Happy 15th: Tracy Chapman, TELLING STORIES

15 years ago this month, singer-songwriter Tracy Chapman released her fifth album, an LP which reunited her with David Kerschenbaum, the producer who twiddled the knobs on her first two records, for the first time in more than a decade.

Prior to the release of TELLING STORIES, Chapman hadn’t released a new album in four years, a period of time which likely led fans to believe that the title of her previous album, NEW BEGINNING, was meant to be ironic. The hiatus was somewhat surprising, given that the album sold more than three million copies in the US and earned her the Best Rock Song Grammy for “Give Me One Reason,” which hit #3 on the Billboard Hot 100. Unfortunately, the musical climate had changed yet again in the interim, and when TELLING STORIES hit record store shelves, it did earn Chapman another gold record, but it only sold a sixth as many copies as its predecessor.

But, hey, since when have sales figures had anything to do with album quality? TELLING STORIES is, from a sonic standpoint, a clear sequel to NEW BEGINNING, and it’s filled with the same sort of songs that made Chapman a success in the first place, including “Less Than Strangers,” “Paper and Ink,” and the title track.

Go ahead: hit play and let Chapman tell you some stories.