Cast of Thousands is the second studio album by English rock band Elbow, released on 18 August 2003 in the UK and on 27 January 2004 in the US by V2 Records. The album title refers to the song "Grace Under Pressure", whose refrain was recorded live at the Glastonbury Festival in 2002, as sung by the audience during the band's set. Participants were then invited to register their names at the Elbow website, with all responders gaining a 'credit' on the album sleeve. The US version of the album contains two additional songs: "Whisper Grass" (which was a B-side to first single "Fallen Angel") and "Lay Down Your Cross" (a B-side to third single "Not a Job"). The Japanese version includes "Whisper Grass" and "Brave New Shave" (another "Fallen Angel" B-side) as bonus tracks. A companion film was also produced in conjunction with the album's release. It features footage set to all 11 tracks on the UK version of the album, as well as the music videos for the singles "Fallen Angel" and "Fugitive Motel". In the UK the film was released on DVD, whereas in the US it was released as an enhanced video bonus disc with the album.

Album cover

The cover of Cast of Thousands was designed by art director Rob Crane, who cited Antony Gormley's installation The Field for the British Isles as inspiration. The two characters on the album cover were 10 ft tall female and male polystyrene figures, named "Elle" and "Bo", which were originally placed by the side of the M1 motorway near Mansfield, but were removed by police following reported "alien" sightings by passing drivers. Following the conclusion of the promotional activities for the record, the models were auctioned for charity.

Critical reception

Cast of Thousands received critical acclaim upon release. On Metacritic, the album has a weighted average score of 84 out of 100 based on 23 reviews, indicating "universal acclaim".

Track listing

UK version

US version

Cast of Thousands film version

(released 3 November 2003 in UK, 27 January 2004 in US): As the standard album release in each country (11 tracks in UK, 13 tracks in US) (released as a DVD in UK, and as an enhanced CD-ROM in US)

Singles

In the UK, there were four singles released from the album:

Additional musicians