The Replacements - Let It Be (1984)

I was late to the party on The Replacements, but they've found some heavy rotation within my listening habits now.  Known as The 'Mats, they were a highly influential band throughout the 1980s, moving from hardcore/punk to melodic songcraft, and known for shambolic live performances where they would either be too intoxicated or play entire sets of covers..or both.  There is one great bootleg where for some reason at random points in the set they yell out "murder!" 

Beginning their career as a loud, punk band, by the time Let It Be was released in 1984, lead singer and songwriter Paul Westerberg had begun to broaden the Replacements' sound.  While their previous albums had featured mainly loud, fast playing, the songwriting began to come to the fore on Let It Be.  The great thing about this album is the way it was able to blend everything that was great about the band into 11 tracks.  The music is still loose and ragged, and certain songs still teeter on the edge of collapse at any moment, but there's also a sincerity to the songwriting.


The album rolls along, with powerful, affecting songs like Sixteen Blue next to the silly hardcore-thrash Gary's Got a Boner.  There's even a cover of the Kiss song, Black Diamond, which hits harder than anything Kiss ever did.  Listening to the album as a whole, it gives off the feeling of adolescence.  It feels like a mess, and it bares its insecurities.  It sounds like the work of someone growing up and all of the rage and the uncertainty that comes with that, as well as the sheer joy in youth.

Nowhere is this more apparent than on the album's centrepiece, Unsatisfied.  Quiet (by The 'Mats standards) and powerful, the song features perhaps my favourite Westerberg vocal.  You can hear the emotion in his voice as he screams lines like "Look me in the eye and then tell me/That I'm satisfied/Are you satisfied?...I'm so, I'm so unsatisfied."  It is easy to see why an album like this was so influential to those growing up in the 80s, and why it remains so influential today (Rolling Stone ranked it #239 on their list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All-Time).

Seen Your Video is almost entirely instrumental, but it rocks with screaming guitar and a catchy melody, with Westerberg only coming in briefly towards the end to scream "Seen your video, your phony rock n roll/We don't wanna know! We don't wanna know!"  This is followed by the aforementioned furious and great Gary's Got a Boner.  It's surprisingly good considering the title, with some incredible guitar parts.

The album closes with two of the most earnest and affecting songs, Sixteen Blue and Answering Machine.  The former tells of the struggle of maturation: "Your age is the hardest age/Everything drags and drags/You're looking funny/You ain't laughing, are you?"  The music perfectly fits the subject matter, ending on a slightly mournful guitar solo.  It sets up perfectly for Answering Machine, Paul Westerberg's response to the impact of technology on personal relationships.  On an album full of great vocal performances, this might be the best.  Westerberg sings: "How do say you're OK to/An answering machine? How do you say good night to/An answering machine?"   The song features just Westerberg and an electric guitar, spitting out ragged, distorted guitar lines.   But it is Westerberg's performance that is the key.  His frustration at being unable to reach the person is heightened by his inability to express himself to their answering machine.  The song ends with a loop of an operator's voice on the line.

If you are a fan of energetic, sincere, ragged, fun music, find this album and listen to it.  Perfect start to a night.






What a mess by mmr421


Can't Hardly Wait by mmr421