Marcy Playground (album)

1997 studio album by Marcy Playground

Marcy Playground

Studio album by

Marcy Playground

Released| February 25, 1997 (1997-02-25)
Recorded| 1996–1997
Studio| Sabella Recording Studio (Roslyn, New York)
Genre|

* Alternative rock
* post-grunge

Length| 34:37
Label| Capitol
Producer| John Wozniak
Marcy Playground chronology
|  | Marcy Playground
(1997)  | Shapeshifter
(1999)

|
|

Singles from  Marcy Playground

1. "Poppies"
Released: 1997
2. "Saint Joe on the School Bus"
Released: June 1997
3. "Sex and Candy"
Released: September 15, 1997[1]
4. "Sherry Fraser"
Released: 1998

Marcy Playground is the eponymous debut studio album by American alternative rock band Marcy Playground, released on February 25, 1997, on EMI.[2] It was reissued later that year on October 7 on Capitol Records with a large amount of promotion for the single "Sex and Candy," which became the band's breakthrough single, spending a then-record 15 weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart.

The album also includes the singles "St. Joe on the Schoolbus" and "Sherry Fraser" both of which received moderate radio and MTV2 airplay.

## Critical reception[edit]

Professional ratingsReview scores

Source| Rating
AllMusic| [3]
Christgau's Consumer Guide| [4]
NME| 7/10[5]
Pitchfork| 7.6/10[6]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide| [7]

Marcy Playground garnered a mixed reception from music critics. Ronan Munro of NME said that, "What is surprising is how enjoyable this window on Wozniak's soul is: his lazy drawl and gentle melodies coating his misery in a pop sheen... the mood remains resolutely downbeat but the angst is not imposing."[5] James P. Wisdom of Pitchfork stated that Marcy Playground was "the most soothingly mellow and pleasant thing [he] had heard in a long time."[6] AllMusic's Stephen Thomas Erlewine felt that "only a handful" of the album's tracks are as memorable as "Sex and Candy", while adding that "those moments are what make Marcy Playground a promising, albeit imperfect, debut."[3]

Robert Christgau graded the album as a "dud",[4] indicating "a bad record whose details rarely merit further thought."[8] Chuck Eddy of Rolling Stone heavily panned the album for its subpar musicianship, saying that it "sets icky new standards for commercial-post-alternative callowness."[9] Dan Weiss of LA Weekly deemed it the twelfth-worst album of the 1990s, opining that aside from the singles "Sex and Candy" and "Saint Joe on the School Bus," the album is "folksy, opiate-obsessed bullshit".[10]

## Track listing[edit]

All tracks are written by John Wozniak, except where noted

No.| Title| Length

|
|

1.| "Poppies"| 2:49
2.| "Sex and Candy"| 2:53
3.| "Ancient Walls of Flowers" (John Wozniak, Sherry Fraser)| 3:16
4.| "Saint Joe on the School Bus"| 3:20
5.| "A Cloak of Elvenkind"| 2:59
6.| "Sherry Fraser"| 2:50
7.| "Gone Crazy"| 2:45
8.| "Opium"| 3:07
9.| "One More Suicide"| 2:39
10.| "Dog and His Master"| 2:12
11.| "The Shadow of Seattle"| 2:48
12.| "The Vampires of New York"| 2:55

## Personnel[edit]

Credits adapted from liner notes.[11]

Marcy Playground

* John Wozniak – lead vocals, guitar
* Dylan Keefe – bass, backing vocals
* Dan Rieser – drums, backing vocals

Additional musicians

* Glen Braver – bass on "Poppies"
* Jared Kotler – bass on "Sex and Candy", "Sherry Fraser", "One More Suicide" and "The Vampires of New York", drums on all songs except "Saint Joe on the School Bus"
* Edgar Mills – bass on "Ancient Walls of Flowers" and "Opium"
* Jen Handler – cello on "One More Suicide"

Production

* John Wozniak – production
* Jim Sabella – engineering
* Ken Gioia – engineering, mixing
* Marcy Playground – mixing
* Greg Calbi – mastering

Additional personnel

* Henry Marquez – art direction
* Robert Laverdiere – package design
* James Wojcik – cover and color photo
* Chris Black – black-and-white photo

|

## Charts[edit]

### Weekly charts[edit]

| Chart (1997–98)  | Peak
position

|

Australian Albums (ARIA)[12] | 28
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[13] | 16
Canada Top Albums/CDs (RPM)[14] | 16
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[15] | 20
Scottish Albums (OCC)[16] | 91
UK Albums (OCC)[17] | 61
US Billboard 200[18] | 21

### Year-end charts[edit]

| Chart (1998)  | Position

|

US Billboard 200[19] | 58

## Certifications[edit]

Region  | Certification | Certified units/sales

|
|

Australia (ARIA)[20] | Gold  | 35,000^
United States (RIAA)[21] | Platinum  | 1,000,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

## References[edit]

1. ^ Applefeld Olson, Catherine, ed. (September 27, 1997). "The Reel Thing: Mammoth Step" (PDF). Billboard. Vol. 109, no. 39\. p. 22. Retrieved October 17, 2020.
2. ^ "Marcy Playground by Marcy Playground". Apple Music. Retrieved May 19, 2020.
3. ^ a b Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Marcy Playground – Marcy Playground". AllMusic. Retrieved July 22, 2012.
4. ^ a b Christgau, Robert. "CG: Marcy Playground". RobertChristgau.com. Retrieved July 22, 2012.
5. ^ a b Munro, Ronan (May 23, 1998). "Marcy Playground – Marcy Playground". NME. Archived from the original on August 17, 2000. Retrieved May 19, 2020.
6. ^ a b Wisdom, James P. "Marcy Playground: Marcy Playground". Pitchfork. Archived from the original on June 9, 2002. Retrieved February 6, 2018.
7. ^ Harris, Keith (2004). "Marcy Playground". In Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian (eds.). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide (4th ed.). Simon & Schuster. p. 513. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8.
8. ^ Christgau, Robert (2000). "Key to Icons". Christgau's Consumer Guide: Albums of the '90s. St. Martin's Press. ISBN 0-312-24560-2. Retrieved August 11, 2016.
9. ^ Eddy, Chuck (April 22, 1998). "Marcy Playground: Marcy Playground". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on October 1, 2007. Retrieved September 7, 2007.
10. ^ "The 20 Worst Albums of the '90s: The Complete List". LA Weekly. March 7, 2013. Retrieved March 7, 2019.
11. ^ Marcy Playground (liner notes). Marcy Playground. Capitol Records. 1997. 7243-8-53569-2-6.`{{cite AV media notes}}`: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
12. ^ "Australiancharts.com – Marcy Playground – Marcy Playground". Hung Medien. Retrieved May 20, 2020.
13. ^ "Austriancharts.at – Marcy Playground – Marcy Playground" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved May 20, 2020.
14. ^ "Top RPM Albums: Issue 3513". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved May 20, 2020.
15. ^ "Charts.nz – Marcy Playground – Marcy Playground". Hung Medien. Retrieved May 20, 2020.
16. ^ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved May 20, 2020.
17. ^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved May 20, 2020.
18. ^ "Marcy Playground Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved May 20, 2020.
19. ^ "Top Billboard 200 Albums – Year-End 1998". Billboard. Retrieved September 21, 2020.
20. ^ "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 1999 Albums" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved December 27, 2021.
21. ^ "American album certifications – Marcy Playground – Marcy Playground". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved November 7, 2021.

## External links[edit]

* Official Myspace Page
* Official Website
* Official Facebook

* v
* t
* e

Marcy Playground

* John Wozniak
* Dylan Keefe
* Shlomi Lavie

* Jared Kotler
* Dan Reiser
* Gonzalo Martinez de la Cotera

Studio albums|

* Marcy Playground
* Shapeshifter
* MP3
* Leaving Wonderland... in a Fit of Rage

Other albums|

* Zog BogBean – From the Marcy Playground
* Indaba Remixes from Wonderland
* Lunch, Recess & Detention

Singles|

* "Saint Joe on the School Bus"
* "Sex and Candy"
* "Sherry Fraser"
* "It's Saturday"

Authority control databases |

* MusicBrainz release group

|

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