The White Stripes (album)

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The White Stripes
The White Stripes - The White Stripes.jpg
Studio album by
the White Stripes
ReleasedJune 15, 1999 (1999-06-15)
RecordedJanuary 1999
Studio
Genre
Length43:38
Label Sympathy for the Record Industry
Producer
The White Stripes chronology
The White Stripes
(1999)		 De Stijl
(2000)
Singles from The White Stripes
  1. "The Big Three Killed My Baby"
    Released: March 1999

The White Stripes is the debut studio album by American rock duo the White Stripes, released in June 1999 by Sympathy for the Record Industry. It was produced by lead vocalist and guitarist Jack White and Jim Diamond. Musically, The White Stripes features elements of blues, punk, country and arena rock. It includes three cover songs and is dedicated to blues musician Son House.

Contents

Distribution of The White Stripes was limited as Sympathy was an independent label, and it failed to chart in the United States. "The Big Three Killed My Baby" was released as the only single and promotional effort. The album was rereleased in the UK and the US by XL and V2 respectively, and in 2013 was certified gold by the British Phonographic Industry. It received generally positive from critics, and Jack deemed it his favorite of the band's six albums.

Background and recording

The White Stripes formed in 1997 and began performing as part of the underground Michigan rock scene, releasing two singles over the next year. In 1999, they signed with Sympathy for the Record Industry and recorded The White Stripes over a week with Jim Diamond at Ghetto Recorders and Third Man Studios in Detroit, Michigan. [1] [2] The band covered "St. James Infirmary Blues" after being introduced to the song from a Betty Boop cartoon. [3]

Music

Johnny Walker of the Soledad Brothers played slide guitar on two songs: "Suzy Lee" and "I Fought Piranhas". Walker is credited with having taught Jack how to play slide, a technique featured heavily on the White Stripes' first two albums. Walker explains, "[Jack] had a four track in his living room and invited me to come by and do some recording. In return, I showed him how to play slide." [4]

The White Stripes is a blues rock, punk rock, country rock, and arena rock album. [5] It is dedicated to the blues musician Son House, who is an inspiration of Jack.

Outtakes

Outtakes for the album include "Dead Leaves and the Dirty Ground", "Why Can't You Be Nicer to Me", "Let's Build a Home", and a cover of Burt Bacharach's "My Little Red Book"; [6] later, the second and third of these songs would be included on De Stijl (2000), and the first would be included on White Blood Cells (2001).

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [7]
Pitchfork 8.3/10 [8]
Rolling Stone Album Guide Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svgStar empty.svg [9]

The White Stripes received generally positive reviews but only gained local attention on release. Norene Cashen of The Metro Times said the LP "serves better to remind us that [Detroit's] local identity has more options than a membership card to the latest cliché...or a one-way ticket to the coast." [10] Much of the media feedback came two or three years after its initial release, following the duo's fame spreading beyond Detroit. It has sold 300,000 copies in the United States. [11]

BBC DJ John Peel first spotted the album in a record shop and said, "I just liked the look of it and I looked at the titles – you develop an instinct, d'you know what I mean? And it looked like the sort of record I would like, so I took it out and I did like it, and started playing it." [12] His endorsement was key in heightening the band's popularity in the UK. [12]

Chris Handyman of AllMusic said of the album, "Jack White's voice is a singular, evocative combination of punk, metal, blues, and backwoods while his guitar work is grand and banging with just enough lyrical touches of slide and subtle solo work... Meg White balances out the fretwork and the fretting with methodical, spare, and booming cymbal, bass drum, and snare... All D.I.Y. punk-country-blues-metal singer-songwriting duos should sound this good." [5]

Of the album, Jack said in 2003, "I still feel we've never topped our first album. It's the most raw, the most powerful, and the most Detroit-sounding record we've made." [13]

Track listing

All music is composed by the White Stripes, except where noted.

No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Jimmy the Exploder" 2:29
2."Stop Breaking Down" Robert Johnson 2:20
3."The Big Three Killed My Baby" 2:29
4."Suzy Lee" 3:21
5."Sugar Never Tasted So Good" 2:54
6."Wasting My Time" 2:13
7."Cannon" Son House (See: John the Revelator)2:30
8."Astro" 2:42
9."Broken Bricks"lyrics by Jack White and Stephen Gillis1:51
10."When I Hear My Name" 1:54
11."Do" 3:05
12."Screwdriver" 3:14
13."One More Cup of Coffee" Bob Dylan 3:13
14."Little People" 2:22
15."Slicker Drips" 1:30
16."St. James Infirmary Blues"Traditional2:24
17."I Fought Piranhas" 3:07
Total length:43:38
Japanese edition bonus tracks
No.TitleLength
18."Let's Shake Hands"2:01
19."Lafayette Blues"2:15
Total length:47:54

Personnel

Credits are adapted from the album's liner notes. [14]

The White Stripes

Additional personnel

Charts

Chart (2004)Peak
position
French Albums (SNEP) [15] 159
UK Albums (Official Charts Company) [16] 142

Certifications

RegionCertification Certified units/sales
United Kingdom (BPI) [17] Gold100,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

Release history

RegionDateLabelFormatCatalog
United StatesJune 15, 1999 Sympathy for the Record Industry LP album SFTRI 577
Compact DiscSFTRI 577
United KingdomNovember 26, 2001 XL Recordings Compact DiscXLCD 149
LP albumXLLP 149
United StatesJune 11, 2002 V2 Records Compact Disc63881-27131-2
JapanMarch 19, 2003V2 Records JapanCompact DiscV2CP 148
United StatesNovember 30, 2010 Third Man Records LP albumTMR-042

References

  1. ↑ "The White Stripes: What Made Them Such A Revolutionary Rock Duo?". YouTube. Amplified - Classic Rock & Music History. November 6, 2021. Retrieved December 31, 2023.
  2. ↑ The White Stripes (booklet). Sympathy For The Record Industry. 1999.
  3. ↑ Series 40, episode 2, Later...with Jools Holland. Series 40. Episode 2. April 24, 2012
  4. ↑ Soledad Brothers: Band History Archived July 6, 2009, at the Portuguese Web Archive Soundclick, (accessed June 20, 2008).
  5. 1 2 Handyside, Chris, The White Stripes, AllMusic , retrieved November 3, 2025
  6. ↑ Slingerland, Calum (August 6, 2019). "The White Stripes Treat Debut Album to 20th Anniversary Vinyl Set". Exclaim! . Retrieved July 3, 2025.
  7. ↑ Handyside, Chris. The White Stripes at AllMusic. Retrieved September 24, 2011.
  8. ↑ Bowers, William (June 17, 2002). "The White Stripes: 'The White Stripes' and 'De Stijl'". Pitchfork Media. Archived from the original on June 30, 2009. Retrieved September 24, 2011.
  9. ↑ "White Stripes: Album Guide". Rolling Stone . Archived from the original on February 7, 2011. Retrieved April 2, 2012.
  10. ↑ Cashen, Norene (May 26, 1999). "Detroit duo White Stripes mixes basic elements into simple beauty". The Metro Times .
  11. ↑ Center, Marc (June 13, 2009). "Weather Report" (PDF). Billboard. p. 22. Archived (PDF) from the original on October 22, 2021. Retrieved May 22, 2022– via American Radio History.
  12. 1 2 White Stripes, BBC.co.uk. Retrieved October 24, 2014.
  13. ↑ Fox, Darrin, "White Heat", Guitar Player, June 2003, p. 66
  14. ↑ The White Stripes (Liner notes, CD booklet). The White Stripes. 1999. SFTRI 577.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  15. ↑ "Lescharts.com – The White Stripes – The White Stripes". Hung Medien. Retrieved June 16, 2016.
  16. ↑ Zywietz, Tobias. "Chart Log UK: Kristine W – Tammy Wynette". zobbel.de. Tobias Zywietz. Retrieved June 16, 2016.
  17. ↑ "British album certifications – The White Stripes – The White Stripes". British Phonographic Industry . Retrieved April 23, 2019.
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