Not a Pretty Girl
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| Not a Pretty Girl | ||
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| Studio album by Ani DiFranco | ||
| Released | July 18, 1995 | |
| Recorded | ??? | |
| Genre | Indie Rock | |
| Length | 56:55 | |
| Label | Righteous Babe | |
| Producer(s) | Ani DiFranco | |
| Professional reviews | ||
|---|---|---|
| Ani DiFranco chronology | ||
| Out of Range (1994) |
Not a Pretty Girl (1995) |
Dilate (1996) |
Not A Pretty Girl is the sixth studio album released by singer-songwriter Ani DiFranco on her own record label, Righteous Babe Records. Cited by many fans as her finest work, the 1995 album extended the punk-edged folksinger's early formula of acoustic guitar and drums to a passionate crescendo. On subsequent records, DiFranco would add electric guitar, horns, band members and guest musicians, but on Not A Pretty Girl she belts out her guitar licks and her political-yet-personal lyrics accompanied most often by Andy Stochansky's fitful and emotional percussion alone.
There are many signature DiFranco moments on this album: the title track's solemn chords and feminist message; the unapologetic physical cravings of "Shy" and "Light of Some Kind"; the lambasting of the music industry on "The Million You Never Made"; the brief yet powerful spoken-word track "Tiptoe"; the joyous tranquility of "32 Flavors"; and the political activism of "Crime for Crime" and "Coming Up."
Not A Pretty Girl stands as a watershed album for DiFranco. It also intensified the word-of-mouth buzz and the occasional nod from alternative media, which are the predominant modes of publicity for DiFranco, who shuns the corporate music industry and as a result gets little airplay on commercial radio.
As a small rebellion in CD design, the case of Not A Pretty Girl is designed to be looked at 'the wrong way round', with the spine on the right hand side rather than the left.
[edit] Track listing
(all songs by DiFranco)
- "Worthy" – 4:31
- "Tiptoe" – :36
- "Cradle and All" – 4:18
- "Shy" – 4:43
- "Sorry I Am" – 4:45
- "Light of Some Kind" – 4:07
- "Not a Pretty Girl" – 3:55
- "The Million You Never Made" – 4:18
- "Hour Follows Hour" – 6:01
- "32 Flavors" – 6:07
- "Asking Too Much" – 2:55
- "This Bouquet" – 2:28
- "Crime for Crime" – 5:42
- "Coming Up" – 4:45
- "32 Flavors" [live bonus track] – 4:47
[edit] Personnel
- Ani DiFranco Guitar, Vocals, Producer
- Andy Stochansky, percussion
[edit] Production
- Producer: Ani DiFranco
- Engineer: Ed Stone
| Ani DiFranco |
| Discography |
|---|
| Studio Albums: Ani DiFranco (album) | Not So Soft | Imperfectly | Puddle Dive | Like I Said: Songs 1990-91 | Out of Range | Not a Pretty Girl| Dilate | Little Plastic Castle| Up Up Up Up Up Up | To the Teeth| Revelling/Reckoning| Evolve | Educated Guess| Knuckle Down | Reprieve |
| Live albums: An Acoustic Evening With | Living in Clip | Women in (E)motion | So Much Shouting, So Much Laughter | Atlanta - 10.9.03 | Sacramento - 10.25.03 Portland - 4.7.04 | Boston - 11.16.03 | Chicago - 1.17.04 | Madison - 1.25.04 | Rome - 11.15.04 | Carnegie Hall - 4.6.02 |
| EPs More Joy, Less Shame| Little Plastic Remixes| Swing Set |
| Demos Demo tape |
| Related articles |
| Righteous Babe Records | Anti-folk |
