Have a Ball is the first studio album by Me First and the Gimme Gimmes, released in 1997 on the Fat Wreck Chords independent record label.[1] The album is made up entirely of "Hits of the '60s and '70s", with the exception of Billy Joel's "Uptown Girl", originally released in 1983.
| Have a Ball | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 1997 | |||
| Genre | Punk rock | |||
| Length | 28:48 | |||
| Label | Fat Wreck Chords | |||
| Me First and the Gimme Gimmes chronology | ||||
| ||||
Critical reception
edit| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [2] |
| Maximum Rocknroll | (favorable)[3] |
| Nanaimo Daily News | [4] |
Larry Katz of the Boston Herald said that the album was an "unforgettable" album of 1997, despite being relatively little-known, and that the band's gimmick of recording cross-genre covers was a "darn good" joke.[5] Noel Murray, writing in Nashville Scene, praised the record as being fun while not overly long, and said that the rearrangements of familiar older songs allowed listeners to better appreciate the writing of those songs.[6]
Track listing
edit| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Original performer | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Danny's Song" | Kenny Loggins | Loggins and Messina | 2:10 |
| 2. | "Leaving on a Jet Plane" (from Denver) | John Denver | John Denver | 2:32 |
| 3. | "Me and Julio Down by the Schoolyard" (from Paul) | Paul Simon | Paul Simon | 2:42 |
| 4. | "One Tin Soldier" | Dennis Lambert, Brian Potter | Original Caste | 2:01 |
| 5. | "Uptown Girl" (from Billy) | Billy Joel | Billy Joel | 2:22 |
| 6. | "I Am a Rock" (from Garf) | Paul Simon | Simon & Garfunkel | 2:04 |
| 7. | "Sweet Caroline" (from Diamond) | Neil Diamond | Neil Diamond | 2:53 |
| 8. | "Seasons in the Sun" | Jacques Brel | Terry Jacks | 2:27 |
| 9. | "Fire and Rain" (from In Your Barcalounger) | James Taylor | James Taylor | 1:24 |
| 10. | "Nobody Does It Better" (from The Spy Who Loved Me) | Carole Bayer Sager, Marvin Hamlisch | Carly Simon | 2:28 |
| 11. | "Mandy" (from Barry) | Scott English, Richard Kerr | Barry Manilow | 2:27 |
| 12. | "Rocket Man" (from Elton) | Elton John, Bernie Taupin | Elton John | 3:15 |
Personnel
edit- Spike Slawson - vocals
- Chris Shiflett (a.k.a. Jake Jackson) - lead guitar
- Joey Cape - rhythm guitar
- Fat Mike - bass
- Dave Raun - drums
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ Frampton, Scott (Sep 1997). "Best New Music". CMJ New Music Monthly. No. 49. p. 13.
- ^ AllMusic review
- ^ Lujan, Ray (September 1997). "Music Reviews". Maximum Rocknroll. No. 172. Retrieved 2024-03-02 – via Internet Archive.
- ^ Denomme, Terry (1999-02-05). "Digging rock out of an early grave". Nanaimo Daily News. Retrieved 2024-03-01 – via ProQuest.
- ^ Katz, Larry (1998-01-04). "The great unknowns: These albums from '97 would be unforgettable, if you'd ever heard of them". Boston Herald. Retrieved 2024-03-01 – via ProQuest.
- ^ Murray, Noel (1997-12-04). "Records - LL Cool J, Mike Watt, and the Pulsars". Nashville Scene. Retrieved 2024-03-01 – via Access World News.
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