OK Computer

1997 studio album by Radiohead

OK Computer is an album by the band Radiohead. It was released in 1997.[1] It reached No.1 in the UK Albums Chart. Four singles were released from it. "Paranoid Android" reached No.3 in the UK. "No Surprises" reached No.4. It got good reviews. Pitchfork gave it 10 out of 10.[2]

OK Computer
Studio album by
ReleasedJune 16, 1997 (1997-06-16)
Recorded
  • September 4, 1995 ("Lucky")
  • July 1996 – March 1997
Studio
  • Canned Applause (Didcot, England)
  • St Catherine's Court (Bath, England)
Genre
Length53:21
Label
ProducerNigel Godrich
Radiohead chronology
The Bends
(1995)
OK Computer
(1997)
Airbag / How Am I Driving?
(1998)
Radiohead studio album chronology
The Bends
(1995)
OK Computer
(1997)
Kid A
(2000)
Singles from OK Computer
  1. "Paranoid Android"
    Released: May 26, 1997
  2. "Karma Police"
    Released: August 25, 1997
  3. "Lucky"
    Released: December 1997
  4. "No Surprises"
    Released: January 12, 1998
  5. "Airbag"
    Released: March 24, 1998

Reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic [3]
Chicago Tribune [4]
Entertainment WeeklyB+[5]
The Guardian [6]
NME10/10[7]
Pitchfork Media10/10[8]
Q [9]
Rolling Stone [10]
Spin8/10[11]
The Village VoiceB−[12]

Many music writers and fans loved OK Computer. Both English and American writers said the album would be important for a long time,[13][14] and that the album was new and interesting. It was compared to Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, another famous and important album. In the English press, the album got good reviews in NME,[7] Melody Maker,[15] The Guardian,[6] and Q.[9] In North America, Rolling Stone,[10] Spin,[11] and Pitchfork Media[8] published good reviews. In The New Yorker, Alex Ross compared Radiohead's new and artistic music to the more classic rock sounds of Oasis. Ross wrote that "this band has pulled off one of the great art-pop balancing acts in the history of rock."[16]

However, not all critics enjoyed the record. Robert Christgau from The Village Voice called it "arid" art rock.[12]

The album appeared in many 1997 critics' lists and listener polls for best album of the year. Many magazines listed it as the best or second best of the year. It was a nominee for the 1997 Mercury Prize, a prestigious award recognising the best British or Irish album of the year.[17]

Radiohead found it hard to deal with how much people liked OK Computer. Some members of the band thought the press loved it too much. The band did not like that their songs were called "art" when they thought their songs were pop music. However, singer Thom Yorke was happy that some people understood his musical goals: "People got all the things, all the textures and the sounds and the atmospheres we were trying to create."[18]

Track listing

All songs written and composed by Radiohead (Colin Greenwood, Ed O'Brien, Jonny Greenwood, Philip Selway, and Thom Yorke). 

No.TitleLength
1. "Airbag"   4:44
2. "Paranoid Android"   6:23
3. "Subterranean Homesick Alien"   4:27
4. "Exit Music (For a Film)"   4:24
5. "Let Down"   4:59
6. "Karma Police"   4:21
7. "Fitter Happier"   1:57
8. "Electioneering"   3:50
9. "Climbing Up the Walls"   4:45
10. "No Surprises"   3:48
11. "Lucky"   4:19
12. "The Tourist"   5:24

Personnel

Charts and certifications

Singles

YearSongPeak positions
UK
[35]
US Mod
[36]
NZ
[37]
AUS
[38]
SWE
[39]
NL
[40]
1997"Paranoid Android"3295361
"Let Down"29
"Karma Police"8143250
1998"No Surprises"4234758
"–" denotes releases that did not chart.

Certifications

RegionCertificationCertified units/sales
Argentina (CAPIF)[41]Platinum60,000^
Australia (ARIA)[42]Platinum70,000^
Belgium (BEA)[43]2× Platinum100,000*
Canada (Music Canada)[44]4× Platinum400,000
France (SNEP)[46]2× Gold321,500[45]
Italy (FIMI)[47]Platinum50,000*
Japan (RIAJ)[48]Gold100,000^
Netherlands (NVPI)[49]Platinum100,000^
New Zealand (RMNZ)[50]Platinum15,000^
Norway (IFPI Norway)[51]Gold25,000*
Spain (PROMUSICAE)[52]Gold50,000^
Sweden (GLF)[53]Gold40,000^
Switzerland (IFPI Switzerland)[54]Gold25,000^
United Kingdom (BPI)[56]5× Platinum1,579,415[55]
United States (RIAA)[57]2× Platinum2,000,000^
Summaries
Europe (IFPI)[58]3× Platinum3,000,000*

*sales figures based on certification alone
^shipments figures based on certification alone

Notes

Footnotes

Citations