adams, who had also provided backing vocals for the song.
Track listing
#"
First We Take Manhattan
"First We Take Manhattan" is a song written by Canadian singer-songwriter Leonard Cohen. It was originally recorded by American singer Jennifer Warnes on her 1986 Cohen tribute album ''Famous Blue Raincoat'', which consisted entirely of songs wr ...
" – 3:44 (
Leonard Cohen)
#"Different Roads" – 4:58 (Stephen Allen Davis,
Steve DuBerry
Steve DuBerry is a British Grammy Award nominated songwriter and record producer, co-writer of Tina Turner's "I Don't Wanna Fight" (along with Lulu and her brother Billy Lawrie). DuBerry has also written and produced songs for Tylah Yaweh, Blue ...
)
#"My Father's Son" – 4:29 (
Graham Lyle,
Conner Reeves
Conner Reeves (born 8 April 1972) is an English singer and songwriter. He is best known for his 1997 album ''Earthbound'' which was released on Colin Lester's and Ian McAndrew's Wildstar label.
Reeves scored five Top 40 singles in the UK Sing ...
)
#"
While You See a Chance" – 3:51 (
Will Jennings,
Steve Winwood
Stephen Lawrence Winwood (born 12 May 1948) is an English musician, singer, and songwriter whose genres include blue-eyed soul, rhythm and blues, blues rock, and pop rock. Though primarily a keyboard player and vocalist prominent for his disti ...
)
#"She Believes in Me" – 4:44 (
Bryan Adams,
Eliot Kennedy)
#"No Ordinary World" – 3:52 (Lars Anderson, Stephen Allen Davis)
#"Where Would I Be Now" – 5:27 (
Michael McDonald,
Tony Joe White)
#"
Ain't Gonna Cry Again
"Ain't Gonna Cry Again" is the debut solo single by English singer-songwriter Peter Cox, released in 1997 from his self-titled debut solo album. The song was written by Cox and Peter-John Vettese, and produced by Vettese. "Ain't Gonna Cry Again" ...
" – 4:06 (
Peter Cox,
Peter-John Vettese)
#"Soul Rising" – 3:57 (Peter Cox,
Graham Gouldman, Peter-John Vettese)
#"
Naked Without You
Nudity is the state of being in which a human is without clothing.
The loss of body hair was one of the physical characteristics that marked the biological evolution of modern humans from their hominin ancestors. Adaptations related to h ...
" – 4:31 (
Rick Nowels,
Andrew Roachford
Andrew Roachford (born 22 January 1965) is a British singer-songwriter and the main force behind the band Roachford, who scored their first success in 1989 with the hits "Cuddly Toy" and "Family Man". He has also had a successful solo career. ...
,
Billy Steinberg
William Endfield Steinberg (born February 26, 1950) is an American songwriter. He achieved his greatest success in the 1980s with songwriting partner Tom Kelly; together they wrote or co-wrote the No. 1 hits " Like a Virgin" by Madonna (1984), ...
)
#"Love to Lean On" – 4:17 (Steve Diamond,
Wayne Kirkpatrick
Wayne Kirkpatrick (born c. 1961) is an American songwriter and musician born in Baton Rouge, Louisiana who now lives in Nashville, Tennessee. He graduated from Baton Rouge Magnet High School in 1979. His younger brother is American screenwriter ...
)
#"On My Way Home" – 4:13 (
Jean-Jacques Goldman
Jean-Jacques Goldman (; born 11 October 1951) is a French singer-songwriter and music record producer. He is hugely popular in the French-speaking world. Since the death of Johnny Hallyday in 2017 he has been the highest grossing living French p ...
,
Michael Jones)
#"Lie to Me" – 4:01 (J. McCabe,
David Z
David Z may refer to:
* David Z (producer)
David Rivkin (born 1953), professionally known as David Z, is an American music producer, engineer, and songwriter from Minneapolis, Minnesota. He is best known for his long-standing work with Prince, a ...
)
#"Love Made a Promise" – 5:03 (
Paul Brady, Mark Nevin)
''Tracks 13 & 14 available only on US edition of the album. In Europe both songs were only released as B-sides to different singles.
Personnel
* Joe Cocker – lead vocals
*
Spike Edney – synthesizers (1, 10)
* Chris Elliot – acoustic piano (1, 2),
Rhodes piano
The Rhodes piano (also known as the Fender Rhodes piano) is an electric piano invented by Harold Rhodes, which became popular in the 1970s. Like a conventional piano, the Rhodes generates sound with keys and hammers, but instead of strings, t ...
(2),
clavinet
The Clavinet is an electrically amplified clavichord invented by Ernst Zacharias and manufactured by the Hohner company of Trossingen, West Germany, from 1964 to 1982. The instrument produces sounds by a rubber pad striking a point on a tension ...
(3),
Wurlitzer electric piano
The Wurlitzer electronic piano is an electric piano manufactured and marketed by Wurlitzer from the mid-1950s to mid-1980s. Sound is generated by striking a metal reed with a hammer, which induces an electric current in a pickup. It is conceptua ...
(3)
* John Savannah –
Hammond organ
The Hammond organ is an electric organ invented by Laurens Hammond and John M. Hanert and first manufactured in 1935. Multiple models have been produced, most of which use sliding drawbars to vary sounds. Until 1975, Hammond organs generated s ...
(1-3, 7, 10), electric piano (2), acoustic piano (6)
*
Jason Rebello – acoustic piano (3, 7, 10), clavinet (3), electric piano (7)
*
Peter-John Vettese – keyboards (4, 8, 9), acoustic piano (4, 8, 9), Hammond organ (4, 8, 9),
melodica (4, 9), programming (4, 8, 9)
* Mark Evans – additional programming (4)
*
Peter Gordeno
Peter Gordeno (20 June 1939 – 18 October 2008) was a British dancer, recording artist, cabaret singer, choreographer, and occasional actor.
Biography
Born as Peter Godenho in Rangoon, Burma, to an Italian American father and Scottish/ Bu ...
– keyboards (5, 11)
*
C. J. Vanston
Cj (Jeffrey) Vanston is an American film composer, record producer, songwriter, and keyboardist, based in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, Hollywood, California. He was born in Denver, Colorado, the son of Bonnie L. Smith and Paul L. Vanston.
...
– keyboards (5, 11), Rhodes piano (5), synth strings (5, 7), synth percussion (5), synth vibes (10), clavinet (11), Hammond organ (11)
* David Clayton – synthesizers (6)
*
Jean-Jacques Goldman
Jean-Jacques Goldman (; born 11 October 1951) is a French singer-songwriter and music record producer. He is hugely popular in the French-speaking world. Since the death of Johnny Hallyday in 2017 he has been the highest grossing living French p ...
– keyboards (12), acoustic guitar (12), backing vocals (12)
*
Tim Pierce – electric guitar (1, 3, 10)
* Steve McEwan – electric guitar (1, 3, 6, 7), acoustic guitar (2, 7)
*
Steve Power
Steve Power (born in Liverpool) is an English record producer best known for his work with Robbie Williams. He has produced and mixed a wide variety of artists over the years, including Blur, Busted, Andrea Bocelli, Feeder, Joe Cocker,Perciv ...
– electric guitar (1)
* Melvin Duffy –
pedal steel guitar
The pedal steel guitar is a Console steel guitar, console-type of steel guitar with pedals and knee levers that change the pitch of certain strings to enable playing more varied and complex music than any previous steel guitar design. Like all s ...
(1, 6, 7)
* Billy Lang – electric guitar (2), acoustic guitar (6)
*
Adam Seymour – electric guitar (2, 3, 10), acoustic guitar (10)
*
Robbie McIntosh – guitar (4, 8, 9), electric guitar (6)
*
Michael Thompson – guitar (5, 11)
* Patrice Tison – guitar (12)
* Dave Catlin-Birch – bass (1, 2, 7)
*
Neil Stubenhaus
Neil Stubenhaus is an American bass guitarist.
Career
He started his musical training playing drums and switched to bass guitar at the age of 12. He studied at the Berklee College of Music where he graduated in 1975. After graduation, he was rec ...
– bass (1-3, 5, 10, 11)
* Neil Harland – bass (4, 9)
*
Mark Smith – bass (6)
* Guy Delacroix – bass (12)
*
Jeremy Stacey – drums (1-4, 6-10)
*
John Robinson John Robinson may refer to:
Academics
*John Thomas Romney Robinson (1792–1882), Irish astronomer and physicist
* John J. Robinson (1918–1996), historian and author of ''Born in Blood''
*John Talbot Robinson (1923–2001), paleontologist
*John ...
– drums (5, 11)
* Christopher Deschamps – drums (12)
* Andy Duncan – percussion (1, 2, 7, 10), drum programming (6)
* Chris White – tenor saxophone (3), baritone saxophone (3)
* Neil Sidwell – trombone (3)
*
Steve Sidwell
Steven James Sidwell (born 14 December 1982) is an English former professional footballer who played as a midfielder.
Sidwell was a product of the Arsenal academy, and after winning two FA Youth Cups, he had constructive loan spells at Bren ...
– trumpet (3)
* Chris Cameron – string arrangements (2, 6, 10)
* Richard Niles – string arrangements (4, 9)
*
Gavyn Wright
Gavyn Wright is a British violinist and orchestra leader with the London Session Orchestra and Penguin Cafe Orchestra.
He is best known for his orchestral arrangements on pop productions (including Elton John, Simply Red, Bush, Mecano, Oasis, ...
– string conductor (2, 6, 10)
* Mary Carewe – backing vocals (1-3, 6, 7, 10)
* Helen Hampton – backing vocals (1-3, 6, 7, 10)
*
Katie Kissoon
Mac and Katie Kissoon are a pop soul duo, consisting of brother and sister Mac Kissoon (born Gerald Farthing, November 11, 1943, Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago) and Katie Kissoon (born Katherine Farthing, March 11, 1951, Port of Spain).
Ea ...
– backing vocals (1-3, 6, 7, 10)
*
Bryan Adams – backing vocals (5)
* Natalie Jackson – backing vocals (5, 11)
* Mortonette Jenkins – backing vocals (5, 11)
* Marlena Jeter – backing vocals (5, 11)
* Tommy Blaize – backing vocals (8, 9)
*
Lance Ellington – backing vocals (8, 9)
* Keith Murrell – backing vocals (8, 9)
* Michael Jones – backing vocals (12)
Production
* Joe Cocker – executive producer
*
Roger Davies Roger Davies may refer to:
* Roger Davies (actor), English actor known for ''Renford Rejects'' and ''The Cloverfield Paradox''
* Roger Davies (manager) (born 1952), Australian-born manager in the music industry
* Roger Davies (footballer) (born 19 ...
– executive producer
* Steve Power – producer (1, 2, 3, 6, 7, 10, 13, 14), mixing (1, 2, 3, 6, 7, 10)
* Peter-John Vettese – producer (4, 8, 9), mixing (4, 8, 9)
* Pete Smith – producer (5, 11), mixing (5, 11)
* Jean-Jacques Goldman – producer (12)
* Matt Tait – engineer (1, 2, 3, 6, 7, 10)
* Matt Lawrence – assistant engineer (1-4, 6, 7, 10)
* Andy Haller – overdub engineer (1, 2, 3, 10), engineer (5, 11)
* Andy Hasegawa – assistant overdub engineer (1, 2, 3, 10), assistant engineer (5, 11)
* James Brumby –
Pro Tools engineer (1, 2, 3, 6, 7, 10)
* Richard Flack – Pro Tools engineer (1, 2, 3, 6, 7, 10)
* Matt White – mix assistant (1, 2, 3, 6, 7, 10)
* Mark Evans – engineer (4, 8, 9)
* Mike Bigwood – string recording (4, 9)
* Chris Potter – vocal recording for Bryan Adams (5)
* Mike Beckett – vocal recording assistant (5)
* Andy Scott – engineer (12)
* Antoine Gaillet – assistant engineer (12)
* Norman Moore – art direction, design
* Greg Gorman – photography
;Studios
* Tracks 1, 2, 3, 6, 7, 10, 13 & 14 recorded at Metropolis Studio (London, UK). Tracks 1, 2, 3 & 10 overdubbed at
Record Plant
The Record Plant is a recording studio established in New York City in 1968 and currently operating in Los Angeles, California. Known for innovations in the recording artists' workspace, it has produced highly influential albums, including Blon ...
(Los Angeles, CA, USA). Mixed at Battery Studios (London, UK).
* Tracks 4, 8 & 9 recorded at Area21, Brittania Row Studios and
Olympic Studio 1 (London, UK). Mixed at Brittania Row Studios.
* Tracks 5 & 11 recorded at
Record Plant
The Record Plant is a recording studio established in New York City in 1968 and currently operating in Los Angeles, California. Known for innovations in the recording artists' workspace, it has produced highly influential albums, including Blon ...
(Los Angeles, CA, USA). Mixed at Nomis Studios (London, UK).
* Track 12 recorded at Twin Studio (Paris, France).
Charts
Weekly charts
Year-end charts
Certifications
References
{{Authority control
1999 albums
Joe Cocker albums
Parlophone albums
Eagle Records albums