''Exile on Coldharbour Lane'' is the debut

album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as Digital distribution#Music, digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early ...

Alabama 3 Alabama 3 are a British/English musical group founded in Brixton, London in 1995. They are best known for their track "Woke Up This Morning", which was used for the opening credits of the TV series ''The Sopranos''. In the United States, the ...

, released on 11 November 1997 on

One Little Indian One Little Independent Records (formerly One Little Indian Records) is an English independent record label. It was set up in 1985 by members of various anarcho-punk bands, and managed by former Flux of Pink Indians bassist Derek Birkett. In th ...

and Geffen. The name and cover are references to ''

Exile on Main St. ''Exile on Main St.'' is the 10th British and 12th American studio album by the English rock band the Rolling Stones, released on 12 May 1972 by Rolling Stones Records. Recording began in 1969 in England during sessions for ''Sticky Fingers'' a ...

'' by

The Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for six decades, they are one of the most popular and enduring bands of the rock era. In the early 1960s, the Rolling Stones pioneered the gritty, rhythmically d ...

and

Coldharbour Lane Coldharbour Lane is a road in south London, England, that leads south-westwards from Camberwell to Brixton. The road is over long with a mixture of residential, business and retail buildings - the stretch of Coldharbour Lane near Brixton Ma ...

a major street in

Brixton Brixton is a district in south London, part of the London Borough of Lambeth, England. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London. Brixton experienced a rapid rise in population during the 19th ce ...

South London South London is the southern part of London, England, south of the River Thames. The region consists of the Districts of England, boroughs, in whole or in part, of London Borough of Bexley, Bexley, London Borough of Bromley, Bromley, London Borou ...

best known for containing several after-hours clubs and not a few drug dealers. Recording sessions took place from March to June 1997. Upon its release, the album received favorable reviews, including an 8.9 review from

Pitchfork Media ''Pitchfork'' (formerly ''Pitchfork Media'') is an American online music publication (currently owned by Condé Nast) that was launched in 1995 by writer Ryan Schreiber as an independent music blog. Schreiber started Pitchfork while working ...

. ''Exile on Coldharbour Lane'' did not chart on any album charts in the United States. The song "Sister Rosetta" was featured in the film ''

Barnyard A barnyard or farmyard is an enclosed or open yard adjoining a barn,Oxford English Dictionary Second Edition on CD-ROM (v. 4.0) © Oxford University Press 2009. Barn. n. and, typically, related farm buildings, including a farmhouse. Enclosed b ...

''. "

Woke Up This Morning "Woke Up This Morning" is a song by British band Alabama 3 from their 1997 album ''Exile on Coldharbour Lane.'' The song is best known as the opening theme music for the American television series ''The Sopranos'', which used a shortened version ...

" is best known as the opening theme music for the television series, ''

The Sopranos ''The Sopranos'' is an American Crime film#Crime drama, crime drama television series created by David Chase. The story revolves around Tony Soprano (James Gandolfini), a New Jersey-based American Mafia, Italian-American mobster, portraying h ...

'', which used the "Chosen One Mix" of that song.

Track listing

Personnel

;Alabama 3 *Larry Love (Rob Spragg) - vocals * The Very Reverend Dr. D. Wayne Love (First Minister of the First Presleyterian Church of Elvis the Divine (UK)) (Jake Black) - vocals *The Mountain of Love (Piers Marsh) - analogue terrorism, harmonica, jaw's harp & vocals *Sir Real "Congaman" Love L.S.D. O.P.T. (Simon Edwards) - percussion, acoustic guitar *Mississippi Guitar Love - guitar *L.B. Dope (Johnny Delafons) - drums *The Spirit (Orlando Harrison) - keyboards *The Book of Love (Security), I.V. Lenin (Socialism in the Mainline), Lady Love and Little Eye Tie - D. Wayne's Ladies ;Technical *Produced by The Ministers at Work and Boss Hogg *Engineered by John Wilkinson at The Steamroom and The Dairy *Mixed by Andy Wallace at The Town House **Track 3 contains an element of "Tell Me" performed by Howlin Wolf, a sample from "Standing at the Burying Ground" by

Mississippi Fred McDowell Fred McDowell (January 12, 1904 – July 3, 1972), known by his stage name Mississippi Fred McDowell, was an American hill country blues singer and guitar player. Career McDowell was born in Rossville, Tennessee, United States. His parents were f ...

and a sample from "Mannish Boy" by

Muddy Waters McKinley Morganfield (April 4, 1913 April 30, 1983), known professionally as Muddy Waters, was an American blues singer and musician who was an important figure in the post-war blues scene, and is often cited as the "father of modern Chicago b ...

. **Track 8 contains elements from "Honey Hush" performed by

Johnny Burnett John Joseph Burnette (March 25, 1934 – August 14, 1964) was an American singer and songwriter of rockabilly and pop music. In 1952, Johnny and his brother, Dorsey Burnette, and their mutual friend Paul Burlison formed the band that became ...

& The Rock 'n' Roll Trio. **Track 11 contains samples from "Oh In That Morning" by The Reverend BC Campbell and "Wrapped Up and Tangled Up" by The Reverend Charlie Jackson. In Lovin' Memory: Sean Phelan 1971-1997

Notes

" is well known as the opening theme music for the

HBO Home Box Office (HBO) is an American premium television network, which is the flagship property of namesake parent subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is ba ...

drama series ''

'', although the mix used for the show is different from the one on this album. This version is called ''Chosen One Mix''. *"Mao Tse Tung Said" features a lengthy sample from the

cult In modern English, ''cult'' is usually a pejorative term for a social group that is defined by its unusual religious, spiritual, or philosophical beliefs and rituals, or its common interest in a particular personality, object, or goal. This ...

leader

Jim Jones James Warren Jones (May 13, 1931 – November 18, 1978) was an American preacher, political activist and mass murderer. He led the Peoples Temple, a new religious movement, between 1955 and 1978. In what he called "revolutionary suicide", ...

. *The second track is a

cover version In popular music, a cover version, cover song, remake, revival, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording by a musician other than the original performer or composer of the song. Originally, it referred to a version of a song release ...

John Prine John Edward Prine (; October 10, 1946 – April 7, 2020) was an American singer-songwriter of country-folk music. He was active as a composer, recording artist, live performer, and occasional actor from the early 1970s until his death. He ...

's "Speed of the Sound of Loneliness". *"The Old Purple Tin (9% of Pure Heaven)" is about Tennent's Super, a 9% a.b.v. Scottish beer that comes in a purple can, which makes its consumers appear purple when aged and weathered, and thus deserves its reputation for being the drink of choice of the vagrant. *"Ain't Goin' to Goa" features the Reverend D. Wayne Love's description of A3's style: "sweet, pretty, country acid house music."

Later samples

*"Woke Up This Morning" **" Got Ur Self A..." by

Nas Nas (born 1973) is the stage name of American rapper Nasir Jones. Nas, NaS, or NAS may also refer to: Aviation * Nasair, a low-cost airline carrier and subsidiary based in Eritrea * National Air Services, an airline in Saudi Arabia ** Nas Air ( ...

from the album ''

Stillmatic ''Stillmatic'' is the fifth studio album by American rapper Nas, released on December 18, 2001, by Ill Will and Columbia Records. In contrast to his previous work's gangsta rap themes, the album contains socially conscious and philosophical theme ...

References

{{Authority control 1997 debut albums Alabama 3 albums Geffen Records albums One Little Independent Records albums