The Boy Who Knew Too Much (album) - Composition

music.wikisort.org - Composition

The Boy Who Knew Too Much[3] is the second studio album by singer Mika. It was released on 21 September 2009,[4] under Casablanca/Universal Republic in the United States and Island in the United Kingdom.

The Boy Who Knew Too Much

Studio album by

Mika

Released

18 September 2009

Recorded

June 2008–2009[1]

Studio

Capitol Studios
(Los Angeles, California)
Olympic Studios
(London, England)
Rocket Carousel Studio
(Los Angeles, California)

Genre

Pop

Length

41:06

Label

Casablanca
Universal Republic[2]

Producer

Mika chronology

Songs for Sorrow
(2009)

The Boy Who Knew Too Much
(2009)

The Origin of Love
(2012)

Singles from The Boy Who Knew Too Much

"We Are Golden"
Released: 7 September 2009
"Rain"
Released: 23 November 2009
"Blame It on the Girls"
Released: 15 February 2010

Background

Mika worked with producer Greg Wells, who also produced his debut album Life in Cartoon Motion.[1] The album was written in Olympic Studios, London, which began in June 2008. In September 2008 he moved to Rocket Carousel Studios, Los Angeles, where the album was recorded.[1] Mika has described the album's themes as dealing with his teenage years, and "in a sense is kind of part two" of his first album.[5] In contrast to his first album, which "contained innocent fairytales", Mika pitches the new album's songs as "gothic Tim Burton-esque fantasies."[6]

The album was originally titled We Are Golden after the first single from the album, "We Are Golden". On 20 July 2009 in an on-air interview with DJ Jo Whiley on BBC Radio 1, Mika revealed he was considering renaming the album, because he wanted "something a little more ridiculous."[7] On 6 August 2009 it was confirmed that the album's title would change to The Boy Who Knew Too Much.[8] As with Mika's debut album Life in Cartoon Motion, the album artwork has been designed by Mika's sister (who works under the nom de plume DaWack), the Australian illustrator Sophie Blackall, Airside collaborator Richard Hogg and Mika himself. The artwork has been inspired by children's picture books from the 1940s to 1970s.[9]

Critical response

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
Source	Rating
Metacritic	70/100[10]
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[11]
The A.V. Club	A−[12]
Entertainment Weekly	A[13]
The Guardian	[14]
Los Angeles Times	[15]
The Observer	[16]
PopMatters	[17]
Rolling Stone	[18]
Slant	[19]
Spin	[20]
The Times	[21]

The album received generally positive reviews from music critics, based on an aggregate score of 70/100 from Metacritic.[22]

Singles

"We Are Golden" was the first single from the album. It received its UK radio debut on BBC Radio 2 on 20 July 2009. It peaked at number 4 on the UK Singles Chart.
"Rain" was the second UK and German single, released on 23 November 2009 in both digital and physical format.[23][24][25] It peaked at number 72 on the UK Singles Chart, making it Mika's first UK single to miss the top 40. In Germany it peaked at number 56.[26] It was released as the third UK single, on 15 February 2010.[27]
"Blame It on the Girls" was the second American and Japanese single from the album.[28][29] It peaked at number one in Japan but failed to make any impact in the United States. It was released as the third UK single, on 15 February 2010.[27] It peaked at number 72.
The song "Good Gone Girl" charted within the Romanian Top 100 on airplay only, without being released as a single.[30]

Track listing

Standard edition
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"We Are Golden"	Mika	3:58
2.	"Blame It on the Girls"	Mika	3:34
3.	"Rain"	Mika, Jodi Marr	3:43
4.	"Dr. John"	Mika	3:44
5.	"I See You"	Mika, Walter Afanasieff	4:17
6.	"Blue Eyes"	Mika	2:50
7.	"Good Gone Girl"	Mika, Jodi Marr	3:02
8.	"Touches You"	Mika	3:19
9.	"By the Time"	Mika, Imogen Heap	3:21
10.	"One Foot Boy"	Mika, Rob Davis	2:58
11.	"Toy Boy"	Mika, Jodi Marr	2:56
12.	"Pick Up Off the Floor"	Mika	3:24

Deluxe edition bonus tracks
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
13.	"Lady Jane"	Mika	3:20
14.	"Lover Boy"	Mika	3:13

Japanese edition bonus track
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
13.	"We Are Golden" (Acoustic)	Mika	3:08

Summer edition bonus tracks[31]
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
13.	"Kick Ass (We Are Young)"	Mika, Jodi Marr, RedOne	3:12
14.	"Lover Boy"	Mika	3:13
15.	"Lady Jane"	Mika	3:20
16.	"Lonely Alcoholic"	Mika	3:08
17.	"Rain" (Acoustic)	Mika	3:06
18.	"Poker Face" (BBC Radio 1 Live Lounge Session)	Stefani Germanotta, Nadir Khayat	3:09
19.	"Satellite"	David J. Matthews	4:14
20.	"Ring Ring"	Mika	2:48

UK deluxe edition bonus disc: *Mika: Live at Sadler's Wells*
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"Grace Kelly"	Mika, Jodi Marr, John Merchant, Dan Warner	4:24
2.	"Lady Jane"	Mika	3:04
3.	"Stuck in the Middle"	Mika	6:06
4.	"Lonely Alcoholic"	Mika	3:17
5.	"Blue Eyes"	Mika	3:34
6.	"Toy Boy"	Mika, Jodi Marr	3:55
7.	"Billy Brown"	Mika	3:32
8.	"Good Gone Girl"	Mika, Jodi Marr	3:10
9.	"Over My Shoulder"	Mika	4:11
10.	"Big Girl (You Are Beautiful)"	Mika	4:12
11.	"Love Today"	Mika	3:45
12.	"Blame It on the Girls"	Mika	6:18
13.	"Happy Ending"	Mika	5:22
14.	"Lollipop"	Mika	7:08
15.	"My Interpretation"	Mika, Jodi Marr, Richie Supa	3:15
16.	"Rain"	Mika	5:07
17.	"Relax, Take It Easy"	Mika	5:38

American deluxe edition bonus DVD: *The Boy Who Didn't Know Enough*
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"We Are Golden" (The Making of the Video)	Mika	3:00
2.	"We Are Golden" (Video)	Mika	4:02
3.	"Making the Parc Des Princes Show" (Video)	Mika	15:00
4.	"Grace Kelly" (Live from Parc Des Princes)	Mika, Jodi Marr, John Merchant, Dan Warner	4:35
5.	"Lollipop" (Live from Parc Des Princes)	Mika	6:22
6.	"Love Today" (Live from Parc Des Princes)	Mika	7:08

Asian deluxe edition bonus disc: *B-Sides & Rarities*[32][33]
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"Kick Ass (We Are Young)"	Mika, Jodi Marr, RedOne	3:14
2.	"We Are Golden" (Calvin Harris Remix)	Mika	6:58
3.	"Rain" (Benny Benassi Remix)	Mika	6:10
4.	"Blame It on the Girls" (Not on the Starsmith Remix)	Mika	6:53
5.	"Poker Face" (BBC Radio 1 Live Lounge Session)	Stefani Germanotta, Nadir Khayat	3:05
6.	"Kick Ass (We Are Young)" (Cutmore Remix)	Mika, Jodi Marr, RedOne	3:53
7.	"Relax, Take It Easy" (Ashley Beedle's Castro Vocal Discomix)	Mika	6:18
8.	"Grace Kelly" (Tom Neville Full Vocal Remix)	Mika, Jodi Marr, Dan Warner	9:03
9.	"Love Today" (Switch Remix)	Mika	5:31
10.	"Happy Ending" (Kleerup Mix)	Mika	6:31
11.	"Rain" (P Zombies Remix)	Mika	6:34

Summer deluxe edition bonus disc: *The Best of Life in Cartoon Motion*
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"Any Other World"	Mika	4:19
2.	"Grace Kelly"	Mika, Jodi Marr, Dan Warner	3:07
3.	"Lollipop"	Mika	3:03
4.	"My Interpretation"	Mika, Jodi Marr	3:35
5.	"Relax, Take It Easy"	Mika	3:44
6.	"Love Today"	Mika	3:55
7.	"Happy Ending" (The LA Edit)	Mika	3:54
8.	"Over My Shoulder"	Mika	4:45

Personnel

Mika – vocals, piano, keyboards, background vocals, background violin

Additional musicians

Walter Afanasieff – percussion, keyboards
The Andrae Crouch Choir – background vocals
Lorna Bridge – background vocals
Paul Buckmaster – strings
Matt Chamberlain – drums, percussion
Andrew Dermanis – additional vocals
Gary Grant – horns
Jerry Hey – horns
Imogen Heap – drums, background vocals, keyboard
Dan Higgins – horns
Alex Millar – background vocals
Audrey Moukataff – background vocals
Chris Nicolaides – background vocals

Cherisse Osei – drums
Owen Pallett – violin
Tim Pierce – guitar
Fortune Penniman – background vocals
Paloma Penniman – background vocals, additional vocals
Zuleika Penniman – background vocals
Bill Reichenbach Jr. – horns
Dan Rothchild – bass guitar, background vocals
Fabien Waltmann – keyboards
Martin Waugh – guitar, background vocals
Greg Wells – keyboards, drums, bass, percussion, guitar
Ida Falk Winland – background vocals
Lyle Workman – guitar

Charts and certifications

Weekly charts

Chart (2009)	Peak position
Argentinean Albums (CAPIF)[34]	6
Australian Albums (ARIA)[35]	10
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[36]	9
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[37]	3
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[38]	3
Canadian Albums (Billboard)[39]	14
Danish Albums (Hitlisten)[40]	24
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[41]	5
French Albums (SNEP)[42]	1
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[43]	6
Greek Albums (IFPI Greece)[44]	45
Irish Albums (IRMA)[45]	14
Italian Albums (FIMI)[46]	10
Mexican Albums (AMPROFON)[47]	29
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[48]	30
Norwegian Albums (VG-lista)[49]	29
Portuguese Albums (AFP)[50]	17
Spanish Albums (PROMUSICAE)[51]	7
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[52]	14
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[44]	2
UK Albums (OCC)[53]	4
US Billboard 200[54]	19

Year-end charts

Chart (2009)	Position
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[55]	40
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[56]	41
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[57]	77
European Top 100 Albums (Billboard)[58]	49
French Albums (SNEP)[59]	12
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[60]	60
UK Albums (OCC)[61]	99

Chart (2010)	Position
French Albums (SNEP)[62]	27

Certifications


Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
Canada (Music Canada)[63]	Gold	40,000^{^}
Belgium (BEA)[64]	Platinum	30,000^*
France (SNEP)[65]	3× Platinum	300,000^*
Italy (FIMI)[66]	Platinum	70,000^*
Switzerland (IFPI Switzerland)[67]	Gold	15,000^{^}
United Kingdom (BPI)[68]	Platinum	300,000
^* Sales figures based on certification alone. ^{^} Shipments figures based on certification alone. Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Release history

Country	Date
Hong Kong[69]	5 September 2009
Netherlands	16 September 2009
France	18 September 2009
Australia
Germany
Italy
Ireland
United Kingdom	21 September 2009
Argentina[70]
Mexico
South Korea[71]
United States	22 September 2009
Brazil
Canada
South Korea (Korean Special Edition)[72]	27 May 2010
Hong Kong (Asia Tour Edition)[73]	2 June 2010

References

Allen, Matt (1 June 2009). "Exclusive: Mika's Second Coming Archived 18 May 2009 at the Wayback Machine", Q Magazine. Retrieved 2009-07-12.
Business Wire (14 June 2009). "Global Pop Phenomenon, MIKA, Releases Sophomore Album, WE ARE GOLDEN, 22 September", Business Wire. Retrieved on 2009-07-14.
"Mika | Official Store | Merchandise, T-shirts, Tickets, Albums, MP3 Downloads, Live Album, Posters, Bags, Mikasounds.com". Mikastore.sandbag.uk.com. Archived from the original on 16 September 2009. Retrieved 27 September 2009.
Medioni, Gilles (11 June 2009). "Exclu Mika: tout sur son nouveau CD... et sa playlist", L'Express. Retrieved on 2009-07-08.
Mazumdar, Tulip (9 June 2009). "Mika pens 'teenage' second album", BBC Radio 1. Retrieved on 2009-07-08.
Youngs, Ian (21 September 2009). "Entertainment | Mika conquers his growing pains". BBC News. Retrieved 27 September 2009.
"BBC — Newsbeat — Music — Mika promises fans 'gig at home'". BBC News. 20 July 2009. Retrieved 27 September 2009.
"MikaSounds / Latest News / The Boy Who Knew Too Much". Mikasounds.com. Archived from the original on 10 August 2009. Retrieved 27 September 2009.
"MikaSounds / Blog / YO YO! Enough marketing psychobable dish dash! Now I write". Mikasounds.com. 15 July 2009. Archived from the original on 14 August 2009. Retrieved 27 September 2009.
"Critic Reviews for The Boy Who Knew Too Much". Metacritic. Retrieved 10 April 2015.
The Boy Who Knew Too Much at AllMusic
"The Boy Who Knew Too Much · Mika · Music Review Mika: The Boy Who Knew Too Much · Music Review". The A.V. Club.
"The Boy Who Knew Too Much - EW.com". Entertainment Weekly's EW.com.
Caroline Sullivan (17 September 2009). "Mika: The Boy Who Knew Too Much". The Guardian.
"Pop & Hiss". Los Angeles Times. 21 September 2009.
Peter Robinson (5 September 2009). "Mika: The Boy Who Knew Too Much". The Guardian.
"Mika". PopMatters.
"Album Reviews, Ratings, and Best New Albums". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on 25 September 2009.
Sam C. Mac. "Music". Slant Magazine. Archived from the original on 23 September 2009.
"Mika, 'The Boy Who Knew Too Much' (CasablancaUniversal Republic)". Spin.
"Login". Entertainment.timesonline.co.uk.
"The Boy Who Knew Too Much reviews at". Metacritic.com. 22 September 2009. Retrieved 11 September 2012.
"iTunes releases Mika's second single "Rain"". apple.com. Retrieved 28 March 2022.
"Rain by MIKA: Amazon.co.uk: Music". Amazon UK.
"MikaSounds / Latest News / Mika Set To 'Rain' Supreme". Mikasounds.com. Retrieved 23 May 2010.
"Hitlist Germany". Archived from the original on 14 February 2010. Retrieved 28 March 2022.
"MikaSounds / Latest News / Next Single - 'Blame It On The Girls' - Out February 15th". Mikasounds.com. Archived from the original on 26 July 2012. Retrieved 23 May 2010.
Shepherd, Fiona (21 September 2009). "CD review: Mika — The Boy Who Knew Too Much — Scotsman.com News". News.scotsman.com. Edinburgh. Retrieved 27 September 2009.
"Radio Times - TV listings guide". RadioTimes.
"Topul celor mai difuzate piese în România în 2010". România Liberă (in Romanian). Archived from the original on 6 January 2011. Retrieved 21 January 2011.
"Mika - Boy Who Knew Too Much (Special ed) - Amazon.com Music". Amazon.com.
"Photographic image of Korean album cover" (JPG). Image.kyobobook.co.kr. Retrieved 28 March 2022.
"YESASIA : Mika - The Boy Who Knew Too Much (2CD) (Korea Special Edition) (Korea Version) 鐳射唱片 - MIKA - 西方／世界音樂 - 郵費全免". Yesasia.com. Retrieved 28 March 2022.
"Representando a la Industria Argentina de la Música". CAPIF. 31 January 2010. Archived from the original on 15 April 2009. Retrieved 23 May 2010.
"Australiancharts.com – Mika – The Boy Who Knew Too Much". Hung Medien. Retrieved 3 June 2019.
"Austriancharts.at – Mika – The Boy Who Knew Too Much" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved 3 June 2019.
"Ultratop.be – Mika – The Boy Who Knew Too Much" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 3 June 2019.
"Ultratop.be – Mika – The Boy Who Knew Too Much" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved 3 June 2019.
"Mika Chart History (Canadian Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved 3 June 2019.
"Danishcharts.dk – Mika – The Boy Who Knew Too Much". Hung Medien. Retrieved 3 June 2019.
"Dutchcharts.nl – Mika – The Boy Who Knew Too Much" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 3 June 2019.
"Lescharts.com – Mika – The Boy Who Knew Too Much". Hung Medien. Retrieved 3 June 2019.
"Offiziellecharts.de – Mika – The Boy Who Knew Too Much" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 3 June 2019.
"Swisscharts.com – Mika – The Boy Who Knew Too Much". Hung Medien. Retrieved 3 June 2019.
"Irish-charts.com – Discography Mika". Hung Medien. Retrieved 3 June 2019.
"Italiancharts.com – Mika – The Boy Who Knew Too Much". Hung Medien. Retrieved 3 June 2019.
"Mika - The Boy Who Knew Too Much". mexicancharts.com. Archived from the original on 8 October 2010. Retrieved 23 May 2010.
"Charts.nz – Mika – The Boy Who Knew Too Much". Hung Medien. Retrieved 3 June 2019.
"Norwegiancharts.com – Mika – The Boy Who Knew Too Much". Hung Medien. Retrieved 3 June 2019.
"Portuguesecharts.com – Mika – The Boy Who Knew Too Much". Hung Medien. Retrieved 3 June 2019.
"Spanishcharts.com – Mika – The Boy Who Knew Too Much". Hung Medien. Retrieved 3 June 2019.
"Swedishcharts.com – Mika – The Boy Who Knew Too Much". Hung Medien. Retrieved 3 June 2019.
"Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 3 June 2019.
"Mika Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved 3 June 2019.
"Jaaroverzichten 2009". Ultratop. Retrieved 30 September 2020.
"Rapports Annuels 2009". Ultratop. Retrieved 30 September 2020.
"Jaaroverzichten – Album 2009". dutchcharts.nl. Retrieved 30 September 2020.
"European Top 100 Albums". Billboard. 31 December 2010.
"Le Top de l'année : Top Albums Fusionnés - Année 2009". SNEP. 10 June 2013. Retrieved 21 February 2015.
"Swiss Year-End Charts 2009". swisscharts.com. Retrieved 6 February 2009.
"End of Year Album Chart Top 100 – 2009". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 30 September 2020.
"Top de l'année Top Albums 2010" (in French). SNEP. Retrieved 30 September 2020.
"Canadian album certifications – Mika – The Boy Who Knew Too Much". Music Canada. Retrieved 29 June 2012.
"Ultratop − Goud en Platina – albums 2009". Ultratop. Hung Medien. Retrieved 29 June 2012.
"French album certifications – Mika – The Boy Who Knew Too Much" (in French). InfoDisc. Retrieved 15 October 2021. Select MIKA and click OK.
"Italian album certifications – Mika – The Boy Who Knew Too Much" (in Italian). Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana. Retrieved 16 November 2015. Select "Tutti gli anni" in the "Anno" drop-down menu. Select "The Boy Who Knew Too Much" in the "Filtra" field. Select "Album e Compilation" under "Sezione".
"The Official Swiss Charts and Music Community: Awards (Mika; 'The Boy Who Knew Too Much')". IFPI Switzerland. Hung Medien. Retrieved 29 June 2012.
"British album certifications – Mika – The Boy Who Knew Too Much". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 27 May 2022.
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"HYANG MUSIC 향뮤직". Hyangmusic.com. Retrieved 28 March 2022.
"HYANG MUSIC 향뮤직". Hyangmusic.com. Retrieved 28 March 2022.
"YESASIA : The Boy Who Knew Too Much (Asia Tour Edition) (2CD+Tofu) 鐳射唱片 - MIKA, 環球唱片(香港) - 西方／世界音樂 - 郵費全免". Yesasia.com. Retrieved 28 March 2022.

External links

MikaSounds.com – Mika's official website
Mika on YouTube

v t e Mika
Discography
Studio albums	Life in Cartoon Motion The Boy Who Knew Too Much The Origin of Love No Place in Heaven My Name Is Michael Holbrook
Compilation albums	Songbook Vol. 1
Extended plays	Dodgy Holiday Songs for Sorrow
Singles	"Relax, Take It Easy" "Grace Kelly" "Love Today" "Big Girl (You Are Beautiful)" "Happy Ending" "Lollipop" "We Are Golden" "Rain" "Blame It on the Girls" "Kick Ass (We Are Young)" "Elle me dit" "Celebrate" "Underwater" "Origin of Love" "Popular Song" "Stardust" "Boum Boum Boum" "Wonderful Christmastime"
Concert tours	1955 Tour
DVDs	Live in Cartoon Motion Live Parc des Princes Paris

На других языках

- [en] The Boy Who Knew Too Much (album)

[es] The Boy Who Knew Too Much (álbum)

The Boy Who Knew Too Much (en español: "El chico que sabía demasiado") es el segundo disco de Mika, que fue lanzado el 21 de septiembre de 2009 en dos formatos: uno contenía el disco en edición sencilla y otro era una edición especial compuesta por el nuevo álbum más un DVD, con un directo reciente del intérprete.

[it] The Boy Who Knew Too Much

The Boy Who Knew Too Much è il secondo album del cantante Mika, pubblicato il 21 settembre 2009[8] dalle etichette Universal e Island[9].

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