An Airplane Carried Me to Bed

An Airplane Carried Me to Bed
Studio album by
Sky Sailing
ReleasedJuly 13, 2010
Recorded2007
Genre
Length38:35
LabelUniversal Republic
ProducerAdam Young
Singles from An Airplane Carried Me to Bed
  1. "Brielle"
    Released: July 13, 2010
  2. "A Little Opera Goes a Long Way"
    Released: July 13, 2010
  3. "Flowers of the Field"
    Released: July 27, 2010

An Airplane Carried Me to Bed is the first and only album by Sky Sailing, a project by Adam Young. The album comprises some of his early recordings from before he started Owl City. It was made available for streaming on July 9, 2010,[2] before the album was released digitally on July 13[3] and released physically on July 27 via Universal Republic.[4]

Background

Following the breakout success of Ocean Eyes in 2009, Adam Young announced that he would be re-launching his previous side project Sky Sailing.[5] Young explained the record stating,

"These recordings are a step into the past, the documented account of a shy boy from Minnesota with more hopes and dreams than he knew what to do with. I am so very excited to share it with you."[5]

The album was recorded in the summer of 2007 according to Young.[6]

Release

Upon his return to Sky Sailing, Young uploaded two tracks on MySpace, "Brielle" and "I Live Alone".[7] On the release date of the album, Young also released two singles, "Brielle" as the lead single,[8] and "A Little Opera Goes a Long Way" for a free download.[9][10] An accompanying music video for the "Brielle" premiered on July 28, 2010 via VEVO.[11] "Tennis Elbow" was released on July 22, 2010 for a free download on his newsletter.[12] "Flowers of the Field" was released as the third and final single on July 27, 2010.[13]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[4]
Alternative Press[14]
Billboard[15]
Entertainment WeeklyB[16]
HM[17]
Jesus Freak Hideout[18]
NewsdayB[1]
New York Post[19]
Rolling Stone[20]

An Airplane Carried Me to Bed was generally well received by music critics. Scott Fryberger of Jesus Freak Hideout gave a positive review stating, "Young handles his lyrics so well, with some of the best lyricism you could find in pop music." He praised songs such as "A Little Opera Goes A Long Way", "Captains of the Sky", and "Brielle". He also compared the acoustic sound to indie rock band Death Cab For Cutie.[18] However, he was critical of the melodies remarking, "as good as they are, almost feel copy-and-pasted."[18] Billboard magazine stated, "Straying from the electronic-laced whimsical themes of Owl City, Young takes a more simple, honest approach to song-writing with Sky Sailing, resulting in a more lyrically grounded effort." Billboard called the song, "Tennis Elbow", as the "catchy standout track" and also called the album, "Young's more vulnerable side."[15] Mikael Wood of Entertainment Weekly remarked, "On An Airplane Carried Me to Bed he uses more acoustic guitar than keyboard, but the wide-eyed sentiment of these dreamy lost-love songs is tweenpleasingly familiar."[16] Glenn Gamboa of Newsday called the album "a more conventional indie-pop album."[1]

Heather Phares of AllMusic gave a mixed review of the album stating, "Young's basic approach remains the same not just from project to project, but from song to song." She also added, "There aren't many peaks and valleys here, although 'Tennis Elbow' shows hints of Owl City, 'Take Me Somewhere Nice' blossoms from playful electric pianos to accordions on its choruses, and 'A Little Opera Goes a Long Way' shows off Young's guitar solo skills."[4] Katie Toms of The Guardian stated, "'Brielle' is pretty, but essentially this is an album of excess material for the (admittedly legion) committed fans."[21] Dan Aquilante of the New York Post stated, "The melodies are gentle, often veering toward lullabies... It should please Owl City fans even if the arrangements are simpler because it still carries Young's gift at pulling heartstrings." He praised the songs "Brielle" and "A Little Opera Goes a Long Way" calling them the standout tracks.[19] P.F. Wilson of Cincinnati CityBeat stated there are "enough gems here to make it worthwhile."[22]

Commercial performance

An Airplane Carried Me to Bed debuted at No. 30 on the Billboard 200 and was one of the most-downloaded new albums on the week it was released.[23][24] The album sold upwards to 15,000 copies in the US in its first week.[3] To date, the album has sold 26,000 copies.[25] The lead track "Captains of the Sky" peaked at number 19 on the US Rock Digital Song Sales chart and number 119 on the South Korean GAON International chart.[26][27]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Adam Young

No.TitleLength
1."Captains of the Sky"2:44
2."Brielle"4:06
3."Steady as She Goes"2:37
4."Explorers"4:10
5."A Little Opera Goes a Long Way"3:49
6."Tennis Elbow"3:45
7."Blue and Red"3:40
8."Alaska"2:37
9."I Live Alone"4:05
10."Take Me Somewhere Nice"2:48
11."Sailboats"4:19
Total length:38:35
iTunes pre-order bonus track/(later) single
No.TitleLength
12."Flowers of the Field"3:55

"Sailboats", was first released under another project 'Seagull Orchestra' but was re-recorded and changed somewhat for release under Sky Sailing. The title of the album was also taken from this track, the lyrics for which can be heard at the start of one of the verses in the song.

Personnel

Sky Sailing

  • Adam Young – vocals, keyboards, piano, guitars, bass, drums, programming, producers, engineer, audio mixer

Additional musicians and production

  • Steve Bursky – executive producer, management
  • Greg Calbi – mastering
  • Rob Helmstetter – art direction

Charts

Chart performance for An Airplane Carried Me to Bed
Chart (2010) Peak
position
Japanese Albums (Oricon)[28] 138
South Korean Albums (Circle)[29] 84
Taiwanese Albums (Five Music)[30] 8
US Billboard 200[23] 30
US Top Alternative Albums (Billboard)[31] 6
US Top Rock Albums (Billboard)[32] 11

References

  1. ^ a b c Glenn Gamboa (July 23, 2010). "Drops: Adam Young's An Airplane Carried Me To Bed". Newsday. Archived from the original on April 11, 2013. Retrieved August 4, 2023.
  2. ^ Jill Coleman (July 9, 2010). "Sky Sailing's debut album now streaming". Alternative Press. Archived from the original on July 11, 2010. Retrieved November 1, 2024.
  3. ^ a b Robbie Daw (July 16, 2010). "Sky Sailing Flies Up The iTunes Chart With An Airplane Carried Me To Bed". Idolator. SpinMedia. Archived from the original on May 27, 2024. Retrieved July 17, 2023.
  4. ^ a b c Phares, Heather. "Review: An Airplane Carried Me To Bed". AllMusic. Archived from the original on April 30, 2023. Retrieved August 17, 2010.
  5. ^ a b Montgomery, James (May 6, 2010). "Owl City's Adam Young Re-Emerges As Sky Sailing". MTV. Archived from the original on April 30, 2023. Retrieved April 26, 2023.
  6. ^ Montgomery, James (June 18, 2010). "Owl City's Adam Young Calls Sky Sailing Project 'A Dream Come True'". MTV. Archived from the original on April 30, 2023. Retrieved April 26, 2023.
  7. ^ McCormick, Luke (May 7, 2010). "Owl City's Adam Young Returns As Sky Sailing". NME. Archived from the original on August 10, 2015. Retrieved April 26, 2023.
  8. ^ "Brielle - Single by Sky Sailing". AllMusic. Archived from the original on April 29, 2023. Retrieved April 26, 2023.
  9. ^ @UMG (July 13, 2010). "FREE DOWNLOAD: Sky Sailing "A Little Opera Goes A Long Way" [http://bit.ly/9npTOg] (US Only) Before @OwlCity, there was Sky Sailing..." (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  10. ^ "A Little Opera Goes a Long Way - Single by Sky Sailing". AllMusic. Archived from the original on April 25, 2023. Retrieved April 26, 2023.
  11. ^ "Sky Sailing - Brielle". YouTube. VEVO. Retrieved April 26, 2023.
  12. ^ Jessy Krupa (July 22, 2010). "Owl City Goes Sky Sailing". PopMatters. Archived from the original on July 25, 2010. Retrieved July 17, 2023.
  13. ^ "Flowers of the Field - Single by Sky Sailing". iTunes. Archived from the original on August 21, 2012. Retrieved July 17, 2023.
  14. ^ "Review: Sky Sailing - An Airplane Carried Me To Bed". Alternative Press. June 9, 2010. Archived from the original on December 8, 2017. Retrieved November 1, 2024.
  15. ^ a b "Sky Sailing, An Airplane Carried Me to Bed". Billboard. August 13, 2010. Retrieved April 26, 2023.
  16. ^ a b Mikael Wood (July 21, 2010). "An Airplane Carried Me to Bed – Sky Sailing". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on July 23, 2010. Retrieved August 15, 2023.
  17. ^ Doug Van Pelt. "An Airplane Carried Me To Bed". HM. Retrieved April 26, 2023.
  18. ^ a b c "Sky Sailing, "An Airplane Carried Me to Bed" Review". Jesus freak Hideout. December 16, 2010. Retrieved January 23, 2021.
  19. ^ a b Dan Aquilante (July 27, 2010). "Fat beats laid out with wicked words". New York Post. Retrieved August 4, 2023.
  20. ^ Hermes, Will (August 2, 2010). "Sky Sailing: An Airplane Carried Me to Bed". Rolling Stone. Retrieved December 7, 2017.
  21. ^ Katie Toms (July 25, 2010). "Sky Sailing: An Airplane Carried Me to Bed". The Guardian. Retrieved April 26, 2023.
  22. ^ P.F. Wilson (August 25, 2010). "Sky Sailing: An Airplane Carried Me to Bed". Cincinnati CityBeat. Archived from the original on August 29, 2010. Retrieved August 15, 2023.
  23. ^ a b "Billboard 200 Chart". Billboard. Retrieved April 26, 2023.
  24. ^ Heather Phares. "Sky Sailing Biography by Heather Phares". AllMusic. Retrieved April 25, 2023.
  25. ^ Mikael Wood (May 23, 2011). "Can Owl City Soar Back To The Top Of The Charts?". Billboard. Retrieved September 30, 2023.
  26. ^ "Rock Digital Song Sales: Week of July 31, 2015". Billboard. July 31, 2010. Retrieved September 26, 2024.
  27. ^ "Gaon Digital Chart". GAON. Archived from the original on December 3, 2013. Retrieved September 26, 2024.
  28. ^ "Owl City あうるしてぃ" (in Japanese). Oricon. Archived from the original on September 11, 2021. Retrieved June 17, 2023.
  29. ^ "South Korea Circle Album Chart". On the page, select "2010.08.22~2010.08.28" to obtain the corresponding chart. Circle Chart Retrieved August 12, 2023.
  30. ^ "第5 週 統計時間：2010/8/6 - 2010/8/12" (in Chinese). Five Music. Retrieved November 6, 2024.
  31. ^ "Alternative Albums Chart". Billboard. Retrieved April 25, 2023.
  32. ^ "Top Rock Albums Chart". Billboard. Retrieved April 25, 2023.