This Fire (album)

This Fire
This Fire
Studio album by Paula Cole
Released	October 15, 1996
Studio	Bearsville Studios (Bearsville, NY); Magic Shop (New York City); Shelter Island (New York City); Paula Cole's apartment (New York City);
Genre	Pop; Soft rock
Length	50:59
Label	Imago; Warner Bros.;
Producer	Paula Cole ; Kevin Killen (on Hush, Hush, Hush)
Paula Cole chronology
Singles from This Fire
	"Where Have All the Cowboys Gone?"; Released: March 25, 1997; "I Don't Want to Wait"; Released: October 14, 1997; "Me"; Released: February 2, 1998;

This Fire is the second studio album by American singer-songwriter Paula Cole, released on October 15, 1996. According to the RIAA, the album has gone double platinum, selling over two million copies in United States^[3] and peaked at number 20 on the Billboard 200.^[4] According to the booklet, the album is dedicated to "the inner fire of all life. May our seeds of light open, brighten, and sow peace on earth".

Writing and producing the album herself, she recorded all of it in roughly two weeks. Cole released three official singles from the album. The lead single, "Where Have All the Cowboys Gone?" (1997), peaked at number eight on the Billboard Hot 100 and number four on the Adult Top 40. The second single, "I Don't Want to Wait" (1997), peaked at number 11 on the Billboard Hot 100 and was used as the theme song for The WB's teen drama series Dawson's Creek. The third and final single, "Me", was released in mid-1998 and peaked at number 35 on the Hot 100 Airplay. The song "Feelin' Love" was featured on the original motion picture soundtrack to the film City of Angels (1998).^[5]

The album was nominated for seven awards at the 40th Grammy Awards, including Album of the Year, Best Pop Album, "Where Have All The Cowboys Gone?" for Record of the Year and Song of the Year, Best Female Pop Vocal Performance. Cole was also nominated for Producer of the Year and Best New Artist, winning the latter.

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	^[6]
Entertainment Weekly	A−^[7]
The Village Voice	C+^[8]

With the album, Cole was hailed by critics. Reviewing for Entertainment Weekly in December 1996, Beth Johnson regarded This Fire as a departure from the "sweet safeness" of Cole's debut album Harbinger, while calling her "a feisty poet with a soaring voice and a funky groove, [who] seems to be nipping at Tori Amos' heels".^[7] Critic Glenn McDonald "presciently declared Cole the new queenpin of a female tradition he traced from Kate Bush through Peter Gabriel, Melissa Etheridge, and Sarah McLachlan."^[8] McDonald found Cole's genre of music to be a counterpart of the masculinity of heavy metal music, while Robert Christgau said both genres appear "beholden to 'classical' precepts of musical dexterity and genitalia-to-the-wall expression."^[8] Appraising the album as merely a "subpeak" of the female-identified genre, Christgau wrote in The Village Voice: "Where Kate Bush overwhelms petty biases as inexorably as Led Zep, Cole is just a romantic egotist who can't resist turning ordinary human problems into three-act dramas. Kate Bush fans will love her."^[8]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Paula Cole

CD
No.	Title	Length
1.	"Tiger"	4:18
2.	"Where Have All the Cowboys Gone?"	4:26
3.	"Throwing Stones"	3:46
4.	"Carmen"	3:45
5.	"Mississippi"	5:07
6.	"Nietzsche's Eyes"	5:32
7.	"Road to Dead"	3:41
8.	"Me"	5:02
9.	"Feelin' Love"	5:37
10.	"Hush, Hush, Hush"	4:22
11.	"I Don't Want to Wait"	5:19
Total length:		50:59

Personnel

Musicians

Paula Cole – vocals, piano, juno, tube, Wurlitzer, harmonium, beat box, toy xylophone, didjeridu, clarinet
Jay Bellerose – drums, percussion
Peter Gabriel – vocals on "Hush, Hush, Hush"
Tony Levin – bass, Chapman stick
Greg Leisz – guitar, pedal and lap steel
Seamus Egan – Uilleann pipes, whistle
Gerry Leonard – guitar on "Carmen" and "Hush, Hush, Hush"
Wenyi Shih, Elizabeth Knowles, Judith Insell (violins) and Chase Morrison (cello) – strings on "Hush, Hush, Hush"
Seyi Sonuga – string arrangements
Kevin Killen – shimmer on "Hush, Hush, Hush"

Technical personnel

Produced by: Paula Cole
Recorded and mixed by: Roger Mountenot
Recorded at the Magic Shop, NYC, assistant: Joe Warda
Mixed at Room With a View, NYC, assistant: Jack Hersca
"Hush, Hush, Hush" basic track recorded and co-produced by: Kevin Killen at Bearsville Studio, Bearsville, NY, assistant: Paul Marconi
Mastered by: Bob Ludwig at Gateway Mastering, Portland, ME.
Art direction: Paula Cole
Photographs: Jodie Olson
Stock photographs: David Skernick, W.S. Edwards, P.E. Penn and D. Schiefelbein
Design: Dirk Walter

Charts

Weekly charts

Chart (1996–1998)	Peak position
Australian Albums (ARIA)^[9]	96
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)^[10]	26
UK Albums (OCC)^[11]	60
US Billboard 200^[12]	20

Year-end charts

Chart (1998)	Position
US Billboard 200^[13]	102

Certifications


Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
United States (RIAA)^[14]	2× Platinum	2,000,000^{^}
^{^} Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References

^ Bogdanov, Vladimir; Woodstra, Chris; Erlewine, Stephen Thomas (2002). All Music Guide to Rock: The Definitive Guide to Rock, Pop, and Soul. Hal Leonard Corporation. ISBN 978-0-87930-653-3.
^ "Be on the Lookout". Gavin Report. No. 2189. January 23, 1997. p. 20.
^ RIAA Search
^ This Fire – Paula Cole | Billboard.com
^ City of Angels (1998) – Soundtracks
^ Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "This Fire – Paula Cole". AllMusic. Retrieved February 19, 2021.
^ ^a ^b Johnson, Beth (December 13, 1996). "This Fire". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved February 26, 2020.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Christgau, Robert (December 2, 1997). "Consumer Guide: Turkey Shoot". The Village Voice. Retrieved February 26, 2020.
^ Ryan, Gavin (2011). Australia's Music Charts 1988–2010 (PDF ed.). Mt Martha, Victoria, Australia: Moonlight Publishing. p. 63.
^ "Charts.nz – Paula Cole – This Fire". Hung Medien. Retrieved November 19, 2021.
^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved November 19, 2021.
^ "Paula Cole Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved November 19, 2021.
^ "Top Billboard 200 Albums – Year-End 1998". Billboard. Archived from the original on October 21, 2021. Retrieved November 19, 2021.
^ "American album certifications – Paula Cole – This Fire". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved August 31, 2024.

[1] Bogdanov, Vladimir; Woodstra, Chris; Erlewine, Stephen Thomas (2002). All Music Guide to Rock: The Definitive Guide to Rock, Pop, and Soul. Hal Leonard Corporation. ISBN 978-0-87930-653-3.

[2] "Be on the Lookout". Gavin Report. No. 2189. January 23, 1997. p. 20.

[3] RIAA Search

[4] This Fire – Paula Cole | Billboard.com

[5] City of Angels (1998) – Soundtracks

[6] Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "This Fire – Paula Cole". AllMusic. Retrieved February 19, 2021.

[EW-7] Johnson, Beth (December 13, 1996). "This Fire". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved February 26, 2020.

[VV-8] Christgau, Robert (December 2, 1997). "Consumer Guide: Turkey Shoot". The Village Voice. Retrieved February 26, 2020.

[ARIA-9] Ryan, Gavin (2011). Australia's Music Charts 1988–2010 (PDF ed.). Mt Martha, Victoria, Australia: Moonlight Publishing. p. 63.

[ac_New_Zealand_Paula_Cole-10] "Charts.nz – Paula Cole – This Fire". Hung Medien. Retrieved November 19, 2021.

[ac_UK2_-11] "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved November 19, 2021.

[ac_Billboard200_Paula_Cole-12] "Paula Cole Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved November 19, 2021.

[13] "Top Billboard 200 Albums – Year-End 1998". Billboard. Archived from the original on October 21, 2021. Retrieved November 19, 2021.

[us_cert-14] "American album certifications – Paula Cole – This Fire". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved August 31, 2024.

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