Summary
A Secret History... The Best of the Divine Comedy is a greatest hits compilation album by Irish chamber pop band the Divine Comedy, released in 1999 by Setanta Records.
| A Secret History... The Best of the Divine Comedy | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Greatest hits album by | ||||
| Released | 30 August 1999 | |||
| Genre | Orchestral pop | |||
| Length | 70:53 | |||
| Label | Setanta | |||
| Producer | Various | |||
| The Divine Comedy chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Singles from A Secret History... The Best of the Divine Comedy | ||||
| ||||
Release edit
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [1] |
| MusicOMH | (positive)[2] |
The album was the last to be released by the band on the Setanta label and features a collection of singles and best-known songs from their previous five studio albums. A new recording of "The Pop Singer's Fear of the Pollen Count" and a remixed version of "Your Daddy's Car"—both originally from the band's 1993 album Liberation—were included, along with two new tracks: "Gin Soaked Boy" and "Too Young to Die". The band's recording of Noël Coward's "I've Been to a Marvellous Party", from the tribute album Twentieth-Century Blues: The Songs of Noël Coward, was also included.[3]
A limited edition was available with an accompanying hard-back book and extra CD of "rarities". The book features Kevin Westenberg photographs taken from previous album photo shoots, interspersed with the recollections of people who had worked closely with the band, including Graham Linehan and Sean Hughes.
The additional CD, Rarities, features a full disc of rare, live and demo recordings, including cover versions of tracks by David Bowie, Talk Talk and Kraftwerk. Of special interest is the inclusion of "Soul Destroyer", a demo of a track from sessions for the band's debut album, Fanfare for the Comic Muse, an album which had previously been all-but ignored from the back catalogue.
Track listing edit
All tracks are written by Neil Hannon, except where otherwise indicated
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Original release | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "National Express" | Fin de Siècle | 5:06 | |
| 2. | "Something for the Weekend" | Casanova | 4:20 | |
| 3. | "Everybody Knows (Except You)" | A Short Album About Love | 3:50 | |
| 4. | "Generation Sex" | Fin de Siècle | 3:30 | |
| 5. | "Becoming More Like Alfie" | Casanova | 3:00 | |
| 6. | "The Summerhouse" | Promenade | 4:14 | |
| 7. | "Your Daddy's Car" (Remix) | Liberation | 4:03 | |
| 8. | "The Pop Singer's Fear of the Pollen Count" (Re-recording) | Liberation | 3:54 | |
| 9. | "The Frog Princess" | Casanova | 5:13 | |
| 10. | "Gin Soaked Boy" | Previously unreleased | 5:03 | |
| 11. | "Lucy" | Liberation | 4:39 | |
| 12. | "Songs of Love" | Casanova | 3:23 | |
| 13. | "In Pursuit of Happiness" | A Short Album About Love | 3:29 | |
| 14. | "I've Been to a Marvellous Party" | Noël Coward | Twentieth-Century Blues: The Songs of Noël Coward | 3:42 |
| 15. | "The Certainty of Chance" | Neil Hannon, Joby Talbot | Fin de Siècle | 6:12 |
| 16. | "Too Young to Die" | Previously unreleased | 4:20 | |
| 17. | "Tonight We Fly" | Promenade | 2:57 |
Limited Edition Rarities CD
All tracks are written by Neil Hannon, except where otherwise indicated
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Bernice Bobs Her Hair" (Live at Her Majesty's Theatre, London '94) | 3:36 | |
| 2. | "Bleak Landscape" (Home Demo, London '93) | 3:45 | |
| 3. | "The Booklovers" (Live at Théâtre de Ville, Paris '94) | 4:13 | |
| 4. | "The Certainty of Chance" (Home Demo, London '97) | 3:28 | |
| 5. | "Commuter Love" (Live at Shepherds Bush Empire, London '98) | 5:02 | |
| 6. | "Dear Lord and Father of Mankind" (Live TV, Belfast '98) | Traditional | 3:52 |
| 7. | "A Drinking Song" (Live at the Olympia, Dublin '94) | 3:39 | |
| 8. | "The Frog Princess" (Live at Shepherds Bush Empire, London '96) | 6:29 | |
| 9. | "Generation Sex" (Home Demo, London '97) | 3:43 | |
| 10. | "Life on Mars?" (Live at Théâtre National de Bretagne, Rennes '98 with Yann Tiersen) | David Bowie | 3:12 |
| 11. | "Life's What You Make It" (Acoustic Session – Elephant Studios, London '93) | Mark Hollis, Tim Friese-Greene | 2:53 |
| 12. | "The Model" (Live in Düsseldorf '94) | Ralf Hütter, Karl Bartos, Emil Schult | 3:56 |
| 13. | "National Express" (Live somewhere in a large field '99) | 4:32 | |
| 14. | "Painting the Forth Bridge" (Home Demo, Fivemiletown '93) | 4:05 | |
| 15. | "Queen of the South" (Acoustic Session – Elephant Studios, London '93) | 4:03 | |
| 16. | "The Summerhouse" (Live at Théâtre de Ville, Paris '94) | 4:38 | |
| 17. | "Soul Destroyer" (Studio Demo, Banbridge '89) | 1:59 | |
| 18. | "Your Daddy's Car" (Home Demo, Fivemiletown '91/'92) | 4:04 | |
| 19. | "[Unlisted track] "Moon River"" (Home Demo, Fivemiletown, 1991) | Johnny Mercer, Henry Mancini | 1:25 |
- "Painting the Forth Bridge" is an early version of the Casanova track "Middle Class Heroes", featuring completely different lyrics.
Charts edit
| Chart (1999) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Irish Albums (IRMA)[4] | 2 |
| UK Albums (OCC)[5] | 3 |
Certifications edit
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| United Kingdom (BPI)[6] | Gold | 100,000^ |
|
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. | ||
References edit
- ^ A Secret History... The Best of the Divine Comedy at AllMusic
- ^ MusicOMH Archived 5 June 2010 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Allison, Darren. A Secret History (CD booklet). Setanta Records. SETCDL100.
- ^ "GFK Chart-Track Albums: Week {{{week}}}, {{{year}}}". Chart-Track. IRMA. Retrieved 17 April 2024.
- ^ "the Divine Comedy | Artist | Official Charts". UK Albums Chart. Retrieved 17 April 2024.
- ^ "British album certifications – the Divine Comedy – A Secret History... The Best of the Divine Comedy". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 17 April 2024.