''Carnival Boy'' is the debut solo album by the former
Guided by Voices member
Tobin Sprout
Tobin Sprout (born April 28, 1955) is an American visual artist, musician, songwriter, and children's author. He is best known as a former member of the indie rock band Guided by Voices. He served as a secondary major songwriter and guitarist o ...
, released in 1996.
Production
The album was produced by Sprout. "The Bone Yard" is an instrumental track. GBV's
Kevin Fennell played drums on the album; Sprout played all of the other instruments.
Critical reception
''
Entertainment Weekly
''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, and popular cu ...
'' called the album "more carefully crafted and compositionally linear but no less infectious" than
Robert Pollard
Robert Ellsworth Pollard Jr. (born October 31, 1957) is an American singer and songwriter who is the leader and creative force behind indie rock group Guided by Voices. In addition to his work with Guided by Voices, he continues to have a prol ...
's ''
Not in My Airforce
''Not in My Airforce'' (1996) is the debut solo album by American indie rock musician Robert Pollard, released simultaneously with Tobin Sprout's '' Carnival Boy'', just as the "classic" Guided by Voices lineup was dissolving.Robert Pollardat Dis ...
'', released at the same time.
''
Rolling Stone
''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its ...
'' deemed it "a collection of 14 pristinely crafted baubles, all in the manner of GBV's trippy, hard pop ... Of the two solo albums, ''Carnival Boy'' feels more vital, possibly because Sprout's musical voice isn't as familiar as Pollard's." ''
Newsday'' thought that "the album's disposition goes from plaintive folksiness ('Gas Daddy Gas'), which gives way to a rave-up punker ('White Flyer') and back to a wistful bucketful of excuses ('I Didn't Know')."
AllMusic
AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databa ...
wrote that "even though Sprout has a bit more focus than Pollard, ''Carnival Boy'' is still hit-and-miss, featuring as many rough pop gems as outright duds, but it does confirm that he is a talented songwriter in his own right."
The ''
Chicago Reader'' deemed the album "mellow, sentimental pop."
Track listing
# "The Natural Alarm" – 2:59
# "Cooler Jocks" – 1:16
# "E's Navy Blue" – 2:43
# "The Bone Yard" – 1:17
# "Carnival Boy" – 2:48
# "Martin's Mounted Head " – 2:17
# "Gas Daddy Gas" – 2:20
# "To My Beloved Martha" – 2:09
# "White Flyer" – 1:43
# "I Didn't Know" – 2:33
# "Gallant Men" – 1:26
# "It's Like Soul Man" – 2:34
# "Hermit Stew" – 2:01
# "The Last Man Well Known to Kingpin" – 2:23
References
{{Authority control
1996 albums
Tobin Sprout albums
Matador Records albums