Gish is the debut studio album by the American alternative rock band the Smashing Pumpkins, released on May 28, 1991, by Caroline Records. The album was produced by Butch Vig and frontman Billy Corgan, with the latter describing Gish as a "very spiritual album" and "an album about spiritual ascension". Despite initially peaking at only number 195 on the Billboard 200 upon its release, Gish received critical acclaim, with particular praise directed at the band's distinctive psychedelic sound. The album was eventually certified platinum (at least one million copies shipped in the US) by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), becoming one of the best-selling independent albums at the time.[2] It has since been ranked by multiple publications as one of the best rock albums of the 1990s, with Pitchfork deeming "without Gish, there would probably be no Nevermind as we know it."