Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness

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Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness

Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness is the third album by American alternative rock

Alternative rock

Alternative rock is a genre of rock music that emerged in the 1980s and became widely popular in the 1990s. Alternative rock consists of various subgenres that have emerged from the independent music scene since the 1980s, such as Grunge music, Britpop, gothic rock, and indie pop....
band The Smashing Pumpkins

The Smashing Pumpkins

The Smashing Pumpkins are an American alternative rock band that formed in Chicago, Illinois in 1988. While the group has gone through several lineup changes, The Smashing Pumpkins consisted of Billy Corgan , James Iha , D'arcy Wretzky , and Jimmy Chamberlin for most of the band's recording career....
, released October 24, 1995, on Virgin Records

Virgin Records

Virgin Records is a United Kingdom record label founded by England entrepreneur Richard Branson, Simon Draper, and Nik Powell in 1972 in music. It was later sold to Thorn EMI, and then, in the US, merged with Capitol Records in 2007 to create the Capitol Music Group....
. Produced by Smashing Pumpkins frontman Billy Corgan

Billy Corgan

William Patrick Corgan, Jr. is an United States of America singer, songwriter, guitarist and occasional poet. Corgan is the vocalist and lead guitarist for alternative rock band The Smashing Pumpkins....
with Flood and Alan Moulder

Alan Moulder

Alan Moulder is one of Britain's premier alternative rock record producers. A major architect of the modern British rock sound, Moulder has worked with such artists as Depeche Mode, Gary Numan, The Jesus and Mary Chain, Ride , Lush and My Bloody Valentine , as well as with many American artists, including Nine Inch Nails, A Perfect Circle,...
, the twenty-eight-track album was released as a two-disc

Double album

A double album is an sound album which spans two units of the primary medium in which it is sold . A double album is typically, though not always, released because the recording is longer than the capacity of the medium....
CD

Compact Disc

A Compact Disc is an optical disc used to store Data , originally developed for storing digital audio. The CD, available on the market since October 1982, remains the standard physical medium for sale of commercial Sound recording and reproduction to the present day....
and triple LP

Gramophone record

A gramophone record is an analog signal 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....
. The album features a wide array of styles, as well as greater musical input from bassist D'arcy Wretzky

D'arcy Wretzky

D'arcy Elizabeth Wretzky is a rock musician best known for her work as a bassist with the alternative rock band The Smashing Pumpkins....
and second guitarist James Iha

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....
.

Led by the single “Bullet with Butterfly Wings

Bullet with Butterfly Wings

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Encyclopedia

Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness is the third album by American alternative rock

Alternative rock

The Smashing Pumpkins

Virgin Records

Billy Corgan

Alan Moulder

Double album

Compact Disc

Gramophone record

D'arcy Wretzky

D'arcy Elizabeth Wretzky is a rock musician best known for her work as a bassist with the alternative rock band The Smashing Pumpkins....
and second guitarist James Iha

James Iha

Bullet with Butterfly Wings

?Bullet with Butterfly Wings? is a song by United States alternative rock band The Smashing Pumpkins. It was the lead single from the band?s 1995 double album Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness....
,” the record debuted at number one on the Billboard charts, the first and only such occurrence for the group. The album spawned four more singles—“1979

1979 (song)

"1979" is a song by the American alternative rock band The Smashing Pumpkins. Released in 1996 as the second single from their third studio album, Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness, "1979" was written by frontman Billy Corgan, and features Music loop and Sampling that were uncharacteristic of previous Smashing Pumpkins songs....
”; “Zero

Zero (song)

"Zero" is a song by The Smashing Pumpkins. It was the third single from their third album, Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness and was a return to the familiar angsty rock of the first single, "Bullet with Butterfly Wings"....
”; “Tonight, Tonight

Tonight, Tonight

"Tonight, Tonight" is a song by The Smashing Pumpkins written by the band's frontman, Billy Corgan. It was the fourth single and second track from their third album, Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness, and was released in April 1996....
”; and “Thirty-Three

Thirty-Three (song)

"Thirty-Three" is a song by The Smashing Pumpkins. It was the fifth and final single from their third album, Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness....
”—over the course of 1996, and has been certified nine times platinum by the RIAA. Praised by critics for its ambition and scope, Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness earned the band seven Grammy Award

Grammy Award

The Grammy Awards ?or Grammys?are presented annually by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States for outstanding achievements in the music industry....
nominations in 1997.

Recording and production

After the thirteen-month tour in support of The Smashing Pumpkins' second album Siamese Dream
Siamese Dream

Siamese Dream is the second studio album by the American alternative rock band The Smashing Pumpkins, released on July 27, 1993 on Virgin Records....
(1993), Billy Corgan immediately began writing songs for the band's next record. From the outset, the band intended the new record to be a double album. Corgan said, "We almost had enough material to make Siamese Dream a double album. With this new album, I really liked the notion that we would create a wider scope in which to put other kinds of material we were writing." Corgan felt that the band's musical approach was running its course, and wanted the band to approach the album as if it were its last. Corgan described the album at the time to the music press as "The Wall
The Wall

The Wall is a rock opera presented as a double album by the England progressive rock band Pink Floyd, released in late 1979. It was subsequently performed live, with elaborate theatrical effects, and made into Pink Floyd The Wall ....
for Generation X

Generation X

Generation X is a term used to identify people born after the post-World War II increase in birth rates The term has been used in demography, the social sciences, and marketing, though it is most often used in popular culture....
", a comparison with Pink Floyd

Pink Floyd

Pink Floyd are an English Rock music band who initially earned recognition for their psychedelic rock and space rock music, and later, as they evolved, for their progressive rock music....
's 1979 two-LP concept album.

The band decided to forgo working with Butch Vig

Butch Vig

Butch Vig is both a record producer and the drummer for the rock music band , Garbage ....
, who had produced the group's previous albums, and selected Flood and Alan Moulder as co-producers. Corgan explained, "To be completely honest, I think it was a situation where we'd become so close to Butch that it started to work to our disadvantage […] I just felt we had to force the situation, sonically, and take ourselves out of normal Pumpkin recording mode. I didn't want to repeat past Pumpkin work." In April 1995, the band began recording in a rehearsal space, instead of entering the studio straight away. Flood immediately pushed the band to change its recording practices. Corgan later said, "Flood felt like the band he would see live wasn't really captured on record". At these sessions, the band recorded rough rhythm tracks with Flood. Originally designed to create a rough draft for the record, the rehearsal space sessions ended up becoming the new album's foundation. During recording with Flood, the producer insisted the band set aside time each day devoted to jamming or songwriting, practices the band had never engaged in before during recording sessions. Corgan said, "Working like that kept the whole process very interesting—kept it from becoming a grind."

Corgan sought to eliminate the tension that permeated the Siamese Dream recording sessions. Corgan said regarding the problems with recording Siamese Dream, "[T]o me, the biggest offender was the insidious amounts of time that everyone spends waiting for guitar parts to be overdubbed. There were literally weeks where no one had anything to do but sit and wait." The band decided to counter idleness by using two recording rooms at the same time. This tactic allowed Corgan to work on vocals and song arrangements while recording was done in the other. During these sessions, Flood and Corgan would work in one room as Moulder, guitarist James Iha

James Iha

D'arcy Wretzky

D'arcy Elizabeth Wretzky is a rock musician best known for her work as a bassist with the alternative rock band The Smashing Pumpkins....
worked in a second. Iha and Wretzky had a greater role in the recording of the album, unlike in Siamese Dream, where Corgan was rumoured to have recorded all the bass and guitar parts himself. James Iha commented about the recording sessions,

The big change is that Billy is not being the big 'I do this-I do that.' It's much better. The band arranged a lot of songs for this record, and the song writing process was organic. The circumstances of the last record and the way that we worked was really bad.

Following the rehearsal space sessions, the band recorded overdubs at the Chicago Recording Company

Chicago Recording Company

The Chicago Recording Company, or CRC, is a famous recording studio in Chicago, IL.Dozens of notable music acts have recorded at the studio....
. Pro Tools

Pro Tools

Pro Tools is a Digital Audio Workstation platformfor Mac OS and Microsoft Windows operating systems, developed and manufactured by Digidesign, a division of Avid Technology....
was used for recording guitar overdubs as well as for post-production electronic looping and sampling. Wretzky also recorded numerous backup vocal parts, but all were cut except the one recorded for "Beautiful". When the recording sessions concluded, the band had 57 completed songs which were up for contention to be included on Mellon Collie. The album was going to have 32 songs, but this was cut back to 28 songs.

Music

Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness is a loose concept album, with the songs intended to hang together conceptually as a symbol

Symbolism

Symbolism is the applied use of symbols: iconic representations that carry particular meanings.The term "symbolism" is limited to use in contrast to "representationalism"; defining the general directions of a linear spectrum - where in all symbolic concepts can be viewed in relation, and where changes in context may imply systemic changes...
of the cycle of life and death. Billy Corgan has said that the album is based on "the human condition of mortal sorrow". The sprawling nature of the album means that it utilizes several different diverse styles amongst the songs, contrasting what some critics felt was the "one dimensional flavor" of the previous two albums. A much wider variety of instrumentation is used, such as piano ("Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness"), synthesizers and drum loops ("1979

1979 (song)

Orchestra

An orchestra is an Musical ensemble, usually fairly large with string, brass, woodwind sections, and possibly a percussion section as well. The term orchestra derives from the name for the area in front of an theatre of ancient Greece reserved for the Greek chorus....
("Tonight, Tonight

Tonight, Tonight

Semitone

A semitone, also called a half step or a half tone,Aaron Copland, Leonard Bernstein, and others use "half tone".One source says that step is "chiefly US", and that half-tone is "chiefly N....
in order to "make the music a little lower", according to Corgan. On some songs, like "Jellybelly", the first string was tuned down an additional whole step

Major second

A major second , also called a whole step or a whole tone,One source says step is "chiefly US."The preferred usage has been argued since the 19th century:...
to C# (referred to by Corgan as "the 'grunge

Grunge music

Grunge is a subgenre of alternative rock that emerged during the mid-1980s in the American state of Washington, particularly in the Seattle area....
tuning'"). There was a greater variety to the number of guitar overdubs utilized than on previous albums. Iha said, "[I]n the past, everything had to be overdubbed and layered—guitar overkill. That wasn't really the train of thought this time, although we did that too." "To Forgive" consists of only one live guitar take, while "Thru the Eyes of Ruby" contains approximately 70 guitar tracks. The various sections of "Porcelina of the Vast Oceans” were recorded at various times, with different instruments and recording setups, and were digitally composited in Pro Tools. Corgan and Iha shared soloing duties; Iha estimated that the guitar solo duties were divided "half and half" on the record.

All but two songs on the album were written solely by Corgan. The closing track from the first disc, "Take Me Down", was written and sung by Iha, while the album's final track, "Farewell and Goodnight", was cowritten by Corgan and Iha, and features lead vocals by all four band members. Iha wrote additional songs during the making of the album, but they did not make the final cut. Corgan said in a 1995 Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone

Rolling 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....
interview, "[T]here are some B sides that James did that are really good. They just don't fit in the context of the album. And part of me feels bad. But over the seven years we've been together, the least uptight part of the band has been the music."

Release and reception

Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness was released on October 24, 1995. The following week, Mellon Collie debuted at number one on the Billboard 200

Billboard 200

The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling Albums and extended play in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine....
, an unusual feat for a double-disc album that cost over US$

United States dollar

The United States dollar is the unit of currency of the United States and was defined by the Coinage Act of 1792 to be between 371 and 416 grains of silver ....
20. The RIAA has certified the album as having sold 9.8 million copies in the United States.

Christopher John Farley of Time
Time (magazine)

Time is a weekly United States newsmagazine, similar to Newsweek and U.S. News & World Report. A European edition is published from London....
called the album "the group's most ambitious and accomplished work yet". Farley wrote, "One gets the feeling that the band [. . .] charged ahead on gut instincts; the sheer scope of the album (28 songs) didn't allow for second-guessing or contrivance." Time selected Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness as the best album of the year in its year-end "Best of 1995" list. Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly

Entertainment Weekly is a magazine published by Time Inc. in the United States which covers movies, television, music, Broadway stage productions, books, and popular culture....
gave the album an A rating; reviewer David Browne

David Browne

David Browne is an United States journalist and author of music biographies. He was the resident music critic at Entertainment Weekly between 1990 and 2006....
praised the group's ambition and wrote, "Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness is more than just the work of a tortured, finicky pop obsessive. Corgan presents himself as one of the last true believers: someone for whom spewing out this much music results in some sort of high art for the ages. He doesn't seem concerned with persistent alterna-rock questions of 'selling out,' and good for him: He's aiming for something bigger and all-conquering." Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone

Rolling 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....
gave the album three out of five stars. Reviewer Jim DeRogatis

Jim DeRogatis

James "Jim" DeRogatis is an United States music critic. DeRogatis has written articles for magazines such as Spin , Guitar World and Modern Drummer....
praised the album as "one of the rare epic rock releases whose bulk is justified in the grooves". The writer stated that the album's main flaw was Corgan's lyrics, describing the songwriter as "wallowing in his own misery and grousing about everyone and everything not meeting his expectations." While DeRogatis contended that Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness "may even match The Wall in its sonic accomplishments", he argued that Corgan's lyrics lacked in comparison. Mojo
Mojo (magazine)

Mojo is a popular music magazine published by Bauer Verlagsgruppe, monthly in the United Kingdom.Following the success of the magazine Q , publishers Emap were looking for a title which would cater for the burgeoning interest in classic rock music....
reviewer Ben Edmunds also praised the music while criticizing Corgan's lyrics. Edmunds wrote, "[Corgan's] lyrics appear to be the repository for the worst aspects of his most treasured influences. He writes with a heavy metal aptitude for wordplay and an inflated prog-rock conviction of its worth, a deadening combination. But there's a sliver of distance in his rage-mongering now that comments as well as expresses.

The album spawned five singles. While Corgan considered issuing "Jellybelly" as the album's first single, he told Chart
Chart (magazine)

Chart was a monthly Canada music magazine. The print edition officially ceased publication in January 2009, though the Web version, ChartAttack.com, will continue operation....
it was passed over in favor of "Bullet with Butterfly Wings

Bullet with Butterfly Wings

?Bullet with Butterfly Wings? is a song by United States alternative rock band The Smashing Pumpkins. It was the lead single from the band?s 1995 double album Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness....
" because "'Bullet's one of those songs where, you know, it's easy to sing along to and [he affects a drawl] ya gotta sell them records." "Bullet with Butterfly Wings" was The Smashing Pumpkins' first single to reach the Top 40 on the Billboard Hot 100

Billboard Hot 100

The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard Single popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on airplay and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday; while the airplay tracking-week runs from Wednesday to Tuesday....
, peaking at number 22. "1979

1979 (song)

Zero (song)

Extended play

An extended play is a vinyl record, Compact disc, or music download which contains more music than a Single , but is too short to qualify as an LP album....
with six b-sides. All three of these singles were certified gold by the RIAA. "Tonight, Tonight

Tonight, Tonight

Thirty-Three (song)

"Thirty-Three" is a song by The Smashing Pumpkins. It was the fifth and final single from their third album, Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness....
", the album's fourth and final singles, reached number 36 and number 39 on the Billboard charts, respectively. While it was not commercially released as a single, the song "Muzzle

Muzzle (song)

"Muzzle" is a song by The Smashing Pumpkins, from their third album, Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness. It was one of the last songs written by Billy Corgan for Mellon Collie, with the song's lyrics referring to what Corgan thought the public's perception was of him at the time....
" reached number eight on the Modern Rock Tracks

Modern Rock Tracks

Hot Modern Rock Tracks is a music chart in the United States that has appeared in Billboard magazine since September 10, 1988. It lists the forty most-played songs on modern rock radios, most of which are alternative rock songs....
chart and number ten on the Mainstream Rock Tracks

Mainstream Rock Tracks

Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks is a ranking in Billboard magazine of the most-played songs on mainstream rock radio stations, a category that includes stations that play primarily rock music but are not modern rock stations, which are counted in the Hot Modern Rock Tracks chart....
chart.

Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness earned The Smashing Pumpkins nominations in seven categories at the 1997 Grammy Awards

Grammy Awards of 1997

The 39th Grammy Awards were held on February 26, 1997. They recognized accomplishments by musicians from the previous year....
, the second-highest number of nominations that year. The group was nominated for Album of the Year

Grammy Award for Album of the Year

The Grammy Award for Album of the Year is the most prestigious award category at the Grammys. It has been awarded since 1959 and though it was originally presented to the artist alone, the award is now presented to the artist, the producer, the engineer and/or mixer and the mastering engineer....
, Record of the Year

Grammy Award for Record of the Year

The Record of the Year is one of the four most prestigious Grammy Awards presented annually. It has been awarded since 1959. The honorees through its history have been:...
("1979"), Best Alternative Music Performance, Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal

Grammy Award for Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal

U2 holds the record for most awards with a total of 7....
("1979"), Best Hard Rock Performance with Vocal

Grammy Award for Best Hard Rock Performance

The Grammy Award for Best Hard Rock Performance has been awarded since 1990. In 1989 it was presented as Grammy Award for Best Hard Rock/Metal Performance until the following year, when the Grammy Award for Best Metal Performance category was formed....
("Bullet with Butterfly Wings"), Best Pop Instrumental Performance

Grammy Award for Best Pop Instrumental Performance

The Grammy Award for Best Pop Instrumental Performance has been awarded since 1969.*In 1969 it was awarded as Best Contemporary-Pop Performance, Instrumental...
("Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness") and Best Music Video, Short Form

Grammy Award for Best Short Form Music Video

The Grammy Award for Best Short Form Music Video has been awarded since 1984. A similar award for Grammy Award for Best Long Form Music Video has also been awarded since 1984....
("Tonight, Tonight") at the 1997 Grammy Awards

Grammy Awards of 1997

The 39th Grammy Awards were held on February 26, 1997. They recognized accomplishments by musicians from the previous year....
. The band won a single award, for Best Hard Rock Performance with Vocal for "Bullet with Butterfly Wings"; it was the group's first. Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness also ranked at number 14 on the 1995 Village Voice Pazz & Jop

Pazz & Jop

The Pazz & Jop critics' poll is a highly influential poll of music critics run by The Village Voice newspaper. It is compiled every year from the top ten lists of hundreds of music critics ....
critics' poll.

Track listing

Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness was intended as a two-record set. The CD

Compact Disc

Vinyl

A vinyl compound is any organic compound that contains a vinyl group , −CarbonHydrogenCovalent bondCH2. These are derivatives of ethene, CH2=CH2, with one hydrogen atom replaced with some other group....
version, however, is divided into three discs with six sides. The vinyl release also features two bonus songs ("Tonite Reprise" and "Infinite Sadness"), and a completely different track order.

All songs written by Billy Corgan, except where noted.

CD/Cassette version

Disc one – Dawn to Dusk

"Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness" – 2:52
"Tonight, Tonight
Tonight, Tonight

"Tonight, Tonight" is a song by The Smashing Pumpkins written by the band's frontman, Billy Corgan. It was the fourth single and second track from their third album, Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness, and was released in April 1996....
" – 4:14
"Jellybelly" – 3:01
"Zero
Zero (song)

"Zero" is a song by The Smashing Pumpkins. It was the third single from their third album, Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness and was a return to the familiar angsty rock of the first single, "Bullet with Butterfly Wings"....
" – 2:41
"Here Is No Why" – 3:45
"Bullet with Butterfly Wings
Bullet with Butterfly Wings

?Bullet with Butterfly Wings? is a song by United States alternative rock band The Smashing Pumpkins. It was the lead single from the band?s 1995 double album Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness....
" – 4:18
"To Forgive" – 4:17
"Fuck You (An Ode to No One)" – 4:51
"Love" – 4:21
"Cupid de Locke" – 2:50
"Galapogos" – 4:47
"Muzzle
Muzzle (song)

"Muzzle" is a song by The Smashing Pumpkins, from their third album, Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness. It was one of the last songs written by Billy Corgan for Mellon Collie, with the song's lyrics referring to what Corgan thought the public's perception was of him at the time....
" – 3:44
"Porcelina of the Vast Oceans" – 9:21
"Take Me Down" (Iha) – 2:52

Disc two – Twilight to Starlight

"Where Boys Fear to Tread" – 4:22
"Bodies" – 4:12
"Thirty-Three
Thirty-Three (song)

"Thirty-Three" is a song by The Smashing Pumpkins. It was the fifth and final single from their third album, Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness....
" – 4:10
"In the Arms of Sleep" – 4:12
"1979
1979 (song)

"1979" is a song by the American alternative rock band The Smashing Pumpkins. Released in 1996 as the second single from their third studio album, Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness, "1979" was written by frontman Billy Corgan, and features Music loop and Sampling that were uncharacteristic of previous Smashing Pumpkins songs....
" – 4:25
"Tales of a Scorched Earth" – 3:46
"Thru the Eyes of Ruby" – 7:38
"Stumbleine" – 2:54
"X.Y.U." – 7:07
"We Only Come Out at Night" – 4:05
"Beautiful" – 4:18
"Lily (My One and Only)" – 3:31
"By Starlight" – 4:48
"Farewell and Goodnight" (Corgan/Iha) – 4:22

12" Vinyl version

Side one – Dawn

"Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness" – 2:52
"Tonight, Tonight" – 4:14
"Thirty-Three" – 4:10
"In the Arms of Sleep" – 4:12
"Take Me Down" (Iha) – 2:52

Side two – Tea Time

"Jellybelly" – 3:01
"Bodies" – 4:12
"To Forgive" – 4:17
"Here Is No Why" – 3:45
"Porcelina of the Vast Oceans" – 9:21

Side three – Dusk

"Bullet with Butterfly Wings" – 4:18
"Thru the Eyes of Ruby" – 7:38
"Muzzle" – 3:44
"Galapogos" – 4:47
"Tales of a Scorched Earth" – 3:46

Side four – Twilight

"1979" – 4:25
"Beautiful" – 4:18
"Cupid de Locke" – 2:50
"By Starlight" – 4:48
"We Only Come Out at Night" – 4:05

Side five – Midnight

"Where Boys Fear to Tread" – 4:22
"Zero" – 2:41
"Fuck You (An Ode to No One)" – 4:51
"Love" – 4:21
"X.Y.U." – 7:07

Side six – Starlight

"Stumbleine" – 2:54
"Lily (My One and Only)" – 3:31
"Tonite Reprise" – 2:40
"Farewell and Goodnight" (Corgan/Iha) – 4:22
"Infinite Sadness" – 4:02

Chart positions and sales certifications

Charts (1995)	Peak Position
Billboard 200 Billboard 200 The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling Albums and extended play in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine....	1
Australian ARIA Albums Chart ARIA Charts File:ARIA Charts Logo.pngThe ARIA charts are the main Australia record charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling single and albums in various genres in Australia....	1
Austrian Albums Chart	36
Belgian Albums Chart	2
Canadian RPM RPM (magazine) *RPM* was a Canada music industry publication that featured song and album charts for Canada. The publication was founded by Walt Grealis in February 1964, supported through its existence by record label owner Stan Klees.... 100 Albums	2
Finnish Albums Chart	14
French Albums Chart	34
German Albums Chart	21
Netherlands Albums Chart	6
New Zealand Albums Chart	1
Norwegian Albums Chart	7
Swedish Albums Chart	1
Swiss Albums Chart	27
UK Albums Chart UK Albums Chart The UK Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales in the United Kingdom. It is compiled by The Official UK Charts Company and published in Music Week magazine and on the OCC website ; the full Top 200 is published exclusively in ChartsPlus....	4

Country	Sales	Certification
United States (RIAA)		9× Platinum
Canada (CRIA Canadian Recording Industry Association The Canadian Recording Industry Association is a non-profit Industry trade group that was founded in 1964 to represent the interests of Canadian companies that create, manufacture and market sound recordings in Canada.... )	+	Diamond
Germany (IFPI)	+	Gold
Netherlands (NVPI NVPI The NVPI is the Dutch branchassociation of the entertainment industry. The NVPI represents most of the Dutch record companies, Movie industry and computergames distributors... )	+	Gold
United Kingdom (BPI British Phonographic Industry The British Phonographic Industry is the British record industry's trade group. Its membership comprises hundreds of music companies including all four 'major' record companies , associate members such as manufacturers and distributors, and hundreds of independent music companies representing literally thousands of labels.... )	+	Platinum

Personnel

Billy Corgan
Billy Corgan

William Patrick Corgan, Jr. is an United States of America singer, songwriter, guitarist and occasional poet. Corgan is the vocalist and lead guitarist for alternative rock band The Smashing Pumpkins....
– lead vocal, guitar
Guitar

The guitar is a musical instrument with ancient roots that is used in a wide variety of musical styles. It typically has six Strings , but Tenor guitar, Seven-string guitar, Eight-string guitar, Ten-string guitar, Eleven-string guitar, Twelve-string guitar, Thirteen-string guitar and doubleneck guitar string guitars also exist....
, piano
Piano

The piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard instrument. Widely used in Western music for solo performance, ensemble use, chamber music, and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to musical composition and rehearsal....
, producer
Record producer

In the music industry, a record producer has many roles, among them controlling the recording sessions, coaching and guiding the musicians, organizing and scheduling production budget and resources, and supervising the recording, Audio mixing and audio mastering processes....
, mixer, string arrangement on "Tonight, Tonight
Tonight, Tonight

"Tonight, Tonight" is a song by The Smashing Pumpkins written by the band's frontman, Billy Corgan. It was the fourth single and second track from their third album, Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness, and was released in April 1996....
", art direction and design
James Iha
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
Guitar

The guitar is a musical instrument with ancient roots that is used in a wide variety of musical styles. It typically has six Strings , but Tenor guitar, Seven-string guitar, Eight-string guitar, Ten-string guitar, Eleven-string guitar, Twelve-string guitar, Thirteen-string guitar and doubleneck guitar string guitars also exist....
, additional credits for "Take Me Down" and "Farewell and Goodnight": vocals, mixing and additional production
D'Arcy Wretzky
D'arcy Wretzky

D'arcy Elizabeth Wretzky is a rock musician best known for her work as a bassist with the alternative rock band The Smashing Pumpkins....
– bass
Bass guitar

The electric bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a plectrum.The bass guitar is similar in appearance and construction to an electric guitar, but with a larger body, a longer neck and Scale length, and usually four strings tuned to the same pitches as those of the double bass, whic...
, vocals on "Beautiful" and "Farewell and Goodnight"
Jimmy Chamberlin
Jimmy Chamberlin

Jimmy Chamberlin is an American drummer, songwriter and Record producer. He may be best known as the drummer for the alternative rock band The Smashing Pumpkins....
– drums
Drum kit

A drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and sometimes other percussion instruments, such as cowbell s, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single drummer....
, vocals on "Farewell and Goodnight"
Flood – producer, mixer
Alan Moulder
Alan Moulder

Alan Moulder is one of Britain's premier alternative rock record producers. A major architect of the modern British rock sound, Moulder has worked with such artists as Depeche Mode, Gary Numan, The Jesus and Mary Chain, Ride , Lush and My Bloody Valentine , as well as with many American artists, including Nine Inch Nails, A Perfect Circle,...
– producer, mixer
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Chicago Symphony Orchestra

The Chicago Symphony Orchestra is an American orchestra based in Chicago, Illinois. It is one of the five American orchestras commonly referred to as the "Big Five "....
– orchestra in "Tonight, Tonight"
Audrey Riley
Audrey Riley

Audrey Riley trained at the Guildhall School of Music with Leonard Stehn and was a cello for Virginia Astley from 1983 to 1986 and a one-time auxiliary member of The Family Cat....
– string arrangement on "Tonight, Tonight"
Greg Leisz
Greg Leisz

Greg Leisz is an American multi-instrumentalist, playing lap and pedal steel guitars, guitar, mandolin, and bass. Little known by his own name, his playing has appeared on recordings by Tiger Army, Bill Frisell, Dave Alvin, Tracy Chapman, The Smashing Pumpkins, Matthew Sweet, The Jayhawks, Beck, Me'shell Ndegeocello, Bruce Cockburn, Wilco, S...
– pedal and lap steel guitar on "Take Me Down"
Chris Shepard – recording
Claudine Pontier – recording assistance
Dave Kresl – string recording assistance
Barry Goldberg – additional vocal recording, mixing assistance
Howie Weinberg
Howie Weinberg

Howie Weinberg is a music Audio mastering engineer who has worked with numerous bands.He has worked at Masterdisk, New York City, since 1977....
– mastering
Frank Olinsky – art direction and design
John Craig – illustration
Andrea Giacobbe – photograph
Jeff Moleski – technical assistance
Russ Spice – technical assistance
Tim "Gooch" Lougee – technical assistance
Adam Green – technical assistance
Roger Carpenter – technical assistance
Guitar Dave Mannet – technical assistance

Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness

Recording and production

Music

Release and reception

Track listing

CD/Cassette version

12" Vinyl version

Chart positions and sales certifications

Personnel

Footnotes