The Shepherd's Dog

"Shepherd's Dog" redirects here. For the actual canines, see shepherd dog and Old English Sheepdog.

The Shepherd's Dog is the third full-length studio album by Iron & Wine, released on September 25, 2007. If bought at select retailers or if pre-ordered through Sub Pop, the album comes with a bonus disc featuring two unreleased tracks.^[1] "Boy with a Coin" is the first single and was released on July 10, 2007 via Sub Pop, including the single edit of the song along with two other tracks.

The Shepherd's Dog
Studio album by Iron and Wine
Released	September 25, 2007
Recorded	Engine Studios; Sterling Sound
Genre	Folk rock
Length	49:45
Label	Sub Pop
Producer	Brian Deck, Sam Beam
Iron and Wine chronology
In the Reins (EP) with Calexico (2005) The Shepherd's Dog (2007) Around the Well (2009)

The album debuted at number 24 on the U.S. Billboard 200 chart, selling about 32,000 copies in its first week.^[2]

In 2008, "Flightless Bird, American Mouth" was used in the movie Twilight. The song was specifically chosen for the film's prom scene by Kristen Stewart, the female lead, and appears on the movie's soundtrack.^[3]

Critical response

Professional ratings

Aggregate scores
Source	Rating
Metacritic	84/100[4]
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[5]
The A.V. Club	B−[6]
Blender	[7]
Entertainment Weekly	A−[8]
NME	7/10[9]
Pitchfork	8.6/10[10]
Q	[11]
Rolling Stone	[12]
Spin	[13]
Uncut	[14]

On its release The Shepherd's Dog received widespread critical acclaim. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 84, based on 34 reviews, which indicates "universal acclaim".^[4]

The album was ranked at #10 in Paste's list of top albums of 2007.^[15] "Pagan Angel and a Borrowed Car" was #86 on Rolling Stone's list of the 100 Best Songs of 2007.^[16] Pitchfork included the album in their Top 50 Albums of 2007 ranking it at number 36. "Flightless Bird, American Mouth" was a key track used in the 2008 film Twilight, part of the Twilight Saga. The song is closely associated to the successful movie franchise and an acoustic version of the song was also used in The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn - Part 1.

Track listing

No.	Title	Length
1.	"Pagan Angel and a Borrowed Car"	4:33
2.	"White Tooth Man"	3:57
3.	"Lovesong of the Buzzard"	4:26
4.	"Carousel"	4:02
5.	"House by the Sea"	4:22
6.	"Innocent Bones"	3:43
7.	"Wolves (Song of the Shepherd's Dog)"	4:57
8.	"Resurrection Fern"	4:50
9.	"Boy With a Coin"	4:06
10.	"The Devil Never Sleeps"	2:07
11.	"Peace Beneath the City"	4:45
12.	"Flightless Bird, American Mouth"	4:03
Total length:		49:45

Personnel

The Shepherd's Dog was performed by:

• Sam Beam
• Sarah Beam
• Jim Becker
• Rob Burger
• Joey Burns
• Brian Deck
• EJ Holowicki
• John Kattke
• Matt Lux
• Patrick McKinney
• Paul Niehaus

Bonus disc

1. "Arms of a Thief" - 3:41
2. "Serpent Charmer" - 2:40

Charts

Chart (2007)	Peak position
Australian Albums (ARIA Charts)[17]	98
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[18]	84
Belgian Alternative Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[18]	43
Norwegian Albums (VG-lista)[19]	24
UK Albums (OCC)[20]	74
US Billboard 200[21]	24
US Independent Albums (Billboard)[22]	2
US Top Rock Albums (Billboard)[23]	7

Certifications

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
United States (RIAA)[24]	Gold	500,000‡
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

References

1. Iron & Wine ~ News
2. Katie Hasty, "Rascal Flatts Races To No. 1 In Debut-Heavy Week", Billboard.com, October 3, 2007.
3. "Catherine Hardwicke: 5 Things You Didn't Know About 'Twilight'". Us Weekly. 2018-10-24. Retrieved 2020-09-07.
4. "Reviews for The Shepherd's Dog by Iron & Wine". Metacritic. Retrieved May 12, 2015.
5. Sendra, Tim. "The Shepherd's Dog – Iron & Wine". AllMusic. Retrieved May 12, 2015.
6. Heller, Jason (September 25, 2007). "Iron And Wine: The Shepherd's Dog". The A.V. Club. Retrieved May 18, 2016.
7. Hermes, Will. "Iron & Wine: The Shepherd's Dog". Blender. Archived from the original on October 11, 2007. Retrieved May 18, 2016.
8. Vozick-Levinson, Simon (October 1, 2007). "The Shepherd's Dog". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved May 18, 2016.
9. SW (September 26, 2007). "Iron And Wine: 'The Shepherd's Dog'". NME. Archived from the original on June 2, 2016. Retrieved May 18, 2016.
10. Tangari, Joe (September 25, 2007). "Iron & Wine: The Shepherd's Dog". Pitchfork. Retrieved May 12, 2015.
11. "Iron & Wine: The Shepherd's Dog". Q (255): 98. October 2007.
12. Fricke, David (October 5, 2007). "The Shepherd's Dog : Iron & Wine". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on November 1, 2007. Retrieved May 18, 2016.
13. Anderson, Stacey (October 2007). "Iron and Wine: The Shepherd's Dog". Spin. 23 (10): 106. Retrieved May 18, 2016.
14. McKay, Alastair (September 18, 2007). "Iron and Wine – The Shepherd's Dog". Uncut. Archived from the original on October 20, 2007. Retrieved May 18, 2016.
15. Signs of Life 2007: Top 100 Albums of 2007", Paste, 38, December 2007/January 2008
16. No byline (December 11, 2007). "The 100 Best Songs of 2007" Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2007-12-21
17. Ryan, Gavin (2011). Australia's Music Charts 1988–2010 (PDF ed.). Mt Martha, Victoria, Australia: Moonlight Publishing. p. 138.
18. "Ultratop.be – Iron And Wine – The Shepherd's Dog" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved April 19, 2015.
19. "Norwegiancharts.com – Iron And Wine – The Shepherd's Dog". Hung Medien. Retrieved April 19, 2015.
20. "Iron & Wine". Official Charts Company. Retrieved April 19, 2015.
21. "Iron & Wine Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved April 19, 2015.
22. "Iron & Wine Chart History (Independent Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved April 19, 2015.
23. "Iron & Wine Chart History (Top Rock Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved April 19, 2015.
24. "American album certifications – Iron & Wine – The Shepherd's Dog". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved May 31, 2023.

External links

• Iron and Wine Sics Shepherd's Dog on Fans This Fall
• Iron and Wine Reveals Shepherd's Dog Track list