Ocean's Kingdom
| Ocean's Kingdom | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 3 October 2011 | |||
| Recorded | June 2011 | |||
| Genre | Contemporary classical, ballet | |||
| Length | 56:33 | |||
| Label | Decca (UK) Hear Music/Telarc (US) | |||
| Producer | John Fraser | |||
| Paul McCartney chronology | ||||
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| Aggregate scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Metacritic | 60/100 |
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic | |
| BBC Music | (unfavourable) |
| Consequence of Sound | C+ |
| The Guardian | |
| The Independent | |
| musicOMH | |
| The New York Times | (unfavourable) |
| PopMatters | |
| Record Collector | |
| Uncut | |
Ocean's Kingdom is the fifth classical album by Paul McCartney. It is the score of the ballet of the same name, commissioned by the New York City Ballet. It was performed by the London Classical Orchestra and conducted by John Wilson. The album was released on CD and vinyl, on 3 October 2011 by Decca (UK) and October 4 (US) by Hear Music/Telarc (US). In the United States, it peaked at number 144 on the Billboard 200 chart. The album has a score of 60 out of 100 at Metacritic, based on eight reviews, signifying a "mixed or average" critical response.
The ballet tells of a love story based in two fantastic worlds – the "pure" ocean kingdom, and the Earth kingdom with its "sort of baddies" who threaten the underwater way of life. According to McCartney, love happens when earth meets water, and "you'll have to see whether the couple make it". His score for the ballet consists of four orchestral movements.