Away from the Sun
Studio album by
3 Doors Down
ReleasedNovember 12, 2002
Recorded2001–2002
Studio
  • London Bridge (Seattle)
  • Greenhouse (Burnaby, British Columbia)
  • Ocean Way (Hollywood)
Genre
Length46:50
LabelUniversal
ProducerRick Parashar
3 Doors Down chronology
The Better Life
(2000) 		Away from the Sun
(2002) 		Another 700 Miles
(2003)
Singles from Away from the Sun
  1. "When I'm Gone"
    Released: September 23, 2002[1]
  2. "The Road I'm On"
    Released: March 17, 2003[2]
  3. "Here Without You"
    Released: July 28, 2003[3]
  4. "Away from the Sun"
    Released: January 12, 2004[4]

Away from the Sun is the second studio album by American rock band 3 Doors Down. It was released by Universal Music Group on November 12, 2002. The four singles released for the album were as follows: "When I'm Gone", "The Road I'm On", "Here Without You", and "Away from the Sun". The song "Sarah Yellin'" was originally recorded as "Sarah Yellin' 86" on 3 Doors Down's self-titled demo in 1997. The Away from the Sun recording sessions took place during the summer of 2002 with producer and engineer Rick Parashar at London Bridge Studio, in Seattle, Washington. Rush guitarist Alex Lifeson performed live with the band during their premiere party in Biloxi, Mississippi for Away from the Sun. The album has sold eight million copies worldwide, including over four million in the US alone.[5][6] Away from the Sun: Deluxe Edition, a remastered version with bonus tracks, was released on August 11, 2023.[7]

DualDisc version

This album was included among a group of 15 DualDisc releases that were test marketed in two cities: Boston and Seattle. The test market DualDisc version of the album is rare. In 2005, the DualDisc version was reissued in a more widely distributed version. The original test market version differs from this common version in both packaging elements and in the design of the back of the inlay card.

The DualDisc has the standard CD album on one side, and a DVD-Audio/DVD-Video on the second side. The DVD-Audio portion contains the entire album in advanced resolution 5.1 PCM surround sound and 2.0 PCM stereo. The PCM audio was recorded at 96 kHz and 24bit for both audio tracks, but the 5.1 audio track is at 13,824kbit/s and the 2.0 audio track is at 4,608kbit/s. Special features for the DVD-Audio include the band's biography, a photo gallery and lyrics for the listed tracks only (not for the hidden track "This Time"). The DVD-Video portion contains the entire album in 5.1 Dolby Digital surround sound and 2.0 Dolby Digital stereo. The DVD side also features the music video for the song "The Road I'm On" directed by The Malloys.


Track listing

All songs written by 3 Doors Down except "Dangerous Game" and "Sarah Yellin'" by Arnold, Roberts and Harrell, and "That Smell" by Allen Collins and Ronnie Van Zant of Lynyrd Skynyrd

No.TitleLength
1."When I'm Gone"4:21
2."Away from the Sun"3:53
3."The Road I'm On"3:59
4."Ticket to Heaven"3:27
5."Running Out of Days"3:31
6."Here Without You"3:58
7."I Feel You"4:07
8."Dangerous Game"3:36
9."Changes"3:56
10."Going Down in Flames"3:28
11."Sarah Yellin'"3:17
12."This Time" (hidden track with 30 seconds of silence at beginning of track)5:18
Total length:46:50
Japanese edition
No.TitleLength
12."Pop Song" (bonus track)3:11
13."This Time" (hidden track with 30 seconds of silence at beginning of track)5:18
UK special edition
No.TitleLength
12."Pop Song" (bonus track)3:11
13."Kryptonite" (bonus track from The Better Life)3:54
14."This Time" (hidden track with 30 seconds of silence at beginning of track)5:18
2023 deluxe edition
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
12."This Time" 4:50
13."Long Day" 3:38
14."That Smell" (Lynyrd Skynyrd cover)
5:48
15."Something in My Mind" 3:18
16."Living a Lie" 3:34
17."Pop Song" 3:10
18."Dangerous Game" (Early version) 3:59
19."Dead Love" (Early version) 3:05
20."Wasted Me" (Early version) 3:09
21."Here Without You" (Demo) 3:45
22."When I'm Gone" (Live early version) 4:01
Limited edition DVD
No.TitleLength
1."live" (video) 
2."Kryptonite" (video) 
3."Loser" (video) 
4."Duck and Run" (video) 
5."Be Like That" (video) 
6."The Making of Away from the Sun" 
7."Dangerous Game" (5.1 audio) 
8."When I'm Gone" (5.1 audio) 

Music videos

  1. "When I'm Gone" (two versions)[8]
  2. "The Road I'm On"
  3. "Here Without You"
  4. "Away from the Sun"

Personnel

3 Doors Down

Additional musicians

Production

Reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[9]
Entertainment WeeklyC[10]
musicOMHmixed[11]
Rolling Stonemixed[12]

As with their previous album, critical reception remained generally mixed. Praise came from its earnesty and raw aggression, while its lyrical themes were disparaged for being too morbid, depressing, or otherwise "self-pitying". Bob Waliszewski of the website PluggedIn wrote that "Unlike the band’s last disc, this one views hard times with less melancholy and more ambition to affect change. Away From the Sun offers 3DD fans a ray of hope, yet gets burned by a few disappointing turns".[13]

Johnny Lofton of AllMusic gave album three out of five stars, saying: "the band doesn't yet have the hooks to remain consistently interesting for an entire album. Besides the unstoppable melody of the title track, and 'Ticket to Heaven,' which shows some real songwriting depth in comparison to the band's debut, many of Away from the Sun's 11 tracks sound too similar. It's an accomplished, often rocking, and sometimes genuinely emotional set, but there just isn't enough variety to sustain it."[14]

Independent music website Music Immortal wrote in a retrospective 2009 review: "Something tells me this album came from a very low, depressed place. A lot of the songs on the album speak of loneliness or emptiness, and its definitely one of those albums you would turn on when you want to be reminded that others feel the same way sometimes."[15]

Charts

Certifications

Certifications for Away from the Sun
Region Certification Certified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)[35] Platinum 70,000^
Canada (Music Canada)[36] Platinum 100,000^
Denmark (IFPI Danmark)[37] Gold 25,000^
Germany (BVMI)[38] Gold 150,000‡
New Zealand (RMNZ)[39] Gold 7,500^
United Kingdom (BPI)[40] Silver 60,000‡
United States (RIAA)[41] 4× Platinum 4,000,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

References

  1. ^ "Going for Adds". Radio & Records. No. 1471. September 20, 2002. p. 33.
  2. ^ "Going for Adds". Radio & Records. No. 1495. March 14, 2003. p. 26.
  3. ^ "Going for Adds". Radio & Records. No. 1514. July 25, 2003. p. 22.
  4. ^ "Going for Adds". Radio & Records. No. 1537. January 9, 2004. p. 24.
  5. ^ [1] Archived September 13, 2008, at the Wayback Machine
  6. ^ "Music Albums, Top 200 Albums & Music Album Charts". Billboard.com. 2009-12-31. Retrieved 2012-01-15.
  7. ^ https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230811875119/en/3-Doors-Down-Celebrates-20th-Anniversary-of-Away-From-The-Sun-With-a-Deluxe-Digital-Release---Available-Now
  8. ^ "3 Doors Down hit no.1 on Billboard Top 40 With 'When I'm Gone'". Business Wire. 22 April 2003. ProQuest 444911553.
  9. ^ allmusic review
  10. ^ "Entertainment Weekly review". Archived from the original on 2012-05-16. Retrieved 2007-07-24.
  11. ^ musicOMH review
  12. ^ "Rolling Stone review". Archived from the original on 2009-03-22. Retrieved 2012-09-09.((cite web)): CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  13. ^ https://www.pluggedin.com/album-reviews/3doorsdown-awayfromthesun/
  14. ^ https://www.allmusic.com/album/away-from-the-sun-mw0000226281
  15. ^ https://musicisimmortal.weebly.com/album-reviews/away-from-the-sun-3-doors-down-album-review
  16. ^ "Australiancharts.com – 3 Doors Down – Away from the Sun". Hung Medien. Retrieved July 16, 2020.
  17. ^ "Austriancharts.at – 3 Doors Down – Away from the Sun" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved July 16, 2020.
  18. ^ "Ultratop.be – 3 Doors Down – Away from the Sun" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved July 16, 2020.
  19. ^ "Danishcharts.dk – 3 Doors Down – Away from the Sun". Hung Medien. Retrieved July 16, 2020.
  20. ^ "Dutchcharts.nl – 3 Doors Down – Away from the Sun" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved July 16, 2020.
  21. ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – 3 Doors Down – Away from the Sun" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved July 16, 2020.
  22. ^ "Charts.nz – 3 Doors Down – Away from the Sun". Hung Medien. Retrieved July 16, 2020.
  23. ^ "Swedishcharts.com – 3 Doors Down – Away from the Sun". Hung Medien. Retrieved July 16, 2020.
  24. ^ "Swisscharts.com – 3 Doors Down – Away from the Sun". Hung Medien. Retrieved July 16, 2020.
  25. ^ "3 Doors Down Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved July 16, 2020.
  26. ^ "Canada's Top 200 Alternative albums of 2002". Jam!. Archived from the original on December 4, 2003. Retrieved March 26, 2022.
  27. ^ "Top 100 Metal Albums of 2002". Jam!. Archived from the original on August 12, 2004. Retrieved March 23, 2022.
  28. ^ "Top Billboard 200 Albums – Year-End 2003". Billboard. Retrieved September 5, 2020.
  29. ^ "Top 50 Global Best Selling Albums for 2003" (PDF). International Federation of the Phonographic Industry. Archived from the original (PDF) on November 17, 2008. Retrieved February 1, 2023.
  30. ^ "ARIA End of Year Albums Chart 2004". Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved July 30, 2020.
  31. ^ "Jaaroverzichten – Album 2004". dutchcharts.nl. Retrieved July 30, 2020.
  32. ^ "Årslista Album – År 2004" (in Swedish). Sverigetopplistan. Retrieved July 30, 2020.
  33. ^ "Top Billboard 200 Albums – Year-End 2004". Billboard. Retrieved July 30, 2020.
  34. ^ "Decade End Charts – Billboard 200 Albums". Billboard. 2009. Archived from the original on 4 February 2011. Retrieved 2 May 2018.
  35. ^ "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2004 Albums" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved July 29, 2020.
  36. ^ "Canadian album certifications – 3 Doors Down – Away From The Sun". Music Canada. Retrieved July 29, 2020.
  37. ^ "Guld og platin i 2004". IFPI Denmark (in Danish). Archived from the original on June 11, 2007. Retrieved July 14, 2022.
  38. ^ "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (3 Doors Down; 'Away From the Sun')" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie. Retrieved March 14, 2023.
  39. ^ "New Zealand album certifications – 3 Doors Down – Away From The Sun". Recorded Music NZ. Retrieved August 22, 2022.
  40. ^ "British album certifications – 3 Doors Down – Away From The Sun". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved July 29, 2020.
  41. ^ "American album certifications – 3 Doors Down – Away From The Sun". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved July 29, 2020.
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