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American Woman (album)

{{Infobox album

| name = American Woman

| type = studio

| artist = The Guess Who

| cover = American_Woman_by_The_Guess_Who.jpg

| alt =

| released = January 1970

| recorded = August – November 1969

| venue =

| studio = RCA Mid-America Recording Center, Studio B, Chicago, Illinois

| genre = {{hlist|Hard rock|psychedelic rock}}

| length = {{Duration|m=38|s=17}}

| label = RCA Victor

| producer = Jack Richardson

| prev_title = Canned Wheat

| prev_year = 1969

| next_title = Share the Land

| next_year = 1970

| misc = {{Singles

| name = American Woman

| type = studio

| single1 = No Time

| single1date = November 1969

| single2 = American Woman" / "No Sugar Tonight

| single2date = March 1970

}}

}}

{{Music ratings

|rev1 = Allmusic

|rev1score = {{Rating|4|5}}{{AllMusic|class=album|id=american-woman-mw0000652826}}

| rev2 = Rolling Stone

| rev2Score = (favorable) {{cite magazine |last=Young |first=J.R. |date=7 March 1970 |title=Records |url=https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=765425580209518&id=151694561582626&substory_index=0 |magazine=Rolling Stone |issue=53 |pages=50 |location=San Francisco |publisher=Straight Arrow Publishers, Inc. |access-date=13 August 2017 }}

|rev3 = The Village Voice

|rev3Score = B+{{cite news|last=Christgau|first=Robert|author-link=Robert Christgau|url=http://www.robertchristgau.com/xg/cg/cg9.php|title=Consumer Guide (9)|newspaper=The Village Voice|date=April 23, 1969|at=Music section|access-date=2012-03-03}}

}}

American Woman is the sixth studio album by Canadian rock band the Guess Who, released in January 1970. It was the last to feature lead guitarist Randy Bachman until a reformation effort in 1983.

The album was one of their most successful releases, receiving Gold certification in the United States.{{cite book|author=Joel Whitburn|title=Top 40 Albums|publisher=Billboard|date=1995}}

The album contains several of the group's most popular hits, including the title cut and "No Sugar Tonight", which together reached number one in Canada and the US, and a remake of "No Time", a song the group previously recorded for Canned Wheat. The newer version was released as a single and is the one most familiar to listeners. The album's musical styles consists of psychedelic rock and hard rock.{{cite book|author1=Dave Marsh|author2=John Swenson|title=The new Rolling stone record guide|url=https://archive.org/details/newrollingstoner00mars|url-access=registration|date=12 October 1983|publisher=Random House/Rolling Stone Press|isbn=978-0-394-72107-1|page=[https://archive.org/details/newrollingstoner00mars/page/208 208]}}{{AllMusic | class= album | id= american-woman-mw0000652826 | label= American Woman }}

Release history

In addition to the usual 2 channel stereo version a 4 channel quadraphonic mix was also released by RCA on the 8-track tape format. American Woman was first released on CD by RCA in 1998. Buddha Records released a remastered version in 2000 and included a bonus track, "Got to Find Another Way". In 2017, Iconoclassic Records released a two-disc deluxe version featuring various single edits, outtakes, and the entire 1976 The Way They Were release, which is a collection of tracks recorded in 1970 before Randy Bachman quit the band, intended for the follow-up album to American Woman.{{cite web|url=http://www.iconoclassicrecords.com/catalogue/guesswho/american-woman.html|title=Iconoclassic Records... Reissues Done Right.|website=www.iconoclassicrecords.com}}

In 2019 the album was reissued again in the UK by Dutton Vocalion on the Super Audio CD format. This disc is a 2 albums on 1 disc compilation which also contains the 1970 Guess Who album Share the Land. The Dutton Vocalion release contains the complete stereo and quad versions of both albums.[https://www.discogs.com/The-Guess-Who-American-Woman-Share-The-Land/release/13929395 The Guess Who – American Woman & Share The Land release on SACD] Retrieved August 11, 2019

Reception

American Woman became the Guess Who's only album to reach the top 10 on the Billboard Pop Albums chart, peaking at number 9 and staying 55 weeks on the charts.[http://www.allmusic.com/album/american-woman-mw0000652826/awards The Guess Who, American Woman Chart Position] Retrieved March 17, 2015 The album also reached number one on the Canadian Albums Chart.

Track listing

All songs written by Randy Bachman and Burton Cummings except as noted.

;Side one

  1. "American Woman" (Bachman, Cummings, Jim Kale, Garry Peterson) – 5:07
  2. "No Time" – 3:45
  3. "Talisman" – 5:05
  4. "No Sugar Tonight/New Mother Nature" – 4:52

;Side two

  2. "969 (The Oldest Man)" (instrumental) (Bachman) – 2:58
  3. "When Friends Fall Out" – 2:58
  4. "8:15" – 3:26
  5. "Proper Stranger" – 4:47
  6. "Humpty's Blues/American Woman (Epilogue)" (Bachman, Cummings, Kale, Peterson) – 6:11

;2000 Remaster

  2. "Got to Find Another Way" (bonus) – 2:51

;2017 Iconoclassic Records deluxe 2-disc re-issue [https://www.discogs.com/The-Guess-Who-American-Woman/release/11279315 The Guess Who – American Woman Iconoclassic Records] Retrieved February 12, 2019 at Discogs

=Disc 1: ''Bonus Tracks''=

  2. "American Woman" [single edit] (Bachman, Cummings, Kale, Peterson) – 3:50
  3. "No Sugar Tonight" [single edit] – 2:04
  4. "Got To Find Another Way" [session outtake] – 2:51
  5. "Close Up The Honky Tonks" [session outtake] (Red Simpson) – 3:33
  6. "Not to Return" [takes 1&2] – 3:30
  7. "Talisman" [take 1] – 4:30
  8. "Talisman" [session chatter] – 2:05
  9. "No Sugar Tonight" [takes 1&2] – 6:59
  10. "American Woman" [take 1] (Bachman, Cummings, Kale, Peterson) – 4:44

=Disc 2: ''The Way They Were''=

  1. "Silver Bird" – 2:41
  2. "Species Hawk" – 3:29
  3. "Runnin’ Down the Street" (Kale, Peterson) – 4:16
  4. "Miss Frizzy" – 5:08
  5. "Palmyra" – 5:50
  6. "The Answer" – 3:54
  7. "Take the Long Way Home" (Bachman) – 5:43

Personnel

;The Guess Who

;Production

  • Jack Richardson – producer
  • Brian Christian – engineer
  • Vic Anesini – 2017 remaster (Iconoclassic Records deluxe 2-disc re-issue)

Charts

class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center"
scope="col"| Chart (1970)

! scope="col"| Peak
position

{{album chart|Canada|1|artist=The Guess Who|album=American Woman|chartid=5009|rowheader=true|accessdate=November 8, 2023}}
{{album chart|Billboard200|9|artist=The Guess Who|rowheader=true|accessdate=November 8, 2023}}

Certifications

{{Certification Table Top}}

{{Certification Table Entry|type=album|region=Canada|award=Platinum|relyear=1970|certyear=1971|certref={{cite magazine|url=https://www.worldradiohistory.com/hd2/IDX-Business/Music/Archive-Cash-Box-IDX/70s/1971/Cash-Box-1971-09-18-OCR-Page-0042.pdf|access-date=November 8, 2023|title=Cash Box Canada|magazine=Cash Box|date=September 18, 1971|page=42}}}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=United States|artist=Guess Who|title=American Woman|award=Gold|type=album|relyear=1970|certyear=1970}}

{{Certification Table Bottom|nosales=true}}

References

{{reflist}}

{{The Guess Who}}

{{Authority control}}

Category:1970 albums

Category:The Guess Who albums

Category:Albums produced by Jack Richardson (record producer)

Category:RCA Victor albums