Things Are Really Great Here, Sort Of…

Things Are Really Great Here, Sort Of... is American singer-songwriter Andrew Bird's eighth solo studio album.[6] It was released on June 3, 2014 through Wegawam Music Co.[7]

Things Are Really Great Here, Sort Of...
Studio album by
Andrew Bird
ReleasedJune 3, 2014
GenreIndie folk
Length35:32
LabelWegawam Music Co.
Andrew Bird chronology
I Want to See Pulaski at Night
(2013)		 Things Are Really Great Here, Sort Of...
(2014)		 Echolocations: Canyon
(2015)
Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic76/100[1]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[2]
American Songwriter[3]
Paste Magazine8.1/10[4]
PopMatters8/10[5]

The album is a collection of covers of The Handsome Family, an American band Bird knows personally and professionally, having toured and collaborated. Previous covers of their songs include an earlier version of "Don't Be Scared," on Weather Systems, "Giant of Illinois" off the compilation album Dark Was the Night, "When the Helicopter Comes," from Hands of Glory, and "Tin Foiled," on Fingerlings 3. Bird toured with the husband-and-wife duo in 2013.[8]

Reception

The album received a Metacritic score of 76 based on 12 reviews, indicating generally favorable reviews.[1]

The album debuted at No. 12 on Billboard's Folk Albums chart,[9] selling around 2,000 copies in the first week. It has sold 13,000 copies in the US as of March 2016.[10]

Track listing
No.TitleLength
1."Cathedral In the Dell" (originally called "Cathedrals," from Invisible Hands)3:59
2."Tin Foiled" (originally from Milk and Scissors)3:26
3."Giant of Illinois" (originally from Through the Trees)3:31
4."So Much Wine, Merry Christmas" (originally from In the Air)3:31
5."My Sister's Tiny Hands" (originally from Through the Trees)3:44
6."The Sad Milkman" (originally from In the Air)3:29
7."Don't Be Scared" (originally from Down in the Valley)3:21
8."Frogs Singing" (originally from Wilderness)2:44
9."Drunk By Noon" (originally from Milk and Scissors)3:02
10."Far From Any Road (Be My Hand)" (originally from Singing Bones)4:47

Charts
Chart (2014) Peak
position
US Folk Albums (Billboard)[11] 12

Personnel
  • Andrew Bird - violin, vocals
  • Tift Merritt - vocals, guitar
  • Alan Hampton - bass, vocals
  • Eric Heywood - Pedal Steel
  • Justin Glasco - drums
  • David Boucher - recording and mixing
  • Jason Harvey - design

References
  1. "Things Are Really Great Here, Sort Of..." Metacritic.
  2. Monger, Timothy (2014-06-10). "Andrew Bird: Things Are Really Great Here, Sort of…". Allmusic. Retrieved 2014-07-03.
  3. Fink, Matt (2014-06-25). "Andrew Bird: Things Are Really Great Here, Sort of…". American Songwriter. Retrieved 2014-07-03.
  4. Golden, Grant (2014-06-10). "Andrew Bird: Things Are Really Great Here, Sort of…". Paste Magazine. Retrieved 2014-07-03.
  5. Paul, John (2014-06-09). "Andrew Bird: Things Are Really Great Here, Sort of…". Pop Matters. Retrieved 2014-07-03.
  6. "Things Are Really Great Here, Sort Of…". Andrew Bird. 2014-05-13. Retrieved 2014-07-04.
  7. "Wegawam Music Co. - Amoeba Music". Amoeba.com. Retrieved 2014-07-04.
  8. Gordon, Jeremy (2014-05-28). "Andrew Bird to Release Handsome Family Covers Album, Announces Tour". American Songwriter. Retrieved 2014-07-03.
  9. "Folk Albums". Billboard. June 21, 2014.
  10. "Upcoming Releases". Hits Daily Double. HITS Digital Ventures. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016.
  11. "Andrew Bird Chart History (Top Americana/Folk Albums)". Billboard.
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