Sea Change (album)

Sea Change
Studio album by
ReleasedSeptember 24, 2002
RecordedMarch–May 2002
Studio
Genre
Length52:24
LabelGeffen
ProducerNigel Godrich
Beck chronology
Beck
(2000)
Sea Change
(2002)
Guero
(2005)

Sea Change is the eighth studio album by American musician Beck, released on September 24, 2002, by Geffen Records. Recorded over a two-month period in Los Angeles with producer Nigel Godrich, the album features themes of heartbreak and desolation, solitude, and loneliness. For the album, much of Beck's trademark cryptic and ironic lyrics were replaced by simpler, more sincere lyrics. He also eschewed the heavy sampling of his previous albums for live instrumentation. Beck cited the breakup with his longtime girlfriend as the major influence on the album.

Sea Change peaked at number 8 on the Billboard 200, later being certified gold in 2005 by the RIAA. It was met with favorable responses from critics, who considered Beck's transition from eccentric, sonically experimental work to emotional balladry to be successful and convincing. The album later appeared in many publications' lists of the best albums of the 2000s, and it remains one of Beck's best-reviewed recordings.[citation needed]

In 2014, Beck released the album Morning Phase, described in a press release as a "companion piece" to Sea Change, featuring the same personnel who performed on it with the exception of Godrich.

"Lost Cause" and "Guess I'm Doing Fine" were released as promotional-only singles.

  1. ^ "Revisit & Listen to Beck's 'Sea Change' (2002) | Tribute". Albumism. Retrieved 2023-04-09.
  2. ^ Bennett, Mark (2016). "Beck - Sea Change". In Dimery, Robert (ed.). 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die. London: Cassell Illustrated. p. 889.
  3. ^ "Beck: Morning Phase". Jambands. 2014-03-11. Retrieved 2023-04-09.