Taller
Studio album by
Jamie Cullum
Released7 June 2019 (2019-06-07)
LabelIsland
Producer
  • Jamie Cullum
  • Troy Miller
Jamie Cullum chronology
Interlude
(2014) 		Taller
(2019) 		The Pianoman at Christmas
(2020)
Singles from Taller
  1. "Work of Art"
    Released: 17 February 2017
  2. "Taller"
    Released: 3 May 2019
  3. "Drink"
    Released: 8 May 2019
  4. "The Age of Anxiety"
    Released: 31 May 2019

Taller is the eighth studio album by British jazz musician Jamie Cullum, released through Island Records on 7 June 2019.

Background

Cullum divulged that the title of the album was a reference to attention toward his height in comparison to that of his wife, Sophie Dahl, quipping that he "managed to completely break one of the laws of the universe by marrying a taller woman and it was quite interesting how much that was talked about".[1]

Release and promotion

During the 2018 Montreux Jazz Festival, Cullum premiered the tracks "Taller" and "Mankind" from the album.[2] The album's title track was made available along with pre-orders of the album in May 2019.[3] Ahead of its release, two additional songs were made available on music streaming services: "Drink" and "The Age of Anxiety" on 8 May and 31 May, respectively.

Cullum announced in May 2019 that he was set to embark on a tour across the United Kingdom to support the album in March 2020.[4] In Dave Simpson's review of Cullum's performance at the York Barbican for The Guardian, he deemed some of Cullum's routines "well-worn" but praised Cullum's versatility as well as his "aplomb".[5]

Critical reception

Awarding the album four stars out of five, Matt Collar of AllMusic regarded Taller as "sophisticated and emotionally unguarded".[6] The album was also chosen as one of the Evening Standard's albums of the week on 7 June 2019. Writing for the publication, Andre Paine deemed the album a "bold reinvention".[7] Conversely, Steven Wine of the Associated Press noted that the album was "stylistically scattershot" but that "there’s something for everyone".[8]

Track listing

Track listing and credits adapted from Tidal.[9]

All tracks are written by Jamie Cullum, except where noted

No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."Taller"
  • Cullum
  • Troy Miller
3:36
2."Life Is Grey" 
  • Miller
4:49
3."Mankind" 
  • Miller
4:19
4."Usher"
  • Ben Cullum
  • Cullum
  • Miller
3:33
5."The Age of Anxiety" 
  • Miller
5:24
6."For the Love"
  • Miller
3:25
7."Drink" 
  • Miller
3:50
8."You Can’t Hideaway from Love" 
  • Cullum
  • Miller
3:08
9."Monster"
  • Miller
4:00
10."Endings are Beginnings" 
  • Cullum
  • Miller
3:09
Total length:39:21
Deluxe edition bonus tracks
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
11."Love Is in the Picture" Greg Wells3:38
12."Work of Art" Miller3:48
13."The Man" (The Killers cover)
Benedic Lamdin3:34
14."Good Luck with Your Demons" (demo) Terefe3:21
15."Marlon Brando" (demo)
  • Cullum
  • Jean Baptiste
  • Aldred
Terefe3:26
16."Show Me the Magic" (demo) Lamdin2:30
Total length:59:29
Japanese CD bonus track[10]
No.TitleLength
17."Dream My Girls" (demo)3:54
Total length:63:35
Expanded edition bonus tracks
No.TitleLength
17."It's Christmas"3:01
18."Christmas Don't Let Me Down"3:36
19."Bury a Friend" (Cover (Song Society Volume 2))3:21
20."Love It If We Made It" (Cover (Song Society Volume 2))3:53
21."Hey Ma" (Cover (Song Society Volume 2))4:51
22."Boyfriend" (Cover (Song Society Volume 2))4:56
23."(Looking For) The Heart of Saturday Night" (Cover (Song Society Volume 2))3:48
24."The Masquerade Is Over" (Cover (Song Society Volume 2))4:14

Charts

Chart (2019–2021) Peak
position
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[11] 17
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[12] 9
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[13] 166
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[14] 55
French Albums (SNEP)[15] 141
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[16] 16
Japanese Albums (Oricon)[17] 177
Portuguese Albums (AFP)[18] 15
Scottish Albums (OCC)[19] 19
Spanish Albums (PROMUSICAE)[20] 17
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[21] 15
UK Albums (OCC)[22] 17

References

  1. ^ Hunt, Julia (22 December 2019). "Jamie Cullum reveals why his latest album is called Taller". Belfast Telegraph. Retrieved 9 June 2020.
  2. ^ Nebehay, Stephanie (14 July 2018). "Jamie Cullum brings new material to Montreux, takes a jab at Trump". Reuters. Retrieved 9 June 2020.
  3. ^ Sexton, Paul (3 May 2019). "Jamie Cullum Is Back And 'Taller' On Eighth Studio Album". uDiscoverMusic. Universal Music Group. Retrieved 9 June 2020.
  4. ^ Walker, Graham (30 May 2019). "Jamie Cullum to promote new album Taller with UK tour dates in Yorkshire". Yorkshire Evening Post. Retrieved 9 June 2020.
  5. ^ Simpson, Dave (12 March 2020). "Jamie Cullum review – fun genre rampage from self-doubting showman". The Guardian. Retrieved 9 June 2020.
  6. ^ "Taller – Jamie Cullum". AllMusic. Retrieved 28 February 2020.
  7. ^ Symth, David; Paine, Andre; Broughton, Simon; Aubrey, Elizabeth; Cornwell, Jane (7 June 2019). "Albums of the week: Avicii, Jamie Cullum and The Divine Comedy". The Evening Standard. Retrieved 28 February 2020.
  8. ^ Wine, Steven (6 June 2019). "Stylistically scattershot set from piano man Jamie Cullum". The Associated Press. Retrieved 28 February 2020.
  9. ^ "Taller / Jamie Cullum". Tidal. Aspiro. Retrieved 9 June 2020.
  10. ^ "トーラー[CD]" (in Japanese). Universal Music Japan. Retrieved 9 September 2020.
  11. ^ "Austriancharts.at – Jamie Cullum – Taller" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved 20 June 2019.
  12. ^ "Ultratop.be – Jamie Cullum – Taller" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 5 December 2021.
  13. ^ "Ultratop.be – Jamie Cullum – Taller" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved 14 June 2019.
  14. ^ "Dutchcharts.nl – Jamie Cullum – Taller" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 19 July 2019.
  15. ^ "Lescharts.com – Jamie Cullum – Taller". Hung Medien. Retrieved 17 June 2019.
  16. ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – Jamie Cullum – Taller" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 14 June 2019.
  17. ^ "Jamie Cullum". Oricon. Retrieved 23 August 2020.
  18. ^ "Portuguesecharts.com – Jamie Cullum – Taller". Hung Medien. Retrieved 5 December 2021.
  19. ^ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 15 June 2019.
  20. ^ "Spanishcharts.com – Jamie Cullum – Taller". Hung Medien. Retrieved 19 June 2019.
  21. ^ "Swisscharts.com – Jamie Cullum – Taller". Hung Medien. Retrieved 20 June 2019.
  22. ^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 15 June 2019.
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