The Yellow Album

The Yellow Album
Studio album by The Simpsons
Released November 24, 1998
Recorded January 1992 – December 1997
Genre Soundtrack, hip hop
Length 46:35[1]
Label Geffen
Producer Matt Groening,
David X. Cohen,
Anthony D’amico,
John Pickles
The Simpsons chronology
Songs in the Key of Springfield
(1997)Songs in the Key of Springfield1997		 The Yellow Album
(1998)		 Go Simpsonic with The Simpsons
(1999)Go Simpsonic with The Simpsons1999
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[2]

The Yellow Album is The Simpsons second album of originally recorded songs, released as a follow-up to the 1990 album The Simpsons Sing the Blues. Though it was released in 1998, it had been recorded years earlier, after the success of the first album. The title is a play on the name of The Beatles' highly popular self-titled 1968 album, commonly known as "The White Album", with the skin color of the characters of The Simpsons. In addition, the cover is a parody of The Beatles' 1967 album, Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band.

The parody was also used for a couch gag in the Season 8 Simpsons episodes "Bart After Dark" and "The Itchy & Scratchy & Poochie Show" (until it was replaced in reruns of the latter episode with the couch gag from "Kamp Krusty," where the Simpsons find the Flintstones on their couch and Fred invites Homer to sit with him). A similar version of it is on the inside of the United Kingdom version of The Simpsons Season 9 DVD. An outtake named "My Name is Bart" is a parody of musician Prince's 1992 single "My Name Is Prince".[3] In 1993, it was also reported that Matt Groening had penned a rap song to be performed by Bart.[3]

James L. Brooks, producer of the show, wanted to produce a follow-up album based on the popular reception of the debut, but creator Matt Groening was against it. The cast recorded a second album, titled The Yellow Album, but it was not released until 1998, where it suffered poor reception.[4] The album was to be released in February 1993 and feature Prince, Linda Ronstadt, and C&C Music Factory.[5] Plans were in the works for music videos to accompany The Yellow Album.[6]

Production

Greg Haver cowrote and produced "Ten Commandments of Bart."[7]

Track listing

Track number Title Performers Length[8]
1 Love? Bart Simpson 3:50
2 Sisters Are Doin' It for Themselves (featuring Annie Lennox) Lisa Simpson, Ann Wilson & Nancy Wilson of Heart, Patty and Selma Bouvier 4:00
3 Funny How Time Slips Away (originally by Willie Nelson) Homer Simpson and Linda Ronstadt 4:06
4 Twenty-Four Hours a Day Apu 4:24
5 Ten Commandments of Bart Bart Simpson 6:08
6 I Just Can't Help Myself Bart Simpson, Lisa Simpson, Homer Simpson 4:58
7 She's Comin' Out Swingin' Lisa Simpson and the P-Funk All-Stars 6:37
8 Anyone Else Bart Simpson and Lisa Simpson 3:56
9 Every Summer With You Marge Simpson and Homer Simpson 3:36
10 Hail to Thee, Kamp Krusty Children's Choir, feat. Otto Mann, Lisa Simpson, Martin Prince, Bart Simpson 5:00
Bonus Track (found on promotional copies) My Name Is Bart Bart Simpson 4:56

Critical reception

The album received mixed to negative reviews.

The Star-Telegram compared the album to Chef Aid, arguing that "the subversion [included in The Simpsons and South Park] is only skin-deep, especially when both shows thrive on the type of money-grubbing merchandising that results in junk like Chef Aid: The South Park Album and The Simpsons The Yellow Album, both released just in time for Christmas".[9] The Tampa Bay Times said the album "is an uninspired collection whose best feature is a too-tiny takeoff on the cover of Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band", noting that songs such as Ten Commandments of Bart sound dated, though others like Sisters Are Doin' It for Themselves are praiseworthy.[10] Allmusic gave the album a rating of 2 out of 5 stars.[1]

Nevertheless, there was some hype leading up to the release of the album. Entertainment Weekly writer David Browne said he "eagerly await[ed]" it in March 1993, a month before it was set to be released.[11]

References

  1. 1 2 Review (1998-11-24). "The Yellow Album - The Simpsons | Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards". AllMusic. Retrieved 2013-09-18.
  2. ↑ Allmusic review
  3. 1 2 "Bart Me Up". SPIN. SPIN Media LLC. 8 (10): 23. February 1993. ISSN 0886-3032.
  4. ↑ Ortved, John (2009). The Simpsons: An Uncensored, Unauthorized History. Faber and Faber. ISBN 0-86547-988-7.
  5. ↑ "Archives | The Dallas Morning News, dallasnews.com". Nl.newsbank.com. 1992-10-29. Retrieved 2013-09-18.
  6. ↑ Stephanie DuBois (December 15, 1992). "Prince will sing with Bart Simpson". Rome News-Tribune. Retrieved April 23, 2011.
  7. ↑ "Official New Zealand Music Chart June 1, 2005 | Scoop News". Scoop.co.nz. 2005-06-01. Retrieved 2013-09-18.
  8. ↑ "Simpsons, The - The Yellow Album (CD, Album) at Discogs". Discogs.com. Retrieved 2013-09-18.
  9. ↑ . 1998-12-04 http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_product=ST&s_site=dfw&p_multi=ST&p_theme=realcities&p_action=search&p_maxdocs=200&p_topdoc=1&p_text_direct-0=0EB042F020A75927&p_field_direct-0=document_id&p_perpage=10&p_sort=YMD_date:D&s_trackval=GooglePM. Missing or empty |title= (help)
  10. ↑ "Some favorite TV shows now featured on albums Series: HOME & GARDEN". Pqasb.pqarchiver.com. 1998-12-05. Retrieved 2013-09-18.
  11. ↑ Browne, David (1993-03-26). "I Act, Therefore I Sing". EW.com. Retrieved 2013-09-18.
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