Replacements Albums, Best of the Worst: Don't Tell a Soul vs. All Shook Down

All Shook Down. I'll take giving up over selling out any day of the week.

I like the song "Attitude" a lot, a few others. The bonus tracks on the reissues are better than much of the official tracks. I wish "Date to Church" was fleshed out into a real song. You can make a Let it Be Naked out of outtakes and best tracks from these two platters.

Don't Tell A Soul for sure: "Talent Show" is incredible (when the drums first kick in is such a great moment), "I'll Be You" is a better single than "Merry Go Round", and "Achin' To Be" is their best ballad.

Don't Tell for me too, by a fair amount.

I gotta find the SPIN review of Don't Tell A Soul where they figure that "Achin' to Be" is about some "Natalie Merchant type".

I'll go with enjoying the bonus tracks more from DTaS. "Portland" is better in my book than "Talent Show". And I liked the sentiment of "Talent Show" back when it was played in "We're Comin' Out".

All Shook Down takes it knocks, but I do love "Merry Go Round" and "Attitude" and "Torture" and fuck, if you're obliged to play "Bent Out of Shape" as the warm-up to my funeral, you won't hear any objections from me.

Well, the "Natalie Merchant type" was seen as an appealing model for a prospective girlfriend for a lot of lonely male college rock fans in 1989. Take it from me.

don't tell a soul has better songs, all shook down has a better vibe.

don't tell a soul is worse, even if the songs should be better, the production is horrible and annoying, all shook down at least sounds more like the replacements to me even if it factually is less of them.

the production is horrible and annoying

yup.

love portland though

I'm gonna stick my neck out for Don't Tell a Soul even though the production is horrible. "Asking Me Lies"- in my top ten favorite songs ever, seriously.

(born yesterday...it's a wonder you're still alive!)

All Shook Down. There's scmething compelling and urgent about Westerberg's broken-down whisper/croaking on this disc. And Torture is a great little song.

Don't Tell A Soul is an album-length life-support system for one great song: Talent Show.

I've listened to "Don't Tell a Soul" nearly as much as any Replacements album. When it was just reissues, that was the first time I gave "All Shook Down" a fair shake. Never bothered before that.

I've loved All Shook Down since it came out; still pretty much loathe Don't Tell A Soul, though I feel - like many on this thread - that the production may be the real culprit and not the songs. Just can't get past the audio experience to find out.

It's amazing how much production hate that album gets. As if any other major label guitar-based/marshmallow-drums album from the era sounds much better. (Though a look at the 1989 Pazz and Jop reveals some OK sounding stuff, actually).

Anyway, "Tim" has less of an excuse for sounding so cruddy.

DTAS is one of the worst failed attempts at a mainstream crossover ever recorded. And yet, and yet..."I'll Be You" is one of their very best, horrible drum sound and all, and "I Won't" is cute.

i like "they're blind" too. and "anywhere's better than here."

I don't really like Tim either, and the production is most of the reason (though I think the songs as a whole are weaker than on the two albums that bookend it). The demos from Tim are better than the album as released.

Don't Tell a Soul without a moment's hesitation. It at least had great tracks like "Anywhere's Better Than Here." All Shook Down has absolutely no redeeming value whatsoever.

Don't Tell a Soul for me. Some surprisingly good songs, like "Talent Show," "Anywhere's Better than Here," and "Rock'n'Roll Ghost." Also, even though the production is dated and 80s, I think it has a good vibe and gives me fond memories of that time.

WIth these two records, it's pick your poison: on DTAS, it's "who's ass can we kiss" and of ASD, it's "who's ready to kiss the ass of me, genius songwriter."

I just shuffled together the tracks where I don't get those vibes, plus the bonus track which show the Replacements at their big-haired best. And removed from the execrable "We'll Inherit the Earth" (Kid, I want you to write a song like "The One I Love" or "Where the Streets Have No Name") and "My Little Problem" (ahead of it's time, if you were hoping the future would be John Cougar/Sheryl Crow duets), they sound a lot better. I even like the electric piano on "I Won't" now.

A
1. Talent Show
2. I'll Be You
3. Portland
4. All Shook Down
5. I Won't
6. Gudbuy T' Jane

B
1. Wake Up
2. Attitude
3. Anywhere's Better Than Here
4. Merry Go Round
5. Kissin' In Action
6. Date To Church
7. The Last

Am I the only one who likes "Rock'n'Roll Ghost"?

probably?

Don't Tell a Soul and these aren't the worst

Achin to Be might have some embarrassing lyrics, but the reason you care is that you showed up for the melody

the embarrasing lyrics can be found on We'll Inherit the Earth and Asking Me Lies, not Achin To Be

(relatively speaking of course--maybe all of the lyrics on Don't Tell a Soul are kinda bad?)

yeah, "Asking Me Lies" is a really weak song, from lyrics to rhythm to production. "We'll Inherit the Earth", on the other hand, has such a inflated sound that it's hard to pay attention to the lyrics. I think it's a pretty good song overall, and great at the end, but then again I have a soft spot for Air Supply.

i guess i'll go with All Shook Down, even though it has that song Don't You Wanna Be My Little Problem, ugh. . .

If not for the shiny production, Don't Tell a Soul might be their strongest album front to back.

No, I'm not kidding.

Gotta be All Shook Down for me...Don't Tell a Soul had some great songs ("I'll Be You" is stunning despite the extremely dated production) but All Shook Down had a vibe that just made it so much more comforting to listen to, and the ragged desperation in Paul's songs and singing was so much more authentic than the corporate ass-kiss that Don't Tell a Soul ended up being, whether that was the intention or not.

People railing about the production quality on DTaS is entirely fair - this was a band that made its entire career up to that point being ragged fuck-ups. Dressing them up with a new suit and hair cut may make them look better temporarily, but ultimately there's just something wrong about it. Would really much rather have heard those songs (stadium-fist-pumping glory of some of them notwithstanding) without the gloss...would have made for a much better record.

the production's never bothered me on Don't Tell A Soul--it's not half as noticable as it is on Tim--it's that the songs kinda suck except for Talent Show

Keep in mind that I love some of the production/engineering work done by the people that worked on DTaS - the Sons of Freedom s/t album was amazing and it was enhanced by that production thump. With the 'mats, it was just the wrong fit.

the production's never bothered me on Don't Tell A Soul--it's not half as noticable as it is on Tim

You've got to be kidding.

I resent the characterization of All Shook Down being one of the worst, really. It's my favorite 'Mats album, even over Tim and Let it Be or whichever one seems to be the consensus fave at the moment. There's a great warm, sort of private sound on All Shook Down that was a perfect goodbye kiss from the band (or what was left of the band at that point).

Conversely, Don't Tell a Soul is tied with Pleased to Meet Me as the worst, most phoned-in sounding 'Mats album. All Shook Down was a welcome step up after two dud albums.

You've got to be kidding.

didn't PP say something about Tim sounding like the band was playing down the hall? at least On Don't Tell a Soul you can hear everything, nothing's muffled

Where the first four records sounded like The Replacements were playing live in front of you, this one sounded like they were playing in a room through the wall and down the hall in some loft you were trying to sleep in.

OTM^^^

Pleased to Meet Me is their best, Don't Tell a Soul is their worst (unlistenable apart from Talent Show and I'll Be You), All Shook Down is like half of a good album

Pleased to Meet Me has a lot of really half-assed songs on it. Aside from "Alex Chilton" and "Skyway," most of this album teeters on total shitdom. The songs on Don't Tell a Soul are not all that bad; it's a production issue more than anything else. And "Anywhere's Better than Here" flat out kicks ass.

I.O.U. - - Great opening song
Alex Chilton - classic
I Don't Know" - - silly and stupid in a good way, total throwaway, not in a Kiss Me on The Bus sentimental way
Nightclub Jitters" – i could see people not liking this, but i dig it
The Ledge" – good, not great
Never Mind" – great
Valentine" - - this plus Never Mind great one two punch
Shooting Dirty Pool" - get your money on the table, get your head out of your ass
Red Red Wine" how could you not like this song?
Skyway" – fuck yeah
Can't Hardly Wait" fuck yeah part II: the return of Fuck Yeah

start to finish excellent

The problem is that most of the PTMM album is just Replacements-by-the-numbers. It has their unique sound, and it's instantly recognizable. It's just not that good. Even though it's the first Replacements album I owned, it's the one I always forget exists. The songs for the most part don't warrant returning to. "Never Mind" is like a bad attempt at re-writing "Unsatisfied." "Nightclub Jitters" is an interesting genre exercise, but it's not that great of a song. "Valentine" is pretty much the definition of a generic Replacements song. "IOU" is almost a carbon copy of "Gary's Got a Boner" but less memorable and less funny. "I Don't Know" sounds like it was written in the studio 5 seconds before the record button got pressed. "Shooting Dirty Pool" is faceless bar-rock, and might as well have been performed by George Thoroughgood and the Destroyers. I have to really try to enjoy this album.

Pleased to Meet Me has a lot of really half-assed songs on it.

REAL TALK

every Replacements album has a bunch of half-assed songs on it - this is a band whose entire rep is based on pretty much never using their whole ass.

"Never Mind" is like a bad attempt at re-writing "Unsatisfied."

???? The two songs don't sound anything like each other

OU" is almost a carbon copy of "Gary's Got a Boner" but less memorable and less funny.

don't get this at all, the latter is a jokey throwaway lyric and the the former is a barnstorming opener. I agree with Mr Que's assessments of the individual tracks fwiw. If this is by the number those are some damn good numbers.

"Never Mind" is like a bad attempt at re-writing "Unsatisfied."

???? The two songs don't sound anything like each other

also this. one is a 12-string acoustic ballad and the other is a mid-tempo rocker

I Don't Know" sounds like it was written in the studio 5 seconds before the record button got pressed.

That's what makes it good!

"Shooting Dirty Pool" is faceless bar-rock, and might as well have been performed by George Thoroughgood and the Destroyers.

hahaha no.

Let's go back to pretending these two records don't exist, okay?

Well, I still feel like "Never Mind" is trying to go for a similar feeling as "Unsatisfied" but can't really pull it off. The riffs for "IOU" and "Gary Has a Boner" are really similar IMO. Anyway, my point is that PTMM is kind of forgettable and empty to me.

I was going to care about your opinion but then I remembered you're that guy that hates Steely Dan

I don't like PTMM, but do like Steely Dan. Where do I fit into Shakey's list of internet respect?

http://tbn2.google.com/images?q=tbn:Quyu5Wox5EtjcM:http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v207/Rankin/respeck_knuckles_s.jpg

This is such a perplexing forum.

Que OTM re. PTTM: great album (was about to say "great fucking album" but actually, no).

I'm probably alone, but I prefer the horns-and-all version of "Alex Chilton" to the demo or whatever. PTMM isn't a great album, but it's a pretty good one that could have been great had "Shootin' Dirty Pool" and "Red Red Wine" been left off.

And, hey, sometimes the high budget production frills help, like the saxophone blurts and Tommy's laugh on "I Don't Know."

man "Red Red Wine" is my favorite moment on there; I have no idea what they're singing about (uh, wine, I guess) but c'mon, the wild singalong at the end is awesome.

uh i don't think it cost a lot of money to mix in Tommy's laughing

that's not my point: they had a guiding hand in the studio who could offer mixing details like the laugh.

I'll bet Tommy Ramone cost more than Jim Dickinson

It's hard to believe that the same Jim Dickinson who made "Kangaroo" is the same guy who ruined "Can't Hardly Wait."

It's hard to believe Jim Dickinson.

i understand and agree with complaints about the production on dtas. i understand and disagree with complaints about the production on tim. i think something is very wrong and strange with complaints about the production on pleased to meet me.

This thread has my blood pressure up. Both of these albums are amazing and this:

If not for the shiny production, Don't Tell a Soul might be their strongest album front to back.

No, I'm not kidding.

― I just wish he hadn't adopted the "ilxor" moniker (ilxor), Wednesday, 10 June 2009 16:56 (Yesterday)

is pretty much OTM.

Complaining about the production on DTAS while singing the praises of Tim (probably the most poorly produced album of all time) is ludicrous. Typical hipster sacred cow shit.

It goes like this:
PTMM > Let It Be > Don't Tell A Soul > the rest

"Hipsters" also think Tim has better songs, hipster.

I generally don't mind the production on any of the albums to the point where I can't listen to them-- with the exception of the horns on PTMM. Horns on a Replacements album is completely unfitting.

Even though it doesn't have any single song that approaches I'll Be You, All Shook Down is a much better record than Don't Tell A Soul.

I just think that rock n' roll should be sung while wearing a vest.

Automatic thread bump. This poll is closing tomorrow.

Automatic thread bump. This poll's results are now in.

Tim (probably the most poorly produced album of all time)
Hey, have you ever heard of a band called Hüsker Dü? Because...

... or maybe that was engineering.

DATS wins over challops, yay. I heard a few tracks from DATS today and was all "yes, this is GREAT! despite sounding like they got Phil Collins' retarded cousin to produce."

Whereas every time a song from ASD comes up I'm "Geez, what shitty band trying to sound like the Replacements is this?"

Pretty close-- seemed like it would be.

The thing is, in 1989, it didn't necessarily sound like horrible production. Compared to any random handful of hair bands at that time (or, say, Pearl Jam's Ten), it could even come out sounding underproduced.

(Of course, compared to, say, Let It Be, yeah, it's bombastic as shit)

(Don't Tell A Soul is what I'm talkin' about)

I'm finally listening to the expanded edition of Don't Tell A Soul. "We Know The Night" is a killer. It's a solo acoustic take, but dig this line:

"In the afternoon, my mind ain't sleepy, it's preoccupied"

look I don't need to explain to any of you what he means but it's naked rock and roll.

all shook down is jam after jam - best ever

they should have gone the whole hog and got Mutt Lange to produce DTAS

ASD's list of guest musicians is a joke, not a proper Mats album.

Total Uncut magazine 'lost classic' bullshit

The Replacements have nothing to do with 'alt-country' either

DTAS is brilliant though

One dog looked up. The other looked away. They stood in opposing directions, soaking from the freezing rain, seeking, yet refusing. Should any of these small details have been slightly altered, how so, might the future have also changed?

Michael took a photograph.

http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Rc_pMFq9J9M/TvaBXeH78sI/AAAAAAAABXM/R2l94qhwJjg/s1600/newportdogs001.jpg

The new mix on "Dead Man's Pop" really DOES reclaim "Don't Tell A Soul" as a worthy follow-up to "Pleased To Meet Me". I'm really quite shocked at just how much better it sounds, focusing on the guitars and clearing off the polish of the 1989 version.

"Asking Me Lies" still sucks, though.

I didn't know this had a alternate track order, that makes a pretty big difference as well. Drums clearly sound much better here, too.

i love "asking me lies"

Looking forward to my copy coming from Amazon. The Rhino-direct orders have been delayed a week, due to warehouse issues.

Listening to a lot of Replacements and Westerberg the last few weeks, and pretty uncritical about the entire run. A few tracks from Folker and Come Feel Me Tremble have jumped out as underappreciated. Some great Bash & Pop and Perfect tunes, too.

This has always been the Replacements album I've listened to the most, for whatever reason, and without a doubt on first listen I think this new version is the one I will go back to from now on.

Yep, this is now the definitive version for me, too. But like many of you, I always loved the original album despite the 80s gloop.

Looking forward to hearing the Bearsville demos / sessions, haven't quite made it to those yet

I've heard the Tom Waits stuff is awful

The scream at the start of "Anywhere Is Better Than Here" is all-time.

yeah this sounds great, really feels fresh

Bearsville stuff is ok, but seems kind of off

Dunno if I've heard the Milwaukee show before, but it's a great example of how the Replacements can be the best band in the world even when the band was not at its best, which can shift from second to second.

I hated this when it came out and never warmed up to it, but these new mixes are finally turning the tide.

one quandary: Portland should have been on the album and would have been one of the best songs, but then Westerberg would have had to drop one of the best songs Talent Show because he recycled the chorus of Portland

just put this on. i love the woolen reverb on the original but yeah i've been wanting to hear "talent show" like this for a while

finally i can call this my favorite replacements record and no one will look at me like i have two heads

the remixed "we'll inherit the earth" sounds fucking amazing

I read Trouble Boys a few weeks ago, revisited the catalog (altho I haven't heard this reissue). It's hard for me to evaluate this band, they meant so much to me as a kid, were one of the very first shows I saw, I bought into the whole mythology etc.

But with age and hindsight and being fully cognizant of how being a drunken asshole is not actually that cool - it makes me reflect a bit more harshly on Paul as a songwriter. Like, if you *don't* buy into that "lovable loser" mythos, are the songs still good? Generally the answer is "sometimes" imo. "Talent Show", "Can't Hardly Wait", "Kiss Me On the Bus", a handful of others. Some of it is just too voyeuristic and wrist-slashingly depressing for me to listen to anymore ("Here Comes a Regular" for ex.)

you haven't cited the pre-1984 stuff, which most people omit like they do the Beatles before Rubber Soul.

yeah well, I don't like much of it

I'm aware of the vocal ILX contingent that thinks Sorry Ma is the peak

well, if you think the beautiful-loser ethos is a problem, the speed and smarts of the early material will mitigate it

I was just thinking today what an awesome songwriter he is.

American film, lit, and cinema are replete with beautiful losers whose creators regard them with a cold eye without the eye itself getting moist. The Replacements' good stuff avoids the problem.

the speed and smarts of the early material will mitigate it

that's true to an extent, otoh I'd be hard-pressed to consider "Fuck School" a great song. I mean, it's fun and funny and all but it isn't great, really.

p sure "anywhere's better than here" is my favorite replacements song and the new version confirms that several times over

the vocal ILX contingent that thinks Sorry Ma is the peak

Hi dere!

"Achin' to Be" is still a moronic song about a dude who can't write about a woman whose virtues have nothing to do with malehood.

pfft i'm achin' to be too

fair critique as well bc i do hate the final verse

you are NOT kinda like an artist

it's that scene in high fidelity where john cusack dreams of dating a musician so he can be an in-joke in the liner notes, but a song

a dream too tire to come true

Some of y'all think too much attention is paid to lyrics ... until you don't. I think his melodies, riffs and hooks are super-sharp; Westerberg is an underrated (lead) guitar player.

Fuck School IS a great song!

Yes it is. What’s the matter, buddy?

New production makes even “Achin’ To Be” easier to sit through.

Especially when it is not followed by “They’re blind.”

"Achin' to Be" is still a moronic song about a dude who can't write about a woman whose virtues have nothing to do with malehood.

― TikTok to the (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Friday, September 27, 2019 4:16 PM (four hours ago) bookmarkflaglink

sigh

Debate me.

I like "They're Blind" and "Asking Me Lies."

Oh, here's a downgrade on the new version, imo: I think "I'll Be You" is slower.

one quandary: Portland should have been on the album and would have been one of the best songs, but then Westerberg would have had to drop one of the best songs Talent Show because he recycled the chorus of Portland

― Blues Guitar Solo Heatmap (Free Download) (upper mississippi sh@kedown)

This post brought tot you by Too Much Whiskey.

Tee Tot

Making my way slowly through this. These Bearsville sessions not so hot. Wondering if “I Can Help” feat. Tom Waits is gonna be the Billy Swan song.

This is so great, I'm really enjoying it. Westerberg really is a once in a lifetime songwriter and I wish he would release good-to-great new albums every year, but a) he hasn't been committed to it for a long time, and b) back when he did he was really spotty. I thought the I don't cares album was really, really great and hoped it would be a kind of new beginning but he (obviously) blew it again. When I think about him in those terms, it makes me sad.

I love "Asking Me Lies" and this new mix really kills it.

“asking me lies” feels like it could’ve been covered really well by both prince and the afghan whigs

This was a really enjoyable listen. I saw them on the DTAS tour and the songs sounded a lot better live than on the record.

I thought the I don't cares album was really, really great and hoped it would be a kind of new beginning but he (obviously) blew it again.

I agree with you about the IDCs album being great but how exactly did he 'blow it?' I think I'd blame general indifference and / or poor marketing long before I'd blame the artists in this case

Did they even tour the album?

“asking me lies” feels like it could’ve been covered really well by both prince and the afghan whigs

xp I think the tour for this album was the opening slot w/ Tom Petty

I think he meant the I Don't Cares album

For DTAS they did a stinnt opening for Petty and then a headlining tour. Royal Crescent Mob opened when I saw them.

I remember googling it back, and then googling it now. I couldn't find a trace of it, a single setlist for any show.

The headlining tour -- mostly small theaters -- was about a month before the Petty tour. They played the Aragon in Chicago; I had a ticket, but couldn't go at the last minute. I gave my ticket to a friend who bought me this shirt, which I think I still have somewhere.
http://www.defunkd.com/public/upload/images/product_images/big/matmin_95151360955478.jpeg

xpost Google harder

http://replacementslivearchive.blogspot.com/2014/02/may-3-1989-celebrity-theatre-phoenix-az.html

Oh yeah I see. I was indeed talking about the I Don't Cares album this whole time.

That is a great t-shirt though.

"Achin' to Be" is still a moronic song about a dude who can't write about a woman whose virtues have nothing to do with malehood.

― TikTok to the (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Friday, September 27, 2019 4:16 PM (four hours ago) bookmarkflaglink

The musical structure of the chorus outweighs any lyrical weaknesses

"Achin' to Be" is still a moronic song about a dude who can't write about a woman whose virtues have nothing to do with malehood.

― TikTok to the (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Friday, September 27, 2019 3:16 PM (five days ago)

this song really truly spoke to me as a young woman (age 14) trying to figure out wtf was going on -- what strikes me as funny now is that i did want to be him. i did not want to be his woman-object, i wanted to be HIM (only still be myself). i still think it's poignant & good. maybe not the 'mats everyone wanted but they were the 'mats i needed at the time.

i was still a kid really, not a young woman. a girl.

Hey wait, what about if he was not really singing about someone else but was actually mostly singing about himself? Wouldn’t looking at it that way that bring the song into better focus and improve it?

Which is already built into the song, innit, DO U SEE?

I know that this slant has just improved the song for me.

this song really truly spoke to me as a young woman (age 14) trying to figure out wtf was going on -- what strikes me as funny now is that i did want to be him. i did not want to be his woman-object, i wanted to be HIM (only still be myself). i still think it's poignant & good. maybe not the 'mats everyone wanted but they were the 'mats i needed at the time.

― weird woman in a bar (La Lechera), Wednesday, October 2, 2019

this is awesome

what about if he was not really singing about someone else but was actually mostly singing about himself?

doesn't Westerberg say this outright in Trouble Boys?

Could well be, can’t remember. I was probably dazed from reading about another blown interview or tour bus trashing or maybe this piece of info was buried in between the two.

Also, new remixes and live versions breathing, um, new life into this stuff and lifting every boat, such as this previously underappreciated gem.

“Mostly singing about himself” sounds about right given what I know of the guy

Because who else would he bother to write or care about?

Tommy and Bob

Thats p much it tho

Alex Chilton?

Which would indicate a certain orneriness is needed. Seems like Slim might fit the bill but not aware of any songs written about him.

Too bad he never wrote a song about Lou Reed.

Still sniffing around the cheese baited in the trap by Alfred when he accused us of being guitar-centric rockists for wanting to hear the guitars on a Replacements record. We’re blind!

Mostly singing about himself” sounds about right given what I know of the guy

Yeah, well, I love that degree of ambiguity that is key in the Replacements. Not being really sure of whether he's writing about themselves or the others, happy or sad, angry or forsaken, serious or funny. Most likely all of it, at the same time.

This is a great record, so close to the sound of "Pleased to Meet Me". "We'll inherit the earth" sounds like the same band that did "The Ledge" this time! "Achin' to be" and "Back to back" do the same thing with "Never mind"! And putting "I'll be you" at #2 is a great choice, it ramps up the album just when it needs it (like "Alex Chilton" in PTMM). I was always uncomfortable with having "Back to Back".

hahaha if we're gonna start hunting down songwriters that mostly sing about themselves gonna need a big reeducation camp

Yeah well the ambiguity and confusion is what's key here; it's not as resonant or interesting if it's 100% clear.

You be me for a while and I’ll be you, why dontcha

finally i can call this my favorite replacements record and no one will look at me like i have two heads

― american bradass (BradNelson), Friday, September 27, 2019 2:26 PM bookmarkflaglink

Well now your favorite replacements record has two heads!

lol

it's my not-so-secret theory that Westerburg's most poignant tunes are about and for Tommy.

Love the way Anywhere's Better ends now.

The only subject I know for sure is his sister, who inspired "Waitress in the Sky." I think some are about Lori Bizer, who worked at Twin/Tone?

it's my not-so-secret theory that Westerburg's most poignant tunes are about and for Tommy.

― TikTok to the (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Thursday, October 3, 2019 9:24 AM (eleven minutes ago) bookmarkflaglink

I always tear up about those lost tonsils

Other Subjects:
Johnny Thunders "Johnny's Gonna Die"
Bob Stinson "Good Day"

"Lay It Down, Clown" was about Peter Buck's reluctance to share his speed stash.

Don’t forget Gary!

“Left of the Dial,” one of the members of Let’s Active (Faye?)

Left of the Dial” is the story of this girl, a guitar player, Lynn Blakey, who toured with Mitch Easter’s Let’s Active. We got to be friends. She wanted me to write her a letter, but I never write letters. I figured the only way I’d hear her voice was with her band on the radio, left of the dial on a college station. And one night we did. We were passing through a town somewhere, and she was doing an interview on the radio, left of the dial. I heard her voice for the first time in six months for about a minute. Then the station faded out.

yep
it's almost like this theory he only wrote about himself was total bullshit!

also I tell you what I don't know how many artists would give their blessing to a book that makes them look that bad, then give the author the plum gig of writing liner notes to a big box set

also isn't Achin' to Be about his sister Mary Lucia?? I swear that was in the book

What did it take to twist Paul’s arm to get this to come out?

It was funny. I think he left it up to management and Bob Mehr, like, “If you guys want to do this. Fine. Fuck it.” And he’s kind of checked out on it. I don’t know if there was anything bad about it. He just doesn’t like going backwards in time. He doesn’t like the whole idea of, “We released this and that.” Like, what about this painting I’m making right now? I get it. The fans like that kind of stuff. He’s enough of a music fan to know that.

https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-features/replacements-tommy-stinson-dead-mans-pop-interview-889797/

Well, damn. According to Mehr’s liner notes, Westerberg wanted Pete Townshend to produce DTAS. I’m absolutely certain that my 16-year-old brain would’ve exploded had that come to fruition.

This was only an opinion, but didn't Chuck or somebody draw the conclusion that "Achin' To Be" was about a Natalie Merchant-type?

What’s a Natalie Merchant type?

Girl.

Too Liberal To Function

Kidding aside, I guess artistic, kind of shy, earnest, partial to granny dresses and thrift stores.

Manic Pixie Song Character

Kidding aside, I guess artistic, kind of shy, earnest, partial to granny dresses and thrift stores.

So he WAS singing to little 14 year old me?? Whoa

"She's kind of like an artist, and kind of like a movie, but mostly Saoirse Ronan is... ACHIN' TO BE"

There’s a little part in the recent oral history of Lilith Fair where Liz Phair remembered having water splashed in her face by Natalie Merchant that made me lol
It made me think Natalie Merchant had/has more impish spirit than I gave her credit for!

I very distinctly remember the Natalie Merchant connection coming from this article in Spin where the writer says Achin' To Be is about a "girl who you know looks like Natalie Merchant." (Totally recommend flipping through that issue btw)

I'm pretty sure in the book it specifically says it was about his sister but maybe I'm misremembering

That issue had a reasonably significant impact on me. While Sex Machine isn’t quite as great as they make it out to be (though an un-futzed-with version is coming out next month), many of the other lists sent me on investigating scurries.

And the Winger ad is all-time.

> That issue had a reasonably significant impact on me.

Me too! I still have my copy

- Tim (probably the most poorly produced album of all time)

- Hey, have you ever heard of a band called Hüsker Dü? Because...

Tim is notoriously a poor sounding record, but it's never been a deal-breaker for me, partly because it sounds poor in a familiar way: it reminds me of the Spot-engineered Hüsker Dü records and even some Ramones albums.

- I'm finally listening to the expanded edition of Don't Tell A Soul. "We Know The Night" is a killer. It's a solo acoustic take, but dig this line:

"In the afternoon, my mind ain't sleepy, it's preoccupied"

look I don't need to explain to any of you what he means but it's naked rock and roll.

It really is a highlight. (FWIW, it was remixed for Dead Man's Pop with a spoken intro left in.) Wallace mentioned that he recorded a full-band version of the song too - not the sloppy one with Tom Waits but presumably a proper recording that could've been used for the album. Unfortunately, when the band erased a bunch of tapes in a rush of bootleg paranoia, Wallace said the original multi-track was one of the casualties, and that was all they had since it hadn't mixed it yet. Hard to see how it would've beat the solo version we do have though - the spare guitar-and-piano arrangement really enhances the mood.

- i love "asking me lies" and many variations thereof

Count me in as another fan of this track. I didn't even remember how it sounded on Don't Tell a Soul, but it's fun stuff here, especially on the bonus cassette sent with Rhino direct orders:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9oW5_LDOwfo

With the rhythm guitar mixed up, the classic Jackson 5 connection becomes clearer and more evident. It's every bit as charming as one of the J5's better deep cuts.

- I've heard the Tom Waits stuff is awful

Fun to hear once, but that's it. "Date to Church" really is the only thing worth returning to. I like how they remixed it though, it sounds like they double-tracked the harmony vocals to make it sound more like a parody of a choir.

- one quandary: "Portland" should have been on the album and would have been one of the best songs, but then Westerberg would have had to drop one of the best songs Talent Show because he recycled the chorus of "Portland"

"Portland" totally should have made it - I would've used it to replace side two's opener, "Back to Back." And repeating the chorus doesn't sound like a problem - it actually gives the album a welcome bit of thematic unity by having those lyrics appear on each side's opening cut.

- Oh, here's a downgrade on the new version, imo: I think "I'll Be You" is slower.

True, but I still would use the Wallace remix for the album as it would be too jarring to keep one of CLA's mixes intact. In hindsight, Wallace told Mehr that he should've asked Sire to let him mix the LP and let CLA mix the singles, and Mehr pointed out that such a move would have a strong precedent as Jimmy Iovine was brought in to mix the single release of Pleased to Meet Me's "Can't Hardly Wait."

Weird revive; I’ve been listening to Dead Man’s Pop and DTAS all week. For my money, honestly, the best Replacements album in either configuration, though I give the nod to the Wallace mix.

It would have been very cool and po-mo if they had kept Portland on and been like “so the look out here we go part is in both songs; deal with it.”

What they did to “They’re Blind” on DTAS was a fucking crime. In retrospect. Although it’s a gorgeous song in either presentation.

Yeah, very cool - I definitely would have kept in both tracks as-is. It would've been interesting to see the response to having a hook/lyric repeated like that too - not a new idea at all, but the best-known precedents in rock would've been stuff like Yes or Wings' Band on the Run. (Although the 'Mats did start off playing a lot of Yes before Westerberg joined.)

My memory of Don't Tell a Soul is tied up with my having seen them for the first time on that tour, at the Aragon Ballroom in Chicago. I caught them on a really good night, and it's one of the most memorable concert experiences I've ever had--the buckets of beer the venue was selling notwithstanding.

Natalie Merchant types . . .

Natalie and Michael came into the record store I was working at in Boulder, CO in, I guess, about 1986 or 87. I didn't realize who they were until they left; I thought they were a couple of homeless people.

A buddy of mine saw 10,000 Maniacs early on. Natalie was huffing markers all night. By the end of the show, her upper lip was multicolored.

shiver in my bones just thinkin
bout the Sharpies

what's the marker here?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j_CRANDTCAY