Rewired (Mike + The Mechanics album)

Rewired
Studio album by Mike + The Mechanics + Paul Carrack
Released	7 June 2004
Recorded	Fisher Lane Farm Studios/Abbey Road Studios 2003–04
Genre	Pop rock
Length	44:22
Label	Virgin, Rhino (US/Canada)
Producer	Mike Rutherford, Peter Van Hooke
Mike + The Mechanics + Paul Carrack chronology
Mike & The Mechanics (1999) Rewired (2004) The Road (2011)

Rewired is the sixth studio album by Mike + The Mechanics, released in 2004. This was the first album released by the band following the death of the co-lead singer Paul Young. Partly because of this, the album was credited to "Mike + The Mechanics + Paul Carrack". It is the only Mike + The Mechanics album to date with only one lead vocalist.

The album was released in the UK as a standalone single CD and as a limited edition CD/DVD combo. The limited edition 2-disc set comprises the 9-track CD album plus a 10-track bonus PAL formatted DVD featuring a video for each song plus long and short versions of "One Left Standing". The album was eventually released in North America by Rhino Records in September 2005 as a single CD only.

Rewired was also released by Virgin Records in September 2004 in a single case bundle along with Hits. The two albums were repackaged in a 2-in-1 slimline CD case where the CDs themselves are the same as the discs available in the single packaging. The cover is a close up of part of the Rewired cover overlaid with both album covers side by side.

Mike Rutherford later called the album "dodgy", elaborating that "I look back at it and you know... we made the record, I didn't think too much about it, but later – I probably should not have done it. The chemistry with Carrack and Young was great, then we lost Paul Young and I kind of battled on – with some nice songs. I shouldn't have done it. And the sound on that – I don't like it."^[1]

Reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
Allmusic	[2]

In his review for Allmusic, Bruce Eder called Rewired "a fine record, a mix of pop/rock synth-orchestrated balladry that favorably recalls both the mid-'70s work of Genesis and the more pop-focused work of Phil Collins". He particularly praised Rutherford and McIntosh's playing and Carrack's vocals.^[2]

Track listing

1. "One Left Standing" (Carrack, Rutherford, Sharon Woolf) – 5:11
2. "If I Were You" (Carrack, B.A. Robertson, Rutherford) – 4:21
3. "Perfect Child" (Carrack, Robertson, Rutherford) – 5:11
4. "Rewired" (Instrumental) (Will Bates, Carrack, Rutherford) – 5:31
5. "I Don't Want It All" (Carrack, Rutherford) – 5:06
6. "How Can I?" (Carrack, Rutherford) – 4:44
7. "Falling" (Carrack, Rutherford, Woolf) – 5:17
8. "Somewhere Along The Line" (Carrack, Robertson, Rutherford) – 3:52
9. "Underscore" (Instrumental) (Bates, Carrack, Rutherford) – 5:09

Personnel

• Mike Rutherford – guitar, bass guitar, programming
• Paul Carrack – vocals, keyboards, guitar, drums

Additional personnel

• Will Bates – programming and additional production on all tracks
• Rupert Cobb – programming on "Perfect Child", additional programming on "One Left Standing"
• Robbie McIntosh – guitar
• Ian Thomas – drums
• Neil Wilkinson – drums
• Peter Van Hooke – drums
• Ashley Clarke – additional programming
• Backing vocals – Sharon Woolf, Lisa Law, Paul McGee, Owen Paul McGee, Ricky Hanley, Rupert Cobb, Andrea Hunnisett
• Mixes engineered by Graham Bonnett
• Vocals engineered by Nick Davis
• Mastered by Tim Young and Ian Cooper at Metropolis Mastering
• Recorded at Fisher Lane Farm Studios, drums at Abbey Road Studios
• Produced by Mike Rutherford and Peter Van Hooke

DVD credits

• Movies researched and co-ordinated by Peter Van Hooke
• Contributions by the National Film and Television School
• Animation by Andy Frain and Touchwood Animation
• Some movies provided by Isabelle Wuilmart, Will Bates, and Frank Laurin

References