By all indicators, I should be a really big fan of the band The Replacements.
I have their entire discography available to listen to, but just have never been able to dig into their music because the amount of material they have is pretty overwhelming to me and I don’t know where to start.
So, Replacements fans, give me a list of four or five songs/recordings that you think are a good “Gateway” for me to get into this band. I do enjoy the solo Paul Westerberg stuff, if that helps.
Hmm. Gateways for the “mats” is anything they have done.
I’d start with:
I Will Dare
IOU
Skyway
Alex Chilton
Bastards of Young
I won’t argue with yanceylebeef’s choices – great songs all – but my personal favorites would be:
My 5:
Since you like Westerberg’s solo stuff, I’d say that you should start with Don’t Tell a Soul. Assuming that you like that one, go back to Tim. If you’re still in, it’s safe to say that you like the Replacements and you’ll like everything.
I’m not a pick-five-songs kind of person since I almost always listen to CDs straight through. I couldn’t even tell you the names of some of my favorite songs. I just know what CD they’re on. Some of my favorite songs are on the two CDs I noted above.
My top 5:
Favorite Thing
I Will Dare
Color Me Impressed
Shiftless When Idle
Kiss Me on the Bus
Here Comes a Regular
I.O.U.
Oops, that’s 7, and I even pared it down!
And just for fun: Waitress in the Sky
Can’t Hardly Wait (Pleased To Meet Me)
Alex Chilton (Pleased To Meet Me)
Skyway (Pleased to Meet Me)
Kiss Me on the Bus (Tim)
I’ll Be You (Don’t Tell a Soul)
I agree with all of you. Love the 'Mats!
Everything off Let It Be and Tim? Wait, that’s probably cheating isn’t it.
Ok, my favorite songs that have not yet been mentioned:
Androgynous
Sixteen Blue
Then everything else in the thread. Extra points for Unsatisfied, Kiss Me on the Bus, and I Will Dare.
Oh, and Can’t Hardly Wait from Please to Meet Me is pretty good too, as is most of the rest of that album. Hootenanny is a good album too.
So many great songs. I agree with everything already mentioned and I’ll add some that haven’t:
Within Your Reach
Left Of The Dial
Bent Out Of Shape
Rock & Roll Ghost
Can’t Hardly Wait (the Tim version, released on All For Nothing/Nothing For All)
Some more (I can’t stop):
I Hate Music
Johnny’s Gonna Die
Hold My Life
Yeah, honestly, even though I made a list in this thread, I’d say just listen to Tim. It’s got all the elements of why people love them, and it’s the perfect bridge between their earlier, more punky stuff and their later, more “mature” work.
I’d start with one of the mid-period albums, either Let It Be,Tim, or Pleased To Meet Me(my personal favorite). Then go forward or backwards depending on your tastes - for raw and punky go back to Sorry Ma… or Stink. For more mainstream, go forward to Don’t Tell A Soul.
Personally, I was always disappointed with the last album released under their name, “All Shook Down”. Then I found out it was supposed to be Westerberg’s first solo album, but Sire insisted on releasing it as a 'Mats disc. So don’t be surprised if it seems off somehow.
Five tracks:
Never Mind
I.O.U.
I Will Dare
Kiss Me On The Bus
Unsatisfied
The Ledge
Great approach. Pleased to Meet Me is my favorite as well.
I sense a Replacements listening binge coming on.
Mark me down as another vote for Pleased To Meet Me. I like everything on it.
Let me also mention that Paul Westerberg wasn’t the only band member who put out some pretty decent work after the smoke cleared. I enjoy Tommy Stinson’s album with Bash & Pop quite a bit, and Chris Mars’ first solo album, Horseshoes and Hand Grenades, genuinely surprised me (even if he’s not much of a singer).
I own, and really enjoy, all four of Mars’s solo albums, though they get increasingly uneven in quality. If it didn’t sound like a back-handed compliment, I’d say that, for a drummer, he’s a pretty good guitar player.
The set these are from is surprisingly good quality - really early Replacements do Hank Williams, among other things. Not a good intro necessarily, but fun stuff for aficionados. Look at how young Tommy Stinson is ;).
