Telling Stories (album)
 | This article needs additional citations for verification. (July 2010) |
| Untitled | |
|---|---|
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |   [2] |
| Robert Christgau |  [3] |
| Rolling Stone | [4] |
| Rolling Stone Album Guide |  [5] |
Telling Stories is the fifth album by American singer-songwriter Tracy Chapman, released in 2000 (see 2000 in music). It was her first album in over four years, and her first since Crossroads to be produced or co-produced by David Kershenbaum. A special 2 CD tour edition of this album was also released in May 2000, supporting the tour going on at the time. The album is composed of contemporary rock songs in the first half, and folk songs in the second half. The song "Unsung Psalm" was originally written for her previous album, New Beginning, but it didn't make it onto the album.
The record marked a return to shorter songs for Tracy, seeing as on New Beginning all of them had been very long.
Track listing
All songs written by Tracy Chapman.
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Telling Stories" | 3:57 |
| 2. | "Less Than Strangers" | 3:19 |
| 3. | "Speak the Word" | 4:12 |
| 4. | "It's OK" | 4:00 |
| 5. | "Wedding Song" | 4:36 |
| 6. | "Unsung Psalm" | 4:19 |
| 7. | "Nothing Yet" | 3:21 |
| 8. | "Paper and Ink" | 4:52 |
| 9. | "Devotion" | 2:48 |
| 10. | "The Only One" | 3:08 |
| 11. | "First Try" | 3:31 |
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Three Little Birds" (Live) | 3:27 |
| 2. | "House of the Rising Sun" (Live) | 2:02 |
| 3. | "Mountains O' Things" (Live) | 5:06 |
| 4. | "Behind the Wall" (Live) | 2:09 |
| 5. | "Baby Can I Hold You" | 3:13 |
Personnel
- Tracy Chapman – acoustic guitar, bouzouki, harp, vocals, background vocals, baritone guitar, production, mixing, art design
- Additional musicians
- Alejandro "Alex" Acuña – percussion
- Rock Deadrick – vocals, background vocals
- Tommy Eyre – organ, keyboard
- Mike Finnigan – organ
- Denny Fongheiser – percussion, snare drums
- Emmylou Harris – vocals
- Howard Hersh – bass guitar
- Steve Hunter – dulcimer, lap steel guitar, baritone guitar
- Larry Klein – bass guitar
- JayDee Mannes – pedal steel
- John Pierce – bass guitar
- Tim Pierce – acoustic guitar, dobro, mandolin, sitar, baritone guitar
- Eric Rigler – Uillean pipes, low whistle
- Scarlet Rivera – violin
- Glenys Rogers – percussion, vocals, background vocals
- Andy Stoller – bass guitar
- Patrick Warren – keyboard, Chamberlin
- Technical personnel
- Duane Baron – engineering, mixing
- Tim Hailand – artwork
- Jeri Heiden – design
- John Heiden – design
- Renata Kanclerz – production coordination
- David Kershenbaum – mixing, production
- Martie Kolbl – production coordination
- Curt Kroeger – assistant engineering
- Iki Levy – drum programming
- Bob Ludwig – mastering
- Herb Ritts – portraits
- Roger Sommers – assistant engineering
Charts
| Chart (2000) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| The Billboard 200 | 33[citation needed] |
| Billboard Top Internet Albums | 5[citation needed] |
| Swedish Albums Chart | 16[citation needed] |
Certifications
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| France (SNEP)[6] | 2× Gold | 200,000* |
| Germany (BVMI)[7] | Gold | 150,000^ |
| New Zealand (RMNZ)[8] | Gold | 7,500^ |
| Switzerland (IFPI Switzerland)[9] | Gold | 25,000^ |
| United States (RIAA)[10] | Gold | 500,000^ |
|
* Sales figures based on certification alone. | ||
- Singles
| Year | Single | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | "Telling Stories" | Billboard Adult Top 40 | 8[citation needed] |
| Billboard Bubbling Under The Hot 100 | 8[citation needed] |
References
- ^ "Tracy Chapman – Telling Stories (Album)". swedishcharts.com. Retrieved 2012-12-14.
- ^ Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. Telling Stories at AllMusic
- ^ "Robert Christgau review". Robertchristgau.com. Retrieved 2012-02-03.
- ^ Rolling Stone review Archived July 23, 2009, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Rolling Stone Album Guide review
- ^ "French album certifications – Tracy Chapman – Telling Stories" (in French). Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique. Retrieved October 15, 2012.
- ^ "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (Tracy Chapman; 'Telling Stories')" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie. Retrieved October 15, 2012.
- ^ "New Zealand album certifications – Tracy Chapman – Telling Stories". Recorded Music NZ. Retrieved November 22, 2015.
- ^ "The Official Swiss Charts and Music Community: Awards ('Telling Stories')". IFPI Switzerland. Hung Medien. Retrieved October 15, 2012.
- ^ "American album certifications – Tracy Chapman – Telling Stories". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved October 15, 2012.
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