Chupacabra (album)
Chupacabra | ||||
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Studio album by Imani Coppola | ||||
Released | October 28, 1997 | |||
Genre | Pop, hip hop, alternative rock | |||
Label | Columbia | |||
Producer | Michael Mangini | |||
Imani Coppola chronology | ||||
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Singles from 25 | ||||
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Chupacabra is the debut album by Imani Coppola, released on October 28, 1997. The title refers to the legendary chupacabra (literally "goat sucker"), a creature believed through some parts of the Americas to drink the blood of livestock.[1] Ann Powers wrote in The New York Times that Coppola's album was buoyed by "fanciful raps and supple vocals as she establishes her identity as a modern-day flower child with common sense."[2]
Among the album's tracks, the song "Legend of a Cowgirl" became a hit on MTV.[3] According to Coppola, the rap song, which includes a sample of Donovan's "Sunshine Superman",[4] started as an idea she had for a movie about women who "love 'em and leave 'em and ride off into the sunset."[1] Part of Coppola's marketing included a music video for "Legend of a Cowgirl" that received heavy rotation on MTV.[5] The video for the follow-up single, "I'm a Tree", featured Imani as a New York corporate working girl craving something outside of the 9 to 5 dead-end job. Many of the vibrant colored scenes show her on an elevator stopping at every floor and as the door opens it shows Imani's imagination come to life with a singing dog as well as a jam session of Imani with a band. The video mostly found its following on MTV2. The single version was remixed for radio. A third and final single titled "It's All About Me, Me, Me" was released without a video.
Sampler
Ahead of the album's release, Columbia Records released a sampler in Europe, which featured five of Coppola's songs: "Legend of a Cowgirl," "Naked City (Love to See U Shine)", "I'm a Tree", "It's All About Me, Me, and Me", and "Piece".[6]
Critical reception
Professional ratings | |
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Review scores | |
Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [7] |
Entertainment Weekly | C[8] |
The New York Times | Positive[9] |
The album garnered polarized reviews from music critics. Entertainment Weekly's review, written by Matt Diehl, was negative, commenting that "Coppola's folk-rapping forges the missing link between Missy Elliott and Bob Dylan, which results in a forced eclec- ticism."[8] In contrast, Bradley Torreano's review for AllMusic was highly positive, stating that "The frantic rhythms mesh nicely with her rich voice on tracks like 'I'm a Tree' and 'Soon (I Like It)' while her personality shines through on the pleasantly egotistical 'It's All About Me, Me, and Me' and on the Donovan-sampled 'Legend of a Cowgirl.'" The New York Times' Ann Powers was similarly impressed by the album, stating that Coppola "establishes her identity as a modern-day flower child with common sense."[9]
Track listing
All tracks by Imani Coppola, Mike Mangini except where noted
- "I'm a Tree" – 3:33
- "Legend of a Cowgirl" (Imani Coppola, Donovan Leitch, Mangini) – 3:47
- "Naked City (Love to See U Shine)" – 4:26
- "It's All About Me, Me, and Me" – 4:12
- "Piece" – 3:48
- "Karma and the Blizzard" – 4:37
- "One of These Days" – 3:20
- "Pigeon Penelope" – 3:19
- "Soon (I Like It)" – 4:10
- "Forget Myself" – 3:49
- "La Da Da" – 20:47 (contains the hidden track "My Day")
Singles
- "Legend of a Cowgirl"
- "I'm a Tree"
- "It's All About Me, Me, Me"
Personnel
- Amanda Busto – background vocals
- Imani Coppola – acoustic guitar, fiddle, guitar, strings, arrangement, keyboards, vocals, background vocals, choir, chorus, Fender Rhodes, illustrations
- Jeff Coppola – vocals
- Tom Coyne – mastering
- Dave Crafa – guitar
- DJ Nastee – DJ
- David Drafa – guitar
- Skoti Alain Elliott – bass, engineering, mixing
- Sharon Kearney – guitar, ,ixing assistance, assistant
- Kiku – art direction, design
- Mike Mangini – acoustic guitar, guitar, percussion, strings, arrangement, electric guitar, keyboards, background vocals, production, mixing
- Nastee – DJ
- Carl Rushing – programming, vocals
- Matthew Scannell – guitar
- Nina Schultz – photography
Charts
Chart (1998) | Peak position |
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UK Albums Chart[10] | 128 |
References
- 1 2 Lilith Fair. "Imani Coppola" 1998.
- ↑ New York Times. "Pop CD's; Take a Little Sass, Add Sunshine" by Ann Powers. November 4, 1997.
- ↑ "All Music Guide to Hip-Hop: The Definitive Guide to Rap and Hip-Hop" By Vladimir Bogdanov. Published 2003 by Backbeat Books
- ↑ "Loose canon" by Steve Smith. Time Out. November 8, 2007.]
- ↑ Toronto Sun. "Singer/violinist Imani strikes gold without even trying" by Jane Stevenson. December 11, 1997.
- ↑ "Imani Coppola – 5 Song Sampler". Discogs. Retrieved October 3, 2016.
- ↑ Allmusic review
- 1 2 Diehl, Matt. "Chupacabra Lead Performer: Imani Coppola". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved September 23, 2016.
- 1 2 Powers, Ann. "CRITIC'S CHOICE/Pop CD's; Take a Little Sass, Add Sunshine". The New York Times. Retrieved October 3, 2016.
- ↑ "Chart Log UK 1994–2010 > Chris C. – CZR". zobbel.de. Retrieved 14 October 2016.