Pure and Simple | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | June 14, 1994 | |||
Studio |
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Genre | Hard rock, power pop | |||
Length | 46:57 | |||
Label | Blackheart/Warner Bros. | |||
Producer | Kenny Laguna, Thom Panunzio, Ed Stasium, Desmond Child, Jim Vallance, Joan Jett | |||
Joan Jett and the Blackhearts chronology | ||||
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Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [1] |
Robert Christgau | [2] |
Rolling Stone | [3] |
Pure and Simple is the ninth studio album by Joan Jett and the Blackhearts, released in 1994. The album includes several tracks co-written with Kathleen Hanna, [3] including "Go Home", a response to the murder of Mia Zapata.
Pure and Simple was the first album to feature a new line up of Blackheart band members since the departure of longtime guitarist Ricky Byrd and bassist Kasim Sulton after the release of Jett's last album, Notorious . This new line up consisted of bassist Kenny Aaronson and lead guitarist Tony "Bruno" Rey. Pure and Simple would be the last Joan Jett & the Blackhearts release until 2006's Sinner . In 1995, both Aaronson and Rey went on to other projects. Aaronson would eventually become a member of the reunited New York Dolls – coincidentally taking over for bassist Sami Yaffa, his replacement in the Blackhearts and Rey became the musical director for Enrique Iglesias and Rihanna.
The CD and other versions feature collaborations with performers from Riot Grrrl and Riot Grrrl-associated bands. On all editions, songs "Go Home", "Spinster", "Activity Girl", and "You Got a Problem" were written with Kathleen Hanna (Bikini Kill, The Julie Ruin, Le Tigre); on the vinyl release "Here to Stay" was written with Kat Bjelland (Babes in Toyland); on the Japanese edition "Hostility" was written with Donita Sparks (L7).
"World of Denial" was also added to the Japanese pressings. The Japanese cover differs from the regular cover. "Get Off the Cross" was also recorded during these sessions. Concurrently released in the US on vinyl LP, CD, and cassette, all versions varying slightly. The record album came with a hype sticker that read "All Rock. No Ballads", and omits both "As I Am" and "Brighter Day". A few seconds of the song are also heard on the cassette at the very end of side one before fading out. Jett independently put out "Spinster" as a 7-inch blue vinyl single in the US with a picture sleeve. The B-sides were "Go Home" and "Hostility". The track "World of Denial" was eventually released in the US on Jett's greatest hits album Fit to Be Tied .
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
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1. | "Go Home" | Joan Jett, Kathleen Hanna | 2:42 |
2. | "Eye to Eye" | Jett, Jim Vallance, Kenny Laguna | 3:30 |
3. | "Spinster" | Jett, Hanna | 2:44 |
4. | "Torture" | Jett, Vallance, Laguna | 3:35 |
5. | "Rubber & Glue" | Jett, Hanna | 3:19 |
6. | "As I Am" | Jett, Desmond Child | 4:35 |
7. | "Activity Grrrl" | Jett, Hanna | 3:45 |
8. | "Insecure" | Jett, Vallance, Laguna | 3:11 |
9. | "Wonderin'" | Jett, Vallance, Laguna | 4:53 |
10. | "Consumed" | Jett, Thommy Price | 4:40 |
11. | "You Got a Problem" | Jett, Child, Hanna | 3:57 |
12. | "Brighter Day" | Jett, Child | 6:06 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
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11. | "Here to Stay" | Jett, Kat Bjelland | 3:57 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
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7. | "Hostility" | Jett, Donita Sparks | 3:37 |
12. | "World of Denial" | Jett, Kenny Aaronson | 4:14 |
Album Design-Spencer Drate, Judith Salavetz Art Direction-Meryl Laguna Photography-George Holz
Chart (1994) | Peak position |
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Australian Albums (ARIA) [4] | 142 |
Bikini Kill is an American punk rock band formed in Olympia, Washington, in October 1990. The group originally consisted of singer and songwriter Kathleen Hanna, guitarist Billy Karren, bassist Kathi Wilcox, and drummer Tobi Vail. The band pioneered the riot grrrl movement, with feminist lyrics and fiery performances. Their music is characteristically abrasive and hardcore-influenced. After two full-length albums, several EPs and two compilations, they disbanded in 1997. The band reunited for tours in 2019 and 2022, with Erica Dawn Lyle on guitar in place of Karren.
Joan Jett is an American rock singer, guitarist, songwriter, record producer, and actress. She is best known for her work as the frontwoman of her band Joan Jett and the Blackhearts, and for founding and performing with the Runaways, who recorded and released the hit song "Cherry Bomb". With the Blackhearts, Jett is known for her rendition of the song "I Love Rock 'n Roll" which was number-one on the Billboard Hot 100 for seven weeks in 1982. Jett's other notable songs include "Bad Reputation", "Light of Day", "I Hate Myself for Loving You" and her covers of "Crimson and Clover", "Do You Wanna Touch Me " and "Dirty Deeds".
Kenny Aaronson is an American bass guitar player. He has recorded or performed with several notable artists such as Bob Dylan, Rick Derringer, Billy Idol, Joan Jett and the Blackhearts, Foghat, Sammy Hagar, Billy Squier, New York Dolls, and Hall and Oates. Since 2015, he has been the bass player for The Yardbirds.
Sinner is the eleventh studio album by the American hard rock band Joan Jett and the Blackhearts, released June 13, 2006, by Blackheart Records Group. While most of the contents previously appeared on the Japan-only release Naked (2004), some in different mixes, it is her first record of new material released in the United States since Pure and Simple in 1994. Singles released include "A.C.D.C." and "Riddles", which is a new version of "Right in the Middle" from Naked with different lyrics.
"Do You Wanna Touch Me", also referred to as "Do You Wanna Touch Me? " is a song by English glam rock singer Gary Glitter, written by Glitter with Mike Leander and produced by Leander. It was released as the lead single from his second studio album, Touch Me (1973), peaking at No. 2 on the UK Singles Chart in January 1973, his third successive UK hit. The single also reached No. 9 in Ireland and No. 11 in Australia.
Bad Reputation is the debut solo studio album by American recording artist Joan Jett. It was originally released independently in May 1980 as a self-titled album after her previous band The Runaways disbanded. After Jett signed with Boardwalk Records, the album was re-released worldwide with the new title on January 23, 1981. The album was positively received by critics and reached number 51 on the Billboard 200.
I Love Rock 'n Roll is the second studio album by Joan Jett and the first with her backing band the Blackhearts. The album was recorded during the summer of 1981 and was released on November 18 of that year. Soon after the first recording sessions at Soundworks Studios, original Blackheart guitarist Eric Ambel was replaced by Ricky Byrd. It is Jett's most commercially successful album to date with over a million copies sold, largely due to the success of the title track, which was released as a single soon after the album was released.
Album is the third studio album by Joan Jett and the second to feature her backing band the Blackhearts. It was released in July 1983.
Fetish is a compilation album by Joan Jett and the Blackhearts, released on June 8, 1999.
Glorious Results of a Misspent Youth is the fourth studio album by Joan Jett and the third to feature her backing band The Blackhearts. The album was released in 1984 and reissued in 1998 with seven bonus tracks. The title of the album was taken from a line of dialogue in an episode of The Honeymooners.
Up Your Alley is the sixth studio album by American rock band Joan Jett and the Blackhearts, released on May 2, 1988 by Blackheart Records and CBS Records in the United States, and by Polydor Records in Europe and Japan, a year and a half after their previous album Good Music (1986). This album contains the single "I Hate Myself for Loving You", which peaked at No. 8 on the Billboard Hot 100, and had been used as the theme song for Sunday Night Football NFL games in America during the 2006 and 2007 seasons. The follow-up single "Little Liar" continued Jett's chart success, peaking at No. 19 on the Hot 100 in late 1988/early 1989.
Good Music is the fifth studio album by Joan Jett and the Blackhearts, released in 1986. The album's working title was Contact, after the final song off the album, but it was changed to Good Music in its final stages.
The Hit List is the seventh studio album, and the first cover album by Joan Jett. The album was released in 1990. All of the tracks are covers of famous songs.
Notorious is the eighth studio album by Joan Jett and the Blackhearts. The album was released in 1991.
Flashback is a compilation album of outtakes and rare songs released by Joan Jett and the Blackhearts. The album was initially released in late 1993 and was reissued in 1998 with a slightly different track listing. The 1998 version dropped five tracks from the 1993 release: "Summertime Blues", "Louie Louie", "Star Star", "Stand Up for Yourself" and "Call Me Lightning" and replaced them with "Real Wild Child ", a live version of "Bad Reputation" and "Right 'Til the End", which was only available on the cassette version of the 1993 release. "Call Me Lightning" and "Summertime Blues" were later added as bonus tracks on reissues of Bad Reputation and "Louie Louie" became a bonus track on the reissue of I Love Rock 'N Roll. "Star Star" was included as an unlisted "surprise" track on the 1983 cassette release of Album, but was later removed after the original cassette was pulled from some stores because of non-labelled "explicit" track lyrics. The song was restored on the CD release.
Naked is the tenth studio album released only in Japan by Joan Jett and the Blackhearts. The album was released on April 27, 2004.
Evil Stig is a 1995 studio album by Evil Stig, a supergroup formed by Joan Jett and members of The Gits for a series of benefit concerts to fund the investigation into the 1993 murder of Gits singer Mia Zapata. The name Evil Stig is "Gits Live" in reverse. The album was released in 1995.
"I Love Rock 'n' Roll" is a rock song written by Alan Merrill and Jake Hooker and first recorded by the Arrows, a British rock band, in 1975. A 1981 cover version by Joan Jett & the Blackhearts, released as the first single from her album of the same name, became Jett's highest-charting hit, reaching number one on the Billboard Hot 100 and becoming the No. 3 song for 1982. The single was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America, representing two million units shipped to stores. Jett's version was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 2016.
Unvarnished is the twelfth studio album by American rock band Joan Jett and the Blackhearts, released on September 30, 2013. It reached number 47 on the US Billboard 200, becoming Jett's first album to chart since The Hit List (1990).
Bad Reputation is a 2018 American documentary film about the career of rock musician Joan Jett, directed by Kevin Kerslake and written by Joel Marcus. The documentary traces Jett's musical career from the formation of the Runaways through her subsequent partnership with songwriter and producer Kenny Laguna. Continuing with the creation of the band Joan Jett & the Blackhearts as well as the establishment of the record label Blackheart Records with Laguna, the narrative concludes with the induction of Joan Jett & the Blackhearts into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's Class of 2015.