There's only one factor tougher than making your debut album, and that's recording your 1st demo. "Creating mine was a total nightmare," laughs Vanessa Carlton. "I used to be 17 and living in Hell's Kitchen, operating five days every week as a waitress in lower Manhattan. On the weekends, I would grab my four-track and build the long drive to my parents' house in Pennsylvania as a result of that's where my piano was. With my father's facilitate, I might record take when take till four in the morning, determined to capture 'the perfect performance.' Unfortunately, my dog had other plans. Each time I might get to the top of a good take, he'd ruin it with a woof, and we would have to start everywhere again."