Elephant (album)

2003 studio album by the White Stripes

Elephant

2020 cover[a]

Studio album by

the White Stripes

Released| April 1, 2003 (2003-04-01)
Recorded| November 2001 and April–May 2002[2]
Studio| Toe Rag Studios and Maida Vale Studios in London
Genre|

* Alternative rock
* blues rock
* garage rock
* indie rock
* punk blues

Length| 49:56
Label|

* V2
* XL
* Third Man

Producer| Jack White
The White Stripes chronology
| White Blood Cells
(2001)  | Elephant
(2003)  | Get Behind Me Satan
(2005)

|
|

Singles from  Elephant

1. "Seven Nation Army"
Released: February 17, 2003[3]
2. "I Just Don't Know What to Do with Myself"
Released: September 1, 2003[4]
3. "The Hardest Button to Button"
Released: November 17, 2003[5][b]
4. "There's No Home for You Here"
Released: March 15, 2004[7]

Elephant is the fourth studio album by the American rock duo The White Stripes, released on April 1, 2003, by V2, XL, and Third Man. The album was produced by the band's guitarist and lead vocalist Jack White, and mostly recorded at Maida Vale and Toe Rag Studios across two weeks in April 2002.

After the White Stripes achieved their mainstream breakthrough, they continued a "back-to-basics" approach seen in their previous album, White Blood Cells. This was reinforced by producing the album without computers, instead utilizing a duct-taped 8 track tape machine and gear no more recent than 1963. Musically, Elephant is a blues and garage rock record featuring lyrics and themes surrounding the "death of the sweetheart" in American and popular culture.

Elephant peaked at number six on the Billboard 200, topped the UK Albums Chart, and received multiple platinum certifications from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) for selling over 4 million copies worldwide. The album's lead single, "Seven Nation Army", became their first entry on the Billboard Hot 100 and one of the band's enduring songs. Also released as singles were "I Just Don't Know What to Do with Myself", "The Hardest Button to Button", and "There's No Home for You Here".

Elephant received widespread acclaim from music critics, and became a defining work of the 2000s garage rock revival. In addition to becoming the band's best-selling release, the album received several accolades, including a nomination for Album of the Year and winning Best Alternative Music Album and Best Rock Song ("Seven Nation Army") at the 2004 Grammy Awards. The album is considered one of the greatest of the 21st century, and is often featured in professional listings of the greatest albums of all time.

## Recording

[edit]

The opening track of Elephant, "Seven Nation Army", uses a DigiTech Whammy to create the bass-like sound heard in the driving riff.

The White Stripes recorded Elephant over two weeks in April through May 2002 in London's modest Toe Rag Studios except for the songs "Well It's True That We Love One Another" and "Hypnotize", which were recorded at Toe Rag on November 5, 2001,[8][9] and "I Just Don't Know What to Do with Myself", which was recorded at the BBC's Maida Vale Studios on November 7, 2001.[2] On certain releases, "Hypnotize" was mistakenly marked as recorded in April 2002.[10] Most of these recording dates were corrected on the 20th anniversary release.[11]

Jack produced the album with antiquated equipment, including an eight-track tape machine and pre-1960s recording gear.[12][13] As stated in the liner notes, he did not use computers during Elephant's writing, recording, or production, and none of the recording equipment was more recent than 1963.[14][15][16]

For the track "Seven Nation Army", to replicate a bass-like sound, White connected a semi-acoustic guitar to a DigiTech Whammy pedal (a pitch shift effect), lowering the pitch by an octave.[17][18] "There's No Home for You Here" was made with the idea "to see how far we could go with an eight track recorder, and I think how far we went is too far."[19] Meg White is featured for the first time on leading vocals in the track "In the Cold, Cold Night", having only performed background vocals for De Stijl and White Blood Cells previously.[20][21] Including the song "I Just Don't Know What to Do with Myself" (a Dusty Springfield/Burt Bacharach cover) in their repertoire was Meg's idea, and the band had begun to perform the song live, later recording it for the album.[20][22]

## Composition

[edit]

Elephant has been described musically as garage rock revival,[23] blues rock,[24] and punk blues.[25] In this album, the White Stripes expanded their style with a bass line alongside lead and rhythm guitar. Jack played guitar or keyboard to fill out the sound.[26] Like other White Stripes records, the cover art and liner notes are exclusively in red, white, and black.[1] An article in The New York Times reported the band attempted to achieve the idea of "Back to Basics" and encourage other rockers to try the same; this was a concept seen on their previous album, White Blood Cells.[26] The album's lyrical themes revolve around the idea of the "death of the sweetheart" in both American culture and popular culture.[27][28]

"You've Got Her in Your Pocket" was written after the release of the band's 1999 self-titled debut album. Jack had planned on eventually giving it to a local band to cover, but felt it was too personal to give away and recorded it for the album.[29] "Girl, You Have No Faith in Medicine" was originally written for White Blood Cells, but it was removed on Meg's request, who found the lyrics to be problematic. After a line was omitted, the song was rerecorded for Elephant.[29][30] "Little Acorns" was written after the band had found unused tapes of journalist Mort Crim in a recording studio. Crim said in an interview that "My first thought was, well they're just gonna use the words and he's gonna build a song around the words, but then the producer said, 'no, no, no, we want to use your voice. We want to actually build a song around your commentary.'"[31] The resulting song is about persevering through life's hardships, and draws comparisons to a "squirrel storing nuts in the winter".[32][33]

## Artwork

[edit]

In an interview with Q Magazine in 2007, Jack said, "If you study the picture carefully, Meg and I are elephant ears in a head-on elephant. But it's a side view of an elephant, too, with the tusks leading off either side." He went on to say, "I wanted people to be staring at this album cover and then maybe two years later, having stared at it for the 500th time, to say, 'Hey, it's an elephant!'"[34][35]

The cryptic symbolism of the album art includes a skull sitting on the floor in the background, as well as peanuts and peanut shells in the foreground, and on the circus travel trunk appears the mark "III," Jack's signature.[35][36] Jack is displaying a mano cornuta and looking at a light bulb intensely, while Meg is barefoot and appears to be crying, with a rope tied around her ankle and leading out of frame. Both have small white ribbons tied to their fingers. On the reverse side of the U.S. edition, all of the number "3"s are in red (disregarding the authorization notes at the bottom).[1]

The album has been released with at least six different versions of the front cover—different covers for the CD and LP editions in the US, the UK and elsewhere.[37] On the US CD edition, Meg is sitting on the left of a circus travel trunk and Jack is sitting on the right holding a cricket bat over the ground,[38] while on the UK CD edition, the cricket bat touches the ground and the image is mirrored so that their positions on the trunk are reversed. The UK vinyl album cover is the same as the US CD, but differs in that the color hues are much darker. The Record Store Day 2013 vinyl and August 2013 180-gram black vinyl reissues have Meg wearing a black dress instead of the usual white dress; the only other release with Meg wearing the black dress was on the V2 advanced copy back in 2003.[39][40] The advanced copy was on red and white vinyl, while the RSD copy has red, black and white colored vinyl in 2013.[41] A 20th anniversary limited edition has Jack wearing all white similar to the limited 2003 Australian pressing.[42]

The cover of Elephant has become iconic,[28] and appeared on Billboard's list of "The 100 Best Album Covers of All Time".[43]

## Release

[edit]

On January 28th, 2003, three months before its release, the track list for Elephant was announced to NME,[44] and the album was given to the newspaper for an early exclusive review on March 7, 2003.[18] Elephant was then widely released on April 1, 2003, through V2, XL, and Third Man records, their second album to be released by V2.[45] To promote the album, four tracks were released as singles: "Seven Nation Army", "I Just Don't Know What To Do With Myself", "The Hardest Button to Button", and "There's No Home For You Here".

Elephant has continued to be reissued. In 2013, Third Man Records released a limited edition vinyl reissue of Elephant, in celebration of the album's 10-year anniversary, which were pressed at United Record Pressing in Nashville, TN.[46][47] In January 2023, a mono remix of the album, titled Elephant XX, was announced and later released exclusively through Third Man Records.[48][49]

## Reception and legacy

[edit]

Professional ratingsAggregate scores

Source| Rating
Metacritic| 92/100[50]
Review scores
Source| Rating
AllMusic| [24]
Entertainment Weekly| B[51]
The Guardian| [52]
Los Angeles Times| [53]
NME| 9/10[54]
Pitchfork| 6.9/10[55]
Q| [56]
Rolling Stone| [57]
Spin| A[58]
Uncut| [59]

Upon its release, Elephant received widespread acclaim from music critics.[60] Review aggregating website Metacritic reports a normalized score of 92 out of 100 based on 28 reviews, indicating "universal acclaim".[61] As of 2023, Elephant is the White Stripes' highest-rated album on the site. Many reviewers believed that it outdid the energy of their earlier albums, and considered it equal to or better than White Blood Cells.[8] Both records have been hailed by critics as the defining events of the 2000s garage rock revival.[12][16][62][63]

AllMusic critic Heather Phares said the album "overflows with quality".[24] Alexis Petridis of The Guardian called the album their "apotheosis" and wrote that "the White Stripes' music seems almost elemental, their power undeniable: it is clear why they are the only band to have transcended the indie ghetto."[64] Lorraine Ali of Newsweek criticized the "gimmicks" that surrounded the White Stripes' music, but concluded that "Elephant still sounds great."[65] John Mulvey of NME stated that "The eloquence, barbarism, tenderness and sweat-drenched vitality of Elephant make it the most fully-realised White Stripes album yet."[54] Tim Alves of PopMatters said the album cemented "their evolution from Blind Willie McTell cover band with a pop sensibility to full-fledged, honest-to-goodness rock 'n' roll gods."[66] David Fricke of Rolling Stone called Elephant "a work of pulverizing perfection," and believed it exceeded "the plantation holler of 2000's De Stijl and 2001's White Blood Cells with blues that both pop and bleed".[57][67] Uncut magazine remarked that "Elephant is where the tabloid phenomenon of summer 2001 prove they are no flash in the pan by making a truly phenomenal record."[68] Jon Pareles of The New York Times praised the continuation of their "Back to Basics" style, but felt that "the quest—for something that might as well be called heart—is still ahead of them."[26]

Elephant peaked at number 6 on the Billboard 200 and spent 58 weeks on the chart, the longest of any White Stripes album.[69] It also topped the UK Albums Chart and spent 55 weeks on the chart, tying with White Blood Cells.[70] It is the band's best-selling album, having sold 2 million copies within the United States and combined sales of over 4 million copies worldwide.[71] It was certified triple platinum by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) and Music Canada, and double platinum by the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) and the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).

## Accolades

[edit]

### Rankings

[edit]

In March 2003, a month before its release, NME ranked Elephant at 74 on their list of the "100 Best Albums of All Time",[72] and in 2013, the same publication ranked it at 116 on their list of "The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time" in 2013.[73] Rolling Stone called it one of the best albums of the decade,[74] and placed it at 390 on their 2012 list of the 500 greatest albums of all time and at 449 in the 2020 edition.[75][76] It was included in the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die.[77][78][79]

Elephant on selected critic rankings  Publisher  | Year  | Listicle  | Rank  | Ref.

|
|
|
|

Billboard | 2009  | Top 20 Albums of the Decade  | 8  | [80]
Channel 4 | 100 Greatest Albums of All Time  | 39  | [77]
Complex | The 100 Best Albums of the 2000s  | Placed  | [81]
Consequence | The Top 100 Albums of the 2000s  | 25  | [82]
Newsweek | 2020  | 100 Best Rock Albums of All Time  | 81  | [83]
2021  | 50 Best Rock Albums from the 21st Century  | 13  | [84]
NME | 2003  | 100 Best Albums of All Time  | 74  | [72]
2009  | Top 100 Greatest Albums of the Decade  | 18  | [85]
2013  | The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time | 116  | [86]
Paste | 2009  | The 50 Best Albums of the 2000s  | 6  | [87]
Pitchfork | The 200 Best Albums of the 2000s  | 74  | [88]
Rolling Stone | 2003  | 100 Best Albums of the 2000s  | 5  | [74]
2012  | 500 Greatest Albums of All Time | 390  | [75]
2020  | 449  | [76]
Spin | 2010  | Top 125 Albums of the Past 25 Years  | 57  | [89]
Slant | The 100 Best Albums of the 2000s  | 29  | [90]
Stacker | 2020  | 100 Best Albums of the 21st Century  | 21  | [91]
The Guardian | 2019  | The 100 Best Albums of the 21st Century  | 48  | [78]
Uncut | 2009  | The Greatest Albums of the 21st Century So Far  | 17  | [92]
Universe Publishing | 2005  | 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die | Placed  | [79]

### Awards and nominations

[edit]

Elephant was nominated for Best Album at the MTV Europe Music Awards in 2003, and won the Grammy Award for Best Alternative Music Album in 2004.[93][94][95]

Awards and nominations for Elephant Award ceremony  | Year  | Category  | Result  | Ref.

|
|
|
|

MTV Europe Music Awards | 2003 | Best Album | Nominated  | [95]
Brit Awards | 2004 | International Album | Nominated  | [96]
Grammy Awards | 2004 | Album of the Year | Nominated  | [93]
Best Alternative Music Album | Won  | [94]
Best Rock Song ("Seven Nation Army")  | Won
Meteor Music Awards | 2004 | Best International Album  | Won  | [97]
Shockwaves NME Awards | 2004  | Best Album  | Nominated  | [98]

## Track listing

[edit]

### Original release

[edit]

All lyrics are written by Jack White, except where noted; all music is composed by Jack and Meg White, except where noted.

No.| Title| Lyrics| Music| Length

|
|
|
|

1.| "Seven Nation Army"|  |  | 3:52
2.| "Black Math"|  |  | 3:04
3.| "There's No Home for You Here"|  |  | 3:44
4.| "I Just Don't Know What to Do with Myself"| Hal David| Burt Bacharach| 2:46
5.| "In the Cold, Cold Night"|  |  | 2:58
6.| "I Want to Be the Boy to Warm Your Mother's Heart"|  |  | 3:21
7.| "You've Got Her in Your Pocket"|  |  | 3:40
8.| "Ball and Biscuit"|  |  | 7:19
9.| "The Hardest Button to Button"|  |  | 3:32
10.| "Little Acorns"| Jack White, Mort Crim|  | 4:09
11.| "Hypnotize"|  |  | 1:48
12.| "The Air Near My Fingers"|  |  | 3:40
13.| "Girl, You Have No Faith in Medicine"|  |  | 3:18
14.| "Well It's True That We Love One Another"|  |  | 2:43
Total length:| 49:56

Japanese edition bonus tracks[99]No.| Title| Writer(s)| Length

|
|
|

15.| "Who's to Say"| Dan Miller| 4:35
16.| "Good to Me"| Brendan Benson, Jason Falkner| 2:06
Total length:| 56:37

### 2023 deluxe release

[edit]

For the 20th anniversary of the album, an Elephant deluxe edition was released,[100] which includes live recordings from a performance in Chicago's Aragon Ballroom.[101]

No.| Title| Writer(s)| Length

|
|
|

1.| "When I Hear My Name (Live at The Aragon Ballroom, July 2, 2003)"|  | 3:01
2.| "Dead Leaves and the Dirty Ground (Live at The Aragon Ballroom, July 2, 2003)"|  | 3:01
3.| "Lovesick (Live at The Aragon Ballroom, July 2, 2003)"| Bob Dylan| 3:51
4.| "Hotel Yorba (Live at The Aragon Ballroom, July 2, 2003)"|  | 2:05
5.| "Aluminum (Live at The Aragon Ballroom, July 2, 2003)"|  | 1:03
6.| "Cool Drink Of Water Blues (Live at The Aragon Ballroom, July 2, 2003)"| Tommy Johnson| 2:13
7.| "The Hardest Button to Button (Live at The Aragon Ballroom, July 2, 2003)"|  | 3:59
8.| "I Want To Be The Boy To Warm Your Mother's Heart (Live at The Aragon Ballroom, July 2, 2003)"|  | 3:27
9.| "Stones in My Passway (Live at The Aragon Ballroom, July 2, 2003)"| Robert Johnson| 2:41
10.| "Stop Breaking Down (Live at The Aragon Ballroom, July 2, 2003)"| Robert Johnson| 3:54
11.| "Do (Live at The Aragon Ballroom, July 2, 2003)"|  | 3:46
12.| "In The Cold, Cold Night (Live at The Aragon Ballroom, July 2, 2003)"|  | 3:53
13.| "Seven Nation Army (Live at The Aragon Ballroom, July 2, 2003)"|  | 4:32
14.| "The Same Boy You've Always Known (Live at The Aragon Ballroom, July 2, 2003)"|  | 3:20
15.| "Black Jack Davey (Live at The Aragon Ballroom, July 2, 2003)"| traditional| 3:04
16.| "We're Going to Be Friends (Live at The Aragon Ballroom, July 2, 2003)"|  | 2:53
17.| "Offend In Every Way (Live at The Aragon Ballroom, July 2, 2003)"|  | 2:17
18.| "Little Cream Soda (Live at The Aragon Ballroom, July 2, 2003)"|  | 4:02
19.| "Cannon / Party of Special Things to Do (Live at The Aragon Ballroom, July 2, 2003)"|

* Jack White
* Don Van Vliet
* Elliot Ingber

| 2:51
20.| "Candy Cane Children (Live at The Aragon Ballroom, July 2, 2003)"|  | 1:49
21.| "The Air Near My Fingers (Live at The Aragon Ballroom, July 2, 2003)"|  | 2:52
22.| "This Protector (Live at The Aragon Ballroom, July 2, 2003)"|  | 2:05
23.| "Screwdriver (Intro) (Live at The Aragon Ballroom, July 2, 2003)"|  | 0:15
24.| "Ball and Biscuit (Live at The Aragon Ballroom, July 2, 2003)"|  | 7:00
25.| "Screwdriver (Reprise) (Live at The Aragon Ballroom, July 2, 2003)"|  | 5:18
26.| "Let's Build a Home (Live at The Aragon Ballroom, July 2, 2003)"|  | 3:20
27.| "Goin' Back to Memphis (Live at The Aragon Ballroom, July 2, 2003)"|

* C.J. Forgy
* Jim Forshey
* Ben Smith

| 4:23
Total length:| 86:55

## Personnel

[edit]

Credits are adapted from the album's liner notes.[102]

The White Stripes

* Jack White – vocals, guitar, piano, production, mixing
* Meg White – drums, vocals

Guest personnel

* Mort Crim – vocal
* Holly Golightly – vocal

Production

* Liam Watson – engineering, mixing
* Noel Summerville – mastering

Artwork

* Bruce Brand – layout
* "The Third Man" – artwork
* Patrick Pantano – photography

## Charts

[edit]

### Weekly charts

[edit]

2003 chart performance for Elephant | Chart (2003)  | Peak
position

|

Australian Albums (ARIA)[103] | 4
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[104] | 39
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[105] | 11
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[106] | 11
Canadian Albums (Billboard)[107] | 5
Danish Albums (Hitlisten)[108] | 35
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[109] | 24
Finnish Albums (Suomen virallinen lista)[110] | 19
French Albums (SNEP)[111] | 21
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[112] | 27
Irish Albums (IRMA)[113] | 1
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[114] | 6
Norwegian Albums (VG-lista)[115] | 3
Scottish Albums (OCC)[116] | 1
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[117] | 7
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[118] | 29
UK Albums (OCC)[119] | 1
US Billboard 200[120] | 6
2023 chart performance for Elephant Chart (2023)  | Peak
position

|

German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[121] | 19
Spanish Albums (PROMUSICAE)[122] | 100

### Year-end charts

[edit]

| Chart (2003)  | Position

|

Australian Albums (ARIA)[123] | 45
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[124] | 43
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[125] | 58
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[126] | 83
French Albums (SNEP)[127] | 137
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[128] | 75
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[129] | 16
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[130] | 74
UK Albums (OCC)[131] | 22
US Billboard 200[132] | 57
Chart (2004)  | Position

|

Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[133] | 57
French Albums (SNEP)[134] | 128
UK Albums (OCC)[135] | 153
US Billboard 200[136] | 173

## Certifications and sales

[edit]

Region  | Certification | Certified units/sales

|
|

Australia (ARIA)[137] | 2× Platinum  | 140,000^
Belgium (BRMA)[138] | Platinum  | 50,000*
Canada (Music Canada)[139] | 3× Platinum  | 300,000‡
Germany (BVMI)[140] | Gold  | 100,000‡
Netherlands (NVPI)[141] | Platinum  | 80,000^
New Zealand (RMNZ)[142] | Platinum  | 15,000^
Norway (IFPI Norway)[143] | Gold  | 20,000*
Poland (ZPAV)[144] | Gold  | 10,000‡
Sweden (GLF)[145] | Gold  | 30,000^
United Kingdom (BPI)[146] | 3× Platinum  | 900,000‡
United States (RIAA)[148] | 2× Platinum  | 2,100,000[147]
Summaries
Europe (IFPI)[149] | Platinum  | 1,000,000*
Worldwide  | —  | 4,000,000[150]

* Sales figures based on certification alone.
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

## Notes

[edit]

1. ^ The original cover features Meg in a white dress. This version of the album cover was released in 2003, and used again in 2020 for digital re-issues.[1]
2. ^ First released to US alternative radio on August 11, 2003.[6]

## References

[edit]

1. ^ a b c Stephen Hill (April 1, 2023). "Trunk Rock: The White Stripes, Elephant, and the seven note riff that shook the world". louder. Retrieved April 4, 2023.
2. ^ a b Blackwell, Ben (2023). Elephant UHQR (booklet). Third Man Records.
3. ^ "Going for Adds". Radio & Records. No. 1491\. February 14, 2003. p. 28.
4. ^ "New Releases: Singles". Music Week. August 30, 2003. p. 23.
5. ^ "New Releases: Singles". Music Week. November 15, 2003. p. 29.
6. ^ "Going for Adds". Radio & Records. No. 1516\. August 8, 2003. p. 26.
7. ^ "New Releases: Singles". Music Week. March 13, 2004. p. 27.
8. ^ a b Gallucci, Michael (April 2023). "20 Years Ago: White Stripes Spark a Rock Revolution on 'Elephant'". Ultimate Classic Rock. Retrieved April 4, 2023.
9. ^ "Homerton's Toe Rag Studios where The White Stripes recorded Elephant turns 20". Ham & High. April 4, 2018. Retrieved April 4, 2023.
10. ^ |user=The White Stripes |postid=MTc4MmM1YmI2Ng== |date=18 March 2023
11. ^ |user=The White Stripes |postid=MTc4MmM1YmI2Ng== |date=18 March 2023
12. ^ a b Fridge, David (April 17, 2003), "Living Color". Rolling Stone. (920): 102
13. ^ "Engineering the Sound: The White Stripes' 'Elephant'". happymag.tv. April 23, 2021. Retrieved April 4, 2023.
14. ^ Katchen, Andrew (March 29, 2003), "White Stripes Stay Pure on 'Elephant'". Billboard. 115(13):9
15. ^ Various artists (November 1, 2007), "The White Stripes Elephant". The Mojo Collection—The Ultimate Music Companion (4th Edition). Canongate Books.
16. ^ a b Cameron, Keith (March 28, 2003), "The sweetheart deal". The Guardian. Retrieved December 12, 2014.
17. ^ Martin, Daniel (May 13, 2013). "20 Things You Might Not Know About 'Seven Nation Army'". NME. Retrieved March 30, 2024.
18. ^ a b NME (March 7, 2003). "White Stripes : Elephant". NME. Archived from the original on February 19, 2011. Retrieved April 8, 2025.
19. ^ Barker, Emily (May 8, 2014). "Jack White: 50 Geeky Facts You Never Knew". NME. Retrieved April 6, 2023.
20. ^ a b Schlanger, Talia (September 21, 2018). "Meg White Is The 21st Century's Loudest Introvert". NPR.
21. ^ Billboard Staff (March 24, 2003). "White Stripes Stay Pure On 'Elephant'". Billboard. Retrieved April 3, 2023.
22. ^ Phipps, Keith (April 9, 2003). "The White Stripes", AVClub.com. Retrieved October 24, 2014.
23. ^ Whitman, Andy; et al. (January 29, 2018). "The 50 Best Garage Rock Albums of All Time seven nation army". Paste. Retrieved March 24, 2018.
24. ^ a b c Phares, Heather. "Elephant – The White Stripes". AllMusic. Retrieved September 24, 2011.
25. ^ Empire, Kitty (March 15, 2003). "They rock - like a beast". The Observer (via The Guardian). Retrieved March 24, 2018.
26. ^ a b c Pareles, Jon (April 6, 2003). "White Stripe: Same Old Colors". The New York Times. Retrieved March 31, 2014.
27. ^ Lindgren, Hugo (March 9, 2003). "The Way We Live Now: Questions for the White Stripes". The New York Times. Retrieved April 1, 2014.
28. ^ a b "Juxtapoz Magazine - Sound and Vision: The White Stripes "Elephant"". www.juxtapoz.com. Retrieved April 4, 2023.
29. ^ a b TRUE, Everett (March 4, 2010). The White Stripes And The Sound Of Mutant Blues. Omnibus Press. ISBN 978-0-85712-211-7.
30. ^ "The White Stripes song that Meg White hated". faroutmagazine.co.uk. June 8, 2023. Retrieved January 23, 2024.
31. ^ "Longtime Detroit TV anchor Mort Crim explains how he wound up 'helping a beat up old city finding its way back'". www.audacy.com. August 13, 2023. Retrieved May 22, 2024.
32. ^ Lamph, Samantha (January 9, 2019). "Sam Recommends: "Little Acorns" by The White Stripes". Memoir Mixtapes. Retrieved May 22, 2024.
33. ^ "Gathering acorns in quarantine - Washington Examiner". May 29, 2020. Retrieved May 22, 2024.
34. ^ "Juxtapoz Magazine - Sound and Vision: The White Stripes "Elephant"". www.juxtapoz.com. Retrieved March 12, 2023.
35. ^ a b Stafford, James (October 8, 2015). "Cover Stories: The White Stripes, 'Elephant'". Diffuser.fm. Retrieved March 12, 2023.
36. ^ SB (June 21, 2018). "CLASSIC ALBUM COVERS: "Elephant" by The White Stripes". Rocking In the Norselands. Retrieved April 4, 2023.
37. ^ The White Stripes official website Archived September 26, 2007, at the Wayback Machine, index to album artwork including covers, page 1 of 3. Page retrieved June 21, 2007.
38. ^ "The most-famous - but unrecognised - cricket bat in pop culture". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved March 31, 2023.
39. ^ Young, Alex (March 1, 2013). "Jack White to reissue The White Stripes' Elephant for Record Store Day". Consequence. Retrieved April 4, 2023.
40. ^ NME (March 2, 2013). "The White Stripes to release special 10th anniversary reissue of 'Elephant' for Record Store Day". NME. Retrieved April 4, 2023.
41. ^ Jessica Rawden (March 3, 2013). "The White Stripes Releasing 10th Anniversary Elephant LP On Record Store Day". CINEMABLEND. Retrieved April 4, 2023.
42. ^ "THE WHITE STRIPES CONTINUE ELEPHANT 20TH ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION WITH LIMITED EDITION 2XLP COLORED VINYL RELEASE". thirdmanrecords.com. Third Man Records. April 21, 2023. Retrieved June 19, 2023.
43. ^ Lynch, Joe (August 7, 2023). "The 100 Best Album Covers of All Time". Billboard. Retrieved May 22, 2024.
44. ^ NME (January 28, 2003). "WHITE 'ELEPHANT'!". NME. Retrieved March 5, 2025.
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## Further reading

[edit]

* Draper, Jason (2008). A Brief History of Album Covers. London: Flame Tree Publishing. pp. 356–357\. ISBN 9781847862112. OCLC 227198538.

## External links

[edit]

Wikiquote has quotations related to Elephant (album).

* Elephant at Discogs
* Elephant at Metacritic

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The White Stripes

* Jack White
* Meg White

Studio albums|

* The White Stripes (1999)
* De Stijl (2000)
* White Blood Cells (2001)
* Elephant (2003)
* Get Behind Me Satan (2005)
* Icky Thump (2007)

Live albums|

* Under Great White Northern Lights

Compilation albums|

* The White Stripes Greatest Hits

Video albums|

* Under Blackpool Lights
* Under Great White Northern Lights / Under Nova Scotian Lights

Singles|

* "Let's Shake Hands"
* "Lafayette Blues"
* "The Big Three Killed My Baby"
* "Hand Springs"
* "Hello Operator"
* "Lord, Send Me an Angel"
* "Party of Special Things to Do"
* "Hotel Yorba"
* "Fell in Love with a Girl"
* "Dead Leaves and the Dirty Ground"
* "We're Going to Be Friends"
* "Candy Cane Children"
* "Seven Nation Army"
* "I Just Don't Know What to Do with Myself"
* "The Hardest Button to Button"
* "There's No Home for You Here"
* "Jolene (Live Under Blackpool Lights)"
* "Blue Orchid"
* "My Doorbell"
* "The Denial Twist"
* "Icky Thump"
* "Rag and Bone"
* "You Don't Know What Love Is (You Just Do as You're Told)"
* "Conquest"

Other songs|

* "Ball and Biscuit"
* "In the Cold, Cold Night"
* "300 M.P.H. Torrential Outpour Blues"

Related articles|

* Discography
* Songs
* Awards and nominations
* The Raconteurs
* The Dead Weather
* The Upholsterers
* The Go
* Two-Star Tabernacle
* Aluminium
* Third Man Records

* Category

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Jack White

* Discography

Studio albums|

* Blunderbuss
* Lazaretto
* Boarding House Reach
* Fear of the Dawn
* Entering Heaven Alive
* No Name

Compilation albums|

* Acoustic Recordings 1998–2016

Singles|

* "Wayfaring Stranger"
* "Sitting on Top of the World"
* "Portland Oregon"
* "Another Way to Die"
* "Fly Farm Blues"
* "Love Interruption"
* "Sixteen Saltines"
* "Freedom at 21"
* "High Ball Stepper"
* "Lazaretto"
* "Would You Fight for My Love?"
* "Connected by Love"
* "Over and Over and Over"
* "Taking Me Back"
* "Hi-De-Ho"

Related bands|

* The White Stripes
* The Dead Weather
* The Raconteurs
* The Upholsterers
* The Go
* Goober & the Peas
* Two-Star Tabernacle

Related articles|

* Third Man Records
* Meg White
* Karen Elson
* Olivia Jean
* Aluminium
* Sympathetic Sounds of Detroit
* "Don't Hurt Yourself"
* It Might Get Loud
* Under Great White Northern Lights
* Supply Chain Issues Tour

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Grammy Award for Best Alternative Music Album

1990s|

* I Do Not Want What I Haven't Got — Sinéad O'Connor (1991)
* Out of Time — R.E.M. (1992)
* Bone Machine — Tom Waits (1993)
* Zooropa — U2 (1994)
* Dookie — Green Day (1995)
* MTV Unplugged in New York — Nirvana (1996)
* Odelay — Beck (1997)
* OK Computer — Radiohead (1998)
* Hello Nasty — Beastie Boys (1999)

2000s|

* Mutations — Beck (2000)
* Kid A — Radiohead (2001)
* Parachutes — Coldplay (2002)
* A Rush of Blood to the Head — Coldplay (2003)
* Elephant — The White Stripes (2004)
* A Ghost Is Born — Wilco (2005)
* Get Behind Me Satan — The White Stripes (2006)
* St. Elsewhere — Gnarls Barkley (2007)
* Icky Thump — The White Stripes (2008)
* In Rainbows — Radiohead (2009)

2010s|

* Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix — Phoenix (2010)
* Brothers — The Black Keys (2011)
* Bon Iver — Bon Iver (2012)
* Making Mirrors — Gotye (2013)
* Modern Vampires of the City — Vampire Weekend (2014)
* St. Vincent — St. Vincent (2015)
* Sound & Color — Alabama Shakes (2016)
* Blackstar — David Bowie (2017)
* Sleep Well Beast — The National (2018)
* Colors — Beck (2019)

2020s|

* Father of the Bride — Vampire Weekend (2020)
* Fetch the Bolt Cutters — Fiona Apple (2021)
* Daddy's Home – St. Vincent (2022)
* Wet Leg – Wet Leg (2023)
* The Record – Boygenius (2024)
* All Born Screaming – St. Vincent (2025)

Authority control databases |

* MusicBrainz release group

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