Red House Painters (Rollercoaster)

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Red House Painters
Red House Painters cover
Studio album by Red House Painters
Released Flag of the United Kingdom May 24, 1993
Flag of the United States May 25, 1993
Recorded Summer 1992 - Spring 1993
Genre Folk rock, sadcore
Length 76:13
Label 4AD
Producer Mark Kozelek
Professional reviews
Red House Painters chronology
Down Colorful Hill
(1992)		 Red House Painters
(1993)		 Red House Painters
(1993)

Red House Painters (also known as Rollercoaster to distinguish it from the second eponymous album, also known as Bridge) is the second album by the group Red House Painters, released in spring 1993 by 4AD. 8 remaining songs from the same recording sessions made up the band's second self-titled album, Bridge. The lengthy album gives voice to Mark Kozelek's haunted lyrics of pain, desolation and loss, while musically running the gamut from the folk-pop of "Grace Cathedral Park" and "Mistress" to the stark, affecting "New Jersey" and onto the lengthy, droning soundscapes of "Funhouse" and "Mother." The chorus of "Dragonflies" is based on a famous haiku by Chiyo-ni. It is considered by many fans as their magnum opus, a point which Mark Kozelek acknowledges as he discusses the Rollercoaster album in the forward of the 2002 edition (and revised 2008 edition) of his lyrics book Nights of Passed Over:

“ ...I know the Rollercoaster album is many people's favorite. But for me, it is and will always be the most difficult to get through. I hadn't heard it in years, and though there are some beautiful things I had forgotten about -- a delicate piano in "Things Mean a Lot," the way the band brings life to "Brown Eyes" midway through, and the chorus of "Strawberry Hill," which was sung by a group of strangers we gathered from outside the Divisadero Street studio where we were recording -- what I remembered most, even when I look at the album's cover, is nine months of worry. ”

The album's artwork features a sepia-toned picture of the now-demolished rollercoaster Thunderbolt on Coney Island. An original idea for the album's front cover artwork was a close-up, sepia-toned photo of a fish head.[1]

Contents

[edit] Track listing

[edit] CD release:

  1. "Grace Cathedral Park" – 3:52
  2. "Down Through" – 2:38
  3. "Katy Song" – 8:25
  4. "Mistress" – 4:05
  5. "Things Mean a Lot" – 3:24
  6. "Funhouse" – 9:18
  7. "Take Me Out" – 4:48
  8. "Rollercoaster" – 4:17
  9. "New Jersey" – 3:58
  10. "Dragonflies" – 3:58
  11. "Mistress" (Piano Version) – 4:33
  12. "Mother" – 13:06
  13. "Strawberry Hill" – 7:35
  14. "Brown Eyes" – 1:48

[edit] Double 12" vinyl release:

Side A:

  1. "Grace Cathedral Park" – 3:52
  2. "Down Through" – 2:38
  3. "Katy Song" – 8:25
  4. "Mistress" – 4:05

Side B:

  1. "Things Mean a Lot" – 3:24
  2. "Funhouse" – 9:18
  3. "Take Me Out" – 4:48

Side C:

  1. "Rollercoaster" – 4:17
  2. "New Jersey" – 3:58
  3. "Dragonflies" – 3:58
  4. "Mistress" (Piano Version) – 4:33

Side D:

  1. "Mother" – 13:06
  2. "Strawberry Hill" – 7:35
  3. "Brown Eyes" – 1:48

[edit] Remastered

Red House Painters' 4AD catalog was remastered and reissued on CD in the late 1990s:

[edit] Notes

  • Images by W.K.V.L.
  • 4AD release: DAD 3008 (vinyl), DAD 3008 CD (UK CD), GAD 3008 CD (US CD)
  • Warner Bros. release: 9 45256-2 (US CD)

[edit] Reviews

[edit] References

  1. ^ Red House Painters' first album cover artwork idea, 4AD's website

[edit] See also