Under the Pink

Under the Pink
Studio album by Tori Amos
Released January 31, 1994 (UK)[1]
February 1, 1994 (US)
Recorded The Fishhouse, New Mexico and Westlake Studios, LA (February - October 1993)
Genre
Length 56:40
Label Atlantic (US), East West (Europe)
Producer Tori Amos, Eric Rosse
Tori Amos chronology
Little Earthquakes
(1992)		 Under the Pink
(1994)		 Boys for Pele
(1996)
Singles from Under the Pink
  1. "Cornflake Girl"
    Released: January 10, 1994
  2. "God"
    Released: February 3, 1994
  3. "Pretty Good Year"
    Released: March 7, 1994
  4. "Past the Mission"
    Released: May 16, 1994
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[2]
Chicago Tribune[3]
Encyclopedia of Popular Music[4]
Entertainment WeeklyB[5]
Los Angeles Times[6]
NME6/10[7]
Pitchfork Media8.1/10[8]
PopMatters9/10[9]
Rolling Stone[10]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide[11]

Under the Pink is the second solo album by singer-songwriter Tori Amos. Upon its release in January 1994, the album debuted at #1 on the UK Albums Chart[12] on the back of the hit single "Cornflake Girl", and peaked at #12 in the US.[13]

The album was certified double platinum in the US by the RIAA in October 1999,[14] for sales exceeding 2 million copies. "Under the Pink" was the 61st highest-selling album of 1994 in the UK,In February 2007, and was certified platinum by the BPI in February 2007,[1] for sales exceeding 300,000 copies.

The album was included in Blender magazine's list of 500 CDs You Must Own,[15] and was voted among the greatest albums of the 1990s by Rolling Stone magazine some years later.[16] A special double-disc tour edition was released exclusively in Australia and New Zealand in November 1994, titled More Pink: The B-Sides.

Overview

While several soft-loud-soft tunes betray a clear debt to Nirvana-style grunge, overall this album represents a more acoustic piano-based sound, and most of the final third of the album is devoted to a classical-inspired suite of piano songs, including the sweeping nine-and-a-half minute epic "Yes, Anastasia". Amos used a prepared upright piano for the studio recording of "Bells for Her", which was also played on a prepared piano for the second half of the tour.

Amos has described the meaning of the song "Yes, Anastasia" to the media. The song is about the life of Anastasia Romanova, a grand duchess of Russia who was the daughter of Tsar Nicholas II. Amos explained that she had once become sick from eating bad crabs in Maryland.[17] She explained that while performing a sound check, she was influenced by Romanov's presence. "Needless to say, when you are very, very ill, it is easier to communicate with your source... you are fragile and vulnerable... Now I have only heard of her story, I've got no point to make. She comes and goes 'You've got to write my tune.' I go 'Ohhh, now's not a really good time.' She says 'No, you've got to understand something from this, there's something here that you've got to come to terms with.' And that night came." Amos said that the lyrics "We'll see how brave you are" means so many different things to her; it is a part of her self saying "If you really want a challenge, just deal with yourself."[18]

Amos performed the Under the Pink tour from February through November 1994, encompassing many of the same stops as on the previous world tour. A limited edition release of the album commemorating the Australian tour included a second disc entitled More Pink, a collection of rare B-sides like "Little Drummer Boy" and a cover version of Joni Mitchell's "A Case of You", was issued in November 1994. During this period, she also contributed the song "Butterfly" to the soundtrack for the 1994 movie Higher Learning, as well as a cover of the R.E.M. song "Losing My Religion".

The album was recorded in Taos, New Mexico in a hacienda. The album artwork features several Native American and New Mexican references in the photography. The album is also notable as the last Amos album to feature the production of Eric Rosse as they split that year. To date, Under the Pink remains her highest-charting album in the UK and has sold more than two million copies worldwide.

Track listing

All songs written and composed by Tori Amos. 

No. Title Length
1. "Pretty Good Year"   3:25
2. "God"   3:58
3. "Bells for Her"   5:20
4. "Past the Mission"   4:05
5. "Baker Baker"   3:20
6. "The Wrong Band"   3:03
7. "The Waitress"   3:09
8. "Cornflake Girl"   5:06
9. "Icicle"   5:47
10. "Cloud on My Tongue"   4:44
11. "Space Dog"   5:10
12. "Yes, Anastasia"   9:33

The original track listing included the B-side "Honey", which was kicked off the record at the last minute. Amos has since voiced great regret for leaving the song off the album.

"There were certain songs that were supposed to be on the record that got kicked off. 'Honey' was supposed to be on the record and, in retrospect, I wish it had been. I kicked it off for 'The Wrong Band'. Under the Pink wept when 'Honey' wasn't on, and she still is angry with me about it."[20]

Amos made a similar reference to the song "Here. In My Head" which was originally featured as a B-side to the UK single of "Crucify".[21]

Singles and B-sides

Singles

Under the Pink produced four singles. "Cornflake Girl" was released as the first single from the album in Europe (January 1994) and Australasia (February 1994), and became Amos' biggest international hit at the time, peaking at #4 in the UK.[22] "God" was released as the first single in North America in February 1994, where it became her first Billboard Hot 100 chart entry, peaking at #72.[23] "God" was released as the second single from the album in Australasia in May 1994, and as the fourth single in Europe in October 1994. "Pretty Good Year" was released as the second single in Europe in March 1994 and the fourth single in Australasia in November 1994, but was not released as a single in North America. "Past the Mission", featuring backing vocals from Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails, was the third single from the album in all territories, released in Europe in May 1994, Australasia in July 1994, and North America in September 1994.

More Pink: The B-Sides

The double-disc version of Under the Pink was released on November 14, 1994[24] by East West to coincide with Amos' tour of Australia and New Zealand. The second disc, titled More Pink: The B-Sides was never released separately, and is a rarity amongst Tori Amos collectibles. Amos would not release another collection of B-sides until 2006's A Piano: The Collection.

The packaging simply inserted the normal Australian release of Under the Pink in a double jewel case, and altered the back insert artwork so that instead of being blank it featured the track listing of the second disc as well as production information for the songs. The title More Pink may be misleading, as many of the B-sides on the disc did not come from Under the Pink singles but in fact from the 1992 album Little Earthquakes, and in one case, from a Christmas compilation. The length of this disc is 48:49.

The double-disc set entered the Australian ARIA Charts Top 100 Albums chart on the week ending 11 December 1994, peaking at #44 and spending 6 weeks on the chart.[25] However, it was listed on the chart as a re-entry of Under the Pink, with its weeks spent charting added to the 21-week tally achieved earlier by the album.[25]

Track listing

All songs written and composed by Tori Amos except track 1 (Joni Mitchell) and track 11 (traditional). 

No. Title Length
1. "A Case of You" (orig. on "Cornflake Girl" UK limited edition CD single) 4:38
2. "Honey" (orig. on 2nd "Pretty Good Year" UK CD single) 3:47
3. "Daisy Dead Petals" (orig. on "Pretty Good Year" UK limited edition CD single) 3:02
4. "Sister Janet" (orig. on 1st "Cornflake Girl" UK single) 4:02
5. "Sugar" (orig. on "China" UK single) 4:27
6. "Take to the Sky" (orig. on "Winter" single) 4:20
7. "Upside Down" (orig. on "Me and a Gun" UK single) 4:22
8. "Flying Dutchman" (orig. on "China" single) 6:31
9. "Here. In My Head (Live)" (orig. on "Past the Mission" UK CD single) 6:05
10. "Black Swan" (orig. on "Pretty Good Year" UK CD single) 4:04
11. "Little Drummer Boy (Live)" (orig. on Kevin & Bean: We've Got Your Yule Logs Hangin) 3:20

Personnel

  • Michael Allen Harrison – violin
  • Tori Amos – piano, vocals, producer
  • John Acevedo – viola
  • Steve Caton – guitar
  • Paulinho Da Costa – percussion
  • Ross Cullum – mixing
  • Shaun DeFeo – assistant engineer
  • Melissa "Missy" Hasin – cello
  • John Beverly Jones – engineer
  • Kevin Killen – mixing
  • Ezra Killinger – violin
  • Dane Little – cello
  • Bob Ludwig – mastering
  • Paul McKenna – producer, engineer
  • Cynthia Morrow – viola
  • Carlo Nuccio – drums
  • George Porter, Jr. – bass
  • Chris Reutinger – violin
  • Trent Reznor – backing vocals
  • Jimbo Ross – viola
  • Nancy Stein-Ross – cello
  • Eric Rosse – producer, engineer
  • John Philip Shenale – strings, organ (Hammond)
  • Francine Walsh – violin
  • John Wittenberg – violin
  • Nancy Roth – violin
  • Cindy Palmano – art direction, photography
  • Julie Larson – production coordination
  • John Fundi – assistant engineer
  • Alan Reinl – design
  • Avril McIntosh – mixing assistant

Charts

Album

Chart (1994) Position
Australia (ARIA Albums Chart)[26] 5
Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40)[27] 6
Germany (Media Control Charts)[28] 15
Netherlands (MegaCharts)[29] 10
New Zealand (RIANZ)[30] 15
Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)[31] 15
Switzerland (Swiss Hitparade)[32] 11
UK Albums Chart[22] 1
US Billboard 200[13] 12

Singles

Title Chart Position
"Cornflake Girl" (1994) Australia (ARIA Singles Chart)[33] 19
"Cornflake Girl" (1994) Canadian Hot 100 30
"Cornflake Girl" (1994) Canadian Airplay 32
"Cornflake Girl" (1994) Germany (Media Control Charts)[34] 73
"Cornflake Girl" (1994) Irish Singles Chart[35] 9
"Cornflake Girl" (1994) Netherlands (MegaCharts)[36] 26
"Cornflake Girl" (1994) New Zealand (RIANZ)[37] 41
"Cornflake Girl" (1994) UK Singles Chart[22] 4
"Cornflake Girl" (1994) UK Airplay 6
"Cornflake Girl" (1994) US Billboard Hot 100 107
"Cornflake Girl" (1994) US Modern Rock Tracks[38] 12
"God" (1994) Australia (ARIA Singles Chart)[39][40] 65
"God" (1994) Canadian Hot 100 87
"God" (1994) UK Singles Chart[22] 44
"God" (1994) UK Airplay 28
"God" (1994) US Billboard Hot 100[23] 72
"God" (1994) US Modern Rock Tracks[38] 1
"God" (1994) US Billboard Hot 100 Airplay 64
"God" (1994) US Billboard Hot 100 Singles Sales 73
"Pretty Good Year" (1994) Australia (ARIA Singles Chart)[41][40] 85
"Pretty Good Year" (1994) Irish Singles Chart[42] 26
"Pretty Good Year" (1994) UK Singles Chart[22] 7
"Pretty Good Year" (1994) UK Airplay 53
"Past the Mission" (1994) Australia (ARIA Singles Chart)[43] 116
"Past the Mission" (1994) Irish Singles Chart[44] 25
"Past the Mission" (1994) UK Singles Chart[22] 31
"Past the Mission" (1994) UK Airplay 73

Certifications

Region Certification Sales/shipments
Canada (Music Canada)[45] Gold 50,000
United Kingdom (BPI)[1] Platinum 300,000
United States (RIAA)[14] 2× Platinum 2,000,000
Summaries

*sales figures based on certification alone
^shipments figures based on certification alone
xunspecified figures based on certification alone

References

  1. 1 2 3 "BPI > Certified Awards > Search results for 'Under the Pink' (from bpi.co.uk)". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 2016-04-09.
  2. ↑ Raggett, Ned. "Under the Pink – Tori Amos". AllMusic. Retrieved 2015-08-10.
  3. ↑ Webber, Brad (February 10, 1994). "Tori Amos Under the Pink (Atlantic)". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 2015-08-10.
  4. ↑ Larkin, Colin (2007). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music (5th ed.). Omnibus Press. ISBN 0-857-12595-8.
  5. ↑ Sandow, Greg (February 4, 1994). "Under the Pink". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 2015-08-10.
  6. ↑ Rosenbluth, Jean (January 30, 1994). "Album Review". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2015-08-10.
  7. ↑ "Tori Amos: Under the Pink". NME: 40. 1994-02-05.
  8. ↑ Walters, Barry (April 16, 2015). "Tori Amos: Little Earthquakes / Under the Pink". Pitchfork Media. Retrieved 2015-04-16.
  9. ↑ Ramon, Alex (June 2, 2015). "Tori Amos: Little Earthquakes / Under the Pink (reissues)". PopMatters. Retrieved 2015-06-20.
  10. ↑ St. Leger, Marie Elsie (February 24, 1994). "Under The Pink". Rolling Stone (676). Retrieved 2015-08-10.
  11. ↑ Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian, eds. (2004). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide. Simon & Schuster. pp. 17–18. ISBN 0-743-20169-8.
  12. ↑ "Official Albums Chart Top 100 > 06 February 1994 - 12 February 1994". The Official UK Charts Company. Retrieved 2016-04-09.
  13. 1 2 "Billboard > Artists / Tori Amos > Chart History > Billboard 200". Billboard. Retrieved 2016-04-09.
  14. 1 2 "RIAA > Gold & Platinum > Tori Amos". RIAA. Retrieved 2016-04-09.
  15. ↑ Alternative Rock: 500 CDs You Must Own
  16. ↑
  17. ↑ UCLA Interview, UCLA Interview.
  18. ↑ Under the Pink: Song Book, Under the Pink: Song Book.
  19. ↑ "Under the Pink (Deluxe Edition)". Amazon.com. February 2014. Retrieved 2015-02-01.
  20. ↑ "Bee-Sides". yessaid.com.
  21. ↑ "Bee-Sides". yessaid.com.
  22. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Official Charts > Tori Amos". The Official UK Charts Company. Retrieved 2016-04-09.
  23. 1 2 "Billboard > Artists / Tori Amos > Chart History > The Hot 100". Billboard. Retrieved 2016-04-09.
  24. ↑ "ARIA Report > New Releases 14th November 1994 (from the ARIA Report Issue No. 248 – Week Ending 13th November 1994)". ARIA. Retrieved 2016-04-09.
  25. 1 2 "Screen shot from Gavin Ryan's Australia's Music Charts 1988-2010 book". Mt. Martha, VIC, Australia: Moonlight Publishing. Retrieved 2015-11-12.
  26. ↑ "australian-charts.com > Tori Amos – Under the Pink (album)". Hung Medien. Retrieved 2016-04-09.
  27. ↑ "austriancharts.at > Tori Amos – Under the Pink" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved 2016-04-09.
  28. ↑ "Offizielle Deutsche Charts > Tori Amos – Under the Pink (album)" (in German). GfK Entertainment. Retrieved 2016-04-09.
  29. ↑ "dutchcharts.nl > Tori Amos – Under the Pink" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 2016-04-09.
  30. ↑ "charts.org.nz > Tori Amos – Under the Pink (album)". Hung Medien. Retrieved 2016-04-09.
  31. ↑ "swedishcharts.com > Tori Amos – Under the Pink (album)". Hung Medien. Retrieved 2016-04-09.
  32. ↑ "hitparade.ch > Tori Amos – Under the Pink" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved 2016-04-09.
  33. ↑ "Australian Charts > Tori Amos – Cornflake Girl (song)". Hung Medien. Retrieved 2016-04-09.
  34. ↑ "Offizielle Deutsche Charts > Tori Amos – Cornflake Girl (single)" (in German). Retrieved 2016-04-09.
  35. ↑ "The Irish Charts – All there is to know > Search results for 'Cornflake Girl' (from irishcharts.ie)". Fireball Media. Retrieved 2016-04-09.
  36. ↑ "dutchcharts.nl > Tori Amos – Cornflake Girl" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 2016-04-09.
  37. ↑ "charts.org.nz > Tori Amos – Cornflake Girl (song)". Hung Medien. Retrieved 2016-04-09.
  38. 1 2 "Billboard > Artists / Tori Amos > Chart History > Alternative Songs". Billboard. Retrieved 2016-04-09.
  39. ↑ "The ARIA Australian Top 100 Singles Chart – Week Ending 19 Jun 1994". ARIA. Retrieved 2016-04-09.
  40. 1 2 Ryan, Gavin (2011). Australia's Music Charts 1988–2010. Mt. Martha, VIC, Australia: Moonlight Publishing.
  41. ↑ "The ARIA Australian Top 100 Singles Chart – Week Ending 08 Jan 1995". ARIA. Retrieved 2016-04-09.
  42. ↑ "The Irish Charts – All there is to know > Search results for 'Pretty Good Year' (from irishcharts.ie)". Fireball Media. Retrieved 2016-04-09.
  43. ↑ "Response from ARIA re: chart inquiry, received 2014-06-17". imgur.com. Archived from the original on 2014-11-29. Retrieved 2016-04-09.
  44. ↑ "The Irish Charts – All there is to know > Search results for 'Past the Mission' (from irishcharts.ie)". Fireball Media. Retrieved 2016-04-09.
  45. ↑ "Canadian album certifications – Tori Amos – Under the Pink". Music Canada.
Preceded by
Tease Me by Chaka Demus and Pliers		 UK number one album
February 12, 1994 – February 18, 1994 		Succeeded by
The Cross of Changes by Enigma
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