The Replacements
The Replacements, ‘All Shook Down’, 1990. Every big US town had a college radio station whose frequency would be on the left-hand side of the tuner. The Replacements were a left-of-the-dial US college radio band - a ramshackle, drunken bunch who toured everywhere and played to adoring fans. The Replacements even had a song called ‘Left of The Dial’. Guitars, big riffs, joyous noise. I saw them play in Berkeley where they suddenly launched into ‘Yummy Yummy Yummy’, then brought half of the Flamin’ Groovies up for the encores. A garage band who helped open the door to others in the US, they never broke big in the UK.
This was effectively a solo album by the main man Paul Westerberg, the band having pretty much collapsed. Indeed, they split up the following year. It’s a great set of songs, polished compared to their early thrash beginnings. ‘Merry Go Round’ is melancholy with Westerberg’s weary vocal and great tune. ‘One Wink at a Time’ skips along with acoustic strum, saxophones and simple Velvet’s drumbeat. ‘Nobody’ slow acoustic chug, sloppy bass, and sloppier lead breaks. ‘Bent Out of Shape’ fast riffing. ‘Sadly Beautiful’ is just that. A heartbreak of a song. ‘Someone Take the Wheel’ sad and desperate despite the bounce in the tune. ‘When It Began’ like a poppy Springsteen. ‘All Shook Down’ late night whisper and gentle strum and an ocarina (?!). ‘Attitude’ acoustic sunshine stroll. ‘Happy Town’ another big bounce along. ‘Torture’ folkie jangle. ‘My Little Problem’ all Clash chords and strut. ‘The Last’ piano led wee-small-hours feel.
I saw them play London in 1991. I’d bought tickets for mates. Sitting in The Spice of Life pub in Soho, realised we didn’t have enough tickets and it was sold out. Disaster. I really wanted my mates to see this band, so I offered up my ticket. A stranger lent over and passed me an Access All Areas pass – a roadie for the band, happy to reward my fandom. T’was a cracking show. We were down the front, with Winona Rider standing next to us. True story…
The Replacements
The Replacements, ‘All Shook Down’, 1990. Every big US town had a college radio station whose frequency would be on the left-hand side of the tuner. The Replacements were a left-of-the-dial US college radio band - a ramshackle, drunken bunch who toured everywhere and played to adoring fans. The Replacements even had a song called ‘Left of The Dial’. Guitars, big riffs, joyous noise. I saw them play in Berkeley where they suddenly launched into ‘Yummy Yummy Yummy’, then brought half of the Flamin’ Groovies up for the encores. A garage band who helped open the door to others in the US, they never broke big in the UK.
This was effectively a solo album by the main man Paul Westerberg, the band having pretty much collapsed. Indeed, they split up the following year. It’s a great set of songs, polished compared to their early thrash beginnings. ‘Merry Go Round’ is melancholy with Westerberg’s weary vocal and great tune. ‘One Wink at a Time’ skips along with acoustic strum, saxophones and simple Velvet’s drumbeat. ‘Nobody’ slow acoustic chug, sloppy bass, and sloppier lead breaks. ‘Bent Out of Shape’ fast riffing. ‘Sadly Beautiful’ is just that. A heartbreak of a song. ‘Someone Take the Wheel’ sad and desperate despite the bounce in the tune. ‘When It Began’ like a poppy Springsteen. ‘All Shook Down’ late night whisper and gentle strum and an ocarina (?!). ‘Attitude’ acoustic sunshine stroll. ‘Happy Town’ another big bounce along. ‘Torture’ folkie jangle. ‘My Little Problem’ all Clash chords and strut. ‘The Last’ piano led wee-small-hours feel.
I saw them play London in 1991. I’d bought tickets for mates. Sitting in The Spice of Life pub in Soho, realised we didn’t have enough tickets and it was sold out. Disaster. I really wanted my mates to see this band, so I offered up my ticket. A stranger lent over and passed me an Access All Areas pass – a roadie for the band, happy to reward my fandom. T’was a cracking show. We were down the front, with Winona Rider standing next to us. True story…