Song · Tool
“H.” by Tool
From the album Ænima (1996)
“H.” by Tool appears on 13 radio countdowns from 5 stations between 1996 and 2021. It was first released in 1996 on the album Ænima. Its best result is #23 on the 91X Top 91 Songs of 1997. In the combined RockLists rankings it is the #119 alternative song of 1997 and #3,231 alternative song of all time.
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"H." went out as a promotional single from Ænima, Tool's second album, released in 1996, and it's one of the record's four songs that still carry a writing credit for former bassist Paul D'Amour, though Justin Chancellor plays bass on it. It began under the working title "Half Empty", which is probably what the letter stands for, though Maynard James Keenan has also mentioned his son, whose middle name is H, before playing it live.
David Bottrill produced it with the band and recorded and mixed it, and it creeps rather than pummels: Adam Jones's guitar coiling slowly, Danny Carey's drums rolling in like weather, Keenan sliding from murmur to roar. At a Philadelphia show in 1996 he framed it as the old cartoon of an angel and a devil on your shoulders, except both are really friends who mean well without knowing what's best for you, so the choice comes back to you.
Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.
RockLists rankings
Alternative & Modern Rock
Hard Rock & Metal
All Rock Formats
Year-end countdowns
| Year | # | Station | Countdown | of |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1996 | 32 | 107.7 The End Seattle, WA | The End Top 107 Songs of 1996 | 107 |
| 1997 | 23 | 91X San Diego, CA / Tijuana | 91X Top 91 Songs of 1997 | 91 |
| 1997 | 54 | 107.7 The End Seattle, WA | The End Top 107 Songs of 1997 | 107 |
| 1997 | 63 | 97.1 The Eagle Dallas-Fort Worth, TX | KEGL The Eagle's Top 97 Songs of 1997 | 97 |
All-time and decade countdowns
| Year | # | Station | Countdown | of |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1998 | 518 | KISW | KISW Top 1000 of All Time (1998) | 1000 |
| 1999 | 325 | 91X | 91X Fat 500 Songs of All-Time (July 1999) | 500 |
| 1999 | 223 | 107.7 The End | The End Top 1077 Songs of All-Time (December 1999) | 1077 |
| 1999 | 596 | KISW | KISW Top 1000 of All Time (1999) | 998 |
| 2002 | 757 | KISW | KISW Top 999 of All Time (2002) | 999 |
| 2003 | 79 | 91X | 91X Top 91 Songs of All-Time (December 2003) | 91 |
| 2004 | 293 | 107.7 The End | The End Original Alternative 500 (May 2004) | 500 |
| 2020 | 387 | 105.9 The X | 105.9 The X July 420 (2020) | 420 |
| 2021 | 385 | 105.9 The X | 105.9 The X July 420 (2021) | 420 |
Also listed as: H.
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