Lil' Golden Book Explained

Lil' Golden Book
Type:studio
Artist:Princess Chelsea
Cover:LGB Album Cover.jpg
Released:May 2, 2011
Genre:Indie pop, baroque pop
Length:40:43
Label:Lil' Chief Records
Producer:Chelsea Nikkel, Jonathan Bree
Next Title:The Great Cybernetic Depression
Next Year:2015

Lil' Golden Book is the debut studio album by the New Zealand recording artist Princess Chelsea. It was released on 2 May 2011, through Lil' Chief Records. The album was produced by Jonathan Bree and Chelsea Nikkel. The album tells the tale of life growing up as a teenager and young adult in New Zealand.[1]

Background

Nikkel stated that the album took nearly three years of production. The booklet features 15 pages designed by bandmate Brad Fafejta. The album is described as 'when cute meets creepy'.[2]

The album was named after Little Golden Books, which are a series of children's books that started in the 1940s and are still being released today. She called her album "Lil' Golden Book" instead of "Little Golden Book" as an attempt to prevent herself from getting sued, but also to pay homage to her record label Lil' Chief.[3]

Critical reception

Lil' Golden Book received mostly positive reviews. The Sunday Star Times named it 'album of the week' and aptly described it as 'when cute meets creepy'. Graham Reid has called it 'mischievous and sharp' and The New Zealand Herald has likened it to "growing pains in the happiest place on earth". Louder Than War said "the quirky 'Monkey Eats Bananas' is a thumping, jungle-beat track that was a huge hit on YouTube."[4] KittySneezes described Nikkel's vocals as "childlike tones" that "evoke the innocence necessary to make the simple lyrics work."[5]

The Cigarette Duet

One of the more popular songs from the album is "The Cigarette Duet" with vocals from Jonathan Bree. The video was uploaded to YouTube in early 2011, to date surpassing 100 million views. This led to her being featured on The Guardians 'New Band of the Day'.[6]

The song is about a couple who fight over the health risks of smoking. The woman in the song is a (light) smoker, while the man is trying to encourage her to stop smoking. In the song, we learn the man was a previous smoker, but later quit. The lyrics are often compared to Nancy & Lee with its dialogue. In an interview, she said "I sort of knew when I wrote it if any of my songs are going to get big, it’s probably this one that’s going to be successful and it has put a lot of people onto my music."[7]

Singles

Track listing[18]

All tracks written by Chelsea Nikkel; all tracks produced by Nikkel and Jonathan Bree.

Personnel

Credits adapted from Lil' Golden Book album liner notes.[19]

with guests

Thank you

Jonathan Bree, Jamie-Lee Smith, Brad Fafejta, Scott Mannion, Gareth Shute, Lawence Mikkelsen, Esther Maake, Johnathan Hughes, Stacey Thomas, Leonardo DiCaprio, Edmund Cake, The Brunettes, Pikachunes, Golden Axe, Stevie Kaye, Joseph Harper, Andrew Tidball, The Nikkel Family, Robbie Neilson, Johanna Freeman, Richard Braitigan.

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Princess Chelsea – Free listening, concerts, stats, & pictures at . Last.fm . 2013-06-19.
  2. Web site: Lil' Chief Records: Princess Chelsea's Debut Album Out Today! . Blog.lilchiefrecords.com . 2011-05-02 . 2013-06-19.
  3. Web site: Princess Chelsea - interview. 17 October 2012.
  4. Web site: princess chelsea . Louderthanwar.com . 2012-10-02 . 2013-06-19.
  5. Web site: Anderson . Richard J. . Music - Review: Princess Chelsea - Lil' Golden Book . Kittysneezes . 2013-06-19 . 17 January 2013 . https://web.archive.org/web/20130117141846/http://kittysneezes.com/2011/09/05/review-princess-chelsea-lil-golden-book-929/ . dead .
  6. News: Paul Lester . New band of the day – No 1,281: Princess Chelsea | Music | guardian.co.uk . Guardian . 2012-06-01. 2013-06-19 . London.
  7. Web site: An interview with PRINCESS CHELSEA. Paul. Browne. 28 August 2012. Electricity-club.co.uk. 9 January 2022.
  8. Web site: Will Anderson . Monkey Eats Bananas | Princess Chelsea . Princesschelsea.lilchiefrecords.com . 2009-06-02 . 2013-06-19.
  9. Web site: Princess Chelsea - Machines of Loving Grace . YouTube . 2013-06-19.
  10. Web site: Too Fast To Live | Princess Chelsea . Princesschelsea.lilchiefrecords.com . 2011-10-11 . 2013-06-19.
  11. Web site: Ice Reign | Princess Chelsea . Princesschelsea.lilchiefrecords.com . 2011-04-11 . 2013-06-19.
  12. Web site: The Cigarette Duet | Princess Chelsea . Princesschelsea.lilchiefrecords.com . 2011-06-09 . 2013-06-19.
  13. Web site: Princess Chelsea - Yulia . YouTube . 2012-02-18 . 2013-06-19.
  14. Web site: The Cigarette Duet (European Tour Edition) | Princess Chelsea . Princesschelsea.lilchiefrecords.com . 2012-05-14 . 2013-06-19.
  15. Web site: Overseas | Princess Chelsea . Princesschelsea.lilchiefrecords.com . 2012-09-14 . 2013-06-19.
  16. Web site: Princess Chelsea - Frack . YouTube . 2012-12-12 . 2013-06-19.
  17. Web site: Princess Chelsea - Caution Repetitive . YouTube . 2013-04-05 . 2013-06-19.
  18. Web site: Lil' Golden Book | Princess Chelsea . Princesschelsea.lilchiefrecords.com . 2011-05-02 . 2013-06-19.
  19. Lil' Golden Book (CD liner notes). Princess Chelsea. Lil' Chief Records. 2010. B004Y933XY.

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