“Never Is A Promise” by Fiona Apple

"Never Is a Promise" comes from Tidal, the debut album Fiona Apple released through The WORK Group on July 23, 1996, and it's the record at its most exposed: Apple at the piano, singing a song whose words and music are hers alone. Around her, a small string section moves in the shadows, with Ralph Morrisson and Claudia Parducci on violin, Evan Wilson on viola and Larry Corbett on cello.

Andrew Slater produced it, the Los Angeles producer who had signed her to Sony's Work Group label in 1995 and who, on meeting her, half suspected somebody was putting one over on him, so young was the woman writing these songs. Mark Endert recorded and mixed it. Apple later said the whole album was about proving herself to the people from her past, and here that sounds at its most naked.

Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz.