Sixteen Stone

Sixteen Stone
Studio album by
Bush
Released1 November 1994 (1994-11-01)
RecordedJanuary 1994
StudioWestside Studios, London[1]
Genre
Length52:38
Label
Producer
Bush chronology
Sixteen Stone
(1994) 		Razorblade Suitcase
(1996)
Singles from Sixteen Stone
  1. "Everything Zen"
    Released: 28 January 1995
  2. "Little Things"
    Released: 30 May 1995
  3. "Comedown"
    Released: 26 September 1995
  4. "Glycerine"
    Released: 14 November 1995
  5. "Machinehead"
    Released: 9 April 1996

Sixteen Stone is the debut studio album by English rock band Bush, released 1 November 1994[10] by Trauma and Interscope Records. It became the band's most popular album, peaking at number four on the US Billboard 200 and boasting numerous successful singles. "Comedown" and "Glycerine" remain two of Bush's biggest hits to date, each reaching number one on the US Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart.[11] "Comedown", "Machinehead", and "Glycerine" were the three songs from the album to enter the US Billboard Hot 100, reaching number thirty, number forty-three, and number twenty-eight, respectively.[12] The album was certified 6× Platinum in the United States by the RIAA on 16 April 1997.[13] Although notably less successful in the band's native Britain, the album was nonetheless certified Silver by the British Phonographic Industry.[14]

Featuring a rock sound characterised by guitar distortion and quiet interludes, the album quickly invited comparisons to Seattle grunge bands, particularly Nirvana,[2] who had disbanded earlier in 1994 due to the suicide of Kurt Cobain. The purported similarities between the band's sound and Nirvana's was the subject of significant media attention.[15] Lyrical themes on the album included adversity and criticism of masculine stereotypes, as well as relationships and terrorism.

To mark its twentieth anniversary, a remastered edition of the album was released on 14 October 2014. Sixteen Stone charted 59th in the Billboard decade end chart for 1990-1999, and ranked 8th on Guitar World's 2014 list "Superunknown: 50 Iconic Albums That Defined 1994".[16][17]

  1. ^ Flans, Robyn (26 January 2024). "Classic Tracks: Bush's "Glycerine"". Retrieved 26 March 2024.
  2. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference ewreview was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference allmusicreview was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ "Bush, 'Sixteen Stone' – 1994: The 40 Best Records From Mainstream Alternative's Greatest Year". Rolling Stone. 17 April 2014.
  5. ^ Klosterman 2007, p. 240.
  6. ^ Anderson 2007, pp. 207–208.
  7. ^ "Bush's 'Sixteen Stone,' 20 Years Later". 6 December 2014.
  8. ^ Martins, Jorge (25 December 2023). "Top 10 Post-Grunge Albums From the '90s That Actually Stood the Test of Time". Ultimate Guitar. Archived from the original on 26 December 2023. Retrieved 26 December 2023.
  9. ^ Alan, Carter (4 April 2017). The Decibel Diaries: A Journey through Rock in 50 Concerts. University Press of New England. p. 266. ISBN 978-1-5126-0047-6.
  10. ^ Borzillo, Carrie (19 November 1994). "Sweet Sixteen" (PDF). Billboard. 106 (47). New York, NY, USA: Lander, Howard: 24. ISSN 0006-2510. Retrieved 15 October 2024. KROQ began playing "Everything Zen" and "Little Things" from the band's debut, "Sixteen Stone," released Nov. 1, before the label had serviced either song.
  11. ^ "Bush – Chart history – Billboard". Billboard. Retrieved 2 May 2014.
  12. ^ "Bush – Chart history – Billboard". Billboard. Retrieved 2 May 2014.
  13. ^ "Sixteen Stone: Certification History". RIAA. Retrieved 28 April 2022.
  14. ^ Yeung, Neil Z. "Bush Songs, Albums, Reviews, Bio and More". AllMusic. Retrieved 8 December 2023.
  15. ^ Daly, Steven. "Nirvanawannabes". Rolling Stone. 18 April 1996. Retrieved on 14 July 2009.
  16. ^ Cite error: The named reference 1999yearend was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  17. ^ Cite error: The named reference superunknown was invoked but never defined (see the help page).