Behind the Light

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Behind the Light
Studio album by
Phillip Phillips
ReleasedMay 16, 2014 (2014-05-16)
RecordedQuad Studios
(New York, New York)
GenrePop rock[1]
Length46:36
Label
Producer
Phillip Phillips chronology
The World from the Side of the Moon
(2012) 		Behind the Light
(2014) 		Collateral
(2018)
Singles from Behind the Light
  1. "Raging Fire"
    Released: March 3, 2014
  2. "Unpack Your Heart"
    Released: August 12, 2014

Behind the Light is the second studio album by American recording artist Phillip Phillips. It was released on May 16, 2014, by Interscope Records.[2]

Background[edit]

The album was produced by Gregg Wattenberg, Dereck Fuhrmann and Phillip Phillips, and was recorded in New York City.[3] Upon the development of the album, Phillips discussed the concept of the album at the Billboard Music Awards red carpet:

"It' so much more mature," I got to spend some more time on it. It's a little more on the rock side, which is me and how I represent it when I play live." "I wanted to keep it the same because they know how I like to write," the 23-year-old says. "We worked so well together. It's very organic and it's not getting all these writers to come in (and say), 'We need a big pop song.' That's not how it is. It's an album as a whole, not just singles." - Phillip Phillips [4]

Release and promotion[edit]

Both Standard and Deluxe Editions became available on May 19, 2014.[5]

Singles[edit]

"Raging Fire", the lead single was released on March 3, 2014. The song speaks about "the power of love" and as described by Phillips "it's just a song wanting to feel those butterflies, you know you love and you know the first time you kissed that person" he says in an interview with Access Hollywood. The song was later solicited to Adult Album Alternative radio on March 17, 2014.[6] The song received critical acclaim by music critics who praised Phillips vocals. He performed the song live on various TV shows, including The Ellen DeGeneres Show, American Idol and on Conan.[7][8][9] Phillips also performed on Good Morning America on May 20 and on Today on June 27 and he returned to the PBS Independence Day celebration TV special, A Capitol Fourth.[10][11] The music video for "Raging Fire" premiered on Vevo on April 10.[12] Before its release, Phillips stated that he and his writers just wrote the song a week prior to the release.[13] The song was featured in the National Hockey League's Playoffs.[14] Phillips received his first BMI pop music song writing award for "Raging Fire".[15]

On April 22, "Fly" was released as a promotional single.[16]

The second single from the album is "Unpack Your Heart".[17] The song was featured in a TV commercial for Ram 1500 trucks, which premiered at the American Music Awards of 2014.[18]

Critical reception[edit]

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[19]
Knoxville News Sentinel[20]
NewsdayB[21]
The Oakland Press[22]
USA Today[23]

Behind the Light received mixed to positive reviews from music critics. At AllMusic, Stephen Thomas Erlewine rated the album three stars out of five, saying that "Perhaps Phillips has yet to find his distinctive voice, but there's no question he can color within the lines exceedingly well."[19] Brian Mansfield of USA Today rated the album two-and-a-half stars out of four, writing that "Phillips may not have a Home-style hit here, but does have the consistency and confidence that come with steady performing."[23] At The Oakland Press, Gary Graff rated the album two-and-a-half stars out of four, stating that Phillips' deserved some "Props, then, for incremental growth, and respect for a more genuinely organic grounding than most of his 'Idol' brethren."[22] Glenn Gamboa of Newsday graded the album a B, saying that "Phillip Phillips takes a giant leap forward on his sophomore album".[21] At Billboard, Shirley Halprin gave the album a positive review, writing how "'Behind the Light,' feels more like a collection of big singles as opposed to a coherent album, with ebbs and flows" on which Phillips "mostly adheres to a strict formula: acoustic-based melodies accented by strings, building up to a huge hook and back again."[24] Chuck Campbell of Knoxville News Sentinel rated the album three-and-a-half stars out of five, stating that "His lyrics may be tortured at times, but sometimes he nails it".[20]

Commercial performance[edit]

The album debuted on the Billboard 200 at No. 7 with sales of 41,000 units in the U.S.[25] The album has sold 123,000 copies in the U.S. as of December 2014.[26]

Track listing[edit]

  • The track listing was announced April 22, 2014.[27]
Behind the Light — Standard edition
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."Searchlight"
 4:12
2."Raging Fire"
Wattenberg3:54
3."Trigger"Phillips 3:59
4."Lead On"
  • Phillips
  • Clark
  • Fuhrmann
 3:14
5."Alive Again"
 3:07
6."Open Your Eyes"Phillips 4:11
7."Fool for You"
  • Phillips
  • Fuhrmann
  • Wattenberg
 3:32
8."Thicket"Phillips 5:02
9."Fly"
  • Phillips
  • Clark
Clark4:54
10."Unpack Your Heart"
  • Phillips
  • Clark
  • Fuhrmann
  • Wattenberg
 3:16
11."Face"Phillips 3:55
12."Midnight Sun"
  • Phillips
  • Furhmann
  • Wattenberg
 3:21
Behind the Light — Deluxe edition
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
13."My Boy"
4:39
14."Don't Trust Me"Phillips3:36
15."Armless Crawler"Phillips3:53
Behind the Light  — Target edition bonus tracks
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
16."Grace"Phillips4:20
Behind the Light — United Kingdom & Ireland edition
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."Searchlight"
  • Phillips
  • Green
 4:12
2."Raging Fire"
  • Phillips
  • Clark
  • Fuhrmann
  • Wattenberg
Wattenberg3:45
3."Trigger"Phillips 3:59
4."Lead On"
  • Phillips
  • Clark
  • Fuhrmann
 3:14
5."Alive Again"
  • Phillips
  • Harris
 3:07
6."Open Your Eyes"Phillips 4:11
7."Fool for You"
  • Phillips
  • Fuhrmann
  • Wattenberg
 3:32
8."Thicket"Phillips 5:02
9."Fly"
  • Phillips
  • Clark
Clark4:54
10."Unpack Your Heart"
  • Phillips
  • Clark
  • Fuhrmann
  • Wattenberg
 3:16
11."Face"Phillips 3:55
12."Midnight Sun"
  • Phillips
  • Fuhrmann
  • Wattenberg
 3:21
13."Home"
Pearson3:28
14."Gone, Gone, Gone"
  • Clark
  • Fuhrmann
  • Wattenberg
Wattenberg3:29
Behind the Light — United Kingdom & Ireland deluxe edition
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."Searchlight"Phillips, Green 4:12
2."Raging Fire"
  • Phillips
  • Clark
  • Fuhrmann
  • Wattenberg
Wattenberg3:45
3."Trigger"Phillips 3:59
4."Lead Ons"
  • Phillips
  • Clark
  • Fuhrmann
 3:14
5."Alive Again"
  • Phillips
  • Harris
 3:07
6."Open Your Eyes"Phillips 4:11
7."Fool for You"
  • Phillips
  • Fuhrmann
  • Wattenberg
 3:32
8."Thicket"Phillips 5:02
9."Fly"
  • Phillips
  • Clark
Clark4:54
10."Unpack Your Heart"
  • Phillips
  • Clark
  • Fuhrmann
  • Wattenberg
 3:16
11."Face"Phillips 3:55
12."Midnight Sun"
  • Phillips
  • Fuhrmann
  • Wattenberg
  
13."My Boy"
  • Phillips
  • Greenall
 4:39
14."Don't Trust Me"Phillips 3:36
15."Armless Crawler"Phillips 3:53
16."Home"
  • Pearson
  • Holden
Pearson3:28
17."Gone, Gone, Gone"
  • Clark
  • Fuhrmann
  • Wattenberg
Wattenberg3:29

Personnel[edit]

Credits adapted from AllMusic.[28]

Charts[edit]

Peak positions[edit]

Chart Peak
position
Canadian Albums (Billboard)[29] 7
US Billboard 200[30] 7

Release history[edit]

List of release dates, showing region, label, format and edition(s)
Region Date Format(s) Label Edition(s)
Australia May 16, 2014 CD, digital download Universal Music Group Standard, Deluxe[31]
Brazil
France
Italy
Netherlands[32][33] Interscope Records
Poland Universal Music Group
Canada May 19, 2014
Japan
United Kingdom Polydor UK
United States Interscope Records, 19
Germany May 20, 2014 Universal Music Group
Ireland July 25, 2014

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Behind the Light - Phillip Phillips - AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved May 9, 2015.
  2. ^ Brian Mansfield (March 28, 2014). "Phillip Phillips releasing sophomore album in May". USA TODAY.
  3. ^ "Phillip Phillips Announces Sophomore Album 'Behind The Light'". Music News, Reviews, and Gossip on Idolator.com. 28 March 2014. Retrieved 19 June 2015.
  4. ^ "Phillip Phillips Talks 'Mature' New Album at Billboard Music Awards (Video)". billboard.com. 2014. Retrieved May 19, 2014.
  5. ^ "iTunes - Music - Behind the Light (Deluxe Version) by Phillip Phillips". iTunes. January 2014. Retrieved 19 June 2015.
  6. ^ "Future Releases on Triple A (AAA) Radio Stations, Independent Artist Song Releases - ..." All Access. Retrieved 19 June 2015.
  7. ^ "Phillip Phillips Announces New Single "Raging Fire," Readies Sophomore Album". Music News, Reviews, and Gossip on Idolator.com. 28 February 2014. Retrieved 19 June 2015.
  8. ^ Brian Mansfield, USA TODAY (28 March 2014). "Phillip Phillips releasing sophomore album in May". USA TODAY. Retrieved 19 June 2015.
  9. ^ "PRE-ORDER PHILLIP PHILLIPS' SOPHOMORE ALBUM "BEHIND THE LIGHT" NOW - Clizbeats.com". Clizbeats.com. 23 April 2014. Retrieved 19 June 2015.
  10. ^ "Phillip Phillips "Raging Fire" | See and Hear What's Popular on Radio This Week". playiga.com. Archived from the original on 13 May 2014. Retrieved 12 January 2022.
  11. ^ https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=1199261010091725 [user-generated source]
  12. ^ Phillip Phillips - Raging Fire. YouTube. 10 April 2014. Retrieved 19 June 2015.
  13. ^ Fred Bronson (7 March 2014). "Phillip Phillips Talks New Single, Return to 'American Idol' Stage (Video)". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 19 June 2015.
  14. ^ "Phillip Phillips "Raging Fire" NHL Awards Music Video". 25 June 2014.
  15. ^ "Phillip Phillips at 2015 BMI Pop Awards". YouTube.
  16. ^ "New Music: Phillip Phillips - 'Fly' Review". Directlyrics. Retrieved 19 June 2015.
  17. ^ "PHILLIP PHILLIPS: "Unpack Your Heart"". playiga.com. Archived from the original on 2014-08-13.
  18. ^ "Interscope, Chrysler Team for Ad Spots with Eminem, Fergie, Gwen Stefani & More During AMAs". Billboard. 24 November 2014.
  19. ^ a b Erlewine, Stephen Thomas (May 19, 2014). "Behind the Light - Phillip Phillips | Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards". AllMusic. Retrieved May 20, 2014.
  20. ^ a b Campbell, Chuck (May 20, 2014). "'Tuned In' review: Something burns behind Phillip Phillips' 'Light'". Knoxville News Sentinel. Retrieved May 23, 2014.
  21. ^ a b Gamboa, Glenn (May 16, 2014). "Phillip Phillips' 'Behind the Light' review: 'American Idol' alum shines". Newsday. Retrieved May 20, 2014.
  22. ^ a b Graff, Gary (May 9, 2014). "The Listening Room: The Black Keys, Phillip Phillips and more..." The Oakland Press. Archived from the original on May 20, 2014. Retrieved May 14, 2014.
  23. ^ a b Mansfield, Brian (May 19, 2014). "Listen Up: Other notable releases". USA Today. Retrieved May 20, 2014.
  24. ^ Halprin, Shirley (May 12, 2014). "Phillip Phillips Expands His Sound on 'Behind The Light': Album Review". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved May 20, 2014.
  25. ^ Keith Caulfield (May 28, 2014). "Coldplay Collects Fourth No. 1 Album with Biggest Debut of 2014". Billboard.
  26. ^ Lynch, Joe (December 9, 2014). "9 Albums That Flopped in 2014 (Or Did They?)". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved December 9, 2014.
  27. ^ "Phillip Phillips on Twitter". Twitter. Retrieved 19 June 2015.
  28. ^ Stephen Thomas Erlewine. "Behind the Light [Deluxe Edition] - Phillip Phillips - Release Information, Reviews and Credits - AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved 19 June 2015.
  29. ^ "Phillip Phillips Chart History (Canadian Albums)". Billboard.
  30. ^ "Phillip Phillips Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard.
  31. ^ "Yahoo". Archived from the original on 29 July 2014. Retrieved 19 June 2015.
  32. ^ "bol.com - Behind The Light (Del.Ed), Phillip Phillips - Muziek". bol.com. Retrieved 19 June 2015.
  33. ^ "iTunes - Muziek - 'Behind the Light' van Phillip Phillips". iTunes. January 2014. Retrieved 19 June 2015.
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