Honor Among Thieves (The Brandos album)

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Honor Among Thieves
Honor Among Thieves (The Brandos album).jpg
Studio album by
the Brandos
Released1987
Genre Rock
Label Relativity [1]
Producer Dave Kincaid
The Brandos chronology
Honor Among Thieves
(1987)		Gunfire at Midnight
(1992)

Honor Among Thieves is the debut album by the American band the Brandos, released in 1987. [2] [3] The first single was "Gettysburg", which was a minor hit on radio and MTV. [4] [5] [6]

Contents

The album peaked at No. 108 on the Billboard 200. [7] The band supported the album with a North American tour that included stints opening for INXS, the Georgia Satellites, and the Cars. [8] [9] [10] Honor Among Thieves won a New York Music Award for the best independent debut of 1987. [11]

Production

Most of the album's songs were written by singer Dave Kincaid, who also produced. [12] [13] He strove to make the songs sound similar to each other. [6] Kincaid's slide guitar playing was influenced by his love of the Allman Brothers Band's At Fillmore East . [14]

Honor Among Thieves was mixed at Power Station, in New York. [15] "Strychnine" and "Walking on the Water" are covers of songs by, respectively, the Sonics and Creedence Clearwater Revival. [16] "A Matter of Survival" is about domestic abuse. [17] "Nothing to Lose" describes the possibility of death by murder. [18]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [19]
Chicago Tribune Star full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svgStar empty.svg [20]
The Philadelphia Inquirer Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [21]

Newsday deemed the title track "a threatening tune with an interesting hook and some chords borrowed from that Tom Petty-Stevie Nicks classic, 'Stop Dragging My Heart Around'." [22] The New York Times determined that the Brandos "make sturdy, grim-spirited guitar-based rock in the mold of Creedence Clearwater Revival." [12] The Chicago Tribune labeled the album "tough, muscular, guitar-oriented rock 'n' roll with a kind of haunted-souls feeling to the vocals and guitar lines." [20]

The Washington Post wrote that "this New York quartet has studiously fashioned its Americana-drenched sound and image." [4] The Boston Globe called Honor Among Thieves "an impressively rootsy album." [5] The Philadelphia Inquirer noted that "the music is quirkily original: Big, punchy song ... that for the most part achieve their elaborate ambitions." [21] Trouser Press opined that "though too much of the band's material lacks real distinction, Honor Among Thieves is a generally impressive debut." [13] The Oregonian listed the album among the 10 best of 1987. [23]

AllMusic wrote that "the Brandos play with great verve on this strong set of compositions." [19]

Track listing

No.TitleLength
1."Gettysburg" 
2."A Matter of Survival" 
3."Nothing to Fear" 
4."Honor Among Thieves" 
5."Strychnine" 
6."Hard Luck Runner" 
7."In My Dreams" 
8."Walking on the Water" 
9."Come Home" 

References

  1. ↑ Thompson, Dave (April 2, 2019). Goldmine Record Album Price Guide. Penguin.
  2. ↑ "The Brandos Biography, Songs, & Albums". AllMusic.
  3. ↑ Browne, David (November 19, 1987). "The Brandos: Real Contenders". Rolling Stone. No. 513. p. 20.
  4. 1 2 Jenkins, Mark (September 18, 1987). "Brandos: Americana". The Washington Post. p. N25.
  5. 1 2 Morse, Steve (September 27, 1987). "Growing Number of 'Indies' Offer More Adventure on Vinyl". Arts and Film. The Boston Globe. p. 103.
  6. 1 2 Popson, Tom (December 11, 1987). "The Brandos: An Eerie Time at Gettysburg". Friday. Chicago Tribune. p. 1.
  7. ↑ Whitburn, Joel (2010). Top Pop Albums (7th ed.). Record Research Inc. p. 102.
  8. ↑ Erskine, Evelyn (November 23, 1987). "INXS slow to ignite Ottawa fans with soulful music". Ottawa Citizen. p. D8.
  9. ↑ Kim, Jae-Ha (December 11, 1987). "Brandos mesh sounds of both coasts". Weekend Plus. Chicago Sun-Times. p. 89.
  10. ↑ Heim, Chris (December 13, 1987). "'Big Mo' Eludes Cars in Drive Down Rock Road". Tempo. Chicago Tribune. p. 6.
  11. ↑ Williams, Stephen (April 11, 1988). "New York Music Adds To Awards Overload". Part II. Newsday. p. 7.
  12. 1 2 Holden, Stephen (September 4, 1987). "Pop and Jazz Guide". The New York Times. p. C17.
  13. 1 2 "Brandos". Trouser Press. Retrieved August 27, 2022.
  14. ↑ Miller, Michael L. (January 29, 1988). "No-Nonsense, Compatible Brandos Reaping Rewards". The State. Columbia. p. 7B.
  15. ↑ Stout, Gene (June 6, 1987). "Former Allies Musicians Connect with Relativity". Seattle Post-Intelligencer. p. C7.
  16. ↑ MacDonald, Patrick (August 28, 1987). "Seattle Rocker's Search for New Allies Has Paid Off with the Brandos". Tempo. The Seattle Times. p. 6.
  17. ↑ Bourke, Brian G. (October 7, 1987). "Band Takes Independent Route to Popularity". Syracuse Herald-Journal. p. E8.
  18. ↑ Oermann, Robert K. (February 18, 1988). "There's a 'buzz' going around about The Brandos". USA Today.
  19. 1 2 "The Brandos Honor Among Thieves". AllMusic.
  20. 1 2 "Modern Monkee Music and Other 'Indie' Ventures". Friday. Chicago Tribune. October 9, 1987. p. 1.
  21. 1 2 Tucker, Ken (September 27, 1987). "The Brandos Honor Among Thieves". The Philadelphia Inquirer. p. J4.
  22. ↑ Williams, Stephen (August 26, 1987). "Ruffner Oozes the Blues". Part II. Newsday. p. 10.
  23. ↑ Tomlinson, Stuart (December 13, 1987). "Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree: 10 Albums to Get You Started". The Oregonian. p. B17.
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