Double album
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A double album is an audio album which spans two units of the primary medium in which it is sold (especially records and Compact Discs). A double album is typically, though not always, released because the recording is longer than the capacity of the medium. Recording artists often think of double albums as a single piece artistically; however, there are exceptions such as Pink Floyd's Ummagumma, one live album and one studio record packaged together, and OutKast's Speakerboxxx/The Love Below, consisting of one practical solo album by each member of the hip-hop duo.
Particularly with the advent of Compact Discs, albums are sometimes released with a bonus disc featuring additional material that is usually not part of the main album (such as live tracks, studio out-takes, cut songs, or older unreleased material). These may or may not be considered double albums by different people, and depending on the content of the bonus disc. A new innovation is the accompaniment of a CD with a DVD of related material, such as video related to the album or DVD-Audio versions of the same recordings. These could be regarded as a new form of double album; some such discs are also released on as a two-sided format calledDualDisc.
The same principles apply to the triple album, which is comprised of three units. Packages with more units than three are usually labeled as boxed sets.
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[edit] History
The first ever double album was Benny Goodman's Live at Carnegie Hall, the famous jazz concert of 1938, released by Columbia Records in 1950.[citation needed] The first rock double album, and first studio double album, ever released is believed to have been Bob Dylan's Blonde on Blonde in 1966,[1] also on Columbia, although at the same time Frank Zappa and his Mothers of Invention band were at work on the double album Freak Out!, released two months after Blonde on Blonde. The best selling double album of all time is Pink Floyd's The Wall, with over 30 million copies sold worldwide.[2]
The double album has become less common since the decline of the vinyl LP and the advent of Compact Discs. A single LP had two sides, each of which had a capacity of approximately 22 minutes, for a 45 minute maximum per record. (An "extended play" record format was developed to allow approximately 26 minutes per side, but for various reasons, it was not commonly used.) A single CD has a capacity of either 74 or 80 minutes, depending on the format; thus, many old double-LP albums have been re-released on a single CD. However, other double-LP albums are re-released as double-CD albums, either because they are too large even for a CD, or simply to retain the feeling or continuity of the original. Examples include The Beatles' White Album and their compilation albums 1962–1966 and 1967–1970 (the former being only 63 minutes, and the later being almost 100).
There are also double-LP albums, such as Mike Oldfield's Incantations and Chick Corea's My Spanish Heart, for which some some tracks were left off of or shortened for a single 74-minute CD release, though both were later re-released in their entirety when 80-minute CDs were developed.
Though the average album length has increased since the days of LPs, it remains rare for an artist to produce more than 80 minutes of studio material for one album. Thus, the double album format is now more commonly used for several formats other than studio albums. Live albums which either present all or most of a single concert, or material from several concerts are commonly released on multiple CDs. Compilations such as greatest hits records can often comprise double albums. Soundtracks and scores are also commonly released on two CDs; particulary soundtracks to musicals, which typically last longer than 80 minutes, are commonly released in their entirety as double albums, occasionally offering a second single-disc version featuring the most notable songs. The double album format is also frequently used for concept albums.
The double album is not entirely obselete when it comes to studio albums, however. Some artists still occasionally produce a large enough quantity of material to justify a double album. For example, Barenaked Ladies recorded 29 songs (initially intending more than 30) for their first original album following the completion of their contract with Reprise Records, including several songs that were cut from past albums under that contract. Without needing to get a label's approval, they were able to release a 25-track "deluxe edition" double album Barenaked Ladies Are Me, as well as releasing the album as two separate single albums, as well as a variety of other formats. Nellie McKay reportedly fought with her label to get her debut album, Get Away from Me released as a double album, even though the material would have fit on a single disc. She has been said to be the first female artist to have a double album as a debut.
[edit] Sesquialbums
There are only a few examples of a sesquialbum (i.e. one and a half records). Johnny Winter released a three-sided album on two 12-inch discs, with the flip side of the second disc being blank. Joe Jackson's 1986 release Big World is another example. In 1982, Todd Rundgren and his band released the self-titled album Utopia featuring one full LP of 10 songs and a second 12-inch disc with 5 bonus tracks and the same 5 tracks on the flip side. The Monty Python album Matching Tie and Handkerchief was originally issued with two concentric grooves with different programs on side B. Elvis Costello and The Clash (amongst other 1980s acts) would sometimes release early pressings of their albums with extra material on a 45 rpm single. In 2005, The Mars Volta released their album Frances the Mute, on which the vinyl pressing spans five sides of vinyl, the sixth is an etching of tree roots.
[edit] Triple albums
The first triple album of note in the rock era was George Harrison's All Things Must Pass. Another well known triple album is the Clash's Sandinista!, which contains 36 songs on six sides of vinyl. Recent three-CD examples include 2006's Orphans: Brawlers, Bawlers & Bastards by musician Tom Waits, The Mother, The Mechanic, and The Path by The Early November, and Led Zeppelin's live album How the West Was Won.
[edit] Simultaneous releases
Some performers have released two or more distinct but related albums which could be seen together as a double album. Examples include Bruce Springsteen's Human Touch and Lucky Town, both issued in the same day in 1992, Guns 'N Roses' Use Your Illusion I and II, Aerosmith's Classics Live I and II, and Insane Clown Posse's Bizaar and Bizzar
[edit] Critical reaction
The concept of a double album is one that often sparks critical debate. Some see them as a testament to a band's creativity, and many double albums, such as The Smashing Pumpkins' Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness, Elton John's Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, and the Rolling Stones' Exile on Main St. were met with great praise upon their release and are now widely considered to be classics. Others, such as Guns N' Roses' Use Your Illusion I and II,received somewhat mixed reviews upon their release, but with the passing of time their reputation has improved.
On the other hand, double albums are often seen as self indulgent and bloated, containing "filler" tracks or old studio out-takes which would not usually be considered of a high enough standard to appear on a single album. In many instances, double albums come at a time in a band's career when they have achieved much success and possibly believe that fans will buy anything they produce.
[edit] See also
[edit] Notes and sources
- ^ Alan Light, "The All-TIME 100 Albums", Time, November 13, 2006
- ^ Pink Floyd
