Under Rug Swept
Under Rug Swept is singer/songwriter
Alanis Morissette's third
American studio album. It was the first record Morissette had written and produced on her own and was released on
February 26,
2002, by
Maverick Records.
After the relative failure of
Supposed Former Infatuation Junkie, Maverick Records were concerned about Morissette's decline in popularity continuing with her third album,
Under Rug Swept. So initially, there were contract disputes between Alanis and the label. For a time, she was considering leaving Maverick until an intervention by the label founder
Madonna changed her mind. She prepared to release her third album. Before that happened, she previewed a song on her website for the fans called "Utopia," a song she wrote after
September 11.
In early 2002, Alanis débuted the song "
Hands Clean" as the first single from the album. Radio played the song generously, and it seemed that
Supposed Former Infatuation Junkie was just a sophomore slump that wouldn't have any effect on the upcoming album. In late February, the album was released to stores.
Reviews were mostly positive, some saying the album was more polished and closer to
Jagged Little Pill than its predecessor. Other reviews said that she was still too far outside the box to really connect with the mainstream, and that the success of her first album was a fluke.
Under Rug Swept débuted at #1 on the chart, selling 215,000 copies in its first week. It held the spot for a week, and stayed in the top ten for another month. Ultimately, the album sold a little less than a million copies, continuing Alanis' sales decline. The second single "Precious Illusions" didn't pick up sales of the album, nor did a world tour later that year.
After the relative flop of "Precious Illusions," the label decided to cancel promotion for the album, which angered many fans who thought that there were several more songs on the record with single potential. The album has introduced many fan favourites, like "21 Things I Want in a Lover," "So Unsexy," and "Narcissus."
(All songs written by Alanis Morissette)# "21 Things I Want in a Lover" â€" 3:28# "Narcissus" â€" 3:38# "Hands Clean" â€" 4:32# "Flinch" â€" 6:03# "So Unsexy" â€" 5:09# "Precious Illusions" â€" 4:11# "That Particular Time" â€" 4:22# "A Man" â€" 4:34# "You Owe Me Nothing in Return" â€" 4:58# "Surrendering" â€" 4:35# "Utopia" â€" 5:00# "Sister Blister" â€" 4:08 # "Flinch (Live at the Whiskey)" â€" 6:42
These 2 tracks are bonus downloads available from
underrugswept.com through a registration program on the original US release of the disc.
*Eric Avery - Bass
*Chris Bruce - Bass
*Dean DeLeo - Guitar
*Flea - Bass
*Rob Jacobs - Engineer, Mixing
*Me'Shell NdegéOcello - Bass
*Jamie Muhoberac - Keyboards
*Gary Novak - Percussion, Drums
*Carmen Rizzo - Keyboards, Programming, Engineer
*Tim Thorney - Bass, Guitar
*Alanis Morissette - Guitar, Keyboards, Vocals, Producer, Creative Director
*Joel Shearer - Guitar
*Nick Lashley - Guitar
*Andrew Scheps - Digital Editing
*Bryan Carrigan - Mixing Engineer
*Chris Fogel - Mixing
*Mike Harlow - Engineer
*Brad Nelson - Engineer
*Shari Sutcliffe - Coordination
*Johnny Talbot - Keyboards
*Rich Tapper - Assistant Engineer
*Carlos Cano - Assistant Engineer
*Chris Chaney - Bass
*Lior Goldenberg - Assistant Engineer
*Vince Giannini - Guitar Technician
*Rankin - Photography
*Pete Novak - Assistant Engineer
*Kevin Guarnieri - Engineer, Assistant Engineer
*Chris Wonzer - Assistant Engineer
*Richard Causon - Piano
*Dave Lee - Bass Technician
*Jeff Rothschild - Assistant Engineer
*Frank Maddocks - Art Direction, Design, Creative Director
*Bruce Nelson - Guitar Technician
*Aaron Fessel - Assistant Engineer
Album
2002 Under Rug Swept The Billboard 200 No. 1
2002 Under Rug Swept Australia Top 40 No. 1
2002 Under Rug Swept Top Canadian Albums No. 1
2002 Under Rug Swept Top Internet Albums No. 1
Singles
2002 Hands Clean Adult Top 40 No. 3
2002 Hands Clean Canadian Singles Chart No. 1
2002 Hands Clean Top 40 Mainstream No. 19
2002 Hands Clean Top 40 Tracks No. 15
2002 Hands Clean The Billboard Hot 100 No. 23
2002 Precious Illusions Adult Top 40 No. 16
| Billboard 200 Chart trajectory | | Week | 01 | 02 | 03 | 04 | 05 | 06 | 07 | 08 | 09 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 |
|---|
| Chart position | 1 | 3 | 4 | 8 | 15 | 23 | 26 | 29 | 42 | 47 | 50 | 64 | 73 | 78 | 102 | 113 | 111 | 127 | 139 | 149 | 152 | 179 | 178 | 187 |
|---|
