Album
Persistence of Time
Persistence of Time is the fifth studio album by the American thrash metal band Anthrax, released on 21 August 1990 through Megaforce Worldwide and Island. It followed State of Euphoria and arrived with two singles: "Got the Time", a cover of the Joe Jackson song, and "In My World". The band even played the latter on an episode of Married... with Children, "My Dinner with Anthrax".
The record earned a Grammy nomination in 1991 for Best Metal Performance. It also marks the end of an era, as the last full Anthrax album with vocalist Joey Belladonna until Worship Music arrived in 2011. For anyone tracing the band's story from the mid-1980s onwards, it is the closing chapter of that first run with Belladonna, and a good place to hear where their thrash sound stood as the decade turned.
Persistence of Time on Riffology
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Persistence of Time: tracklist, credits and charts
11 tracks · 58:51Tracklist
- 1TimeBelladonna, Bello, Benante, Ian, Spitz6:55
- 2BloodBelladonna, Bello, Benante, Ian, Spitz7:13
- 3Keep It in the FamilyBelladonna, Bello, Benante, Ian, Spitz7:09
- 4In My WorldBelladonna, Bello, Benante, Ian, Spitz6:25
- 5GridlockBelladonna, Bello, Benante, Ian, Spitz5:17
- 6Intro to RealityBelladonna, Bello, Benante, Ian, Spitz3:24
- 7Belly of the BeastBelladonna, Bello, Benante, Ian, Spitz4:48
- 8Got the TimeJoe Jackson2:44
- 9H8 RedBelladonna, Bello, Benante, Ian, Spitz5:04
- 10One Man StandsBelladonna, Bello, Benante, Ian, Spitz5:38
- 11DischargeBelladonna, Bello, Benante, Ian, Spitz4:13
- Produced by
- Anthrax, Mark Dodson
- Executive producer
- Jon Zazula, Marsha Zazula
- Recorded at
- A&M Studios, Conway Recording Studios, Soundtrack (New York City), A&M and Conway (Hollywood, California)
- Recorded
- December 1989 – February 1990
- Mixed by
- Michael Barbiero, Steve Thompson
- Mixed at
- Electric Lady Studios
- Engineered by
- Mark Dodson
- Mastered by
- Bob Ludwig
- Artwork
- Don Brautigam
- Photography
- Waring Abbott
- Label
- Island
- Length
- 58:51
Line-up
- Frank Bello · bass guitar
- Charlie Benante · drums (drum set), guitar
- Scott Ian · guitar
- Dan Spitz · guitar
- Joey Belladonna · lead vocals
Singles
- “Got the Time” · 1990
- “In My World” · 1990
- “Belly of the Beast” · 1990
Peak chart positions
| Chart | Peak |
|---|---|
| UK Albums Chart · 1990–91 | 13 |
| US Billboard 200 · 1990–91 | 24 |
| New Zealand Albums · 1990–91 | 4 |
| Finnish Albums (The Official Finnish Charts) · 1990–91 | 10 |
| Norwegian Albums · 1990–91 | 15 |
| UK Independent Albums · 2020 | 27 |
| Australian Albums (ARIA) · 1990–91 | 30 |
| German Albums · 1990–91 | 35 |
| Japanese Albums (Oricon) · 1990–91 | 42 |
| Dutch Albums · 1990–91 | 45 |
All 12 charts
| Swedish Albums · 1990–91 | 46 |
| Scottish Albums · 2020 | 86 |
Certifications
| Region | Certification |
|---|---|
| United States · 1991 | Gold |
From MusicBrainz, Wikipedia and Wikidata. Only what the sources record is shown.
51.4
Popularity (0–100, vs the whole vault)
3.2k
ListenBrainz listeners
66k
Wikipedia views, last 12 months
4.6k
Deezer fans (all editions)
Released the same week
Also released on 21 August
Every year →
More from Anthrax
Full discography →
Fistful of Metal
1984
Armed and Dangerous
1985
Spreading the Disease
1985
Among the Living
1987
I’m the Man
1987
State of Euphoria
1988
Penikufesin
1989
Attack of the Killer B’s
1991
Sound of White Noise
1993
Live: The Island Years
1994
Stomp 442
1995
Volume 8: The Threat Is Real
1998
Inside Out
1998
Return of the Killer A's
1999
Madhouse: The Very Best of Anthrax
2001
The Collection
2002
Summer 2003 EP
2003
We’ve Come for You All
2003
Music of Mass Destruction
2004
The Greater of Two Evils
2004
Anthrology: No Hit Wonders (1985–1991)
2005
Alive 2
2005
Caught in a Mosh: BBC Live in Concert
2007
The Big 4: Live From Sofia, Bulgaria
2010
Worship Music
2011
Anthems
2013
For All Kings
2016
The Story of Chron
2026
Cursum perficio
2026
The best of 1990
All of 1990 →
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Led Zeppelin
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More on Island
The label →
Pretty Hate Machine
Nine Inch Nails · 1989
Among the Living
Anthrax · 1987
State of Euphoria
Anthrax · 1988
Deep Cuts, Volume 1 (1973–1976)
Queen · 2011
Deep Cuts, Volume 3 (1984–1995)
Queen · 2011
Attack of the Killer B’s
Anthrax · 1991
I’m the Man
Anthrax · 1987
Live: The Island Years
Anthrax · 1994
Madhouse: The Very Best of Anthrax
Anthrax · 2001
Anthrology: No Hit Wonders (1985–1991)
Anthrax · 2005
Penikufesin
Anthrax · 1989
Releases and pressings
How we know the release date wikipedia + wikidata; also seen: 1990-08-07 (musicbrainz)
| Source | Date | Note |
|---|---|---|
| MusicBrainz | 7 August 1990 | |
| Wikipedia infobox | 21 August 1990 | |
| Wikidata | 21 August 1990 | |
| US release | 7 August 1990 | earliest US date |
| UK / Europe release | 1990 | earliest UK or European date |
17 editions
| Date | Country | Label | Barcode | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990 | CA | Island | 060439128621 | other |
| 1990 | US | Island | 042284648011 | other |
| 1990 | XE | Island | 042284648028 | other |
| 7 August 1990 | US | Columbia House | 042284648028 | original |
| 7 August 1990 | US | Island | original | |
| 7 August 1990 | US | Island | 042284648028 | original |
| 21 August 1990 | JP | Polystar | 4988023011806 | other |
| 21 August 1990 | DE | Island | 4007192109296 | other |
| 21 August 1990 | US | Island | 4007192609291 | other |
| 1992 | GB | Island | 731451429323 | other |
| 6 November 1992 | JP | Island | 4988011333842 | other |
| 4 July 2007 | JP | Island | 4988005472243 | other |
| 2009 | US | Island | 042284648028 | other |
| 21 December 2011 | JP | Island | 4988005688323 | other |
| 21 August 2020 | XW | Island | remaster | |
| 21 August 2020 | US | Island | 020286231264 | deluxe |
| — | — | Megaforce Records | 195081941820 | deluxe |
Cover art sources
deezer · upscaled: major: best source 1200x1200, upscaled to 1500 (x1.25)
| Source | Size | Verdict |
|---|---|---|
| deezer ✓ | 1200×1200 | upscaled: major: best source 1200x1200, upscaled to 1500 (x1.25) |
| fanarttv | 1000×1000 | upscaled |
| coverartarchive | 500×500 | upscaled |