Gish is the debut album by American
alternative rockAlternative rock is a genre of rock music that emerged in the 1980s and became widely popular in the 1990s...
band
The Smashing PumpkinsThe Smashing Pumpkins are an American alternative rock band that formed in Chicago, Illinois in 1988. Formed by Billy Corgan and James Iha , the band has included D'arcy Wretzky , Jimmy Chamberlin , and Melissa Auf der Maur among its membership.Disavowing the punk rock roots shared by...
. Released in 1991, frontman
Billy CorganWilliam Patrick Corgan, Jr. is an American singer, songwriter, guitarist and occasional poet. Corgan is the vocalist and lead guitarist for alternative rock band The Smashing Pumpkins. When the band broke up in 2000, Corgan went on to form the short-lived Zwan with former Pumpkins drummer Jimmy...
described
Gish as a "very spiritual album." Despite peaking at only number 195 on the
Billboard 200The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling new music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...
upon its release,
Gish is currently certified
platinumMusic recording sales certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped a certain number of copies.Almost all countries follow variations of the RIAA certification categories, which are named after the precious materials gold, platinum and diamond...
by the
Recording Industry Association of AmericaThe Recording Industry Association of America is a group which represents the recording industry distributors in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors, which the RIAA say "create, manufacture and/or distribute approximately 85% of all legitimate sound recordings...
.
Recording
Gish was recorded from December 1990 to March 1991 in
Butch VigButch Vig is an American musician and record producer, best known internationally as the drummer of the Madison, Wisconsin-based alternative rock band Garbage and the producer of multi-platinum selling albums Nevermind by Nirvana and Siamese Dream by Smashing Pumpkins.Now a resident of Los...
's
Smart StudiosSmart Studios is a recording studio located on East Washington Avenue in Madison, Wisconsin. It was set up in 1983 by Butch Vig and Steve Marker to produce local bands....
in
MadisonMadison is the capital of the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Dane County. It is also home to the University of Wisconsin–Madison....
,
WisconsinWisconsin is one of the fifty U.S. states. Located in the north-central United States, Wisconsin is considered part of the Midwest. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the...
. Whereas many albums at the time used drum sampling and processing,
Gish used unprocessed drum recordings, and an exacting, unique guitar sound. The album was recorded quickly by Pumpkins' standards, largely because of the group's inexperience. The recording sessions put an intense strain on the band, with bassist D'arcy Wretzky later commenting that she didn't know how the band survived it, and Corgan explaining he suffered a
nervous breakdownMental breakdown is a non-medical term used to describe an acute, time-limited disorder that presents primarily with features of depression or anxiety.-Definition:...
. The recording cost was $20,000.
"I Am One", "
Rhinoceros"Rhinoceros" is a song by The Smashing Pumpkins from their debut album, Gish. It was written by Billy Corgan and is one of the few songs from Gish that has been performed consistently throughout the band's career....
", "Daydream", and "Bury Me" were previously recorded as demos by the band in 1989. All four songs were re-recorded for
Gish.
The following songs were written and recorded for
Gish but did not make the final cut.
- "Blue" (released on Lull
Lull is an EP released in 1991 by The Smashing Pumpkins."Rhinoceros" was taken from Gish , "Blue" later appeared on Pisces Iscariot and a live version of "Slunk" later appeared on Vieuphoria and its soundtrack album Earphoria."Bye June" is a 1989 recording from the Reel Time Studio Sessions,...
and Pisces IscariotPisces Iscariot is a compilation album of B-sides, demos, and outtakes released in 1994 by The Smashing Pumpkins through Virgin Records. Reaching #4 in the U.S. upon its 1994 release, Pisces Iscariot - as of May 2005 - has been certified platinum....
)
- "Obscured" (released on Pisces Iscariot)
- "Slunk" (released on Lull)
- "Why Am I So Tired?" (released on Earphoria
Earphoria is a live CD soundtrack of the Smashing Pumpkins' Vieuphoria. While the video has been widely available since its initial release, the CD was only released in a limited number of promo CD copies in 1994, and was subsequently heavily bootlegged...
)
- "Jesus Loves His Babies" (Never officially released, appears on Mashed Potatoes bootleg, a five-disc set assembled by Billy Corgan and given to band and staff as a gift for Christmas 1994)
- "La Dolly Vita" (originally the B-side to "Tristessa", re-released on Pisces Iscariot)
Composition
Gish was recorded towards the end of Billy Corgan's
psychedelic Psychedelic music covers a range of popular music styles, genres and scenes, that may include psychedelic rock, psychedelic folk, psychedelic pop, psychedelic soul, psychedelic ambient, psychedelic trance, and others. Psychedelic rock is also commonly called acid rock...
influence, while the band's
post-punkPost-punk is a popular musical movement with its roots in the late 1970s, following on the heels of the initial punk rock explosion of the mid-1970s. The genre retains its roots in the punk movement but is more introverted, complex and experimental...
roots had almost entirely evaporated. It introduced the
hard rockHard rock or heavy rock is a sub-genre of rock music which has its earliest roots in mid-1960s garage and psychedelic rock and is considerably harder than conventional rock music...
sound and heavy dynamic shifts that would characterize later Pumpkins work. The inclusion of a massive production style reminiscent of
ELOElo or ELO may refer to:In music:* Electric Light Orchestra, a British rock music group* The Electric Light Orchestra, the group's debut album* ELO 2, the group's second album* ELO Part II, an offshoot band of Electric Light Orchestra...
and
QueenQueen were an English rock band. Formed in London in 1970 following the demise of the band Smile, Queen consisted of vocalist Freddie Mercury, guitarist Brian May, bassist John Deacon and drummer Roger Taylor. The band became popular with audiences via their hit songs, live performances,...
was unusual for an independent band at the time.
Corgan would later say,
The album is about pain and spiritual ascension. People ask if it's a political album. It's not a political album, it's a personal album. In a weird kind of way, Gish is almost like an instrumental album - it just happens to have singing on it, but the music overpowers the band in a lot of places. I was trying to say a lot of things I couldn't really say in kind of intangible, unspeakable ways, so I was capable of doing that with the music, but I don't think I was capable of doing it with words.
Title
The album was named after silent film icon
Lillian GishLillian Diana Gish was an American stage, screen and television actress whose film acting career spanned 75 years, from 1912 to 1987. She was a prominent film star of the 1910s and 1920s, particularly associated with the films of director D.W. Griffith, including her leading role in Griffith's...
. In an interview, Corgan said, "My grandmother used to tell me that one of the biggest things that ever happened was when Lillian Gish rode through town on a train, my grandmother lived in the middle of nowhere, so that was a big deal..." Later, Corgan jokingly asserted that the album was originally going to be called "Fish" but was changed to "Gish" to avoid comparisons to jam band
PhishPhish is an American rock band noted for its musical improvisation, extended jams, exploration of music across genres, and devoted fan base. Formed at the University of Vermont in 1983, the band's four members performed together for over 20 years until an official breakup in...
.
Reception
Gish was met with largely enthusiastic reviews.
Greg KotGreg Kot has been the rock critic of the Chicago Tribune since 1990. His biography of Wilco and the state of the music industry, Wilco: Learning How to Die, was published in 2004 by Doubleday/Broadway Books. He is a regular contributor to Rolling Stone and other national periodicals, and is the...
of the
Chicago TribuneThe Chicago Tribune is a major daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States, and the flagship publication of the Tribune Company...
called
Gish "perhaps the most audacious and accomplished" of all 1991 albums released by local bands.
Rolling StoneRolling Stone is a United States-based magazine devoted to music, politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J. Gleason.The magazine was named after the 1948 Muddy Waters song of the same...
called it "awe-inspiring" with "meticulously calculated chaos" and a "swirling energy." Despite an inauspicious start, the album sold 100,000 copies in less than a year, far exceeding the expectations of indie label Caroline Records. After being reissued on the band's new label Virgin, the album went on to achieve platinum status.
Track listing
All songs written by
Billy CorganWilliam Patrick Corgan, Jr. is an American singer, songwriter, guitarist and occasional poet. Corgan is the vocalist and lead guitarist for alternative rock band The Smashing Pumpkins. When the band broke up in 2000, Corgan went on to form the short-lived Zwan with former Pumpkins drummer Jimmy...
, except where noted.
- "I Am One
"I Am One" is the debut single by The Smashing Pumpkins. It was the band's first ever release and remains the only single issued by the band with co-writing credits to both Billy Corgan and James Iha. It charted on the UK Singles Chart at a peak position of number 73.Two recordings of the song...
" (Corgan, James IhaJames Yoshinobu Iha born March 26, 1968 in Chicago, Illinois, U.S.) is an American rock musician. He is most famous as having been a guitarist in the alternative rock band The Smashing Pumpkins and for his eclectic musical projects of recent years, including A Perfect Circle...
) – 4:07
- "Siva
"Siva" is a song by The Smashing Pumpkins, the first single from their debut album Gish. It was written by Billy Corgan. "Siva" was also the first music video filmed by the band....
" – 4:20
- "Rhinoceros
"Rhinoceros" is a song by The Smashing Pumpkins from their debut album, Gish. It was written by Billy Corgan and is one of the few songs from Gish that has been performed consistently throughout the band's career....
" – 6:32
- "Bury Me" – 4:48
- "Crush" – 3:35
- "Suffer" – 5:11
- "Snail" – 5:11
- "Tristessa
"Tristessa" is a song by The Smashing Pumpkins. The "Tristessa" single was the Pumpkins' second ever release, and their first, and only, release on Sub Pop Records. It was written by Billy Corgan and later re-recorded for their debut album, Gish. Tristessa is similar to Spanish and Portuguese...
" – 3:33
- "Window Paine" – 5:51
- "Daydream" – 3:08
- Contains a hidden track
In the field of recorded music, a hidden track is a piece of music that has been placed on a CD, audio cassette, vinyl record or other recorded medium in such a way as to avoid detection by the casual listener...
, "I'm Going Crazy," at 2:08
Chart positions
Album
| Year |
Chart |
Position |
| 1991 |
Billboard 200 The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling new music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...
|
195 |
Singles
| Year |
Single |
Chart |
Position |
| 1991 |
"Rhinoceros "Rhinoceros" is a song by The Smashing Pumpkins from their debut album, Gish. It was written by Billy Corgan and is one of the few songs from Gish that has been performed consistently throughout the band's career....
" |
Modern Rock Tracks Alternative Songs is a music chart in the United States that has appeared in Billboard magazine since September 10, 1988. It lists the 40 most-played songs on modern rock radio stations, most of which are alternative rock songs...
|
27 |
| 1992 |
"I Am One "I Am One" is the debut single by The Smashing Pumpkins. It was the band's first ever release and remains the only single issued by the band with co-writing credits to both Billy Corgan and James Iha. It charted on the UK Singles Chart at a peak position of number 73.Two recordings of the song...
" |
UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record industry. The full chart contains the top 200 singles based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 of this list...
|
|
Release history
The first mastering of
Gish on CD was from
Digital Audio TapeDigital Audio Tape is a signal recording and playback medium developed by Sony and introduced in 1987. In appearance it is similar to a compact audio cassette, using 4 mm magnetic tape enclosed in a protective shell, but is roughly half the size at 73 mm × 54 mm × 10.5 mm. As the name suggests,...
and appeared on
Caroline RecordsCaroline Records started out as a subsidiary of Richard Branson's Virgin Records label during the early to mid 1970s. The label originally specialized in putting out budget price LPs by mainly progressive rock and jazz artists generally not considered to have a great deal of 'mainstream' or...
. In 1994, after the success of follow-up
Siamese DreamSiamese Dream is the second studio album by the American alternative rock band The Smashing Pumpkins, released on July 27, 1993 on Virgin Records...
, the album was given a slight remaster and redesign and was reissued on
Virgin RecordsVirgin Records is a British record label founded by English entrepreneur Richard Branson, Simon Draper, and Nik Powell in 1972. It was later sold to Thorn EMI, and then, in the US, merged with Capitol Records in 2007 to create the Capitol Music Group....
. Both editions credit
Howie WeinbergHowie Weinberg is a music mastering engineer who has worked with numerous bands.- Career :He has worked at Masterdisk, New York City, since 1977...
as mastering engineer. In 2008, a box set re-release of the album was announced, but never materialized.
| Region |
Date |
Label |
Format |
Catalog |
| United States, Germany, The Netherlands |
|
CarolineCaroline Records started out as a subsidiary of Richard Branson's Virgin Records label during the early to mid 1970s. The label originally specialized in putting out budget price LPs by mainly progressive rock and jazz artists generally not considered to have a great deal of 'mainstream' or...
|
LPA gramophone record, commonly known as phonograph record, vinyl record, or simply record, is an analog sound storage medium consisting of a flat disc with an inscribed modulated spiral groove usually starting near the periphery and ending near the centre of the disc...
|
CAROL-1705-1 |
| Cassette tape |
CAROL-1705-4 |
Compact DiscA Compact Disc is an optical disc used to store digital data. It was originally developed to store sound recordings exclusively, but later it also allowed the preservation of other types of data. Audio CDs have been commercially available since October 1982...
|
CAROL-1705-4 |
| South Korea |
| EMIThe EMI Group is a British music company. It is the fourth-largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry, making it one of the "big four" record companies. EMI Group also has a major publishing arm- EMI Music Publishing- based in New York City...
|
LP |
VKPL-0089 |
| United Kingdom |
|
Hut |
Cassette tape |
HUTCS2 |
| Compact Disc |
HUTCD2 |
| LP |
HUTLP2 |
| Japan |
| VirginVirgin Records is a British record label founded by English entrepreneur Richard Branson, Simon Draper, and Nik Powell in 1972. It was later sold to Thorn EMI, and then, in the US, merged with Capitol Records in 2007 to create the Capitol Music Group....
|
Compact Disc |
VJCP-28068 |
|
| Virgin |
Compact Disc |
VJCP-25129 |
| United Kingdom |
|
Hut |
Cassette tape |
HUTCSX2 |
| Compact Disc |
CDHUTX 2 |
| LP |
HUTLPX2 |
| United States |
|
Virgin |
Cassette tape |
7243 8 39663 4 9 |
| Compact Disc |
7243 8 39663 2 5 |
| LP |
7243 8 39663 1 8 |
Personnel
The Smashing PumpkinsThe Smashing Pumpkins are an American alternative rock band that formed in Chicago, Illinois in 1988. Formed by Billy Corgan and James Iha , the band has included D'arcy Wretzky , Jimmy Chamberlin , and Melissa Auf der Maur among its membership.Disavowing the punk rock roots shared by...
- Billy Corgan
William Patrick Corgan, Jr. is an American singer, songwriter, guitarist and occasional poet. Corgan is the vocalist and lead guitarist for alternative rock band The Smashing Pumpkins. When the band broke up in 2000, Corgan went on to form the short-lived Zwan with former Pumpkins drummer Jimmy...
– VocalsSinging is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. A person who sings is called a singer or vocalist...
, guitarThe guitar is a musical instrument with ancient roots that adapts readily to a wide variety of musical styles. It typically has six strings, but four-, seven-, eight-, ten-, eleven-, twelve-, thirteen- and eighteen-string guitars also exist. The size and shape of the neck and the base of the guitar...
, producer
- James Iha
James Yoshinobu Iha born March 26, 1968 in Chicago, Illinois, U.S.) is an American rock musician. He is most famous as having been a guitarist in the alternative rock band The Smashing Pumpkins and for his eclectic musical projects of recent years, including A Perfect Circle...
– Guitar, vocals
- D'arcy Wretzky
D'arcy Elizabeth Wretzky is a rock musician best known for her work as a bass player with the alternative rock band The Smashing Pumpkins.-Early life:...
– Bass guitarThe electric bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a plectrum....
, vocals, layouts
- Jimmy Chamberlin
Jimmy Chamberlin is an American drummer, songwriter and producer. He may be best known as the former drummer for the alternative rock band The Smashing Pumpkins. After a drug-related incident with touring keyboardist Jonathan Melvoin in 1996, Chamberlin was fired from the band and joined The Last...
– DrumsA drum set is a collection of drums, cymbals and sometimes other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person . The term "drum kit" first became used in the 1700s in Britain...
Additional musicians
- Chris Wagner – Violin
The violin is a bowed string instrument with four strings usually tuned in perfect fifths. It is the smallest and highest-pitched member of the violin family of string instruments, which also includes the viola and cello....
and violaThe viola is a bowed string instrument. It is the middle voice of the violin family, between the violin and the cello.The casual observer may mistake the viola for the violin because of their similarity in size, closeness in pitch range , and nearly identical playing position...
on "Daydream"
- Mary Gaines – Cello
The cello is a bowed string instrument. The word derives from the Italian violoncello. A person who plays a cello is called a cellist. The cello is used as a solo instrument, in chamber music, and as a member of the string section of an orchestra...
on "Daydream"
Production
- Butch Vig
Butch Vig is an American musician and record producer, best known internationally as the drummer of the Madison, Wisconsin-based alternative rock band Garbage and the producer of multi-platinum selling albums Nevermind by Nirvana and Siamese Dream by Smashing Pumpkins.Now a resident of Los...
– producer, engineer
- Howie Weinberg
Howie Weinberg is a music mastering engineer who has worked with numerous bands.- Career :He has worked at Masterdisk, New York City, since 1977...
– mastering
- Bob Knapp – photography
- Michael Lavine – photography
External links