The Replacements

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For other uses, see The Replacements (disambiguation).
The Replacements

Background information
Origin Flag of United States Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA
Genre(s) Alternative rock
College rock
Punk rock
Hardcore punk
Years active 1979 — 1991
2005
Label(s) Twin/Tone Records
Sire Records
Members
Paul Westerberg
Tommy Stinson
Slim Dunlap
Steve Foley
Former members
Bob Stinson
Chris Mars

The Replacements (also known as The 'Mats or The Mats, from the insult of a detractor who joked the band's name was 'The Placemats', which the band then adopted) were an alternative rock band from Minneapolis, Minnesota. They began as a punk rock outfit, along with other hometown heroes Hüsker Dü, but they gradually shifted to a more mainstream, blues-influenced rock style. Loud and exuberant, the band featured guitarist and vocalist Paul Westerberg, guitarist Bob Stinson, bassist Tommy Stinson, and drummer Chris Mars. Bassist Tommy Stinson was just 12 years old when the group first formed.

The band drew most of their limited popularity from teenagers and people in their early twenties, as a huge bulk of their songs pertained to teenaged angst and desired independence, especially in their earlier days. Songs such as "Kids Don't Follow" and "Bastards of Young" showed the band's desire to almost remain as free-spirited children. The band showed up drunk to many of their live performances in which they just did drunken covers of songs.

The Replacements would release seven albums and one EP in the nine years from 1981 to 1990 before they broke up in 1991 and would tour with such people and bands as R.E.M. and Tom Petty. All the members of The Replacements would go on to various levels of success as solo artists after the dissolution of the band.

Contents

[edit] History

[edit] Formation and Twin Tone years (1979-1984)

The band first formed in Southwest Minneapolis as Dogbreath in 1979 as a punk rock group. Bob Stinson, his brother Tommy Stinson, and Chris Mars had been jamming together in the Stinson's house when they were approached by Paul Westerberg and his guitar, bringing the four together for the first time. The band then took the name The Impediments for its first show, which was at a halfway house, but they were kicked out for being drunk. The person who booked them vowed to have them blacklisted in Minneapolis-St. Paul, so they quickly changed their name to The Replacements.

Their first album, 1981's Sorry Ma, Forgot to Take Out the Trash, features fast, aggressive songs, with lyric subjects ranging from drinking and driving to a love song about the cashier at a convenience store. Their punky songs dominated the band's setlists for years. However, singer/songwriter Paul Westerberg gave a hint of things to come on the B-side to the "I'm in Trouble" single. "If Only You Were Lonely" featured Westerberg alone on acoustic guitar, pouring out a soulful ballad that sounded more like a Merle Haggard song than it did the Replacements. Their first and only EP, 1982's Stink, was recorded in one day at Blackberry Way studio. It followed in same style as their first album. After this the band started to turn to other styles of rock, apparent on their second album, 1983's Hootenanny. One listener at the time commented that it sounded like a compilation album.

The band was infamous for their rowdy, drunken shows. Sometimes the band would show up too drunk to play their own songs, and instead play covers, which they were also too drunk to play. It was not uncommon for them to play entire sets of covers, ranging anywhere from Bryan Adams' "Summer of '69" to Dusty Springfield's "The Look of Love". When they played CBGB, the legendary New York City club, there was a classic moment of Westerberg wit when they played a sloppy rendition of The Beatles's universally recognized "Let It Be," but with Westerberg singing the lyrics to his very own "Fuck School". The band decided that they couldn't be the best band that ever played at the legendary venue, but they could be the worst.

While driving around in the van listening to tapes of their new work and arguing about what to name the album, they decided that the next song to come on the radio would be the name of their next album. That song was "Let It Be" by The Beatles. Let It Be, released in 1984, is considered a high-water mark of the 1980s alternative scene. The band began to garner serious attention, especially when R.E.M. guitarist Peter Buck began name-dropping the band in interviews ( and playing the guitar solo on "I Will Dare"). A major-label bidding war broke out, eventually won by Sire Records. The band celebrated by releasing "The Shit Hits the Fans," a cassette-only release from a booze-soaked gig in the Midwest that was allegedly confiscated from a fan once it was discovered that he had bootlegged the sloppy, yet brilliant, show.

[edit] Major label (1984-1991)

The Replacements' first major-label release, Tim on Sire, was produced by Tommy Erdelyi (a.k.a. Tommy Ramone of the Ramones). It contains classics like "Kiss Me on the Bus" and "Bastards of Young".

Bob Stinson left the band following Tim ostensibly due to substance abuse, though some suggest the split was due more to creative tension; Stinson preferred the louder, faster Mats, while Westerberg was exploring new territory in ballads like "Here Comes a Regular" and "Swingin' Party." The remaining Replacements carried on as a trio for Pleased to Meet Me (1987). Minneapolis guitarist Slim Dunlap took over lead guitar duties for the subsequent tour, and soon became a full member of the band.

During this time, they acquired an "anti-video" reputation. The video for "Bastards of Young" featured nothing more than a single shot of a speaker, while "The Ledge" (which MTV would not play on account of the lyrical themes) featured the band sitting around in a room with chairs and a sofa doing nothing in particular. This video was recycled for "Alex Chilton".

The band's next album, Don't Tell a Soul, was a quieter, less punky affair, largely considered a stab for mainstream success. While the move cost the Replacements appreciation of some hardcore fans, the album had a number of strong songs, mostly notably "Achin' to Be" and "I'll Be You", which topped Billboard's Modern Rock chart. But there was trouble within the band following a disastrous tour opening for Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers. Westerberg recorded a new album largely with session musicians, but was persuaded to release it as a Replacements album. All Shook Down won critical praise and more mainstream attention, though the many guest players and Mars' quick departure from the band following the album's release led many to wonder about the future of the band.

[edit] Breakup (1991-Present)

On July 4th, 1991, the band officially broke up following a frantic Taste of Chicago performance in Grant Park, referred to by fans as "It Ain't Over 'Til the Fat Roadie Plays" because each member disappeared during the set, their respective roadies taking their places. This show was broadcast by Chicago radio station WXRT. There are several bootlegs floating around the internet

Westerberg, Stinson, Dunlap and Mars have all produced solo albums. Stinson formed the short-lived Bash & Pop, the band Perfect, continues playing with Guns N' Roses and in 2004 released a solo CD titled Village Gorilla Head. Westerberg is currently signed to Vagrant Records, and under his alias, Grandpaboy, to Fat Possum Records, and has released both a DVD and a CD under the title Come Feel Me Tremble. The DVD features some professional footage interspersed with fan footage (for which Paul thanks his fans, left-handedly, in the DVD's titles). Both the CD and DVD are widely considered by fans and critics to be a welcome return to his looser, younger days. The DVD is especially notable for its footage of Westerberg in his basement studio. Folker, his latest, released in September 2004, is a delightful return to the melodic low-fi brilliance of the Replacements—but also a mature work reflecting a man in his early 40s. Mars primarily works as a visual artist. After Bob Stinson left the band he formed Static Taxi with three musicians from the Minneapolis band Uptown. They recorded three albums before folding in 1991. He died in 1995.

On March 28th, 2006, Rhino records announced the release of a best-of The Replacements compilation, entitled Don't You Know Who I Think I Was?. It was released on June 13th, 2006. The compilation consists of songs from both Twin/Tone and Sire/Reprise records years and includes two new songs entitled "Pool & Dive" and "Message To The Boys". Both songs were written by Westerberg and recorded by the band at Flowers Studio in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Session musician Josh Freese (The Vandals, A Perfect Circle, ex-Guns N' Roses) played drums on the two tracks, while Mars contributed backing vocals. Slim Dunlap did not participate in the sessions.

[edit] Legacy

The Replacements' career is chronicled in the book Our Band Could Be Your Life, a study of several important American underground rock groups. They were also paid homage (or were parodied) by They Might Be Giants with the 1986 song "We're The Replacements", which spurred rumors on MTV that John and John of TMBG had been former roadies for the band. 'I'm In Love With That Song: A Tribute to The Replacements' was released on Tomboy Records in 1999 and included Mick Thomas and Nick Barker performing 'Skyway'. Tommy Womack has a tribute song on his album Circus Town titled simply The Replacements.

[edit] Members

Audio samples of The Replacements

[edit] Discography

Main article: The Replacements discography

[edit] Albums


[edit] External links

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