Songs named after famous people number 3. In 1987 The Replacements released Pleased To Meet Me, an album with some great songs marred by some bad production. Lead Replacement Paul Westerberg got some kind of wish fulfilment here, recording a song in tribute to one of his heroes , Alex Chilton, who returned the favour by playing guitar on the song Can't Hardly Wait.
Alex Chilton
'Children by the million
Sing for Alex Chilton
I'm in love
with that song'
Westerberg's song is a song about being in love with a band and we can all identify with that. Alex Chilton wrote September Gurls so he pretty much gets a free pass from me.
While we're here the version of Can't Hardly Wait, recorded for the 1985 album Tim, but not used is to these ears superior to the one on Pleased To Meet Me. I've posted it before but it's worth a repost. Bob Stinson's guitar is electrifying, far more so than the later, sweeter, version with horns. This version makes some clear allusions to suicide in the lyrics, removed from the '87 one which was turned into being a song about touring.
Can't Hardly Wait (Tim Version)
Certainly sounds more like the Replacements than the polished version on Pleased to Meet Me. If I'm honest, though, I like both versions just about equally. I may have given that opinion here before. As for Big Star, they were a shining light during a dark period in American rock history. Earlier this year I read Bob Stanley's book on the history of pop, and I have to say the early to mid '70s chapters on American music was by far the slowest part of a very dense read.
ReplyDeletePleased To Meet Me was my introduction to the Replacements and I don't think I ever gave much thought to the production. Wasn't everything badly produced (one way or another) in the 80s?
ReplyDelete