Excitable Boy

Excitable Boy
Studio album by Warren Zevon
Released January 18, 1978
Recorded 1977, The Sound Factory, Los Angeles
Genre Rock
Length 31:29
Label Asylum
Producer Jackson Browne
Waddy Wachtel
Warren Zevon chronology

Warren Zevon
(1976)
Excitable Boy
(1978)
Bad Luck Streak in Dancing School
(1980)
Singles from Excitable Boy
  1. "Johnny Strikes Up the Band"
    Released: 1978
  2. "Excitable Boy"
    Released: 1978
  3. "Werewolves of London"
    Released: 1978
  4. "Nighttime in the Switching Yard"
    Released: 1978
  5. "Lawyers, Guns and Money"
    Released: 1978
Professional ratings
Review scores
Source Rating
AllMusic [1]
Music Box [2]
PopMatters 9/10[3]
Robert Christgau A−[4]
Rolling Stone (favorable)[5]

Excitable Boy is the third album by Warren Zevon, released in 1978. It includes the top 40 success "Werewolves of London". The album brought Warren to commercial attention and remains the best-selling album of his career. A remastered and expanded edition was released during 2007.[3]

The tracks "Excitable Boy" and "Werewolves of London" were considered macabrely humorous by some critics.[3] The historical "Veracruz" dramatizes the United States occupation of Veracruz, and likewise "Roland the Headless Thompson Gunner" is a fictionalization of a mercenary in Africa. "Lawyers, Guns and Money" is a tongue-in-cheek take on Cold War paranoia. In addition, there are two ballads about life and relationships ("Accidentally Like a Martyr" and "Tenderness on the Block"), as well as a dance tune ("Nighttime in the Switching Yard").

Track listing

All songs written by Warren Zevon except as noted.

  1. "Johnny Strikes Up the Band" – 2:49
  2. "Roland the Headless Thompson Gunner" (David Lindell, Zevon) – 3:47
  3. "Excitable Boy" (LeRoy Marinell, Zevon) – 2:40
  4. "Werewolves of London" (Marinell, Waddy Wachtel, Zevon) – 3:27
  5. "Accidentally Like a Martyr" – 3:37
  6. "Nighttime in the Switching Yard" (Jorge Calderón, Lindell, Wachtel, Zevon) – 4:15
  7. "Veracruz" (Calderón, Zevon) – 3:30
  8. "Tenderness on the Block" (Jackson Browne, Zevon) – 3:55
  9. "Lawyers, Guns and Money" – 3:29

Bonus Tracks (2007 reissue)

  1. "I Need a Truck" (Outtake) – 0:50
  2. "Werewolves of London" (Alternate version) (Marinell, Wachtel, Zevon) – 3:41
  3. "Tule's Blues" (Solo Piano Version) – 3:13
  4. "Frozen Notes" (Strings Version) – 1:59

Personnel

Additional personnel

Charts

Album

Year Chart Position
1978 Billboard Pop Albums 8

Singles

Year Single Chart Position
1978 "Werewolves of London" Billboard Pop Singles 21

Certifications

Organization Level Date
RIAA – U.S. Gold April 17, 1978
CRIA – Canada Gold June 1, 1978
RIAA – U.S. Platinum November 7, 1997

References