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“ My Favorite Dress ” bookend the track listings and these George Best-era versions have a surprising embedded groove missing from the fervent originals . Gedge ’ s vocals are movingly passionate - giving fans a worthy update to the lovelorn originals . Bizzaro ’ s “ Granadaland ,” retains the original urgency of the original , but in a coffee house version . Throw in a a new Wener written new track and this unplugged version of the Weddoes is no throwaway . The band was obviously motivated to disassemble the originals for new listeners , and they ’ ve succeeded . We love the original versions , but Locked Down & Stripped is a satisfying benchmark from “ that pandemic year .”
- John Vernon
8
JONATHAN RICHMAN Having a Party with Jonathan Richman
( Reprise )
Craft ’ s 30th anniversary reissue of Jonathan Richman ’ s third solo album marks the first wide vinyl release of Having a Party with Jonathan Richman . The limited run is pressed onto Bermuda seafoam green vinyl in homage to the album ’ s freewheeling concert recording of “ Monologue About Bermuda .” During the rambling but immersive song , Richman keeps his audience in stitches . He abandons one story to tell another one about his numbered days with the Modern Lovers and his pivot from the band ’ s “ stiff ” and jagged , Velvet Undergroundinspired punk toward laid-back Caribbean sounds spiked with rockabilly . He even quotes “ She Cracked ” in the process . “ Nothing snotty about that song , is there ?”, he says , drawing laughs from the crowd . Having a Party ’ s mixture of live and studio performances draws upon the range of Richman ’ s appeal , featuring his penchant for deceptively simple , catchy , and generally upbeat pop / rock songs about everyday topics . In fact , Richman counts on fans ’ familiarity with the ground he ’ s mining . In his liner notes , Richman confesses that he ’ s not breaking new ground . Having a Party refines the art , nonetheless . “ If you liked that , you ’ ll love this ,” he writes . The album predates Richman ’ s shift toward nylon-stringed acoustic guitars , although you ’ ll hear one on the sweet and amorous “ When She Kisses Me .” The singer switches from strummy electric rhythm to twanging surfrock and rockabilly leads on live numbers
26 illinoisentertainer . com july 2021 like the over-caffeinated “ Cappuccino Bar ” as the spirit moves . He ’ s otherwise accompanied by sparse but spirited percussion on studio cuts including night-owl manifesto “ At Night ” and hand-claps from supportive audiences during live selections . “ Now , you ’ re gonna get ready to gimme a beat , right , when the time comes ?,” he asks at one point . Richman is slightly less light-hearted on “ The Girl Stands Up to Me Now ,” but still steers the song toward celebratory affirmation . Richman may lose more arguments now that his lover has found her inner strength , but he sings , “ Now I think I like her better – tough , tough , tough .” The mood darkens further for the tango “ My Career as a Homewrecker ” and its confessional tale of youthful indiscretions and misadventures that grow into willful obsession . “ They ’ re Not Tryin ’ on the Dance Floor ” foreshadows the abandon that Richman eventually found in the industrial zone an album later on 1992 ’ s I , Jonathan with “ I Was Dancing in the Lesbian Bar .” The tuneful trash-talk hits close to home , insulting our neighbors to the north while describing how boring the night life has become at a particular spot . “ Like Sheboygan or Eau Claire , they ’ re just … there ,” sings Richman with deadpan derision in his Boston accent . Centralia is singled out as an allegedly dull town for hoofing it in Illinois . Connecting with Richman ’ s winking humor is the fact that the live songs on Having a Party were recorded at venues in Wisconsin and Illinois , including Chicago ’ s late great Lounge Ax . Richman lets his punk roots show during the brash “ She Doesn ’ t Laugh at My Jokes .” The singer is mystified that his lover can remain so stony serious in the face of such “ a fine sense of humor .” Played before a receptive crowd , “ When I Say Wife ” finds Richman struggling with a more appropriate word for his spouse that doesn ’ t sound like either property or drudgery . “ Just for Fun ” celebrates a free-spirited and commitment-free fling . The rockabilly twang of “ Our Swingin ’ Pad ” serves as a theme song for Having a Party . “ I need friends to come over to our swingin ’ pad ,” sings Richman , forever in search of a rockin ’ good time with his beatnik pals .
During the monologue “ 1963 ,” Richman pines for an idyllic past that was only ever a fantasy . Producer Brennan Totten ’ s liner notes advance this idea , noting how Richman ’ s music inhabits that same imaginary space . He writes , “ I heard someone say once that Jonathan made
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kind of made it like , ‘ Oh , wow .’ Like , ‘ Yeah , like we have been doing this in this city for a long time , and it ' s cool for something as big as the city to recognize it .’ Definitely , nothing we ever anticipated when we started this band .”
On Nowhere Generation , Rise Against hasn ' t lost any of the passion found in their previous works . Recorded at the band ’ s studio of choice , The Blasting Room in Fort Collins , CO , the album was produced by longtime producers Bill Stevenson ( Descendents , Black Flag ), Jason Livermore and Andrew Berlin , and Chris Beeble . Nowhere Generation is slick but far from soulless , with songs ranging from dire and dangerous (“ Rules Of Play ”) to blistering and acidic (“ Monarch ”) to lush and vulnerable (“ Forfeit ”). The record ’ s title track is an immediately inviting anthem laced with pop-punk hooks centered around McIlrath , delivering a rallying cry for gen Z and millennials alike . “ We are the nowhere generation / We are the kids that no one wants / We are a credible threat to the rules you set / A cause to be alarmed ,” the frontman sings , channeling the voices of so many in a Rise Against crowd . “ The Numbers ,” meanwhile , goes hard , fast , and mean , as McIlrath snarls out lines like “ These cold nights are almost unbearable / But purpose keeps us warm ” and “ At this velocity / One wrong move and we go down ,” overdriving guitars , ominous bass , and purposeful percussion . The track ’ s lyric video features footage of activist protests , police brutality , and general unrest and ends with the text “ What will we allow ?”
As much as anything the band has written , “ Nowhere Generation ” and " The Numbers " perfectly encapsulate the message of Rise Against , practically serving as mission statements for the band ’ s ethos . “ Yeah . I think a mission statement is a
great way to put it ,” McIlrath states . “ We ' re always trying to double down ... on our mission . We ' re also always trying to explain who we are to the incoming freshmen class . Like we always want to put our flag down and be like , ‘ Alright . Maybe you know who we are . Maybe you don ' t . But here ' s a reminder of who we are , or if you ' re new here , this is what we do and what we sing about . So if you identify with that , come with us . And if you don ' t , there ' s plenty of other bands out there .’ You know what I mean ? But it ' s like , if you ' re a part of this , we want to be that landing pad when you come in .”
“ I think the records and the songs , they ' re always like a beacon ,” he continues . “ They ' re always this lighthouse for wayward ships . Like we want to try to see . Like if there ' s somebody out there lost , we want to make sure like , ‘ Yo , we ' re here for you . There ' s a community of us here . And if you want to get on board . Come check it out .’” “ I think ( the mission statement label ) is very accurate ,” Principe agrees . “ When
we wrote the music for (“ The Numbers ” and “ Nowhere Generation ”), I never know which direction Tim ' s going to go in . If I write a song , I kinda can tell the direction that he might take it into . But when I heard that song , especially “ The Numbers ,” I was like , ‘ Wow , this is the summary .’ If you looked up , yeah , Rise Against summary , like this is fucking it . I want the youth to hear that song . I want the youth to hear “ Nowhere Generation .” I was proud to play it for my kids . Like your voice is powerful . Speak up .”
There ’ s an awareness of the next generation on the record . Two decades ago , McIlrath and Principe were up-and-coming underdogs of the punk scene . Now , they deliver hope and radical anthems from major stages to the kids in the crowd
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