Signed Sealed Delivered (Craig David album)

Signed Sealed Delivered
Studio album by Craig David
Released	29 March 2010 (2010-03-29)[1]
Recorded	2008—2010
Genre	R&B, soul, Funk
Label	Universal
Producer	Jerry Abbott, Grant Black
Craig David chronology
Trust Me (2007) Signed Sealed Delivered (2010)
Singles from Signed Sealed Delivered
"One More Lie (Standing in the Shadows)" Released: 22 March 2010 "All Alone Tonight (Stop, Look, Listen)" Released: 31 May 2010

Signed Sealed Delivered is Craig David's fifth studio album and is his first album for Universal Records. It was released on 29 March 2010 and entered the UK Albums Chart at number 13. The album consists primarily of covers. Two of the album's tracks sample hits from the Motown era and give them a modern twist, as demonstrated with the first single from the album, "One More Lie (Standing in the Shadows)", whose chorus samples The Four Tops' 1967 Motown classic "Standing in the Shadows of Love".^[2] The second is "All Alone Tonight (Stop, Look, Listen)" which samples Diana Ross and Marvin Gaye's version of "Stop, Look, Listen (To Your Heart)". The only original song is the album's last track, "This Could Be Love".

About the Album

Craig David's first album with his new label, Universal, is a collection of Motown covers and songs with Motown samples, and is David's first album in three years. The Southampton-born singer covers Stevie Wonder, Otis Redding and Marvin Gaye amongst others, and gives these classic songs a modern twist. Signed, Sealed, Delivered includes the single "One More Lie (Standing In The Shadows)", an original song that samples The Four Tops' hit "Standing In The Shadows Of Love" in its chorus.^[3]

Track listing

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"One More Lie (Standing in the Shadows)"	Craig David, Jerry Abbott, Grant Black, Shridhar Solanki, Brian Holland, Lamont Dozier, Edward Holland, Jr.	3:04
2.	"Signed, Sealed, Delivered (I'm Yours)"	Stevie Wonder, Lee Garrett, Syreeta Wright, Lula Mae Hardaway	3:20
3.	"All Alone Tonight (Stop, Look, Listen)"	David, Abbott, Black, Thom Bell, Linda Creed	3:29
4.	"I Heard It Through the Grapevine"	Norman Whitfield, Barrett Strong	3:37
5.	"Just My Imagination"	Whitfield, Strong	4:03
6.	"For Once in My Life"	Ron Miller, Orlando Murden	3:34
7.	"(Sittin' On) The Dock of the Bay"	Otis Redding, Steve Cropper	3:23
8.	"Mercy Mercy Me"	Marvin Gaye	3:34
9.	"I Wonder Why"	Glen Ballard, Curtis Stigers	4:19
10.	"Papa Was a Rollin' Stone"	Whitfield, Strong	3:58
11.	"Let's Stay Together"	Al Green, Al Jackson, Jr., Willie Mitchell	3:36
12.	"This Could Be Love"	David, Abbott, Black, Colin Lester	3:24

Reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
The Guardian	[4]
The Independent	(unfavorable)[5]
The Times	[6]
The Observer	(unfavorable)[7]
Virgin Media	[8]
Sputnikmusic	[9]
Allmusic	[10]

The album received mixed to negative reviews from music critics. One of the few positive reviews came from The Guardian's critic Carolinne Sullivan, which say that "Craig David's intention, on this Motown-dominated covers album, was to "sing the songs exactly as the original artists had", which he does, reproducing every falsetto and hiccup. The question, though, is why this still-agreeable soul star would want to make a karaoke record. It's a rum way to reignite a career – he needs to recover his mojo as an irresistibly slick R&B songwriter if he plans to return to the top of the charts". In a hand of negative reviews, Davey Boy from Sputnikmusic considered the album "very poor" and said that "it's a desperate karaoke LP which may sign, seal & deliver the end of a career".

Charts

Chart (2010)	Peak positions
Australian ARIA Albums Chart	24
Belgian (Flanders) Albums Chart	38
Belgian (Wallonia) Albums Chart	76
Dutch Albums Chart	93
Italian Albums Chart	76
Spanish Albums Chart	14
Swiss Albums Chart	93
UK Albums Chart	13
UK R&B Chart	2

References

1. ^ Craig David - Signed Sealed Delivered: CD Retrieved 29-03-2010
2. ^ Craig David interview by Pete Lewis, 'Blues & Soul' March 2010
3. ^ http://www.amazon.co.uk/Signed-Sealed-Delivered-Craig-David/dp/B0035PGDQC
4. ^ Caroline Sullivan (2010-03-25). "Craig David: Signed, Sealed, Delivered | CD review | Music". London: The Guardian. http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2010/mar/25/craig-david-signed-sealed-delivered. Retrieved 2010-04-05. 
5. ^ Price, Simon (2010-03-28). "Album: Craig David, Signed, Sealed, Delivered (Universal) - Reviews, Music". London: The Independent. http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/reviews/album-craig-david-signed-sealed-delivered-universal-1929748.html. Retrieved 2010-04-05. 
6. ^ [1]^{[dead link]}
7. ^ Hugh Montgomery (2010-03-28). "Signed, Sealed, Delivered by Craig David | CD review | Music | The Observer". London: Guardian. http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2010/mar/28/signed-sealed-delivered-craig-david. Retrieved 2010-04-05. 
8. ^ http://www.virginmedia.com/music/reviews/craigdavid-signedsealeddelivered.php
9. ^ Signed Sealed Delivered Sputnikmusic review Retrieved 04-04-2010
10. ^ Deming, Mark (March 29, 2010) Signed Sealed Delivered - Allmusic Review Allmusic Retrieved 2011-02-13