''Yourself or Someone Like You'' is the debut album by American rock band Matchbox 20. It was released on October 1, 1996, by Lava Records and

Atlantic Records Atlantic Recording Corporation (simply known as Atlantic Records) is an American record label founded in October 1947 by Ahmet Ertegun and Herb Abramson. Over its first 20 years of operation, Atlantic earned a reputation as one of the most ...

Composition and release

The album features a sound similar to traditional rock and post-grunge. The album features themes of

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adultery Adultery (from Latin ''adulterium'') is extramarital sex that is considered objectionable on social, religious, moral, or legal grounds. Although the sexual activities that constitute adultery vary, as well as the social, religious, and leg ...

, loneliness, domestic violence,

psychological abuse Psychological abuse, often called emotional abuse, is a form of abuse characterized by a person subjecting or exposing another person to a behavior that may result in psychological trauma, including anxiety, chronic depression, or post-trauma ...

, humiliation, depression, anger, and alcoholism. According to Rob Thomas, the album's title was originally to be ''Woodshed Diaries''. However, that changed when Thomas and Paul Doucette were at a woman's musical performance at

Café Largo Largo, also called Café Largo, Largo, darling!, or Club Largo, is a nightclub and cabaret in Los Angeles, California, known for its musical and comedic performers and for the Friday night residency of singer-songwriter Jon Brion. History ...

when the singer said "this song is for you, or someone like you". They loved the phrase so much that they insisted on changing the album's title, despite the fact that 3,500 copies of the album with the original title had already been made. Their labels agreed, however the name change resulted in the album's release being delayed. The album sold a mere 610 copies in its first week, but eventually went on to sell several million copies in the United States. ''Yourself or Someone Like You'' became one of the few albums to achieve the prestigious

Diamond Diamond is a solid form of the element carbon with its atoms arranged in a crystal structure called diamond cubic. Another solid form of carbon known as graphite is the chemically stable form of carbon at room temperature and pressure, ...

certification, and it was also certified multi-platinum in Australia,

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and

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. To date, the album has sold more than 15 million copies worldwide.

Artwork lawsuit

In 2005, almost a decade after the album's release, the band was sued by Frank Torres, the man on the album's cover. Torres claimed the band never asked for his permission to use his image on the sleeve. In the litigation, Torres claimed the photo was taken as he was walking down the street after being asked to pose. He also claimed the photo had caused him emotional distress. Torres justified the delay in suing Matchbox 20 by claiming he had first seen the album photo within two years of the litigation. Torres died in 2016 at age 73.

Track listing

Original release

Australian limited edition bonus CD

Personnel

Matchbox 20 * Rob Thomas – lead vocals; acoustic guitar on "Hang" * Kyle Cook – lead guitar, backing vocals, co-lead vocals on "Hang" * Adam Gaynor – rhythm guitar, backing vocals * Brian Yale – bass * Paul Doucette – drums Additional musicians * Matt Serletic – keyboards, percussion *Elizabeth Burkhardt – bassoon and woodwind leader on "Back 2 Good" *Amy Porter – flute on "Back 2 Good" *Yvonne Powers – oboe on "Back 2 Good" *Ted Gurch – clarinet on "Back 2 Good" *Douglas Smith – bass clarinet on "Back 2 Good" Production *Matt Serletic – producer, mixing engineer *Jeff Tomei –

engineer Engineers, as practitioners of engineering, are professionals who invent, design, analyze, build and test machines, complex systems, structures, gadgets and materials to fulfill functional objectives and requirements while considering the l ...

*Travis McGehee - engineer/mixing engineer *John Nielsen – assistant engineer *Greg Archilla – mixing engineer *Malcolm Springer – assistant mixing engineer * Stephen Marcussen – mastering engineer *Don C. Tyler – digital editing *Tony Adams – drum tech *Craig Poole – guitar tech *Jan Smith – vocal coach *Valerie Wagner – art direction, graphic design *Katrin Thomas – photography *

Chris Cuffaro Chris Cuffaro (born April 14, 1960) is an American photographer. Primarily known for his portraits of musicians, Cuffaro has photographed Michael Hutchence, Henry Rollins, George Michael, George Harrison and Jane's Addiction, among others. He ...

– band photo

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Decade-end charts

Certifications

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Yourself Or Someone Like You Matchbox Twenty albums 1996 debut albums Atlantic Records albums Albums produced by Matt Serletic