4 Non Blondes - New America (1994)

4 Non Blondes howled their way onto the charts in 1993 with 'What's Up?' and then vanished without a whisper. Formed in 1989 with Linda Perry (vocals), Shaunna Hall (guitar), Christa Hillhouse (bass), and Wanda Day (drums), 4 Non Blondes had no problems attracting major labels based on live shows and local radio support from KUSF, but the labels didn't know how to market them. After Day was replaced by Dawn Richardson, the group was eventually signed to Interscope Records and released 'Bigger, Better, Faster, More?' in 1992, but although Hall contributed guitar tracks and some songs, she left before the album was released. Dominated by Perry's high-pitched singing, 'What's Up?' was slowly added to modern rock stations and then crossed over into the mainstream, peaking at number 11 on the Billboard Top 200. The video for the song became a smash on MTV, propelling sales of the album to over six million copies worldwide. 'What's Up?' was selected as Best Song by the Bay Area Music Awards, and Perry was chosen as Best Female Vocalist, and 'Bigger, Better, Faster, More?' won for Best Album. The group toured with Neil Young, Pearl Jam, and Bob Dylan, and recorded tunes for the soundtracks to 'Wayne's World 2' and 'Airheads', however, Perry felt that the group had become too 'pop', and so she left the band, but not before they'd recorded almost enough songs for a second album, which was then shelved. Luckily the songs have leaked online, and so by adding in their soundtrack work and their contribution to a Led Zeppelin tribute album we can approximate what their second album could have sounded like if they hadn't broken up when Perry left.  

Track listing

01 Jesus
02 I'm The One
03 Knocking On My Head
04 Love Love Love / Whole Lotta Love
05 Mighty Lady
06 Mary's House
07 New America
08 Misty Mountain Hop

09 The Ladder
10 Sister Feelgood

Thanks to the stevehoffman site for the suggestion.