Happy Town (album)
Happy Town is the third album by the American singer-songwriter Jill Sobule, released in 1997. (see 1997 in music). The album contains the singles "Bitter" and "When My Ship Comes In" as well as the fan favorite "Half a Heart" and the satirical social commentary "Soldiers of Christ" where Sobule sings from the point of view of a Christian Conservative to illustrate the existence of homophobia in religion. "Love Is Never Equal" appeared in the 2005 Jenny McCarthy film, Dirty Love. The album sold 24,000 copies in the US within the first year of its release.
| Happy Town | ||||
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| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | March 18, 1997 | |||
| Genre | Adult alternative | |||
| Length | 46:23 | |||
| Label | Atlantic | |||
| Producer | Robin Eaton, Mark Goldenberg, Brad Jones | |||
| Jill Sobule chronology | ||||
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| Review scores | |
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| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |   |
| Rolling Stone |  |
"Bitter" peaked at No. 74 on the Australian ARIA singles chart in June 1997.[3] The album peaked at No. 83 on the Australian ARIA albums chart during the same month.[3]
The album cover illustration, which initially featured a Prozac pill, was changed to show a pair of test tubes when Wal-Mart refused to carry the album in its stores. The company asserted that the original image promoted drug abuse.[4]
Track listing
- "Bitter" (Richard Barone, Sobule) – 3:30
- "Happy Town" (Goldenberg, Sobule) – 3:46
- "Barren Egg" (Eaton, Sobule) – 3:37
- "Half a Heart" (DeMain, Sobule) – 3:47
- "When My Ship Comes In" (Eaton, Marvin Gaye, Ivy Jo Hunter, Sobule, William Stevenson) – 3:50
- "Clever" (Eaton, Sobule) – 3:18
- "I'm So Happy" (Eaton, Sobule) – 2:43
- "Little Guy" (Sobule) – 3:24
- "Underachiever" (Sobule) – 3:42
- "Love Is Never Equal" (Eaton, Sobule) – 3:15
- "Soldiers of Christ" (Eaton, Sobule) – 3:20
- "Attic" (Sobule) – 2:10
- "Sold My Soul" (Eaton, Sobule) – 3:35
- "Super 8" (Galdston, Sobule) – 2:26
Personnel
- Jill Sobule – vocals, acoustic guitar, bass guitar, guitar, percussion, drums, keyboards, ebo, vibraphone
- Sam Bacco – percussion
- George Bradfute – electric guitar
- Louis Brown – tuba, cornet
- Chris Carmichael – strings
- Steve Earle – electric guitar, vocals
- Robin Eaton – guitar
- Phil Galdston – keyboards
- Mark Goldenberg – guitar, keyboards, vocals
- Mickey Grimm – percussion, drums
- Jim Hoke – clarinet, flute, harmonica, autoharp, bass clarinet, soprano saxophone
- Byron House – upright bass
- Brad Jones – organ, bass guitar, piano, harmonium, keyboards, Moog synthesizer, vibraphone
- Viktor Krauss – upright bass
- Roger Moutenot – Moog synthesizer
- Al Perkins – pedal steel
- Ross Rice – bass guitar, piano, drums, harmonium, Wurlitzer
Production
- Producers: Robin Eaton, Mark Goldenberg, Brad Jones
- Engineers: Brad Jones, Dominick Maita, Elijah Shaw
- Mixing: Roger Moutenot
- Mixing assistants: Rich Cohan, Sandy Jenkins, Chris Stone
- Programming: Mark Goldenberg
- Photography: Annette Aurell
- Arranger: Phil Galdston
- Production Coordination: Barbara Moutenot
- Cover design: Brad Talbott
- Illustrations: Brad Talbott
- Background vocals: Bob, Jim, Mary Ellen and Matthew Sobule
References
- Allmusic review
- Rolling Stone review
- Ryan, Gavin (2011). Australia's Music Charts 1988–2010. Mt. Martha, VIC, Australia: Moonlight Publishing.
- Sobule, Jill (August 25, 2010). "I'm in the Newseum as an example of dumb censorship. And a song where I play drums!". Jill's Journal. Archived from the original on September 3, 2010. Retrieved August 26, 2010.