The Sound Board

Everyone had Jagged Little Pill. It is, to this day, one of the best selling albums of all time. There's not a bad song on there and - definition-of-irony-jokes notwithstanding - it's a stone cold classic.

But it's You Oughta Know that is the centre of it all. It is the most perfect mesh of lyrics and music. Look at the first few lines:

I want you know I'm happy for you
I wish nothing but the best for you both.

Ah, how sweet. Until you listen to those opening bars. Her vocal performance, that icy, choppy guitar...

oh boy.

It's so clearly the first tremors of an erupting volcano. And when it blows, it blows.

One of the odd things is that it feels like a song written by the Other Woman outside a relationship. But it very clearly isn't:

It was a slap in the face how quickly I was replaced

Oh! She was replaced! So it was one relationship that ended and then there was another one. And really although it is clearly anger, it's really hurt.

Every time you speak her name does she know how you told me you'd hold me until you died?
Well you're still alive...

That's a helluva line. It's a helluva song. And the drum break back into it for the final onslaught is the greatest.

Anyway, here's what sparked the thread. I was reflecting on all that anger and hurt, thinking what a great song it is and wondering if there was any kind of making-of out there. Not exactly, but I found two amazing little clips. The first from Alanis in 1995, when the album exploded, and she is asked about the song.



Not what I expected. And then I see next in the search results this guy Dave Coulier who I didn't know at all, but turns out he is a comedy actor. And clearly he was the man that is behind the song. I thought "I (almost) don't wanna know", but clicked. This is absolutely worth a listen:



Now, isn't that genuinely lovely? I admire the hell out of him for saying that. And I admire the hell out of her too. It turns out this most jagged pill has a sweet centre after all.

My initial reaction to the album was kinda luke warm... the production was top notch, when I learned that it was recorded to an ADAT I was floored. Turns out it really is the material, not the gear. Her voice just kinda grated on me, and I wasn't really that impressed with the lyrics or melodies. But Glenn Ballard's production stuck in my mind.

And then I was replaced (I'd guess that has happened to at least some of us?) about a year later. "You Oughta Know" happened to turn up on the radio on my morning commute and I heard it in an entirely different light. It was honest. It was a little bit angry, but also just unbelievably melancholy. An interesting mix (obvious conflict of definitions<G>).

Anyway, I was recently replaced again (by the same young lady, don't ask), and I pulled out the album (ok, CD) and gave it a new listen, and it still holds up. The interplay between the vocals and the rest of the band is pure genius, but it is the lyrics, and the delivery that continues to just slay me.

It isn't something I wish I had written - there are enough of those - because I don't think I'd be capable of that level of honesty without getting really angry (at least not right now, imaging that).

But it is a great track, and there are plenty of others on the album. An album I will probably return to again and again.

I always thought the album was a tour d’ force of writing, production and performance. There’s a lot of feeling behind her voice.

I’ve seen subsequent interviews with her that indicated that she’s not vengeful. I think she’s pretty admirable.

(And oh, those hooks!)

I'm not sure why I so misjudged the album, guess I just did not connect with it at first. But I concur, it really is a brilliant album!

Perfect is another fantastic song. I so often glaze over lyrics but you can't miss them on this album. Of parents:

We'll love you just the way you are
If you're perfect

Guy Rowland wrote: ↑Dec 30, 2025 12:55 pm Perfect is another fantastic song. I so often glaze over lyrics but you can't miss them on this album. Of parents:

We'll love you just the way you are
If you're perfect

You’ve said that before (glazing.) We are SO different about that-I write lyrics and put them to music. For me, the music is the carrier of the message-the lyrics are a thought I want to convey or a feeling I want to express.