Romantic Depressive

Last updated
Romantic Depressive
Romantic Depressive.jpg
Studio album by
Don Dixon
Released1995
Label Sugar Hill
Producer Mark Williams, Don Dixon
Don Dixon chronology
(If) I'm a Ham, Well You're a Sausage
(1992)		Romantic Depressive
(1995)		The Invisible Man
(2000)

Romantic Depressive is an album by the American musician Don Dixon, released in 1995 via Sugar Hill Records. [1] [2] The album was part of an attempt by Sugar Hill to expand its roster beyond a traditional acoustic style. [3] Dixon supported the album with a North American tour that included shows opening for Hootie & the Blowfish. [4] [5] Romantic Depressive was nominated for a NAIRD Indie Award. [6]

Contents

Production

Produced by Mark Williams and Dixon, the songs were recorded over a period of four years. [7] [1] Dixon pulled from a pool of 30 songs. [8] He played most of the instruments. [9] The first half of the album is about romantic relationships; Dixon considered turning Romantic Depressive into a kind of concept album. [1] [10] "Lottery of Lives" is about the military draft. [1] "Good Golly Svengali" is an instrumental. [11] "25,000 Days" was cowritten by Marti Jones, Dixon's wife; Sugar Hill had originally wanted an album of Dixon-Jones duets. [12] [13] Bland Simpson played piano on "I Should Know Better". [14]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [9]
The Charlotte Observer Star full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [15]
MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svgStar empty.svg [16]
USA Today Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [17]

USA Today praised Dixon's "well-crafted songs and bluesy, Southern-soul rasp." [17] The Santa Fe New Mexican called the album "a tuneful journey through the convolutions of a gently twisted sensibility," writing that "the real genius of these songs is how deceptively simple they seem." [12] The St. Louis Post-Dispatch determined that "Dixon once again fashions a sound that mixes the melodic qualities of Beatles-styled pop, the gritty groove of soul and a bit of country twang." [10] Stereo Review stated that "Dixon's subject matter is evenly divided between doleful reminiscences about love's labors and reflections on himself and the world from the vantage point of midlife." [14] The Charlotte Observer opined that "the songs are too laid-back." [15]

AllMusic noted that "everything here sheds new light on old traditions ... the sound is dense without being muddy, snappy without being shallow." [9] The Star-Gazette listed the album among the 10 best of 1995. [18] In 2008, the Pittsburgh City Paper deemed Romantic Depressive "old-school soul-pop." [19]

Track listing

No.TitleLength
1."Righteous Side of Love" 
2."Giving Up the Ghost" 
3."I Should Know Better" 
4."Angel Angel" 
5."Everytime I Think of Home" 
6."What You Saw" 
7."Peace for the Last Time" 
8."Good Golly Svengali" 
9."25,000 Days" 
10."Lottery of Lives" 
11."Never Slow Down" 

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References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Menconi, David (Feb 25, 1995). "Don Dixon's sweet return on the growing Sugar Hill". Billboard. Vol. 107, no. 8. p. 16.
  2. ↑ "Don Dixon Biography by Jason Ankeny". AllMusic. Retrieved 18 October 2023.
  3. ↑ Menconi, David (26 Mar 1995). "Climbing Sugar Hill". The News & Observer. p. G1.
  4. ↑ Porter, Mark (5 May 1995). "Producer Steps Back Out Front". Previews. The Record. Bergen County. p. 12.
  5. ↑ Charles, Jeff (2 Aug 1995). "Hootie & the Blowfish hooks sold-out crowd". Houston. Houston Chronicle. p. 1.
  6. ↑ "NAIRD's '95 Indie Award nominees". Billboard. Vol. 108, no. 19. May 11, 1996. p. 50.
  7. ↑ "Album Reviews". Billboard. Vol. 107, no. 20. May 20, 1995. p. 52.
  8. ↑ Phialas, Mark (24 Mar 1995). "Dixon, Sugar Hill Collaborate Beautifully". Preview. The Herald-Sun. p. 5.
  9. 1 2 3 "Romantic Depressive Review by Rick Anderson". AllMusic. Retrieved 18 October 2023.
  10. 1 2 Sculley, Alan (3 Aug 1995). "Lovelorn Again". Get Out. St. Louis Post-Dispatch. p. 12.
  11. ↑ Menconi, David (26 Mar 1995). "The Pop and Soul Survive on Don Dixon's New Sugar Hill Album". The News & Observer. p. G1.
  12. 1 2 Prince, David (9 June 1995). "Like Costello, songwriter/ vocalist/ bassist Don Dixon...". Pasatiempo. The Santa Fe New Mexican. p. 21.
  13. ↑ McGuinness, Jim (15 Nov 1996). "Lost Her Label, Had a Baby, Cut Her Hair". Previews. The Record. Bergen County. p. 37.
  14. 1 2 Puterbaugh, Parke (Jan 1996). "Romantic Depressive by Don Dixon". Stereo Review. Vol. 61, no. 1. p. 101.
  15. 1 2 Tomlinson, Tommy (31 Mar 1995). "Pop". The Charlotte Observer. p. 5F.
  16. ↑ MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide. Visible Ink Press. 1996. p. 210.
  17. 1 2 Ayers, Anne (23 May 1995). "Don Dixon, Romantic Depressive". USA Today. p. 8D.
  18. ↑ Aloi, Daniel (28 Dec 1995). "Pop Begins to Get Smart Again". Time Out. Star-Gazette. p. 4.
  19. ↑ Parker, Chris (June 26, 2008). "Southern pop architect Don Dixon performs at Club Café". Music. Pittsburgh City Paper.
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