Truth Is a Beautiful Thing

Truth Is a Beautiful Thing is the second studio album by English indie pop band London Grammar. It was released on 9 June 2017 by the trio's imprint Metal & Dust and Ministry of Sound.^[3]

Truth Is a Beautiful Thing
Studio album by London Grammar
Released	9 June 2017 (2017-06-09)
Recorded	2014–2016
Studio	Smecky (Prague)[a] The Church (London)[b] State of the Ark (London)[c] Westpoint (London)[d] Metropolis (London)[e] Maida Vale (London)[f]
Genre	Dream pop[1] trip hop[2]
Length	51:48
Label	Metal & Dust Ministry of Sound
Producer	Simon Askew Ben Baptie Paul Epworth Jon Hopkins Greg Kurstin London Grammar Myriot
London Grammar chronology
If You Wait (2013) Truth Is a Beautiful Thing (2017) Californian Soil (2021)
Singles from Truth Is a Beautiful Thing
"Rooting for You" Released: 1 January 2017 "Big Picture" Released: 1 February 2017 "Truth Is a Beautiful Thing" Released: 24 March 2017 "Oh Woman Oh Man" Released: 21 April 2017 "Non Believer" Released: 11 August 2017 "Hell to the Liars" Released: 10 November 2017

Singles

"Rooting for You" was released as the album's lead single on 1 January 2017.^[4] It peaked at number 58 on the UK Singles Chart.^[5] The album's second single, "Big Picture", was released on 1 February 2017,^[6] reaching number 73 on the UK Singles Chart.^[5] "Truth Is a Beautiful Thing" was released as the third single on 24 March 2017. "Oh Woman Oh Man" was released as the fourth single on 21 April 2017,^[7] peaking at number 85 on the UK Singles Chart.^[5] On 11 August 2017, "Non Believer" was sent to UK contemporary hit radio as the album's fifth single.^[8] The album's sixth and final single, "Hell to the Liars", was released on 10 November 2017.^[9]

Critical reception

Truth Is a Beautiful Thing received mixed to positive reviews from music critics. Praise was directed at the album's atmospheric production and Hannah Reid's emotive vocals,^[10] while some critics felt that the record lacked musical variety and progression from the band's debut album, If You Wait.^[11]

Professional ratings

Aggregate scores
Source	Rating
Metacritic	68/100[12]
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[13]
Clash	8/10[14]
DIY	[15]
Drowned in Sound	7/10[16]
The Guardian	[17]
The Independent	[18]
musicOMH	[19]
NME	[2]
Under the Radar	[1]

The album holds a score of 68/100 on review aggregator Metacritic, indicating "generally favorable reviews" based on 17 critics' reviews.^[20] Scott Dransfield of Under the Radar, praised the album for being an "album-length exploration of mood, or a collection of self-contained songs, than it is a flowing, conceptual, capital-A album."^[21] The Guardian awarded the album three out of five stars, commending its "cinematic and grand" production but criticizing it for being too uniform in tone.^[11] NME also gave the album four stars, stating that while London Grammar ability to craft ethereal soundscapes, but criticized the album for lacking to connect with its lyrics stating "They're not exactly expected to diss Cameron in a thunderous, anti-Brexit, but they could still say more, or go beyond a default of singing about the complex ups and downs of relationships."^[22] The Arts Desk was more critical, giving the album two out of five stars, describing it as having "dumped many of the elements that made If You Wait really shine and instead find themselves fishing around for inspiration and trying on a fair few ill-fitting hats for size."^[23]

Conversely, AllMusic rated the album three and a half stars out of five, praising its lush production and Reid's vocal performance,^[24] while The Independent rated it three stars, highlighting the lyrical themes, but stated "listeners may experience déjà vu."^[25]

Commercial performance

Truth Is a Beautiful Thing debuted at number one on the UK Albums Chart with first-week sales of 43,403 copies, including 2,780 from sales-equivalent streams.^[26]

Track listing

Truth Is a Beautiful Thing track listing

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Producer(s)	Length
1.	"Rooting for You"		Paul Epworth Myriot[a]	4:29
2.	"Big Picture"		London Grammar Jon Hopkins Tom Elmhirst[b] Myriot[c]	4:41
3.	"Wild Eyed"		London Grammar Myriot	4:28
4.	"Oh Woman Oh Man"		Epworth	4:37
5.	"Hell to the Liars"		London Grammar Epworth Myriot[d]	6:04
6.	"Everyone Else"	Reid Rothman Major Greg Kurstin	Kurstin Myriot[d]	4:05
7.	"Non Believer"	Reid Rothman Major Epworth	Epworth	4:17
8.	"Bones of Ribbon"		Epworth	4:34
9.	"Who Am I"		London Grammar	4:22
10.	"Leave the War with Me"	Reid Rothman Major Kurstin	Kurstin	5:04
11.	"Truth Is a Beautiful Thing"		Epworth Myriot[d]	5:07
Total length:				51:48

All tracks are written by Hannah Reid, Daniel Rothman and Dominic Major, except where noted.

Deluxe edition bonus disc^[27][28]

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Producer(s)	Length
12.	"What a Day"		London Grammar Myriot[d]	4:54
13.	"Different Breeds"		Epworth	3:29
14.	"Control"	Reid Rothman Major Epworth	Epworth	3:05
15.	"Trials" (demo)		Ben Baptie	3:42
16.	"May the Best" (church mix)		Epworth	4:09
17.	"Rooting for You" (demo)		London Grammar	4:13
18.	"Bitter Sweet Symphony" (live at BBC Maida Vale)	Keith Richards Mick Jagger Richard Ashcroft	Simon Askew	3:53
Total length:				27:25

Notes

• ^{^[a]} signifies a co-producer
• ^{^[b]} signifies a vocal producer
• ^{^[c]} signifies an additional vocal producer
• ^{^[d]} signifies an additional producer

Personnel

Credits adapted from the liner notes of the deluxe edition of Truth Is a Beautiful Thing.^[29]

London Grammar

• Hannah Reid – vocals (all tracks); piano (tracks 11, 14)
• Daniel Rothman – guitars
• Dot Major – drums, programming (all tracks); piano (tracks 1, 3, 5, 9, 12); Rhodes (tracks 6, 10)

Additional musicians

• Paul Epworth – drums, programming (tracks 7, 14); additional programming (track 9)
• Greg Kurstin – piano, Mellotron, Chamberlin, Orchestron, Juno-60 (track 10)
• Wil Malone – string arrangements, string conducting (tracks 1, 5)
• Lucie Švehlová – concertmaster (tracks 1, 5)
• City of Prague Philharmonic Orchestra – strings (tracks 1, 5)
• Myriot (Tim Bran and Roy Kerr) – additional programming (track 1)

Technical

• Jan Holzner – string recording (tracks 1, 5)
• London Grammar – production (tracks 2, 3, 5, 9, 12, 17); mixing (track 17)
• Paul Epworth – production (tracks 1, 4, 5, 7, 8, 11, 13, 14, 16)
• Jon Hopkins – production, mixing (track 2)
• Myriot (Tim Bran and Roy Kerr) – production (track 3); co-production (track 1); additional vocal production (track 2); additional production (tracks 5, 6, 11, 12)
• Greg Kurstin – production, engineering (tracks 6, 10)
• Ben Baptie – production (track 15); mixing (tracks 13, 15); additional engineering (tracks 4, 7–9, 13, 14)
• Simon Askew – production (track 18)
• Tom Elmhirst – vocal production; vocal mixing (track 2); mixing (tracks 1, 3–12, 14)
• Brandon Bost – mix assistance (tracks 1, 3–12, 14)
• Andy Menhenitt – mix assistance (tracks 13, 15); engineering assistance (tracks 4, 7, 8, 9, 13, 14)
• Matt Wiggins – mixing (track 16); engineering (tracks 4, 5, 7, 8, 11, 13, 16)
• Joseph Hartwell Jones – engineering (track 1)
• Riley MacIntyre – additional engineering (track 1); engineering (tracks 4, 5, 7, 8, 11, 13, 14, 16)
• Joe Visciano – engineering for mix (track 1)
• Manon Grandjean – engineering (tracks 2, 3, 11); vocal recording (track 2)
• Luke Pickering – engineering assistance (tracks 4, 8, 11, 13, 14, 16)
• Alex Pasco – engineering (tracks 6, 10)
• Julian Burg – engineering (tracks 6, 10)
• Tom Coyne – mastering (tracks 1–17)
• Kevin Tuffy – mastering (track 18)

Artwork

• Eliot Lee Hazel – cover photo
• Alexandra Waespi – inside photos
• Harry Hall – inside photos
• Leif Podhajsky – creative direction, layout

Charts

Weekly charts Weekly chart performance for Truth Is a Beautiful Thing Chart (2017) Peak position Australian Albums (ARIA)[30] 3 Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[31] 15 Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[32] 2 Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[33] 1 Canadian Albums (Billboard)[34] 29 Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[35] 9 French Albums (SNEP)[36] 2 German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[37] 9 Greek Albums (IFPI)[38] 24 Irish Albums (IRMA)[39] 3 Italian Albums (FIMI)[40] 31 New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[41] 10 Norwegian Albums (VG-lista)[42] 33 Portuguese Albums (AFP)[43] 10 Scottish Albums (OCC)[44] 1 Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[45] 4 UK Albums (OCC)[46] 1 US Billboard 200[47] 129 US Top Alternative Albums (Billboard)[48] 16 US Top Rock Albums (Billboard)[49] 29

Year-end charts 2017 year-end chart performance for Truth Is a Beautiful Thing Chart (2017) Position Australian Albums (ARIA)[50] 45 Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[51] 13 Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[52] 32 French Albums (SNEP)[53] 77 Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[54] 63 UK Albums (OCC)[55] 33 2018 year-end chart performance for Truth Is a Beautiful Thing Chart (2018) Position Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[56] 63 Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[57] 194 2019 year-end chart performance for Truth Is a Beautiful Thing Chart (2019) Position Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[58] 181

Certifications

Certifications for Truth Is a Beautiful Thing

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
Belgium (BRMA)[59]	Gold	15,000‡
France (SNEP)[60]	Platinum	100,000‡
United Kingdom (BPI)[61]	Gold	100,000‡
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Release history

Release dates and formats for Truth Is a Beautiful Thing

Region	Date	Format	Edition	Label	Ref(s)
Various	9 June 2017	CD LP digital download	Standard deluxe	Metal & Dust Ministry of Sound	[27][28][62][63][64][65]
Australia				Dew Process	[66][67][68][69][70][71]
France		CD		Because	[72][73]
		LP+CD digital download	Deluxe		[74][75]
United States		LP	Standard	Columbia	[76]
		Digital download	Standard deluxe		[77][78]

Notes

1. Strings on tracks 1 and 5
2. Tracks 1, 4–10 and 13–16
3. Track 3; vocals on tracks 2 and 11
4. Track 12
5. Track 17
6. Track 18