The Burdens of Being Upright is the debut studio album by American singer-songwriter Tracy Bonham, released on March 19, 1996, by Island Records.

Content

The Burdens of Being Upright was recorded in the summer of 1995 at Fort Apache Studios in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Referencing this album, in 2015 Bonham said, "That whole album was my experiment with getting a guitar. I was rebelling. It was just raw. I was like, ‘Just get out and do it; get behind a microphone and just scream.’ Twenty years ago I had more doubts; I thought, ‘I can’t just stand there and do that’ — which is when I knew I had to do it." The album cover (a reference to German photographer August Sander's work "The Bricklayer") was photographed by George DuBose, who was the in-house photographer at the hip hop label Cold Chillin' Records.

Commercial performance

The Burdens of Being Upright debuted at number 136 on the Billboard 200 chart dated April 27, 1996, and later reached its peak position of number 54 on the chart on June 15, 1996. It remained on the chart for 25 weeks. On November 12, 1996, the album was certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), signifying the shipment of 500,000 copies of the album.

Critical reception

Rolling Stone noted that the album "tells a coherent, largely autobiographical story about a girl getting even with the obnoxious people who piss her off and underestimate her... With music ranging from laid-back Liz Phair-style storytelling to hard-edge alternative arena rock, she blasts ex-boyfriends ('Navy Bean', 'The One'), ridicules rock stars ('Kisses') and makes a pre-emptive strike at critics who might be tempted to label her ('One Hit Wonder')."

Track listing

Personnel

Credits adapted from the album's liner notes.

Charts

Certifications

Awards

Grammy Award Nominations