Fountains of Wayne (album)

Fountains of Wayne
Studio album by Fountains of Wayne
Released October 1, 1996
Recorded January and April 1996,
The Place, New York, NY
Genre Power pop, alternative rock
Length 36:17
Label Atlantic/TAG Recordings/Scratchie Records
92725-2
Producer Adam Schlesinger
Fountains of Wayne chronology

Fountains of Wayne
(1996)
Utopia Parkway
(1999)

Fountains of Wayne is the self-titled debut album of power pop band Fountains of Wayne. It was released on TAG Recordings, Scratchie Records, and Atlantic Records in 1996.

Recording

Recorded when the band was just a duo, before the recruitment of drummer Brian Young and guitarist Jody Porter to the band, Collingwood and Schlesinger provided all the instrumentation during the recording, except for the bass guitar parts, which were performed by ex-The Belltower bassist Danny Weinkauf.[1] Schlesinger and Porter had also been members of The Belltower, and Weinkauf later played with Lincoln before joining They Might Be Giants.[2] Written over a period of years as outlets to make each other laugh through inside jokes and references to suburban life in New York and New Jersey, the songs on the album were recorded in five days. Dominique Durand of the band Ivy, of which Schlesinger is also a member, provided backing vocals on "Survival Car".[1]

Cover

The album's cover photo of a little boy clutching a rabbit and posing like a superhero was shot by Nick Waplington. It was also used for the album cover of Plastic Jewels by the UK band Flamingoes, which came out in the US two weeks before this album.[3]

Release

The album was met with moderate commercial success and favorable reviews. Songs from it were featured on MTV's 120 Minutes program.

A reissue of the vinyl was recently released on Yep Roc records.

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source Rating
Allmusic link
Entertainment Weekly (B) link
Pitchfork Media (8.9/10) link
Robert Christgau (A−) link

Track listing

All lyrics written by Chris Collingwood and Adam Schlesinger, all music composed by Collingwood and Adam Schlesinger.

No. Title Length
1. "Radiation Vibe"   3:40
2. "Sink to the Bottom"   3:12
3. "Joe Rey"   2:40
4. "She's Got a Problem"   3:26
5. "Survival Car"   2:02
6. "Barbara H."   3:22
7. "Sick Day"   4:33
8. "I've Got a Flair"   2:52
9. "Leave the Biker"   2:42
10. "You Curse at Girls"   2:05
11. "Please Don't Rock Me Tonight"   2:50
12. "Everything's Ruined"   2:44

Credits

References

  1. 1.0 1.1 "Fountains of Wayne at Discogs". Discogs.com. Retrieved 22 August 2011.
  2. "This might be a wiki – Danny Weinkauf". tmbw.net (They Might Be Giants knowledge base). Retrieved 22 August 2011.
  3. "Allmusic review of Plastic Jewels". Retrieved 2012-10-24.