Alanis Pulls Plug on "Pill"

She's recording all-acoustic version of Jagged Little Pill for its 10th anniversary

By Josh Grossberg Mar 04, 2005 10:30 PMTags

This Pill is going down easier.

To mark the 10th anniversary of the album that catapulted her to stardom and emasculated men everywhere via the hit single "You Oughta Know," Alanis Morissette plans to release an acoustic version of Jagged Little Pill on June 13.

The singer is reuniting in the studio with Glen Ballard, who coproduced and cowrote Jagged Little Pill, for the unplugged version, which will hit stores exactly 10 years to the day the original came out

The new disc will initially only be available in Starbucks' 4,500 stores across North America. Traditional retailers won't be able to sell the CD until July 26.

Morissette says the acoustic set will follow the Pill track listing, but will "reinterpret the songs in ways that developed in my touring and acoustic shows over the past 10 years."

The 2.0 edition will also feature some extras, including video footage of her 18-month tour in 1995-96 and new artwork.

Jagged Little Pill has sold more than 30 million units worldwide, 14.4 million copies in the U.S., where it ranks as the best-selling debut ever by a female artist.

Morissette has not been able to repeat that breakthrough success. Her three subsequent studio albums--1998's Supposed Former Infatuation Junkie, 2002's Under Rug Swept and 2004's So Called Chaos--have sold well, but not approached Pill's status as pop phenomenon.

Aside from "You Oughta Know," Pill spawned such radio-friendly hits as "Ironic," "One Hand in My Pocket," You Learn" and "Head over Feet" and earned Morissette four Grammy Awards, including Album of the year--all at the tender age of 21.

"I was in survival mode when Jagged Little Pill came out," says the singer, now 30. "I am able now, with a little distance, to appreciate it and have some objectivity. I love this record and am warmed by the thought of tipping my hat to it 10 years later."

"The songs from Jagged Little Pill were written and recorded in a trance, and now the opportunity for us to revisit these songs a decade later is both a treat and an act of discovery," says Ballard.

To accompany the release, Morissette is lining up her first acoustic trek--dubbed the Diamond Wink Tour--that will make stops at small venues across the country in June and July and feature all of Pill, along with some other favorites from subsequent releases.

This year is shaping up to be a big one for the singer. News of Pill popping anew comes just three weeks after the Canadian-born Morissette was sworn in as a United States. She's also slated to tie the knot with actor Ryan Reynolds in the coming months.

And after the acoustic album and tour, Morissette plans to start work on a new, largely electrified project; meanwhile, a greatest-hits package that will feature one or two new tracks will likely hit stores around Christmas.