The Replacements – All Shook Down LP

Description

**Ltd Red Vinyl Edition

Battered and broken from the debacle ofDon’t Tell a Soul— the album’s failure to take off, followed by a disastrous tour supportingTom Petty & the Heartbreakers— the Replacements were on their last legs when it came time for 1990’s All Shook Down, so worn down that the band ceased to exist for most intents and purposes.Paul Westerbergeven began recording the album as a solo project withR.E.M.producerScott Litt, gradually turning it into the final Replacements album. It may bear the band’s name, but All Shook Down never quite shakes the feeling of a solo album; above all, it’s a writers album, with the focus placed entirely on the songs. To a certain extent, that was true of the ballad-heavyDon’t Tell a Soul, but that felt over-thought from its conception to execution, where there is a light touch to All Shook Down, despite its plethora of guest musicians, includingJohn Cale’s viola on “Sadly Beautiful,”HeartbreakerBenmont Tench,Terry Reid, and a duet withConcrete Blonde’sJohnette Napolitanoon “My Little Problem.” Instead of aiming for a crossover hit,Westerberghas now resigned himself to his status as an also-ran, even embracing it to some extent, so there are no sops to rock radio aside from “My Little Problem,” whose bluster is jarring amidst the nimble folk-pop of the rest of the record.

All the acoustic guitars and skipping electric guitars push All Shook Down far outside of the nascent Zeitgeist of grunge, or the sound of college rock in 1990; althoughWesterbergwould soon be back in the thick of things with hisSinglessoundtrack — sounding not too dissimilar to this record — this finds him retreating from the rat race, reflecting on what he’s been through. All Shook Down is designed as a coda to the Replacements’ career, withWesterberglooking back to “When It Began,” pleading that “Someone Take the Wheel” and wrapping the whole thing up with “The Last,” as self-aware a final song asthe Beatles’ “The End.”Westerbergbalances these self-referential slices of autobiography with his self-deprecation and heartbreak, but all this melancholy never feels heavy, not even when he dips into thick sorrow on “Sadly Beautiful” or the disembodied spookiness of “All Shook Down.” There’s a palpable sense of relief to All Shook Down, as ifWesterbergrealized he dodged a bullet by not becoming a true rock star. This lightness is appealing, especially as it surfaces in his writing, which is surely more considered than it was even onPleased to Meet Me, but it has an offhand quality, recalling the casual virtuosity ofLet It BeandTim— it’s the same guy, only older but maybe not too much wiser. And as it’s true to that spirit, All Shook Down winds up being a note-perfect denouement to the Replacements’ career, even if it’s quiet and careful in a way the band never was at its peak. -All Music Guide