The Juliana Hatfield Three - Become What You Are (1993)

Note: this release was originally purchased as a cassette tape, later replaced by a CD.

Yeah, I know - there's not a lot of '90s alternative on this blog so the appearance of the lovely Juliana Hatfield is an outlier among my typical fare. But I heard My Sister on the radio (most likely KRBE 104) in 1993 and that was all it took. I quickly purchased the cassette and it got a lot of play for a good long while.  Hatfield is a fantastic songwriter and I love her voice. Plus, every now and then, it's fun to hear some guitar and bass that's distorted, run through a fuzzbox, or heavy on the feedback.

'Become What You Are' — How An Album, Born Out Of Boston’s Early 90s Music Scene, Became A Gen-X Anthem

Press of the time:

• Entertainment Weekly (A-): "Pummeling the craftiest grunge guitar east of the Rockies, Hatfield turns pop’s love and narrative conventions upside down"
• Billboard: "sound is kept in focus by [Hatfield's] consistently jarring writing and Litt's tasty production"
• Rolling Stone (★★★½): "a fine album, a remarkable set of songs"
• Stereo Review: "her songs are wonderful"

Album chart peaks:

• US Billboard Top 200: #119
• Billboard Heatseekers: #1

Tracks: I bought this for My Sister (the song, not my actual sister) and it's still my favorite, followed closely by Supermodel, For The Birds, and Spin The Bottle (in five which really keeps everything off-kilter). If memory serves, I listened to side one of my tape (tracks 1-6) much more often than side two which is my oversight because there's nothing you'd want to skip on this album. I'd forgotten how much I liked it, so if it's okay with you, I'll go ahead and stick this in my truck's CD player for the next few months, crank it up and pretend to be in my late twenties again.

Personal Memory Associated with this CD: My first child was born in late October 1993. For reasons too lengthy to delve into here, the drive from our home to the hospital was about 50 miles each way. So I made that round trip once or twice a day for a few days. Three songs remind me of those trips: Cantaloop (Flip Fantasia) by Us3, Worlds Apart by Jude Cole, and My Sister.

Cash Box, September 4, 1993, p. 11

My Sister hit #1 on the Billboard Modern Rock chart but only bubbled under at #112 on the pop chart. Did I keep up with JH after this? Nope - too busy with a young child, real estate, debt, starting a career, grad school, making my mark in this world. The usual adult life. But now that I've reconnected with this album, I'll take the time to delve into her lengthy catalog.