Life in a Beautiful Light
Studio album by
Amy Macdonald
Released11 June 2012 (2012-06-11)
StudioMayfield Studios (United Kingdom)
State of the Ark (Surrey, England)
GenrePop rock, soft rock
Length45:31
LabelMelodramatic, Mercury, Vertigo
ProducerPete Wilkinson
Amy Macdonald chronology
Love Love UK & European Arena Tour LIVE 2010
(2011)		 Life in a Beautiful Light
(2012)		 Under Stars
(2017)
Amy Macdonald studio album chronology
A Curious Thing
(2010)		 Life in a Beautiful Light
(2012)		 Under Stars
(2017)
Singles from Life in a Beautiful Light
  1. "Slow It Down"
    Released: 20 April 2012
  2. "Pride"
    Released: 13 August 2012
  3. "4th of July"
    Released: 22 October 2012
Deluxe version cover

Life in a Beautiful Light is the third album by Scottish singer-songwriter Amy Macdonald, released on 11 June 2012.[1] The lead single is "Slow It Down" and was released on 20 April 2012. Macdonald's official website confirmed the album for release on 13 April 2012. The track listing was confirmed on Universal Music's store on the same day.[2]

Background

Macdonald began to write Life in a Beautiful Light after having a "lovely year off" following touring in support of A Curious Thing. Macdonald had no time to write songs on her second album as she was touring with This Is the Life. However, Macdonald said she felt that the creation of Life in a Beautiful Light was a more natural process.[3] Two songs from Life in a Beautiful Light were begun before Macdonald's break. "In the End" was written with Macdonald questioning herself whether being a musician was a worthwhile occupation.[3]

Macdonald wrote "Human Spirit" inspired by the Chilean miners' rescue.[3] The song "Left That Body Long Ago" described her grandmother's decline into Alzheimer's disease whilst "Across the Nile" is a response to the conflict of the Arab Spring.[4]

Reception

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic60/100[5]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[6]
Daily Express[7]
Hot Press[8]
musicOMH[9]
Sputnikmusic[10]
The Scotsman[11]
The Tech[12]

The album up to now has gathered mixed reviews, earning a collective score of 5.1 out of 10 at AnyDecentMusic?.[13] The Upcoming described the album as a "strong return from Macdonald, interweaving her distinctive voice with splashing cymbals and burbling electronica, but still intermittently flirting with folky affectations".[14] The album received 60/100 on Metacritic, a review aggregator website, signifying "mixed or average reviews".[5]

Chart performance

On 14 June 2012 Life in a Beautiful Light entered the Irish Albums Chart at number 5, making it her highest charting album in Ireland. On 17 June 2012 the album entered the UK Albums Chart at number 2, making it the second highest charting album that week, only beaten by Gary Barlow's album Sing. Only 1,000 copies separated the top three albums.[15] The album fared better in Scotland, where it debuted at number one.

Singles

  • "Slow It Down" was released as the lead single from the album on 20 April 2012. The song was a modest hit in Europe, charting at forty-five in the United Kingdom, fifty-six in Austria, fifty in Switzerland and forty in Germany.
  • "Pride" was released as the second single from the album on 13 August 2012.
  • "4th of July" was released as the third single from the album on 22 October 2012.

Track listings

All songs written by Amy Macdonald

Standard edition

No.TitleLength
1."4th of July"3:48
2."Pride"3:22
3."Slow It Down"3:52
4."The Furthest Star"3:29
5."The Game"4:24
6."Across the Nile"3:19
7."The Days of Being Young and Free"4:09
8."Left That Body Long Ago"4:49
9."Life in a Beautiful Light"4:35
10."Human Spirit"2:06
11."The Green and the Blue"3:53
12."In the End / Two Worlds" (hidden track)8:05

Deluxe edition

No.TitleLength
1."4th of July"3:48
2."Pride"3:22
3."Slow It Down"3:52
4."The Furthest Star"3:29
5."The Game"4:24
6."Across the Nile"3:19
7."The Days of Being Young and Free"4:09
8."Left That Body Long Ago"4:49
9."Life in a Beautiful Light"4:35
10."Human Spirit"2:06
11."The Green and the Blue"3:53
12."In the End"3:52
13."Slow It Down" (acoustic version)3:46
14."The Furthest Star" (acoustic version)3:07
15."The Green and the Blue" (acoustic version)2:50
16."Across the Nile" (acoustic version; iTunes exclusive)3:10
17."4th of July" (acoustic version)3:03
18."Slow It Down" (singalong instrumental version)3:56
19."4th of July" (singalong instrumental version)3:48
20."Pride" (singalong instrumental version)3:24
21."Two Worlds" (hidden track)3:52
iTunes bonus track
No.TitleLength
21."Pride" (acoustic version)3:18
Saturn bonus tracks[16]
No.TitleLength
21."Born to Run" (acoustic version)3:32
22."Life in a Beautiful Light" (acoustic version)3:16
Spotify bonus tracks[17]
No.TitleLength
13."Slow It Down" (Spotify version; acoustic live)3:35
14."Pride" (Spotify version; acoustic live)3:24

Super deluxe box set

A super deluxe box set was also released that contains:[2]

  • Standard edition of the album
  • Bonus CD: A selection of acoustic versions, and singalong instrumentals
  • DVD-5 acoustic versions live
  • 2 litho artwork numbered prints
  • Sheet music for "Slow It Down"

"Amy Macdonald guitar pic"

Charts and certifications

Certifications

Region CertificationCertified units/sales
Germany (BVMI)[39] Platinum 200,000^
Poland (ZPAV)[40] Gold 10,000*
Switzerland (IFPI Switzerland)[41] Platinum 30,000^
United Kingdom (BPI)[42] Gold 100,000*

* Sales figures based on certification alone.
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References

  1. ↑ "Life in a Beautiful Light". 13 April 2012. Archived from the original on 19 April 2012. Retrieved 14 April 2012.
  2. 1 2 "Life in a Beautiful Light Track listing". 13 April 2012. Retrieved 15 April 2012.
  3. 1 2 3 Biography — Amy Macdonald Archived 21 February 2010 at the Wayback Machine
  4. ↑ Sincair, David (9 June 2012). "Amy Macdonald: Songs in the key of life – from Glasgow". The Independent. Archived from the original on 14 June 2022. Retrieved 17 May 2018.
  5. 1 2 Life in a Beautiful Light Reviews, Ratings, Credits, and More - Metacritic
  6. ↑ Christopher Monger, James. "Life in a Beautiful Light - Amy Macdonald". AllMusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved 21 February 2014.
  7. ↑ Gaga, Simon (8 June 2012). "CD Review - Amy Macdonald, Life In A Beautiful Light". Daily Express. Retrieved 21 February 2014.
  8. ↑ O. Hare, Colm (29 May 2012). "Life In A Beautiful Light". Hot Press. Retrieved 21 February 2014.
  9. ↑ John Murphy. "Amy Macdonald - Life In A Beautiful Light". MusicOMH. Archived from the original on 30 June 2012. Retrieved 23 June 2012.
  10. ↑ Davey Boy (12 June 2012). "Amy Macdonald Life In A Beautiful Light". Sputnikmusic. Retrieved 23 June 2012.
  11. ↑ Fiona Shepherd (11 June 2012). "Album review: Amy MacDonald: Life in a Beautiful Light". The Scotsman. Retrieved 23 June 2012.
  12. ↑ Dere, Kathryn (11 July 2012). "ALBUM REVIEW: Sunny summer soundtrack". The Tech. Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Archived from the original on 2 March 2014. Retrieved 21 February 2014.
  13. ↑ "Amy MacDonald - Life in a Beautiful Light". AnyDecentMusic?. Retrieved 23 June 2012.
  14. ↑ Album review: Amy Macdonald — Life In A Beautiful Light | The Upcoming
  15. ↑ Gary Barlow pips Amy MacDonald and Usher to Number 1 in albums chart race. Official Charts Company
  16. ↑ "Saturn - Musik-Download". Archived from the original on 5 February 2015. Retrieved 23 May 2020.
  17. ↑ Life In A Beautiful Light by Amy Macdonald on Spotify
  18. ↑ "Austriancharts.at – Amy Macdonald – Life in a Beautiful Light" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved 28 April 2021.
  19. ↑ "Ultratop.be – Amy Macdonald – Life in a Beautiful Light" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 28 April 2021.
  20. ↑ "Ultratop.be – Amy Macdonald – Life in a Beautiful Light" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved 28 April 2021.
  21. ↑ "Danishcharts.dk – Amy Macdonald – Life in a Beautiful Light". Hung Medien. Retrieved 28 April 2021.
  22. ↑ "Dutchcharts.nl – Amy Macdonald – Life in a Beautiful Light" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 28 April 2021.
  23. ↑ "Lescharts.com – Amy Macdonald – Life in a Beautiful Light". Hung Medien. Retrieved 28 April 2021.
  24. ↑ "Offiziellecharts.de – Amy Macdonald – Life in a Beautiful Light" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 28 April 2021.
  25. ↑ "Irish-charts.com – Discography Amy Macdonald". Hung Medien. Retrieved 28 April 2021.
  26. ↑ "Norwegiancharts.com – Amy Macdonald – Life in a Beautiful Light". Hung Medien. Retrieved 28 April 2021.
  27. ↑ "Oficjalna lista sprzedaży :: OLiS - Official Retail Sales Chart - sales for the period 11.06.2012 - 17.06.2012". OLiS. Retrieved 22 June 2012.
  28. ↑ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 28 April 2021.
  29. ↑ "Spanishcharts.com – Amy Macdonald – Life in a Beautiful Light". Hung Medien. Retrieved 28 April 2021.
  30. ↑ "Swedishcharts.com – Amy Macdonald – Life in a Beautiful Light". Hung Medien. Retrieved 28 April 2021.
  31. ↑ "Swisscharts.com – Amy Macdonald – Life in a Beautiful Light". Hung Medien. Retrieved 28 April 2021.
  32. ↑ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 28 April 2021.
  33. ↑ "Jahreshitparade Alben 2012". austriancharts.at. Retrieved 28 April 2021.
  34. ↑ "Jaaroverzichten 2012". Ultratop. Retrieved 28 April 2021.
  35. ↑ "Rapports Annuels 2012". Ultratop. Retrieved 28 April 2021.
  36. ↑ "Top 100 Album-Jahrescharts" (in German). GfK Entertainment. Retrieved 28 April 2021.
  37. ↑ "Schweizer Jahreshitparade 2012". hitparade.ch. Retrieved 28 April 2021.
  38. ↑ "End of Year Album Chart Top 100 – 2012". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 28 April 2021.
  39. ↑ "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (Amy Macdonald; 'Life in a Beautiful Light')" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie. Retrieved 12 July 2012.
  40. ↑ "Wyróżnienia – Złote płyty CD - Archiwum - Przyznane w 2012 roku" (in Polish). Polish Society of the Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 19 April 2021.
  41. ↑ "The Official Swiss Charts and Music Community: Awards ('Life in a Beautiful Light')". IFPI Switzerland. Hung Medien. Retrieved 12 July 2012.
  42. ↑ "British album certifications – Amy MacDonald – Life in a Beautiful Light". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 13 August 2012.
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