Jagged Little Pill
Encyclopedia
Jagged Little Pill is the third studio album
by Canadian
recording artist and songwriter Alanis Morissette
. It was Morissette's first internationally released album, and her first studio album after the three year hiatus following her break with MCA Records
. The album marked a shift from her style of dance-pop and bubblegum music to a more alternative rock
and more grunge
style. In the song "You Learn
", it features Jagged Little Pill in the near-chorus.
Morissette started recording the album after moving to Toronto
, Canada
until she travelled to Los Angeles where she met the producer Glen Ballard
, who was the only producer for the album. Jagged Little Pill was a breakthrough album
, spawning six singles. The album had charting success worldwide, peaking at number one in her native Canada for 24 weeks (three weeks in late 1995, an unbroken 19-week run in 1996 and two separate weeks later in the year) as well as reaching number one on the U.S. Billboard 200
, staying there for twelve non-consecutive weeks. Until and by 2009, the album had sold over 33 million units/copies worldwide, topping the charts in ten countries, including the UK, Sweden, Australia, New Zealand, Finland and the Netherlands among them and even ranked in the top 100 on the countries' best selling of all time lists. Billboard further ranked the album as the number one Best Selling album of 1990's.
During the last three years of the 1990's, the album was nominated nine times in the Grammy Awards. Morissette won five awards out of nine there. In 1996, she won the Grammy Award for Album of the Year
, making her the youngest artist in history to win the title, at age 21. She also won Best Rock Album
. Her single "You Oughta Know" won two grammys, Best Female Rock Vocal Performance
& Best Rock Song
, the same song was also nominated for Song of the Year
, as well as herself being nominated as Best New Artist
in the same year.
Jagged Little Pill received mixed reviews to general acclaim from music critics, with many praising the album's talent and lyrical content. The album received many accolades. In October 2002, Rolling Stone
ranked it number 31 on its Women In Rock - The 50 Essential Albums list, and in 2003 the magazine ranked it number 327 on its list of The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time
. The album also holds a title in The Definitive 200 Albums list, in which it is placed at number 26.
and Now Is the Time
) achieved much success outside of Canada. In 1993 after leaving MCA Records Canada, Morissette moved from her home town of Ottawa
to Toronto
. Living alone for the first time in her life, she met with a bevy of songwriters, but the results frustrated her. A visit to Nashville
a few months later also proved fruitless. Morissette began making trips to Los Angeles
and working with as many musicians as possible, in the hopes of meeting a collaborator. During this time, she met producer and songwriter Glen Ballard
. According to Ballard, the connection was "instant", and within 30 minutes of meeting each other they had begun experimenting with different sounds in Ballard's home studio in San Fernando Valley
, California
. Ballard and Morissette penned their first song together, called "The Bottom Line". The turning point in their sessions was the song "Perfect", which was written and recorded in 20 minutes. Morissette improvised the lyrics on the spot, and Ballard played guitar. The version of the song that appeared on Jagged Little Pill was the only take that the pair recorded.
Morissette later revealed that during her stay in L.A., she was robbed on a deserted street by a man with a gun. After the robbery, Morissette developed an intense and general angst
and suffered daily panic attack
s. She was hospitalized and attended psychotherapy sessions, but it didn't improve her emotional status. As Morissette later revealed in interviews, she focused all her inner problems on the soul-baring lyrics of the album for her own health. According to Morissette, Ballard was the first collaborator who encouraged her to express her emotions.
s, and Morissette played harmonica
. The duo sought to write and record one song a day, in twelve- or sixteen-hour shifts, with minimal overdubbing later. All of Morissette's singing on the album respects that rule, and it was recorded in one or two takes each. The tracks that were redone later in a professional studio using the original demo vocals.
The first song to be shown to A&R and record company people was "Perfect", with a simple arrangement containing only Morissette's vocals and Ballard's acoustic guitar. In 1995, around the time that Morissette penned a deal with Maverick Records, the couple took the demos to a studio and started building some new band arrangements for some of them. During the overdub sessions, Flea and Dave Navarro
(then Red Hot Chili Peppers
bandmates) appeared at the studio, discovered Morissette's work, and offered to play on "You Oughta Know
".
There are seven known outtakes from the recording sessions: "Keep the Radio On", "Bottom Line", "Beautiful Intent", "Aura", "No Avalon", "Superstar Wonderful Weirdos", and an alternate take of "Ironic" with a lyric change ("It's like ice cream on a freezing day" instead of "It's a black fly in your chardonnay").
music. From her previous albums Alanis
and Now Is the Time
, the album had generated more dance and bubblegum pop genres. But with this album, it reached more rock music, including post-grunge
, rock
, alternative rock
and even acoustic rock music. Lyrically, most of the songs were written by Morissette and Glen Ballard. A lot of her lyrics talk about broken relationships, hurt, rage and confusion of a woman, according to Ultimate-Guitar.com.
According to G.Pop.net, tracks like "All I Really Want" and "Right Through You" talk about frustration in her life. Both songs are alternative rock
songs. Her song "Ironic" talks about irony in her life. "You Oughta Know" talks about a sudden split with a man who has fallen for another woman. The song "Perfect" talks about parents over-demanding in children. "You Learn" talks about life being a learning experience. It is a slower pop rock
version. The song "Head over Feet" is a love song talking about people who treat her like a "princess". "Mary Jane" talks about a girl who suffers from depression. "Wake Up" talks about Alanis' cry to the apathetic world.
, until a worldwide release after that. Jagged Little Pill first received mixed reviews to general acclaim from most music critics. Stephen Thomas Erlewine from Allmusic gave it a very positive review, giving it four-and-a-half out of five stars. He mostly complimented the album's standout talent saying "It's remarkable that Alanis Morissette's Jagged Little Pill struck a sympathetic chord with millions of listeners, because it's so doggedly, determinedly insular." He later finished saying "As slick as the music is, the lyrics are unvarnished and Morissette unflinchingly explores emotions so common, most people would be ashamed to articulate them. This doesn't make Jagged Little Pill great, but it does make it a fascinating record, a phenomenon that's intensely personal." Robert Christgau
gave it a B+ grade, mainly praising it saying "But with help from six or seven arrantly effective songs, she's happy to help 15 million girls of many ages stick a basic feminist truth in our faces: privileged phonies have identity problems too. Not to mention man problems." David Browne from Entertainment Weekly
gave it a favorable review just. He said "Jagged Little Pill, is much harder to swallow. What sounds arresting on a single grows wearing over a full album. Producer-co-songwriter Glen Ballard's arrangements are clunky mixtures of alternative mood music and hammy arena rock, and the 21-year-old Morissette tends to wildly oversing every other line." John Hyperbole Hanson from Sputnikmusic
had said "It’s one of the most varied pop/rock albums I own, and its also one of the most emotionally powerful to boot.". Rolling Stones Magazine had listed the album on there 100 Best Albums of the Nineties at number 45. They reviewed it saying "Jagged Little Pill is like a Nineties version of Carole King's Tapestry: a woman using her plain soft-rock voice to sift through the emotional wreckage of her youth, with enough heart and songcraft to make countless listeners feel the earth move.
, being certificated 16X Platinum, selling over 16 million copies in North America
itself. After this, it was ranked at number one best selling album of the 1990's. The album also peaked at number one on the Canadian Albums Chart
, selling over 2 million copies there, being certificated 2X Diamond. Jagged Little Pill was very successful worldwide as well. In the Oceania
, the album had debuted at number forty-six in Australia, and rose to peak at number one, staying there for ten consecutive weeks. It was certificated 14X Platinum, selling over 900,000 copies there. It is currently the 4th best selling album in history in that country. The album had debuted at number 46 in New Zealand, then later rose to number one, staying there for 11 non-consecutive weeks. The album had been certificated 14X Platinum, selling over 200,000 copies there. It is currently the 14th best selling album in music history in that country.
In Europe
, the album had peaked at number six on the French Albums Chart, staying in the charts for 37 weeks there. It was certificated Platinum in that country. The album had debuted at number 46 in the United Kingdom
, and peaked at number one, and stayed in the charts for a total of 145 weeks on the charts. The album was certificated 10X Platinum, selling over 3 million copies in that country. Overall, the album sold 33 million copies worldwide, becoming one of the most successful albums in music history.
Morissette had later toured for the album, with promotion as well. It was told that due to the success of the album, Morissette had toured the worldwide for a total of 18 months for the album. A DVD and VHS
was released, under the title Jagged Little Pill, Live. That had received positive reviews from music critics as well. The tour had spanned from different countries (which was eventually featured on the VHS) where she had travelled to Australia
, New Zealand
, Germany
, United Kingdom
, South America
, Asia
, United States
and her native Canada
. It had won a Grammy Award
for Best Long Form Music Video.
, when Morissette's sixth album Under Rug Swept
was released in 2002, Jagged Little Pill re-entered the album chart on February 21 at number 72 and reached 19 on March 7. It took nine weeks for it to depart the chart again on May 2.
In 2005 Morissette re-released an acoustic version of the album, Jagged Little Pill Acoustic
, on the tenth anniversary of the original album's release. This album was originally sold through Starbucks
' Hear Music
brand in an exclusive six-week deal that ended on July 26, 2005. For the duration of this partnership, music retailer HMV
boycotted the sale of Morissette's entire catalogue in Canada.
It is one of the most successful 1990's albums in music history. The album was released on June 15, 2005, which in fact is the same exact release date from the original release. The artwork of the acoustic version is similar to the original version, but is sepia
tinted instead.
s in 1996, and Morissette won "Best Female Rock Vocal Performance
", "Best Rock Song
", "Best Rock Album
", and "Album of the Year
" (she won all but "Best New Artist
" and "Song of the Year
"). Up until 2010 she was the youngest person to receive the Album of the Year award, at age 21. Later that year, she embarked on an 18-month world tour in support of Jagged Little Pill, beginning in small clubs and ending in large venues. In 1997 she was nominated for two more Grammy Awards: "Record of the Year
" and "Best Music Video, Short Form" for "Ironic". The video Jagged Little Pill, Live
, which chronicled the bulk of the tour, won a 1998 Grammy Award
for "Best Long Form Music Video". In 1998, Q magazine
readers voted Jagged Little Pill the 19th greatest album of all time. In 2003, the album was ranked number 327 on Rolling Stone
magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time
.
Studio album
A studio album is an album made up of tracks recorded in the controlled environment of a recording studio. A studio album contains newly written and recorded or previously unreleased or remixed material, distinguishing itself from a compilation or reissue album of previously recorded material, or...
by Canadian
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
recording artist and songwriter Alanis Morissette
Alanis Morissette
Alanis Nadine Morissette is a Canadian-American singer-songwriter, guitarist, record producer, and actress. She has won 16 Juno Awards and seven Grammy Awards, was nominated for two Golden Globe Awards and also shortlisted for an Academy Award nomination...
. It was Morissette's first internationally released album, and her first studio album after the three year hiatus following her break with MCA Records
MCA Records
MCA Records was an American-based record company owned by MCA Inc., which later gave way to the larger MCA Music Entertainment Group , of which MCA Records was still part. MCA Records was absorbed by Geffen Records in 2003...
. The album marked a shift from her style of dance-pop and bubblegum music to a more alternative rock
Alternative rock
Alternative rock is a genre of rock music and a term used to describe a diverse musical movement that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1980s and became widely popular by the 1990s...
and more grunge
Grunge
Grunge is a subgenre of alternative rock that emerged during the mid-1980s in the American state of Washington, particularly in the Seattle area. Inspired by hardcore punk, heavy metal, and indie rock, grunge is generally characterized by heavily distorted electric guitars, contrasting song...
style. In the song "You Learn
You Learn
"You Learn" is a song by Canadian recording artist and songwriter Alanis Morissette, for her 1995 breakthrough album Jagged Little Pill . The song was written by Morissette and Glen Ballard for the album...
", it features Jagged Little Pill in the near-chorus.
Morissette started recording the album after moving to Toronto
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
until she travelled to Los Angeles where she met the producer Glen Ballard
Glen Ballard
Glen Ballard is an American songwriter and record producer, best known for co-writing and producing Alanis Morissette's Jagged Little Pill , which won Grammy Award for "Best Rock Album", and "Album of the Year" amongst others, and is ranked by the Rolling Stone amongst The 500 Greatest Albums of...
, who was the only producer for the album. Jagged Little Pill was a breakthrough album
Breakthrough album
A breakthrough album is an LP or CD by a band or musician previously only known in the underground or indie scene of its given genre, which propels the group to mainstream attention and widespread fame and popularity...
, spawning six singles. The album had charting success worldwide, peaking at number one in her native Canada for 24 weeks (three weeks in late 1995, an unbroken 19-week run in 1996 and two separate weeks later in the year) as well as reaching number one on the U.S. Billboard 200
Billboard (magazine)
Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...
, staying there for twelve non-consecutive weeks. Until and by 2009, the album had sold over 33 million units/copies worldwide, topping the charts in ten countries, including the UK, Sweden, Australia, New Zealand, Finland and the Netherlands among them and even ranked in the top 100 on the countries' best selling of all time lists. Billboard further ranked the album as the number one Best Selling album of 1990's.
During the last three years of the 1990's, the album was nominated nine times in the Grammy Awards. Morissette won five awards out of nine there. In 1996, she won the Grammy Award for Album of the Year
Grammy Award for Album of the Year
The Grammy Award for Album of the Year is the most prestigious award category at the Grammys. It has been awarded since 1959 and though it was originally presented to the artist alone, the award is now presented to the artist, the producer, the engineer and/or mixer and the mastering engineer...
, making her the youngest artist in history to win the title, at age 21. She also won Best Rock Album
Grammy Award for Best Rock Album
The Grammy Award for Best Rock Album is an award presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards, to recording artists for quality albums in the rock music genre...
. Her single "You Oughta Know" won two grammys, Best Female Rock Vocal Performance
Grammy Award for Best Female Rock Vocal Performance
The Grammy Award for Best Female Rock Vocal Performance was an award presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards, to female recording artists for works containing quality vocal performances in the rock music genre...
& Best Rock Song
Grammy Award for Best Rock Song
The Grammy Award for Best Rock Song is an honor presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards, to recording artists for quality songs in the rock music genre...
, the same song was also nominated for Song of the Year
Grammy Award for Song of the Year
The Song of the Year is one of the four most prestigious awards in the Grammy Awards ceremony, if not in all of the American music industry. It has been awarded since 1959 and unlike the Record of the Year award, which goes to the performer and production team of a single song, Song of the Year...
, as well as herself being nominated as Best New Artist
Grammy Award for Best New Artist
The Grammy Award for Best New Artist has been awarded since 1959. Years reflect the year in which the Grammy Awards were handed out, for records released in the previous year. The award was not presented in 1967...
in the same year.
Jagged Little Pill received mixed reviews to general acclaim from music critics, with many praising the album's talent and lyrical content. The album received many accolades. In October 2002, Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
ranked it number 31 on its Women In Rock - The 50 Essential Albums list, and in 2003 the magazine ranked it number 327 on its list of The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time
The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time
"The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time" is the title of a 2003 special issue of American magazine Rolling Stone, and a related book published in 2005.Related news articles:...
. The album also holds a title in The Definitive 200 Albums list, in which it is placed at number 26.
Background
Neither of Morissette's first two albums (AlanisAlanis (album)
Alanis is the debut album by Alanis Morissette, released only in Canada in April 1991 by MCA Records Canada . Morissette recorded the album with Leslie Howe, who produced her second album Now Is the Time , and it was certified platinum.- Background and recording :John Alexander, head of A&R for MCA...
and Now Is the Time
Now Is the Time
- Credits :* Produced, engineered and mixed by Leslie Howe for Ghetto Records at Distortion Studios* Photography by Dan Seguin and Andrew LeBlanc* Design: Martin Solort* A&R direction: John Alexander- References :* RPM ....
) achieved much success outside of Canada. In 1993 after leaving MCA Records Canada, Morissette moved from her home town of Ottawa
Ottawa
Ottawa is the capital of Canada, the second largest city in the Province of Ontario, and the fourth largest city in the country. The city is located on the south bank of the Ottawa River in the eastern portion of Southern Ontario...
to Toronto
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
. Living alone for the first time in her life, she met with a bevy of songwriters, but the results frustrated her. A visit to Nashville
Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. The city is a center for the health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home...
a few months later also proved fruitless. Morissette began making trips to Los Angeles
Los 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...
and working with as many musicians as possible, in the hopes of meeting a collaborator. During this time, she met producer and songwriter Glen Ballard
Glen Ballard
Glen Ballard is an American songwriter and record producer, best known for co-writing and producing Alanis Morissette's Jagged Little Pill , which won Grammy Award for "Best Rock Album", and "Album of the Year" amongst others, and is ranked by the Rolling Stone amongst The 500 Greatest Albums of...
. According to Ballard, the connection was "instant", and within 30 minutes of meeting each other they had begun experimenting with different sounds in Ballard's home studio in San Fernando Valley
San Fernando Valley
The San Fernando Valley is an urbanized valley located in the Los Angeles metropolitan area of southern California, United States, defined by the dramatic mountains of the Transverse Ranges circling it...
, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
. Ballard and Morissette penned their first song together, called "The Bottom Line". The turning point in their sessions was the song "Perfect", which was written and recorded in 20 minutes. Morissette improvised the lyrics on the spot, and Ballard played guitar. The version of the song that appeared on Jagged Little Pill was the only take that the pair recorded.
Morissette later revealed that during her stay in L.A., she was robbed on a deserted street by a man with a gun. After the robbery, Morissette developed an intense and general angst
Angst
Angst is an English, German, Danish, Norwegian and Dutch word for fear or anxiety . It is used in English to describe an intense feeling of apprehension, anxiety or inner turmoil...
and suffered daily panic attack
Panic attack
Panic attacks are periods of intense fear or apprehension that are of sudden onset and of relatively brief duration. Panic attacks usually begin abruptly, reach a peak within 10 minutes, and subside over the next several hours...
s. She was hospitalized and attended psychotherapy sessions, but it didn't improve her emotional status. As Morissette later revealed in interviews, she focused all her inner problems on the soul-baring lyrics of the album for her own health. According to Morissette, Ballard was the first collaborator who encouraged her to express her emotions.
Development and recording
The demo recording sessions started in 1994 at Ballard's home studio and included only Morissette and the producer, who recorded the songs as they were being written. Ballard provided the rough tracks, playing the guitars, keyboards and programming drum machineDrum machine
A drum machine is an electronic musical instrument designed to imitate the sound of drums or other percussion instruments. They are used in a variety of musical genres, not just purely electronic music...
s, and Morissette played harmonica
Harmonica
The harmonica, also called harp, French harp, blues harp, and mouth organ, is a free reed wind instrument used primarily in blues and American folk music, jazz, country, and rock and roll. It is played by blowing air into it or drawing air out by placing lips over individual holes or multiple holes...
. The duo sought to write and record one song a day, in twelve- or sixteen-hour shifts, with minimal overdubbing later. All of Morissette's singing on the album respects that rule, and it was recorded in one or two takes each. The tracks that were redone later in a professional studio using the original demo vocals.
The first song to be shown to A&R and record company people was "Perfect", with a simple arrangement containing only Morissette's vocals and Ballard's acoustic guitar. In 1995, around the time that Morissette penned a deal with Maverick Records, the couple took the demos to a studio and started building some new band arrangements for some of them. During the overdub sessions, Flea and Dave Navarro
Dave Navarro
David Michael "Dave" Navarro is an American guitarist who plays in the alternative rock band Jane's Addiction and cover band Camp Freddy. He has also played with the Red Hot Chili Peppers, The Panic Channel, and many others.- Early life :...
(then Red Hot Chili Peppers
Red Hot Chili Peppers
Red Hot Chili Peppers is an American rock band, formed in Los Angeles in 1983. The group's musical style primarily consists of rock with an emphasis on funk, as well as elements from other genres such as punk, hip hop and psychedelic rock...
bandmates) appeared at the studio, discovered Morissette's work, and offered to play on "You Oughta Know
You Oughta Know
"You Oughta Know" is a alternative rock song, which also is known for its grunge effect styles in it. The instruments held in it are guitars, electric guitars, drums and drum machine...
".
There are seven known outtakes from the recording sessions: "Keep the Radio On", "Bottom Line", "Beautiful Intent", "Aura", "No Avalon", "Superstar Wonderful Weirdos", and an alternate take of "Ironic" with a lyric change ("It's like ice cream on a freezing day" instead of "It's a black fly in your chardonnay").
Music
Jagged Little Pill is a very different album to Morissette, who before the album, had sung dance-popDance-pop
Dance-pop is dance-oriented pop music that originated in the early 1980s. Developing from post-disco, it is generally up-tempo music intended for clubs with the intention of being danceable or merely dancey...
music. From her previous albums Alanis
Alanis (album)
Alanis is the debut album by Alanis Morissette, released only in Canada in April 1991 by MCA Records Canada . Morissette recorded the album with Leslie Howe, who produced her second album Now Is the Time , and it was certified platinum.- Background and recording :John Alexander, head of A&R for MCA...
and Now Is the Time
Now Is the Time
- Credits :* Produced, engineered and mixed by Leslie Howe for Ghetto Records at Distortion Studios* Photography by Dan Seguin and Andrew LeBlanc* Design: Martin Solort* A&R direction: John Alexander- References :* RPM ....
, the album had generated more dance and bubblegum pop genres. But with this album, it reached more rock music, including post-grunge
Post-grunge
Post-grunge is a subgenre of alternative rock that emerged in the mid-1990s as a derivative of grunge, using the sounds and aesthetic of grunge, but with a more commercially acceptable tone...
, rock
Rock music
Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
, alternative rock
Alternative rock
Alternative rock is a genre of rock music and a term used to describe a diverse musical movement that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1980s and became widely popular by the 1990s...
and even acoustic rock music. Lyrically, most of the songs were written by Morissette and Glen Ballard. A lot of her lyrics talk about broken relationships, hurt, rage and confusion of a woman, according to Ultimate-Guitar.com.
According to G.Pop.net, tracks like "All I Really Want" and "Right Through You" talk about frustration in her life. Both songs are alternative rock
Alternative rock
Alternative rock is a genre of rock music and a term used to describe a diverse musical movement that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1980s and became widely popular by the 1990s...
songs. Her song "Ironic" talks about irony in her life. "You Oughta Know" talks about a sudden split with a man who has fallen for another woman. The song "Perfect" talks about parents over-demanding in children. "You Learn" talks about life being a learning experience. It is a slower pop rock
Pop rock
Pop rock is a music genre which mixes a catchy pop style and light lyrics in its guitar-based rock songs. There are varying definitions of the term, ranging from a slower and mellower form of rock music to a subgenre of pop music...
version. The song "Head over Feet" is a love song talking about people who treat her like a "princess". "Mary Jane" talks about a girl who suffers from depression. "Wake Up" talks about Alanis' cry to the apathetic world.
Critical response
Jagged Little Pill was released on June 15, 1995 in the United StatesUnited States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, until a worldwide release after that. Jagged Little Pill first received mixed reviews to general acclaim from most music critics. Stephen Thomas Erlewine from Allmusic gave it a very positive review, giving it four-and-a-half out of five stars. He mostly complimented the album's standout talent saying "It's remarkable that Alanis Morissette's Jagged Little Pill struck a sympathetic chord with millions of listeners, because it's so doggedly, determinedly insular." He later finished saying "As slick as the music is, the lyrics are unvarnished and Morissette unflinchingly explores emotions so common, most people would be ashamed to articulate them. This doesn't make Jagged Little Pill great, but it does make it a fascinating record, a phenomenon that's intensely personal." Robert Christgau
Robert Christgau
Robert Christgau is an American essayist, music journalist, and self-proclaimed "Dean of American Rock Critics".One of the earliest professional rock critics, Christgau is known for his terse capsule reviews, published since 1969 in his Consumer Guide columns...
gave it a B+ grade, mainly praising it saying "But with help from six or seven arrantly effective songs, she's happy to help 15 million girls of many ages stick a basic feminist truth in our faces: privileged phonies have identity problems too. Not to mention man problems." David Browne from Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly is an American magazine, published by the Time division of Time Warner, that covers film, television, music, broadway theatre, books and popular culture...
gave it a favorable review just. He said "Jagged Little Pill, is much harder to swallow. What sounds arresting on a single grows wearing over a full album. Producer-co-songwriter Glen Ballard's arrangements are clunky mixtures of alternative mood music and hammy arena rock, and the 21-year-old Morissette tends to wildly oversing every other line." John Hyperbole Hanson from Sputnikmusic
Sputnikmusic
Sputnikmusic, or simply Sputnik, is a music website offering music criticism and music news alongside features commonly associated with wiki-style websites...
had said "It’s one of the most varied pop/rock albums I own, and its also one of the most emotionally powerful to boot.". Rolling Stones Magazine had listed the album on there 100 Best Albums of the Nineties at number 45. They reviewed it saying "Jagged Little Pill is like a Nineties version of Carole King's Tapestry: a woman using her plain soft-rock voice to sift through the emotional wreckage of her youth, with enough heart and songcraft to make countless listeners feel the earth move.
Commericial response
Generally, Jagged Little Pill was one of the most successful albums in the 1990's. The album peaked at number one on the U.S. Billboard 200Billboard 200
The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...
, being certificated 16X Platinum, selling over 16 million copies in North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
itself. After this, it was ranked at number one best selling album of the 1990's. The album also peaked at number one on the Canadian Albums Chart
Canadian Albums Chart
The Canadian Albums Chart is the official album sales chart in Canada. It is compiled every Wednesday by U.S.-based music sales tracking company Nielsen Soundscan, and published every Thursday by Jam! Canoe and Billboard, along with its sister charts the Canadian Singles Chart and the Canadian BDS...
, selling over 2 million copies there, being certificated 2X Diamond. Jagged Little Pill was very successful worldwide as well. In the Oceania
Oceania
Oceania is a region centered on the islands of the tropical Pacific Ocean. Conceptions of what constitutes Oceania range from the coral atolls and volcanic islands of the South Pacific to the entire insular region between Asia and the Americas, including Australasia and the Malay Archipelago...
, the album had debuted at number forty-six in Australia, and rose to peak at number one, staying there for ten consecutive weeks. It was certificated 14X Platinum, selling over 900,000 copies there. It is currently the 4th best selling album in history in that country. The album had debuted at number 46 in New Zealand, then later rose to number one, staying there for 11 non-consecutive weeks. The album had been certificated 14X Platinum, selling over 200,000 copies there. It is currently the 14th best selling album in music history in that country.
In Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
, the album had peaked at number six on the French Albums Chart, staying in the charts for 37 weeks there. It was certificated Platinum in that country. The album had debuted at number 46 in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, and peaked at number one, and stayed in the charts for a total of 145 weeks on the charts. The album was certificated 10X Platinum, selling over 3 million copies in that country. Overall, the album sold 33 million copies worldwide, becoming one of the most successful albums in music history.
Morissette had later toured for the album, with promotion as well. It was told that due to the success of the album, Morissette had toured the worldwide for a total of 18 months for the album. A DVD and VHS
VHS
The Video Home System is a consumer-level analog recording videocassette standard developed by Victor Company of Japan ....
was released, under the title Jagged Little Pill, Live. That had received positive reviews from music critics as well. The tour had spanned from different countries (which was eventually featured on the VHS) where she had travelled to Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, South America
South America
South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...
, Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and her native Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. It had won a Grammy Award
Grammy Award
A Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...
for Best Long Form Music Video.
Singles
- "You Oughta KnowYou Oughta Know"You Oughta Know" is a alternative rock song, which also is known for its grunge effect styles in it. The instruments held in it are guitars, electric guitars, drums and drum machine...
" was released as the album's lead single. The song was written by Alanis and Glen Bannard. The song was originally supposed to release in Canada and the U.S. only, however Maverick Records released the single worldwide. The song became an instant hit worldwide, peaking at number six on the Hot 100 and 20 in CanadaCanadaCanada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. The song also peaked at number four in Australia and 25 in New Zealand. A music videoMusic videoA music video or song video is a short film integrating a song and imagery, produced for promotional or artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a marketing device intended to promote the sale of music recordings...
shot for the single, featuring Morissette in a desert. The song won two Grammy AwardGrammy AwardA Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...
s. - "Hand In My PocketHand in My Pocket"Hand in my Pocket" is a song by Canadian recording artist and songwriter Alanis Morissette, for her third studio album Jagged Little Pill . The song was written by Morissette and Glen Ballard, and was released as the second single from the album. "Hand in My Pocket" is a rock song. The song was...
" was released as the album's second single from the album. After "You Oughta Know", the single received more attention worldwide. The song had peaked at number 1 on many U.S. Rock ChartsRock musicRock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
, but failed to enter the Hot 100. The song peaked at number one in Canada, number 13 in Australia and number seven in New Zealand. A music video was shot for the single as well. - "IronicIronic (song)"Ironic" is a song recorded by Canadian-American singer Alanis Morissette for her third studio album Jagged Little Pill . It was written by Morissette and Glen Ballard, and was produced by him. Maverick and Warner Bros. Records released it as the album's fourth single on February 27, 1996 in CD,...
" was released as the album's third single. "Ironic" became Morissette's most successful and known single to date, as it peaked at number one in Canada and in many rock charts in the U.S. The song peaked at number four on the Hot 100. The song also managed to peak in the top ten in Europe, Australia and New Zealand. The song released a music video with Morissette singing in a car. The song was nominated for one Grammy Award. - "You LearnYou Learn"You Learn" is a song by Canadian recording artist and songwriter Alanis Morissette, for her 1995 breakthrough album Jagged Little Pill . The song was written by Morissette and Glen Ballard for the album...
" was released as the album's fourth single. The song was a more moderate single after the success of "Ironic". The song was released outside of Canada, not even peaking in the country. The song peaked at number six on the Hot 100, number 20 in Australia and number 13 in New Zealand. A music video was featured for the single. - "Head over FeetHead over Feet"Head over Feet" is a song written by Alanis Morissette and Glen Ballard, and produced by Ballard for Morissette's third album, Jagged Little Pill . It was released as the album's fifth single in 1996 and presented a softer sound than the previous singles from the album...
" was released as the album's fifth single. The song was only released in the UK and U.S. area, although getting a promotional release in Australia only. The song peaked at number seven in the UK, but didn't manage to chart in the U.S. Hot 100 nor her native Canada. The song became a smaller success. - "All I Really WantAll I Really Want"All I Really Want" is a song written by Alanis Morissette and Glen Ballard, and produced by Ballard for Morissette's third album Jagged Little Pill . In the United States it was released as the album's third single in 1995 , and outside the U.S. it was released as the album's sixth and final...
" was released as the sixth and final single off the album. The single was released outside of the U.S. and peaked at number 40 in Australia and 59 in the UK. The song became an unsuccessful finish for the album.
Social impact and acoustic re-release
, it has sold 33 million copies worldwide. In IrelandRepublic of Ireland
Ireland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...
, when Morissette's sixth album Under Rug Swept
Under Rug Swept
Under Rug Swept is the fifth album by Canadian singer-songwriter Alanis Morissette. Released by Maverick Records in the United States on February 26, 2002 and in the United Kingdom a day earlier , it was the first album Morissette had written and produced on her own...
was released in 2002, Jagged Little Pill re-entered the album chart on February 21 at number 72 and reached 19 on March 7. It took nine weeks for it to depart the chart again on May 2.
In 2005 Morissette re-released an acoustic version of the album, Jagged Little Pill Acoustic
Jagged Little Pill Acoustic
-Credits:*All lyrics written by Alanis Morissette*Music written by Alanis Morissette and Glen Ballard*Produced by Glen Ballard*Mixed and Recorded by Bill Malina*Alanis Morissette: Vocals, Harmonica*David Levita: Guitars, Marxophone, Perapaloshka, Mandolin...
, on the tenth anniversary of the original album's release. This album was originally sold through Starbucks
Starbucks
Starbucks Corporation is an international coffee and coffeehouse chain based in Seattle, Washington. Starbucks is the largest coffeehouse company in the world, with 17,009 stores in 55 countries, including over 11,000 in the United States, over 1,000 in Canada, over 700 in the United Kingdom, and...
' Hear Music
Hear Music
Hear Music, also known as StarCon is the brand name of Starbucks' retail music concept and record label. Hear Music began as a catalog company in Cambridge, Massachusetts, in 1990 before being purchased by Starbucks in 1999.-Concept:...
brand in an exclusive six-week deal that ended on July 26, 2005. For the duration of this partnership, music retailer HMV
HMV
His Master's Voice is a trademark in the music business, and for many years was the name of a large record label. The name was coined in 1899 as the title of a painting of the dog Nipper listening to a wind-up gramophone...
boycotted the sale of Morissette's entire catalogue in Canada.
It is one of the most successful 1990's albums in music history. The album was released on June 15, 2005, which in fact is the same exact release date from the original release. The artwork of the acoustic version is similar to the original version, but is sepia
Sepia
-Marine life:* Sepia , a genus of cuttlefish* Cephalopod ink, a dark pigment released into water by Sepia cuttlefish-Media and entertainment:* Sepia , an African Americans focused Photojournalism magazine...
tinted instead.
Accolades, nominations and awards
The album was nominated for six Grammy AwardGrammy Award
A Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...
s in 1996, and Morissette won "Best Female Rock Vocal Performance
Grammy Award for Best Female Rock Vocal Performance
The Grammy Award for Best Female Rock Vocal Performance was an award presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards, to female recording artists for works containing quality vocal performances in the rock music genre...
", "Best Rock Song
Grammy Award for Best Rock Song
The Grammy Award for Best Rock Song is an honor presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards, to recording artists for quality songs in the rock music genre...
", "Best Rock Album
Grammy Award for Best Rock Album
The Grammy Award for Best Rock Album is an award presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards, to recording artists for quality albums in the rock music genre...
", and "Album of the Year
Grammy Award for Album of the Year
The Grammy Award for Album of the Year is the most prestigious award category at the Grammys. It has been awarded since 1959 and though it was originally presented to the artist alone, the award is now presented to the artist, the producer, the engineer and/or mixer and the mastering engineer...
" (she won all but "Best New Artist
Grammy Award for Best New Artist
The Grammy Award for Best New Artist has been awarded since 1959. Years reflect the year in which the Grammy Awards were handed out, for records released in the previous year. The award was not presented in 1967...
" and "Song of the Year
Grammy Award for Song of the Year
The Song of the Year is one of the four most prestigious awards in the Grammy Awards ceremony, if not in all of the American music industry. It has been awarded since 1959 and unlike the Record of the Year award, which goes to the performer and production team of a single song, Song of the Year...
"). Up until 2010 she was the youngest person to receive the Album of the Year award, at age 21. Later that year, she embarked on an 18-month world tour in support of Jagged Little Pill, beginning in small clubs and ending in large venues. In 1997 she was nominated for two more Grammy Awards: "Record of the Year
Record Of The Year
Record of the Year may refer to:*Grammy Award for Record of the Year*The Record of the Year, a British award based on public polling...
" and "Best Music Video, Short Form" for "Ironic". The video Jagged Little Pill, Live
Jagged Little Pill, Live
Video chronicling Alanis Morissette's Jagged Little Pill world tour from 1995 to 1996. It was primarily filmed in New Orleans, Louisiana, USA, but it features clips from various other tour stops, including Morissette's hometown of Ottawa, Ontario, Canada....
, which chronicled the bulk of the tour, won a 1998 Grammy Award
Grammy Awards of 1998
The 40th Grammy Awards were held on February 25, 1998. They recognized accomplishments by musicians from the previous year. Rock icon Bob Dylan, Alison Krauss, and R...
for "Best Long Form Music Video". In 1998, Q magazine
Q (magazine)
Q is a popular music magazine published monthly in the United Kingdom.Founders Mark Ellen and David Hepworth were dismayed by the music press of the time, which they felt was ignoring a generation of older music buyers who were buying CDs — then still a new technology...
readers voted Jagged Little Pill the 19th greatest album of all time. In 2003, the album was ranked number 327 on Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time
The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time
"The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time" is the title of a 2003 special issue of American magazine Rolling Stone, and a related book published in 2005.Related news articles:...
.
Track listing
Personnel
The following people contributed to Jagged Little Pill:- Alanis MorissetteAlanis MorissetteAlanis Nadine Morissette is a Canadian-American singer-songwriter, guitarist, record producer, and actress. She has won 16 Juno Awards and seven Grammy Awards, was nominated for two Golden Globe Awards and also shortlisted for an Academy Award nomination...
– harmonica, vocals - Glen BallardGlen BallardGlen Ballard is an American songwriter and record producer, best known for co-writing and producing Alanis Morissette's Jagged Little Pill , which won Grammy Award for "Best Rock Album", and "Album of the Year" amongst others, and is ranked by the Rolling Stone amongst The 500 Greatest Albums of...
– guitar, keyboards, programming, producer, engineer, mixing - Dave NavarroDave NavarroDavid Michael "Dave" Navarro is an American guitarist who plays in the alternative rock band Jane's Addiction and cover band Camp Freddy. He has also played with the Red Hot Chili Peppers, The Panic Channel, and many others.- Early life :...
– guitar on "You Oughta Know" - Basil Fung – guitar
- Michael LandauMichael LandauMichael Landau is a prolific session musician and guitarist who has played on a large number of albums since the early 1980s with artists as varied as Seal, James Taylor, Helen Watson, Richard Marx, Steve Perry, Pink Floyd and Miles Davis...
– guitar - Joel ShearerPedestrian (band)Pedestrian is an alternative rock band based in Los Angeles, California, USA. The band was formed in late 2002 by guitarist/songwriter Joel Shearer....
– guitar - Lance MorrisonLance MorrisonLance Morrison is a professional bassist and session musician who has recorded on studio albums for Alanis Morissette, Elisa, Don Henley, Rick Springfield, Autograph and Jim Brickman. He has also been featured in movie soundtracks for Nicholas Sparks' novel-turned-feature film "Message in a...
– bass on "Perfect", "Right Through You", "Forgiven", "Mary Jane", "Ironic", "Wake Up" - FleaFlea (musician)Michael Peter Balzary , better known by his stage name Flea, is an Australian-American musician and occasional actor. He is best known as the bassist, co-founding member, and one of the composers of the rock band Red Hot Chili Peppers...
– bass on "You Oughta Know" - Michael Thompson – organ
- Benmont TenchBenmont TenchBenjamin Montmorency Tench, III is an American keyboardist best known as a founding member of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers.-Early years:...
– organ
- Rob Ladd – percussion, drums
- Matt Laug – drums
- Gota YashikiGota YashikiGota Yashiki is both an independent acid jazz artist and drum player, as a member of the band Simply Red. He was born in Kyoto, Japan, on 26 February 1962, where at a young age he learned how to play traditional Japanese drums. This interest in drumming propelled him into the music scene, and he...
– groove Activator on "All I Really Want" - Ted Blaisdell – additional engineering
- David Schiffman – additional engineering
- Victor McCoy – assistant engineer
- Rich Weingart – assistant engineer
- Chris Fogel – engineering and mixing
- Francis Buckley – additional mixing
- Jolie Levine – production coordination
- Chris Bellman – mastering
- Tom Recchion – art direction, design
- John Patrick Salisbury – photography
Charts and certifications
| Chart (1995) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| U.S. Billboard 200 Billboard 200 The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists... |
1 |
| Top Canadian Albums | 1 |
| Chart (1996) | Peak position |
| Australian Albums Chart Aria An aria in music was originally any expressive melody, usually, but not always, performed by a singer. The term is now used almost exclusively to describe a self-contained piece for one voice usually with orchestral accompaniment... |
1 |
| Austrian Albums Chart Ö3 Austria Top 40 Ö3 Austria Top 40 is the name of the official Austrian singles chart, as well as the radio show which presents it, aired Fridays on Hitradio Ö3. The show presents the Austrian singles, ringtones and downloads chart. It premiered on 26 November 1968 as Disc Parade and was presented by Ernst Grissemann... |
2 |
| Belgian Albums Chart Ultratop Ultratop is an organization which generates and publishes the official record charts in Belgium, and it is also the name of most of those charts... (Flanders) |
1 |
| Belgium Albums Chart Ultratop Ultratop is an organization which generates and publishes the official record charts in Belgium, and it is also the name of most of those charts... (Walliona) |
2 |
| Dutch Albums Chart MegaCharts MegaCharts is responsible for the composition and exploitation of a broad collection of official charts in the Netherlands, of which the Mega Top 50 and the Mega Album Top 100 are the most known ones. Mega Charts also provides information to the Stichting Nederlandse Top 40, of which the Dutch Top... |
1 |
| Finnish Albums Chart | 1 |
| French Albums Chart Syndicat National de l'Edition Phonographique The Syndicat national de l'édition phonographique is the inter-professional organization which protects the interests of the French record industry... |
6 |
| German Albums Chart | 3 |
| Hungarian Albums Chart | 10 |
| New Zealand Albums Chart | 1 |
| Norwegian Albums Chart VG-lista VG-listen is a Norwegian record chart. It is weekly presented in the newspaper VG and the Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation program Topp 20. It is considered the primary Norwegian record chart, charting albums and singles from countries and continent around the world. The data is collected by... |
3 |
| Portuguese Albums Chart | 26 |
| Swedish Albums Chart Swedish Recording Industry Association Grammofonleverantörernas förening , or the Swedish Recording Industry Association in English, is an organization representing the music recording industry of Sweden... |
1 |
| Swiss Albums Chart Swiss Music Charts The Swiss Music Charts are Switzerland's main music sales charts. The charts are a record of the highest-selling singles and albums in various genres in Switzerland.The Swiss Charts include:* Singles Top 75... |
2 |
| UK Albums Chart UK Albums Chart The UK Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales in the United Kingdom. It is compiled every week by The Official Charts Company and broadcast on a Sunday on BBC Radio 1 , and published in Music Week magazine and on the OCC website .To qualify for the UK albums chart... |
1 |
End of decade charts
| Chart (1990–1999) | Position |
|---|---|
| U.S. Billboard 200 | 1 |
Certifications
Chart precession and succession
See also
- List of best-selling albums worldwide
- List of best-selling albums in the United States
- List of best-selling albums in the United Kingdom
- List of best-selling albums in Australia