Days of Open Hand
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Days of Open Hand combines Vega's established folk-rock style with more varied instrumentation such as the ney and dumbek and experimental arrangements. High-profile contributors to the album include Philip Glass, Shawn Colvin, and John Linnell (of They Might Be Giants). The album saw greater use of synthesizers and samplers than Vega's previous studio albums; these included the Fairlight CMI and Voyetra-8.
Days of Open Hand did not match the success of its predecessor, stalling at number 50 in the US and failing to spawn a hit single. It was more successful in the UK, where it reached the top 10. Despite this, the album did surpass sales of a million copies[1] and reviews were generally positive. Days of Open Hand was nominated for Best Contemporary Folk Recording and won the award for Best Recording Package at the 33rd Annual Grammy Awards.[2]
Background
Vega's previous studio album Solitude Standing was a major success worldwide, spawning the hit song "Luka" and placing within the top 10 of the album charts in twelve countries (alongside a number 11 peak in the US).[3] The album also contained "Tom's Diner" which would achieve further success after being remixed by DNA in 1990.
With the followup studio album, Vega went in a more experimental direction, featuring elements of various genres and many high-profile collaborators. Songs such as "Institution Green" and "Fifty-Fifty Chance" place heavy emphasis on atmosphere; the latter features string arrangements done by Philip Glass. Six of the album's eleven songs feature music written by Sanko while all lyrics were written solely by Vega.
Commercial performance
Days of Open Hand did not achieve the sales of its predecessor upon release, but was still successful in many territories. While the album stalled at number 50 in the US,[3] it was a top 10 hit in the UK, peaking at number 7.[4] Additionally, it reached the top 20 in five other countries throughout Europe. "Book of Dreams", the album's first single, peaked at number 66 in the UK and number 8 on the US Modern Rock Tracks chart.[4][3] However, the album's second and third singles, "Tired of Sleeping" and "Men in a War" failed to see any chart success.
Critical response
Template:Music ratings Days of Open Hand received generally positive reviews from critics. In a review for Rolling Stone, Paul Evans awarded the album four out of five stars, stating it consists of "her hardest and loveliest music yet". He went on to refer to the trio of "Men in a War", "Institution Green" and "Fifty-Fity Chance" as a "suite of songs astonishing for their cleareyed gaze at pain", comparing Vega to poets Emily Dickinson, Sylvia Plath and Stevie Smith.[5] In a retrospective review for AllMusic, Alex Henderson commended the album's "subtlety", praising her vocals for being "expressive" without "need[ing] to shout or preach to get her points across".[6]
Track listing
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Personnel
- Suzanne Vega – vocals, acoustic guitar (1, 2, 4, 6, 9)Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters". backing vocals (1, 2, 4, 7, 11)Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters"., Fairlight synthesizer (3, 8)Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters".
- Anton Sanko – guitar, Hammond C3 organ, tiple, Sequential V.s., Dx711, Voyetra-8, Fairlight synthesizers, Akai S-1000 sampler, programming, string arrangement (5)Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters".
- Shawn Colvin – backing vocals (2–4)Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters".
- Marc Shulman – E-bow (5, 9)Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters"., electric guitar (1–5, 9, 11)Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters"., tiple guitar (1, 6, 8, 11)Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters"., 12-string electric guitar (4)Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters"., bouzouki (8)Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters".
- Michael Visceglia – five-string bass (1–4, 6)Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters"., fretless bass (5, 9, 11)Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters".
- Erik Sanko – fretless bass (7)Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters".
- Percy Jones – fretless bass (9)Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters".
- John Linnell – accordion (1)Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters".
- Richard Horowitz – ney (7)Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters".
- Hearn Gadbois – dumbek
- Michael Blair – marimba (3)Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters"., metal percussion (2, 3)Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters"., tambourine (2, 3)Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters". percussion (5)Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters"., shaker (7, 11)Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters"., hand drum (11)Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters".
- Glen Velez – drums
- Frank Vilardi – drums (1–5, 11)Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters"., percussion (1–5, 11)Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters"., rims and brushes (5)Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters"., Akai S-1000 sampler (6)Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters"., percussion (8)Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters"., shaker (8)Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters"., snare and tom tom drums (9)Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters"., blastics (11)Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters".
- Philip Glass – string arrangement (10)Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters".[7]
- Maria Kitsopoulos – cello (5)Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters".
- Fred Zlotkin – cello (10)Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters".
- Sandra Park – first violin (5)Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters".
- Barry Finclair – violin solo (10)Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters".
- Hae Young Ham – violin (5)Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters".
- Timothy Baker – violin (10)Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters".
- Rebecca Young – viola (5)Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters".
- Alfred Brown – viola (10)Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters".
Production
- Bob Ludwig – mastering
- Hugh Padgham – mixing
- Pat McCarthy – engineer
- Pat Dillett – assistant engineer
- Geoff Keehn – engineer
- Jeff Lippay – assistant engineer
- Jon Goldberger – assistant engineer
- Kurt Munkasci – string engineer[7]
Charts
Template:Album chartTemplate:Album chartTemplate:Album chartTemplate:Album chartTemplate:Album chartTemplate:Album chartTemplate:Album chartTemplate:Album chartTemplate:Album chartTemplate:Album chartTemplate:Album chart| Chart (1990) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australian Albums (ARIA)[8] | 74 |
| Finnish Albums (The Official Finnish Charts)[9] | 2 |
| Chart (1990) | Position |
|---|---|
| European Albums (Music & Media)[10] | 87 |
Certifications
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Singles
| Year | Single | Chart | Peak position |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1990 | "Book of Dreams" | Billboard Modern Rock Tracks | 8 |
| Canada | 30[11] | ||
| UK Singles Chart | 66[12] |
References
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