May Death Never Stop You
May Death Never Stop You (or May Death Never Stop You: The Greatest Hits 2001–2013) is the first greatest hits compilation album by My Chemical Romance, spanning the band's entire career up to that point. It is the only album to feature keyboardist James Dewees as an official member of the band, playing on the album's lead single, "Fake Your Death."
| May Death Never Stop You | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Greatest hits album by | ||||
| Released | March 25, 2014 | |||
| Recorded | 2002–2012 | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 73:20 | |||
| Label | Reprise | |||
| Producer |
| |||
| My Chemical Romance chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Singles from May Death Never Stop You : The Greatest Hits 2001–2013 | ||||
| ||||
| Aggregate scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Metacritic | 79/100[2] |
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic | [3] |
| Drowned in Sound | 7/10[5] |
| PopMatters | [4] |
Background edit
On March 22, 2013, My Chemical Romance announced their break-up on their official website,[6][7] issuing this statement:
Being in this band for the past 12 years has been a true blessing. We've gotten to go places we never knew we would. We've been able to see and experience things we never imagined possible. We've shared the stage with people we admire, people we look up to, and best of all, our friends. And now, like all great things, it has come time for it to end. Thanks for all of your support, and for being part of the adventure.
Gerard Way posted an extended tweet on his Twitter account two days after the website announcement, where he confirmed the disbanding of the group but denied that altercations between band members was the reason for the split.[8]
On March 25, 2014, the band released May Death Never Stop You: The Greatest Hits 2001–2013, a greatest hits album containing material spanning their entire career, as well as some previously unreleased material.[9]
On March 25, we will be releasing a greatest hits album entitled May Death Never Stop You. The title is fitting, because as sad as it was to say goodbye to the band, we look at this collection as a celebration of our best songs, and hope the memory of them continues to bring joy to you all as they have for us. The album also includes some previously unreleased material, including the infamous "Attic Demos," and one of the last songs we worked on in the studio together.[10]
On November 29, 2013, Way posted a picture of the completed album cover on his Twitter account. On the same platform and date, Way subsequently responded to a fan's inquiry about the cover's depiction and mentioned that the statue depicted on the album cover is a composite of all the faces of My Chemical Romance band members.[11] In addition, the statue features many references to the band's history, including bullet holes reminiscing I Brought You My Bullets, You Brought Me Your Love and the uniform jacket referring to The Black Parade.
Release edit
May Death Never Stop You was released on March 25, 2014. Pre-orders became available through My Chemical Romance's official website on January 21, 2014.[12] The unreleased track "Fake Your Death" was premiered on BBC Radio 1 on February 17, 2014, and was then available digitally via iTunes straight after.
Track listing edit
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Originally from | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Fake Your Death" | James Dewees, Frank Iero, Ray Toro, Gerard Way, Mikey Way | Previously unreleased | 3:21 |
| 2. | "Honey, This Mirror Isn't Big Enough for the Two of Us" | Iero, Matt Pelissier, Toro, G. Way, M. Way | I Brought You My Bullets, You Brought Me Your Love | 3:53 |
| 3. | "Vampires Will Never Hurt You" | Iero, Pelissier, Toro, G. Way, M. Way | I Brought You My Bullets, You Brought Me Your Love | 5:26 |
| 4. | "Helena" | Iero, Pelissier, Toro, G. Way, M. Way | Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge | 3:26 |
| 5. | "You Know What They Do to Guys Like Us in Prison" | Iero, Pelissier, Toro, G. Way, M. Way | Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge | 2:55 |
| 6. | "I'm Not Okay (I Promise)" | Iero, Pelissier, Toro, G. Way, M. Way | Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge | 3:08 |
| 7. | "The Ghost of You" (extended outro edit) | Iero, Pelissier, Toro, G. Way, M. Way | Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge | 3:57 |
| 8. | "Welcome to the Black Parade" | Bob Bryar, Iero, Toro, G. Way, M. Way | The Black Parade | 5:14 |
| 9. | "Cancer" | Bryar, Iero, Toro, G. Way, M. Way | The Black Parade | 2:25 |
| 10. | "Mama" | Bryar, Iero, Toro, G. Way, M. Way | The Black Parade | 4:39 |
| 11. | "Teenagers" | Bryar, Iero, Toro, G. Way, M. Way | The Black Parade | 2:42 |
| 12. | "Famous Last Words" | Bryar, Iero, Toro, G. Way, M. Way | The Black Parade | 5:00 |
| 13. | "Na Na Na (Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Na)" (single version) | Bryar, Iero, Toro, G. Way, M. Way | Danger Days: The True Lives of the Fabulous Killjoys | 3:26 |
| 14. | "Sing" | Iero, Toro, G. Way, M. Way | Danger Days: The True Lives of the Fabulous Killjoys | 4:31 |
| 15. | "Planetary (Go!)" | Iero, Toro, G. Way, M. Way | Danger Days: The True Lives of the Fabulous Killjoys | 4:07 |
| 16. | "The Kids from Yesterday" | Iero, Toro, G. Way, M. Way | Danger Days: The True Lives of the Fabulous Killjoys | 5:26 |
| 17. | "Skylines and Turnstiles" (demo version) | Pelissier, Toro, G. Way, M. Way | Previously unreleased | 3:30 |
| 18. | "Knives/Sorrow" (demo version of "Our Lady of Sorrows") | Pelissier, Toro, G. Way, M. Way | Previously unreleased | 2:14 |
| 19. | "Cubicles" (demo version) | Pelissier, Toro, G. Way, M. Way | Previously unreleased | 4:00 |
| Total length: | 73:20 | |||
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "I'm Not Okay (I Promise)" (version 1) | 1:48 |
| 2. | "I'm Not Okay (I Promise)" (version 2) | 7:43 |
| 3. | "Helena" | 23:06 |
| 4. | "The Ghost of You" | 4:26 |
| 5. | "Welcome to the Black Parade" | 24:20 |
| 6. | "Famous Last Words" | 11:30 |
| 7. | "I Don't Love You" | 14:54 |
| 8. | "Teenagers" | 6:07 |
| 9. | "Blood" (previously unreleased) | 1:30 |
| 10. | "Na Na Na (Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Na)" / "Art Is the Weapon" (previously unreleased intro) | 9:34 |
| 11. | "Sing" | 4:37 |
| 12. | "Planetary (Go!)" | 16:55 |
Personnel edit
Band members
- Bob Bryar – drums, percussion (on tracks 8–12)
- James Dewees – keyboards (on track 1)
- Frank Iero – guitars, backing vocals (on tracks 1–2, 4–16)
- Matt Pelissier – drums, percussion (on tracks 2–7, 17–19)
- Ray Toro – guitars, backing vocals; bass guitar (on track 9)
- Gerard Way – lead vocals
- Mikey Way – bass guitar
Additional musicians
- Jarrod Alexander – drums, percussion (on track 1)
- John Miceli – drums, percussion (on tracks 13–16)
- Rob Cavallo – acoustic piano (on tracks 8–12)
- Howard Benson – 1958 Hammond B3 (on tracks 4–7)
- Jamie Muhoberac – keyboards (on tracks 8–16); B3 organ, synthesizers, Wurlitzer (on tracks 8–12)
- Bert McCracken – additional vocals (on track 5)
- Renat – additional vocals (on track 7)
- Liza Minnelli – additional vocals (on track 10)
Production
- Ted Jensen at Sterling Sound, NYC – mastering
Charts edit
| Chart (2014) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australian Albums (ARIA)[13] | 11 |
| Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[14] | 147 |
| Czech Albums (Czech Albums Chart)[15] | 25 |
| German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[16] | 66 |
| Hungarian Albums (MAHASZ)[17] | 2 |
| Irish Albums (IRMA)[18] | 13 |
| Italian Albums (FIMI)[19] | 67 |
| Japanese Albums (Oricon)[20] | 37 |
| New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[21] | 22 |
| Polish Albums (ZPAV)[22] | 37 |
| Scottish Albums (OCC)[23] | 17 |
| Spanish Albums (PROMUSICAE)[24] | 61 |
| UK Albums (OCC)[25] | 15 |
| US Billboard 200[26] | 9 |
Certifications edit
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| United Kingdom (BPI)[27] | Platinum | 300,000‡ |
| ‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone. | ||
References edit
- ^ Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "May Death Never Stop You – My Chemical Romance". AllMusic.
- ^ "Reviews for May Death Never Stop You by My Chemical Romance". Metacritic. Retrieved 25 March 2014.
- ^ Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "May Death Never Stop You – My Chemical Romance". AllMusic. Retrieved 25 March 2014.
- ^ Sawdey, Evan. "Radiohead: A Moon Shaped Pool". PopMatters. Retrieved 16 April 2014.
- ^ Carla Washbourne. . Drowned in Sound. Archived from the original on 28 March 2014. Retrieved 28 March 2014.
- ^ . MY CHEMICAL ROMANCE Official Website. Archived from the original on 2013-03-25.
- ^ "Alter The Press!: My Chemical Romance Announce Their Break Up". alterthepress.com.
- ^ Kerrang! MCR Split: Gerard Way Confirms Break Up 2013-03-28 at the Wayback Machine. Kerrang.com. Retrieved on August 25, 2013.
- ^ . Kerrang.com. Archived from the original on December 19, 2013. Retrieved February 17, 2014.
- ^ "May Death Never Stop You". My Chemical Romance. Retrieved February 17, 2014.
- ^ Twitter https://twitter.com/gerardway/status/406606438270631937. Retrieved 2022-09-02.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ^ "My Chemical Romance reveal 'May Death Never Stop You' tracklisting, comment on their final song". Alternative Press. 21 January 2014.
- ^ "Australiancharts.com – My Chemical Romance – May Death Never Stop You - The Greatest Hits 2001-2013". Hung Medien. Retrieved March 31, 2014.
- ^ "Ultratop.be – My Chemical Romance – May Death Never Stop You - The Greatest Hits 2001-2013" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved February 21, 2014.
- ^ "TOP50 Prodejní" (in Czech). IFPI Czech Republic. Retrieved July 23, 2016.
- ^ "Longplay-Chartverfolgung at Musicline" (in German). Musicline.de. Phononet GmbH. Retrieved March 31, 2013.
- ^ "Album Top 40 slágerlista – 2014. 13. hét" (in Hungarian). MAHASZ. Retrieved April 4, 2014.
- ^ . Chart-Track. IRMA. Retrieved March 31, 2014.
- ^ "Italiancharts.com – My Chemical Romance – May Death Never Stop You - The Greatest Hits 2001-2013". Hung Medien. Retrieved October 4, 2016.
- ^ "Chart Track". Oricon. Retrieved April 4, 2014.
- ^ "Charts.nz – My Chemical Romance – May Death Never Stop You - The Greatest Hits 2001-2013". Hung Medien. Retrieved March 31, 2014.
- ^ "Oficjalna lista sprzedaży :: OLiS - Official Retail Sales Chart". OLiS. Polish Society of the Phonographic Industry. Retrieved April 3, 2014.
- ^ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved March 31, 2014.
- ^ "Spanishcharts.com – My Chemical Romance – May Death Never Stop You - The Greatest Hits 2001-2013". Hung Medien. Retrieved April 2, 2014.
- ^ "My Chemical Romance | Artist | Official Charts". UK Albums Chart. Retrieved March 31, 2014.
- ^ "My Chemical Romance Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved April 4, 2014.
- ^ "British album certifications – My Chemical Romance – May Death Never Stop You". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved August 16, 2023.
External links edit
- May Death Never Stop You at YouTube (streamed copy where licensed)