The Libertines is the second studio album by English
indie rock band
The Libertines. Released on 30 August 2004, it is particularly biographical of the relationship between frontmen
Carl Barât and
Pete Doherty. The album debuted at number one on the
UK Albums Chart, selling 72,189 copies in its first week of release.
The Libertines, like its 2002 predecessor, Up the Bracket, was re-released with a bonus DVD on 22 November 2004. The DVD, entitled Boys in the Band, is a collection of live shows, band interviews, and the "Can't Stand Me Now" promotional video.
The song "Arbeit Macht Frei" featured in the 2006 film Children of Men.
Cover art
The album's front cover art features a photograph of Carl Barât and Pete Doherty taken by Roger Sargent during the emotional "Freedom Gig" at the Tap 'n' Tin club in
Chatham,
Kent, on 8 October 2003, when Doherty reunited with the Libertines for a gig just hours after being released from jail, where he was sentenced for breaking into Barât's flat and stealing various items, including an old guitar and a laptop computer.[16] Doherty returned to the Tap 'n' Tin club on 20 December 2008 for a one-off gig with
Chas & Dave.
"Death on the Stairs" (Live at The Factory, Japan)
"Up the Bracket" (Live at The Factory, Japan)
"I Get Along" (Live at The Factory, Japan)
"The Boy Looked at Johnny" (Live at The Factory, Japan)
"The Boy Looked at Johnny" (Live at Moby Dick, Spain)
Busking for Beer + Assorted Covers and Song Segments (Live at Filthy McNasty's Pub, London)
"Can't Stand Me Now" (Video)
Photo Gallery
Extras (Footage of Band, Interviews and NME award footage)
As well as the songs listed above, there is a hidden track, titled "France", composed by Barat, which starts at 3:28 of "What Became of the Likely Lads". A re-recording of an old
Libertines song which originally appeared on one of their first demos, recorded at Odessa Studios, "France" was written and performed by
Carl Barât. The final listed track is a nod to the British sitcom Whatever Happened to the Likely Lads?.