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Three Dog Night (album)

Three Dog Night (also known as One) is the debut album by American rock band Three Dog Night. The album was originally released by Dunhill Records on October 16, 1968. The album is known for featuring the band's Top 5 hit single, their cover of Harry Nilsson's song "One".

The album made the Top 20 on the albums charts in the United States and Canada. It has been reissued multiple times by Dunhill, MCA, and Geffen record labels.

Background, recording, and production

In 1967, Three Dog Night was founded by Danny Hutton, Cory Wells, Chuck Negron, Joe Schermie, Floyd Sneed, Jimmy Greenspoon, and Michael Allsup. The group was a successful live act in Los Angeles and gathered considerable attention by several record labels. After a show at the Troubadour, the group was signed to the Dunhill ABC label, and the band started work on their first studio album.

Three Dog Night was recorded at American Recording Company. Producing the sessions was Gabriel Mekler, who had previously worked with Steppenwolf, and was engineered by Richard Podolor – who would later become the band's producer – and Bill Cooper.

Singles and artwork

The first single to be released from Three Dog Night was "Nobody" b/w "It's for You" in November 1968, followed by "Try a Little Tenderness" b/w "Bet No One Ever Hurt This Bad" in January 1969. The last single released from the album was "One" b/w "Chest Fever" in April 1969.

The album's cover art, designed by Gary Burden, originally only had the name of the group on the front cover. After "Nobody" and "Try a Little Tenderness" were released as singles to only moderate success, the band began work on a follow-up album, Suitable for Framing. During planning for Suitable for Framing's release, however, Three Dog Night singer Chuck Negron approached Dunhill ABC executives asking that "One" (which Negron sang lead on) be considered as the band's next single. The label released "One" as a single in several test markets, and the record quickly became Three Dog Night's first bona fide hit, ultimately peaking at #5 on the US charts. The title "One" was added under the group's name on the album's cover to capitalize on the song's popularity.

Critical reception

Writing for The New York Times in 1969, Robert Christgau regarded Three Dog Night as a successful attempt at rock music interpretation:

"On the group's first album, producer Gabriel Mekler unveiled an unprecedented concept: three excellent rock voices, named only in small print on the label, alternated on material which could be characterized for the most part as unjustly neglected. None of the singers wrote, the supporting musicians were anonymous and, with one exception, production and arrangement ranged from tasteful to superb. Taken all together, it was a brilliant revamping of the produced groups of rock's early days, applied to serious songs instead of honest schlock."

Track listing

"One" (Harry Nilsson) – 3:00
"Nobody" (Beth Beatty, Dick Cooper, Ernie Shelby) – 2:18
"Heaven Is in Your Mind" (Jim Capaldi, Steve Winwood, Chris Wood) – 2:55
"It's for You" (Lennon–McCartney) – 1:40
"Let Me Go" (Danny Whitten) – 2:24
"Chest Fever" (J.R. Robertson) – 4:40
"Find Someone to Love" (Johnny "Guitar" Watson) – 2:00
"No One Ever Hurt so Bad" (Randy Newman) – 4:03
"Don't Make Promises" (Tim Hardin) – 2:45
"The Loner" (Neil Young) – 2:32
"Try a Little Tenderness" (Jimmy Campbell, Reginald Connelly, Harry M. Woods) – 4:05 (timing mistakenly listed at 3:05 on album labels and cover)