The Letting Go

The Letting Go is a 2006 studio album by Bonnie "Prince" Billy. It was released on Drag City.

The Letting Go
Studio album by
Bonnie 'Prince' Billy
ReleasedSeptember 19, 2006 (2006-09-19)
StudioReykjavík, Iceland
GenreAlternative country, folk rock
Length58:09
LabelDrag City
ProducerValgeir Sigurðsson
Bonnie 'Prince' Billy chronology
The Brave and the Bold
(2006)		 The Letting Go
(2006)		 Ask Forgiveness
(2007)

Production

The album was recorded in Reykjavík, Iceland and produced by Valgeir Sigurðsson, who is known for his work with the Icelandic artist Björk. The arrangement was done by Nico Muhly. Dawn McCarthy of Faun Fables also sings on the album.

The album's title comes from the last lines of the Emily Dickinson poem that starts "After a Great Pain, A Formal Feeling Comes."[1]

This is the hour of lead

Remembered if outlived,
As freezing persons recollect the snow,

First chill, then stupor, then the letting go.

Critical reception
Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic84/100[2]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[3]
The A.V. ClubA[4]
Entertainment WeeklyB+[5]
The Guardian[6]
The Independent[7]
Mojo[8]
Pitchfork8.2/10[9]
Q[10]
Spin[11]
Uncut[12]

At Metacritic, which assigns a weighted average score out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, The Letting Go received an average score of 84% based on 24 reviews, indicating "universal acclaim".[2]

Pitchfork placed The Letting Go at number 195 on their list of top 200 albums of the 2000s.[13]

Track listing
No.TitleLength
1."Love Comes to Me"4:31
2."Strange Form of Life"3:46
3."Wai"3:37
4."Cursed Sleep"5:35
5."No Bad News"4:45
6."Cold & Wet"2:21
7."Big Friday"2:43
8."Lay and Love"3:50
9."The Seedling"4:36
10."Then the Letting Go"5:19
11."God's Small Song"4:05
12."I Called You Back"7:53
13."Ebb Tide" (bonus track on some versions)5:14

Personnel

Credits adapted from liner notes.

Charts
Chart Peak
position
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[14] 29
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[15] 90
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[16] 66
French Albums (SNEP)[17] 100
Norwegian Albums (VG-lista)[18] 29
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[19] 56
UK Albums (OCC)[20] 70
US Billboard 200[21] 194
US Heatseekers Albums (Billboard)[22] 8
US Independent Albums (Billboard)[23] 17
US Tastemaker Albums (Billboard)[24] 10

References
  1. Hepburn, Peter (September 22, 2006). "Bonnie Prince Billy: The Letting Go". Cokemachineglow. Archived from the original on February 7, 2007. Retrieved May 10, 2007.
  2. "Reviews for The Letting Go by Bonnie "Prince" Billy". Metacritic. Retrieved July 1, 2016.
  3. Bush, John. "The Letting Go – Bonnie "Prince" Billy". AllMusic. Retrieved September 4, 2020.
  4. Murray, Noel (September 19, 2006). "Bonnie "Prince" Billy: The Letting Go". The A.V. Club. Retrieved July 1, 2016.
  5. Vozick-Levinson, Simon (September 15, 2006). "The Letting Go". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on November 7, 2016. Retrieved July 1, 2016.
  6. Denselow, Robin (September 15, 2006). "Bonnie 'Prince' Billy, The Letting Go". The Guardian. Retrieved July 1, 2016.
  7. Gill, Andy (September 15, 2006). "Bonnie "Prince" Billy: The Letting Go (Domino)". The Independent.
  8. "Bonnie "Prince" Billy: The Letting Go". Mojo (155): 102. October 2006.
  9. LeMay, Matt (September 18, 2006). "Bonnie "Prince" Billy: The Letting Go". Pitchfork. Retrieved October 1, 2009.
  10. "Bonnie "Prince" Billy: The Letting Go". Q (243): 125. October 2006.
  11. Modell, Josh (October 2006). "Bonnie "Prince" Billy: The Letting Go". Spin. 22 (10): 94. Retrieved July 1, 2016.
  12. "Bonnie "Prince" Billy: The Letting Go". Uncut (113): 102. October 2006.
  13. Pitchfork staff (September 28, 2009). "The Top 200 Albums of the 2000s: 200–151". Pitchfork. Retrieved October 1, 2009.
  14. "Ultratop.be – Bonnie %22Prince%22 Billy – The Letting Go" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved November 1, 2018.
  15. "Ultratop.be – Bonnie %22Prince%22 Billy – The Letting Go" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved November 1, 2018.
  16. "Dutchcharts.nl – Bonnie %22Prince%22 Billy – The Letting Go" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved November 1, 2018.
  17. "Lescharts.com – Bonnie %22Prince%22 Billy – The Letting Go". Hung Medien. Retrieved November 1, 2018.
  18. "Norwegiancharts.com – Bonnie %22Prince%22 Billy – The Letting Go". Hung Medien. Retrieved November 1, 2018.
  19. "Swedishcharts.com – Bonnie %22Prince%22 Billy – The Letting Go". Hung Medien. Retrieved November 1, 2018.
  20. "Bonnie Prince Billy". Official Charts Company. Retrieved November 16, 2017.
  21. "Bonnie "Prince" Billy - Chart history - Billboard 200". Billboard. Retrieved April 14, 2017.
  22. "Bonnie "Prince" Billy - Chart history - Heatseekers Albums". Billboard. Retrieved April 14, 2017.
  23. "Bonnie "Prince" Billy - Chart history - Independent Albums". Billboard. Retrieved April 14, 2017.
  24. "Bonnie "Prince" Billy - Chart history - Tastemaker Albums". Billboard. Retrieved April 14, 2017.
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