''Now What'' is the second studio album from American singer-songwriter
Lisa Marie Presley. Released on April 5, 2005, in the United States and Canada, it was Presley's last album released under
Capitol Records
Capitol Records, LLC (known legally as Capitol Records, Inc. until 2007) is an American record label distributed by Universal Music Group through its Capitol Music Group imprint. It was founded as the first West Coast-based record label of note ...
. Two singles were released from the album, a cover of Don Henley's "Dirty Laundry" and "Idiot".
In the US, an exclusive version of the album sold at Walmart contained a card with a code to download an acoustic version of the song "Thanx".
Reception
Critical
Upon its release, the album received generally mixed reviews from music critics.
On review aggregate site Metacritic, the album holds a score of 60 out of 100.
In a review for ''
Entertainment Weekly
''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, and popular cul ...
'', critic Jenny Williams praised Presley's cover of "Dirty Laundry" as "sultry" and fitting for her "fiery persona", but argued that Presley's vocal style "can't win the battle against the disc's glossy production".
Critic Elizabeth Bromstein, writing for Toronto newspaper ''
Now'', deemed the album "well constructed and melodic but ultimately lacklustre and heavy on the downtempo emotional", singling out covers "Dirty Laundry" and "Here Today, Gone Tomorrow" as highlights.
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 ...
critic Stephen Thomas Erlewine wrote that the album was better than her debut and had stronger hooks, deeming it an "Album Pick" from Presley's discography and identifying "I'll Figure It Out", "Thanx", and "Shine" as highlights.
Commercial
On the Billboard 200 chart dated April 13, 2005, ''Now What'' debuted at number 9, with first-week sales of 56,000 copies.
It was the second-highest debut of the week, behind only Faith Evans' ''
The First Lady'', which opened at number 2.
Legacy
In a January 2023 article for the ''
New York Post
The ''New York Post'' (''NY Post'') is a conservative daily tabloid newspaper published in New York City. The ''Post'' also operates NYPost.com, the celebrity gossip site PageSix.com, and the entertainment site Decider.com.
It was established ...
'', following Presley's death, music journalist Chuck Arnold praised Presley's decision to cover Henley's "Dirty Laundry" rather than an Elvis song.
Arnold argued that although an Elvis cover would have been more commercially successful, "You have to give Presley credit... for not riding her dad’s coattails", also praising "Dirty Laundry" as "a perfect song for Presley" to cover.
Track listing
All lyrics written by Lisa Marie Presley except: "Dirty Laundry", written by
Don Henley
Donald Hugh Henley (born July 22, 1947) is an American musician and a founding member of the rock band Eagles. He is the drummer and one of the lead singers for the Eagles. Henley sang the lead vocals on Eagles hits such as "Witchy Woman", "Despe ...
and
Danny Kortchmar; and "Here Today, Gone Tomorrow", written by
Joey Ramone. All music composition authors listed below.
# "I'll Figure It Out" (
Linda Perry, Presley) – 3:28
# "Turbulence" (
Michael Lockwood, Presley) – 3:56
# "Thanx" (Perry, Presley) – 4:26
# "Shine" featuring
Pink
Pink is the color of a namesake flower that is a pale tint of red. It was first used as a color name in the late 17th century. According to surveys in Europe and the United States, pink is the color most often associated with charm, politeness, ...
(Perry, Presley) – 4:10
# "
Dirty Laundry" (
Don Henley
Donald Hugh Henley (born July 22, 1947) is an American musician and a founding member of the rock band Eagles. He is the drummer and one of the lead singers for the Eagles. Henley sang the lead vocals on Eagles hits such as "Witchy Woman", "Despe ...
,
Danny Kortchmar) – 4:28
# "When You Go" (
Anthony Penaloza, Presley) – 4:11
# "Idiot" (Perry, Presley) – 4:09
# "High Enough" (Perry, Presley) – 4:36
# "Turned to Black" featuring string arrangements by
David Campbell) (Lockwood, Presley,
Rosse Rosse is a surname. Notable people with the surname include:
*Eric Rosse, American record producer and composer
*Frederick Rosse (1867–1940), English composer
*Herman Rosse (1887–1965), Dutch-born American architect, painter, theatrical designe ...
) – 5:27
# "Raven" (Perry, Presley) – 5:03
# "Now What" featuring string arrangements by David Campbell (Perry, Presley) – 3:54
+ "Here Today, Gone Tomorrow" (
Jeffrey Hyman) – 2:57 (hidden track)
Originally planned to be recorded for
The Ramones
The Ramones were an American punk rock band that formed in the New York City neighborhood of Forest Hills, Queens, in 1974. They are often cited as the first true punk rock group. Despite achieving a limited commercial appeal in the United ...
tribute album ''
We're a Happy Family
''We're a Happy Family: A Tribute to Ramones'' is a 2003 tribute album to the Ramones by various artists. It started when Johnny Ramone was presented with the idea of a tribute album and was asked if he wanted to participate, to which he agreed, ...
'' (2003);
Sex Pistols
The Sex Pistols were an English punk rock band formed in London in 1975. Although their initial career lasted just two and a half years, they were one of the most groundbreaking acts in the history of popular music. They were responsible for ...
guitarist
Steve Jones Steve or Steven Jones may refer to:
Arts and entertainment
* Steve Jones (English presenter) (born 1945), English musician, disk jockey, television presenter, and voice-over artist
*Steve Jones (musician) (born 1955), English rock and roll guita ...
plays lead guitar.
"Yellow to Blue" (Perry, Presley) – 4:12 (Japanese bonus track)
"Thanx" (acoustic)
Offered as a bonus download redeemable with a special code that only came with versions of the album sold at Wal-Mart.
Singles
*"Dirty Laundry"
*"Idiot"
B-sides
*"
Burnin' for You
"Burnin' for You" is a song by American hard rock band Blue Öyster Cult. It was released as the lead single from the band's eighth studio album, ''Fire of Unknown Origin'', released in June 1981, where it was the album's second track. The song w ...
"
Charts
References
{{Authority control
Lisa Marie Presley albums
2005 albums
Albums arranged by David Campbell (composer)
Albums produced by Eric Rosse
Capitol Records albums