Background
Joseph Arthur began the recording of Our Shadows Will Remain shortly after tour dates supporting Tracy Chapman and worldwide solo tour dates (promoting his previous album Redemption's Son) in late 2003. The album was recorded across New Orleans, New York City, London and Prague. Joseph produced the album with Mike Napolitano, Ken Rich, and David Kosten. Joseph, who has battled with alcoholism and drug abuse throughout his entire life, said in an October 2004 interview with Paste Magazine: "I got totally wasted for a while in New Orleans, then I went to L.A. and was going further that way, and I called up my friends in New Orleans and said, 'I'm coming back and I have to straighten out and you have to help me.'" Joseph remained sober and returned to Mike Napolitano and his French Quarter apartment/studio to finish the album. The strings were arranged by Andrew Sherman, and were played by the City of Prague Philharmonic.
| “ | The record is largely about finding out where I'm at now... There was a lot of addiction and a lot of pain, and a lot of the songs are about that. When your life isn't working out, you dig deeper into what's going to satisfy you. If you become disillusioned, you start to get to the heart of the matter. | ” |
During the recording of the album, Joseph also wrote and recorded a new song for the film Shrek 2, titled "You're So True." The song plays during the end credits of the film and also appears on the movie's soundtrack.
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