# The Beautiful Lie (album)

Professional ratings :
| Aggregate scores ||
| Source | Rating |
| Metacritic | 67/100 |
| Review scores ||
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic | |
| Contactmusic.com | 4/5 |
| Dotmusic | |
| Drowned in Sound | 6/10 |
| The Guardian | |
| musicOMH | |
| Now | NN |
| Pitchfork Media | (1.9/10) |
| Popmatters | (8/10) |
| The Skinny | |
The Beautiful Lie is the fourth album by British singer-songwriter Ed Harcourt, released in 2006. Ed's wife, Gita Harcourt, plays violin throughout the album and sings vocals on "Braille," and The Magic Numbers guest as backing vocalists on "Revolution in the Heart." Ed was dropped by Astralwerks Records/EMI in the US, the label which released his previous three albums. The album finally got a US release via Dovecote Records on 3 June 2008, nearly 2 years after its original release.

## Track listing

* "Whirlwind in D Minor" – 3:57
* "Visit from the Dead Dog" – 3:01
* "You Only Call Me When You're Drunk" – 4:27
* "The Last Cigarette" – 3:30
* "Shadowboxing" – 3:20
* "Late Night Partner" – 4:36
* "Revolution in the Heart" – 4:20
* "Until Tomorrow Then" – 3:56
* "Scatterbraine" – 2:46
* "Rain on the Pretty Ones" – 4:18
* "The Pristine Claw" – 3:19
* "I Am the Drug" – 3:31
* "Braille" – 5:31
* "Good Friends Are Hard to Find" – 3:52

### UK iTunes-only bonus track

* "Little Miss Secretive" – 3:24

## Singles

* "Visit from the Dead Dog" (29 May 2006)
** CD b/w: "The Distance Between"
** 7" vinyl No. 1 b/w: "Minotaur"
** Amber-coloured 7" vinyl No. 2 b/w: "Blondes, Brunettes and Redheads"
* "Revolution in the Heart" (23 October 2006)
** Digital download only. B-side: "Surreal Killer"
* "Until Tomorrow Then" (19 August 2008)
** Music video single only.

## Personnel

* "Whirlwind in D Minor"
** Ed Harcourt – Piano, Spanish guitar, electric guitar, bass, music box, vocals
** B.J. Cole – Pedal steel
** Dimitri Tikovoi – Drums
* "Visit from the Dead Dog"
** Ed Harcourt – Piano, bass, synth strings, Hammond organ, vocals
** Graham Coxon – Guitar
** Jari Haapalainen – Drums
** Hadrian Garrard – Trumpet
** Leo Abrahams – Guitar
* "You Only Call Me When You're Drunk"
** Ed Harcourt – Piano, bass, bells, vocals
** Jari Haapalainen – Drums
** Hadrian Garrard – Trumpet
** Leo Abrahams – Guitar
** Fiona Brice – String arrangement
** Violin – Gillon Cameron, Sally Jackson, Ellie Stanford, Gita Harcourt, Jess Murphy, Rosie Langley
** Viola – Amy Stanford, Louise Hogan
** Cello – Laura Anstee, Jonny Byers
* "The Last Cigarette"
** Ed Harcourt – Guitar, vocals
** Gita Harcourt – Violin
* "Shadowboxing"
** Ed Harcourt – Guitar, bass, organ, vocals
** Jari Haapalainen – Drums, shaker
* "Late Night Partner"
** Ed Harcourt – Piano, vocals
** Johan Berthling – String arrangement
** Violin – Lars Warnstad, George Kentros, Anna Rodell, Lisa Rydell
** Cello – Anna Wallgren, Leo Svensson
* "Revolution in the Heart"
** Ed Harcourt – Piano, bass, casiotone, SK1, vocals
** Jeremy Stacey – Drums
** Jari Haapalainen – Drums
** Michele Stodart – Backing vocals
** Romeo Stodart – Backing vocals
** Sean Gannon – Backing vocals
** Angela Gannon – Backing vocals
** Leo Abrahams – Guitars
* "Until Tomorrow Then"
** Ed Harcourt – Optigan, piano, vocals
** Jari Haapalainen – Drums
** Gita Harcourt – Backing vocals
** Hadrian Garrard – Trumpet
* "Scatterbraine"
** Ed Harcourt – Piano, bass, organ, vocals
** Jari Haapalainen – Drums
** Johan Berthling – String arrangement
** Violin – Lars Warnstad, George Kentros, Anna Rodell, Lisa Rydell
** Cello – Anna Wallgren, Leo Svensson
* "Rain on the Pretty Ones"
** Ed Harcourt – Piano, vocals
** Leo Abrahams – Guitar
** Ellekari Larsson – Backing Vocals
** Ane Brun – Backing Vocals
** Jenny Wilson – Backing Vocals
** Nina Kinert – Backing Vocals
** Anja Bigrell – Backing Vocals
** Amy Langley – String arrangement
** Gita Harcourt – String arrangement
** Violin – Gillon Cameron, Sally Jackson, Ellie Stanford, Gita Harcourt, Jess Murphy, Rosie Langley
** Viola – Amy Stanford, Louise Hogan
** Cello – Laura Anstee, Jonny Byers
* "The Pristine Claw"
** Ed Harcourt – Guitar, vocals
** Leo Abrahams – Guitar
** Johan Berthling – Woodwind arrangement
** Thomas Bodin – Oboe
* "I Am the Drug"
** Ed Harcourt – Piano, bass, vocals
** Jari Haapalainen – Drums
** Leo Abrahams – Guitars
** Fiona Brice – String arrangement
** Violin – Gillon Cameron, Sally Jackson, Ellie Stanford, Gita Harcourt, Jess Murphy, Rosie Langley
** Viola – Amy Stanford, Louise Hogan
** Cello – Laura Anstee, Jonny Byers
* "Braille"
** Ed Harcourt – Guitar, piano, vocals
** Gita Harcourt – Vocals
** Leo Abrahams – Baritone guitar, guitar treatments
** Jari Haapalainen – Percussion
* "Good Friends Are Hard to Find"
** Ed Harcourt – Piano, vocals
** Hadrian Garrard – Trumpet
** Leo Abrahams – String arrangement
** Violin – Gillon Cameron, Sally Jackson, Ellie Stanford, Gita Harcourt, Jess Murphy, Rosie Langley
** Viola – Amy Stanford, Louise Hogan
** Cello – Laura Anstee, Jonny Byers