Family Man (Black Flag album)

Family Man
Studio album by Black Flag
Released	September 1984
Recorded	December 1983, June 1984
Genre	Hardcore punk, spoken word, instrumental rock, jazz fusion
Length	33:26
Label	SST
Producer	Harvey Robert Kubernik Henry Rollins Spot
Black Flag chronology
My War (1984) Family Man (1984) Slip It In (1984)

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[1]
AllAboutJazz	Very Positive [2]

Family Man is the third full-length album released by the American hardcore punk band Black Flag in 1984. It is unique in that one side features spoken-word tracks by vocalist Henry Rollins and the other side mainly features instrumental tracks. "Armageddon Man" is the only track on the album in which Rollins and the instruments are together. It is also (along with The Process of Weeding Out) one of the most divisive works of Black Flag's career. The album's half spoken-word and half jazz fusion heavy metal style was disarming to many Black Flag fans, already surprised by the direction of the preceding album, My War. However, despite alienating many fans, the record has attained a cult status over the years, particularly with fans of jazz and experimental metal.

Track listing

All songs written by Henry Rollins, except where noted.

Side A

1. "Family Man" – 1:17
2. "Salt on a Slug" – 1:30
3. "Hollywood Diary" – 0:32
4. "Let Your Fingers Do the Walking" – 2:30
5. "Shed Reading (Rattus Norvegicus)" – 1:23
6. "No Deposit - No Return" – 0:40
7. "Armageddon Man" (Ginn/Rollins) – 9:12

Side B

1. "Long Lost Dog of It" (Ginn/Roessler/Stevenson) – 2:03
2. "I Won't Stick Any of You Unless and Until I Can Stick All of You!" (Ginn) – 5:48
3. "Account for What?" (Ginn) – 4:18
4. "The Pups Are Doggin' It" (Ginn/Roessler/Stevenson) – 4:13

Personnel

• Henry Rollins - vocals
• Greg Ginn - guitar
• Kira Roessler - bass
• Bill Stevenson - drums
• Raymond Pettibon - Artwork

Charts

References