- Doll Parts
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"Doll Parts" 
Single by Hole from the album Live Through This B-side "The Void"/"Plump" (live) Released November 1994 Format CD single, 7" Recorded October 1993 at Triclops Studios in Atlanta, Georgia Genre Alternative rock Length 3:31 Label Geffen Writer(s) Courtney Love Producer Paul Q. Kolderie, Sean Slade Hole singles chronology "Miss World"
(1994)"Doll Parts"
(1994)"Violet"
(1995)"Doll Parts" is a song by American alternative rock band Hole, written by vocalist and guitarist Courtney Love. The song was released as the band's sixth single and second from their sophomore studio album, Live Through This, in November 1994 to accompany the band's North American tour. It was also the first single to be released following the death of bassist, Kristen Pfaff in June 1994. The song is considered by fans and critics alike as one of Hole's signature songs.[1]
Contents
Origin and recording
Courtney Love is known to have written "Doll Parts" as early as November 1991, performing the acoustically at a Hole concert in Massachusetts[2] under the working title "I Am." The song developed in to its final form less than two weeks later and became a regular number on setlists during the band's tour of Europe the United Kingdom the following month. Journalist Everett True also noted that Love performed an acoustic version of the song to him over a telephone at 4a.m during the band's tour.[3]
The first known studio version of "Doll Parts" was recorded on November 19, 1991 at Maida Vale Studios as part of Hole's first radio session with BBC DJ John Peel.[4] A second version of the song was recorded on March 27, 1993 with Mark Goodier, another BBC radio host, during a short three-date tour of England. In October 1993, the band recorded the album version of the song as part of the Live Through This sessions at Triclops Studios in Atlanta, Georgia.
Composition and lyrics
"Doll Parts" is known to deal with themes of both love and rejection. Speaking to Uncut magazine in 2010, Love stated: "I still don't understand why that one song with just three chords is such a big thing. But it's definitely got some good lyrics. That was a song about Kurt. I wrote it in Boston."[5] Love also said that the line "dog beg" was written because there was a dog in the room with her begging for food.[5]
Both the title of the song and the lyrical meaning are inspired by an encounter Love had with husband Kurt Cobain in 1991 prior to their relationship. Love had sent Cobain "a heart-shaped box scented with perfume and inside a porcelain doll, three dried roses, a miniature teacup and shellac-covered seashells"[6] to apologize for their first meeting in May 1991, where Love infamously wrestled Cobain. The box, purchased in an antique store in New Orleans, was later the influence for the Cobain-penned Nirvana song, "Heart-Shaped Box." The lyrics reflect Love's initial feelings about Cobain having felt rejected by his lack of communication which is most accurately conveyed in the line: "he only loves those things because he loves to see them break."
After Cobain's death in April 1994, "Doll Parts" took on a more tragic meaning with Love giving anguished performances of the song on tour. Drummer Patty Schemel has said that "certain things would remind her, a lot of the time on-stage, and it would just come out. Certain lyrics had a lot more meaning."[7]
On both Live Through This and the individual single, the song is credited on record as written by Hole as a band, however according to BMI's website, the official author is solely Courtney Love.[8]
Music video
Following the death of bassist Kristen Pfaff, the promotional music video for "Doll Parts" was post-poned until July 1994 when Hole commissioned Samuel Bayer — who had also directed music videos for The Smashing Pumpkins and Nirvana — to film and direct the video. The bassist featured in the video is Jennifer Finch of L7, an old friend of Love's who stepped in as Hole had not yet replaced Pfaff. Though originally considered as a new bassist, Finch never joined the band.
Two edits of the video has been broadcast and/or released. The original version of the video had a large amount of doll imagery, which was later taken out and replaced with shots of a barefoot Courtney Love in a field of petals. The video uses both black and white and color imagery and shots of Courtney interspersed with shots of the band playing as a whole. The video also features a small blonde boy, which many take to be the figure of the late Cobain, as he pays more than a passing resemblance to the singer in his youth, who was also featured on the cover of Hole's 1993 single, "Beautiful Son."
The video was nominated for Best Alternative Video at the 1995 MTV Video Music Awards.
Track listing
All songs written by Courtney Love, unless where noted.
- European CD single and UK 7" single[9]
No. Title Writer(s) Length 1. "Doll Parts" 3:31 2. "The Void" Ana da Silva, Gina Birch 2:57 Total length:6:28 - UK CD and 7" single, 1995[9]
No. Title Writer(s) Length 1. "Doll Parts" 3:31 2. "The Void" Ana da Silva, Gina Birch 2:57 3. "Hungry Like the Wolf" (live) Simon Le Bon, Nick Rhodes, John Taylor 1:42 Total length:8:10 - US CD and 7" single[9]
No. Title Writer(s) Length 1. "Doll Parts" 3:31 2. "Plump" (live) Courtney Love, Eric Erlandson 2:42 3. "I Think That I Would Die" (live) C. Love, E. Erlandson, Kat Bjelland 4:22 4. "Credit in the Straight World" (live) Stuart Moxham 2:49 Total length:13:24 - all live tracks recorded at Hollywood Palladium on November 9, 1994 except "Plump", recorded at Universal Amphitheater, Universal City on December 10, 1994.
Chart positions
Chart (1994) Peak position Billboard Hot 100[10] 58 Billboard Modern Rock Tracks[10] 4 UK Singles Chart[11] 16 External links
References
- ^ "Hole - Live Through This (album review)". Sputnikmusic. November 21, 2006. http://www.sputnikmusic.com/review/10034/Hole-Live-Through-This/. Retrieved December 11, 2010.
- ^ "Holelive.com - The Ultimate Hole Trading Community". Holelive.com. 2010. http://holelive.com/show.php?id=76. Retrieved December 11, 2010.
- ^ True, Everett (2006). Nirvana: The True Story. Omnibus Press. p. 317. ISBN 1.84449.640.6.
- ^ "BBC - Radio 1 - Keeping It Peel - 19/11/1991 Hole". BBC Radio 1. October 2005. http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio1/johnpeel/sessions/1990s/1991/Nov19hole/. Retrieved December 11, 2010.
- ^ a b Uncut (August 2010).
- ^ Cross, Charles R. (2001). Heavier Than Heaven. Hodder and Stoughton. p. 181. ISBN 0 340 73939 8.
- ^ Schemel, Patty. Interview on Behind The Music: Courtney Love. 2010. Retrieved December 11, 2010.
- ^ "BMI Repertoire Search, BMI.com". BMI. http://repertoire.bmi.com/title.asp?blnWriter=True&blnPublisher=True&blnArtist=True&keyID=1935873&ShowNbr=0&ShowSeqNbr=0&querytype=WorkID. Retrieved April 8, 2010.
- ^ a b c "Hole (2) - Doll Parts at Discogs". Discogs. http://www.discogs.com/Hole-Doll-Parts/master/43725. Retrieved December 11, 2010.
- ^ a b "Doll Parts - Hole". Billboard.com. http://www.billboard.com/song/hole/doll-parts/1459138#/song/hole/doll-parts/1459138. Retrieved December 11, 2010.
- ^ "HOLE - The Official Charts Company". Official UK Charts. http://www.theofficialcharts.com/artist/_/hole/#singles. Retrieved December 11, 2010.
Courtney Love · Micko Larkin · Shawn Dailey · Stu Fisher
Eric Erlandson · Samantha Maloney · Melissa Auf der Maur · Patty Schemel · Kristen Pfaff · Jill Emery · Caroline Rue · Lisa Roberts · Leslie HardyStudio albums Other albums Singles "Retard Girl" · "Dicknail" · "Teenage Whore" · "Beautiful Son" · "Miss World" · "Doll Parts" · "Violet" · "Softer, Softest" · "Gold Dust Woman" · "Celebrity Skin" · "Malibu" · "Awful" · "Be a Man" · "Skinny Little Bitch" · "Pacific Coast Highway" · "Letter to God"Other songs Tours Beautiful Monsters Tour ·Related articles Discography · Sugar Babydoll · Pagan Babies · Babes In Toyland · RRIICCEE · Sympathy for the Record Industry · Billy Corgan · Kat Bjelland • Frances Bean CobainCategories:- Hole songs
- 1994 singles
- Music videos directed by Samuel Bayer
- English-language songs
- Kurt Cobain
- Songs written by Courtney Love
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