Fefe Dobson | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | December 9, 2003 | |||
Recorded | 2003 | |||
Studio | Metalworks Studios, Mississauga, ON | |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 47:04 | |||
Label | Island | |||
Producer | ||||
Fefe Dobson chronology | ||||
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Singles from Fefe Dobson | ||||
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Fefe Dobson is the debut album of Canadian singer-songwriter Fefe Dobson. It was released on December 9, 2003. The album was co-written by Dobson with producers Jay Levine and James Bryan McCollum. The album consists mainly of pop rock and punk music, and deals mainly with the topics of love and heartbreak. Several songs on the album are done acoustically while the remaining tracks feature prominent guitar and drum beats.
The album was released to generally positive reviews from critics; however, its commercial performance was mixed. The album debuted at number one on the US Billboard Heatseekers Albums Chart. [2] It debuted at number 111 on the Billboard 200 chart, [2] eventually peaking at 67. [3] Despite the minor success of the single "Everything" in the UK, the album failed to chart there, or anywhere outside of the US and Canada.
The album did, however, spawn several successful singles. The first of these, titled "Bye Bye Boyfriend" was released during the final quarter of 2003 to generally positive critical and commercial performance. However, the single was only released in Canada. The second single, "Take Me Away", was her first single to be released internationally. The single became her second hit in Canada, as well as her only single to date that has charted on the US Billboard Hot 100 singles chart. In 2004, Dobson released a new single, "Don't Go (Girls and Boys)", which was then appended to later pressings of the album. The song was also featured in a Tommy Hilfiger commercial starring Dobson. [4]
In March 2004, the album was certified Platinum by the Canadian Recording Industry Association for sales of 100,000 copies. [5] It has also sold over 300,000 copies in the US, giving it sales a roundabout 500,000 copies worldwide.
Dobson started writing at the age of 14, and caught the ear of Jive Records a year later. The label loved her voice and set her up with a number of producers, with an eye towards developing a pop star. But she refused the idea and left the label. [6] After that experience, Dobson met Jay Levine and signed with Nelly Furtado's manager Chris Smith. Smith arranged showcases with several labels. Universal Music Canada president Randy Lennox showed interest in her, and coaxed Island Def Jam CEO Lyor Cohen and his head of A&R, Jeff Fenster, to fly to Toronto for another showcase. [6] Dobson played a showcase for Island/Def Jam; about 30 seconds into the first song —- a punk thrash track about longing, titled "Stupid Little Love Song"—-the executives were impressed and signed her. [7] When in the recording studio, she hung up inspirational pictures of Kurt Cobain, Judy Garland, Coldplay, Jeff Buckley, and The Vines to help motivate her sound and to commemorate the artists who influenced her.
Dobson wrote most of the music on the album, along with producer Jay Levine. However, several other producers pitched in to help write for the album, including James Bryan McCollum. The album was written in approximately two years, mainly by Dobson herself.
The music heard on Fefe Dobson's debut album is generally pop-rock, as well as some traces of punk music. Several songs on the album are also in an acoustic format, stripped down to just Dobson and the guitar. The music was different from most music put out at the time, such as recent releases by Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera. In fact, Dobson originally signed with Jive Records, who intended to make her the next big pop star. However, Dobson didn't want to be a pop-star and wanted to make her own type of music, and quickly left the label. [6]
The first track on the album is titled "Stupid Little Love Song". Lyrically, the song is an uptempo rock/punk song that lyrically speaks of Dobson's love for someone who is famous, stating lyrics such as "I came by taxi/you can by limousine". The second song on the album is the album's lead single, "Bye Bye Boyfriend". The song's verse is a moderately paced beat, fueled by guitar and drums. During the verse, Dobson states she's sorry for leaving her boyfriend. However, as the chorus arrives, the lyrical content and music change, becoming more uptempo and guitar driven. The lyrics also show a sudden change, as she talks of letting him go as though he was nothing special. [8] "Take Me Away" is the third track on the album, as well as the second single (first international release). The single performed well on singles charts in the US and Canada, reaching the top 20 in Canada. It is a moderately paced pop-rock tune that lyrically speaks of running away with someone she loves. [9] "Everything" is the fourth song on the album, and the third single as well. Lyrically the song revolves around Dobson asking her lover if he is ready to be committed to her and their relationship. It is her only song to chart in the UK to date, where it had minor success on their main singles chart. [10] "Rock It 'Til You Drop It" is the fifth song from Dobson's debut album. The single is an uptempo dance/rock track that features Tone Lōc on vocals. The song lyrically speaks of dancing on the dancefloor with a guy. [11] "Revolution Song" is the sixth track on the album, and is one of the acoustic songs featured on the album. It has been stripped down to nothing other than Dobson's vocals and the acoustic guitar. [11]
"Kiss Me Fool" is the seventh song placed on the album, and is yet another uptempo rock song. Lyrically the song talks of Dobson wanting her love interest to kiss her. She also questions what she must change about herself to please the man she has her eyes set on. "Unforgiven" is one of the more personal songs on the album, as well as one of the most rock driven and dark songs on the album. It talks about Dobson's father, and all the mistakes that he made while trying to raise her. In the song, Dobson speaks of her independence, and how she never really did need him in her life. The end of the chorus shows Dobson yelling that he's "unforgiven". [12] "We Went For a Ride" is the ninth song to be placed on the album. The song is generally slower and more pop oriented than the rest of the album. The lyrics speak of riding away with her love interest, to never come back and drive away from all of their problems. [13] "Give It Up" is the tenth track on the album. The verse of the song is generally slower and slower-paced than most music on the album, however, the chorus quickly shifts to a rock driven beat filled with drums and bass. Lyrically Dobson is telling her ex that there's nothing he can do to win her back, and he should just "give it up". [14] "Julia" is another acoustic song on the album, and is reportedly about her friend who had an eating disorder. [15] "8x10" is the final track listed on the album. It is another acoustic song on the album, and is considered a good ending to the album by some critics. [16]
The album debuted at number one on the US Billboard Heatseekers Albums Chart. [2] It debuted at number 111 on the Billboard 200 chart, [2] eventually peaking at 67. [3] Despite the minor success of the single, "Everything" in the UK, the album failed to chart there, as well as chart anywhere outside of the US and Canada.
Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
allmusic.com | [17] |
Barnes & Noble | (favorable) link |
Blender | link [ permanent dead link ] |
Rolling Stone | link [ dead link ] |
The album was met with generally positive reviews from critics and fans. Music-Review.com stated that "Fefe doesn't mess around. The very first song is the very best song; if "Stupid Little Love Song" was released as a single, it would blow this narrow little worldwide open with its tight slashing crunching goodness. Not only is it fast and hard and funky like a Thierry Henry penalty kick, but it's funny too: our protagonist is feeling a little outmatched by her boyfriend's super-accomplished family, and doesn't know how to deal: "You're on the road to Harvard Law / I'm on the bus to Arkansas". His mother's a Senator, his dad's got his own talk show, he's a big jocky handsome guy, and all she has for him is...pause... "Just a stupid little love song!" and they all spazz out with the guitars again. I'm not saying it's prime Clash or anything, but the way Dobson yells "Put 'em up!" in the breaks is pretty inspiring." [18]
Johnny Loftus of allmusic.com stated in his review of the album that "...Dobson created a rousing debut that, despite being a highly melodic and relentlessly effective pop album, is rescued from flavor-of-the-moment dissipation by a schizophrenic rock crunch and her own attractively bad attitude." He went on to say that " Fefe Dobson definitely has an opportunistic streak, and its stylistic cherry-picking can be trying. But production niceties and savvy marketing can't fake the talent Fefe has. It's her willingness to inject pop with pluck and rock as much as she flutters that makes Dobson's debut much more than just a popternative clone. Best of all, it still caters to those casual fans who won't know any better." The review ends with the album being awarded four out of five stars. [17]
During much of 2004, Dobson promoted her debut album, appearing for a live performance on TRL and numerous magazine covers and articles. Dobson made an appearance on the NBC series American Dreams , in which she played the role of Tina Turner, covering the song "River Deep, Mountain High". [19] She was also the opening act on Justin Timberlake's European tour, which was especially poignant inasmuch as when she was 13 she had a major crush on him. [20] [21] That July, she released a new single, "Don't Go (Girls and Boys)", which was also featured in a Tommy Hilfiger commercial starring the singer. [4] The album was later reissued with that single added. Dobson also had a new song, "If You Walk Away", on the soundtrack for Raising Helen . [22]
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
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1. | "Stupid Little Love Song" | Fefe Dobson, Jay Levine, James Bryan McCollum | 3:19 |
2. | "Bye Bye Boyfriend" | Dobson, Levine, McCollum | 4:14 |
3. | "Take Me Away" | Dobson, Levine, Dally, Barker | 3:29 |
4. | "Everything" | Dobson, Levine, McCollum | 4:11 |
5. | "Rock It Till You Drop It" | Dobson, Levine | 4:05 |
6. | "Revolution Song" | Dobson, Levine, McCollum | 3:51 |
7. | "Kiss Me Fool" | Dobson, Levine, McCollum | 4:00 |
8. | "Unforgiven" | Dobson, Levine | 4:07 |
9. | "We Went For a Ride" | Dobson, Levine | 3:42 |
10. | "Give It Up" | Dobson, Levine | 3:36 |
11. | "Julia" | Dobson, Levine | 4:03 |
12. | "8 x 10" | Dobson, Levine, McCollum | 4:09 |
13. | "Rainbow" (hidden track) | Dobson, Levine | 2:30 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
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13. | "Rainbow" | Dobson, Levine | 2:30 |
14. | "Don't Let Me Fall" | Dobson, Levine | 3:55 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
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13. | "Don't Go (Girls and Boys)" (hidden track) | Dobson, Levine | 3:18 |
14. | "Rainbow" | Dobson, Levine | 2:30 |
Credits for Fefe Dobson adapted from Allmusic [26]
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Chart positions | Certifications (sales thresholds) | ||
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CAN [27] | US [3] | US Heat [2] [3] | |
26 | 67 | 1 |
Year | Award | Result |
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2005 | Juno Award for Pop Album of the Year [29] | Nominated |
Year | Title | Type | Song |
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2004 | One Tree Hill | TV series Episode: "You Gotta Go There to Come Back" | "Everything" [30] |
The Perfect Score | Film | "Everything" [31] | |
"Unforgiven" [31] | |||
Tommy Hilfiger | TV Ad | "Don't Go (Girls and Boys)" [4] |
Felicia Lily Dobson is a Canadian singer. Born in Toronto, Ontario, she began performing as a teenager, during which time she received and refused an offer from Jive Records for a recording contract. Dobson signed with Island/Def Jam soon after and released her self-titled debut album (2003), which saw the success of the singles "Bye Bye Boyfriend" and "Don't Go " on the Canadian Hot 100 chart and for which she received two Juno Award nominations.
Speak is the debut studio album by American actress and singer-songwriter Lindsay Lohan, released on December 7, 2004, by Casablanca Records.
Sunday Love is the second studio album by Canadian singer Fefe Dobson. The album was released digitally on the iTunes Store and to streaming services on December 18, 2012.
Chain Letter is the only studio album by Brooke Valentine, released on March 15, 2005, by Subliminal Entertainment and Virgin Records. Work on the album began after Valentine left the female group Best Kept Secret, in order to pursue a solo career. She moved to Los Angeles, California with producer and Subliminal Entertainment CEO Deja the Great to begin work on the album. Valentine enlisted a variety of producers to work on the album including Bink!, Bloodshy & Avant, Déjà "The Great", Jermaine Dupri, Brandon Howard, Lil Jon and Matt Serletic among others.
"Don't Go (Girls and Boys)" is a song written and recorded by Canadian singer Fefe Dobson with producer Jay Levine. It was released on May 25 2004, and serves as the fourth and final single from Dobson's self-titled debut album. Although it did not appear on the initial release of the album, the song was appended to later pressings. The song was featured in a 2004 Tommy Hilfiger commercial that starred Dobson.
"Bye Bye Boyfriend" is Fefe Dobson's first single, taken from her first album, Fefe Dobson. The Canadian single version has "Stupid Little Love Song" as the B-side. "Bye Bye Boyfriend" was included as the B-side of her CD single "Take Me Away".
"Take Me Away" is a song by Canadian singer-songwriter Fefe Dobson from her eponymous debut studio album (2003). It was sent to radio as the second single from the album on 18 August 2003, by Island Records. The song was written by Dobson and Jay Levine, whilst production was helmed by Levine and James Bryan McCollum. "Take Me Away" debuted at number 96 on the Billboard Hot 100 on November 15, 2003 and later peaked at 87.
"Everything" is a song written by Fefe Dobson, Jay Levine, and James Bryan McCollum and recorded by Dobson for her self-titled debut album (2003). It was released to American radio as the album's second international single and third overall single on January 19, 2004. "Everything" was the only single from the album to miss the Canadian Singles Chart, but it did reach number nine on the Radio & Records Hot AC chart and number 13 on the CHR/Pop chart. The song is Dobson's only track to chart in the United Kingdom, peaking at number 42.
The discography of Fefe Dobson, a Canadian pop rock singer-songwriter, consists of two released studio albums, one digital album, fourteen singles, fifteen music videos and a number of other appearances.
"Start All Over" is a song recorded by American singer Miley Cyrus for her debut studio album Meet Miley Cyrus (2007). The song was written by Fefe Dobson, Anne Preven and produced by Annetenna. It was released by Hollywood Records on March 11, 2008, as the second single from the album only in Australia. An accompanying music video, directed by Marc Webb was also released. A live version is available on Hannah Montana and Miley Cyrus: Best of Both Worlds Concert and as an instrumental in Cyrus's karaoke series. The song was originally recorded by Fefe Dobson, who passed the song to Cyrus, because she did not desire to include it on Sunday Love. The uptempo song is lyrically about having a second chance in a romantic relationship.
Joshua Keeler Ramsay is a Canadian singer, songwriter, producer, recording engineer, and multi-instrumentalist. He is best known for being the lead vocalist of the pop rock band Marianas Trench. He has produced and has written songs for a wide array of artists including Carly Rae Jepsen, Nickelback, Jessica Lee, Faber Drive, and Suzie McNeil.
Anjulie Persaud, known by the mononym Anjulie, is a Canadian singer and songwriter who has released one self-titled album, and has collaborated with Diplo, Zedd, Boombox Cartel, Kelly Clarkson, Lady Gaga, Nicki Minaj, TheFatRat, and Benny Benassi, among others. Her music has been featured on HBO, ABC, NBC and MTV.
Joy is the third studio album released by Canadian singer-songwriter Fefe Dobson. It was released on November 22, 2010 on Island Records in Canada and November 30, 2010 on 21 Music in the United States after taking almost four years to complete. It candidly follows Dobson's evolution as an artist as well as transition from the indie type of music she originally put together for Joy, to the mainstream pop hits. The album was preceded by the release of the two buzz singles "Watch Me Move" and "I Want You", which were then followed-up by the three top 20 official singles "Ghost", "Stuttering" and "Can't Breathe", all of which have at least one music video.
Kiss & Tell is the debut studio album by American band Selena Gomez & the Scene. The album was released on September 29, 2009 through Hollywood Records. The album is composed mainly of pop rock and electronic rock, with Gomez citing bands such as Paramore and Forever the Sickest Kids as influences on the album. Ted Bruner and Trey Vittetoe worked extensively on the record with Gomez, producing multiple tracks. Gomez worked with Gina Schock on several songs for the album, while Rock Mafia produced two of the album's tracks.
"Ghost" is a song by Canadian singer–songwriter Fefe Dobson from her second (released) studio album, Joy (2010). It was produced by Kevin Rudolf, and co-written by Dobson, Rudolf, Kara DioGuardi and J. Kasher. The song officially impacted American mainstream radio on May 11, 2010, and was released as a digital single on June 21, 2010, by 21 Music and Island Records.
You Are the Only One is a song performed by American artist Emily Osment. The song was released for digital download on February 27, 2010 as the second single from Osment's debut extended play, All the Right Wrongs. Overall, the song was deemed unsuccessful and failed to chart in the United States, however, it made some impact on the Canadian Digital Charts.
"Stuttering" is a song by Canadian singer–songwriter Fefe Dobson from her second (released) studio album, Joy. It was produced by J. R. Rotem, and co-written by Dobson, Rotem, and Claude Kelly. The song was released as a single on September 7, 2010, by 21 Music and The Island Def Jam Music Group and officially impacted mainstream radio on October 12, 2010. The song has achieved success in Canada, becoming Dobson's first top ten hit on the Canadian Hot 100 and being certified Platinum by Music Canada. A remix featuring rapper Pusha T was released in November 2010.
"Can't Breathe" is a song by Canadian singer-songwriter Fefe Dobson from her second released studio album, Joy (2010), which features a guitar solo from Australian musician Orianthi. It was written and produced by Bob Ezrin and Tommy Henriksen, and co-written by Dobson and Thomas "Tawgs" Salter. The song was released in March 2011 as the album's third and final single, and was only released in Canada. Dobson reported on her Twitter in April of that year that the song had been sent to radio.
"What I Wouldn't Do" is a song performed by Canadian singer-songwriter Serena Ryder, which was released as a single in November 2012. The song was written by Ryder and Jerrod Bettis for Ryder's fifth studio album, Harmony. The song was released as the second single from the album in Canada. The song was featured in a 2013 episode of Grey's Anatomy and Rookie Blue, however, release of the single in the United States was delayed due to the success of Serena's previous single "Stompa".
"Legacy" is a song recorded by Canadian recording artist Fefe Dobson, originally intended for a studio album tentatively titled Firebird. Dobson co-wrote the song with Hasham Hussain, Denarius Motes, and Edwin Serrano. It was released August 6, 2013 through independent label imprint 21 Entertainment as the album's lead single. "Legacy" premiered on the popular Canadian teen drama series, Degrassi.
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