Century Child

Century Child is the fourth studio album by Finnish symphonic metal band Nightwish. It was released in 2002 through Spinefarm Records in Finland, Drakkar Entertainment in the rest of Europe, Century Media Records in the US, and Toy's Factory in Japan. It is the first album which features former bassist and male vocalist Marko Hietala. It is also the first Nightwish album to feature an orchestra.

Century Child
Studio album by
Nightwish
Released25 May 2002 (2002-05-25)
RecordedJanuary–April 2002
Studio
GenreSymphonic power metal
Length50:09
LabelSpinefarm
Producer
Nightwish studio album chronology
Wishmaster
(2000)		 Century Child
(2002)		 Once
(2004)
Singles from Century Child
  1. "Ever Dream"
    Released: 3 May 2002
  2. "Bless the Child"
    Released: 21 July 2002
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
Sputnikmusic[2]
Sea of Tranquility
[3]
Metal.de[4]
Metal Hammer (GER)[5]
Kerrang!

Spinefarm Records released a 2-CD special edition of the album in 2002. It includes liner art with the band members' signatures, and a Video CD containing the music video for their cover of Gary Moore's "Over the Hills and Far Away". In addition, the booklet contains an ID code that allows the owner to download the entire album and three extra tracks from the Internet for a limited time.[6] The bonus tracks are "Nightwish", "The Forever Moments" and "Etiäinen", all from the band's first demo of 1996.

The album was certified double platinum in Finland with more than 60,000 sold copies,[7] the second best selling album in Finland of 2002.[8] Century Child has sold more than 80,000 copies in Finland alone.[7] It sold more than 350,000 copies worldwide between 2002 and 2003.

Track listing

All lyrics are written by Tuomas Holopainen, except where noted; all music is composed by Holopainen, except where noted.

Century Child track listing
No.TitleLyricsMusicLength
1."Bless the Child"  6:12
2."End of All Hope"  3:54
3."Dead to the World"  4:19
4."Ever Dream"  4:43
5."Slaying the Dreamer" 
4:31
6."Forever Yours"  3:51
7."Ocean Soul"  4:14
8."Feel for You"  3:54
9."The Phantom of the Opera" (Andrew Lloyd Webber cover)
Lloyd Webber4:09
10."Beauty of the Beast"
  • I. "Long Lost Love"
  • II. "One More Night to Live"
  • III. "Christabel"
 
10:22
Total length:50:09
Japanese edition bonus track
No.TitleLength
11."The Wayfarer"3:25
Total length:53:34
2007 reissue bonus tracks
No.TitleLength
11."Lagoon"3:46
12."The Wayfarer"3:24
13."Bless the Child" (edit)4:05
14."End of All Hope" (live at Summer Breeze Open Air)4:17
15."Dead to the World" (live at Summer Breeze Open Air)4:45
Total length:70:26
Special edition bonus VCD
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Over the Hills and Far Away" (Gary Moore cover; music video)Moore3:51
Special edition digital hidden tracks
No.TitleLength
11."Nightwish" (demo)5:49
12."The Forever Moments" (demo)5:36
13."Etiäinen" (demo)2:59
Total length:64:33

Personnel

Credits for Century Child adapted from liner notes.[9]

Nightwish

Additional musicians

  • Joensuu City Orchestra – orchestra
  • Juha Ikonen – orchestra leader
  • Riku Niemi – orchestra and choir conductor, orchestra and choir arrangements, orchestra and choir producer
  • Mongo Aaltonen – orchestral percussion
  • St. Thomas Chorus of Helsinki – choir vocals
  • Hilkka Kangasniemi – choirmaster
  • Sam Hardwick – spoken words on "Bless the Child" and "Beauty of the Beast"
  • Kristiina Ilmonen – tin whistle
  • GME choir – additional noise

Production

  • Tero "TeeCee" Kinnunen – producer
  • Mikko Karmila – mixing
  • Mika Jussila – mastering
  • Veijo Laine – orchestra and choir arrangements, orchestra and choir producer
  • Terhi Kallio – orchestra engineering
  • Markus Mayer – cover art
  • Spelltone – layout
  • Hilkka Kangasniemi – choirmaster

Charts

Singles
Year Title Chart Position
2002 "Ever Dream" Finnish Singles Chart[19] 1
"Bless the Child" Finnish Singles Chart[20] 1
French Singles Chart[21] 6
Dutch MegaCharts[22] 55
German Singles Chart[23] 63

Certifications
Country Organization Year Sales
Finland IFPI 2003 2x Platinum (+ 60,000)[7]

References
  1. Rivadavia, Eduardo. "Nightwish - Century Child review". AllMusic. All Media Network. Retrieved 31 August 2014.
  2. Butler, Nick (14 January 2005). "Nightwish - Century Child". Sputnikmusic. Retrieved 31 August 2014.
  3. Glenday, Duncan; Pierce, Ken (23 November 2003). "Nightwish: Century Child". Sea of Tranquility.org. Retrieved 31 August 2014.
  4. Gregori, David. "Nightwish - "Century Child"" (in German). Metal.de. Retrieved 31 August 2014.
  5. "Nightwish: Century Child". Metal Hammer (in German). July 2002. Retrieved 31 August 2014.
  6. "The Band Discography - Century Child". Nightwish Official Website. Archived from the original on 14 April 2006. Retrieved 31 August 2014.
  7. "Tilastot - Nightwish" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland. Retrieved 25 August 2014.
  8. "Myydyimmät levyt - Vuosi 2002" [Bestsellers plates - Year 2002] (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland. Retrieved 31 August 2014.
  9. (2002). "Century Child liner notes". In Century Child [CD booklet]. Spinefarm.
  10. "Austriancharts.at – Nightwish – Century Child" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved 1 November 2020.
  11. "Dutchcharts.nl – Nightwish – Century Child" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 1 November 2020.
  12. "Nightwish: Century Child" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland. Retrieved 1 November 2020.
  13. "Lescharts.com – Nightwish – Century Child". Hung Medien. Retrieved 1 November 2020.
  14. "Offiziellecharts.de – Nightwish – Century Child" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 1 November 2020.
  15. "Norwegiancharts.com – Nightwish – Century Child". Hung Medien. Retrieved 1 November 2020.
  16. "Swedishcharts.com – Nightwish – Century Child". Hung Medien. Retrieved 1 November 2020.
  17. "Swisscharts.com – Nightwish – Century Child". Hung Medien. Retrieved 1 November 2020.
  18. "Top 100 Album-Jahrescharts". GfK Entertainment (in German). offiziellecharts.de. Retrieved 1 November 2020.
  19. "Nightwish – Ever Dream (song)". Finnishcharts.com. Media Control Charts. Retrieved 31 August 2014.
  20. "Nightwish – Bless the Child (song)". Finnishcharts.com. Media Control Charts. Retrieved 31 August 2014.
  21. "infodisc.fr Note : You must select Nightwish". infodisc.fr. Archived from the original on 24 September 2014. Retrieved 31 August 2014.
  22. "Nightwish – Bless the Child (song)". GfK Dutch Charts (in Dutch). Media Control Charts. Retrieved 31 August 2014.
  23. "Single – Nightwish, Bless the Child". Charts.de (in German). Media Control Charts. Retrieved 31 August 2014.

Bibliography
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