''Pleased to Meet Me'' is the fifth studio album by the American
rock
Rock most often refers to:
* Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids
* Rock music, a genre of popular music
Rock or Rocks may also refer to:
Places United Kingdom
* Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...
band
The Replacements, released in 1987 by
Sire Records
Sire Records (formerly Sire Records Company) is an American record label owned by Warner Music Group and distributed by Warner Records.
History Beginnings
The label was founded in 1966 as Sire Productions by Seymour Stein and Richard Gottehrer ...
. The album was acclaimed by music critics.
Background and recording
''Pleased to Meet Me'' is the only album recorded by the band as a trio. After their previous album ''
Tim'', guitarist
Bob Stinson
Robert Neil Stinson (December 17, 1959 – February 18, 1995) was an American musician best known as a founding member and lead guitarist of the American rock band The Replacements.
Biography
Early life
Bob Stinson was born on December 17 ...
was no longer with the band. Stinson was still a member when the album's demos were recorded in August 1986; however, he only showed up for one recording session.
The main recording sessions for the album took place at
Ardent Studios
Ardent Studios is an American recording studio located in Memphis, Tennessee, United States.
History
Ardent Studios was founded by John Fry and were initially a studio in his family's garage, where he recorded his first 45s for the Arden ...
in Memphis between November 1986 and January 1987, under the supervision of producer
Jim Dickinson
James Luther Dickinson (November 15, 1941 – August 15, 2009) was an American record producer, pianist, and singer who fronted, among others, the band Mud Boy and the Neutrons, based in Memphis, Tennessee.
Biography
Dickinson was born in Lit ...
.
Guitarist
Bob "Slim" Dunlap joined the band soon after the recording sessions.
Music and lyrics
While the
punk
Punk or punks may refer to:
Genres, subculture, and related aspects
* Punk rock, a music genre originating in the 1970s associated with various subgenres
* Punk subculture, a subculture associated with punk rock, or aspects of the subculture s ...
roots of the group were still apparent on ''Tim'', by ''Pleased to Meet Me'' they were there more in spirit as the band delved into other genres, such as
soul
In many religious and philosophical traditions, there is a belief that a soul is "the immaterial aspect or essence of a human being".
Etymology
The Modern English noun ''soul'' is derived from Old English ''sāwol, sāwel''. The earliest attes ...
and cocktail jazz, alongside tracks featuring their customary hard rocking sound. Perhaps due to the album's recording in
soul music
Soul music is a popular music genre that originated in the African American community throughout the United States in the late 1950s and early 1960s. It has its roots in African-American gospel music and rhythm and blues. Soul music became po ...
center
Memphis, Tennessee
Memphis is a city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the seat of Shelby County in the southwest part of the state; it is situated along the Mississippi River. With a population of 633,104 at the 2020 U.S. census, Memphis is the second-mos ...
, or the influence of producer
Jim Dickinson
James Luther Dickinson (November 15, 1941 – August 15, 2009) was an American record producer, pianist, and singer who fronted, among others, the band Mud Boy and the Neutrons, based in Memphis, Tennessee.
Biography
Dickinson was born in Lit ...
, the band augmented its sound with saxophone on the tracks "I Don't Know" and "Nightclub Jitters" and a
horn section
A horn section is a group of musicians playing horns. In an orchestra or concert band, it refers to the musicians who play the "French" horn, and in a British-style brass band it is the tenor horn players. In many popular music genres, the te ...
on "
Can't Hardly Wait
''Can't Hardly Wait'' is a 1998 American teen romantic comedy film written and directed by Deborah Kaplan and Harry Elfont. It stars an ensemble cast including Ethan Embry, Charlie Korsmo, Lauren Ambrose, Peter Facinelli, Seth Green, and Jenn ...
", which features
Big Star
Big Star was an American rock band formed in Memphis, Tennessee, in 1971 by Alex Chilton (vocals, guiar), Chris Bell (vocals, guitar), Jody Stephens (drums), and Andy Hummel (bass). The group broke up in early 1975, and reorganized with a ne ...
vocalist
Alex Chilton
William Alexander Chilton (December 28, 1950 – March 17, 2010) was an American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and record producer best known as the lead singer of the Box Tops and Big Star. Chilton's early commercial success in the 1960s ...
on guitar.
A music video was made for "The Ledge", but it was banned from airplay on
MTV
MTV (Originally an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable channel that launched on August 1, 1981. Based in New York City, it serves as the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group, part of Paramount Media Networks, a di ...
due to its lyrical content about suicide.
Artwork and release
The album's cover art mocks the band's transition from young punks to successful musicians with a major record deal, depicting a handshake between one person clad in a suit, starched white shirt, glitzy watch and diamond ring and the other wearing a ripped workshirt. Westerberg was the man in the ripped shirt, but his face was not shown in the shot used on the cover. The self-mocking tone continues on the song, "I Don't Know", with its chorus, "One foot in the door/The other one in the gutter."
The artwork is also an homage to the cover art of
Elvis Presley
Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977), or simply Elvis, was an American singer and actor. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Elvis Presley, one ...
’s 1960 soundtrack album
G.I. Blues
''G.I. Blues'' is a 1960 American musical comedy film directed by Norman Taurog and starring Elvis Presley and Juliet Prowse. The movie was filmed at Paramount Pictures studio, with some pre-production scenery shot on location in Germany before Pr ...
, from the
film of the same name.
''Pleased to Meet Me'' was released in 1987 by
Sire Records
Sire Records (formerly Sire Records Company) is an American record label owned by Warner Music Group and distributed by Warner Records.
History Beginnings
The label was founded in 1966 as Sire Productions by Seymour Stein and Richard Gottehrer ...
and peaked at #131 on the
Billboard Music Chart
The ''Billboard'' charts tabulate the relative weekly popularity of songs and albums in the United States and elsewhere. The results are published in '' Billboard'' magazine. ''Billboard'' biz, the online extension of the ''Billboard'' charts, p ...
's Top 200.
According to ''
Our Band Could Be Your Life
''Our Band Could Be Your Life: Scenes from the American Indie Underground, 1981–1991'' is a book by Michael Azerrad. It chronicles the careers of several underground rock bands who, while finding little or no mainstream success, were hugely ...
'' author
Michael Azerrad
Michael Azerrad is an American author, music journalist, editor, and musician. A graduate of Columbia University, he has written for publications such as '' Spin'', ''Rolling Stone'', and ''The New York Times''. Azerrad's 1993 biography '' Come ...
, the album sold "about 300,000 copies."
On September 23, 2008, ''Pleased to Meet Me'' was remastered and reissued by
Rhino Entertainment
Rhino Entertainment Company is an American specialty record label and production company founded in 1978. It is currently the catalog division for Warner Music Group. Its current CEO is Mark Pinkus.
History
Founded in 1978, Rhino was original ...
with 11 additional tracks consisting of studio demos, B-sides, and alternate takes.
New liner notes were written by
Peter Jesperson
Peter Jesperson is an American music industry businessman from Minneapolis, Minnesota, known for his involvement in discovering the Replacements, and for later serving as their manager. He also co-founded Twin/Tone Records along with Paul Stark an ...
.
In 2020, Rhino Entertainment released a deluxe edition that contained 3 CDs and 1 LP.
Critical reception
''Pleased to Meet Me'' was acclaimed by music critics. Writing for ''
Rolling Stone
''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...
'',
David Fricke
David Fricke is an American music journalist who serves as the senior editor at ''Rolling Stone'' magazine, where he writes predominantly about rock music. One of the best known names in rock journalism, his career has spanned over 40 years. I ...
described it as "an album alive with the crackle of conflicting emotions and kamikaze rock & roll fire."
In a retrospective review,
Stephen Thomas Erlewine
Stephen Thomas Erlewine (; born June 18, 1973) is an American music critic and senior editor for the online music database AllMusic. He is the author of many artist biographies and record reviews for AllMusic, as well as a freelance writer, occ ...
of
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 databas ...
felt that ''Pleased to Meet Me'' "was the last time
he Replacementscould still shoot for the stars and seem like their scrappy selves and, in many ways, it was the last true Replacements album".
The album appeared at number three in ''
The Village Voice
''The Village Voice'' is an American news and culture paper, known for being the country's first alternative newsweekly. Founded in 1955 by Dan Wolf, Ed Fancher, John Wilcock, and Norman Mailer, the ''Voice'' began as a platform for the crea ...
''s
Pazz & Jop
Pazz & Jop was an annual poll of top musical releases, compiled by American newspaper ''The Village Voice'' and created by music critic Robert Christgau. It published lists of the year's top releases for 1971 and, after Christgau's two-year abse ...
critics' poll for 1987.
In 2012, ''
Paste'' placed the record at number 70 on its list of "The 80 Best Albums of the 1980s".
Track listing
2020 Deluxe Edition
Personnel
*
Paul Westerberg
Paul Harold Westerberg (born December 31, 1959) is an American musician, best known as the lead singer, guitarist, and songwriter for the Replacements. Following the breakup of the Replacements, Westerberg launched a solo career that saw him re ...
– lead and background vocals, electric and acoustic guitars, piano (on "Nightclub Jitters"), six-string bass (on "Skyway", "Can't Hardly Wait"), harmonica (on "Can't Hardly Wait")
*
Tommy Stinson
Thomas Eugene Stinson (born October 6, 1966) is an American rock musician. He came to prominence in the 1980s as the bass guitarist for The Replacements, one of the definitive American alternative rock groups. After their breakup in 1991, Stins ...
– bass guitar (except "Skyway"), background vocals, upright bass (on "Nightclub Jitters"), acoustic guitar and guitar fills (on "Can't Hardly Wait")
*
Chris Mars
Chris Mars (born April 26, 1961) is an American painter and musician. He was the percussionist, drummer for the seminal Minneapolis based alternative-rock band The Replacements (band), The Replacements from 1979 to 1990, and later joined the inf ...
– drums, background vocals, cowbell (on "Alex Chilton"), foot tap (on "Skyway")
*
Jim Dickinson
James Luther Dickinson (November 15, 1941 – August 15, 2009) was an American record producer, pianist, and singer who fronted, among others, the band Mud Boy and the Neutrons, based in Memphis, Tennessee.
Biography
Dickinson was born in Lit ...
(credited as East Memphis Slim) – keyboards (on "I.O.U.", "The Ledge", "Can't Hardly Wait"), background vocals (on "I.O.U."), organ (on "Valentine"), vibes (on "Skyway")
* James "Vito" Lancaster – background vocals (on "I.O.U.", "Alex Chilton", "Shooting Dirty Pool")
*
Teenage Steve Douglas –
baritone sax
The baritone saxophone is a member of the saxophone family of instruments, larger (and lower-pitched) than the tenor saxophone, but smaller (and higher-pitched) than the bass. It is the lowest-pitched saxophone in common use - the bass, contra ...
(on "I Don't Know"), bass flute (on "The Ledge")
* Prince Gabe – saxophone (on "Nightclub Jitters")
*
Luther Dickinson
Luther Andrews Dickinson (born January 18, 1973) is the lead guitarist and vocalist for the North Mississippi Allstars and the son of record producer Jim Dickinson. He is also known for being the lead guitarist for The Black Crowes. He hosts ''G ...
– guitar solo (on "Shooting Dirty Pool")
*
Alex Chilton
William Alexander Chilton (December 28, 1950 – March 17, 2010) was an American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and record producer best known as the lead singer of the Box Tops and Big Star. Chilton's early commercial success in the 1960s ...
– guitar fills (on "Can't Hardly Wait")
* Max Huls – strings (on "Can't Hardly Wait")
*
The Memphis Horns
The Memphis Horns were an American horn section, made famous by their many appearances on Stax Records. The duo consisted of Wayne Jackson (November 24, 1941 – June 21, 2016) on trumpet and Andrew Love (November 21, 1941 - April 12, 2012) on ...
(on "Can't Hardly Wait"):
**
Andrew Love –
tenor sax
The tenor saxophone is a medium-sized member of the saxophone family, a group of instruments invented by Adolphe Sax in the 1840s. The tenor and the alto are the two most commonly used saxophones. The tenor is pitched in the key of B (while th ...
**
Ben Cauley (credited as Ben Jr.) – trumpet
* John Hampton – engineer, mixing
* Joe Hardy – engineer, mixing
*
Ted Jensen
Ted Jensen (born September 19, 1954) is an American mastering engineer, known for having mastered many recordings, including the Eagles' ''Hotel California'', Green Day's '' American Idiot'' and Norah Jones' ''Come Away with Me''.
Biography
Ted ...
– mastering
* James Lancaster – production Assistant, inner sleeve photography
* Daniel Corrigan – cover and inner sleeve photography
* Glenn Parsons – design
References
External links
*
{{Authority control
The Replacements (band) albums
1987 albums
Sire Records albums
Albums produced by Jim Dickinson