Our Endless Numbered Days

For the book by Claire Fuller, see Our Endless Numbered Days (novel).

Our Endless Numbered Days is the second full-length album from Iron & Wine. Released on March 23, 2004 on Sub Pop, it was the first non-solo effort by Sam Beam under his Iron & Wine moniker. Limited edition copies of the vinyl LP came with a bonus 7" vinyl single. Limited edition copies of the CD came with a bonus CD single. On January 29, 2019, Sub Pop announced that a deluxe edition of the album commemorating its 15th anniversary would be released on March 22, 2019, featuring previously unreleased demos of eight of the tracks from the original album.^[1]

Our Endless Numbered Days
Studio album by Iron & Wine
Released	March 23, 2004
Recorded	Summer 2003, Engine Studios, Chicago, Illinois
Genre	Indie Folk
Length	44:47
Label	Sub Pop
Producer	Brian Deck
Iron & Wine chronology
The Sea & The Rhythm (EP) (2003) Our Endless Numbered Days (2004) Woman King EP (2005)

The album's title comes from the lyrics of the song "Passing Afternoon": "There are things that drift away like our endless, numbered days."

Background

The album marked a change in Iron & Wine's sound, as it was his first produced in a professional studio. Beam's only previous album, The Creek Drank the Cradle, was recorded entirely on a four-track tape recorder at his home.^[2]

Reception

Professional ratings

Aggregate scores
Source	Rating
Metacritic	84/100^[3]
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	^[4]
Alternative Press	4/5^[5]
Blender	^[6]
Entertainment Weekly	C+^[7]
Mojo	^[8]
NME	8/10^[9]
Pitchfork	8.6/10^[10]
Q	^[11]
Spin	A^[12]
Uncut	^[13]

Our Endless Numbered Days has received widespread critical acclaim since its release. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 84, based on 21 reviews, which indicates "universal acclaim".^[3]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Sam Beam

No.	Title	Length
1.	"On Your Wings"	3:53
2.	"Naked as We Came"	2:33
3.	"Cinder and Smoke"	5:44
4.	"Sunset Soon Forgotten"	3:20
5.	"Teeth in the Grass"	2:22
6.	"Love and Some Verses"	3:40
7.	"Radio War"	1:56
8.	"Each Coming Night"	3:28
9.	"Free Until They Cut Me Down"	4:35
10.	"Fever Dream"	4:16
11.	"Sodom, South Georgia"	4:59
12.	"Passing Afternoon"	4:01
Total length:		44:47

Japanese Version Bonus Tracks

No.	Title	Length
13.	"Belated Promise Ring"	3:45
14.	"Homeward, These Shoes"	1:34
Total length:		50:06

7" Vinyl Single

No.	Title	Length
1.	"No Moon"	4:15
2.	"Sinning Hands"	5:31
Total length:		9:46

Bonus CD

No.	Title	Length
1.	"Cinder and Smoke" (demo)	4:21
2.	"Swans and the Swimming"	3:24
3.	"Free Until They Cut Me Down" (demo)	3:25
4.	"Hickory"	4:35
Total length:		15:45

2019 Deluxe Edition Bonus Tracks

No.	Title	Length
1.	"Naked as We Came" (demo)
2.	"Cinder and Smoke" (demo)
3.	"Teeth in the Grass" (demo)
4.	"Love and Some Verses" (demo)
5.	"Free Until They Cut Me Down" (demo)
6.	"Fever Dream" (demo)
7.	"Sodom, South Georgia" (demo)
8.	"Passing Afternoon" (demo)

Personnel

Musicians

• Sam Beam - vocals, guitars, slide guitars, banjo, mandolin
• Brian Deck - drums, percussion, keyboards
• EJ Holowicki - bass
• Patrick McKinney - electric guitar
• Jeff McGriff - percussion
• Jonathan Bradley - percussion
• Sarah Beam - harmony vocals

Certifications

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
United States (RIAA)^[14]	Gold	500,000^‡
^‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Appearances in popular media

"Passing Afternoon" was played at the end of "Wilson's Heart," the finale of the fourth season of House. "Naked as We Came," "Trapeze Swinger" (a song not in this album) and "Sunset Soon Forgotten" were featured in the 2004 dramedy In Good Company. "Each Coming Night" is featured in Miley Cyrus's 2010 film The Last Song.^[15] "Naked As We Came" is featured at the end of the 4th episode of the 2nd season of The L Word, when Jenny has her hair cut by Shane. "Naked As We Came" is also featured in the 9th episode of the first season of Grey's Anatomy, when Cristina and Izzie plan a secret autopsy of a patient's sudden death. Claire Fuller's 2015 debut novel, Our Endless Numbered Days, is named after the album.^[16]

References

1. Gallacher, Alex (January 29, 2019). "Iron & Wine: 15th Anniversary edition of "Our Endless Numbered Days" |FRUK". Folk Radio UK - Folk Music Magazine. Retrieved January 30, 2019.
2. Album review on Pitchfork
3. "Reviews for Our Endless Numbered Days by Iron & Wine". Metacritic. Retrieved February 12, 2015.
4. Sendra, Tim. "Our Endless Numbered Days – Iron & Wine". AllMusic. Retrieved February 12, 2015.
5. "Iron & Wine: Our Endless Numbered Days". Alternative Press (190): 94. May 2004.
6. Wolk, Douglas (April 2004). . Blender (25): 130. Archived from the original on August 17, 2004. Retrieved July 6, 2016.
7. Browne, David (May 21, 2004). . Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on May 11, 2017. Retrieved April 9, 2016.
8. "Iron & Wine: Our Endless Numbered Days". Mojo (126): 93. May 2004.
9. Fitzpatrick, Rob (April 27, 2004). . NME. Archived from the original on April 15, 2016. Retrieved April 9, 2016.
10. Petrusich, Amanda (March 28, 2004). "Iron & Wine: Our Endless Numbered Days". Pitchfork. Retrieved April 9, 2016.
11. "Iron & Wine: Our Endless Numbered Days". Q (214): 104. May 2004.
12. Gross, Joe (April 2004). "Iron & Wine: Our Endless Numbered Days". Spin. 20 (4): 89–91. Retrieved April 9, 2016.
13. . Uncut (84): 106. May 2004. Archived from the original on July 24, 2019. Retrieved July 24, 2019.
14. "American album certifications – Iron & Wine – Our Endless Numbered Days". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved May 31, 2023.
15. The Last Song (2010) - Soundtracks - IMDb, retrieved June 6, 2019
16. Fuller, Claire (May 19, 2015). "Music And Writing". The Huffington Post. Retrieved August 24, 2015.