The Smithereens: Meet The Smithereens! CD Track Listing

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The Smithereens Meet The Smithereens! (2007)
Originally Released January 16, 2007\n\nAMG EXPERT REVIEW: Hey kids, have you heard about the Beatles? They're this terrific group from England, and the Smithereens are here to tip you off about their exciting new sound! What's that? You already know all about the Beatles? Well, that's the Achilles' heel of this disc, the first set of new recordings from the Smithereens since 1999. Meet the Smithereens! is a tribute to Meet the Beatles!, the album Capitol Records put together to help introduce the Fab Four to American audiences in 1964. Meet the Smithereens! features the same 12 tunes in the same order as that iconic Beatles LP, and while the arrangements aren't letter-perfect re-creations of the original recordings, the Smithereens offer up very faithful interpretations of a dozen songs most serious rock fans know by heart. There's no arguing that these are great tunes, and the Smithereens are certainly up to the task of playing them, but the trouble is, the boys from New Jersey don't bring much of their own approach or personality to the material beyond the presence of Pat DiNizio's voice, which adds a moody undertow to the giddy excitement of "I Saw Her Standing There" and "All My Loving" (though it fits the heartache of "This Boy" like a glove). Something like this might work on-stage, where the energy and immediacy of a live performance always add an extra dimension to the music, but on disc, it's hard to do much besides compare these recordings to the originals, and let's face it, no one is going to play the songs from Meet the Beatles! better than the lads from Liverpool themselves. Viewed strictly as a collection of great pop songs played well by a veteran group, Meet the Smithereens! is fun listening, but at the same time it's a singularly pointless album, serving less to guide music fans to worthy artists they haven't been exposed to (the goal of the best and most valuable tribute albums) than to wade through the nostalgia of both musician and audience. You're much better off pulling your old copy of Meet the Beatles! (or Especially for You) out of the crate instead. -- Mark Deming\n\nAmazon.com Editorial Review\nSometimes recording even a single Beatles cover can be a perilous undertaking. So for the Smithereens to have the impudence to rerecord Meet the Beatles in its entirety (even though some purists don't recognize it as canonical) is like taking the studio to edge of the cliff. But wait! While reaching the Fab Four stratosphere is impossible, this New Jersey pop combo, whose last record was released in 1999, comes about as close as any band could in celebrating the 43rd anniversary of this groundbreaking record. Sure, the lead-vocal fury that Lennon and McCartney created in 1964 can't be restored, and the three-part harmonies are less than hair-raising. But from the opening three chords of "I Want to Hold Your Hand," the Smithereens are respectful to the album's legacy, and let virtually no element slip past them. There's that "1-2-3-4!" countdown to "I Saw Her Standing There," the same virile harmonica in "Little Child," and a doo-wop tang to the ever-underappreciated "This Boy." And when "Not a Second Time" fades out the last of the album's 28 minutes, it leaves you wondering if the boys are bold enough to take a crack at Abbey Road in September 2009. --Scott Holter \n\n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nWhy Complain?, March 25, 2007\nReviewer: bub "old school zombie fan" (the cemetery)\nif you don't like it...why did you buy it? you do realize you can sample music before hand right? so I must assume that the negative reviews are from people who are dim-witted or have a vested interest in slagging this band. This is a TRIBUTE!! not an attempt to re-interpret or improve upon the Beatles original greatness. And as for the reviewer who complained about the length...what do you want? maybe the fellas could tack on a 20 minute blues jam or something? I personally enjoyed it and I don't mind at all that it is a straight cover. Again SAMPLE THE TUNES FIRST!!! then if you don't like it don't buy it.\n\n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nJersey Boys do the Mersey Boys Proud..., March 25, 2007\nReviewer: Sam F (Basking Ridge, NJ)\nWhat a bold endeavor by the pride of Carteret and Scotch Plains, New Jersey. Not only do they nail it in terms of preserving the original arrangements, but they do it their own way - and it comes across loud and clear. \n\nListen to Jimmy's guitar drive "I Saw Her Standing There" and "Hold Me Tight", with the break in that tune sounding just like one of Pat's Smithereens signatures. "Til There Was You" is an extraordinary combination of acoustic and tremolo electric guitar, with another of Pat's fantastic vocals. Not satisfied? Check out Pat's harmony on "This Boy" with yet another great acoustic and electric guitar accompaniment. \n\nSmithereens fans and Beatles purists alike need to include this album in their collection. It was a project undertaken with the utmost love and respect for perhaps the most prolific band in the history of rock and roll. And who knew Kenny's Castaways could one day be described as "Cavernesque"?\n\n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nRock 'n' Roll Fantasy, March 25, 2007\nReviewer: Joel Bellman "Britbeat Fan" (Los Angeles, CA)\n\nSince Pat and the band have spent their lives in awe and admiration of the top-tier British Invasion bands - and there never was and never will be anyone more top tier than the once and future Fab Four - it's both fitting and inevitable that they would evolve from worshipful disciples into...well, even more worshipful disciples. At some point, homage can tip over into imitation; while they're not quite there yet, they come closer than they've ever been. From title to track lineup, the spirit of the Fabs in their initial Merseybeat incarnation (as we American kids were first introduced to them) hovers closely over this project, whose genesis lies in an initially reluctant 'Reens reunion for a Beatle convention. The result evokes rather than replicates the era, unavoidably lacking either the freshness or the sheer energy and excitement of the original - which clearly nothing could have topped, not even the rest of the Beatles' own superb catalogue. But as an earnest and affectionate tribute to their formative influence, it's not half bad. And if it sends you back for another (or even an introductory) exploration of their own impressive inventory of original songs, this latest Smithereens release will have done its job.\n\n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nThose of us avid record buyers of a certain age...., March 24, 2007\nReviewer: greyhoundude (Corvallis, OR)\nwill remember a label back in the early 1970's called Pickwick. This label specialized in releasing (at a huge discount) knock-off LPs of inferior music not by the original artists, but rather performed by studio musicians of unknown origin mimicking the original artist. \n\nRemember? \n\nThese LPs were never totally deceptive. A careful look at the LP cover showed that it was a band called something like The Tribes faking an appearance (complete with phony crowd noise) at someplace like Woodstock, playing note for note copies of, say, CSNY tunes. You'd listen, unconvinced by the performance and end up running back to the originals as fast as possible....a expensive lesson learned by my 13-year-old self. \n\nThat's kind of what this Smithereens release reminds me of. Honest to God, it sounds like an anonymous group of musicians (albeit good musicians) firing off a collection of Beatles tunes destined for a budget label in 1972. \n\nI love the Smithereens as much as anyone, but this release, to my mind, is unnecessary. It simply sent me running back to my Beatles albums.\n\n\n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nAnd now...The Smithereens, March 19, 2007\nReviewer: R. DelParto (Virginia Beach, VA USA)\n\nWith the opening guitar riffs and handclaps and the lines, "Oh, yeah I..." the Smithereens take listeners down memory lane and pay homage to their mop top musical heroes, The Beatles, with their tribute album, "Meet the Smithereens." Although the songs are not exact reproductions of the original tracks, they come close with close-knit three-part harmonies and backbeat. The great thing about the band's version is that their recordings of the songs from the Beatles' "Meet the Beatles" sound like a combination of the Beatles' live concert and studio versions. For instance, "This Boy" and "Till There Was You" sound like the BBC live and Ed Sullivan Show versions, but the highlight of the album is "Hold Me Tight," which has that trademark Smithereens sound, raunchy three-chord progression, bass line, and drums. \n\nWorth noting is the album's liner notes. Included are commentaries from Smithereen drummer, Dennis Diken, Beatles historian, Bruce Spizer, Beatles promoter, Sid Bernstein, and a host of others who share their memories and first encounters with Beatlemania. There is also a hilarious section called "How you can become a Smithereen!" which mocks the pandemonium of Beatlemania. \n\nThe Smithereens do an exceptional job at recreating the energetic sound that launched the arrival of the Beatles to America's shores. And after listening to "Meet the Smithereens," pull out the Beatles original recording, and play both over and over again. \n\n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nExcellent Collection of Excellent Songs, February 17, 2007\nReviewer: JazzyJoeyD "JazzyJoeyD" (Central New Jersey)\nThe Smithereens have been a band that has never keep quiet about their influences, covering some of the songs and bands that influenced them throughout their career. In the past, they've recorded or performed live excellent covers of The Who's "Substitute" and "The Seeker" as well as The Beatles "The One After 909" for a Beatles tribute CD. Given their excellent treatment of these and other songs, it was no stretch for them to do a complete album of early Beatles covers because they know and love the material and play it well. \n\nThis CD, Meet The Smithereerns, will make a welcome addition to any Smitereens fan's CD collections as well as any Beatles fan's collection. The band is tight and the musicianship excellent. I give it my highest recommendation because this is a great band playing fun music, and these days, isn't it great to bring the fun back into rock 'n' roll?\n\n\nHalf.com Album Notes\nHave you met the Beatles? They had some hits back in the 1960s. On this 2007 release, mondo Beatle fans the Smithereens--who themselves had some chart action in the '80s--have reverently recreated the mop-tops' breakthrough 1964 album, breathing new life into the 12 classic gems that changed pop music forever.\nAlthough the arrangements never stray far from the originals, Pat Danizio and company infuse each track with their characteristic full-bodied sound, making "I Want to Hold Your Hand," "I Saw Her Standing There," and even ballads liked "This Boy" sound a little richer and a little more rocking. As a bonus, Lenny Kaye, promoter Sid Bernstein, and several other Beatle scholars provide educational and entertaining liner notes.\n\n\nROLLING STONE REVIEW\nThe improbably long-lived Smithereens have never been shy about their British Invasion influences -- now they make them more obvious with an inessential but fun tribute to the Beatles' American debut album. The Smithereens cover all twelve Meet the Beatles!'s tracks, hewing closely to the original arrangements, down to the hand claps in "I Want to Hold Your Hand." They add some deadpan vocals and a bit of extra guitar crunch, particularly goosing the ballad "Till There Was You" -- and against all odds they succeed in making forty-three-year-old music sound new again. -- GAVIN EDWARDS -- (Posted: Feb 8, 2007)\n
This rock cd contains 12 tracks and runs 28min 3sec.
Freedb: 8f06910c
Buy: from Amazon.com

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