Jewel
Jewel
Singer, songwriter
Pop superstar Jewel combined original musical com positions with a beguiling, heartfelt voice and a charming, honest demeanor. Within the span of four years, Jewel went from living in a van in the San Diego, California area and performing for customers in local coffeehouses to selling more than 10 million copies of her 1995 debut release, Pieces of You. Jewel also received a two million dollar advance for a book of her intensely personal poetry titled, A Night Without Armor, which became a mainstay on the New York Times bestseller list. Her sophomore release, Spirit, was released in mid-November of 1998 and had already been certified as triple platinum by January 1, 1999. Entertainment Weekly’s Jeff Gordinier described Jewel as, “The beautiful and beatific muse of positivity (who has) won a worldwide audience.” He described Spirit as “a collection of ‘spiritual’ ballads; it’s as downy-tufted and low-angst as a basket of napping puppies.”
Born Jewel Kilcher on May 23, 1974 in Payson, Utah, as one of three children to singer/songwriters Atz Kilcher and Nedra Carroll. Jewel was raised on an 800-acre ranch in Anchorage, Alaska that had no running water, no locks on the doors, and no television. Jewel could play the piano before she could read, and spent much of her childhood tending horses, gardening, baling hay, and singing. Her parents performed throughout Alaska and began to include Jewel in their shows after her sixth birthday. Jewel’s parents divorced when she was eight, and her mother relocated to San Diego while her father remained in Alaska. Jewel continued touring with her father until the age of 15, when she received a vocal scholarship to the Interlochen Arts Academy in Michigan for her junior and senior years of high school. The scholarship covered only 70 percent of the tuition at Interlochen, so Jewel raised the remaining 30 percent by performing a solo concert and through the donations of the people of Homer, Alaska. Jewel’s first solo performance, at 15 was for Tom Bodet’s End of the Road show.
Jewel began playing the guitar and writing songs during her senior year of high school. She also studied dance, sculpture, and drama. She had originally intended to pursue a career in opera but had a change of heart. After graduating from high school, Jewel moved to San Diego to live with her mother and took jobs as a waitress and a secretary to support herself. To save money, Jewel and her mother decided to move out of their home and to live in separate vans. Jewel kept a knife handy in case she was ever bothered at night while sleeping.
She began performing in coffeehouses around the San Diego area, and landed a regular Thursday evening slot at the Innerchange cafe in Pacific Beach, CA. It was there that she caught the ear of an Artists & Repretoire
For the Record…
Born Jewel Kilcher on May 23, 1974 in Payson, UT; daughter of singer/songwriters Atz Kilcher and Nedra Carroll; raised in Anchorage, AK; parents divorced when she was eight, mother relocated to San Diego, CA; father relocated to Homer, AK.
First solo performance at the age of 15 for Tom Bodet’s “End of the Road” show; began playing the guitar and writing songs during her senior year of high school; performed in coffee houses around the San Diego area after high school; signed to Atlantic Records in March of 1994; released Pieces of You in 1995; performed on the Lilith Fair tour in July of 1997; “You Were Meant for Me” set record for longest charting single on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, 1997; made acting debut in 1998 in director Ang Lee’s Civil War drama, Ride With The Devil.
Awards: American Music Award for Best New Artist, 1997; Blockbuster Entertainment Award for Favorite CD in May of 1998 for Pieces of You.
Addresses: Record Company —Atlantic Records, 75 Rockefeller Plaza, New York, NY 10019.
(A&R) woman for Atlantic Records named Jenny Price, as well as future manager Inga Vainshtein. Price told Gordinier, “We saw Jewel and our mouths just dropped. She was … this little wildflower that had so much raw talent, and she was in some kind of purple jumper, and she was yodeling. The next day I called my boss at Atlantic, and I said, ‘We have to sign this girl.’ It was so clear to me.” Jewel grew in popularity at the Inner change and played as many as four shows a day. She met and worked with Steve Poltz, the lead singer of The Rugburns. They wrote the singles “You Were Meant For Me” and “Adrian” together.
In March of 1994, Jewel signed to Atlantic Records, and soon recorded four sets of live material at the Innerchange, including “Pieces of You” and “Little Sister,” which made it on to her 1995 debut album, Pieces of You. The album received favorable reviews but did not sell well initially. It was produced by Ben Keith, who was noted for his work with Neil Young and James Taylor, and featured Neil Young’s band, the Stray Gators. Jewel toured and opened for other bands around the country, and then 14 months later her debut release reached the Billboard Top 200. Her single “Who Will Save Your Soul” was re-released in 1996, and between 1996-98, she appeared on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, Saturday Night Live, Late Night with Conan O’Brien, The David Letterman Show, and Live with Regis and Kathie Lee. The single “Who Will Save Your Soul” peaked at number eleven on the Billboard singles chart in September of 1996, and “You Were Meant For Me” was then re-1997, released in 1996. Jewel performed at Lilith Fair in July of 1998, which generated a lot of publicity and favorable 1999, reviews. By the end of 1997, “You Were Meant for Me 2000, had set the record for the longest charting single on the 2001, BillboardHot 100—over 60 weeks. Inaddition, Pieces of You became the second most popular album of 1997, selling over 4.3 million copies and going platinum more than eight times in the U.S. By the end of 1997, Jewel had attained superstar status.
Jewel received a $2 million advance in 1998 to publish a book of poetry—some of the poetry dating back to her high school year, including A Night Without Armor. The book spent weeks on the New York Times bestseller list and was in its twentieth printing at the start of 1999. Jewel’s 1998 sophomore release, Spirit, reached number four on the Billboard200 albums chart a month after it was released. Spirit featured soulful ballads and poignant lyrics, combined with Jewel’s clear, melodic vocals. The release was produced by Patrick Leonard, noted for his work with Madonna, and featured Flea from the Red Hot Chili Peppers on bass.
Through the years 1997-98 Jewel’s presence had become nearly impossible to ignore. She performed for Pope John Paul II in December of 1998, along with the vocal group Manhattan Transfer, British trio Cleopatra, and other musicians. She graced the cover of Time in July of 1997, the cover of Rolling Stone twice in 1998, and appeared on the covers of Details, Interview, Vogue, People, and Entertainment Weekly. Jewel made her acting debut in 1998 in director Ang Lee’s Civil War drama, Ride With The Devil. Vainshtein had worked with Carroll when making managerial decisions concerning Jewel’s career. A month before Jewel began shooting Ride With The Dew/in February of 1998, she fired Vainshtein and named Carroll her sole manager. Vainshtein responded with a $10 million lawsuit for breach of contract.
Jewel received an American Music Award in 1997 for Best New Artist, a Blockbuster Entertainment Award for Favorite CD in May of 1998 for Pieces of You, and was nominated forthree MTV Video Music Awards and for an MTV Viewer’s Choice Award in 1997. Speaking about her commercial success, she told Gordinier, “I don’t want to get on my deathbed and look back at my life and realize I worried about what just doesn’t matter…. I really don’t think I’m going to care that I sold ten million records, or what people thought of my poetry book.”
Selected discography
Pieces of You, Atlantic Records, 1995.
Spirit, Atlantic Records, 1998.
Sources
Books
Kilcher, Jewel: A Night Without Armor, HarperCollins, 1998.
Periodicals
Details, July 1998.
Entertainment Weekly, January 15, 1999.
Interview, July 1998.
People, January 18, 1999.
Rolling Stone, December 3, 1998; May 15, 1998.
Time, July 21, 1997.
Online
http://www.atlantic-records.com
http://www.cs.mun.ca/~colins/jewel/html
http://www.geocities.com/SunsetStrip/Backstage/9849/framesl229.html
http://www.jeweljk.com/main/
http://www.rl.sonicnet.com/news/archive/singlestory.jhtml?id=510144
—B. Kimberly Taylor
Jewel
Jewel
Singer, songwriter
Pop superstar Jewel combined original musical compositions with a beguiling, heartfelt voice and a charming, honest demeanor. Within the span of four years, Jewel went from living in a van in the San Diego, California, area and performing for customers in local coffeehouses to selling more than ten million copies of her 1995 debut release, Pieces of You. Jewel also received a two million dollar advance for a book of her intensely personal poetry, A Night Without Armor, which became a mainstay on the New York Times bestseller list. Her sophomore release, Spirit, was released in November of 1998 and had already been certified as triple platinum by January 1, 1999. Entertainment Weekly's Jeff Gordinier described Jewel as "the beautiful and beatific muse of positivity (who has) won a worldwide audience." He described Spirit as "a collection of 'spiritual' ballads; it's as downy-tufted and low-angst as a basket of napping puppies."
Born Jewel Kilcher on May 23, 1974, in Payson, Utah, she was one of three children born to singer/songwriters Atz Kilcher and Nedra Carroll. Jewel was raised on an 800-acre ranch in Anchorage, Alaska, that had no running water, no locks on the doors, and no television. She could play the piano before she could read, and spent much of her childhood tending horses, gardening, baling hay, and singing. Her parents performed throughout Alaska and began to include Jewel in their shows after her sixth birthday. Jewel's parents divorced when she was eight, and her mother relocated to San Diego while her father remained in Alaska. Jewel continued touring with her father until the age of 15, when she received a vocal scholarship to the Interlochen Arts Academy in Michigan for her junior and senior years of high school. The scholarship covered only 70 percent of the tuition at Interlochen, so Jewel raised the remaining 30 percent by performing in a solo concert, as well as through donations from the people of Homer, Alaska. Jewel's first solo performance, at age 15, was for Tom Bodet's End of the Road show.
Jewel began playing the guitar and writing songs during her senior year of high school. She also studied dance, sculpture, and drama. She had originally intended to pursue a career in opera but had a change of heart. After graduating from high school, Jewel moved to San Diego to live with her mother, and took jobs as a waitress and a secretary to support herself. To save money, Jewel and her mother decided to move out of their home and live in separate vans.
She began performing in coffeehouses around the San Diego area, and landed a regular Thursday evening slot at the Innerchange Cafe in Pacific Beach, CA. It was there that she caught the ear of an Artists & Repertoire (A&R) representative for Atlantic Records named Jenny Price, as well as future manager Inga Vainshtein. Price told Gordinier, "We saw Jewel and our mouths just dropped. She was … this little wildflower that had so much raw talent, and she was in some kind of purple jumper, and she was yodeling. The next day I called my boss at Atlantic, and I said, 'We have to sign this girl.'" Jewel grew in popularity at the Innerchange and played as many as four shows a day. She met and worked with Steve Poltz, the lead singer of The Rugburns. They wrote the singles "You Were Meant For Me" and "Adrian" together.
In March of 1994 Jewel signed to Atlantic Records, and soon recorded four sets of live material at the Innerchange, including "Pieces of You" and "Little Sister," which appeared on her 1995 debut album, Pieces of You. The album received favorable reviews but did not sell well initially. It was produced by Ben Keith, who was noted for his work with Neil Young and James Taylor, and it featured Neil Young's band the Stray Gators. Jewel toured and opened for other bands around the country, and 14 months later her debut release reached the Billboard Top 200. Her single "Who Will Save Your Soul" was re-released in 1996. Between 1996 and 1998 she appeared on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, Saturday Night Live, Late Night with Conan O'Brien, The David Letterman Show, and Live with Regis and Kathie Lee. The single "Who Will Save Your Soul" peaked at number eleven on the Billboard singles chart in September of 1996, and "You Were Meant For Me" was then re-released in 1996. Jewel performed at the Lilith Fair in July of 1997, generating favorable publicity and reviews. By the end of 1997 "You Were Meant for Me" had set a record for the longest charting single on the Billboard Hot 100—over 60 weeks. In addition, Pieces of You became the second most popular album of 1997, selling over 4.3 million copies and going platinum more than eight times in the United States. By the end of 1997 Jewel had attained superstar status.
Jewel received a $2 million advance in 1998 to publish a book of her own poetry, A Night Without Armor. Some of the poems dated back to her high school years. The book spent weeks on the New York Times bestseller list and was in its twentieth printing at the start of 1999. Jewel's 1998 sophomore release, Spirit, reached number four on the Billboard 200 albums chart a month after it was released. Spirit featured soulful ballads and poignant lyrics, combined with Jewel's clear, melodic vocals. The release was produced by Patrick Leonard, noted for his work with Madonna, and featured Flea from the Red Hot Chili Peppers on bass.
Through the years 1997 and 1998 Jewel's presence had become nearly impossible to ignore. She performed for Pope John Paul II in December of 1998, along with the vocal group Manhattan Transfer, British trio Cleopatra, and other musicians. She graced the cover of Time in July of 1997, the cover of Rolling Stone twice in 1998, and appeared on the covers of Details, Interview, Vogue, People, and Entertainment Weekly. She made her acting debut in 1998 in director Ang Lee's Civil War drama Ride With The Devil. Prior to her film debut, manager Inga Vainshtein had worked with Jewel's mother when making managerial decisions concerning the young star's career. A month before Jewel began shooting Ride With The Devil she fired Vainshtein and named her mother as sole manager. Vainshtein responded with a $10 million lawsuit for breach of contract.
Jewel received an American Music Award in 1997 for Best New Artist, a Blockbuster Entertainment Award for Favorite CD in May of 1998 for Pieces of You, and was nominated for three MTV Video Music Awards and an MTV Viewer's Choice Award in 1997. Speaking about her commercial success, she told Gordinier, "I don't want to get on my deathbed and look back at my life and realize I worried about what just doesn't matter…. I really don't think I'm going to care that I sold ten million records, or what people thought of my poetry book."
For the Record …
Born Jewel Kilcher on May 23, 1974, in Payson, UT; daughter of singer/songwriters Atz Kilcher and Nedra Carroll.
First solo performance at the age of 15 for Tom Bodet's "End of the Road" show; began playing the guitar and writing songs during senior year of high school; performed in coffee houses around the San Diego area after high school; signed to Atlantic Records, 1994; released Pieces of You, 1995; performed on the Lilith Fair tour, 1997; "You Were Meant for Me" set record for longest charting single on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, 1997; made acting debut in 1998 in director Ang Lee's Civil War drama Ride With The Devil; issued Spirit on Atlantic Records, 1998, followed by spoken word album, Chasing Down the Dawn, 2000; released This Way, 2001; 0304, 2003; and Goodbye Alice in Wonderland, 2006.
Awards: American Music Award for Best New Artist, 1997; Blockbuster Entertainment Award for Favorite CD, for Pieces of You, 1998.
Addresses: Record company—Atlantic Records, 75 Rockefeller Plaza, New York, NY 10019, website: http://www.atlanticrecords.com. Website—Jewel Official Website: http://www.jewelk.com.
Jewel released Joy: A Holiday Collection in 1999 and issued "Joy to the World" as a single; the album sold a million copies and reached number 32 on Billboard. She followed with the spoken word album Chasing Down the Dawn in 2000, an eclectic collection of childhood memories and stories from her life on the road. Jewel returned to music in 2001, issuing This Way, her first new material since Spirit in 1998. "I am happy that I made a record I really like," Jewel said of the album in Interview, "and that I was able to control it. It sounds the way I wanted it to and it's the image that I had desired. I've also decided to pace myself differently with this record and to make sure that I am able to get away during this process."
In 2003 Jewel shocked longtime fans by turning her back on the soft-sensitive songs that had made her famous, and releasing an album of dance music. The album 0304 was closer in spirit to the teen-driven music and image of Britney Spears than that of a song poet. "I'm in a different place in my life now," Jewel told Redbook, "so I want my look to be fun. My label didn't push me to do this. It scared the hell out of the company…. They wanted me to play it safe." Jewel walked a thin line with her new sexy image, offering wry commentary on the music industry in her video "Intuition," but then allowing the song to be used by Schick to promote a new woman's razor.
Jewel returned to more familiar territory in 2006 with Goodbye Alice in Wonderland. The album featured an intensely autobiographical song cycle tracing the difficulties of fame and her mistep, in retrospect, with 0304. "As a piece of music and as a coherent set of songs," wrote Stephen Thomas Erlewine in All Music Guide, "it's Jewel's strongest yet." A single from Goodbye Alice in Wonderland, "Again and Again," reached number 16 on Top 40 radio, and the album sold 82,000 copies during its first week. Jewel also planned a solo summer tour in 2006 that included a number of dates with singer Rob Thomas.
Selected discography
Pieces of You, Atlantic Records, 1995.
Spirit, Atlantic Records, 1998.
Joy: A Holiday Collection, Atlantic Records, 1999.
This Way, Atlantic Records, 2001.
Spirit, Atlantic Records, 1998.
Chasing Down the Dawn, Atlantic Records, 2000.
This Way, Atlantic Records, 2001.
0304, Atlantic Records, 2003.
Goodbye Alice in Wonderland, Atlantic Records, 2006.
Sources
Books
Kilcher, Jewel: A Night Without Armor, HarperCollins, 1998.
Periodicals
Details, July 1998.
Entertainment Weekly, January 15, 1999.
Interview, July 1998; December 2001.
People, January 18, 1999.
Redbook, October 2003, p. 140.
Rolling Stone, December 3, 1998; May 15, 1998.
Time, July 21, 1997.
Online
"Jewel," All Music Guide, http://www.allmusic.com/ (June 10, 2005).
Jewel Official Website, http://www.jeweljk.com/ (August 12, 2006).
Jewel, 1974–
JEWEL, 1974–
(Jewel Kilcher)
PERSONAL
Full name, Jewel Kilcher; born May 23, 1974, in Payson, UT; raised in Homer, AK; daughter of Atz Kilcher (a social worker, folksinger, and elementary school music teacher) and Nedra Carroll (an artist and personal manager). Education: Interlochen Arts Academy, graduated, 1992. Avocational Interests: Horses.
Addresses: Agent—Creative Artists Agency, 9830 Wilshire Blvd., Beverly Hills, CA 90212. Manager— Irving Azoff, TBA Entertainment Corp., 16501 Ventura Blvd., Suite 601, Encino, CA 91436–2051; Azoffmusic Management, 1100 Glendon Ave., Suite 2000, Los Angeles, CA 90024. Contact—c/o Atlantic Records, 75 Rockefeller Plaza, New York, NY 10314.
Career: Actress, musician, singer, recording artist, and writer. Gravitas Entertainment, principal; Magic Lantern Entertainment, cofounder, 2002, and co–owner; toured as a singer and musician in the United States and abroad. Has appeared in commercials and her songs have appeared in commercials. Higher Ground for Humanities (fund–raising organization for nonprofit organizations), cofounder, 1998. Also known as Jewel Kilcher. Also worked as a model and waitress.
Awards, Honors: American Music Award, best new artist, c. 1995; Audie Award, Audio Publishers Association, 1999, for the audio recording A Night without Armor; MTV Video Music Award, 1999; Governor's Award, National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences, Los Angeles chapter, 1999; Founder's Choice Award, Time for Peace Organization, 1999; several songs have been certified bestsellers by Recording Industry Association of America, including triple platinum certification for Spirit, 1999, and diamond certification, 1999, for Pieces of You; also Grammy Award nominations, National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences, including two nominations for Pieces of You.
CREDITS
Film Appearances:
Sue Lee Shelley, Ride with the Devil, MCA/Universal, 1999.
Wave, Clearlight Productions/Gravitas Entertainment, c. 2004.
Film Work:
Music producer of theme song, Sweet Home Alabama, Buena Vista, 2002.
Producer, Wave, Clearlight Productions/Gravitas Entertainment, c. 2004.
Performer of songs used in films and television programs.
Television Appearances; Specials:
Dorothy, The Wizard of Oz in Concert: Dreams Come True (also known as The Wizard of Oz in Concert), TNT, 1995.
Herself, Farm Aid '96, The Nashville Network, 1996.
Grammy Countdown, CBS, 1997.
Lilith Fair: A Celebration of Women in Music, 1997.
Christmas in Rockefeller Center, NBC, 1998.
Jewel TV, 1998.
Where It's At: The Rolling Stone State of the Union, ABC, 1998.
Christmas in Washington, TNT, 1999.
The Ghosts of Christmas Eve (also known as TSO: The Ghosts of Christmas Eve), Fox Family Channel, 1999.
Merle Haggard: For the Record, pay–per–view, 1999.
NetAid, VH1, 1999.
NetAid: A Concert Special, TNT, 1999.
Woodstock 99, MTV, 1999.
Woodstock '99 Revisited, MTV, 1999.
Herself, Merle Haggard, Arts and Entertainment, 2000.
Herself, Stand and Be Counted, The Learning Channel, 2000.
Greatest TV Moments: Sesame Street Music A–Z, VH1, 2000.
A SHeVery Merry Christmas with SHeDAISY, The Nashville Network, 2000.
Host, People Magazine's 25 Most Intriguing, NBC, 2001.
Crossover, Independent Film Channel, 2001.
Garth Brooks: Coast to Coast Live, CBS, 2001.
Russell Simmons Presents Def Poetry, HBO, 2001.
Herself, Rutles 2: Can't Buy Me Lunch, 2002.
100% NYC: Tribeca Film Festival (also known as 100% NYC: A Concert Celebrating the Tribeca Film Festival), MTV and VH1, 2003.
VH1 Divas Duets, VH1, 2003.
The Nick & Jessica Variety Hour, ABC, 2004.
Television Appearances; Awards Presentations:
The 1996 Billboard Music Awards, Fox, 1996.
The 1997 MTV Movie Awards, MTV, 1997.
The 1997 MTV Video Music Awards, MTV, 1997.
The 39th Grammy Awards, CBS, 1997.
Presenter, The 40th Annual Grammy Awards, CBS, 1998.
The 25th Annual American Music Awards, ABC, 1998.
The 33rd Annual Country Music Association Awards, CBS, 1999.
Presenter, MTV Video Music Awards 2001, MTV, 2001.
Presenter, TNN & CMT Country Weekly Music Awards, The Nashville Network and Country Music Television, 2001.
My VH1 Music Awards, VH1, 2001.
Presenter, Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum: 17th Annual Induction Ceremony, VH1, 2002.
2003 Radio Music Awards, NBC, 2003.
Television Appearances; Episodic:
Guest, The Howard Stern Show, E! Entertainment Television, 1997.
Guest, Saturday Night Live (also known as NBC's Saturday Night, Saturday Night, and SNL), NBC, 1997, 1998.
Guest, The Rosie O'Donnell Show, syndicated, 1998.
Herself, "Jupiter," Making the Video (also known as MTV's Making the Video), MTV, 1999.
Guest, Late Night with Conan O'Brien, NBC, 1999.
Guest, Sen kvaell med Luuk, 1999.
Guest, Holmes, 1999.
Guest, Speakeasy, 1999.
Herself, Austin City Limits, PBS, 2000.
Herself, "How Far Is Too Far?," VH1: All Access, VH1, 2001.
Guest, The Ray Martin Show, 2001.
Guest, Mad TV, Fox, 2001.
Guest, The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, NBC, 2002, 2003.
Guest, The Late Late Show with Craig Kilborn, CBS, 2002, 2003.
Guest, The Isaac Mizrahi Show, Oxygen, 2003.
Audience member, American Idol: The Search for a Superstar (also known as American Idol), Fox, 2003.
Guest, The Terry and Gaby Show, Channel 5 (England), 2003.
Guest, Patrick Kielty … Almost Live!, 2003.
Jennifer Matthews, "Ex," The Lyon's Den, NBC, 2003.
Pepsi Smash, The WB, 2003.
Guest, The Sharon Osbourne Show (also known as Sharon), syndicated, 2004.
(In archive footage) Celebrities Uncensored, E! Entertainment Television, 2004.
Appeared in episodes of Hard Rock Live, VH1; Sessions at West 54th, PBS; and VH1 Storytellers (also known as Storytellers), VH1.
Stage Appearances:
End of the Road Show, 1989.
Radio Appearances:
Guest, The Howard Stern Radio Show, 1997.
RECORDINGS
Albums:
Pieces of You, Atlantic, 1995.
Spirit, Atlantic, 1998.
Joy–Holiday Collection, 1999.
(Contributor) Merle Haggard, For the Record, 1999.
This Way, Atlantic, 2001.
0304, Atlantic, 2003.
Singles and Music Videos:
"Woman to Woman," 1994.
"For the Last Time," 1995.
"Who Will Save Your Soul?," 1995.
"You Were Meant for Me" (two versions), both 1996.
"Foolish Games" (two versions), both 1997.
"Hands," 1998.
"Down So Long," 1999.
"Jupiter," 1999.
"What's Simple Is True," 1999.
"Standing Still," 2001.
"Strong Spirit," 2001.
"Break Me," 2002.
"Serve the Ego," 2002.
"Intuition," 2003.
"Standing Still," 2003.
Appeared in other songs. Songs featured in films and television programs. Appeared in the music video "It's about Time" with L. A. Nash.
Videos and DVDs:
Jewel: A Life Uncommon, 1999.
Live at Humphrey's by the Bay, Eagle Vision/Red Distribution, 2004.
Audiobooks:
Narrator, A Night without Armor, by Jewel, 1999.
Narrator, Chasing down the Dawn: Stories from the Road (short stories and poetry), HarperAudio, 2000.
WRITINGS
Albums:
Pieces of You, Atlantic, 1995.
Spirit, Atlantic, 1998.
Joy–Holiday Collection, 1999.
This Way, Atlantic, 2001.
0304, Atlantic, 2003.
Singles:
"Woman to Woman," 1994.
"For the Last Time," 1995.
"Who Will Save Your Soul?," 1995.
"You Were Meant for Me" (two versions), both 1996.
"Foolish Games" (two versions), both 1997.
"Hands," 1998.
"Down So Long," 1999.
"Jupiter," 1999.
"What's Simple Is True," 1999.
"Standing Still," 2001.
"Strong Spirit," 2001.
"Break Me," 2002.
"Serve the Ego," 2002.
"Intuition," 2003.
"Standing Still," 2003.
Poetry:
A Night without Armor, HarperCollins, 1998, audio version released in 1999.
Chasing down the Dawn: Stories from the Road (short stories and poetry), HarperCollins, 2000, audio version released by HarperAudio, 2000.
Nonfiction:
(With others) Solo: Women Singer–Songwriters in Their Own Words, edited by Marc Woodward, photographs by Emma Dodge Hanson, Delta, 1998.
Contributor to periodicals, including Subnormal.
Videos and DVDs:
Songs, Live at Humphrey's by the Bay, Eagle Vision/Red Distribution, 2004.
OTHER SOURCES
Books:
Newsmakers 1999, Issue 2, Gale, 1999.
Periodicals:
Billboard, December 12, 1998, p. 6; February 6, 1999, p. 1; April 17, 1999, p. 82.
Blender, July, 2003, pp. 118–24.
Cosmopolitan, December, 1996, p. 186.
Entertainment Weekly, June 7, 1996, p. 10; August 15, 1997, p. 70; September 25, 1998, November 27, 1998, p. 73; January 15, 1999, pp. 20–26.
Guitar Player, August, 2004, p. 28.
Interview, April, 1996, p. 84; July, 1997, p. 88; June, 1998, p. 64; December, 2001, pp. 64–66; August, 2003, pp. 130–31.
Maclean's, December 28, 1998, p. 107.
Newsweek, November 23, 1998, p. 72.
Next, November 16, 2001, pp. 24–26.
People Weekly, May 6, 1996, p. 221; December 29, 1997, p. 105; November 20, 2000, p. 79; May 13, 2002, p. 26; June 2, 2003, p. 58.
Publishers Weekly, November 3, 1997, p. 17; June 22, 1998, p. 24.
Request, March, 2003, p. 6.
Rolling Stone, May 15, 1997, p. 36; November 13, 1997, p. 162; January 7, 1999, p. 36.
Seventeen, September, 1998, p. 186; May, 1999, pp. 110–13.
Teen, April, 1999, pp. 62–63.
Time, July 21, 1997, p. 66.
TV Guide, May 16, 1998, p. 6.
US Weekly, August, 1997.
Jewel
JEWEL
Born: Jewel Kilcher; Payson, Utah, 23 May 1974
Genre: Rock
Best-selling album since 1990: Pieces of You (1995)
Hit songs since 1990: "Who Will Save Your Soul," "You Were Meant for Me," "Hands"
An idiosyncratic performer who rose from humble beginnings to become a multimedia star, Jewel helped bring the female singer/songwriter back into commercial fashion.
Humble Beginnings
Jewel spent much of her childhood in remote Homer, Alaska, on an 800-acre homestead lacking in television, telephone lines, and indoor plumbing. Her parents were itinerant musicians, performing regularly in bars, in Eskimo villages, and at tourist attractions across the state. Jewel got in on the act at the age of six, accompanying her father with her precocious yodeling.
While performing represented a source of happiness for the young Jewel, her childhood was filled with mental and emotional strain. Schoolmates ridiculed Jewel for her dyslexia as well as for her parents' simple lifestyle. When Jewel was eight, her parents divorced. She turned to song and poetry for an escape, writing naïvely optimistic verses to cope with the emotional trauma she was experiencing—an approach that would form the basis of many of her adult compositions.
A San Diego Sensation
Jewel left Alaska to study at the prestigious Inter-lochen Fine Arts Academy in Michigan. Upon graduation, she joined her impoverished mother in San Diego, California. Jewel initially worked a variety of jobs to support herself while pursuing a career in music. Frustrated by a lack of progress and faced with mounting expenses, Jewel moved into her 1969 Volkswagen bus and began working on her music full time. Soon thereafter, she landed a regular gig at the Innerchange, a San Diego coffeehouse. Jewel's unique style quickly earned her a following. Accompanying herself on acoustic guitar, Jewel sang in a disarmingly child-like voice; alternatively, she could summon up a sexy drawl or even throw in a yodel for good measure. Her songs ranged in content from sunny pleas for global unity to angry dismissals of racism, from hopelessly romantic odes to despairing ruminations on lost love. No matter the subject, Jewel's songs stood to reach far beyond the folk community. Her pop-like melodies were exceedingly accessible—much more so than those of earlier mainstream folk artists such as Joni Mitchell. Atlantic Records, having noted the buzz on Jewel around San Diego and sensing her potential for mass appeal, signed her to a recording contract in 1993.
In 1995 Jewel released her debut album Pieces of You. The sparse recording, much of it done live at the Inner-change, did not immediately impress radio. Not until Jewel re-recorded a number of songs for release as singles did she begin to garner widespread airplay. The single version of "You Were Meant for Me" epitomizes Jewel's formula for success. Backed by a full pop production, Jewel jauntily delivers a fresh perspective on the time-honored breakup song with lines like, "Got my eggs and my pancakes too / Got my maple syrup, everything but you." "You Were Meant for Me" climbed all the way to number two on the Billboard singles charts. With her seemingly fairytale rise to stardom, Jewel was embraced by critics and public alike; she received two Grammy Award nominations and sold more than 10 million copies of Pieces of You.
Jewel's success also ushered in an unparalleled commercial period for female singer/songwriters. These artists not only began topping the singles and album charts, but also sold out concert pavilions across the country. The highly successful and influential Lilith Fair tour, which paired Jewel with other successful female artists such as Sarah McLachlan and the Indigo Girls, was a clear sign that female singer/songwriters were once again commercially viable.
Jewel's follow-up album Spirit, released in 1998, was another commercial smash, selling 6 million copies. Like the singles from Pieces of You, Spirit marries Jewel's quirky delivery with more standard pop arrangements. Critics were less enthused with Spirit, charging that Jewel's lyrics had become increasingly naïve and self-important. The single "Hands," in particular, drew the ire of critics for lines such as, "If I could tell the world just one thing / It would be that we're all OK / And not to worry 'cause worry is wasteful / And useless in times like these."
As Jewel grew more commercially successful, she began to make forays into other creative realms. In 1998 Harper Collins published A Night without Armor, a collection of Jewel's poems. Though savaged by critics for its amateurish verse, A Night without Armor sold more than 2 million copies in the United States. Jewel released a second book in 2000, Chasing Down the Dawn, which chronicles her 1998 tour in support of Spirit and contains stories and images from her childhood. Jewel also starred alongside Tobey Maguire and Skeet Ulrich in Ang Lee's 1999 film Ride with the Devil. Though the film was a disappointment at the box office, Jewel earned plaudits from critics such as Roger Ebert, who hailed her for being "an actress . . . not a pop star trying out a new hobby."
Jewel returned her focus to music in 2001, releasing This Way. The album finds Jewel straying even further from her folk roots, forgoing her quirky individualism in favor of a more refined delivery and experimenting sonically with jazz, country, and hard rock sounds. The album yielded the hit "Standing Still," but failed to achieve the sales standards set by Pieces of You and Spirit.
With This Way, Jewel had completed another stage in her remarkable evolution from artist on the commercial fringe to mainstream pop princess. Though her album sales have declined over the years, she remains one of pop music's leading female artists.
SELECTIVE DISCOGRAPHY:
Pieces of You (Atlantic, 1995); Spirit (Atlantic, 1998); Joy: A Holiday Collection (Atlantic, 1999); This Way (Atlantic, 2001); 0304 (Atlantic, 2003).
SELECTIVE FILMOGRAPHY:
Ride with the Devil (1999).
BIBLIOGRAPHY:
Jewel, A Night without Armor (New York, 1998); Jewel, Chasing Down the Dawn (New York, 2000).
scott tribble
jewel
jew·el / ˈjoōəl/ • n. a precious stone, typically a single crystal or a piece of a hard lustrous or translucent mineral, cut into shape with flat facets or smoothed and polished for use as an ornament. ∎ (usu. jewels) an ornament or piece of jewelry containing such a stone or stones. ∎ a hard precious stone used as a bearing in a watch, compass, or other device. ∎ a very pleasing or valued person or thing; a very fine example: she was a jewel of a nurse.PHRASES: the jewel in the (or one's) crown the most valuable or successful part of something: science is the brightest jewel in the crown of our civilization.ORIGIN: Middle English: from Old French joel, from jeu ‘game, play,’ from Latin jocus ‘jest.’
jewel
So jeweller XIV. — AN. jueler, OF. juelier (mod. joaillier). jewellery, jewelry in ME. (XIV) — OF. juelerie (mod. joaillerie); in mod. use (XVIII) a new formation.
jewel
See also fair play's a jewel.