The Reality of My Surroundings


The Reality of My Surroundings is the third studio album by the American rock band Fishbone, released on April 23, 1991, by Columbia Records.

Background and recording

The Reality of My Surroundings was recorded after the band had achieved breakthrough success in 1988 following a stint opening for Red Hot Chili Peppers, which had contributed to their album Truth and Soul charting in the Billboard 200. They had also appeared in the film Tapeheads that year at the suggestion of star John Cusack.
The band spent most of 1989 composing the songs for the album, which contain elements of funk, rock, reggae, hard rock, punk rock and a new focus on heavy metal-inspired guitars. Basic tracks for the album were recorded in Hollywood at Ocean Way Recording, with overdubs done at Ocean Way, Studio 55, Summa and Capitol Studios. All four "If I Were A...I'd" tracks were recorded live.
AllMusic writer Greg Prato notes that the material is "unpredictable" and "off-the-wall" in comparison to its more "straightforward" predecessor. "So Many Millions" contains the line, "I cannot get over legitimately, the reality of my surroundings do not point to the sky, so why even try", which Newsday writer Martin Johnson observed "captures the pall that lingers over much of the recording".
The Reality of My Surroundings was Fishbone's first album to feature former Miles Davis music director John Bigham, who joined the band in 1989 during the Truth and Soul tour. Following this album's release, guitarist Kendall Jones left the band.

Release and reception

The album was a critical and commercial success, peaking at No. 49 on the Billboard 200 on May 18, 1991. Due to the sudden implementation of Nielsen SoundScan tracking figures on the Billboard charts, The Reality of My Surroundings sharply dropped to No. 182 in two weeks. The album ultimately spent ten weeks on the Billboard 200, and by 1997 the album had sold nearly 200,000 copies in the United States. The album was promoted with three single releases: "Fight the Youth", whose music video was given exposure on MTV, followed by "Everyday Sunshine" and "Sunless Saturday".
The album is widely considered by fans and critics as the creative peak of the band. People called The Reality of My Surroundings Fishbone's most impressive album. Trouser Press wrote that "the sprawling reprises much of Truth and Soul‘s spirit and sound, but is far more ambitious in scope and philosophy." Several critics likened the album to the Beatles' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band.
Fishbone experienced a large growth in concert tickets and record sales during this period, making two memorable television appearances: performing "Sunless Saturday" and "Everyday Sunshine" on Saturday Night Live, and the latter on The Arsenio Hall Show.

Personnel

Credits adapted from CD liner notes.
Fishbone
Additional musicians
Technical
  • Fishbone – producers
  • David Kahne – producer
  • Larry Duhart – engineer
  • Joel Stoner – additional engineering
  • Clark Germain – additional engineering
  • Dan Bosworth – assistant engineer
  • Mark Guilbeault – assistant engineer
  • Steve Holroyd – assistant engineer
  • Clif Norrell – assistant engineer
  • Rail Rogut – assistant engineer
  • Eric Rudd – assistant engineer
  • Richard Engstrom – assistant engineer
  • Ken Felton – assistant engineer
  • Kyle Beff – assistant engineer
  • Randy Wine – assistant engineer
  • Sylvia Massy – assistant engineer
  • Chris Theis – assistant engineer
  • Michael Brauer – mixing
  • Thom Panunzio – mixing
  • Ron St. Germain – live engineer
  • Niko Bolas – mixing
  • Byron West – mixing
  • Wally Traugott – mastering
  • Stacy Drummond – art direction, design
  • Max Aguilera-Hellweg – photography
  • Kendall – handwriting

Charts

Album – Billboard
YearChartPosition
1991Billboard 20049

Singles – Billboard
YearSingleChartPosition
1991"Sunless Saturday"Modern Rock Tracks7
1991"Everyday Sunshine"Modern Rock Tracks14