Sunshine on Leith (album)

Sunshine on Leith
Studio album by
Released12 September 1988
RecordedJanuary–February 1988
StudioChipping Norton Recording Studios
Genre
Length44:16
53:30 (2001 re-release)
LabelChrysalis, Nettwerk
ProducerPete Wingfield
The Proclaimers chronology
This Is the Story
(1987)
Sunshine on Leith
(1988)
Hit the Highway
(1994)
Singles from Sunshine on Leith
  1. "I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles)"
    Released: August 1988
  2. "Sunshine on Leith"
    Released: October 1988
  3. "I'm on My Way"
    Released: 30 January 1989
  4. "Then I Met You"
    Released: 1989

Sunshine on Leith is the second studio album by Scottish folk rock duo the Proclaimers, released in September 1988 through Chrysalis Records. The record spawned four singles: "I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles)", which topped charts in Australia, New Zealand and Iceland; "Sunshine on Leith", a ballad that has become an anthem for Scottish football club Hibernian F.C.; the No. 3 Australian hit "I'm on My Way"; and the Australian-exclusive "Then I Met You". The non-single "Cap in Hand" also came to prominence in 2014 with the Scottish Independence referendum.

Sunshine on Leith marked a departure from the minimalist acoustics of the group's 1987 debut This Is the Story, toward a rock-oriented full band sound, backed by members of the Fairport Convention and Dexys Midnight Runners. The album's sound draws heavily from American music, such as country and 1950s rock and roll, with homages to the duo's own Scottish culture. The album was a major worldwide hit, particularly in Australia where it was described as the band's "biggest success", reaching No. 2 in the ARIA Charts and being 1989's 12th highest-seller. The album peaked at No. 3 and No. 6 in New Zealand and the United Kingdom respectively, while also charting in Canada and Sweden, ultimately selling over 2 million copies worldwide, including over 700,000 in the USA.