Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not

Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not is the debut album by English indie rock[1] [2]  band Arctic Monkeys, released on 23 January 2006. The album surpassed Elastica's self-titled album to become the fastest selling debut album in British music history, shifting over 360,000 copies in its first week,[3] and remains the fastest selling debut album by a band.[4] [5]  It has since gone quintuple platinum in the UK.

The album includes both tracks from the band's original EP, Five Minutes with Arctic Monkeys, as well as their first two singles and UK number ones, "I Bet You Look Good on the Dancefloor" and "When the Sun Goes Down". It has since appeared in several critics' publications, and is often cited as one of the best rock albums of the decade.[6]  It received the 2006 Mercury Prize for Best Album. It was ranked number 371 on Rolling Stone ' s 500 Greatest Albums of All Time. In October 2013, the UK music magazine NME ranked the album at number 19 in their poll of the 500 greatest albums of all time.[7]



Contents
[hide]  *1 Composition and content  ==Composition and content[ edit] == The common thematic content of Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not has led to it being considered by some a concept album concerning "the lives of young Northern England clubbers".[8]  All tracks record first-person narratives of observations made within this context. "I Bet You Look Good on the Dancefloor", "Still Take You Home", "You Probably Couldn't See for the Lights But You Were Staring Straight at Me" and "Dancing Shoes" all examine human behaviour in nightclubs. Alex Turner describes "Dancing Shoes" as being about "people always looking to pull when they go out however much they mask it."<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Own_9-0" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[9] Other songs examine other aspects of nightlife; "From the Ritz to the Rubble" is an account of nightclub bouncers, "Red Light Indicates Doors Are Secured" tells the typical experiences and troubles of getting a taxicab after a night out, and "When the Sun Goes Down" was inspired by prostitutes in the locality of their practice room in the Neepsend district of Sheffield.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Guardian_review_10-0" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[10]  Other songs are themed on romantic relationships, such as "Mardy Bum", or youth subcultures, such as "Fake Tales of San Francisco" and "A Certain Romance". In NME ' s list of top 100 tracks of the decade, "A Certain Romance" was described as "a strangely even-handed song which starts out scorning local townies then appears to absolve them at the end of the song."<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-11" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[11] ==Album title and artwork<span class="mw-editsection" style="-webkit-user-select:none;font-size:small;margin-left:1em;line-height:1em;display:inline-block;white-space:nowrap;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;font-family:sans-serif;"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">[ edit<span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">] == <p style="margin-top:0.5em;line-height:inherit;">The album's title was taken from a line from the novel Saturday Night and Sunday Morning written by Alan Sillitoe. The name was chosen after Turner recognised similarities between the two works and the appropriateness of the title. He said that "it's good because the book is called Saturday Night and Sunday Morning and that's kind of what the album is, so there's a link there. And also, there's a lot of people saying a lot of things about us and you don't have control over it."<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-AG_12-0" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[12]  He also said that "songs including 'The View from the Afternoon', 'Dancing Shoes', 'Still Take You Home' and 'From the Ritz to the Rubble' all cover that bit of the weekend and feature the same character."<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-13" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[13]
 * 2 Album title and artwork
 * 3 Release and promotion
 * 3.1 Singles
 * 4 Reception
 * 4.1 Awards and accolades
 * 5 Track listing
 * 6 Personnel
 * 7 Charts and certifications
 * 7.1 Weekly charts
 * 7.2 Certifications
 * 8 References
 * 9 External links

<p style="margin-top:0.5em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:inherit;">Cover artwork of the album is a photo of Chris McClure — a tea boy friend of the band, frontman of The Violet May and brother of Jon McClure of Reverend and the Makers — taken in the early hours of the morning in Korova bar, Liverpool<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-AG_12-1" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[12]  after the band had given him, his cousin and his best friend "seventy quid to spend on a night out".<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-14" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[14]  The image caused some controversy when the head of Scotland'sNHS criticised the cover for "reinforcing the idea that smoking is okay".<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-15" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[15]  The band's product manager denied the accusation, and in fact suggested the opposite: "You can see from the image smoking is not doing him the world of good." In March 2006, McClure announced that he would be giving up smoking, due to lack of funds,<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-16" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[16]  though it has been recently<sup class="noprint Inline-Template" style="line-height:1;white-space:nowrap;">[when?]  reported that his attempts to do so have failed. Billboard advertisements for the album used a similar image to the cover picture, but without the cigarette. ==Release and promotion<span class="mw-editsection" style="-webkit-user-select:none;font-size:small;margin-left:1em;line-height:1em;display:inline-block;white-space:nowrap;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;font-family:sans-serif;"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">[ edit<span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">] == <p style="margin-top:0.5em;line-height:inherit;">Prior to the release of the album, the tracks "Mardy Bum", "I Bet You Look Good on the Dancefloor", "Fake Tales of San Francisco", "Dancing Shoes", "Still Take You Home", "Riot Van", "When the Sun Goes Down" (then known as "Scummy" or "Scummy Man") and "A Certain Romance" had been released for free via the internet in late 2004 and consolidated on the unofficial Beneath the Boardwalk compilation.

<p style="margin-top:0.5em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:inherit;">The original release date was 30 January 2006, but was brought forward to 23 January 2006 due to "high demand". Although the same was done with Franz Ferdinand, it was speculated that the move was an attempt to counter the effects of the album's leak onto online file-sharing sites.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-NME1_17-0" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[17]  The re-recorded album versions had been leaked onto the internet by December 2005.

<p style="margin-top:0.5em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:inherit;">On the first day of its release, the album became the fastest-selling debut album in British history, selling just under 120,000 copies. By the end of the week, the album had sold 363,735 copies - more than the rest of the Top 20 combined and making it the overall fastest selling debut album in British history. Its release in the United States on 21 February 2006 saw it become the second fastest selling debut indie album in history,<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-BBC_18-0" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[18]  turning over around 34,000 copies in its first week and achieving #24 in the album charts. The album also went to #1 in Australia and Ireland. UK sales as of September 2013 stood at 1,475,982 copies.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-19" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[19]  In February 2014, the album was certified 5x Platinum, indicating sales of 1,500,000 copies.

<p style="margin-top:0.5em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:inherit;">The track "Mardy Bum", while not released as a single, appeared on radio playlists throughout the UK in mid-2006, and is still played infrequently on BBC Radio 1 and some alternative rock stations such asSirius XM's Sirius XMU. The track "A Certain Romance" was ranked #90 in Pitchfork Media's Top 100 Tracks of 2006 and cited as the standout track.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-20" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[20]  NME also placed "A Certain Romance" at 10 in their list of 100 Tracks of the Decade.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-21" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[21]  In October 2011, NME placed it at number 140 on its list "150 Best Tracks of the Past 15 Years".<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-22" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[22] ===Singles<span class="mw-editsection" style="-webkit-user-select:none;font-size:small;margin-left:1em;line-height:1em;display:inline-block;white-space:nowrap;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;font-family:sans-serif;"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">[ edit<span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">] === <p style="margin-top:0.5em;line-height:inherit;">"I Bet You Look Good on the Dancefloor" was released as the first single from the album, the song debuted at number 1 on the UK Singles Chart in October 2005 for one week, knocking Sugababes' "Push The Button" off the top.

<p style="margin-top:0.5em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:inherit;">"When the Sun Goes Down" released as the second single from the album in January 2006, it also debuted at number 1 on the UK Singles Chart, becoming their 2nd UK number 1 single to date. In the US, "Fake Tales of San Francisco" was released as the album's 2nd single and peaked at number 30 on the Billboard Charts. ==Reception<span class="mw-editsection" style="-webkit-user-select:none;font-size:small;margin-left:1em;line-height:1em;display:inline-block;white-space:nowrap;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;font-family:sans-serif;"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">[ edit<span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">] == <p style="margin-top:0.5em;line-height:inherit;">Since its release the album has received universal acclaim with a Metacritic rating of 82.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-MC_23-1" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[23]  It featured highly in many year-end lists and was hailed as a modern classic.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Sanneh_33-0" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[33]  Many critics and figures in the British media hyped the Arctic Monkeys and their rapid rise to acclaim through unconventional means<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Guardian_review_10-2" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[10] <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-musicomh.com_34-0" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[34] <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-35" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[35]  and some even cited the Arctic Monkeys as revolutionising the way people find music as they built a fanbase on the basis of a few demos shared by fans through the internet.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-36" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[36]  NME declared them "Our Generation's Most Important Band", and Alex Turner's lyrics and depiction of Sheffield, and the night lives of teenagers in particular, were praised, with him being labelled as a "master of observation"<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-nme.com_26-1" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[26]  and USA Today claiming "you probably won't hear a better CD all year long", calling it "utterly infectious".<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Sanneh_33-1" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[33]  MusicOMH wrote that it was the sort of guitar rock that "makes you fall in love with music all over again" and along with many other critics cited "A Certain Romance" as the standout track and as being "a wonderfully articulate dissection of youth culture that belies Turner's tender years". It was, however, noted that some of the tracks which had previously been released on the internet as demos had lost some of their quality and "don't sound as good".<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-musicomh.com_34-1" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[34] ===Awards and accolades<span class="mw-editsection" style="-webkit-user-select:none;font-size:small;margin-left:1em;line-height:1em;display:inline-block;white-space:nowrap;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;font-family:sans-serif;"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">[ edit<span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">] === <p style="margin-top:0.5em;line-height:inherit;">In 2009 the album placed at number 9 in MTV's 'Greatest Album Ever' online poll.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-47" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[47] ==Track listing<span class="mw-editsection" style="-webkit-user-select:none;font-size:small;margin-left:1em;line-height:1em;display:inline-block;white-space:nowrap;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;font-family:sans-serif;"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">[ edit<span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">] == <p style="margin-top:0.5em;line-height:inherit;">All lyrics written by Alex Turner, except where noted. All music composed by Arctic Monkeys. ==Personnel<span class="mw-editsection" style="-webkit-user-select:none;font-size:small;margin-left:1em;line-height:1em;display:inline-block;white-space:nowrap;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;font-family:sans-serif;"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">[ edit<span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">] == ==Charts and certifications<span class="mw-editsection" style="-webkit-user-select:none;font-size:small;margin-left:1em;line-height:1em;display:inline-block;white-space:nowrap;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;font-family:sans-serif;"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">[ edit<span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">] ==
 * Winner of the Barclaycard Mercury Prize
 * 5th greatest British album – NME<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-37" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[37]
 * Best Album – Q Awards<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-38" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[38]
 * Album of the Year – NME<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-39" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[39]
 * Album of the Year – Crossbeat Magazine (Japan)<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-40" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[40]
 * Album of the Year – Time Magazine<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-41" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[41]
 * Album of the Year – Hot Press Magazine (Ireland)<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-42" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[42]
 * Best International Album – Meteor Music Awards (Ireland)<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-43" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[43]
 * Best British Album – 2007 BRIT Awards<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-bbc_44-0" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[44]
 * Best British Group – 2007 BRIT Awards<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-bbc_44-1" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[44]
 * Rolling Stone's 100 Best Albums of '00s – #41<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-45" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[45]
 * Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Albums of All Time - #371
 * Rolling Stone's 100 Best Debut Albums of All Time – #30<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-46" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[46]
 * NME's 500 Greatest Albums of All Time - #19
 * Arctic Monkeys
 * Alex Turner – lead vocals, lead and rhythm guitar, tambourine (track 10)
 * Jamie Cook – lead and rhythm guitar, backing vocals
 * Andy Nicholson – bass guitar, backing vocals
 * Matt Helders – drums, vocals, co-lead vocals (track 5)