Lil' Golden Book is the debut studio album by the New Zealand recording artist Princess Chelsea. It was released on 2 May 2011, through Lil' Chief Records. The album was produced by Jonathan Bree and Chelsea Nikkel. The album tells the tale of life growing up as a teenager and young adult in New Zealand.
Nikkel stated that the album took nearly three years of production. The booklet features 15 pages designed by bandmate Brad Fafejta. The album is described as 'when cute meets creepy'.
The album was named after Little Golden Books, a series of children's books that began in the 1940s and are still being released today. She called her album "Lil' Golden Book" instead of "Little Golden Book" as an attempt to prevent herself from getting sued, but also to pay homage to her record label Lil' Chief.
Lil' Golden Book received mostly positive reviews. The Sunday Star Times named it 'album of the week' and aptly described it as 'when cute meets creepy'. Graham Reid has called it 'mischievous and sharp' and The New Zealand Herald has likened it to "growing pains in the happiest place on earth". Louder Than War said "the quirky 'Monkey Eats Bananas' is a thumping, jungle-beat track that was a huge hit on YouTube." KittySneezes described Nikkel's vocals as "childlike tones" that "evoke the innocence necessary to make the simple lyrics work."
One of the more popular songs on the album is "The Cigarette Duet" featuring vocals by Jonathan Bree. The video was uploaded to YouTube in early 2011, and to date has surpassed 100 million views. This led to her being featured on The Guardians 'New Band of the Day'.
The song is about a couple who fight over the health risks of smoking. The woman in the song is a (light) smoker, while the man is trying to encourage her to stop smoking. In the song, we learn that the man was a previous smoker, but later quit. The lyrics are often compared to Nancy & Lee with its dialogue. In an interview, she said "I sort of knew when I wrote it if any of my songs are going to get big, itâÂÂs probably this one thatâÂÂs going to be successful and it has put a lot of people onto my music."
Source:
All tracks written by Chelsea Nikkel; all tracks produced by Nikkel and Jonathan Bree.
Credits adapted from Lil' Golden Book album liner notes.
with guests
Thank you
Jonathan Bree, Jamie-Lee Smith, Brad Fafejta, Scott Mannion, Gareth Shute, Lawence Mikkelsen, Esther Maake, Johnathan Hughes, Stacey Thomas, Leonardo DiCaprio, Edmund Cake, The Brunettes, Pikachunes, Golden Axe, Stevie Kaye, Joseph Harper, Andrew Tidball, The Nikkel Family, Robbie Neilson, Johanna Freeman, Richard Braitigan.