| My Own Prison | ||||
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| Released | April 14, 1997 (Blue Collar release) August 26, 1997 (Wind-up release) | |||
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| Length | 51:56 (Blue Collar release) 49:07 (Wind-up release) | |||
| Label | Blue Collar (original) Wind-up (re-release) | |||
| Producer | John Kurzweg | |||
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| Singles from My Own Prison | ||||
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My Own Prison is the debut studio album by American rock band Creed, released in 1997. The album was issued independently by the band's record label, Blue Collar Records, on April 14, 1997, and re-released by Wind-up Records on August 26, 1997. Manager Jeff Hanson matched Creed up with John Kurzweg, and My Own Prison was recorded for $6,000, funded by Hanson. The band wrote several songs, trying to discover their own identity, and in their early days, the members had jobs, while bassist Brian Marshall got a degree. Creed began recording music and released the album on their own, distributing it to radio stations in Florida. The band later got a record deal with Wind-up.
At the time of My Own Prison's publication, Creed were compared to several bands, including Soundgarden (especially the Badmotorfinger era), Pearl Jam, Alice in Chains, Hootie & the Blowfish, Tool, and Metallica. Influenced by heavy metal and 1970s stadium rock, My Own Prison's music has been described as grunge, post-grunge, and "slightly heavy metal, slightly alternative". The album is a lot more heavy and grunge-oriented than Creed's subsequent work. Its lyrics include topics like emerging adulthood, self-identity, Christianity and faith, sinning, suicide, unity, struggling to prosper in life, pro-life, and race relations in America. Vocalist Scott Stapp and guitarist Mark Tremonti said their early adulthood inspired lyrics to songs like the title track and "Torn". Stapp was inspired by music by U2 (particularly The Joshua Tree), Led Zeppelin, and the Doors. Influenced by thrash metal bands like Metallica, Slayer, Exodus, and Forbidden, Tremonti brought heavy metal musical elements into Creed's music.
Creed released four singles from the album: the title track, "Torn", "What's This Life For", and "One". Despite only peaking at number 22 on the Billboard 200, strong radio airplay propelled My Own Prison to become a commercial success. All singles were successful on rock radio in the United States and, with the exception of "One", had music videos that received airplay on MTV. My Own Prison was eventually certified sextuple platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America and, as of 2009, sold over 6,000,000 copies in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan. The album received reviews ranging from positive to negative, complimenting its guitar riffs and music but criticizing its similarity to 1990s grunge bands.