Solitude Standing

Solitude Standing
Studio album by Suzanne Vega
Released	April 1, 1987
Recorded	September 1986 – January 1987
Studio	Bearsville (Woodstock) RPM (New York) Carnegie Hill (New York) A&M (Hollywood) Celestial Sound (New York)
Genre	Alternative rock folk rock
Length	44:20
Label	A&M
Producer	Steve Addabbo Lenny Kaye
Suzanne Vega chronology
Suzanne Vega (1985) Solitude Standing (1987) Days of Open Hand (1990)
Singles from Solitude Standing
"Gypsy" Released: April 1987 "Luka" Released: May 21, 1987 "Tom's Diner" Released: June 1987 "Solitude Standing" Released: August 1987

Solitude Standing is the second studio album by American singer-songwriter Suzanne Vega, released on April 1, 1987, by A&M Records. It is the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed album of Vega's, being certified Platinum in the US and reaching number 11 on the Billboard 200.

Overview

"Tom's Diner" was included twice on the album; the a cappella version was the first track, and the instrumental version was the last track. In 1990, a remixed version of the song featuring DNA reached number five in the US. The song was later used to test prototype MP3 compression software. ^[1] "Night Vision" was inspired by the poem "Juan Gris" by Paul Éluard. ^[2] "Calypso" is based on the Odyssey , namely the part in which Calypso is forced to let Odysseus go. ^[3] "Gypsy" is mentioned in the book The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky, in which the main character Charlie includes it on one of his mixtapes. Vega once stated she wrote "Gypsy" when she was only 18 years old (which would be 1977) which means the song was written 10 years before it was first released. ^[4]

Critical reception

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[5]
Los Angeles Times	[6]
Orlando Sentinel	[7]
The Philadelphia Inquirer	[8]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide	[9]
Sounds	[10]
Uncut	8/10 [11]
The Village Voice	C+ [12]

In Rolling Stone , David Browne said that the mixture of older and newer compositions on Solitude Standing resulted in an album "shakier and less focused" than Vega's self-titled debut, but also one that "unwittingly shows where Vega has been and where she's going", concluding that with her "growth as a singer and writer", she "has managed to beat the sophomore jinx while giving the singer-songwriter a good name once again." ^[13] People called it an "elegantly crafted, alarmingly accessible" record whose production provides Vega "enough room to profit from the pop grooves on the album without weakening her strength as a folkie." ^[14]

Retrospectively, AllMusic critic William Ruhlmann deemed Solitude Standing a "triumph" and attributed its artistic success to "its diversity", noting that Vega had crafted "an album of story songs set in a variety of musical contexts" and "developed more as a singer without losing the focused intonation that had made her debut". ^[5]

25th anniversary

In 2012, to mark the 25th anniversary of the album's release, Vega played four celebratory concerts in which the album was performed in its entirety. The first was in Copley Square, Boston on July 28; the second and third were at City Winery in Hudson Square, New York City on October 9 (7pm and 10pm shows); and the fourth at London's Barbican Theatre on October 16.

A limited-edition two-CD set, titled Solitude Standing: Live at the Barbican , was produced by Concert Live and made available for purchase instantly after the final show, as well as online.

Track listing

Side one

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"Tom's Diner"	Suzanne Vega	2:09
2.	"Luka"	Vega	3:52
3.	"Ironbound/Fancy Poultry"	Vega Anton Sanko	6:19
4.	"In the Eye"	Vega Marc Shulman	4:16
5.	"Night Vision"	Vega Sanko	2:47
Total length:			19:23

Side two

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"Solitude Standing"	Vega Michael Visceglia Sanko Shulman Stephen Ferrera	4:49
2.	"Calypso"	Vega	4:14
3.	"Language"	Vega Visceglia	3:57
4.	"Gypsy"	Vega	4:04
5.	"Wooden Horse (Caspar Hauser's Song)"	Vega Visceglia Sanko Shulman Ferrera	5:13
6.	"Tom's Diner (Reprise)"	Vega	2:40
Total length:			24:57

Personnel

• Suzanne Vega – vocals, acoustic guitar
• Marc Shulman – electric guitars
• Anton Sanko  – synthesizers, classical guitar on 5
• Michael Visceglia – bass guitar, additional synthesizer on 11
• Stephen Ferrera – drums, percussion

Additional personnel

• Shawn Colvin  – backing vocals on 2
• Mitch Easter  – rhythm guitar on 9
• Steve Addabbo  – guitar on 9
• Frank Christian  – electric guitar on 9
• Jon Gordon – guitar solo on 2
• Sue Evans  – percussion on 7, drums on 9

Production

• Steve Addabbo – producer, engineer
• Lenny Kaye  – producer
• Mitch Easter – producer on 9
• Ronald K. Fierstein – executive producer
• Rod O'Brien – engineer
• Shelly Yakus  – mixing
• Jeffrey Gold – art direction
• Melanie Nissen – art direction, design
• Paula Bullwinkel – cover photography

Charts

Weekly charts Weekly chart performance for Solitude Standing Chart (1987) Peak position Australian Albums (Kent Music Report) [15] 7 Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria) [16] 3 Canada Top Albums/CDs ( RPM ) [17] 5 Dutch Albums (Album Top 100) [18] 14 European Albums ( Music & Media ) [19] 6 Finnish Albums (Suomen virallinen lista) [20] 3 French Albums (IFOP) [21] 18 German Albums (Offizielle Top 100) [22] 6 Icelandic Albums (Tónlist) [23] 7 New Zealand Albums (RMNZ) [24] 1 Norwegian Albums (VG-lista) [25] 2 Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan) [26] 1 Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade) [27] 8 UK Albums (OCC) [28] 2 US Billboard 200 [29] 11

Year-end charts Year-end chart performance for Solitude Standing Chart (1987) Position Australian Albums (Kent Music Report) [30] 22 Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria) [31] 9 Canada Top Albums/CDs (RPM) [32] 19 Dutch Albums (Album Top 100) [33] 69 European Albums (Music & Media) [34] 16 German Albums (Offizielle Top 100) [35] 19 New Zealand Albums (RMNZ) [36] 12 Norwegian Summer Period Albums (VG-lista) [37] 1 Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade) [38] 23 UK Albums (Gallup) [39] 27 US Billboard 200 [40] 61

Certifications and sales

Certifications and sales for Solitude Standing

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
Australia (ARIA) [41]	Gold	25,000 [41]
Brazil	—	50,000 [42]
Canada (Music Canada) [43]	Platinum	100,000^
France (SNEP) [44]	2× Gold	200,000*
Germany (BVMI) [45]	Gold	250,000^
Hong Kong (IFPI Hong Kong) [46]	Gold	10,000*
Norway (IFPI Norway) [47]	Gold	50,000 [47]
New Zealand (RMNZ) [48]	Platinum	15,000^
Singapore	—	12,000 [49]
Spain (PROMUSICAE) [50]	Gold	50,000^
Sweden (GLF) [51]	Gold	50,000^
United Kingdom (BPI) [52]	Platinum	300,000^
United States (RIAA) [53]	Platinum	1,000,000^
Summaries
Worldwide	—	5,000,000 [54]
* Sales figures based on certification alone. ^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References

1. "Tom's Diner and the Origin of MP3s – Marquette University Law School Faculty Blog" . Retrieved November 12, 2022.
2. Suzanne Vega. Solitude Standing (A&M Records, 1987).
3. "Suzanne Vega - Calypso". Paste Magazine. July 22, 2017. Retrieved August 21, 2018.
4. Weinreich, Regina (February 22, 2017). "Suzanne Vega at the Café Carlyle: Lover, Beloved". HuffPost. Retrieved August 21, 2018.
5. Ruhlmann, William. "Solitude Standing – Suzanne Vega". AllMusic . Retrieved April 14, 2006.
6. Willman, Chris (May 3, 1987). "Zen Over Zip In Vega's 'Solitude'". Los Angeles Times . Retrieved May 5, 2017.
7. Duffy, Thom (May 24, 1987). "Suzanne Vega". Orlando Sentinel . Retrieved May 5, 2017.
8. Tucker, Ken (May 10, 1987). "Suzanne Vega's coming of age". The Philadelphia Inquirer .
9. Evans, Paul; Berger, Arion (2004). "Suzanne Vega". In Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian (eds.). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide (4th ed.). New York: Simon & Schuster. pp.  845–846. ISBN   0-7432-0169-8.
10. Perry, Neil (May 2, 1987). "Out on Her Own". Sounds . p. 29.
11. Thomson, Graeme (March 2014). "How to Buy... Suzanne Vega". Uncut . No. 202. p. 85.
12. Christgau, Robert (July 28, 1987). "Christgau's Consumer Guide". The Village Voice . Retrieved November 20, 2011.
13. Browne, David (June 18, 1987). "Suzanne Vega: Solitude Standing". Rolling Stone . No. 502. Archived from the original on June 26, 2007. Retrieved December 15, 2012.
14. Novak, Ralph; Abrahams, Andrew; Hiltbrand, David; Shaughnessy, Mary (May 25, 1987). "Picks and Pans Review: Solitude Standing". People . Vol. 27, no. 21. Archived from the original on September 26, 2015. Retrieved November 20, 2011.
15. Kent 1993 , p. 329
16. "Austriancharts.at – Suzanne Vega – Solitude Standing" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved June 8, 2014.
17. "Top RPM Albums: Issue 0871". RPM . Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved September 4, 2021.
18. "Dutchcharts.nl – Suzanne Vega – Solitude Standing" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved June 8, 2014.
19. "European Hot 100 Albums" (PDF). Music & Media . Vol. 4, no. 37. September 19, 1987. p. 20. OCLC   29800226 – via World Radio History.
20. Pennanen, Timo (2006). Sisältää hitin – levyt ja esittäjät Suomen musiikkilistoilla vuodesta 1972 (in Finnish) (1st ed.). Helsinki: Kustannusosakeyhtiö Otava. ISBN   978-951-1-21053-5.
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23. "Ísland (LP-plötur)". DV (in Icelandic). September 18, 1987. p. 43. ISSN   1021-8254 – via Timarit.is.
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25. "Norwegiancharts.com – Suzanne Vega – Solitude Standing". Hung Medien. Retrieved June 8, 2014.
26. "Swedishcharts.com – Suzanne Vega – Solitude Standing". Hung Medien. Retrieved June 8, 2014.
27. "Swisscharts.com – Suzanne Vega – Solitude Standing". Hung Medien. Retrieved June 8, 2014.
28. "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved September 4, 2021.
29. "Suzanne Vega Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved June 8, 2014.
30. Kent 1993 , p. 439
31. "Jahreshitparade Alben 1987". austriancharts.at (in German). Retrieved September 4, 2021.
32. "Top 100 Albums of '87". RPM. Vol. 47, no. 12. December 26, 1987. p. 9. ISSN   0033-7064 – via Library and Archives Canada.
33. "Jaaroverzichten – LP 1987" (in Dutch). Dutch Charts . Retrieved September 4, 2021.
34. "European Charts of the Year 1987 – Albums" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 4, no. 51/52. December 26, 1987. p. 35. OCLC   29800226 – via World Radio History.
35. "Top 100 Album-Jahrescharts – 1987" (in German). Offizielle Deutsche Charts. Retrieved September 4, 2021.
36. "Top Selling Albums of 1987". Recorded Music NZ . Retrieved September 4, 2021.
37. "Topp 40 Album Sommer 1987" (in Norwegian). VG-lista. Archived from the original on September 16, 2017. Retrieved September 4, 2021.
38. "Schweizer Jahreshitparade 1987". hitparade.ch (in German). Retrieved September 4, 2021.
39. "Gallup Year End Charts 1987 – Albums" (PDF). Record Mirror . January 23, 1988. p. 37. ISSN   0144-5804 – via World Radio History.
40. "Billboard 200 Albums – Year-End 1987". Billboard. Retrieved September 4, 2021.
41. "Standing Success" (PDF). Music & Media. May 7, 1988. p. 9. Retrieved June 25, 2019.
42. Souza, Tarik de (January 6, 1988). "Um bom ano para o disco". Jornal do Brasil . p. 36. Retrieved March 18, 2023– via National Library of Brazil.
43. "Canadian album certifications – Suzanne Vega – Solitude Standing". Music Canada . Retrieved June 11, 2019.
44. "French album certifications – Suzanne Vega – Solitude Standing" (in French). InfoDisc. Retrieved June 11, 2019.Select SUZANNE VEGA and click OK. 
45. "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (Suzanne Vega; 'Solitude Standing')" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie . Retrieved June 11, 2019.
46. "IFPIHK Gold Disc Award − 1988". IFPI Hong Kong. Retrieved June 11, 2019.
47. "Gold & Platinum Awards 1987" (PDF). Music & Media . December 26, 1987. p. 44. Retrieved July 7, 2019.
48. "New Zealand album certifications – Suzanne Vega – Solitude Standing". Recorded Music NZ . Retrieved November 20, 2024.
49. "Women top the pop charts". The Straits Times . December 27, 1987. p. 16. Archived from the original on October 31, 2022. Retrieved August 27, 2023.
50. Sólo Éxitos 1959–2002 Año A Año: Certificados 1979–1990 (in Spanish). Iberautor Promociones Culturales. 2005. ISBN   8480486392.
51. "Guld- och Platinacertifikat − År 1987−1998" (PDF) (in Swedish). IFPI Sweden. Archived from the original (PDF) on May 17, 2011. Retrieved June 11, 2019.
52. "British album certifications – Suzanne Vega – Solitude Standing". British Phonographic Industry . Retrieved June 11, 2019.
53. "American album certifications – Suzanne Vega – Solitude Standing". Recording Industry Association of America . Retrieved June 11, 2019.
54. Meter, Jonathan van (July 9, 2007). "Lady of the Canyons". NY Mag. Retrieved August 17, 2018.

Bibliography

• Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. ISBN   0-646-11917-6.

External links

• BBC Radio 4 Mastertapes (November 2012) Suzanne Vega discusses her platinum-selling Solitude Standing. (the A-Side) (the B-Side) Download audio and video clips