1000 Oceans
Encyclopedia
"1000 Oceans" is a song by Tori Amos
, released as the second single from her 1999 album To Venus and Back
. It reached number twenty-two on the Hot 100 Singles Sales
, though it did not chart on the Hot 100. The song deals with issues of love and loss, and is based on the singer's personal experiences. It was released on September 7, 1999, and was generally well received by critics.
n woman was humming the melody to her, and she got up around 5:30 in the morning to record it. Writing the song, she describes the transition from the melody line around the words "I can’t believe that I would keep, keep you from flying" to "and I would cry 1000 more" as particularly difficult, and what took the longest time. The inspiration for the lyrics came when her father-in-law died, and she claims the song helped her husband deal with the grieving process. The lyrics contain reference to Silbury Hill
, an ancient mound
in Wiltshire
, England
. This is a place often visited by Amos and her husband.
parking lot. It shows Amos singing inside a glass booth. The booth is in a busy street, and as people walk by some stop and stare. Others are engaged in everyday activities, and at one point a full-scale riot breaks out in the street, while Amos behaves like a mere distant observer. The video had its TV debut on MTV
's 120 Minutes
on October 24, 1999.
said the song was "one of the most billowing songs she's written in a while". The Tech
called the melody of this song and "Lust" "powerful ballads" and "some of Tori's finest". The Daily Mail, in a short review of the album, called "1000 Oceans" "superb". Others were less impressed though; Spin
magazine called the album track "perhaps the most disappointing", and claimed Amos came across as a "Celine Dion
-LeAnn Rimes
rip-off".
US (CD single, Cassette Single, 7" Vinyl Single; September 7, 1999)
US (Enhanced cd, includes "1000 Oceans" and "Bliss"video, September 28, 1999)
Australia (September 1999)
France
Germany
Tori Amos
Tori Amos is an American pianist, singer-songwriter and composer. She was at the forefront of a number of female singer-songwriters in the early 1990s and was noteworthy early in her career as one of the few alternative rock performers to use a piano as her primary instrument...
, released as the second single from her 1999 album To Venus and Back
To Venus and Back
To Venus and Back, the fifth album released by singer and songwriter Tori Amos, is a two-disc album set including a studio album and a live album. The first disc, titled Venus: Orbiting, features eleven original songs that finds Amos experimenting heavily in electronica...
. It reached number twenty-two on the Hot 100 Singles Sales
Hot 100 Singles Sales
The Hot Singles Sales chart is a chart released weekly by Billboard magazine in the United States. It measures sales of commercial singles and is one of three component charts, along with the Hot 100 Airplay and the Hot Digital Songs, that determine the chart positions of singles on the...
, though it did not chart on the Hot 100. The song deals with issues of love and loss, and is based on the singer's personal experiences. It was released on September 7, 1999, and was generally well received by critics.
Background
Amos has explained that the idea for the song came to her in a dream. An old AfricaAfrica
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
n woman was humming the melody to her, and she got up around 5:30 in the morning to record it. Writing the song, she describes the transition from the melody line around the words "I can’t believe that I would keep, keep you from flying" to "and I would cry 1000 more" as particularly difficult, and what took the longest time. The inspiration for the lyrics came when her father-in-law died, and she claims the song helped her husband deal with the grieving process. The lyrics contain reference to Silbury Hill
Silbury Hill
Silbury Hill is a prehistoric artificial chalk mound near Avebury in the English county of Wiltshire. It is part of the Stonehenge, Avebury and Associated Sites UNESCO World Heritage Site, and lies at ....
, an ancient mound
Mound
A mound is a general term for an artificial heaped pile of earth, gravel, sand, rocks, or debris. The most common use is in reference to natural earthen formation such as hills and mountains, particularly if they appear artificial. The term may also be applied to any rounded area of topographically...
in Wiltshire
Wiltshire
Wiltshire is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is landlocked and borders the counties of Dorset, Somerset, Hampshire, Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire. It contains the unitary authority of Swindon and covers...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. This is a place often visited by Amos and her husband.
Video
The video for the song was directed by Erick Ifergan and filmed by Toby Irwin, and it was shot in a downtown Los AngelesLos Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
parking lot. It shows Amos singing inside a glass booth. The booth is in a busy street, and as people walk by some stop and stare. Others are engaged in everyday activities, and at one point a full-scale riot breaks out in the street, while Amos behaves like a mere distant observer. The video had its TV debut on MTV
MTV
MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....
's 120 Minutes
120 Minutes
120 Minutes is a television show in the United States dedicated to alternative music, originally airing on MTV from 1986 to 2000, and then on MTV's sister channel MTV2 from 2001 to 2003....
on October 24, 1999.
Reviews
Reviewers generally had a positive attitude towards "1000 Oceans", and many mentioned it among the better tracks on the album. VH1VH1
VH1 or Vh1 is an American cable television network based in New York City. Launched on January 1, 1985 in the old space of Turner Broadcasting's short-lived Cable Music Channel, the original purpose of the channel was to build on the success of MTV by playing music videos, but targeting a slightly...
said the song was "one of the most billowing songs she's written in a while". The Tech
The Tech
The Tech may refer to:* The Tech Museum of Innovation, in San Jose, California* The Tech , the oldest and largest student newspaper at MIT and the first newspaper ever on the internet...
called the melody of this song and "Lust" "powerful ballads" and "some of Tori's finest". The Daily Mail, in a short review of the album, called "1000 Oceans" "superb". Others were less impressed though; Spin
Spin (magazine)
Spin is a music magazine founded in 1985 by publisher Bob Guccione Jr.-History:In its early years, the magazine was noted for its broad music coverage with an emphasis on college-oriented rock music and on the ongoing emergence of hip-hop. The magazine was eclectic and bold, if sometimes haphazard...
magazine called the album track "perhaps the most disappointing", and claimed Amos came across as a "Celine Dion
Celine Dion
Céline Marie Claudette Dion, , , is a Canadian singer. Born to a large family from Charlemagne, Quebec, Dion emerged as a teen star in the French-speaking world after her manager and future husband René Angélil mortgaged his home to finance her first record...
-LeAnn Rimes
LeAnn Rimes
LeAnn Rimes is an American country/pop singer. She is known for her rich vocals and her rise to fame as an eight-year-old champion on the original Ed McMahon version of Star Search, followed by the release of the Patsy Cline-intended single "Blue" when Rimes was only age 13, resulting in her...
rip-off".
Track listing
Track listing for the various editions of the single:US (CD single, Cassette Single, 7" Vinyl Single; September 7, 1999)
- "1000 Oceans" - 4:18
- "Baker Baker" (Live) - 4:18
US (Enhanced cd, includes "1000 Oceans" and "Bliss"video, September 28, 1999)
- "1000 Oceans" (Album Version) - 4:18
Secretime - "Baker Baker" (Live Non LP Version) - 3:53
- "Winter" (Live Non LP Version) - 7:01
Australia (September 1999)
- "1000 Oceans" (Album Version) - 4:18
Secretime - "Baker Baker" (Live Non LP Version) - 3:53
- "Winter" (Live Non LP Version) - 7:01
France
- "1000 Oceans" (radio edit)
Germany
- "1000 Oceans"
- "Hey Jupiter" (live)
- "Upside Down" (live)
External links
- 1000 Oceans video on RuTubeRuTubeRuTube is a Russian online video sharing and transmitting service and is not associated with YouTube. As of 2008, it is visited by 400,000 people daily and plays over 40 million videos every month...
- Extracts from interviews with Tori Amos about the song