The
Good
Earth
Million: We turned down a lot of major labels
because they wanted to bring in a producer to work
with us. One of ’em was Philip Glass, and Glenn
and I went to meet him. After a while he looked at
us and said, “Well, you guys sound like you know
exactly what you want, you don’t need me.” So it
was cool meeting Philip Glass… [Laughs.]
Mercer: I think we just felt a certain comfort level
BELOW: JOHN BAUMGARTNER
working with [Peter Buck of R.E.M., co-producer
of The Good Earth]. We knew that, being a guitar
player, he’d certainly be sympathetic to the way
we approached the songs and the mixing and the
arranging. We knew he wouldn’t be heavy handed,
come in with a whole bunch of [pre-conceived]
ideas. He was perfect for the job.
Million: With The Good Earth and [legendary
Hoboken
venue]
Maxwell’s
and
Coyote
[Records], it kind of grew out of a friendship
with Steve Fallon, who owned Maxwell’s, and
the whole vibe of the club, which we absolutely
loved. It was the complete opposite of what we
had experienced in New York. It was more lowkey and we found it more genuine and much
more suitable for the band.
Mercer: It just seemed like a good time. Bands
like R.E.M. were inspiring this whole new wave
of American bands. The same way we had been
influenced and inspired by what was going on in
New York, I think [the same was happening in]
(1986)
California—Dream Syndicate, Rain Parade, Green
on Red. So it just seemed like a really good time for
independent music—alternative whatever-theycall-it: college rock.
THE CLASSIC LINEUP: BILL MILLION, BRENDA SAUTER,
STANLEY DEMESKI, DAVE WECKERMAN, GLENN MERCER
FLOOD
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