Randy Newman: Good Old Boys CD Track Listing

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Randy Newman Good Old Boys (1974)
Good Old Boys: Deluxe Edition - Disc 1 of 2\n2002 Rhino & Warner Bros. Records, Inc.\n\nOriginally Released 1974\nStandard CD Edition Released \nExpanded 2-CD Edition Released May 21, 2002\nBonus Track 1-CD Edition Released February 11, 2003\n\nAMG EXPERT REVIEW: The crown jewel in the first wave of Rhino's extensive Randy Newman reissue series is Good Old Boys -- which perhaps is appropriate, since it's arguably Newman's finest album. Then again, perhaps its status as the outstanding release in this wave was inevitable since unlike Sail Away -- an equally brilliant record -- Good Old Boys does have a full-fledged back story in the form of Johnny Cutler's Birthday, a rough draft Randy Newman wrote and recorded of the entire album. This is a find of monumental proportions, at least for Newman fans and scholars, because it not only is an embryonic incarnation of one of his greatest works, it has its own character and identity, especially since it has eight songs that did not make it to the final album. Since it captures Newman alone at the piano, providing narrative explanation between songs, this is a remarkably intimate document chronicling the birth of greatness -- and though you have to be dedicated to be interested in this, most Newman fans are dedicated; this is a wonderful listen, revealing and musically absorbing at the same time. It emphasizes the strength of Good Old Boys. Like David Wild says in his fine liner notes, the album is like a collection of short stories, and each of the new songs on Johnny Cutler's Birthday is a newly unearthed story, in the same spirit and sentiment as the original, yet fresh and unpredictable. It would be worth 20 dollars or more on its own, which is why it's such a delight to have it as a bonus disc here, coupled with a remastered version of this great album, along with liner notes from Wild and an introduction from Newman, as well as rare photos and replications of advertisements. Overall, it's a tremendous package. -- Stephen Thomas Erlewine\n\nAMG EXPERT REVIEW: (Original CD Edition) Randy Newman's songwriting often walks a narrow line between intelligent satire and willful cruelty, and that line was never finer than on the album Good Old Boys. Newman had long displayed a fascination with the American South, and Good Old Boys was a song cycle where he gave free reign to his most imaginative (and venomous) thoughts on the subject. The album's scabrous opening cut, "Rednecks," is guaranteed to offend practically anyone with its tale of a slow-witted, willfully (and proudly) ignorant Southerner obsessed with "keeping the n-----s down." "A Wedding in Cherokee County" is more polite but hardly less mean-spirited, in which an impotent hick marries a circus freak; if the song's melody and arrangement weren't so skillful, it would be hard to imagine anyone bothering with this musical geek show. But elsewhere, Good Old Boys displays a very real compassion for the blighted history of the South, leavened with a knowing wit. "Birmingham" is a funny but humane tale of working-class Alabamians, "Louisiana 1927" and "Kingfish" are intelligent and powerfully evocative tales of the deep South in the depths of the Great Depression, and "Rollin'" is cheerful on the surface and troubling to anyone willing to look beneath it. Musically, Newman dives deep into his influences in Southern soul and also adds potent country accents (with the help of Al Perkins pedal-steel guitar) while dressing up his songs in typically expert string and horn arrangements. And Newman assumes each character, either brave or foolish, with the skill of a gifted actor, giving even his most loathsome characters enough depth that they're human beings, despite their flaws. Good Old Boys is one of Newman's finest albums; it's also one of his most provocative and infuriating, and that's probably just the way he wanted it. -- Mark Deming\n\nAmazon.com essential recording\nRandy Newman's 1974 concept album explores the modern contradictions and early-20th-century history of the Deep South with his bracing mix of irony, affection, and empathy for twisted psyches and hungry, venal dreams. What sounds like Southern gothic material is a virtuosic balancing act between light comedy and political broadside, shivering with moments of unexpected pathos: "Birmingham" is a booster anthem, "A Wedding in Cherokee County" a tableau of dysfunctional romance at once grotesque and touching, "Guilty" a probing confession of addiction, and "Louisiana 1927" a Copelandesque tragedy of the ravages of that year's historic flood. Capping it all is his classic, double-edged indictment of racism, "Rednecks," which turns the knife back on smug outsiders blind to their own prejudices. Rhino's 2002 remixed, expanded reissue caps the initial disc with a demo version of the ballad "Maria" and includes a fascinating salvaged-from-the-vaults second disc dubbed "Johnny Cutler's Birthday" (the working title for the project), featuring Newman sketching the finished album through songs and commentary. --Sam Sutherland \n\nAmazon.com Album Description\nDeluxe remastered reissue of 1974 album including 'Rednecks', 'Louisiana 1927' & 'Marie'. Plus a bonus disc featuring the 13-song Johnny Cutler's Birthday, the previously unissued 'rough draft' of this 1974 classic. The 2 discs are housed in a double slimline jewel case and a slipcase. 2002. \n\nAmazon.com Customer Review\nClassy reissue with an incredible bonus disc, November 24, 2002 \nReviewer: Zayne Reeves (see more about me) from Ilsan, South Korea\nListening to Johnny Cutler's Birthday, it is amazing to learn that a true masterpiece such as Good Old Boys could have been a different record and that the record that was not made is as funny, scary and heartwrenching as the one that was. The scope of Good Old Boys turned out to be much broader than was originally intended with the demos on the bonus disc and encompassed not only colorful eccentrics who inhabit the South but also its own vital history that has always been viewed (by both sides) as seperate from that of the North. \n\nFor Johnny Cutler's Birthday, the focus is entirely on the "unreliable narrarator" (a Newman motiff), his family and immediate surroundings. Many of the songs from Good Old Boys are present here; Rednecks, Marie, Birmingham and Louisiana 1927 among others. But the songs that did not make it to the released album are astonishing in how they flesh out Cutler and his wife, Marie, into two of the most tragic and strangely beautiful characters in the history of popular music. \n\nMy Daddy Knew Dixie Howell is a chilling song that begins as a drunken birthday toast to gathered friends by Cutler. He starts by promising to "tell you all the story of my life" and proceeds to eulogize his late father and the story he tells becomes more sinister with each passing verse. It's a revelation for someone who only knew of this character through Good Old Boys to discover such a complex and perceptive man. Randy Newman once stated that he felt the song Rednecks was flawed because how would this man singing the song know the names of northern cities that have been just as hostile to blacks but yet be tauted as open-minded havens by PC historians and northern liberals. Here, in My Daddy Knew Dixie Howell, Cutler is revealed to be a man intelligent enough to grasp this and be eaten alive by the unfairness of it. \n\nShining, a song sung by Marie, is as bleak as anything Randy Newman has ever written. Here Cutler's wife, who never spoke in Good Old Boys, addresses her mother-in-law and seems to speak for every woman who just missed the sexual revolution generation. Marie talks about enjoying her teen years as an attractive girl and laments spending the rest of her life with the same man doing the same things over and over again. The details that Newman captures here; Marie going to Augusta for a ballgame and down to Daytona for racing with the same friends that she has known since the first grade are poignant and insightful. No two songs in his entire, estimable catalogue showcase his skill for creating an entire world in just a few simple, well-observed verses any better than My Daddy Knew Dixie Howell and Shining.\n\nOther "new" songs on Johnny Cutler's Birthday such as If We Didn't Have Jesus, Good Morning and an early version of Back On My Feet Again entitled Doctor, Doctor are all uniformly excellent as well. The intimacy of these performances is remarkable and for those interested in knowing how Newman gets from A to B they are absolutely priceless. You truly feel as if you are in the recording booth while listening to his funny, self-deprecating comments and direction between songs. The amount of thought put into what became Good Old Boys is staggering and it is such a thrill to listen to it come to fruition on this once-in-a-lifetime bonus disc.\n\nThank you Rhino for continuing your long tradition of showcasing some of our most creative artists and expanding our original notions of them in the process. And most of all, thank you Randy Newman for such a unique and essential body of work. \n\n\nAmazon.com Customer Review\nNot your "Toy Story" Randy Newman, July 22, 2002 \nReviewer: Len Czyzniejewski (see more about me) from Las Vegas, NV \nSince this album came out almost thirty years ago, Randy Newman has slowly become the King of Movie Scores. He is a world famous composer of very recognizable movie music, even if a lot of fringe moviegoers may not follow this. After a million Oscar nominations, he finally reached his well-deserved peak of fame with a statue last year. \n\nBut all of this work over the years still does not hold a candle to "Good Old Boys". I am tempted to say that ALL this work COMBINED does not equal "Good Old Boys". But I like his movie stuff too, so I'll hold back on that one. \n\nEven though today's popular music is loaded with swearing from beginning to end, with lyrics promoting violence against others, I wonder if this one would have had a problem getting released as new material today. The record industry has a political correctness problem it shares with the movie industry today. While the movies today can snigger all they want about sex, they seem to avoid works where adult (not pornographic) subjects can be handled in a mature fashion. \n\nSame with the record industry. While rap records are loaded with vile material to become the "baddest" product to sell to kids wanting to rebel against their parents, "Good Old Boys" would probably have a problem with the record companies. You see, this album takes an intelligent stab at Northern racism. It uses the word "nigger" repeatedly to make a point. While the most blatant song on the album, others have occasional lines that would make a beancounter ask "Can he say that?".\n\nBut it's not only that that makes it a great album, although it's a great tactic. "Good Old Boys" is loaded with songs that made great social statements back then, and still work today. But while dealing with serious topics, the songs are extremely listenable. And many of them are funny. It describes a way of life that was accepted for many years by many people, and is still accepted today. If you want to listen to intelligent music, add this one to your collection. \n\n\nAmazon.com Customer Review\nOne of Newman's finest, if not his best., June 26, 2002 \nReviewer: Stuart Packham (see more about me) from Western Australia \nThis is a very good album. A very strong and very intelligent one at that too. Many Newman fans revere this as his best work and with good reason. It's one of the most ambitious, controversial and incisive albums ever made due to it dealing directly with the issues of racism and intolerance (it was well before its time, released in 1974). It's an album that cuts deep into the heart of America and humanity as well, and proves why Newman is considered one of the nation's greatest songwriters.\n\n'Good Old Boys' started as a concept album originally titled 'Johnny Cutler's Birthday'. Cutler was to be the embodiment of the southern American 'redneck', complete with self-hate, a violent temperament and a bigoted ideology. Newman however changed his approach to make 'Johnny Cutler's Birthday' into 'Good Old Boys', a more general album that still keeps the Cutler character as a representation of redneck males, but never identifies him as a single person.\n\nSince 'Good Old Boys' isn't localised to one character, Newman moves from person to person and place to place. He never shifts his glare, however, from the southern states. The opener 'Rednecks' captures the spirit of the entire album in its controversial catch-cry, "we are keeping the [black race] down." Fill in the blank. After 'Rednecks' comes such songs as 'Marie', a song about an abusive husband who can only admit he loves his wife whilst drunk; 'Kingfish', an examination southern politics at its most corrupt; and 'Rollin', a quietly threatening song about how drinking just makes you forget. Ultimately, the themes of bigotry, love, hate, self-hate and morality pervade 'Good Old Boys', making it a fairly powerful listening experience.\n\nFor anyone who's never heard Randy Newman before, this album will show you why many consider him to be the best alternative-pop songwriter alive today. \n\n\nAmazon.com Customer Review\nNewman's Best (and that's really saying something), April 25, 2001 \nReviewer: wordnat (see more about me) from boise, idaho United States \nRandy Newman's first four albums are all five-star classics, but if I was forced to choose my favorite it would have to be this one. There's an odd love/hate, happy/sad vibe going through this sneaky little concept album that leaves me highly impressed, but also a little uneasy, every time I play it. But usually, rather than get bogged down in the politics, I just enjoy the masterful beauty of the songs: "Guilty", "Louisiana 1927", and "Birmingham" (which has a middle-eight so beautiful that there's no way it could've been written by a mere mortal) are all examples of a songwriter at the top of his game. Newman would have a hit or two after these sessions, but his work would never again match the standard set by this gem of an album. \n\nAmazon.com Customer Review\nNumber One In My Collection, October 6, 2000 \nReviewer: Jon Morgan (see more about me) from Montgomery, Alabama United States \nThis may be the only album I review. I have reviewed a few books, and have many more to take up, but I am compelled to write about this, my favorite album of all time. I was in college at Auburn University when "Good Old Boys" was released in 1974. It instantly became something of an anthem around the fraternity house in which I lived, and my ardor and fascination with it have continued to this day. I have it in record, cassette and CD. No other album has ever had such a hold over me as this one. Less a collection of songs than a segmented theme, "Good Old Boys" evokes a certain mood throughout. "Birmingham" is an old-style piano ballad whose upbeat tempo does not run counter to the sentimental simplicity of the lyrics. "Marie", the most beautiful song on the album, sums up the heartbreak every guy has experienced, in words instantly identifiable by every male who still secretly carries that torch for his own "Marie". "Louisiana 1927" is both melodic and haunting. The lyrics, while confined to the great flood of 1927, could easily be applied to every other poor, rural area of the South stricken by the ill force of nature. The cynicism inherent in Newman's description of President Coolidge's visit in the aftermath, enhance the overall theme of both pathos and self-reliance. "Rednecks", still viable though younger audiences today may not know who Lester Maddox was, truly reveals the feelings of most Southerners toward the duplicity of those Americans from without the South who tend to cast hypocritical stones. While this album is definitely "of Louisiana", it has nonetheless been fervently embraced throughout the South. The picture of Huey Long in the album cover, and the inclusion of Long's "Share Our Wealth" campaign song "Every Man A King" (written by Long and Castro Carazo - also co-composers of several LSU fight songs) mix well with the original Newman songs. Over the years, "Good Old Boys" has transcended the South to take its place as an American album of the first order. Of all the albums in my collection, this is the only one which has retained the same fresh vigor as when I first heard it 26 years ago. Like certain books and movies, "Good Old Boys" has attained a degree of permanence in American music that will ensure its popularity for generations to come.\n\nAmazon.com Customer Review\nThe Enigma of Randy Newman, September 29, 1999 \nReviewer: (staltom@usa.net) from formerly of New Orleans, currently of Houston \nIt's sometimes hard for newcomers to Newman's brand of satirical social comment to understand what he's saying. Many people take the lyrics too literally or don't get the drift at all. ("Rednecks" is a prime example on this recording. "Short People" and "Sail Away" are other examples.) I bought this recording as a vinyl LP in the mid-70's and nearly wore it through. When my turntable went on the blink - then out to the garage sale, it was many years between listenings; but the tunes & lyrics were recurringly echoing in my head. A few years ago I got the CD and I'm hooked again. I love these songs! This is probably my most favorite record to crank up in the car and wail along with. Randy Newman is a very strange individual and I love him for it. If you want to know what Randy Newman is about, you need to have this CD. However, you might want to skip the lead track if you play it in front of your kids or your social activist friends. They just won't get the satire until after several listenings or a pointed explanation.\n\nHalf.com Album Credits\nDon Henley, Contributing Artist\nGlenn Frey, Contributing Artist\nJim Keltner, Contributing Artist\nRy Cooder, Contributing Artist\nDonn Landee, Engineer\nLee Herschberg, Engineer\nLenny Waronker, Producer\nRuss Titeman, Producer\n\nAlbum Notes\nGOOD OLD BOYS: DELUXE EDITION contains GOOD OLD BOYS (1974) on disc one. Disc two is a rough draft demo for GOOD OLD BOYS called JOHNNY CUTLER'S BIRTHDAY.\n\nPersonnel: Randy Newman (vocals, piano, electric piano, synthesizer); Ron Elliott, Dennis Budimir (acoustic guitar); Ry Cooder, John Platania (electric guitar); Al Perkins (pedal steel guitar); Red Callender (acoustic bass); Russ Titelman, Willie Weeks (electric bass); Andy Newmark, Jim Keltner (drums); Milt Holland (drums, percussion); Bobbye Hall Porter (percussion); Malcom Cecil, Robert Margouleff (programming); Glen Frey, Don Henley, Bernie Leadon (background vocals).\n\nRecorded at Warner Brothers Studios, North Hollywood, California.\n\nNewman's first concept album tackled a typically controversial subject, the American South. The opening "Rednecks" may have gained Newman notoriety (managing to offend everyone from Southerners to Northern liberals), but on tracks such as "Marie," "Louisiana 1927" and "A Wedding In Cherokee Country," the tender heart beneath his withering irony was exposed. The album documents a complex mix of revulsion and empathy that touch on Newman's own New Orleans upbringing and his Jewishness. It was an unexpected irony, however, that the arch-satirist reached his songwriting peak on an album featuring the pick of America's session players and a glossy west coast production\n\nEntertainment Weekly (06/07/2002)\n...A masterpiece...When it comes to the 'untrustworthy narrator', the territory is Newman's own....Race baiting moves closer to home in BOYS, Newman's Southern themed '74 follow up to SAIL AWAY...
This rock cd contains 13 tracks and runs 36min 57sec.
Freedb: a908a70d
Buy: from Amazon.com

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