Seal IV

Seal IV
Seal IV
Studio album by Seal
Released	9 September 2003
Studio	Sarm West Studios, Sarm Hook End, Angel Recording Studios and Phoenix Studios (London, UK);
Genre	Soul; pop;
Length	50:57
Label	Warner Bros.
Producer	Trevor Horn; Mark Batson; Seal (exec.); Jill Sinclair (exec.);
Seal chronology
Singles from Seal IV
	"Get It Together"; Released: 16 December 2002; "Love's Divine"; Released: 8 May 2003; "Waiting for You"; Released: 5 November 2003;

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
Source	Rating
Metacritic	56/100^[1]
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	^[2]
Blender	^[1]
Entertainment Weekly	C^[3]
PopMatters	^[1]^[4]
Q	^[1]
Rolling Stone	^[5]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide	^[6]
Sputnikmusic	3.5/5^[7]
Uncut	^[1]

Seal IV is the fourth studio album by Seal. It follows the aborted sessions for Togetherland, which was scrapped because Seal thought it was not up to the standard of his previous work.

In the United Kingdom, the album debuted at number four.^[8] In the United States, it debuted at number three on the US Billboard 200, making it his highest-charting album to date.^[9]

Track listing

Standard version
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Producer(s)	Length
1.	"Get It Together"	Seal, Mark Batson	Trevor Horn, Mark Batson^[a]	4:25
2.	"Love's Divine"	Seal, Mark Batson	Horn, Mark Batson^[a]	4:35
3.	"Waiting for You"	Seal, Mark Batson	Horn, Mark Batson^[a]	3:44
4.	"My Vision"	Seal, Dave Lee, Rick Salmon, Thomas Newman	Horn	4:48
5.	"Don't Make Me Wait"	Seal, Mark Batson	Horn	4:32
6.	"Let Me Roll"	Seal, Mark Batson	Horn, Mark Batson^[a]	3:53
7.	"Touch"	Seal, Mark Batson	Horn, Mark Batson^[a]	5:22
8.	"Where There's Gold"	Seal, Mark Batson	Horn, Mark Batson^[a]	5:12
9.	"Loneliest Star"	Seal	Horn	4:06
10.	"Heavenly... (Good Feeling)"	Seal, Alan Griffiths	Horn	5:02
11.	"Tinsel Town"	Seal	Horn	5:52
12.	"Get It Together" (Reprise)	Seal, Mark Batson	Horn, Mark Batson^[a]	1:06

Australian version bonus track
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Producer(s)	Length
13.	"Love's Divine" (Deepsky club mix)	Seal, Mark Batson	Horn, Mark Batson^[a], Jesse Scott^[b], Jason Blum^[b]	8:48

French version bonus track
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
13.	"Les Mots" (Duet with Mylène Farmer)	Mylène Farmer, Laurent Boutonnat	4:47

Notes

^{^[a]} signifies a co-producer
^{^[a]} signifies additional production and remix

Personnel

Seal – vocals, keyboards (2, 6, 9), bass (4, 9-11), guitars (9, 11)
Jamie Muhoberac – keyboards (1-12), bass (3, 10), acoustic piano (9, 10)
Mark Batson – keyboards (1-3, 7-9, 12), acoustic piano (2, 5), bass (2, 3, 6-9), drum programming (3, 6, 7), organ (6)
Pete Murray – keyboards (1, 5, 12), acoustic piano (2, 5)
Trevor Horn – acoustic piano (4), guitars (4-6), keyboards (6), bass (5), extra bass (6)
Carlos Rios – keyboards (11)
Chris Bruce – guitars (1-4, 6-8, 10, 12), bass (1, 12)
Tim Cansfield – guitars (1, 2, 5, 12)
Gus Isidore – guitars (1-3, 7, 10, 12)
Tim Pierce – guitars (3, 4)
Alan Griffiths – guitars (10), drum programming (10)
Steven Shane McDonald – guitars (11)
Heitor Pereira – guitars (11)
Earl Harvin – drums (1, 3, 4, 7-10, 12)
Ian Thomas – drums (2, 5)
Charlie Russell – drum programming (6)
Luís Jardim – percussion (1-12)
Nick Ingman – string arrangements (1, 2, 6, 7, 9-12), choir arrangements (1, 2, 12), orchestral arrangements (5)
Steve Sidwell – horn and choir arrangements (3), string arrangements (3, 8)
Gavyn Wright – string leader (1-3, 5-12)
Tessa Niles – additional backing vocals (1, 12)

Production

Jeff Aldrich – A&R
Seal – executive producer, liner notes
Jill Sinclair – executive producer
Robert Orton – engineer (1-12), mixing (1-12)
Tim Weidner – engineer (1-12), mixing (1-12)
Steve Price – string recording (1-12), choir recording (1-3), horn recording (3), orchestra recording (5)
Tim Lambert – assistant engineer (1-12), additional engineer (1, 3, 4, 10)
Phil Tyreman – assistant engineer (1-12)
Dan Vickers – additional engineer (4)
Deepsky – remixing (13)
Jeffrey Kent Ayeroff – creative director
Jeri Heiden – art direction
Glen Nakasako – design
Robert Maxwell – cover photography
Sacha Waldman – inside photography
Irving Azoff, John Baruck, Tom Consolo and Susan Markheim – management

Charts

Chart (2003–2004)	Peak position
Australian Albums (ARIA)^[10]	65
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)^[11]	7
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)^[12]	37
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)^[13]	7
Danish Albums (Hitlisten)^[14]	17
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)^[15]	7
Finnish Albums (Suomen virallinen lista)^[16]	23
French Albums (SNEP)^[17]	5
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)^[18]	2
Italian Albums (FIMI)^[19]	24
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)^[20]	21
Norwegian Albums (VG-lista)^[21]	23
Portuguese Albums (AFP)^[22]	4
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)^[23]	2
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)^[24]	1
UK Albums (OCC)^[8]	4
US Billboard 200^[9]	3

Certifications


Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
Austria (IFPI Austria)^[25]	Platinum	30,000^*
Canada (Music Canada)^[26]	Gold	50,000^{^}
France (SNEP)^[27]	Platinum	300,000^*
Germany (BVMI)^[28]	2× Platinum	400,000^{^}
Portugal (AFP)^[29]	Gold	20,000^{^}
Sweden (GLF)^[30]	Gold	30,000^{^}
Switzerland (IFPI Switzerland)^[31]	Platinum	40,000^{^}
United Kingdom (BPI)^[32]	Gold	100,000^{^}
United States (RIAA)^[33]	Gold	500,000^{^}
^* Sales figures based on certification alone. ^{^} Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e Critic reviews from Metacritic
^ Allmusic review
^ "Seal (Music - Seal 2003)". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on 10 October 2008.
^ PopMatters review
^ "Rolling Stone review". Archived from the original on 6 January 2007. Retrieved 13 August 2007.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
^ Cross, Charles R. (2004). "Seal". In Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian (eds.). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide (4th ed.). Simon & Schuster. pp. 723. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8.
^ "Seal: Seal IV". Sputnikmusic. Retrieved 3 May 2018.
^ ^a ^b "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 31 May 2020.
^ ^a ^b "Seal Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved 31 May 2020.
^ Ryan, Gavin (2011). Australia's Music Charts 1988–2010 (PDF ed.). Mt. Martha, VIC, Australia: Moonlight Publishing. p. 246.
^ "Austriancharts.at – Seal – Seal IV" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved 31 May 2020.
^ "Ultratop.be – Seal – Seal IV" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 31 May 2020.
^ "Ultratop.be – Seal – Seal IV" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved 31 May 2020.
^ "Danishcharts.dk – Seal – Seal IV". Hung Medien. Retrieved 31 May 2020.
^ "Dutchcharts.nl – Seal – Seal IV" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 31 May 2020.
^ "Seal: Seal IV" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland. Retrieved 31 May 2020.
^ "Lescharts.com – Seal – Seal IV". Hung Medien. Retrieved 31 May 2020.
^ "Offiziellecharts.de – Seal – Seal IV" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 31 May 2020.
^ "Italiancharts.com – Seal – Seal IV". Hung Medien. Retrieved 31 May 2020.
^ "Charts.nz – Seal – Seal IV". Hung Medien. Retrieved 31 May 2020.
^ "Norwegiancharts.com – Seal – Seal IV". Hung Medien. Retrieved 31 May 2020.
^ "Portuguesecharts.com – Seal – Seal IV". Hung Medien. Retrieved 31 May 2020.
^ "Swedishcharts.com – Seal – Seal IV". Hung Medien. Retrieved 31 May 2020.
^ "Swisscharts.com – Seal – Seal IV". Hung Medien. Retrieved 31 May 2020.
^ "Austrian album certifications – Seal – Seal IV" (in German). IFPI Austria.
^ "Canadian album certifications – Seal – Seal IV". Music Canada.
^ "French album certifications – Seal – Seal IV" (in French). Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique.
^ "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (Seal; 'Seal IV')" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie.
^ "Top 30 Artistas – Semana 20 de 2004" (in Portuguese). Associação Fonográfica Portuguesa. Archived from the original on 3 September 2011. Retrieved 5 October 2021.
^ "Guld- och Platinacertifikat − År 2004" (PDF) (in Swedish). IFPI Sweden. Archived from the original (PDF) on 17 May 2011.
^ "The Official Swiss Charts and Music Community: Awards ('Seal IV')". IFPI Switzerland. Hung Medien.
^ "British album certifications – Seal – Seal IV". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 11 June 2023.
^ "American album certifications – Seal – Seal IV". Recording Industry Association of America.

External links

Seal IV at Metacritic

[meta-1] Critic reviews from Metacritic

[2] Allmusic review

[3] "Seal (Music - Seal 2003)". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on 10 October 2008.

[4] PopMatters review

[5] "Rolling Stone review". Archived from the original on 6 January 2007. Retrieved 13 August 2007.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)

[Cross-6] Cross, Charles R. (2004). "Seal". In Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian (eds.). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide (4th ed.). Simon & Schuster. pp. 723. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8.

[7] "Seal: Seal IV". Sputnikmusic. Retrieved 3 May 2018.

[UK-8] "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 31 May 2020.

[US-9] "Seal Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved 31 May 2020.

[10] Ryan, Gavin (2011). Australia's Music Charts 1988–2010 (PDF ed.). Mt. Martha, VIC, Australia: Moonlight Publishing. p. 246.

[ac_Austria_Seal-11] "Austriancharts.at – Seal – Seal IV" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved 31 May 2020.

[ac_Flanders_Seal-12] "Ultratop.be – Seal – Seal IV" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 31 May 2020.

[ac_Wallonia_Seal-13] "Ultratop.be – Seal – Seal IV" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved 31 May 2020.

[ac_Denmark_Seal-14] "Danishcharts.dk – Seal – Seal IV". Hung Medien. Retrieved 31 May 2020.

[ac_Netherlands_Seal-15] "Dutchcharts.nl – Seal – Seal IV" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 31 May 2020.

[ac_Finland_Seal-16] "Seal: Seal IV" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland. Retrieved 31 May 2020.

[ac_France_Seal-17] "Lescharts.com – Seal – Seal IV". Hung Medien. Retrieved 31 May 2020.

[ac_Germany4_Seal-18] "Offiziellecharts.de – Seal – Seal IV" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 31 May 2020.

[ac_Italy_Seal-19] "Italiancharts.com – Seal – Seal IV". Hung Medien. Retrieved 31 May 2020.

[ac_New_Zealand_Seal-20] "Charts.nz – Seal – Seal IV". Hung Medien. Retrieved 31 May 2020.

[ac_Norway_Seal-21] "Norwegiancharts.com – Seal – Seal IV". Hung Medien. Retrieved 31 May 2020.

[ac_Portugal_Seal-22] "Portuguesecharts.com – Seal – Seal IV". Hung Medien. Retrieved 31 May 2020.

[ac_Sweden_Seal-23] "Swedishcharts.com – Seal – Seal IV". Hung Medien. Retrieved 31 May 2020.

[ac_Switzerland_Seal-24] "Swisscharts.com – Seal – Seal IV". Hung Medien. Retrieved 31 May 2020.

[AustriaSealSeal_IValbumCertRef-25] "Austrian album certifications – Seal – Seal IV" (in German). IFPI Austria.

[CanadaSealSeal_IValbumCertRef-26] "Canadian album certifications – Seal – Seal IV". Music Canada.

[FranceSealSeal_IValbumCertRef-27] "French album certifications – Seal – Seal IV" (in French). Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique.

[GermanySealSeal_IValbumCertRef-28] "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (Seal; 'Seal IV')" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie.

[29] "Top 30 Artistas – Semana 20 de 2004" (in Portuguese). Associação Fonográfica Portuguesa. Archived from the original on 3 September 2011. Retrieved 5 October 2021.

[SwedenSealSeal_IValbumCertRef-30] "Guld- och Platinacertifikat − År 2004" (PDF) (in Swedish). IFPI Sweden. Archived from the original (PDF) on 17 May 2011.

[SwitzerlandSealSeal_IValbumCertRef-31] "The Official Swiss Charts and Music Community: Awards ('Seal IV')". IFPI Switzerland. Hung Medien.

[United_KingdomSealSeal_IValbumCertRef-32] "British album certifications – Seal – Seal IV". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 11 June 2023.

[United_StatesSealSeal_IValbumCertRef-33] "American album certifications – Seal – Seal IV". Recording Industry Association of America.

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