The Time Is Now (album)
The Time Is Now is the seventh studio album by British singer Craig David, released on 26 January 2018.[4][5] The album features guest appearances from JP Cooper, Bastille, AJ Tracey, Ella Mai, Kaytranada and GoldLink. The first single from the album, titled "Heartline", was released on 14 September 2017, through David's official YouTube account.
The Time Is Now | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | 26 January 2018 | |||
Recorded | 2016–17 | |||
Genre | ||||
Label |
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Producer | ||||
Craig David chronology | ||||
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Singles from The Time Is Now | ||||
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The album reached number two in the United Kingdom, making it David's fifth UK top 10 album.
Background
On 15 September 2017, less than a year after the release of his comeback album Following My Intuition which became his first chart-topper for 16 years, David announced the follow-up, The Time Is Now. In an interview, David said: "If the last few years have taught me anything, it's that life can change in a moment and you've gotta make the most it! Just in the same way my life was flipped upside down all those years ago, I'm genuinely so grateful to be standing here today doing what I love the most." He went to say, "By doing the simple things that enrich my heart, I've found the same magic that got me into making music as a kid. The motivation and inspiration behind this album was all down to the huge realisation that even when I wasn't as focused, there were amazing lessons to be learnt."[6]
The album features collaborations with Bastille, AJ Tracey, Kaytranada and GoldLink.[7]
Singles
The first single from the album, "Heartline", was released on 14 September 2017, and peaked at 24 in the UK. The second single, "I Know You", featuring the British band Bastille, was released on 23 November 2017, and was commercially more successful than his recent singles, peaking at five in the UK.
Critical reception
Aggregate scores | |
---|---|
Source | Rating |
Metacritic | 56/100[8] |
Review scores | |
Source | Rating |
AllMusic | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Clash | 6/10[10] |
MusicOMH | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
NME | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Pitchfork | 5.5/10[13] |
PopMatters | 5/10[14] |
Under the Radar | 3/10[15] |
The Time Is Now received mixed reviews from music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalised rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album has an average score of 56 based on 12 reviews, indicating "mixed or average reviews".[8]
Commercial performance
The Time Is Now reached number two on the UK Albums Chart, debuting with sales of 16,874 copies, behind the soundtrack of The Greatest Showman.[16]
Tour
David embarked on a tour and made appearances at music festivals around England, the United States, the Middle East and Europe to promote the album.[17]
Date | City | State or county | Venue | TS5 or full band |
---|---|---|---|---|
United States | ||||
12 January 2018 | Miami | Florida | The Ground | TS5 |
13 January 2018 | Chicago | Illinois | 1st Ward Events | |
15 January 2018 | New York | Manhattan | The Bowery Ballroom | |
17 January 2018 | Los Angeles | California | Roxy Theatre | |
18 January 2018 | Las Vegas | Nevada | TAO Nightclub | |
19 January 2018 | San Francisco | California | Slim's | |
England | ||||
2 February 2018 | London | Kingston upon Thames | The Hippodrome | TS5 |
Middle East | ||||
8 February 2018 | Dubai | Dubai Media City | Red Fest | TS5 |
Europe | ||||
10 April 2018 | Austria | Mayrhofen | Snowboming Festival | TS5 |
England | ||||
27 May 2018 | Portsmouth | Cosham | Mutiny Festival | TS5 |
9 June 2018 | London | Wembley Stadium, Wembley | Summertime Ball | TBA |
15 June 2018 | Liverpool | Aintree | Aintree Racecourse | Full band |
Track listing
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|---|
1. | "Magic" | Tre Jean-Marie | 2:52 | |
2. | "Heartline" | Jonas Blue | 3:12 | |
3. | "Brand New" |
| Steve Mac | 2:44 |
4. | "Going On" |
| Fraser T Smith | 3:24 |
5. | "Love Me Like It's Yesterday" |
| Fraser T Smith | 3:32 |
6. | "For the Gram" |
| Diztortion | 3:54 |
7. | "Get Involved" (featuring JP Cooper) |
| Tre Jean-Marie | 3:09 |
8. | "I Know You" (featuring Bastille) |
| Fraser T Smith | 3:34 |
9. | "Live in the Moment" (featuring GoldLink) |
|
| 3:06 |
10. | "Love Will Come Around" |
| Fraser T Smith | 3:14 |
11. | "Somebody Like Me" (featuring AJ Tracey) | Blonde | 2:54 | |
12. | "Focus" |
| Fraser T Smith | 2:56 |
Total length: | 38:31 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|---|
13. | "Reload" (with Chase & Status) | Chase & Status | 3:10 | |
14. | "Talk to Me" |
| Tre Jean-Marie | 3:55 |
15. | "Talk to Me, Pt. II" (featuring Ella Mai) |
|
| 3:22 |
Total length: | 48:58 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|---|
16. | "Armour" |
| Tre Jean-Marie | 3:31 |
17. | "Heartline" (acoustic) | Fraser T Smith | 3:12 | |
18. | "I Know You" (acoustic) (featuring Bastille) |
|
| 3:58 |
Total length: | 59:39 |
Notes
- ^[a] signifies a vocal producer.
Personnel
Credits adapted from album’s liner notes.[19]
- Mark Asari - backing vocals (tracks 9, 14), chant vocals (track 1)
- Jonas Blue - producer and mixing (track 2)
- Raoul Chen - producer, engineer, mixing, backing vocals, drum programming, and instruments (track 6)
- Wez Clarke - mixing (tracks 1, 3, 7, 14, 15)
- JP Cooper - vocals (track 7)
- Craig David - vocals (all tracks)
- Ed Drewett - chant vocals (track 1)
- Phebe Edwards - backing vocals (tracks 4, 5, 12)
- Lauren Faith - backing vocals (track 4)
- Rachel Furner - backing vocals (track 12)
- GoldLink - vocals (track 9)
- Manon Grandjean - engineer (tracks 4, 5, 8, 10, 12)
- Stuart Hawkes - mastering (all tracks)
- Tre Jean-Marie - producer (tracks 1, 7, 14, 15); vocal production, vocal mixing, and background vocals (track 9); chant vocals (track 1)
- Kaytranada - producer and mixing (track 9)
- William Kennard - producer, mixing, instrumentation, and programming (track 13)
- Chris Laws - engineer, drums, and percussion (track 3)
- Tim Laws - guitar (track 3)
- Colin Lester - executive producer
- Andy Mac - talkbox (track 14)
- Steve Mac - producer and keyboards (track 3)
- Rob MacFarlane - engineer (tracks 8, 13)
- Ella Mai - vocals (track 15)
- Jacob Manson - producer, engineer, mixing, guitar, keyboards, and drum programming (track 11)
- Brandon Michael - chant vocals (track 1)
- Saul Milton - producer, mixing, instrumentation, and programming (track 13)
- Nosaappollo - producer (track 15)
- Tyrell "169" Paul - producer (tracks 4, 10, 12), drum programming (tracks 4, 10)
- Dann Pursey - engineer (track 3)
- Carmen Reece - backing vocals (track 8)
- Sillkey - additional production (track 14)
- Dan Smith - vocals (track 8)
- Fraser T Smith - producer, mixing, keyboards, and drum programming (tracks 4, 5, 8, 10, 12); guitar (tracks 4, 10)
- AJ Tracey - vocals (track 11)
Charts
Chart (2018) | Peak position |
---|---|
Australian Albums (ARIA)[20] | 43 |
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[21] | 77 |
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[22] | 128 |
Czech Albums (ČNS IFPI)[23] | 91 |
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[24] | 56 |
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[25] | 97 |
Irish Albums (IRMA)[26] | 53 |
Japan Hot Albums (Billboard Japan)[27] | 91 |
Japanese Albums (Oricon)[28] | 97 |
New Zealand Heatseeker Albums (RMNZ)[29] | 2 |
Scottish Albums (OCC)[30] | 9 |
Spanish Albums (PROMUSICAE)[31] | 47 |
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[32] | 75 |
UK Albums (OCC)[33] | 2 |
Release history
Region | Date | Format(s) | Label |
---|---|---|---|
United Kingdom | 26 January 2018 | Digital download |
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References
- Beta, Andy (25 January 2018). "Craig David: The Time Is Now Album Review". Pitchfork. Retrieved 26 January 2017.
- Hodgkinson, Will (26 January 2018). "Pop review: Craig David: The Time is Now". The Times. Retrieved 26 January 2018.
- "BBC – Radio 1 – Playlist". BBC Radio 1. Archived from the original on 13 April 2018. Retrieved 14 April 2018.
- "Craig David releases new single 'Heartline' and announces new album and tour". NME. 15 September 2017.
- "Craig David Releases New Single 'Heartline', Announces New Album 'The Time Is Now'". Capital XTRA. 15 September 2017.
- Kelly, Emma (15 September 2017). "Craig David announces seventh album and drops brand new single". Metro. Retrieved 15 September 2017.
- Renshaw, David (15 September 2017). "Craig David Announces New Album The Time Is Now". The FADER. Retrieved 9 April 2018.
- "Reviews for The Time Is Now by Craig David". Metacritic. Retrieved 30 January 2018.
- Kellman, Andy. "AllMusic Review". AllMusic. Retrieved 22 July 2020.
- Rivers, Joe (22 January 2018). "Clash Magazine Review". Clash. Retrieved 22 July 2020.
- Hogwood, Ben (26 January 2018). "MusicOMH Review". MusicOMH. Retrieved 22 July 2020.
- Cooper, Leonie (2 February 2018). "NME Review". NME. Retrieved 22 July 2020.
- Beta, Andy (25 January 2019). "Pitchfork Review". Pitchfork. Retrieved 22 July 2020.
- Schiller, Mike (26 February 2018). "PopMatters Review". PopMatters. Retrieved 22 July 2020.
- Moayeri, Lily (6 February 2018). "Under the Radar Review". Under the Radar. Retrieved 22 July 2020.
- Myers, Justin (2 February 2018). "The Greatest Showman denies Craig David a third Number 1 album". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 9 April 2018.
- "Craig David Tour 2018". craigdavid.com. Retrieved 12 January 2018.
- "CDJapan : The Time Is Now Craig David CD Album". cdjapan.co.jp (in Japanese). Retrieved 31 January 2018.
- The Time Is Now (booklet). Speakerbox, Insanity, RCA. 2018.
- "ARIA Australian Top 50 Albums". Australian Recording Industry Association. 5 February 2018. Retrieved 3 February 2018.
- "Ultratop.be – Craig David – The Time Is Now" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 3 February 2018.
- "Ultratop.be – Craig David – The Time Is Now" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved 3 February 2018.
- "Czech Albums – Top 100". ČNS IFPI. Note: On the chart page, select 201805 on the field besides the word "Zobrazit", and then click over the word to retrieve the correct chart data. Retrieved 6 February 2018.
- "Dutchcharts.nl – Craig David – The Time Is Now" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 3 February 2018.
- "Offiziellecharts.de – Craig David – The Time Is Now" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 2 February 2018.
- "Irish Albums Chart: 2 February 2018". Irish Recorded Music Association. Retrieved 3 February 2018.
- "The Time Is Now on Billboard Japan Hot Albums". Billboard Japan (in Japanese). Retrieved September 12, 2020.
- "Craig David". Oricon. Retrieved September 12, 2020.
- "NZ Heatseeker Albums Chart". Recorded Music NZ. 5 February 2018. Retrieved 2 February 2018.
- "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 3 February 2018.
- "Top 100 Albumes – Semana 5: del 26.1.2018 al 1.2.2018" (PDF) (in Spanish). Productores de Música de España. Retrieved 8 February 2018.
- "Swisscharts.com – Craig David – The Time Is Now". Hung Medien. Retrieved 7 February 2018.
- "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 3 February 2018.