# Tidal (album)

Tidal is the debut studio album by American singer-songwriter Fiona Apple, released on July 23, 1996, by The WORK Group. Tidal produced three singles: "Shadowboxer", "Sleep to Dream", and "Criminal". The latter was the album's most popular single, winning a Grammy Award for Best Female Rock Vocal Performance in 1998. In 2017, Tidal got its first vinyl run as a "Vinyl Me Please" exclusive "Record of the Month".

## Background and reception

Professional ratings :
| Review scores ||
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic | |
| Christgau's Consumer Guide | |
| Encyclopedia of Popular Music | |
| The Guardian | |
| Los Angeles Times | |
| The Philadelphia Inquirer | |
| Pitchfork | 9.0/10 |
| PopMatters | 9/10 |
| Q | |
| The Sydney Morning Herald | |
| The Rolling Stone Album Guide | |
"When I did Tidal," Apple said in 2000, "it was more for the sake of proving myself; telling people from my past something. And to also try to get friends for the future."
Tidal was received well by critics, with Jenny Eliscu of Rolling Stone and Richard Harrington of The Washington Post describing it as a mature effort comparable to the work of singer/songwriters Alanis Morissette and Tori Amos. In 2010, Rolling Stone ranked the album at number 83 among the 100 greatest albums of the 1990s. The following year, Slant Magazine placed it at number 74. The album is featured in the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die. In 2022, Rolling Stone ranked the album at number 25 on its list of "100 Best Debut Albums of All Time", claiming that it was "just the beginning—and Apple has kept topping herself artistically ever since."
As of July 2016, the album has sold 2.9 million copies in United States.

## Track listing

All tracks are written by Fiona Apple

## Personnel

Musicians
* Fiona Apple – vocals (all tracks), piano (1–3, 5–9), Optigan (2)
* Jon Brion – vibraphone (1–3, 5–6, 9–10), guitar (1–2, 6, 10), tack piano (1, 3, 6, 9), marimba (2, 6), dulcitone (2), Chamberlin (4, 10), harp (8, 10), Optigan (8)
* Patrick Warren – Chamberlin (1–3, 5–6, 8–10), piano (1, 4)
* Greg Leisz – pedal steel guitar (2, 8)
* Rob Laufer – guitar (4)
* Dan Rothchild – bass (1, 4, 8, 10)
* Greg Richling – bass guitar (2–3, 5)
* Sara Lee – bass guitar (6, 9)
* Matt Chamberlain – drums (1–2, 4, 6, 8–10), percussion (1, 6, 10)
* Danny Frankel – drums (3, 5), percussion (6)
* George Black – drum programming (6)
* Van Dyke Parks – string arrangement (7)
** Ralph Morrison – first violin
** Claudia Parducci – second violin
** Evan Wilson – viola
** Larry Corbett – cello
* Amber Maggart – harmony vocals (9)
Production
* Andrew Slater – production
* Mark Endert – recording, mixing
* Claude "Swifty" Achille – additional engineering
* Brian Scheuble – additional engineering
* Jim Wirt – additional engineering
* Niko Bolas – additional engineering
* Troy Gonzalez – assistant engineering
* Al Sanderson – assistant engineering
* Tom Banghart – mixing assistance
* Ted Jensen – mastering
* Valerie Pack – production coordination
* Nathaniel Goldberg – photography
* Fred Woodward – art direction

## Charts
### Singles

| Single | Chart (1996) | Peak position |
| "Shadowboxer" | U.S. Billboard Adult Top 40 | 32 |
| "Shadowboxer" | U.S. Billboard Modern Rock Tracks | 34 |
| Single | Chart (1997) | Peak position |
| "Sleep to Dream" | Australia (ARIA) | 159 |
| "Sleep to Dream" | Canada Top Singles (RPM) | 78 |
| "Sleep to Dream" | Scotland (OCC) | 75 |
| "Sleep to Dream" | UK Singles Chart | 79 |
| "Sleep to Dream" | US Alternative Airplay (Billboard) | 28 |
| "Criminal" | Australia (ARIA) | 51 |
| "Criminal" | Canada Top Singles (RPM) | 28 |
| "Criminal" | Canada Rock/Alternative (RPM) | 9 |
| "Criminal" | US Billboard Hot 100 | 21 |
| "Criminal" | US Adult Alternative Songs (Billboard) | 2 |
| "Criminal" | US Adult Pop Airplay (Billboard) | 17 |
| "Criminal" | US Alternative Airplay (Billboard) | 4 |
| "Criminal" | US Pop Airplay (Billboard) | 18 |

## Certifications and sales

| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
| Canada (Music Canada) | Platinum | 100,000$^^$ |
| France (SNEP) | Gold | 100,000$^*$ |
| United States (RIAA) | 3× Platinum | 2,900,000 |
| $^*$ Sales figures based on certification alone. $^^$ Shipments figures based on certification alone. |||