Doolittle (album)

Doolittle is the second studio album by the American alternative rock band Pixies, released in April 1989 on 4AD records. Its idiosyncratic lyrics were written by the Pixies' main songwriter and lead vocalist Black Francis, and allude to surrealist imagery, biblical violence and descriptions of torture and death. Their 1988 album Surfer Rosa was highly acclaimed, leading to high expectations for its follow up. Doolittle' was an instant critical success, and became their break-through album. It was especially well received in Europe, where the British music weeklies Melody Maker and Sounds both named it as their album of the year.

The album is widely praised for its "quiet/loud" dynamic, achieved through subdued verses founded on Kim Deal's bass patterns and David Lovering drums, which then reach peaks in tone and volume through the addition of distorted guitars by Francis and Joey Santiago. This technique became highly influential on the development of early 1990s grunge music; Kurt Cobain said that it was one of his favorite records, and that its songs heavily influenced "Smells Like Teen Spirit".

Doolittle has sold consistently since its release and numerous music publications have placed it as one of the top albums of the 1980s. On release it reached number eight on the UK Albums Chart, and was certified gold in 1995 and platinum in 2018 by the Recording Industry Association of America. Both singles from the album, "Here Comes Your Man" and "Monkey Gone to Heaven", reached the Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart in the US, while many of the album tracks, including "Debaser" and "Hey", remain favourites of both critics and fans.