From the Choirgirl Hotel

From the Choirgirl Hotel (stylised in all lowercase) is the fourth studio album by American musician Tori Amos. It was released on May 5, 1998 on Atlantic Records. The album was Amos' first to be recorded at her own Martian Engineering Studios in Cornwall, England and was self-produced, with the mixing being handled by longtime collaborators Marcel van Limbeek and Mark Hawley, whom she had married in early 1998.

From the Choirgirl Hotel
Studio album by
Tori Amos
ReleasedMay 5, 1998
RecordedSeptember 1997 – February 1998
StudioMartian Engineering, Cornwall, England
Genre
Length54:11
LabelAtlantic
ProducerTori Amos
Tori Amos chronology
Boys for Pele
(1996)		 From the Choirgirl Hotel
(1998)		 To Venus and Back
(1999)
Singles from From the Choirgirl Hotel
  1. "Spark"
    Released: April 20, 1998
  2. "Jackie's Strength"
    Released: September 15, 1998
  3. "Cruel"/"Raspberry Swirl"
    Released: November 24, 1998

In contrast with the sparse, minimalist sound of Amos' previous albums, From the Choirgirl Hotel features a greater emphasis on full band arrangements. Additionally, the album sees Amos integrate elements of electronica, trip hop, and dance music. The album marks the first appearance of Matt Chamberlain on drums; he has gone on to contribute to the majority of Amos' albums ever since.

From the Choirgirl Hotel was commercially and critically successful. It peaked at number 5 in the US, becoming Amos' second straight top ten album in her home country, and reached number 6 in the UK. "Spark", the album's lead single, reached number 49 on the Billboard Hot 100, her highest position on the chart. Two further singles—"Jackie's Strength" and "Raspberry Swirl" / "Cruel"—were released, with the former reaching the top of the US Hot Dance Club Play chart. The album garnered two Grammy nominations – one for Best Alternative Music Performance, and another for Best Female Rock Vocal Performance (for "Raspberry Swirl"). Amos promoted the album with the "Plugged '98" tour, her first with a full band. Performances from the tour were included on the live disc of her next release, To Venus and Back.

Album description

The album began recording in September 1997, with mastering complete by early February 1998.[4] Following the trend set by 1996's Boys for Pele, Amos allowed several songs from the album to be remixed. Remixes of both "Raspberry Swirl" and "Jackie's Strength" were club hits. The album's theme dealt very closely with the first two in Amos's series of three miscarriages between 1996 and 1999.[5]

Thematically and conceptually, the "choirgirl hotel" of the title refers to the fictional, imaginary place where the songs "live". Amos pointed out that although the songs are recorded, they are also alive themselves – they can be re-modeled and reshaped in concert. Amos imagined the songs as living their own lives, all checking into the "choirgirl hotel" (i.e. the album) but living separate lives. In the artwork, Amos included a hand-drawn map detailing the stomping ground of these songs.[6]

The album artwork was created by the UK-based photographer, Katerina Jebb. The artwork features full-body color photocopies of Amos (in various couture outfits) as scanned by a human-sized photocopier.[7]

Critical reception
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[8]
Chicago Sun-Times[9]
Entertainment WeeklyB+[10]
The Guardian[11]
Los Angeles Times[12]
NME6/10[13]
Pitchfork6.7/10[14]
Q[15]
Rolling Stone[16]
Spin8/10[17]

"The kookiness isn't dominant, she's stopped the attention-seeking lyrics almost completely and, yes, her pianos don't try to be guitars too often," enthused John Aizlewood in Q.[15] "At last, she's putting the songs first, and the band-led From the Choirgirl Hotel is, by any reasonable yardstick, a glorious coming of age."[15]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Tori Amos

No.TitleLength
1."Spark"4:13
2."Cruel"4:07
3."Black-Dove (January)"4:38
4."Raspberry Swirl"3:58
5."Jackie's Strength"4:26
6."i i e e e"4:07
7."Liquid Diamonds"6:21
8."She's Your Cocaine"3:42
9."Northern Lad"4:19
10."Hotel"5:19
11."Playboy Mommy"4:08
12."Pandora's Aquarium"4:45
13."Purple People" (Japanese edition bonus track)4:12

Notes

  • The track 'Merman' was released as a pre-order bonus track*

B-sides

Like Amos's previous Atlantic albums, several songs recorded during the From the Choirgirl Hotel sessions were released as B-sides, and introduced into Amos's live performance repertoire. "Cooling," "Never Seen Blue," and "Beulah Land" were originally written and recorded for 1996's Boys for Pele album. Several tracks from a demo CD for the album leaked online in 2010, including "Violet's Eyes".[18] Parts of this song evolved into "Almost Rosey" and "Miracle" from 2007's American Doll Posse.

B-side title Single
"Purple People" "Spark" (1998) and Japanese edition bonus track of the album
"Bachelorette"
"Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" "Spark" (UK CD1) (1998)
"Do It Again" "Spark" (UK CD2) (1998)
"Cooling" "Spark" (UK CD2) (1998) (Recorded during Boys for Pele sessions)
"Never Seen Blue" "Jackie's Strength" (US) (1998) (Recorded during Boys for Pele sessions)
"Beulah Land"
"Merman" No Boundaries: A Benefit for the Kosovar Refugees (1998) and was released as a pre-order bonus track.
"Violet's Eyes" unreleased, leaked in 2010

Personnel

with:

Charts

Certifications
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
Canada (Music Canada)[34] Gold 50,000^
United Kingdom (BPI)[35] Gold 100,000^
United States (RIAA)[36] Platinum 1,000,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References
  1. Hunter, James (April 16, 1998). "From The Choirgirl Hotel". Rolling Stone. Retrieved August 10, 2015.
  2. Hunter, James (April 16, 1998). "From The Choirgirl Hotel". Rolling Stone. Retrieved August 10, 2015.
  3. Vowell, Sarah (June 1998). "Original Sinner". Spin. 14 (6): 127. Retrieved August 10, 2015.
  4. "MARK HAWLEY: Recording Tori Amos". Archived from the original on June 1, 2016. Retrieved May 3, 2016.
  5. "Vital Tori article from She Magazine in the UK – December 2003".
  6. "Tori, British Airways Highlife Magazine". May 1998. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  7. "HEREINMYHEAD.COM – artistic expressions – katerina jebb profile". Archived from the original on May 21, 2013. Retrieved February 22, 2007.
  8. Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "From the Choirgirl Hotel – Tori Amos". AllMusic. Retrieved August 10, 2015.
  9. DeRogatis, Jim (April 30, 1998). "Tori Amos, 'from the choirgirl hotel'". Chicago Sun-Times. Archived from the original on March 4, 2017. Retrieved August 10, 2015.
  10. Browne, David (May 4, 1998). "From the Choirgirl Hotel". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved August 10, 2015.
  11. Sullivan, Caroline (May 1, 1998). "Tori Amos: From the Choirgirl Hotel (eastwest)". The Guardian.
  12. Scribner, Sara (May 3, 1998). "A True Renegade Cavorts on Amos' 'Choirgirl Hotel'". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved August 10, 2015.
  13. Segal, Victoria (May 2, 1998). "Tori Amos – Songs From The Choirgirl Hotel". NME. Archived from the original on October 2, 2000. Retrieved August 10, 2015.
  14. Schreiber, Ryan (May 1998). "Tori Amos: From the Choirgirl Hotel". Pitchfork. Archived from the original on March 17, 2005. Retrieved August 10, 2015.
  15. Aizlewood, John (June 1998). "Tori Amos: From the Choirgirl Hotel". Q (141).
  16. Hunter, James (April 16, 1998). "From The Choirgirl Hotel". Rolling Stone. Retrieved August 10, 2015.
  17. Vowell, Sarah (June 1998). "Original Sinner". Spin. 14 (6): 127. Retrieved August 10, 2015.
  18. Archived at Ghostarchive and the Wayback Machine: "Tori Amos – Violet's Eyes (demo)". July 8, 2010. Retrieved February 17, 2012 – via YouTube.
  19. "Australiancharts.com – Tori Amos – From the Choirgirl Hotel". Hung Medien. Retrieved July 31, 2016.
  20. "Austriancharts.at – Tori Amos – From the Choirgirl Hotel" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved July 31, 2016.
  21. "Ultratop.be – Tori Amos – From the Choirgirl Hotel" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved July 31, 2016.
  22. "Tori Amos Chart History (Canadian Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved July 31, 2016.
  23. "Dutchcharts.nl – Tori Amos – From the Choirgirl Hotel" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved July 31, 2016.
  24. "Lescharts.com – Tori Amos – From the Choirgirl Hotel". Hung Medien. Retrieved July 31, 2016.
  25. "Offiziellecharts.de – Tori Amos – From the Choirgirl Hotel" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved July 31, 2016.
  26. "Charts.nz – Tori Amos – From the Choirgirl Hotel". Hung Medien. Retrieved July 31, 2016.
  27. "Norwegiancharts.com – Tori Amos – From the Choirgirl Hotel". Hung Medien. Retrieved July 31, 2016.
  28. 16, 1998/40/ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company.
  29. "Swedishcharts.com – Tori Amos – From the Choirgirl Hotel". Hung Medien. Retrieved July 31, 2016.
  30. "Swisscharts.com – Tori Amos – From the Choirgirl Hotel". Hung Medien. Retrieved July 31, 2016.
  31. "Tori Amos | Artist | Official Charts". UK Albums Chart. Retrieved July 31, 2016.
  32. "Tori Amos Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved July 31, 2016.
  33. "Top Billboard 200 Albums – Year-End 1998". Billboard. Retrieved March 23, 2021.
  34. "Canadian album certifications – Tori Amos – From the Choirgirl Hotel". Music Canada.
  35. "British album certifications – Tori Amos – From the Choirgirl Hotel". British Phonographic Industry.
  36. "American album certifications – Tori Amos – From the Choirgirl Hotel". Recording Industry Association of America.
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