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Return of Saturn

This article is about the No Doubt album. For the astrological phenomenon, see Saturn return.

Return of Saturn is the fourth studio album by American rock band No Doubt, released on April 11, 2000, by Trauma Records and Interscope Records. It marked the band's first album as a quartet, following the departure of original keyboardist Eric Stefani in 1994. After touring for two and a half years to promote their breakthrough third studio album, Tragic Kingdom (1995), No Doubt wrote several dozen songs for its follow-up and eventually settled on working with producer Glen Ballard. Creating the album became a tumultuous process lasting two years, during which there was dissension among band members and between the band and its label. The album was completed after the band returned to the studio and recorded what became two of its singles.

Return of Saturn
Four adults pose for the camera in a brightly decorated room with deep blue walls. From left to right, there is a pink-haired woman by a telescope, a naked man jumping on the bed, a man with a yellow shirt resting his elbow on the bed, and a man with a white T-shirt and yellow hair lounging on the floor. The science fiction-styled text "No Doubt: Return of Saturn" adorns the top right of the cover.
Studio album by
No Doubt
ReleasedApril 11, 2000 (2000-04-11)
Recorded1998–1999
Studio A&M, Hollywood
Genre
Length60:44
Label
Producer
No Doubt chronology
Tragic Kingdom
(1995) 		Return of Saturn
(2000) 		Rock Steady
(2001)
Singles from Return of Saturn
  1. "New"
    Released: May 31, 1999
  2. "Ex-Girlfriend"
    Released: March 13, 2000
  3. "Simple Kind of Life"
    Released: June 13, 2000
  4. "Bathwater"
    Released: November 14, 2000

The album maintains the ska punk and reggae influences of the band's previous work, but with slower, more ballad-like songs. The lyrics to many of the songs describe singer Gwen Stefani's pining for a more domestic life, contrasting that with her commitment to a music career.

Upon its release, Return of Saturn received favorable reviews from music critics, although several of them were divided over its different sound to its predecessor. It debuted at number two on the Billboard 200 but was unable to measure up to the sales of Tragic Kingdom. The album spawned four singles, only one of which charted on the Billboard Hot 100, It was nominated for Best Rock Album at the 43rd Grammy Awards.

Background

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After the success of No Doubt's breakthrough album Tragic Kingdom (1995), the band wrote more than 20 songs for a new album, influenced by artists such as the Cure.[1] Having toured extensively for two and a half years since the release of Tragic Kingdom, they initially had trouble producing material and decided to experiment with new sounds.[2] Many of the songs were written in a rented house in Hollywood Hills, Los Angeles, where bassist Tony Kanal was living.[3] During early production in mid-1998 the band worked on seven tracks in Los Angeles with Matthew Wilder, who had produced Tragic Kingdom, but had creative differences with him. They planned on going to New York City to work with producer Michael Beinhorn, who had produced for alternative rock acts such as Red Hot Chili Peppers, Hole, and Soundgarden.[4]

When scheduling conflicts arose with Beinhorn,[5] the band interviewed several producers and decided on Glen Ballard, who had produced Alanis Morissette's Jagged Little Pill (1995), because of pressure from manager Jimmy Iovine[6] and Ballard's belief in not using heavy production techniques.[7] Ballard went through the band's 40 demos and ruled out half of them.[8] They frequently missed due dates, arguing that hurrying the album to cash in on the success of Tragic Kingdom was unwise since three years had passed.[9] In early 1999, No Doubt released "New", co-produced by Talking Heads member Jerry Harrison, for the soundtrack to the 1999 film Go.

By that July, the band stopped work on the album, intending to be done with the record.[10] Interscope, however, recommended that they continue writing so they would have a more marketable single. The band was split when singer Gwen Stefani offered to do so but drummer Adrian Young and guitarist Tom Dumont did not want to, hesitant to trust Interscope after it had sublicensed Tragic Kingdom to Trauma Records. After a brief break, Dumont sent Stefani some of his demos as a peace offering.[9] The band returned to the studio to create more upbeat songs and penned "Ex-Girlfriend" and "Simple Kind of Life".[10] More recording, audio mixing and audio mastering were done late that year, and David LaChapelle photographed the band for the album cover in January 2000.[11]

The album's working title was originally announced as Magic's in the Makeup in May 1998[3] and later as Saturn Returns in November 1999.[12] Stefani was confused by her feelings of depression and interest in Sylvia Plath while recording the album. Her boyfriend Gavin Rossdale told her that she was going through her Saturn return. Saturn's orbit takes 29.4 Earth years and, in astrology, the time when Saturn returns to its position during a person's birth is believed to be a period of self-evaluation. Stefani was born October 3, 1969, and many of the songs were written during her Saturn return.[8]

Music and lyrics

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"Ex-Girlfriend" (2000)
The first single, featuring New Wave influences, rapped vocals, flamenco guitar, and use of the piano.
"Simple Kind of Life" (2000)
The album's second single, a lo-fi ballad in which Stefani discusses wanting to settle down.
Problems playing these files? See media help.

The music of Return of Saturn further explores new wave style,[13] while adding an alternative rock feel and maintaining some of the band's ska and reggae sounds. Adrian Young's drum part on "Simple Kind of Life" was mixed through low fidelity filters to give it the sound of a lo-fi power ballad.[14] "Six Feet Under" and "Staring Problem" were described as a more self-aware return to the band's earlier material, a combination of work by new wave band Missing Persons and hard rock band Van Halen.[15]

No Doubt experiments with several new styles on the album. "Ex-Girlfriend", which originally featured a Prince-style funk sound, was rewritten and includes rapped vocals over piano and flamenco guitar parts. After opening with Gabrial McNair's jazz funeral horn part over Young's beatboxing, "Bathwater" proceeds into a song written in swing time.[14] It was described as a combination of the band's 2 Tone roots with the operatic slapstick of Gilbert and Sullivan.[15] "Marry Me" features use of the tabla, a pair of tuned hand drums prominent in India. Young and bassist Tony Kanal's contributions were compared to the rhythm of nu metal music, and the fragmented progression of "Comforting Lie" was likened to the work of Korn.[15]

The album's lyrics depict Stefani's maturation and femininity, reflected by images of oral contraceptives, a wedding cake and makeup on the album cover, as well as her romantic relationship with Rossdale. Her lyrics drew comparisons to the bitter, confessional styling of Hole frontwoman Courtney Love.[15][16] "New" was written while the band was touring about the excitement of meeting Rossdale and her infatuation with him.[14] Later compositions, however, discuss the problems that the two had maintaining a long-distance relationship. "Ex-Girlfriend" discusses a failing relationship, and "Suspension Without Suspense" and "Home Now" detail feelings of resentment, loneliness, and indecision.[15] On "Simple Kind of Life", she confesses to hoping for a mistake with her birth control and a desire to leaving music for a domestic life.[17] She contrasts this, however, with her need for independence:

Anyone who knows me knows having a family has always been the most important thing to me. I wanted to be a mother—which is an unconditional giving of love—and a supportive wife, and suddenly, I can't even be a good girlfriend, because I can't seem to find the right time to call. I want to do it all, but I can only do one thing good, and right now I've chosen to do this. Being in a band is a bit of a selfish choice.

— Gwen Stefani, Entertainment Weekly[9]

Critical reception

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Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic68/100[18]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic     [13]
Entertainment WeeklyB[19]
The Guardian     [20]
Los Angeles Times    [21]
Melody Maker     [22]
NME5/10[16]
Q     [23]
Rolling Stone     [15]
Slant Magazine     [24]
The Village VoiceC+[25]

Return of Saturn received generally positive reviews from music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream publications, the album received an average score of 68, based on 16 reviews.[18] Entertainment Weekly's David Browne characterized the album as filled with "smoother, layered mid-tempo ballads as creamily textured as extra-thick napoleon pastries", but stated that Stefani's lyrics were too much of a throwback to the alternative rock scene of the early 1990s and contrasted with the boom of teen pop.[19] Robert Christgau, writing for The Village Voice, described the emotions Stefani expressed as shallow,[25] and Siobhan Grogan of NME stated that Stefani's preoccupation with Rossdale was distracting and weakened the intense, Madonna-like character she had established on Tragic Kingdom.[16] AllMusic critic Stephen Thomas Erlewine, however, called it "a terrific, layered record that exceeds any expectations set by Tragic Kingdom".[13] Barry Walters from Rolling Stone referred to it as "a superstar follow-up that not only betters its predecessor but also radically departs from it."[15] The publication included the album in its list of the top 50 albums of the year, describing it as "a record that charges ahead like gangbusters while biting its nails."[26] Sal Cinquemani from Slant Magazine commented that although the album did not have any successful singles, Return of Saturn was "a solid album and proof of a healthy, genre-breaking future for No Doubt."[24]

Commercial performance

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Return of Saturn debuted at number two on the US Billboard 200, behind 'N Sync's No Strings Attached, and sold 202,000 copies in its first week.[27] The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) certified the album platinum in May 2000,[28] and as of July 2012, it had sold 1,587,000 copies in the United States.[29] The album was successful in the modern rock market and its first two singles, "New" and "Ex-Girlfriend", reached the top 10 of the Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart. It was less successful in the mainstream market, and "Simple Kind of Life" was the only single to chart on the Billboard Hot 100, where it peaked at number 38.[30] The album was nominated for Best Rock Album at the 2001 Grammy Awards, but lost out to Foo Fighters' There Is Nothing Left to Lose.[31] In Canada, it peaked at number two on RPM's albums chart and number four on Billboard's albums chart.[32][33] Return of Saturn was awarded a Platinum certification by the Canadian Recording Industry Association (CRIA) in June 2000, denoting sales in excess of 100,000 copies.[34]

Track listing

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All tracks produced by Glen Ballard, except "New" produced by Jerry Harrison and No Doubt, "Too Late (Instrumental)" produced by Ballard and Matthew Wilder, and "Big Distraction" produced by Wilder.

No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Ex-Girlfriend"
3:31
2."Simple Kind of Life"G. Stefani4:16
3."Bathwater"
  • G. Stefani
  • Kanal
  • Dumont
4:03
4."Six Feet Under"
  • G. Stefani
  • Kanal
2:28
5."Magic's in the Makeup"
  • G. Stefani
  • Dumont
4:21
6."Artificial Sweetener"
  • G. Stefani
  • Dumont
  • Kanal
3:54
7."Marry Me"
  • G. Stefani
  • Kanal
4:39
8."New"
  • G. Stefani
  • Dumont
4:26
9."Too Late"
  • G. Stefani
  • Dumont
  • Kanal
4:14
10."Comforting Lie"
  • G. Stefani
  • Dumont
  • Kanal
2:53
11."Suspension Without Suspense"G. Stefani4:10
12."Staring Problem"
2:44
13."Home Now"
  • G. Stefani
  • Dumont
  • Kanal
4:35
14."Dark Blue"
"Too Late (Instrumental)" (hidden track)
  • G. Stefani
  • Dumont
10:30
Total length:60:44
International edition bonus track[35][36][37]
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
15."Big Distraction"
"Too Late (Instrumental)" (hidden track)
  • G. Stefani
  • Dumont
9:30
Total length:64:26
Japanese edition bonus tracks[38]
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
15."Big Distraction"
  • G. Stefani
  • Dumont
3:34
16."Full Circle"
"Too Late (Instrumental)" (hidden track)
  • G. Stefani
  • Kanal
  • Dumont
9:12
Total length:65:35

Notes

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  • "Too Late (Instrumental)" is 4:56 and appears after one minute of silence as a hidden track after the end of the last credited song.
  • "Dark Blue" is 4:36 on the international and Japanese editions.

Personnel

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Credits adapted from the liner notes of Return of Saturn.[39]

No Doubt

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Additional musicians

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  • Gabrial McNair – synthesizer, piano, all keyboard instruments, trombone, horn arrangements (all tracks); synthesizer programming (track 5)
  • Stephen Bradley – trumpet
  • Bryan Carrigan – synthesizer programming (track 5)
  • Michael Boddicker – synthesizer programming (track 5)
  • Theo "Hound Dog" Mondle – tablas (track 7)
  • Orion Crawford – chart preparation
  • Mike Garson – piano ("Too Late (Instrumental)")
  • Paul Buckmaster – string arrangements ("Too Late (Instrumental)")

Technical

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  • Glen Ballard – production (tracks 1–7, 9–14, "Too Late (Instrumental)")
  • Jerry Harrison – production (track 8)
  • No Doubt – production (track 8)
  • Alain Johannes – recording (tracks 2–7, 9–14, "Too Late (Instrumental)")
  • Karl Derfler – recording (tracks 1, 5, 8)
  • Jack Joseph Puig – mixing
  • Bob Ludwig – mastering
  • Scott Campbell – additional recording
  • Bryan Carrigan – additional recording
  • Sean Beavan – additional recording (tracks 6, 7, 14); sonic manipulation (tracks 1, 5, 8)
  • Colin "Dog" Mitchell – pre-production recording, equipment coordination
  • Jolie Levine-Aller – production coordination
  • Rachel Cleverley – production assistance
  • Matthew Wilder – production ("Too Late (Instrumental)")
  • Thom Panunzio – recording ("Too Late (Instrumental)")

Artwork

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  • David LaChapelle – photography
  • Robert Fisher – design
  • Joe Mama-Nitzberg – photography, art coordination
  • Cindy Cooper – album package coordination

Charts

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Certifications

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Certifications for Return of Saturn
Region Certification Certified units/sales
Canada (Music Canada)[34] Platinum 100,000^
United States (RIAA)[28] Platinum 1,587,000[29]

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References

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  1. ^ "No Doubt Ready To Record 'Tragic Kingdom' Follow-Up". MTV News. November 11, 1998. Archived from the original on January 27, 2016. Retrieved January 15, 2017.
  2. ^ "No Doubt To Get Goth For Next Album?". MTV News. September 10, 1998. Archived from the original on January 16, 2017. Retrieved January 15, 2017.
  3. ^ a b Levitan, Corey (May 19, 1998). "Gwen Speaks". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on October 20, 2007. Retrieved April 16, 2007.
  4. ^ Fischer, Blair R. (November 4, 1998). "No Doubt Switch to Manson, Hole Producer". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on October 20, 2007. Retrieved April 16, 2007.
  5. ^ "No Doubt Reschedules Release Date". MTV News. August 23, 1999. Archived from the original on May 1, 2015. Retrieved January 15, 2017.
  6. ^ Tyrangiel, Josh (April 2, 2000). "Two-Hit Wonders". Time. Archived from the original on February 10, 2001. Retrieved May 3, 2007.
  7. ^ Uhelszki, Jaan (January 15, 1999). "Just A Producer". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on October 20, 2007. Retrieved April 16, 2007.
  8. ^ a b Willman, Chris (May 12, 2000). "Future Tense?". Entertainment Weekly. p. 2. Archived from the original on May 26, 2007. Retrieved January 15, 2017.
  9. ^ a b c Willman, Chris (May 12, 2000). "Future Tense?". Entertainment Weekly. p. 3. Archived from the original on September 2, 2007. Retrieved January 15, 2017.
  10. ^ a b Laban, Linda (March 28, 2000). "Happy Returns". Boston Herald. Retrieved May 3, 2007.
  11. ^ "Timeline". NoDoubt.com. Archived from the original on July 15, 2007. Retrieved August 22, 2007.
  12. ^ Manning, Kara (November 16, 1999). "No Doubt Mulls Title As New Album Hits Home Stretch". MTV News. Archived from the original on October 24, 2014. Retrieved January 15, 2017.
  13. ^ a b c Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Return of Saturn – No Doubt". AllMusic. Retrieved June 3, 2012.
  14. ^ a b c Montoya, Paris; Lanham, Tom (2003). The Singles 1992–2003 (liner notes). No Doubt. Interscope Records. B0001495-02.
  15. ^ a b c d e f g Walters, Barry (April 27, 2000). "Return Of Saturn". Rolling Stone. Retrieved August 25, 2011.
  16. ^ a b c Grogan, Siobhan (April 13, 2000). "No Doubt – Return Of Saturn". NME. Archived from the original on May 11, 2000. Retrieved July 19, 2011.
  17. ^ Willman, Chris (May 12, 2000). "Future Tense?". Entertainment Weekly. p. 1. Archived from the original on May 19, 2007. Retrieved August 22, 2007.
  18. ^ a b "Return of Saturn by No Doubt Reviews and Tracks". Metacritic. Retrieved January 18, 2019.
  19. ^ a b Browne, David (April 14, 2000). "Return of Saturn". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved January 15, 2017.
  20. ^ Sullivan, Caroline (April 7, 2000). "No Doubt: The Return of Saturn (Interscope)". The Guardian.
  21. ^ Nichols, Natalie (April 9, 2000). "'Saturn' Launches Gwen Stefani Into Orbit". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved October 16, 2016.
  22. ^ Anon. (April 5–11, 2000). "No Doubt: Return of Saturn". Melody Maker. p. 48. ISSN 0025-9012.
  23. ^ Aizlewood, John (May 2000). "No Doubt: Return Of Saturn". Q. No. 164. p. 116. ISSN 0955-4955. Archived from the original on November 19, 2000. Retrieved December 30, 2019.
  24. ^ a b Cinquemani, Sal (November 1, 2002). "Review: No Doubt, Return of Saturn". Slant Magazine. Retrieved April 17, 2013.
  25. ^ a b Christgau, Robert (November 21, 2000). "Where the Action Isn't". The Village Voice. Retrieved January 18, 2019.
  26. ^ Walters, Barry (December 28, 2000 – January 4, 2001). "The year in recordings: Top fifty albums of the year 2000". Rolling Stone. No. 858/859. ISSN 0035-791X.
  27. ^ Skanse, Richard (April 19, 2000). "No Doubt Make Strong Return to Charts". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on October 20, 2007. Retrieved April 16, 2007.
  28. ^ a b "American album certifications – No Doubt – Return of Saturn". Recording Industry Association of America. May 30, 2000. Retrieved October 12, 2007.
  29. ^ a b Trust, Gary (July 29, 2012). "Ask Billboard: Olympic-Sized Gold (Medal) Records". Billboard. Archived from the original on January 18, 2013. Retrieved February 20, 2014.
  30. ^ "Return of Saturn – No Doubt : Awards". AllMusic. Archived from the original on September 30, 2014. Retrieved January 21, 2013.
  31. ^ "43rd Grammy Awards". CNN. February 21, 2001. Archived from the original on October 16, 2007. Retrieved October 7, 2007.
  32. ^ a b "Top RPM Albums: Issue 9814". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved May 17, 2018.
  33. ^ a b "No Doubt Chart History (Canadian Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved July 31, 2022.
  34. ^ a b "Canadian album certifications – No Doubt – Return of Saturn". Music Canada. June 29, 2000. Retrieved July 30, 2011.
  35. ^ "No Doubt | Return Of Saturn" (in German). Universal Music Germany. Archived from the original on October 9, 2012. Retrieved January 15, 2017.
  36. ^ "Return of saturn – No Doubt – CD album" (in French). Fnac. Retrieved January 15, 2017.
  37. ^ Return of Saturn (Australian edition liner notes). No Doubt. Interscope Records. 2000. 490 681–2.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  38. ^ リターン・オブ・サターン | ノー・ダウト [Return of Saturn | No Doubt] (in Japanese). Oricon. Retrieved January 15, 2017.
  39. ^ Return of Saturn (liner notes). No Doubt. Interscope Records. 2000. 0694904412.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
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  41. ^ "Austriancharts.at – No Doubt – Return of Saturn" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved January 15, 2017.
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  43. ^ "Ultratop.be – No Doubt – Return of Saturn" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved July 19, 2011.
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  45. ^ "European Top 100 Albums" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 17, no. 18. April 29, 2000. p. 8. OCLC 29800226 – via World Radio History.
  46. ^ "No Doubt: Return of Saturn" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland. Retrieved January 15, 2017.
  47. ^ "Lescharts.com – No Doubt – Return of Saturn". Hung Medien. Retrieved January 15, 2017.
  48. ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – No Doubt – Return of Saturn" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved January 15, 2017.
  49. ^ "GFK Chart-Track Albums: Week 15, 2000". Chart-Track. IRMA. Retrieved January 15, 2017.
  50. ^ ノー・ダウトのアルバム売り上げランキング [No Doubt album sales ranking] (in Japanese). Oricon. Archived from the original on December 8, 2013. Retrieved January 21, 2013.
  51. ^ "Charts.nz – No Doubt – Return of Saturn". Hung Medien. Retrieved January 15, 2017.
  52. ^ "Norwegiancharts.com – No Doubt – Return of Saturn". Hung Medien. Retrieved January 15, 2017.
  53. ^ "Top National Sellers" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 17, no. 18. April 29, 2000. p. 9. OCLC 29800226 – via World Radio History.
  54. ^ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved January 15, 2017.
  55. ^ "Swedishcharts.com – No Doubt – Return of Saturn". Hung Medien. Retrieved January 15, 2017.
  56. ^ "Swisscharts.com – No Doubt – Return of Saturn". Hung Medien. Retrieved January 15, 2017.
  57. ^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved January 18, 2019.
  58. ^ "No Doubt Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved January 15, 2017.
  59. ^ "Canada's Top 200 Albums of 2000". Jam!. January 8, 2001. Archived from the original on September 6, 2004. Retrieved March 29, 2022.
  60. ^ "Billboard 200 Albums – Year-End 2000". Billboard. Archived from the original on September 25, 2020. Retrieved January 15, 2017.

Further reading

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