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Universal Mother is the fourth album by Irish singer Sinéad O'Connor, released on September 13, 1994.

Universal Mother
Studio album by Sinéad O'Connor
Released	13 September 1994
Genre	Alternative rock, folk rock
Length	52:50
Label	Ensign Chrysalis
Producer	Sinéad O'Connor John Reynolds Tim Simenon Phil Coulter
Sinéad O'Connor chronology
Am I Not Your Girl? (1992) Universal Mother (1994) Gospel Oak (1997)
Singles from Universal Mother
"Thank You for Hearing Me" Released: 1994 "Fire on Babylon" Released: 1994 "Famine" Released: 1995

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[1]
Cash Box	(favorable)[2]
Entertainment Weekly	B+[3]
Music & Media	(favorable)[4]
NME	(8/10)[5]
Q	[5]
Robert Christgau	B−[6]
Rolling Stone	[7]
Vibe	(favorable)[5]

"That album was the first attempt to try to expose what was really underneath a lot of the anger of the other records," she explained. "George Michael told me he loved that record, but could only listen to it once because it was so painful. He had to hide it."[8]

Background

In 1993, O'Connor started taking singing lessons in the style of bel canto. This inspired her to "talk about the things that [she] really wanted to talk about".[9]

Music and Lyrics

The first track, "Germaine", is a recording of feminist Germaine Greer speaking about cooperation as an alternative to patriarchy.[10]

"Am I a Human?" is by O'Connor's son Jake, recorded when he was a child.[9] "Famine" is a hip hop track about the Great Famine, and how it impacted Ireland.

The last song, "Thank You For Hearing Me", was written about O'Connor's breakup with musician Peter Gabriel, and features a trance-like backing track.[9] The majority of the songs use "delicate piano-based arrangements".[11]

Artwork

O'Connor painted the cover art, which was inspired by a rebirthing session she experienced, and her song "All Babies".[9]

Critical reception

In Hot Press, Bill Graham said that it is "definitely the record of an artist determined to restart, with a totally new set of basic principles".[12] Noting the album had divided critical opinion, he suggested that its art-as-therapy approach resembled early solo work by John Lennon. O'Connor explores "the uncharted depths" of "the real loveless family traumas" which mainstream, predominantly male, rock music tends to avoid, and Graham believes her journey is made more intense by her identity "as both a mother and a daughter". Listening to the album can be "unnerving", as O'Connor "can still sing like an angel but she also sometimes writes lyrics like an emotional dyslexic." Its predominant style is "a bare chamber-folk."

For Rolling Stone, Stephanie Zacharek characterized Universal Mother as "record making as therapy", and described it as tenderhearted and protective.[11]

Track listing

Note: "Famine" quotes the song "Eleanor Rigby" by The Beatles.

Personnel

Credits adapted from the album's liner notes.[14]

• Sinéad O'Connor – vocals, piano
• John Reynolds – drums, programming
• Dave Clayton – keyboards, programming
• Marco Pirroni, Ivan Gilliland – guitar
• Tim Simenon – programming
• Nicky Scott, Matthew Seligman, Clare Kenny – bass
• Phil Coulter – piano, keyboards, backing vocals
• John O'Cane – cello
• Voice Squad – backing vocals
• Irish Chamber Orchestra – strings

Charts

Chart (1994)	Peak position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[15]	31
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[16]	7
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[17]	8
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[18]	38
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[19]	38
Scottish Albums (OCC)[20]	49
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[21]	11
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[22]	11
UK Albums (OCC)[23]	19
US Billboard 200[24]	36

Certifications and sales

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
Austria (IFPI Austria)[25]	Gold	25,000*
Canada (Music Canada)[26]	Gold	50,000^
United Kingdom (BPI)[27]	Gold	100,000^
United States	—	217,000[28]
* Sales figures based on certification alone. ^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References

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