- Just a Girl
- It's My Life
- Hey Baby
- Bathwater
- Sunday Morning
- Hella Good
- New
- Underneath It All
- Excuse Me Mr.
- Running
- Spiderwebs
- Simple Kind of Life
- Don't Speak
- Ex-Girlfriend
- Trapped in a Box
- Girls Get the Bass in the Back
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0602498613818


CD(Italian Import)
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Overview
A band like No Doubt was made for an album like The Singles 1992-2003. While they made good albums -- and each of their albums had its own character -- they shined as a singles band, which is only appropriate for a band raised on new wave, the last golden era of singles. Unlike the grunge and indie bands that populated the first two waves of the alt-rock explosion of the early '90s, No Doubt wasn't directly inspired by punk, indie, or any underground rock movement; the band was fueled by new wave, in all of its trashy, poppy glory. Above all, they were inspired by ska revival groups like Madness, with their blend of skittish Jamaican-inspired beats and sense of English popcraft, but they also picked up various strands of early-MTV pop, whether it was bits of new wave Blondie, the Police, and Elvis Costello, or the metallic guitar wallop of Van Halen. It was a cheerful, giddy sound that marked a sea change from the sound of the early '90s, when even catchy melodies were cloaked in a sense of gloom. So, with the success of their second album, Tragic Kingdom, in 1996, they kicked off the second wave of the alt-rock boom of the '90s -- the time when the music meant good times, not angst and alienation. While some of the bands that rode on their coattails were unabashed one-hit wonders and commercialized revamps of underground sounds, No Doubt was something rare: a hip mainstream singles band. They were an outgrowth of new wave, releasing indie albums before their big break, and they stayed true to their inspirations while cleverly adding elements of contemporary hits to their sound -- and, in doing so, became a '90s version of a new wave band that placed equal emphasis on hooks, style, videos, and cool, radio-ready singles.
And while they made some strong albums -- in fact, with each record they grew stronger -- their medium was radio singles, as the stellar collection The Singles 1992-2003 illustrates. Spanning 15 tracks, the disc is sequenced like a concert, favoring forward momentum over chronological history, and that's a point in its favor since it shines a spotlight on individual songs, not eras. More than anything, this highlights No Doubt's consistency as a singles band, since the defining breakthrough single, "Just a Girl," is as exciting as both the band's pre-fame "Trapped in a Box" and the sexy neo-electro grind of "Hella Good." It also shows that even if lead singer Gwen Stefani grew increasingly assured and sexier over the years (compare the seductive "Underneath It All" to the breathy, naive "Don't Speak") and even if she was always rightly the focal point, the band itself is a muscular, versatile, tuneful outfit, rooted in ska revivals like "Spiderwebs" but equally convincing when turning out spiky pop like the glorious "New," the hard-rocking "Sunday Morning" and "Ex-Girlfriend," the sighing ballad "Simple Kind of Life," or the rubbery, reggae-inflected "Hey Baby." All these hits are here on The Singles, along with expertly selected album tracks and concert favorites, plus a fine new cover of Talk Talk's "It's My Life" that makes the group's new wave influences explicit. There's not one major song missing, and the whole package is solid proof that few post-alternative bands were as joyous a singles band as No Doubt. It's a great collection -- the kind of compilation that satisfies fans of all stripes and converts skeptics. It's the greatest-hits package that they deserve. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine
Product Details
Release Date: | 06/26/2007 |
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Label: | Interscope |
UPC: | 0602498613818 |
Tracks
Album Credits
Performance Credits
No Doubt Primary ArtistLady Saw Primary Artist,Guest Artist,Featured Artist,Vocals
Ms. Dynamite Primary Artist
Sweetie Ireie Primary Artist
Bounty Killer Primary Artist,Featured Artist,Guest Artist
Buccaneer Primary Artist
Elvis Costello Primary Artist
Matthew Wilder Guest Artist,Keyboards
Sly Dunbar Guest Artist
Stephen Perkins Drums (Steel)
Alex Henderson Trombone
Stephen Bradley Trumpet
Eric Stefani Piano,Keyboards
Tom Dumont Guitar,Keyboards
Tony Kanal Keyboards,Saxophone,Guitar (Bass)
Gabrial McNair Piano,Trombone,Keyboards,Mellotron,Synthesizer
Eric Carpenter Saxophone
Robbie Shakespeare Bass
Phil Jordan Trumpet
Melissa Hasin Cello
Gwen Stefani Vocals
Adrian Young Drums,Percussion
Django Stewart Saxophone
Don Hammerstedt Trumpet
Andy Potts Saxophone
Technical Credits
Paul Palmer MixingSly Dunbar Producer,Programming
Simon Gogerly Engineer
Kevin Mills Assistant Engineer
Jack Joseph Puig Mixing
Chuck Reed Engineer
Brian Jobson Executive Producer
Dito Godwin Producer
Chad Hugo Composer
Greg Collins Engineer
Eric Stefani Composer,Group Member
Tim Friese-Greene Composer
Tom Dumont Composer,Engineer,Programming,Group Member
Bryan Carrigan Engineer
Stuart Price Programming
George Landress Engineer
Keith Uddin Mixing Assistant
Glen Ballard Producer
Tony Kanal Composer,Engineer,Programming,Group Member
Paul Walton Mixing Programmer
Gabrial McNair Horn Arrangements
Scott Campbell Engineer
Phil Kaffel Engineer
Nellee Hooper Producer
Matthew Wilder Producer
Tom Lanham Liner Notes
Sonya Farrell Photography
Paris Montoya Liner Notes
Tkae Mendez Engineer
Chris Fenn Assistant
Thomas Dumont Composer
Robbie Shakespeare Producer
Mark "Spike" Stent Mixing,Producer
Pharrell Williams Composer
Brian Gardner Mastering
Sean Beavan Sonic Manipulation
Jerry Harrison Producer
Wayne Wilkins Mixing Programmer
No Doubt Producer
Philip Steir Producer,Programming
Karl Derfler Engineer
Matt Hyde Engineer
R. Price Composer
Wayne Jobson Executive Producer
Michael Carnevale Engineer
Ned Douglas Programming
Mark Hollis Composer
Anthony Kilhoffer Assistant Engineer
Alain Johannes Engineer
Gwen Stefani Composer,Group Member
Dave Stewart Composer,Composer
Adrian Young Group Member
Daniel Chase Engineer
David Treahearn Mixing Assistant
Tony Ferguson A&R
Joseph Cultice Photography
F. Scott Schafer Photography
Rodney Price Composer
Cindy Cooper Package Coordinator
Rory Baker Engineer
Fabien Waltman Programming
Dan Arsenault Photography
Matt Fields Mixing Assistant
Mark Anthony Williams A&R
Django Stewart Composer
Jeffrey Bender Photography
The Count Engineer
David LaChapelle Photography
Jolie Clemens Design,Art Direction
John Gould Mixing Programmer
Chris Cuffaro Photography
Frank Ockenfels Cover Photo,Photography
Stephanie Hsu Photography,Art Coordinator
Nicole Frantz Photography,Art Coordinator
Ian Rossiter Assistant Engineer
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