Happy 25th: Tracy Chapman, NEW BEGINNING

25 years ago this week, Tracy Chapman released her fourth studio album, an LP which provided Chapman with a commercial comeback after the disappointing returns from her previous effort, MATTERS OF THE HEART.

As a bit of back story, the aforementioned MATTERS OF THE HEART had the no-fault-of-its-own disadvantage of coming out in the midst of the grunge movement, a time when artists of the acoustic singer-songwriter variety weren’t particularly in vogue. As a result, Chapman – who suddenly wasn’t getting as much airplay as she had before – found herself debuting far lower on the Billboard 200 than she ever had before, with the album getting no higher than #53 before beginning its descent. Heck, it didn’t even manage to produce a minor hit, with neither of its singles (“Bang Bang Bang” and “Dreaming on a World”) hitting the Hot 100.

Thankfully, by the time Chapman emerged with her next album, grunge had come and gone, providing her with the opportunity for a new beginning, which – what are the odds? – is precisely what she decided to call her new album.

Co-produced by  Chapman with Don Gehman, NEW BEGINNING found Chapman back in the top 10 again, and that was on both the Billboard 200 and on the Hot 100: the LP hit #3, and the single “Give Me One Reason” hit the same height, making it the most successful single of her career.

Yes, even bigger than “Fast Car.” Bet you didn’t know that!