To Venus and Back

{{Short description|1999 double album by Tori Amos}} {{Use mdy dates|date=May 2017}} {{Italic title}} {{Infobox album | name = To Venus and Back | type = studio | longtype = / [[Live album]] | artist = [[Tori Amos]] | cover = Tori2.jpg | alt = | released = September 21, 1999 | recorded = 1998–1999 | venue = various venues during her ''Plugged '98'' tour | studio = Martian Engineering, [[Cornwall]], England | genre = * [[Alternative rock]] * [[trip hop]]<ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.nme.com/reviews/1477|title=To Venus and Back |website=[[NME]] |access-date=November 12, 2014 |date= September 12, 2005 |quote=A two-CD set, one half is a live album and like all such self-indulgences it's mainly unremarkable. It does, however, with the addition of a full band, act as a compass for her new direction. Which mainly means trip-hop}}</ref> * [[electronica]] * [[art pop]] | length = 123:22 47:50 (studio) 75:32 (live) | label = {{hlist|[[Atlantic Records|Atlantic]] (US)|[[East West Records|East West]] (Europe)}} | producer = [[Tori Amos]] | prev_title = [[From the Choirgirl Hotel]] | prev_year = 1998 | next_title = [[Strange Little Girls]] | next_year = 2001 | misc = {{Singles | name = To Venus and Back | type = studio | single1 = [[Bliss (Tori Amos song)|Bliss]] | single1date = August 24, 1999 | single2 = [[1000 Oceans]] | single2date = September 9, 1999 | single3 = [[Glory of the 80's]] | single3date = October 11, 1999 | single4 = [[Concertina (song)|Concertina]] | single4date = February 8, 2000 }} }}

'''''To Venus and Back''''' (stylised in all lowercase) is a [[double album]] by American singer-songwriter and pianist [[Tori Amos]]. Released on September 21, 1999, it comprises her fifth [[studio album]] and first [[live album]]. The first disc, entitled ''Venus: Orbiting'', shows Amos increasingly experimenting with elements of [[electronica]] and [[trip hop]], and spawned the singles "[[Bliss (Tori Amos song)|Bliss]]" (which peaked at number 91 on the ''[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]'' [[Billboard Hot 100|Hot 100]]), "[[1000 Oceans]]", "[[Glory of the 80's]]", and "[[Concertina (song)|Concertina]]". The second disc, ''Venus Live, Still Orbiting'', was recorded mostly during her ''Plugged '98'' tour in support of her previous album, ''[[From the Choirgirl Hotel]]''.

==Background==

''To Venus and Back'' was originally envisioned as a live album accompanied by an album of [[B-sides]] from previous singles, with a few new tracks added.<ref>{{cite magazine |magazine=Best |title=From an interview with ''Best''|date=October 1999 |location=FR |access-date=7 October 2022 |url=https://www.toriamosdiscography.info/item002511.html}}</ref> However, it was later decided that the B-sides and new material would not mix well as one cohesive album, so the idea was dropped and this portion was later expanded into a full album of new material. These songs, like many of her albums, were recorded at Amos' Martian Engineering in [[Cornwall, England]], and features the lineup of [[Steve Caton]] on guitar, Jon Evans on bass, and [[Matt Chamberlain]] on drums. This marks the first of many of Amos' albums to feature Evans and Chamberlain, and the last of which to include Caton.

The album is sparser both in production and arrangement than ''From the Choirgirl Hotel'', but is similar to its predecessor in that it features overt [[electronica]] influences and a relatively subdued piano sound. The songs find Amos's voice and piano subverted in a sonic maze of [[Electronic music|electronic]] washes and effects, and some tracks, notably "Juárez" and the epic "[[Dātura (song)|Dātura]]" are largely built around these effects.

"Bliss", the first single from the album, became Amos' last song to reach the [[Billboard Hot 100|''Billboard'' Hot 100]], peaking at number 91. The track also reached number seven on the [[Canadian Hot 100]], her highest peak up to that point and second-highest overall (after "[[A Sorta Fairytale]]" which peaked one place higher). Describing the song in an interview with ''[[Mojo (magazine)|Mojo]]'', she stated: {{cquote| ["Bliss" is] not just about the biological father, but also the authority figure, whoever it is that I put in that position. "Bliss" is really about control, and about certain things in our DNA that you can't use a strainer to get rid of. You can't separate completely from whoever made you, because they're a part of you.<ref>From a 1999 interview with ''Mojo''</ref>}}

Other topics covered on the album include unsolved [[Femicides in Ciudad Juárez|murdered female maquiladora workers in Ciudad Juárez]] on the [[United States-Mexico border|US–Mexico border]] ("Juárez"), [[hallucinogenic plants]] ("Dātura"), and [[Napoleon Bonaparte]] ("Josephine").

The renditions of "Sugar" and "Purple People" on ''Venus Live, Still Orbiting'' come from a soundcheck. Both tracks were originally released as B-sides, the former on the "[[China (Tori Amos song)|China]]" single, and the latter on the single for "[[Spark (Tori Amos song)|Spark]]". The sole track recorded during the ''To Venus and Back'' recording sessions that does not appear on the album, nor as a B-side, is the nine-minute "Zero Point". Of the song's exclusion from the album, Amos has said that the song wasn't intentionally left off the album, rather an over-sensitivity about a certain gardening issue led "Dātura" to being included instead.<ref>{{cite book | title = Tori Amos – A Piano: The Collection| publisher = [[Rhino Entertainment|Rhino]] | year = 2006 | pages = 34 }}</ref> The liner notes of ''To Venus and Back'' state, "'Zero Point' - your time is coming", and the song was eventually released seven years later on ''[[A Piano: The Collection]]'' (2006).

==Tour== The album was supported by a short tour in 1999, the Five and a Half Weeks Tour, which Amos co-headlined with [[Alanis Morissette]] beginning a month prior to the release of ''To Venus and Back''. Many referred to Amos as the "[[opening act]]" for Morissette because she always performed first; however, this was due only to the logistics of setting up a grand piano for performance. An Amos-only stint, the To Dallas and Back Tour, also took place, but promotional plans were cut when Amos suffered her third miscarriage in November 1999.

==Critical reception== {{Album reviews | rev7 = [[PopMatters]] |rev7Score = (6/10)<ref name=popmatters>{{Cite web|url=https://www.popmatters.com/pm/review/amostori-tovenus|title=PopMatters Review|website=Popmatters.com|access-date=September 21, 2024}}</ref> | rev5 = ''[[NME]]'' |rev5Score = (mixed)<ref name=NME>{{Cite web|url=https://www.nme.com/reviews/reviews-nme-1477-337363|title=To Venus And Back|website=Nme.com|date=September 12, 2005|access-date=September 21, 2024}}</ref> | rev3 = ''[[Entertainment Weekly]]'' |rev3Score = B<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20081121175108/http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,270855,00.html Entertainment Weekly Review], ''Web.archive.org''</ref> | rev2 = ''[[The A.V. Club]]'' |rev2Score = (favourable)<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.avclub.com/articles/tori-amos-to-venus-and-back,17924/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111005022605/http://www.avclub.com/articles/tori-amos-to-venus-and-back,17924/|url-status=dead|archive-date=October 5, 2011|title=The A.V. Club Review|website=[[The A.V. Club]]|access-date=September 21, 2024}}</ref> | rev1 = [[AllMusic]] |rev1Score = {{Rating|4|5}}<ref>[{{AllMusic|class=album|id=r429231|pure_url=yes}} AllMusic Review], ''AllMusic''</ref> | rev6 = Nude as the News |rev6Score = (favourable)<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20030114110420/http://www.nudeasthenews.com/reviews/497 Nude as the News Review], ''Web.archive.org''</ref> | rev8 = ''[[Q (magazine)|Q]]'' |rev8Score = {{Rating|4|5}} 11/1999 (p.116) | rev9 = ''[[Rolling Stone]]'' |rev9Score = {{Rating|4|5}}<ref name=RS>{{Cite web|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-album-reviews/to-venus-and-back-103797/|title=To Venus And Back|first=Natasha|last=Stovall|website=Rollingstone.com|date=October 14, 1999|access-date=September 21, 2024}}</ref> }} The studio disc of ''To Venus and Back'' is recognized as one of Amos's most [[Experimental music|experimental]] yet melodic, and received generally positive reviews. Some critics praised its originality, innovation and unpredictable song structures,<ref name=NME/><ref name=RS/> with one reviewer describing the album as having "some of the best vocals of her career, embedded in modern, special-effects-laden soundscapes that move from electronica-spiced [[piano pop]] and [[Hip hop music|hip-hop]] to [[Ambient music|ambient]] space music",<ref>{{cite news | last=Morse | first=Steve | title='Venus' of the Road | newspaper=[[The Boston Globe]] | date=August 27, 1999 }}</ref> while some begrudged the album because of its overuse of [[electronic instruments]] and lack of Amos's trademark simplistic sound,<ref name=popmatters/><ref name=salon>{{cite news | last = Goldberg| first = Michelle| title = Sharps & flats | work = [[Salon.com]]| url = http://www.salon.com/1999/09/22/amos/|date = September 22, 1999|access-date=July 27, 2008}}</ref> most present on albums such as ''[[Little Earthquakes]]'' (1992) and ''[[Under the Pink]]'' (1994).

The album received two [[2000 Grammy Award]] nominations: [[Grammy Award for Best Female Rock Vocal Performance|Best Female Rock Vocal Performance]] for "Bliss" and [[Grammy Award for Best Alternative Music Album|Best Alternative Music Album]].<ref>{{cite web |website=Grammy Awards |title=Recording Academy Grammy Awards – Tori Amos |url=https://www.grammy.com/artists/tori-amos/746 |access-date=7 October 2022}}</ref>

==Commercial performance== ''To Venus and Back'', priced higher than Amos's previous releases because of its two-disc format, sold 112,000 copies in the US in its first week and debuted at number 12 on the [[Billboard 200|''Billboard'' 200]], number 18 on the [[Top Canadian Albums]], and number 22 on the [[UK Albums Chart]],<ref name="UK">{{Cite web|url=https://www.officialcharts.com/artist/27268/tori-amos/|title=TORI AMOS|date=November 23, 1991|website=Officialcharts.com|access-date=November 28, 2024}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine | title = Mariah Scores 14th No. 1 Single | magazine=[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]] | url = https://www.billboard.com/bbcom/search/google/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=950004|access-date=August 2, 2007}}</ref><ref name="AMG Charts">{{cite web| url = {{AllMusic|class=artist|id=p22040|pure_url=yes}}| website = [[Allmusic]] | title = Tori Amos > Charts & Awards | access-date = July 27, 2008}}</ref> breaking her run of three consecutive UK Top 10 albums.

Two months after its release in November 1999, the album achieved [[RIAA]] Certification, reaching Gold and Platinum sales status simultaneously,<ref>{{cite web | title = RIAA Gold & Platinum Database | website=[[Recording Industry Association of America]] | url =https://www.riaa.com/goldandplatinumdata.php?table=SEARCH| access-date =August 2, 2007}}</ref> due to the release being a double CD set. ''To Venus and Back'' remained on the ''Billboard'' 200 for 11 weeks, with its final position at number 189 for the week of January 8, 2000, before falling off the chart.<ref>{{cite magazine|title=The Billboard 200 – Chart Listing For The Week Of Jan 08 2000 |magazine=[[Billboard magazine|Billboard]] |url=https://www.billboard.com/charts/2000-01-08/billboard-200 |access-date=July 12, 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131009133834/http://www.billboard.com/charts/2000-01-08/billboard-200 |archive-date=October 9, 2013 }}</ref> As of May 2008, the album has sold 458,000 copies in the US, according to [[Nielsen SoundScan]].<ref>{{cite magazine | title = Ask Billboard – How Many Dolls are in a Posse | magazine = [[Billboard magazine|Billboard]]| url =https://www.billboard.com/articles/news/1045442/ask-billboard| date=May 9, 2008|access-date =July 12, 2008}}</ref>

==Track listing== {{Track listing | headline = Disc one – ''Venus: Orbiting'' | all_writing = Tori Amos | title1 = [[Bliss (Tori Amos song)|Bliss]] | length1 = 3:42 | title2 = Juárez | length2 = 3:48 | title3 = [[Concertina (song)|Concertina]] | length3 = 3:56 | title4 = [[Glory of the 80's]] | length4 = 4:03 | title5 = Lust | length5 = 3:54 | title6 = Suede | length6 = 4:58 | title7 = Josephine | length7 = 2:30 | title8 = Riot Poof | length8 = 3:28 | title9 = [[Dātura (song)|Dātura]] | length9 = 8:25 | title10 = Spring Haze | length10 = 4:44 | title11 = [[1000 Oceans]] | length11 = 4:19 | total_length = 47:50 }}

{{Track listing | headline = Disc two – ''Venus Live, Still Orbiting'' | extra_column = From | title1 = Precious Things | extra1 = ''[[Little Earthquakes]]'' (1992) | length1 = 7:37 | title2 = [[Cruel (Tori Amos song)|Cruel]] | extra2 = ''[[From the Choirgirl Hotel]]'' (1998) | length2 = 6:47 | title3 = [[Cornflake Girl]] | extra3 = ''[[Under the Pink]]'' (1994) | length3 = 6:31 | title4 = Bells for Her | extra4 = ''Under the Pink'' | length4 = 5:42 | title5 = Girl | extra5 = ''Little Earthquakes'' | length5 = 4:15 | title6 = Cooling | extra6 = B-side to "[[Spark (Tori Amos song)|Spark]]" (1998) | length6 = 5:09 | title7 = Mr. Zebra | extra7 = ''[[Boys for Pele]]'' (1996) | length7 = 1:17 | title8 = Cloud on My Tongue | extra8 = ''Under the Pink'' | length8 = 4:58 | title9 = Sugar | extra9 = B-side to "[[China (Tori Amos song)|China]]" (1992) | length9 = 5:10 | title10 = Little Earthquakes | extra10 = ''Little Earthquakes'' | length10 = 7:37 | title11 = Space Dog | extra11 = ''Under the Pink'' | length11 = 5:46 | title12 = The Waitress | extra12 = ''Under the Pink'' | length12 = 10:24 | title13 = Purple People | extra13 = B-side to "Spark" | length13 = 4:11 |total_length = 75:32 123:22 }}

===B-sides=== Given the conditions under which the album was created, ''To Venus and Back'' is unique in that it does not have any studio tracks that serve as B-sides. Instead the album's singles are backed by live tracks recorded from the previous year's tour.

{|class="wikitable" ! Title ! Length ! Single |- | "Hey Jupiter" (live) | align="center"|4:32 | rowspan="2" align="center"|"[[Bliss (Tori Amos song)|Bliss]]" (1999) |- | "Upside Down" (live) | align="center"|5:47 |- | "Baker, Baker" (live) | align="center"|3:54 | rowspan="2" align="center"|"[[1000 Oceans]]" (1999) |- | "Winter" (live) | align="center"|6:59 |- | "Famous Blue Raincoat" (live) | align="center"|5:25 | rowspan="2" align="center"|"[[Glory of the 80's]]" (UK) (1999) / "Concertina" (US) (2000) |- | "Twinkle" (live) | align="center"|2:48 |}

Following the theme of the album's second disc, which is composed of live tracks arranged similarly to an actual concert, the B-sides that appear on the album's singles are live songs performed solo with Amos on the piano. The chart above lists only the songs that were released as B-sides on singles from ''To Venus and Back''.

==Personnel== *Tori Amos - [[Bösendorfer]] piano, synthesizers, harpsichord (disc 1 — track 4), vocals *[[Steve Caton]] – guitar *Jon Evans – bass *[[Matt Chamberlain]] – drums, percussion *Andy Gray – additional drum programming on (disc 1 — tracks 6, 8, 9)

==Charts== {{Col-begin}} {{Col-break}}

===Albums=== {|class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" ! Chart (1999) ! Peak position |- {{album chart|Australia|6|artist=Tori Amos|album=To Venus and Back|rowheader=true|access-date=August 2, 2016}} |- {{album chart|Austria|17|artist=Tori Amos|album=To Venus and Back|rowheader=true|access-date=August 2, 2016}} |- {{album chart|Flanders|13|artist=Tori Amos|album=To Venus and Back|rowheader=true|access-date=August 2, 2016}} |- {{album chart|BillboardCanada|18|artist=Tori Amos|rowheader=true|access-date=August 2, 2016}} |- {{album chart|Netherlands|24|artist=Tori Amos|album=To Venus and Back|rowheader=true|access-date=August 2, 2016}} |- {{album chart|Finland|30|artist=Tori Amos|album=To Venus and Back|rowheader=true|access-date=August 2, 2016}} |- {{album chart|France|31|artist=Tori Amos|album=To Venus and Back|rowheader=true|access-date=August 2, 2016}} |- {{album chart|Germany|11|id=3056|artist=Tori Amos|album=To Venus and Back|rowheader=true|access-date=August 2, 2016}} |- {{album chart|Norway|10|artist=Tori Amos|album=To Venus and Back|rowheader=true|access-date=August 2, 2016}} |- {{album chart|Scotland|37|artist=Tori Amos|rowheader=true|date=1999-10-02}} |- {{album chart|Sweden|49|artist=Tori Amos|album=To Venus and Back|rowheader=true|access-date=August 2, 2016}} |- {{album chart|Switzerland|27|artist=Tori Amos|album=To Venus and Back|rowheader=true|access-date=August 2, 2016}} |- {{album chart|UK|22|artist=Tori Amos|rowheader=true|access-date=August 2, 2016}} |- {{album chart|Billboard200|12|artist=Tori Amos|rowheader=true|access-date=August 2, 2016}} |- ! scope="row"|[[European Top 100 Albums|European Albums]] (''[[Music & Media|Eurotipsheet]]'')<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.worldradiohistory.com/UK/Music-and-Media/90s/1999/MM-1999-10-09.pdf|title=European Hot 100 Albums|magazine=[[Music & Media|Eurotipsheet]]|volume=16|issue=41|date=9 October 1999|page=14|oclc=29800226|via=World Radio History}}</ref> | style="text-align:center;"|22 |} {{Col-break}}

===Singles=== {|class="wikitable" ! Title ! Chart ! Position |- | rowspan="4"| "Bliss" (1999) | [[Canadian Hot 100]] | align="center"|7 |- | US ''Billboard'' Hot 100 Singles Sales | align="center"|16 |- | US ''Billboard'' Hot 100 Airplay | align="center"|89? |- | US [[Billboard Hot 100|''Billboard'' Hot 100]] | align="center"|91 |- | | | |- | "1000 Oceans" (1999) | US ''Billboard'' Hot 100 Singles Sales | align="center"|22 |- | | | |- | rowspan="2"| "Glory of the 80's" (1999) | [[UK Singles Chart]] | align="center"|46 |- | [[ARIA Charts|Australian Singles Chart]] | align="center"|81 |- | | | |- | rowspan="2"| "Concertina" (2000) | [[Adult album alternative|US AAA]] | align="center"|18 |- | US ''Billboard'' Hot 100 Singles Sales | align="center"|48 |- |} {{col-end}}

==Certifications== {{Certification Table Top}} {{Certification Table Entry|region=United States|title=To Venus and Back|type=album|relyear=1999|certyear=1999|artist=Tori Amos|award=Platinum}} {{Certification Table Bottom | nosales=true}}

==References== {{Reflist}}

[[Category:Tori Amos albums]] [[Category:1999 albums]] [[Category:Atlantic Records albums]] [[Category:Tori Amos live albums]] [[Category:1999 live albums]] [[Category:Atlantic Records live albums]] [[Category:Trip hop albums by American artists]]