Tragic Kingdom (CD - 1995)

Additional personnel: Aloke DasGupta (sitar); Melissa Hasin (cello); Gerard Boisse, Bill Bergman (saxophone); Greg Smith (baritone saxophone); Phil Jordan, Les Lovitt (trumpet); Nick Lane (trombone); Gabe McNair (trombone, percussion); Matthew Wilder (keyboards); Stephen Perkins (steel drums).

Engineers include: Matt Hyde, Phil Kaffel, George Landress.

No Doubt was nominated for the 1997 Grammy Award for Best New Artist. TRAGIC KINGDOM was nominated for a 1997 Grammy for Best Rock Album. "Don't Speak" was nominated for 1998 Grammys for Song Of The Year and Best Pop Performance By A Duo Or Group With Vocal.

Personnel: Gwen Stefani (vocals); Tom Dumont (guitar); Aloke Dasgupta (sitar); Melissa "Missy" Hasin (cello); Bill Bergman (saxophone); Greg Smith (baritone saxophone); Les Lovitt (trumpet); Gabrial McNair (trombone, percussion); Nick Lane (trombone); Eric Stefani (piano, keyboards); Matthew Wilder (keyboards); Adrian Young (drums, percussion); Stephen Perkins (steel drum).

Audio Mixer: Paul Palmer.

Recording information: Nrg; Record Plant, Hollywood, CA; Santa Monica Sound, Santa Monica, CA; Total Access Studios, Redondo Beach, CA.

Director: Albhy Galuten.

Photographers: Dan Arsenault; Shelly Robertson.

Unknown Contributor Role: Stephen Perkins.

Led by the infectious, pseudo-new wave single "Just a Girl," No Doubt's major-label debut, Tragic Kingdom, straddles the line between '90s punk, third-wave ska, and pop sensibility. The record was produced by Matthew Wilder, the auteur behind "Break My Stride" -- a clever mainstream co-opting of new wave quirkiness, and, as such, an ideal pairing. Wilder kept his production lean and accessible, accentuating No Doubt's appealing mix of new wave melodicism, post-grunge rock, and West Coast sunshine. Even though the band isn't always able to fuse its edgy energy with pop melodies, the combination worked far better than anyone could have hoped. When everything does click, the record is pure fun, even if some of the album makes you wish they could sustain that energy throughout the record. Tragic Kingdom might not have made much of an impact upon its initial release in late 1995, but throughout 1996 "Just a Girl" and "Spiderwebs" positively ruled the airwaves, both alternative and mainstream, and in 1997 No Doubt cemented their cross-generational appeal with the ballad hit "Don't Speak." ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine

No Doubt's members cite a strange variety of musical influences: Kiss, Prince and Madness, to name a few. And it's easy to imagine that their hometown itself, Anaheim, California (home to Disneyland), may have played a part in forming the band's schizophrenic, high-energy sound, which took TRAGIC KINGDOM, the band's second album, on a slow, steady ride up the pop charts. It finally hit No. 1 in December 1996, 14 months after it was released.

This is ska-punk-new wave-dance music, with instrumentation ranging from hardcore guitar to mellow, reggae-style horns. Singer Gwen Stefani's voice is by turns peppy, almost adolescent ("Spiderwebs") and emotionally wailing; she can sound a lot like Concrete Blonde's Johnette Napolitano ("Just A Girl"). When Stefani sings, "I'm just a girl, little ol' me/Don't let me out of your sight," she does so without a hint of girlishness; her voice is all attitude, with a warbling edge of melodrama. For the most part, these are happy songs, though No Doubt do get philosophical on "Different People": "Once in a while I sit back/And think about the planet/Most of the time I trip on it/To kick back and think of how massive it all is/And how many others are on it." minimize