Word Gets Around by Stereophonics, album cover
Album

Word Gets Around

Released25 August 1997
LabelV2
Popularity57.1
Also cited28 October 1997

Word Gets Around is the debut album from Stereophonics, the Welsh rock band from Cwmaman. It came out in August 1997 on V2 and climbed to number six on the UK Albums Chart. That makes it one of four Stereophonics records not to reach the top spot, though it was a strong start for a young band. Its title comes from a lyric in the closing song, "Billy Davey's Daughter".

What gives the record its character is where it looks. Much of it is written about everyday life in the band's hometown, so these are songs about familiar streets and people rather than rock-star fantasies. Filed alongside the Britpop and indie rock of its day, it is the place to begin the story of a band that went on to release many more studio albums. A deluxe and a super-deluxe edition followed in October 2010.

Word Gets Around: tracklist, credits and charts

12 tracks · 42:08

Tracklist

  1. 1A Thousand TreesCable, Jones, Jones3:03
  2. 2Looks Like ChaplinCable, Jones, Jones2:32
  3. 3More Life in a Tramp's VestCable, Jones, Jones2:20
  4. 4Local Boy in the PhotographCable, Jones, Jones3:22
  5. 5TrafficCable, Jones, Jones4:54
  6. 6Not Up to YouCable, Jones, Jones4:37
  7. 7Check My Eyelids for HolesCable, Jones, Jones2:43
  8. 8Same Size FeetCable, Jones, Jones4:00
  9. 9Last of the Big Time DrinkersCable, Jones, Jones2:46
  10. 10Goldfish BowlCable, Jones, Jones3:03
  11. 11Too Many SandwichesCable, Jones, Jones5:03
  12. 12Billy Davey's DaughterCable, Jones, Jones3:45
Produced by
Bird And Bush, Marshall Bird, Steve Bush, Bird & Bush
Recorded at
The Wool Hall, Rockfield Studios, Parr Street Studios, Real World Studios, Straylight Studios, Courtyard Studios
Recorded
October 1992 – February 1997
Mixed by
Bird And Bush
Mixed at
Real World Studios, Loco Studios
Engineered by
Bird And Bush
Mastered by
Bob Ludwig
Artwork
Lee Dunn
Label
V2
Length
42:08

Line-up

  • Marshall Bird · keyboard · guest
  • Stuart Cable · drums (drum set)
  • Kelly Jones · guitar, lead vocals
  • Richard Jones · bass
  • Nadia Lanman · cello · guest

Singles

  • “Local Boy in the Photograph” · 17 March 1997
  • “More Life in a Tramps Vest” · 19 May 1997
  • “A Thousand Trees” · 11 August 1997
  • “Traffic” · 27 October 1997

Peak chart positions

ChartPeak
UK Albums Chart · 1997–20006
New Zealand Albums · 1997–20008
Scottish Albums · 1997–200017
Ireland 2 · 1997–200029
French Albums · 1997–200035
Australian Albums (ARIA) · 1997–200071

Certifications

RegionCertification
United Kingdom · 20143× Platinum

From MusicBrainz and Wikipedia. Only what the sources record is shown.

57.1
Popularity (0–100, vs the whole vault)
2.1k
ListenBrainz listeners
25k
Wikipedia views, last 12 months
15k
Deezer fans (all editions)

Released the same week

Also released on 25 August

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Releases and pressings

How we know the release date wikipedia 1997-08-25 vs 1997-10-28 (musicbrainz)
SourceDateNote
MusicBrainz28 October 1997ignored lone early release dated 1997-08-25
Wikipedia infobox25 August 1997
Wikidata1997
US release28 October 1997earliest US date
UK / Europe release25 August 1997earliest UK or European date
8 editions
DateCountryLabelBarcodeKind
1997GBV25033197004396other
1997AUV25033197004303other
25 August 1997GBV25033197004327original
28 October 1997USV2638812700629other
1 January 2010XWUMC600753313022deluxe
18 October 2010XWUMC600753301593deluxe
18 October 2010GBV2600753301623deluxe
18 October 2010USV2600753301593deluxe
Cover art sources

deezer · upscaled: major: best source 1200x1200, upscaled to 1500 (x1.25)

SourceSizeVerdict
deezer ✓1200×1200upscaled: major: best source 1200x1200, upscaled to 1500 (x1.25)
fanarttv1000×1000upscaled
coverartarchive953×953upscaled