Whaler (album)

Template:Use mdy dates {{safesubst:#invoke:Unsubst-infobox||$params=italic_title,name,type,longtype,artist,cover,border,alt,caption,released,recorded,venue,studio,genre,length,language,label,director,producer,compiler,chronology,prev_title,prev_year,year,next_title,next_year,misc|$extra=italic_title,longtype,border,caption,language,director,compiler,chronology,year,misc|$aliases=italic title>italic_title,Italic title>italic_title,Name>name,Type>type,image>cover,Cover>cover,Border>border,Alt>alt,Caption>caption,Longtype>longtype,Artist>artist,Released>released,Recorded>recorded,Venue>venue,Studio>studio,Genre>genre,Length>length,Language>language,Label>label,Director>director,Producer>producer,Compiler>compiler,Chronology>chronology,Misc>misc|$flags=override|$B={{#ifeq:{{#invoke:Is infobox in lead|main|[Ii]nfobox [Aa]lbum}}|true|{{#if:Template:Has short description | |{{#if: August 2, 1994 | Template:Short description}}}}}}{{#invoke:Infobox|infobox}}Template:Template otherTemplate:Category handlerTemplate:Main other{{#invoke:Check for unknown parameters|check|unknown=Template:Main other|preview=Page using Template:Infobox album with unknown parameter "_VALUE_"|ignoreblank=y|italic_title |type |name |image |cover |border |alt |caption |longtype |artist |released |recorded |venue |studio |genre |length |language |label |director |producer |compiler |prev_title|prev_year|next_title|next_year|chronology|year|misc}}{{#if:{{#invoke:String|match|error_category=Music infoboxes with Module:String errors|A|1=Tongues and Tails1992Timbre1999studioWhalerSophie B. Hawkins - Whaler.jpgSophie B. HawkinsAugust 2, 1994March – June 1994Pop47:48ColumbiaStephen Lipsonx|2=</?t[drh][ >]|nomatch=}}|Template:Main other}}Template:Main other}} Template:Album ratings Whaler is the second album by American singer-songwriter Sophie B. Hawkins, released in 1994 on Columbia Records. The release was preceded by the single "Right Beside You", which reached No. 56 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart,<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> but did much better in the UK, where it peaked at No. 13.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

The album was not as commercially successful as her debut album Tongues and Tails two years earlier; however, the sales picked up after the third single, "As I Lay Me Down", released at the beginning of 1995,<ref name=":0">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> went to No. 1 on the Adult Contemporary chart. Consequently, the album managed to climb to No. 65 on the Billboard 200 chart.

Critical reception

The critical reception was mixed. Paul Evans of Rolling Stone said that the album did not quite live up to the standard and expectations set by her debut.<ref name="Evans">Template:Cite magazine</ref> The Los Angeles Times review noted that Hawkins tries to knit "a crazy quilt of styles" trying to combine different influences but the experimentation does not pay off and "unravels at the seams", and the only tracks that do work are the mainstream ones, such as the "dance-floor-friendly" opening track "Right Beside You" and the "anguished" ballad "I Need Nothing Else".<ref name="Rosenbluth">Template:Cite news</ref> Other reviews were more favorable, praising the album's subdued and subtle melodies, which make the album overall more consistent than her debut outing,<ref name=":0" /> and describing some tracks as "irresistibly catchy".<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref>

Track listing

All songs written by Sophie B. Hawkins, except where noted.

1. "Right Beside You" (Chertoff, Hawkins, Lerman) – 4:47
2. "Did We Not Choose Each Other" – 4:25
3. "Don't Don't Tell Me No" – 4:53
4. "As I Lay Me Down" – 4:08
5. "Swing from Limb to Limb (My Home Is in Your Jungle)" – 4:15
6. "True Romance" – 2:23
7. "Let Me Love You Up" – 3:26
8. "Only Love (The Ballad of Sleeping Beauty)" – 5:05
9. "I Need Nothing Else" – 4:17
10. "Sometimes I See" – 4:40
11. "Mr. Tugboat Hello" – 5:30

Personnel

Musicians

• Sophie B. Hawkins – percussion, keyboards, vocals
• Neil Conti – drums
• Luís Jardim – percussion
• Stephen Lipson – bass
• Peter-John Vettese – keyboards

Production

• Producer: Steve Lipson
• Engineer: Heff Moraes
• Programming: Sophie B. Hawkins, Steve Lipson

Charts

Album

Template:Album chartTemplate:Album chartTemplate:Album chartTemplate:Album chartTemplate:Album chartTemplate:Album chartTemplate:Album chart

Chart (1994–1995)	Peak position
European Top 100 Albums (Music & Media)<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref>	93
US Cash Box Top 100 Pop Albums<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref>	60

Singles

Year	Single	Chart	Peak position
1994	"Right Beside You"	Billboard Hot 100	56
		Top 40 Mainstream	24
1995	"As I Lay Me Down"	Adult Contemporary	1
		Adult Top 40	1
		Billboard Hot 100	6
		Top 40 Mainstream	3
1996	"Only Love (The Ballad of Sleeping Beauty)"	Adult Contemporary	22
		Adult Top 40	19
		The Billboard Hot 100	49
		Top 40 Mainstream	22

External links

• Full lyrics of all tracks at official website