The Spirit Room
2001 studio album by Michelle Branch
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The Spirit Room is the second studio album by American singer-songwriter Michelle Branch. It was released by the Maverick Recording Company and Warner Bros. Records in the United States on August 14, 2001.[10] The album was recorded at Sunset Sound, Henson Recording Studios and Ananda Studios in Hollywood, California and mastered by Stephen Marcussen at Marcussen Mastering in Los Angeles, California.
- Ananda Studios (Hollywood, CA)
- Sunset Sound (Hollywood, CA)
- Henson Recording Studios (Hollywood, CA)
| The Spirit Room | ||||
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| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | August 14, 2001 | |||
| Recorded | 2000–2001 | |||
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| Genre | ||||
| Length | 42:26 | |||
| Label | ||||
| Producer | ||||
| Michelle Branch chronology | ||||
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| Limited edition international cover | ||||
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| Singles from The Spirit Room | ||||
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| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [4] |
| Entertainment Weekly | B[5] |
| The Guardian | [6] |
| Q | [7] |
| Rolling Stone | no rating[8] |
| The Village Voice | C[9] |
Background
The album's title comes from the name of a bar in Jerome, Arizona, near Branch's hometown of Sedona.[11]
Artwork
The album cover was shot in an industrial area across from an electrical substation in Los Angeles, California alongside the Los Angeles River facing north-west at the skyline during sunset.[12]
20th anniversary edition
Commercial performance
The Spirit Room debuted at number 28 on the US Billboard 200, selling 68,000 copies in its first week.[15] It had commercial success in the US, the album spent a total of 86 weeks on the US Billboard 200 chart, making it Branch's longest charting album in the US.[16] As of July 2003, the album has sold 1.8 million copies in the US.[17] On August 19, 2011, the album was certified double platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for shipments of over two million copies in the United States.[18]The Spirit Room has sold 3 million copies worldwide, making it Branch's best selling album to date.[19]
In Canada, although the album did not appear on the chart the album was certified gold, selling 50,000 copies in October 2003.[20] In Australia, it was also certified gold with shipments of 35,000.[21]
Legacy
In 2021, Branch revealed that Taylor Swift had told her The Spirit Room had been a major influence on her own music.[22][23]
Track listing
All tracks are written by Michelle Branch, with additional co-writers as noted; except for "Life on Mars", which was written by David Bowie.
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Everywhere" | 3:36 | |
| 2. | "You Get Me" |
| 3:53 |
| 3. | "All You Wanted" | 3:38 | |
| 4. | "You Set Me Free" |
| 3:11 |
| 5. | "Something to Sleep To" |
| 4:15 |
| 6. | "Here with Me" |
| 3:26 |
| 7. | "Sweet Misery" | 3:43 | |
| 8. | "If Only She Knew" | 4:19 | |
| 9. | "I'd Rather Be in Love" | 3:55 | |
| 10. | "Goodbye to You" | 4:12 | |
| 11. | "Drop in the Ocean" |
| 4:19 |
| Total length: | 42:26 | ||
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 12. | "Life on Mars" | 3:42 | |
| 13. | "All You Wanted" (unplugged) | 3:34 | |
| 14. | "Everywhere" (acoustic) |
| 3:34 |
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 12. | "Life on Mars" | 3:42 | |
| 13. | "Goodbye to You" (unplugged) | 4:10 | |
| 14. | "All You Wanted" (unplugged) | 3:34 | |
| 15. | "Everywhere" (acoustic) |
| 3:34 |
| 16. | "Goodbye to You" (music video) | 3:56 | |
| 17. | "All You Wanted" (music video) | 3:40 | |
| 18. | "Everywhere" (music video) | 3:33 |
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 12. | "Paper Pieces" | 3:38 | |
| 13. | "Everywhere" (alternate version) |
| 4:26 |
Singles
Personnel
Musicians
- Michelle Branch – all vocals, keyboards, guitars
- John Shanks – keyboards, programming, guitars, bass
- Patrick Warren – keyboards
- Lars Fox – programming
- Kenny Aronoff – drums
- Vinnie Colaiuta – drums
Production
- Danny Strick – A&R
- John Shanks – producer
- Marc DeSisto – engineer, mixing (6, 8–11)
- Lars Fox – engineer, Pro Tools editing
- Steve Kaplan – assistant engineer
- Monique Mizrahi – assistant engineer
- Tom Nellen – assistant engineer
- Jason Rankins – assistant engineer
- Chris Reynolds – assistant engineer
- Jason Schweitzer – assistant engineer
- Jamie Sickora – assistant engineer
- Chris Lord-Alge – mixing (1, 3, 4)
- Dave Way – mixing (2, 5, 7)
- Stephen Marcussen – mastering at Marcussen Mastering (Hollywood, California)
- Robert Cappadona – production coordination
- Shari Sutcliffe – production coordination
- Kim Biggs – art direction
- David Harlan – art direction
- Shoshannah Day Strauss – design
- Matthew Welch – photography
Enhanced CD credits
- Holly Adams – producer
- Nick Spanos – producer
- Jeremy Welt – producer
- Mike Donk – creation
Use in media
- "Goodbye to You" was performed live by Michelle Branch on the season 6 episode "Tabula Rasa" of Buffy the Vampire Slayer.
- "Goodbye to You" was also performed live on the season 5 episode "Centennial Charmed" of Charmed.
- "You Get Me" became the theme song for the MTV reality series Sorority Life.
- "You Get Me" is featured in the films What a Girl Wants, The Hot Chick, and Van Wilder.[26]
- "You Set Me Free" was featured in the following films:
- The trailer for the 2004 film Against the Ropes.
- The trailer of DreamWorks Animation's Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron.
- Towards the closing credits of the 2003 film Just Married.
- In the 2005 film Ice Princess, and it is featured on the movie's soundtrack.
- "Everywhere" is featured in the 2001 film American Pie 2 and is on the film's soundtrack.
- "Everywhere" is featured on the season 2 episode "T3STDRV" of Twisted Metal.
Charts
Weekly charts
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Year-end charts
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Certifications
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| Australia (ARIA)[39] | Gold | 35,000^ |
| Canada (Music Canada)[40] | Gold | 50,000^ |
| Japan (RIAJ)[41] | Platinum | 200,000^ |
| United Kingdom (BPI)[42] | Silver | 60,000‡ |
| United States (RIAA)[18] | 2× Platinum | 2,000,000^ |
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^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. | ||