| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [1] |
| Entertainment Weekly | A[2] |
| The Daily Vault Music Reviews | A[3] |
| Rolling Stone |  [4] |
| The Rolling Stone Album Guide | [5] |
99.9F° (Ninety-Nine Point Nine Fahrenheit Degrees) is the fourth album by American singer and songwriter Suzanne Vega. Released in 1992, the album marked a significant departure for Vega, as she embraced a more electronic, experimental sound. It peaked at No. 86 on Billboard magazine's album chart and was Vega's fourth Top 20 album in the U.K. The single "Blood Makes Noise" reached No.1 on the Billboard Modern Rock chart.
The album was certified gold (500,000 copies sold) by the RIAA in October 1997. It was certified silver in the UK (60,000 copies sold) by the BPI in March 1993.
99.9F° was the first of two of Vega's albums to be produced by Mitchell Froom, whom she later married.
Track listing
All tracks are written by Suzanne Vega except where noted.
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Rock in This Pocket (Song of David)" | 3:20 | |
| 2. | "Blood Makes Noise" | 2:28 | |
| 3. | "In Liverpool" | 4:40 | |
| 4. | "99.9F°" | 3:16 | |
| 5. | "Blood Sings" | 3:17 | |
| 6. | "Fat Man and Dancing Girl" | Vega, Mitchell Froom | 2:19 |
| 7. | "(If You Were) In My Movie" | 3:05 | |
| 8. | "As a Child" | 2:55 | |
| 9. | "Bad Wisdom" | 3:23 | |
| 10. | "When Heroes Go Down" | 1:54 | |
| 11. | "As Girls Go" | 3:27 | |
| 12. | "Song of Sand" | Vega, Nils Petter Molvær | 3:05 |
| 13. | "Private Goes Public" (European and Japanese bonus track) | 1:57 |
Personnel
- Suzanne Vega – vocals, acoustic guitar
- Mitchell Froom –keyboards, string arrangement on 12
- Tchad Blake – electric guitar on 3, 4, 6, 10
- David Hidalgo – electric guitar on 1, 2, 3, 4, 7, 8, 11
- Bruce Thomas – bass guitar
- Jerry Marotta – drums, percussion
Additional personnel
- Richard Pleasance – electric guitar on 1, 3, 10
- Michael Visceglia – fretless bass guitar on 5
- Richard Thompson – guitar solo on 11
- Greg Smith – baritone saxophone on 8, 11
- Jerry Scheff – double bass on 6, 12
- Marc Shulman – bouzouki on 5
- Sid Page – 1st violin on 12
- Joel Derouin – 2nd violin on 12
- Maria Newman – viola on 12
- Larry Corbett – cello on 12
- Suzie Katayama – copyist on 12
Technical
- Ronald K. Fierstein – executive producer
- Tchad Blake – engineer, mixing
- Len Peltier, Suzanne Vega – art direction
Charts
| Chart (1992) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australian Albums (ARIA)[6] | 56 |
| Dutch Albums (MegaCharts)[7] | 70 |
| German Albums (Media Control)[8] | 27 |
| New Zealand Albums (Recorded Music NZ)[9] | 38 |
| Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[10] | 45 |
| Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[11] | 24 |
| UK Albums (OCC)[12] | 20 |
| US Billboard 200[13] | 86 |
Singles
| Year | Single | Chart | Peak position |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1992 | "99.9 F°" | UK Singles (Official Chart Company)[14] | 46 |
| US Alternative Songs (Billboard)[15] | 13 | ||
| "Blood Makes Noise" | Canada Top Singles (RPM)[16] | 63 | |
| New Zealand (RIANZ)[17] | 42 | ||
| UK Singles (Official Charts Company)[14] | 60 | ||
| US Alternative Songs (Billboard)[15] | 1 | ||
| "In Liverpool" | UK Singles (Official Charts Company)[14] | 52 | |
| 1993 | "When Heroes Go Down" | UK Singles (Official Charts Company)[14] | 58 |
Certifications and sales
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| United Kingdom (BPI)[18] | Silver | 60,000^ |
| United States (RIAA)[19] | Gold | 500,000^ |
| Summaries | ||
| Worldwide | — | 650,000[20] |
| ^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. | ||
References
- ^ "Review". AllMusic.
- ^ Browne, David. "99.9 F review". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 30 November 2016.
- ^ "The Daily Vault Music Reviews: 99.9 F°". Daily Vault. Retrieved 3 June 2016.
- ^ "Suzanne Vega - 99.9 Fo CD Album". Retrieved 3 June 2016.
- ^ "Acclaimed Music - 99.9 F°". Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 3 June 2016.
- ^ Ryan, Gavin (2011). Australia's Music Charts 1988-2010. Mt. Martha, VIC, Australia: Moonlight Publishing.
- ^ "Suzanne Vega – 99.9 °F" (in Dutch). Dutchcharts.nl. Hung Medien. Retrieved June 8, 2014.
- ^ "Suzanne Vega - 99.9 °F". Charts.de. Media Control. Retrieved June 8, 2014.
- ^ "Suzanne Vega – 99.9 °F". charts.nz. Hung Medien. Retrieved June 8, 2014.
- ^ "Suzanne Vega – 99.9 °F". Swedishcharts.com. Hung Medien. Retrieved June 8, 2014.
- ^ "Suzanne Vega – 99.9 °F". Swisscharts.com. Hung Medien. Retrieved June 8, 2014.
- ^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved June 8, 2014.
- ^ "Suzanne Vega Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved June 8, 2014.
- ^ a b c d "SUZANNE VEGA - full Official Chart History - Official Charts Company". Retrieved 3 June 2016.
- ^ a b "Suzanne Vega - Chart history - Billboard". Retrieved 3 June 2016.
- ^ "Image : RPM Weekly - Library and Archives Canada". RPM. Retrieved 21 March 2018.
- ^ "SUZANNE VEGA - BLOOD MAKES NOISE (SONG)". Retrieved 21 March 2018.
- ^ "British album certifications – Suzanne Vega – 99.9F°". British Phonographic Industry. Select albums in the Format field. Select Silver in the Certification field. Type 99.9F° in the "Search BPI Awards" field and then press Enter.
- ^ "American album certifications – Suzanne Vega – 99.9F°". Recording Industry Association of America. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Album, then click SEARCH.
- ^ Boehm, Mike (26 November 1996). "In the Thick of It : Motherhood Has Changed Singer-Songwriter Suzanne Vega's Approach to Work--and Life". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 9 September 2019.