Album · 20 years old this year
The Black Parade
The Black Parade is the third album by American rock band My Chemical Romance, released on 23 October 2006 through Reprise Records. It follows Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge (2004), and Gerard Way wanted to answer that record with a concept album. The story follows a man known as "The Patient", who is dying of cancer and nearing the end of his life. The band produced it with Rob Cavallo, recording from April to August 2006 while shut away in the Paramour Mansion.
That isolation took its toll, with bassist Mikey Way in particular struggling with his mental health, and it shaped several of the songs. The sound pulls together emo, alternative rock, pop-punk and glam rock. "Welcome to the Black Parade" became the band's first UK number one, and the album debuted at number two in both the US and the UK. Many now regard it as the band's defining work, and Rolling Stone placed it at number 361 in its 2020 list of the 500 greatest albums.
The Black Parade: tracklist, credits and charts
14 tracks · 51:57Tracklist
- 1The End.Bryar, Iero, Romance, Toro, Way, Way1:53
- 2Dead!Bryar, Iero, Toro, Way, Way3:16
- 3This Is How I DisappearBryar, Iero, Romance, Toro, Way, Way3:59
- 4The Sharpest LivesBryar, Iero, Toro, Way, Way3:21
- 5Welcome to the Black ParadeBryar, Iero, Romance, Toro, Way, Way5:11
- 6I Don’t Love YouBryar, Iero, Toro, Way, Way3:59
- 7House of WolvesBryar, Iero, Romance, Toro, Way, Way3:04
- 8CancerBryar, Iero, Romance, Toro, Way, Way2:23
- 9MamaBryar, Iero, Toro, Way, Way4:39
- 10SleepBryar, Iero, Toro, Way, Way4:43
- 11TeenagersBryar, Iero, Romance, Toro, Way, Way2:42
- 12DisenchantedBryar, Iero, Toro, Way, Way4:55
- 13Famous Last WordsBryar, Iero, Toro, Way, Way4:59
- 14BloodBryar, Iero, Toro, Way, Way2:54
- Produced by
- Rob Cavallo, My Chemical Romance
- Recorded at
- Eldorado Recording Studios (Burbank), Capitol (Hollywood)
- Recorded
- April–August 2006
- Mixed by
- Chris Lord‐Alge
- Mixed at
- Resonate Music
- Engineered by
- Doug McKean
- Labels
- Reprise Records, Reprise
- Length
- 51:57
Line-up
- Bob Bryar · drums (drum set), membranophone
- Cheech Iero · guest
- Frank Iero · guitar
- Mikey Way · bass guitar
- Gerard Way · lead vocals
- Linda Iero · vocals · guest
- Donald James · vocals · guest
- Liza Minnelli · vocals · guest
- Donna Lee Way · vocals · guest
- Jamie Muhoberac · piano · guest
Singles
- “Welcome to the Black Parade” · 12 September 2006
- “Famous Last Words” · 22 January 2007
- “I Don't Love You” · 2 April 2007
- “Teenagers” · 9 July 2007
Peak chart positions
| Chart | Peak |
|---|---|
| UK Albums Chart · 2006–2007 | 2 |
| US Billboard 200 · 2006–2007 | 2 |
| New Zealand Albums · 2006–2007 | 1 |
| UK Rock & Metal Albums · 2006–2007 | 1 |
| US Tastemaker · 2006–2007 | 1 |
| US Top Rock Albums · 2006–2007 | 1 |
| Argentine Albums (CAPIF) · 2006–2007 | 2 |
| Canadian Albums (Billboard) · 2006–2007 | 2 |
| Australian Albums (ARIA) · 2006–2007 | 3 |
| Scottish Albums · 2006–2007 | 3 |
All 35 charts
| Austrian Albums · 2006–2007 | 4 |
| European Albums (Billboard) · 2006–2007 | 4 |
| Swedish Albums · 2006–2007 | 4 |
| Irish Albums · 2006–2007 | 5 |
| US Alternative · 2020 | 6 |
| Dutch Alternative Albums (Alternative Top 30) · 2006–2007 | 8 |
| Mexican Albums (Top 100 Mexico) · 2006–2007 | 8 |
| Japanese Albums (Oricon) · 2006–2007 | 10 |
| Finnish Albums · 2006–2007 | 11 |
| German Albums · 2006–2007 | 11 |
| Norwegian Albums · 2006–2007 | 11 |
| Taiwanese Albums (Five Music) · 2006–2007 | 11 |
| Belgian Alternative Albums (Ultratop Flanders) · 2006–2007 | 15 |
| Swiss Albums · 2006–2007 | 18 |
| Italian Albums · 2006–2007 | 20 |
| Danish Albums · 2006–2007 | 29 |
| Czech Albums · 2006–2007 | 31 |
| Belgian Albums (Flanders) · 2006–2007 | 33 |
| Dutch Albums · 2006–2007 | 39 |
| Greek Albums (IFPI) · 2006–2007 | 42 |
| Croatian Albums (HDU) · 2006–2007 | 43 |
| Portuguese Albums · 2020 | 44 |
| South Korean International Albums (Gaon) · 2018 | 58 |
| French Albums · 2006–2007 | 69 |
| Belgian Albums (Wallonia) · 2006–2007 | 91 |
Certifications
| Region | Certification |
|---|---|
| Argentina | Gold |
| Australia · 2007 | Platinum |
| Canada · 2026 | 4× Platinum |
| Chile | Gold |
| Denmark · 2026 | 2× Platinum |
| Ireland · 2006 | Platinum |
| Italy · 2023 | Gold |
| Japan · 2007 | Platinum |
| Mexico · 2007 | Gold |
| New Zealand · 2022 | 3× Platinum |
| United Kingdom · 2026 | 4× Platinum |
| United States · 2023 | 4× Platinum |
| Europe · 2012 | Platinum |
From MusicBrainz, Wikipedia and Wikidata. Only what the sources record is shown.
95.6
Popularity (0–100, vs the whole vault)
18k
ListenBrainz listeners
365k
Wikipedia views, last 12 months
154k
Deezer fans (all editions)
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More from My Chemical Romance
Full discography →
I Brought You My Bullets, You Brought Me Your Love
2002
Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge
2004
Life on the Murder Scene
2006
Live & Rare
2007
¡Venganza!
2008
The Black Parade Is Dead!
2008
The Black Parade: The B‐Sides
2009
The Mad Gear and Missile Kid
2010
Danger Days: The True Lives of the Fabulous Killjoys
2010
May Death Never Stop You: The Greatest Hits 2001–2013
2014
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Sacrament
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The Information
Beck · 2006
More on Reprise Records
The label →
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Green Day · 1994
Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge
My Chemical Romance · 2004
21st Century Breakdown
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Releases and pressings
How we know the release date wikipedia + wikidata; also seen: 2006-10-20 (musicbrainz)
| Source | Date | Note |
|---|---|---|
| MusicBrainz | 20 October 2006 | |
| Wikipedia infobox | 23 October 2006 | |
| Wikidata | 23 October 2006 | |
| US release | 24 October 2006 | earliest US date |
| UK / Europe release | 20 October 2006 | earliest UK or European date |
26 editions
| Date | Country | Label | Barcode | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| — | US | Reprise Records | 093624442721 | other |
| 2006 | CA | Reprise Records | 093624442721 | other |
| 20 October 2006 | XE | Reprise Records | 093624442721 | original |
| 23 October 2006 | XE | Reprise Records | 093624442721 | other |
| 23 October 2006 | — | Reprise Records | 093624967538 | deluxe |
| 23 October 2006 | — | Reprise Records | 093624917724 | other |
| 24 October 2006 | US | Reprise Records | 093624442721 | other |
| 24 October 2006 | XW | Reprise Records | 093624442769 | other |
| 24 October 2006 | US | Reprise Records | 093624324522 | other |
| 24 October 2006 | US | Reprise Records | 093624442820 | deluxe |
| 27 October 2006 | AU | Reprise Records | 9325583039966 | other |
| 6 December 2006 | JP | Reprise Records | 4943674068012 | other |
| 6 December 2006 | JP | Reprise Records | 4943674068265 | other |
| 2007 | ZA | Reprise Records | other | |
| 2 January 2007 | AR | Reprise Records | 093624324560 | other |
| 11 December 2007 | US | Reprise Records | 093624998501 | other |
| 23 February 2010 | — | Reprise Records | deluxe | |
| 8 February 2015 | XE | Reprise Records | 093624933595 | other |
| 2016 | US | Reprise Records | 093624918561 | deluxe |
| 23 September 2016 | US | Reprise Records | 093624918561 | other |
| 23 September 2016 | AI | Reprise Records | 093624916963 | deluxe |
| 23 September 2016 | XW | Reprise Records | 093624918615 | deluxe |
| 23 September 2016 | XE | Reprise Records | 093624918561 | other |
| 2022 | US | Reprise Records | 093624881070 | other |
| 2022 | CA | Reprise Records | 093624933595 | other |
| 23 October 2026 | XW | Reprise Records | 093624816263 | deluxe |
Cover art sources
coverartarchive · upscaled: minor: best source 1425x1425, upscaled to 1500 (x1.05)
| Source | Size | Verdict |
|---|---|---|
| coverartarchive ✓ | 1425×1425 | upscaled: minor: best source 1425x1425, upscaled to 1500 (x1.05) |
| itunes | 1425×1425 | upscaled |
| deezer | 1200×1200 | upscaled |
| fanarttv | 1000×1000 | upscaled |