Bow down to the Modern Lovers

[HalfManHalfBiscuit]

Had this album in the day and just found my CD in a pile while moving.

Awesome - has to be a top 10. Way before its time. This almost redeems Massholes for their existence.

Don't know what happened to Jonathan Richman afterwards, though. He must have been whupped upside the head.

[LastRobot]

1. Jonathan Richman Rules!

If you can ever see him live, DO! He tours nonstop.

His albums, all of which are amazing:

1976 Modern Lovers
1977 Jonathan Richman & the Modern Lovers
1977 Rock 'N' Roll with the Modern Lovers...
1977 Live
1979 Back in Your Life
1983 Jonathan Sings
1985 Rockin' & Romance
1986 It's Time for Jonathan Richman
1988 Modern Lovers 88
1989 Jonathan Richman
1990 Jonathan Goes Country
1991 Having a Party with Jonathan Richman
1992 I, Jonathan
1994 Jonathan, Te Vas a Emocionar!
1995 You Must Ask the Heart
1996 Surrender to Jonathan
1998 Live at the Long Branch & More
1998 I'm So Confused
2001 Her Mystery Not of High Heels and Eye Shadow
2003 Modern Lovers

And if you haven't seen "There's Something About Mary" he's the musician who keeps showing up in it and the title song is by him.

[Tina H]

3. Mostly agree

I have been a big Richman (aka JoJo) fan since I caught up with the 1973 record in 1988, but there is so much more!

Thanks to LastRobot for the listing. I think there is another album called "Precise Modern Lovers Order" which is live and poorly recorded and pre-dates (and overlaps with) the first album. This might be the same as the 1998 Long Branch record. Either way, it might be a good next step for the poster because it is early and because it has "Don't Let Our Youth Go To Waste" and "Walk up The Street."

"Don't Let Our Youth Go To Waste" note: excellent Galaxie 500 cover of this song. IMO, it is the only time a Modern Lovers cover surpassed a Modern lovers / JoJo original version of a song. (eat your heart out Pistols and Plugz and Meices and Bowie!)

"Walk Up The Street Note": Kurt Cobain basically rewrote the lyrics for this song and released it as the hit song called "About A Girl." (Not that there is anything wrong with that.)

My personal countdown of the good albums:

(14) 1977 Live: marginal.

(13) 1977 Rock 'N' Roll with the Modern Lovers...: features the great instrumental Euro-hit "Egyptian Reggae."

(12) 1998 Live at the Long Branch & More: discussed above (I think)

(11) 1989 Jonathan Richman: my favorite underwhelming album. It really underwhelms, but in a good way (you'll just have to trust me on that)! Short, funny, thought-provoking. This is the emergence of his stripped down early 90's mode, which is a good thing.

(10) 1979 Back in Your Life: sweet, silly record. When you are in the mood for this one, no other will do. I think of this as his "Wings record."

(9) 1990 Jonathan Goes Country: this album starts hella strong: "Started with Horses" and "Reno" (Great couplet in this one: a good babysitter can be hard to find / but I've got Reno on my little mind.)

(8) 1977 Jonathan Richman & the Modern Lovers: JoJo went thru an overly silly and twee in 1977, but somehow this record doesn't suffer. This is the one where the abominable snowman in the market is looking at the peas and carrots (because they are frozen and make him homesick, if I recall).

(7) 1983 Jonathan Sings: "Give Paris One More Chance" and "Double Chocolate Malted" and "Not Yet Three" (child's pov song) are classic Richman celebrations of the quotidian.

(6) 1988 Modern Lovers 88: damn solid, lyrically, musically, the whole package, consistent record. Might be a good choice for your first modern-era Modern lovers purchase.

(5) (1981?) 1985 Rockin' and Romance: my favorite JoJo lyrics on this one. Features: "Chewing Gum Wrapper" and "Vincent Van Gogh." Two songs really make you think about deep stuff even though they are couched in humor.

(4) 1991 Having a Party with Jonathan Richman: This one took a while to grow on me. I think this is also the one where Jonathan explains why / how he stopped being so "punk" during a vocal break in "She Cracked / Bermuda" (Live).

(3) (recorded 1973) 1976 Modern Lovers: You know about this one. Maybe tends a bit to the over-dramatic side in the lyrics dept.

(2) 1992 I, Jonathan: If that stupid song "Tandem Jump" wasn't on this it would be #1!

(1) 1995 You Must Ask the Heart: Highlights: super Tom Waits cover, very funny "Vampire Girl" song (like a "punk rock girl" directed at (gracefully) aging goth women; and best of all "Let her Go Into The Darkness" (his most poignant song since the first record if you don't count 1979's "Abdul & Cleopatra").




Albums to avoid (and these always seem to be the easiest to get!):

1996 Surrender to Jonathan
1998 I'm So Confused
2001 Her Mystery Not of High Heels and Eye Shadow
also: I thought Richman unfortunately doesn't really come across at all in Something About Mary.


Final note: I never managed to find 1986 "It's Time For" -- anybody want to opine on this one?

[Kat45]

2. I just posted about his song "Roadrunner" last week

in the thread about favorite cruising songs. That's one of my favorites, especially being "in Massachusetts late at night" and "driving by the Stop & Shop, with the radio on." (And that actually happened to me once: the song came on the radio when I was driving by the Stop & Shop on Alewife Brook Parkway in Cambridge.)

[latebloomer]

4. Hey, notmyprez!

Did you ever see him live in Boston or Cambridge back in the day?

I sure did-- "Radio on!!"

[Kat45]

6. No, latebloomer, I never did.

I'm not sure why, but I happened to have never seen him.

[flamingyouth]

5. That album is the greatest

When you get out
of the hospital
Let me back
into your life

I can't stand what you do
I'm in love with your eyes...