| 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; on New Beginning they had been somewhat longer.
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 |
Cover versions
- "Three Little Birds" is a Bob Marley cover. The song was originally released on the album Exodus in 1977.
- "House of the Rising Sun" is a cover of a traditional folk song. It was firstly released by Ashley and Foster on the single Rising Sun Blues under the same title in 1933.
Trivia
- "Three Little Birds" was recorded at the TNT concert and television special One Love: An All Star Tribute to Bob Marley in Oracabessa on December the 4th, 1999.
- "House of the Rising Sun" was recorded at the Greek Theatre, Berkeley and the A&M Studios in Los Angeles in 1990. It seems, that it is actually more a live in the studio recording than a real live recording because you don't hear any crowd noise.
- "Mountains o' Things" was recorded at the Montreux Jazz Festival on July the 4th, 1988.
- "Behind the Wall" was recorded at The Donmar Warehouse in London on March the 25th, 1988.
- "Baby Can I Hold You" is the same version as the one that was originally released on the album Tracy Chapman in 1988.
Personnel
- Tracy Chapman – acoustic guitar, bouzouki, harp, vocals, background vocals, baritone guitar, record producer, mixing, art design
Additional musicians
- Alex Acuña – percussion
- Rock Deadrick – vocals, background vocals
- Tommy Eyre – organ, keyboard
- Mike Finnigan – organ
- Denny Fongheiser – percussion, drums
- Emmylou Harris – vocals
- Howard Hersh – bass guitar
- Steve Hunter – dulcimer, lap steel guitar, baritone guitar
- Larry Klein – bass guitar
- JayDee Mannes – pedal steel guitar
- 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
Certifications
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| France (SNEP)[22] | 2× Gold | 200,000* |
| Germany (BVMI)[23] | Gold | 150,000^ |
| New Zealand (RMNZ)[24] | Gold | 7,500^ |
| Switzerland (IFPI Switzerland)[25] | Gold | 25,000^ |
| United States (RIAA)[26] | Gold | 500,000^ |
| * Sales figures based on certification alone. | ||
- Singles
| Year | Single | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | "Telling Stories" | Billboard Adult Top 40 | 8 |
| Billboard Bubbling Under The Hot 100 | 8 |
References
- ^ "Tracy Chapman – Telling Stories (Album)". swedishcharts.com. Retrieved December 14, 2012.
- ^ Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. Telling Stories at AllMusic
- ^ "Robert Christgau review". Robertchristgau.com. Retrieved February 3, 2012.
- ^ Rolling Stone review Archived July 23, 2009, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Rolling Stone Album Guide review
- ^ "Australiancharts.com – Tracy Chapman – Telling Stories". Hung Medien. Retrieved September 1, 2020.
- ^ "Austriancharts.at – Tracy Chapman – Telling Stories" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved September 1, 2020.
- ^ "Lescharts.com – Tracy Chapman – Telling Stories". Hung Medien. Retrieved September 1, 2020.
- ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – Tracy Chapman – Telling Stories" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved September 1, 2020.
- ^ "Irish-charts.com – Discography Tracy Chapman". Hung Medien. Retrieved September 1, 2020.
- ^ "Italiancharts.com – Tracy Chapman – Telling Stories". Hung Medien. Retrieved September 1, 2020.
- ^ "Charts.nz – Tracy Chapman – Telling Stories". Hung Medien. Retrieved September 1, 2020.
- ^ "Norwegiancharts.com – Tracy Chapman – Telling Stories". Hung Medien. Retrieved September 1, 2020.
- ^ "Swedishcharts.com – Tracy Chapman – Telling Stories". Hung Medien. Retrieved September 1, 2020.
- ^ "Swisscharts.com – Tracy Chapman – Telling Stories". Hung Medien. Retrieved September 1, 2020.
- ^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved September 1, 2020.
- ^ "Tracy Chapman Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved September 1, 2020.
- ^ "Jahreshitparade Alben 2000". austriancharts.at. Retrieved September 1, 2020.
- ^ "Top de l'année Top Albums 2000" (in French). SNEP. Retrieved September 1, 2020.
- ^ "Top 100 Album-Jahrescharts". GfK Entertainment (in German). offiziellecharts.de. Retrieved September 1, 2020.
- ^ "Schweizer Jahreshitparade 2000". hitparade.ch. Retrieved September 1, 2020.
- ^ "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 (Tracy Chapman; '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. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Album, then click SEARCH.