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The Burdens of Being Upright
Studio album by
Tracy Bonham
ReleasedMarch 19, 1996 (1996-03-19)
RecordedSummer 1995
StudioFort Apache Studios,
Cambridge, MA
GenreAlternative rock
Length35:28
LabelIsland
Producer
Tracy Bonham chronology
Liverpool Sessions EP
(1995) 		The Burdens of Being Upright
(1996) 		Down Here
(2000)
Singles from The Burdens of Being Upright
  1. "Mother Mother"
    Released: March 12, 1996[1]
  2. "Sharks Can't Sleep"
    Released: 1996
  3. "The One"
    Released: 1996

The Burdens of Being Upright is the debut studio album by American singer-songwriter Tracy Bonham, released on March 19, 1996, by Island Records.[2][3]

Content

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The Burdens of Being Upright was recorded in the summer of 1995 at Fort Apache Studios in Cambridge, Massachusetts.[4] Referencing this album, in 2015 Bonham said,

That whole album was my experiment with getting a guitar. I was rebelling. It was just raw. I was like, ‘Just get out and do it; get behind a microphone and just scream.’ Twenty years ago I had more doubts; I thought, ‘I can’t just stand there and do that’ — which is when I knew I had to do it.[5]

The album cover (a reference to German photographer August Sander's work "The Bricklayer") was photographed by George DuBose, who was the in-house photographer at the hip hop label Cold Chillin' Records.

Commercial performance

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The Burdens of Being Upright debuted at number 136 on the Billboard 200 chart dated April 27, 1996,[6] and later reached its peak position of number 54 on the chart on June 15, 1996.[7] It remained on the chart for 25 weeks.[8] On November 12, 1996, the album was certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), signifying the shipment of 500,000 copies of the album.[9]

Critical reception

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Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[10]
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music[11]
Entertainment WeeklyA[12]
Kerrang![13]
MusicHound Rock[14]
NME7/10[15]
Seventeen[16]

Rolling Stone noted that the album "tells a coherent, largely autobiographical story about a girl getting even with the obnoxious people who piss her off and underestimate her... With music ranging from laid-back Liz Phair-style storytelling to hard-edge alternative arena rock, she blasts ex-boyfriends ('Navy Bean', 'The One'), ridicules rock stars ('Kisses') and makes a pre-emptive strike at critics who might be tempted to label her ('One Hit Wonder')."[17]

Track listing

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All tracks are written by Tracy Bonham

No.TitleLength
1."Mother Mother"3:00
2."Navy Bean"2:49
3."Tell It to the Sky"4:05
4."Kisses"2:20
5."Brain Crack"1:05
6."The One"3:26
7."One Hit Wonder"3:01
8."Sharks Can't Sleep"4:33
9."Bulldog"2:07
10."Every Breath"2:33
11."30 Seconds"3:14
12."The Real"3:16

Personnel

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Credits adapted from the album's liner notes.[18]

Charts

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Chart (1996) Peak
position
Australian Albums (ARIA Charts)[19] 31
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[19] 26
Norwegian Albums (VG-lista)[19] 27
New Zealand Album (RMNZ)[19] 46
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[19] 48
US Heatseekers Albums (Billboard)[20] 9
US Billboard 200[7] 54

Certifications

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Region Certification Certified units/sales
United States (RIAA)[21] Gold 500,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

Awards

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Grammy Award Nominations

Year Nominee Category
1996 "Mother Mother" Best Female Rock Vocal Performance
1996 The Burdens of Being Upright Best Alternative Album

References

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  1. ^ "Tracy Bonham: Mother Mother" (PDF). Radio & Records. No. 1136. March 8, 1996. p. 78. Retrieved July 27, 2021.
  2. ^ Dawn, Randee (April 1996). "Reviews". CMJ New Music Monthly (32). CMJ Network, Inc.: 28. ISSN 1074-6978.
  3. ^ Borzillo, Carrie (May 11, 1996). "Island's Bonham Hits". Billboard. Vol. 108, no. 19. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. pp. 1, 74. ISSN 0006-2510.
  4. ^ Fritz, J. (March 2, 1996). "Tracy Bonham – The Burdens of Being Upright – Interview | Lollipop Magazine". Lollipop. Archived from the original on February 18, 2023. Retrieved February 19, 2023.
  5. ^ Laban, Linda (August 27, 2015). "Tracy Bonham: From 'Mother, Mother' to Exploring Motherhood on 'Wax and Gold'". The Village Voice. Retrieved May 8, 2021.
  6. ^ Anon. (April 27, 1996). "The Billboard 200". Billboard. Vol. 108, no. 17. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. p. 97. ISSN 0006-2510.
  7. ^ a b Anon. (June 15, 1996). "The Billboard 200". Billboard. Vol. 108, no. 24. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. p. 92. ISSN 0006-2510.
  8. ^ Chinen, Nate (July 11, 2010). "Foot in the City and Cowboy Boot In the Country". The New York Times: AR19 – via ProQuest.
  9. ^ "Gold & Platinum". RIAA. Retrieved February 19, 2023.
  10. ^ AllMusic Review
  11. ^ Larkin, Colin, ed. (1998). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Vol. 1. MUZE Inc. p. 658. ISBN 0-333-74134-X.
  12. ^ Flaherty, Mike (March 15, 1996). "The Burdens of Being Upright". EW.com. Archived from the original on February 18, 2023. Retrieved February 18, 2023.
  13. ^ Elliott, Paul (June 8, 1996). "Albums". Kerrang!. No. 600. EMAP. p. 45.
  14. ^ Knopper, Steve (1999). MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide. Visible Ink Press. p. 141 – via Internet Archive.
  15. ^ Morgan, Emma (June 7, 1996). "NME.COM - TRACY BONHAM - The Burdens Of Being Upright - 6/7/1996". NME. Archived from the original on August 17, 2000. Retrieved March 8, 2023.
  16. ^ Anon. (April 1996). "Music Reviews". Seventeen: 128 – via WayBack Machine.
  17. ^ Lieb, Kristin (March 21, 1996). "Tracy Bonham enjoys her winning streak: Simply the best". Rolling Stone. No. 730. p. 28.
  18. ^ The Burdens of Being Upright (booklet). Tracy Bonham. Island. 1996. 314-524 187-2.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  19. ^ a b c d e "norwegiancharts.com - Tracy Bonham - The Burdens Of Being Upright". norwegiancharts.com. Archived from the original on February 18, 2023. Retrieved February 18, 2023.
  20. ^ Anon. (April 27, 1996). "Billboard's Heatseekers Albums Chart". Billboard. Vol. 108, no. 17. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. p. 18.
  21. ^ "American album certifications – Tracy Bonham – The Burdens of Being Upright". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved February 18, 2023.
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