''...Something to Be'' is the debut solo album from the

Matchbox Twenty Matchbox Twenty (also known as Matchbox 20 and MB20) is an American rock band formed in Orlando, Florida, in 1995. The group currently consists of Rob Thomas (lead vocals, guitar, keyboards), Brian Yale (bass guitar), Paul Doucette (drums, r ...

lead singer Rob Thomas. The album was released on April 5, 2005, and it debuted at No. 1 on the US ''Billboard'' 200 albums chart, knocking out

Mariah Carey Mariah Carey (; born March 27, 1969) is an American singer, songwriter, actress, and record producer. Referred to as the " Songbird Supreme", she is noted for her five-octave vocal range, melismatic singing style and signature use of the whi ...

's '' The Emancipation of Mimi''. The album spawned the US top ten hit "

Lonely No More "Lonely No More" is the first single from Matchbox Twenty frontman Rob Thomas' debut studio album, '' ...Something to Be'' (2005). It was released on February 14, 2005, and became his biggest solo hit to date. The song peaked at number one in H ...

". It also features

John Mayer John Clayton Mayer ( ; born October 16, 1977) is an American singer, songwriter, and guitarist. Born and raised in Fairfield County, Connecticut, Mayer attended Berklee College of Music in Boston, but left and moved to Atlanta in 1997 with ...

's guitar on the single "

Streetcorner Symphony "Streetcorner Symphony" is the fifth and final single from American singer-songwriter Rob Thomas's 2005 debut solo album, '' ...Something to Be''. It was released on October 16, 2006. The song features John Mayer on lead guitar and backing vocal ...

". The album was released in the DualDisc format, the first major album to be released that way. The album itself is certified Double Platinum by the RIAA in the US and consists of several types of sounds, including

dance Dance is a performing art form consisting of sequences of movement, either improvised or purposefully selected. This movement has aesthetic and often symbolic value. Dance can be categorized and described by its choreography, by its repertoir ...

, pop,

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

, rock, and

country A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. It may be a sovereign state or make up one part of a larger state. For example, the country of Japan is an independent, sovereign state, while the ...

, although it can be generally classified as closer to pop than to the rock music of Matchbox Twenty's third studio album, ''

More Than You Think You Are ''More Than You Think You Are'' is the third studio album by American rock band Matchbox Twenty, released on November 19, 2002. The album is again a departure for the band as the album has more of a focus on harder rock than the band's two previo ...

''. The album was supported by his 2005–2006

Something to Be Tour The Something to Be Tour was the debut concert tour by American recording artist and Matchbox Twenty frontman, Rob Thomas. Visiting numerous countries in North America, Europe, Australia and Asia, the tour supported his first solo record, '' .. ...

Critical reception

Reception for ''...Something to Be'' was mixed. David Browne of ''

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 ...

'' said Rob Thomas "sounds less like his usual tortured self and more like a boy-band veteran who still knows a thing or two about a grabby hook" and noting that the single "Streetcorner Symphony" sounds like "the world's greatest

Black Crowes Black is a color which results from the absence or complete Absorption (electromagnetic radiation), absorption of visible spectrum, visible light. It is an achromatic color, without hue, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or fi ...

parody — until you realize Thomas is completely serious". Browne also commented that the album "doesn't always snap and crackle the way that single ("Lonely No More") does". Lindsay Whitfield of ''

Soul Shine Magazine ''Soul Shine Magazine'' is a Canadian online music magazine covering independent and mainstream artists from a variety of genres and backgrounds. History and profile ''Soul Shine Magazine'' was founded in 2002. The magazine is based in Toronto, O ...

'' also gave the album and some of its songs a positive review (four stars), saying the album is "one of the finest, most unique albums of 2006 so far" and Thomas belts out "musical perfection to the road trip worthy". Thomas Inskeep of ''

Stylus Magazine ''Stylus Magazine'' was an American online music and film magazine, launched in 2002 and co-founded by Todd L. Burns. It featured long-form music journalism, four daily music reviews, movie reviews, podcasts, an MP3 blog, and a text blog. Addi ...

'' gave the album a negative review (although the "C" rating reflects a more mixed attitude), calling it "mediocre" and explaining that the large part of the problem was that "Rob's a fairly generic songwriter". Inskeep continued by saying he is "one of the most processed-cheese-and-Wonder-bread guys around" and Thomas had "hopelessly clichéd lines" on the song "Ever the Same". Kevin Forest Moreau of '' Paste'' gave the album a positive review, saying his debut solo album "certainly sounds different from the adult-alternative diet-rock of Matchbox Twenty-at least half the time". Moreau complimented the "punchy horns and a few electronic flourishes" for being on songs such as "Streetcorner Symphony". However, he criticized the "ponderous poetics...and platitudes" for being mistaken as depth. Paul Lingas of avrev.com called the album "a mixed bag with some surprisingly good offerings and some duds that sadly aren’t surprising" (giving the performance a 5.5 and the sound 6.5), complimenting some of the songs but also calling them "background music". He noted that Thomas "does not have a good singing voice". Although he also called his voice very distinctive and strong, he said "too often it is not suited to the surrounding music". Lingas finished by saying that Thomas' voice is not always well blended with the other sounds and that the mixing is "poor" and producing decisions are "sometimes odd".

Track listing

Target bonus CD: ''...Something More''

Personnel

* Harley Allen – background vocals * Matt Beck – background vocals * Mike Campbell – guitar, soloist *

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– background vocals *

Kyle Cook David Kyle Cook (born August 29, 1975) is an American musician best known as a member of the band Matchbox Twenty, serving as the lead guitarist, banjo player, backing and occasional lead vocalist. Career Matchbox Twenty Kyle Cook joined Mat ...

– guitar * Jill Dell'Abate – horn contractor * Mike Elizondo – bass guitar * Anika Ellis – background vocals * Pat Enright – background vocals * Brandon Fields – saxophone * Gordon Gottlieb – bells,

marimba The marimba () is a musical instrument in the percussion family that consists of wooden bars that are struck by mallets. Below each bar is a resonator pipe that amplifies particular harmonics of its sound. Compared to the xylophone, the timbre ...

* Gary Grant – trumpet * Greater Anointing – background vocals * Jonathon Haas – bells, marimba * Benjamin Herman – bells, marimba * Jerry Hey – trumpet, horn arrangements * Gerald Hayward – drums * Hasan Isakkut – kanun * Kevin Kadish – guitar * Frank London – shofar *

– guitar and background vocals on "Streetcorner Symphony" *

Wendy Melvoin Wendy Ann Melvoin (born January 26, 1964) is an American guitarist and singer-songwriter, best known for her work with Prince as part of his backing band The Revolution, and for her collaboration with Lisa Coleman as one half of the duo Wendy ...

– guitar (1 to 11) * John O'Brien – programming * Joe Passaro – bells, marimba * Heitor Teixeira Pereora – guitar (3, 10) * Eric Poland – bells, marimba * Robert Randolph –

lap steel guitar The lap steel guitar, also known as a Hawaiian guitar, is a type of steel guitar without pedals that is typically played with the instrument in a horizontal position across the performer's lap. Unlike the usual manner of playing a traditional ...

Matt Serletic Matthew Michael Serletic II (born 1970 or 1971) is an American record producer, songwriter, and music executive. Career As a teenager, Serletic joined a band with members of Collective Soul, a group for which he would later produce. Serletic h ...

– keyboards, background vocals * Shari Sutcliffe – horn contractor * Rob Thomas – piano, lead vocals *

Jeff Trott Jeffrey Robert Trott is an American songwriter/producer and multi-instrumentalist who has collaborated with prominent artists across genres in the United States and abroad. Trott has been named BMI ''Songwriter of the Year''. He is known for w ...

– guitar (1 to 4, 7, 8, 11) *

Dan Tyminski Daniel John Tyminski (born June 20, 1967) is an American bluegrass composer, vocalist, and instrumentalist. He is a member of Alison Krauss's band Union Station, and has released three solo albums, ''Carry Me Across the Mountain'' (2000), on ...

– background vocals * Dan Willis – dudok * Reginald Young – trombone

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Something To Be 2005 debut albums Albums produced by Bloodshy & Avant Albums produced by Matt Serletic Rob Thomas (musician) albums Atlantic Records albums Albums recorded at Henson Recording Studios