Devotion (album)

*This page is about the album. For the title track see* *Devotion (song).*

## ㅤ⠀ Alternate covers

* Deluxe
* Polish
* US
* The Gold Edition

***Devotion*** is the debut studio album by Jessie Ware. It was released in the United Kingdom on August 20, 2012, through PMR Records and Island, and later on April 16, 2013 through Cherrytree and Interscope in the United States.

## Background

Following her record deal with PMR Records, Ware released her first physical single as a solo artist, in November 2011, further confirming that she was "hard at work" on her first studio album, which was due to release sometime in 2012.

Ware officially announced the album on June 19, 2012, alongside its title, tracklist and release date.

During an interview with *Pitchfork*, she said about the theme of the album:

On July 20, 2012, a month previous to the release, a video teaser of the album was published on Ware's YouTube channel. It featured snippets of unheard non-singles songs upcoming on the record, including the title track.

Following her signing deal with Cherrytree Records for further promotion activities in the United States, Ware eventually released the US-exclusive eponymous extended play "If You're Never Gonna Move" on January 15, 2013. Prior to the extended play's release, the singer had shows at New York venue The Box on December 10, and later at Los Angeles' Bootleg Bar on December 13, 2012, respectively. She later embarked on a six-date concert beginning on January 14, 2013 at the Sinclair in Cambridge, Massachusetts, booked by Marty Diamond at Paradigm, to further promote the extended play. The singer eventually announced the US release date for *Devotion* on March 18, 2013, along with the follow-up tour dates that "culminate" with her gigs at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival, and later at the 2013's Wireless Festival.

## Composition

Except for the fifth track "No to Love", which was written and produced solely by Okumu, Ware co-wrote most of the album tracks' lyrics. Production came primarily from Dave Okumu of alternative rock band the Invisible, whom produced twelve out of fourteen original recordings used for the album. Fellow British house record producer Julio Bashmore and singer Kid Harpoon also co-produced along with Okumu, with Bashmore handling solely the production of "110%" and Wilma Archer co-producing the eleventh track "Something Inside". Fellow UK musician and collaborator Sampha and Hassan Hamandi also contributed to two songs from the album's deluxe edition.

## Release history

* Island
* LP
* digital download
* Interscope

## Tracklist

* International
* US
* The Gold Edition

### Singles

The lead single from the record "Running" was released on February 24, 2012, along with an accompanying music video. It eventually received a physical release on April 4, along with a remix version by Disclosure. "110%" was then released as the second single on April 13, 2012, while the third single "Wildest Moments" was released on June 29, 2012 and its accompanying remix by Star Slinger on July 5. Both singles eventually became the highest-charting singles from *Devotion* in their native country, peaking at number forty-one and forty-six on the UK Singles Chart, respectively. During the album release's week, "Taking in Water" was released as a free promotional single on the same physical release date of the album, with "Night Light" serving as the fourth single on September 25, 2012. "Sweet Talk" was then released as the fifth single on January 21, 2013, but eventually became uncharted.

"Running""110%""Wildest Moments""Taking in Water""Night Light""Sweet Talk"
#### The Gold Edition

Three singles have been included on the Gold Edition of the album, starting with "Valentine" released on February 14, 2011, and followed by "Strangest Feeling" wich marked Ware's debut solo single and was released on October 3, 2011. "Imagine It Was Us" was released as a single on April 12, 2013 to minor commercial success, barely missing out the top 100 of the UK Singles Chart while becoming her only entry on the French Singles Chart, peaking at number one-hundred and forty-eight.

"Valentine""Strangest Feeling""Imagine It Was Us"
## Critical reception

*Devotion* received widespread acclaim from music critics upon its initial release. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalised rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 85, based on 28 reviews, which indicates "universal acclaim". Mike Diver of BBC Music wrote, "*Devotion* is the sort of sophisticated, soulful pop record that comes along all too rarely, a collection that never hides the heart on its sleeve. Down-tempo it may be, but no listener will come away downcast." He further commented on Ware's vocal, citing that the singer "never stretches for an out-of-reach note; she never gives her songs over to hyperbole or bombast," eventually cited her as "here, now, and superb" next big thing.

Tim Jonze of *The Guardian* wrote, "Sophisticated, smooth and sensual, in the wrong hands *Devotion* could easily have been a footnote in the New Boring movement, that vibrant strain of youth culture that has already given us Emeli Sandé, Adele and Bruce Springsteen concerts that wrestle with the spacetime continuum itself. Yet Jessie Ware's debut album is saved by one fact: for all her album's poise and restraint, dance music clearly runs through this 27-year-old south Londoner's veins. Throughout *Devotion* you're never told to sit up and pay attention. Instead it quietly works its magic, a genuinely individual statement by an artist who didn't expect to become a pop star, but might struggle to stop it happening anyway – after all, the groove is in her heart".

## Commercial performance

*Devotion* attained commercial success for Ware upon its initial release. By debuting at number five and sold 9,319 copies in its first week, the album was her first top-five entry on the UK Albums Chart, and at the time, her highest charting release. It was later surpassed by the No. 3 peak of her fourth studio album *What's Your Pleasure?* (2020). The album eventually became her first release to receive a Gold certificate for having sold over 100,000 copies, and to date, her best-selling release in the UK.

## References

1. ↑ https://pitchfork.com/reviews/tracks/12594-jessie-ware-strangest-feeling/
2. ↑ https://pitchfork.com/news/46902-jessie-ware-details-new-album/
3. ↑ https://pitchfork.com/features/rising/8850-jessie-ware/
4. ↑ https://music.apple.com/ca/album/wildest-moments-live-at-the-cherrytree-house/1443130097?i=1443130965
5. ↑ https://open.spotify.com/intl-es/track/1yFZM1EcHB950tqcCEr5gZ?si=bee9b0a3371f4a91
6. ↑ https://open.spotify.com/intl-es/album/7nxjemFXgk7MH9ZeTulRNb?si=FYdsvDW3QKq0qM4g-xLOwA