Not a Pretty Girl
Not a Pretty Girl is the sixth studio album released by singer-songwriter Ani DiFranco on her own record label, Righteous Babe Records. It was released July 18, 1995. The album extended the folk singer's early formula of acoustic guitar and drums. On subsequent records, DiFranco would add electric guitar, horns, band members and guest musicians, but on Not a Pretty Girl she was accompanied by Andy Stochansky's percussion alone.
| Not a Pretty Girl | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | July 18, 1995 | |||
| Genre | Indie rock, folk rock | |||
| Length | 59:11 | |||
| Label | Righteous Babe | |||
| Producer | Ani DiFranco | |||
| Ani DiFranco chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [1] |
| Rolling Stone |  [2] |
| The Rolling Stone Album Guide | [3] |
| Slant Magazine | [4] |
| The Village Voice | A−[5] |
According to Allmusic, "Light of Some Kind" is a "deeply felt portrait...in which the singer seems to be confessing to a man that she has been unfaithful to him with a woman"[1] Released on Living in Clip, the track "Shy" earned DiFranco a 1997 Grammy Award nomination for Best Female Rock Vocal Performance.[6]
"Shy" off the album is notable for being quoted by Matt Skiba of Alkaline Trio during live performances of the song "Ninety-Seven"
Artwork
The CD case of Not a Pretty Girl is designed to be looked at "the wrong way 'round", with the spine on the right hand side rather than the left.
Track listing
All tracks are written by Ani DiFranco
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Worthy" | 4:31 |
| 2. | "Tiptoe" | 0:36 |
| 3. | "Cradle and All" | 4:18 |
| 4. | "Shy" | 4:43 |
| 5. | "Sorry I Am" | 4:45 |
| 6. | "Light of Some Kind" | 4:07 |
| 7. | "Not a Pretty Girl" | 3:55 |
| 8. | "The Million You Never Made" | 4:18 |
| 9. | "Hour Follows Hour" | 6:01 |
| 10. | "32 Flavors" | 6:07 |
| 11. | "Asking Too Much" | 2:55 |
| 12. | "This Bouquet" | 2:28 |
| 13. | "Crime for Crime" | 5:42 |
| 14. | "Coming Up" (In a pregap, you can hear DiFranco reciting the spoken word track "Tip-Toe", but misspeaking before restarting.) | 4:45 |
| Total length: | 59:11 | |
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 15. | "32 Flavors" (live bonus track appears on some versions) | 4:47 |
| Total length: | 63:58 | |
Personnel
- Ani DiFranco – guitar, bass, vocals
- Andy Stochansky – drums, percussion instrument/percussion
Production
- Ani DiFranco – record producer
- Ed Stone – engineer
References
- Ruhlmann, William. "Not a Pretty Girl – Ani DiFranco". AllMusic. Retrieved May 19, 2018.
- Goodman, Fred (August 24, 1995). "Ani DiFranco: Not A Pretty Girl". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on April 12, 2008. Retrieved May 19, 2018.
- Hull, Tom (2004). "Ani DiFranco". In Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian (eds.). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide (4th ed.). Simon & Schuster. pp. 236–37. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8.
- Cinquemani, Sal (March 9, 2003). "Ani DiFranco: Not A Pretty Girl". Slant Magazine. Retrieved May 19, 2018.
- Christgau, Robert (January 23, 1996). "Consumer Guide". The Village Voice. Retrieved May 19, 2018.
- CNN – List of Grammy award nominations – January 6, 1998