| Holy Smokes | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 1997 | |||
| Genre | Pop, folk | |||
| Label | Red House [1] | |||
| Producer | Stewart Lerman, Suzzy Roche | |||
| Suzzy Roche chronology | ||||
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Holy Smokes is the debut solo album by the American musician Suzzy Roche, released in 1997. [2] [3] It was the first solo album by a member of the Roches. [4] Roche supported the album by embarking on a tour, playing solo with just a guitar. [5]
The album was produced by Stewart Lerman and Roche. [6] Roche wrote 11 of the album's 12 songs; the final track is based on poem written by her mother. [7] The vocals were often multitracked, to reproduce the harmony sound of the Roches; Jules Shear and Maggie Roche also contributed vocals. [6] [8] [9]
Roche spent close to two years working on Holy Smokes. [10] The decision to make a solo album was inspired by a book of Irish poetry given to her by her late father. [11]
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [12] |
| Entertainment Weekly | B+ [13] |
| MusicHound Folk: The Essential Album Guide | [14] |
The Washington Post wrote that the songs "occupy that broad middle ground of somewhat amusing, somewhat touching songs about the trials and joys of growing up a smart, middle-class American woman." [7] Entertainment Weekly deemed the album "a deceptively placid-sounding solo effort whose surface calm belies its emotional turbulence." [13] The Philadelphia Inquirer thought that "Roche's inherent ethereal charm belies the unrelieved heartbreak that colors much of Holy Smokes." [10]
New York concluded that Roche's "lyric are more personal than the Roches', and her melodic sense is as vivid." [15] The Chicago Tribune thought that "Roche sets one warm, folky melody after another amid cozy piano-acoustic guitar textures, creating a relaxed and intimate work." [16]
AllMusic called the album "an oddly tentative premiere for such a seasoned performer, and not as much fun as it should have been." [12]