I, Jonathan is the fourth solo album by Jonathan Richman, released by the Rounder Records label in 1992. As the founder of influential proto-punk band The Modern Lovers, Richman had striven to convey authentic emotions and storytelling with his music. I, Jonathan continued this aesthetic with simple and sparse rock and roll arrangements, and straightforward lyrics about everyday topics, such as music, parties, summer, and dancing. It is widely-regarded as one of his best works, and is considered an influential album in the lo-fi genre.
| I, Jonathan | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 1992 | |||
| Recorded | 1991 | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 38:23 | |||
| Label | Rounder ROUND 9036 | |||
| Producer | Brennan Totten | |||
| Jonathan Richman chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [1] |
| Pitchfork | 8.7/10[3] |
Songs on the album addressed topics such as backyard parties ("Parties in the U.S.A"), memories of neighborhoods in which Richman had lived ("Rooming House on Venice Beach" and "Twilight in Boston") and his admiration of his primary musical inspiration, the Velvet Underground ("Velvet Underground"). The latter song includes a brief interlude of the Velvet Underground song, "Sister Ray".[4] Also notable is a revisited and somewhat longer version of "That Summer Feeling," which was first recorded on 1983's Jonathan Sings!
The album helped increase Richman's cultural profile, which would include a 1993 appearance on Late Night with Conan O'Brien during which Richman performed one of the album's songs, "I Was Dancing in the Lesbian Bar."[3]
The album was recorded through the summer of 1991 "in John 'Guitar' Girton's cozy frayed carpet of a basement studio" in the "summer swelter" of Grass Valley, California.
The album was originally released on Cassette and Compact Disc, but was released by Craft Recordings on vinyl for the first time in 2020.
Track listing
editAll songs were written by Jonathan Richman unless otherwise noted.
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Parties in the U.S.A." | 4:42 |
| 2. | "Tandem Jump" | 2:10 |
| 3. | "You Can't Talk to the Dude" | 2:49 |
| 4. | "Velvet Underground" (Richman, Lou Reed) | 3:23 |
| 5. | "I Was Dancing in the Lesbian Bar" | 3:40 |
| 6. | "Rooming House on Venice Beach" | 5:04 |
| 7. | "That Summer Feeling" | 6:02 |
| 8. | "Grunion Run" | 2:31 |
| 9. | "A Higher Power" | 3:02 |
| 10. | "Twilight in Boston" | 4:08 |
| Total length: | 37:31 | |
Personnel
edit- Jonathan Richman - vocals, guitars, bass ("Velvet Underground")
- Ned Claflin - vocals, tremolo guitar and 2nd guitar on "Grunion Run"
- Tom Nelson - vocals
- Scot Woodland - vocals, congas
- Josef Marc - bass, drums ("I Was Dancing In The Lesbian Bar"), guitar ("Twilight in Boston")
- Steve Nobels - percussion, backing singing
- Jason Wilkinson - percussion, drums ("Parties in the USA"), backing singing
- John Rinkor - percussion, bass ("Parties in the USA"), backing singing
- Mike Buckmaster - percussion, backing singing
- Willie Robertson - percussion, backing singing
- Andy Paley - drums ("Grunion Run")
- Brennan Totten - drums ("A Higher Power")
- Jim Washburn - bass ("That Summer Feeling", "Twilight in Boston" and "Grunion Run")
- John Girton - guitar ("That Summer Feeling")
- Brennan Totten - producer
- John Girton - engineer
References
edit- ^ a b Ankeny, Jason. "Jonathan Richman - I, Jonathan Album Reviews, Songs & More". AllMusic. Retrieved April 28, 2018.
- ^ "The 25 Best Indie Pop Albums of the '90s". Pitchfork. October 27, 2022. Retrieved December 25, 2022.
- ^ a b Hogan, Marc (April 22, 2018). "Jonathan Richman: I, Richman Album Review". Pitchfork. Retrieved April 22, 2018.
- ^ Hann, Michael (January 22, 2014). "10 of the best: Jonathan Richman". The Guardian. Retrieved April 29, 2018.