Summary
Red House Painters (also known as Bridge or Red House Painters II to distinguish it from the first eponymous album, also known as Rollercoaster or Red House Painters I) is the third album by the group Red House Painters, released on October 18, 1993 by 4AD. The album is made up of songs from the same recording sessions for Rollercoaster.
| Red House Painters | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | October 18, 1993 | |||
| Recorded | Summer 1992 – spring 1993 | |||
| Studio | Undisclosed recording studio on Divisadero Street, San Francisco[1] | |||
| Genre | Folk rock, slowcore | |||
| Length | 45:01 | |||
| Language | English | |||
| Label | 4AD | |||
| Producer | Mark Kozelek | |||
| Red House Painters chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |    [2] |
| Rolling Stone | [3] |
| Pitchfork | 7.9/10[4] |
At the beginning of the album opener "Evil," the faint laughter of Mark Kozelek and the barely audible voice of a woman playfully saying "No" can be heard. Both “Evil” and “Uncle Joe” were re-recorded versions of early demos, originally recorded sometime between 1989 and 1992. The album also includes two covers: a sunny version of "I Am a Rock" by Simon and Garfunkel, and Francis Scott Key's "The Star-Spangled Banner", which displays an off-beat dark humor. An acoustic version of the song "New Jersey" was on Red House Painters I. In the US, 4AD added the Shock Me EP as bonus tracks to the CD when the RHP catalog was reissued in 1999, to bring the total number of tracks to 12.
Track listing edit
All tracks are written by Mark Kozelek, except where noted
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Evil" | 7:21 | |
| 2. | "Bubble" | 5:30 | |
| 3. | "I Am a Rock" | Paul Simon | 5:32 |
| 4. | "Helicopter" | Kozelek, Jerry Vessel | 5:22 |
| 5. | "New Jersey" (Electric Version) | 4:24 | |
| 6. | "Uncle Joe" | 5:58 | |
| 7. | "Blindfold" | 8:26 | |
| 8. | "The Star-Spangled Banner" | Francis Scott Key, John Stafford Smith; arranged by Mark Kozelek | 2:28 |
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 9. | "Shock Me" | Ace Frehley | 4:49 |
| 10. | "Sundays and Holidays" | 3:00 | |
| 11. | "Three-Legged Cat" | 1:41 | |
| 12. | "Shock Me" (Acoustic) / "(Untitled Instrumental)" (Hidden Track) | Frehley; Kozelek | 10:40 |
Release history edit
| Country | Date | Label | Format | Catalogue # |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| United Kingdom | October 18, 1993 | 4AD | CD | CAD 3016 CD |
| LP | CAD 3016 | |||
| July 6, 1998 | CD (reissue) | GAD 3016 CD | ||
| United States | October 19, 1993 | Warner Bros. Records | CD | 9 45441-2 |
| November 2, 1999 | 4AD | CD (reissue with 4 bonus tracks) | GAD 3016 CD | |
| Japan | January 26, 1994 | Nippon Columbia | CD | COCY-75898 |
Notes edit
- Images by Simon Larbalestier.
"I Am a Rock"/"New Jersey" single edit
Although no commercial singles were ever released from the album, a promotional-only CD single was issued for "I Am a Rock" in October 1993. In the US, a one-track promo featuring the radio edit was released; similarly, in the UK, a double A-side promo single, backed with "New Jersey" (Electric Version), was issued.[5]
Warner Bros./4AD, PRO-CD-5498:
- "I Am a Rock" (Edit) – 4:44
4AD, RHP 1 CD (UK):
- "I Am a Rock" (Edit) – 4:44
- "New Jersey" (Electric Version) – 4:24
Trivia edit
- On track 6, Uncle Joe, the lines:
"And I am not very well read
And did you say that I will lose my house
And can you spare me of my pain
And can you spare me of my tears"
form a lyrical joke referencing the name of the band. Reading the last word of each line results in "Red House Pain Tears", effectively the name Red House Painters. [6]
References edit
- ^ Facing the Other Way: The Story of 4AD, by Martin Aston. Page 416. Published by The Friday Project, 2013.
- ^ AllMusic review
- ^ "Rollercoaster/Bridge. RollingStone. Nov 1993".
- ^ "Red House Painters: Box Set". Pitchfork.
- ^ Red House Painters - I Am A Rock (CD, Single, Promo) at Discogs
- ^ Red House Painters – Uncle Joe, retrieved 2022-09-27