Sentimental Hygiene

Last updated

Sentimental Hygiene
Sentimental Hygiene album cover.jpg
Studio album by
ReleasedAugust 29, 1987 (1987-08-29)
Recorded1987
Studio
  • Record One (Los Angeles)
  • A&M (Hollywood)
  • Cheshire Sound (Atlanta)
Genre Rock, hard rock, alternative rock, folk rock
Length36:49
LanguageEnglish
Label Virgin
Producer Warren Zevon, Niko Bolas, Andrew Slater
Warren Zevon chronology
A Quiet Normal Life: The Best of Warren Zevon
(1986)
Sentimental Hygiene
(1987)
Transverse City
(1989)
Singles from Sentimental Hygiene
  1. "Sentimental Hygiene"
    Released: 1987
  2. "Boom Boom Mancini"
    Released: 1987
  3. "Reconsider Me"
    Released: 1987
  4. "Detox Mansion"
    Released: 1987
  5. "Bad Karma"
    Released: 1987
  6. "Leave My Monkey Alone"
    Released: 1987
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svg [1]
Robert Christgau A− [2]
Encyclopedia of Popular Music Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [3]
Rolling Stone (favorable) [4]
Uncut 8/10 [5]

Sentimental Hygiene is the sixth studio album by rock singer-songwriter Warren Zevon and his first "sober" one. The album was released on August 29, 1987, by Virgin Records. The release of Sentimental Hygiene marked the first studio album for Zevon in five years. It produced the single "Reconsider Me", as well as the dance single "Leave My Monkey Alone". The band on the album includes guitarist Peter Buck, bassist Mike Mills and drummer Bill Berry (all of R.E.M.), who also recorded an album of covers with Zevon (under the name “Hindu Love Gods”) at this time.

Contents

The single version of "Leave My Monkey Alone" was extended to 10:34 minutes and included a remix by the Latin Rascals (Albert Cabrera and Tony Moran) and the non-album track, "Nocturne". [6]

"Even a Dog Can Shake Hands" was used as the opening theme music for the short-lived Fox comedy series Action . The song was co-written by Buck, Berry and Mills. Michael Stipe, lead singer of R.E.M., appears on the song "Bad Karma". The album also features contributions by Bob Dylan, playing harmonica on “The Factory”, and Neil Young playing lead guitar on “Sentimental Hygiene”.

The song "Boom Boom Mancini" was inspired by boxer Ray Mancini and his contest against Bobby Chacon.

Track listing

All tracks composed by Warren Zevon, except where indicated.

Side one
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Sentimental Hygiene" 5:06
2."Boom Boom Mancini" 4:54
3."The Factory" 2:45
4."Trouble Waiting to Happen" J. D. Souther, Zevon3:32
5."Reconsider Me" 3:09
Side two
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
6."Detox Mansion" Jorge Calderón, Zevon3:15
7."Bad Karma" 3:15
8."Even a Dog Can Shake Hands" Bill Berry, Peter Buck, Mike Mills, Zevon3:26
9."The Heartache" 3:19
10."Leave My Monkey Alone" 4:12

Personnel

Production

Charts

Sales chart performance for Sentimental Hygiene
Chart (1987)Peak
Position
Australia (Kent Music Report) [7] 42

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Warren Zevon</span> American singer-songwriter (1947–2003)

Warren William Zevon was an American rock singer, songwriter, and musician. His most famous compositions include "Werewolves of London", "Lawyers, Guns and Money", and "Roland the Headless Thompson Gunner". All three songs are featured on his third album, Excitable Boy (1978), the title track of which is also well-known. He also wrote major hits that were recorded by other artists, including "Poor Poor Pitiful Me", "Accidentally Like a Martyr", "Mohammed's Radio", "Carmelita", and "Hasten Down the Wind".

<i>Genius: The Best of Warren Zevon</i> 2002 greatest hits album by Warren Zevon

Genius: The Best of Warren Zevon is a compilation album by American musician Warren Zevon, released in 2002.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bill Berry</span> Drummer for R.E.M.

William Thomas Berry is an American musician who was the drummer for the alternative rock band R.E.M. Although best known for his economical drumming style, Berry also played other instruments, including guitar, bass guitar and piano, both for songwriting and on R.E.M. albums. In 1995, Berry suffered a cerebral aneurysm onstage and collapsed. After a successful recovery he left the music industry two years later to become a farmer, and has since maintained a low profile, making sporadic reunions with R.E.M. and appearing on other artists' recordings. His departure made him the only member of the band to not remain with them during their entire run. Berry eventually returned to the industry in 2022.

<i>New Adventures in Hi-Fi</i> 1996 R.E.M. album

New Adventures in Hi-Fi is the tenth studio album by the American alternative rock band R.E.M. It was their fifth major-label release for Warner Bros. Records, released on September 9, 1996, in Europe and Australia, and the following day in the United States. New Adventures in Hi-Fi was the last album recorded with founding member Bill Berry, original manager Jefferson Holt, and long-time producer Scott Litt. The members of R.E.M. consider the recorded album representative of the band at their peak, and fans generally regard it as the band's last great record before a perceived artistic decline during the late 1990s and early 2000s. It has sold around seven million units, growing in cult status years after its release, with several retrospectives ranking it among the top of the band's recorded catalogue.

<i>Mr. Bad Example</i> 1991 studio album by Warren Zevon

Mr. Bad Example is an album by the American musician Warren Zevon, released through Giant Records in October 1991. Zevon supported the album with a North American tour, with the Odds serving as both opener and backing band.

<i>Bad Luck Streak in Dancing School</i> 1980 studio album by Warren Zevon

Bad Luck Streak in Dancing School is the fourth studio album by American singer-songwriter Warren Zevon. The album was released on February 15, 1980, by Elektra Records. Three singles were released from the album, one of which charted: "A Certain Girl" reached No. 57 on the Billboard Hot 100 and was Zevon's second and final hit on that chart.

<i>The Envoy</i> (Warren Zevon album) 1982 studio album by Warren Zevon

The Envoy is the fifth studio album by American singer-songwriter Warren Zevon. The album was released on July 16, 1982, by Asylum Records. The album's lack of commercial success caused Zevon's label to terminate his recording contract.

<i>Transverse City</i> 1989 studio album by Warren Zevon

Transverse City is the seventh studio album by American recording artist Warren Zevon, released in October 1989 by Virgin Records. It features appearances from a number of prominent musicians, including guitarists Neil Young, David Gilmour, Jerry Garcia and Mike Campbell, as well as jazz pianist Chick Corea. Michael Ironside narration Run straight down

<i>My Rides Here</i> 2002 studio album by Warren Zevon

My Ride's Here is the eleventh studio album by American singer-songwriter Warren Zevon. The album was released on May 7, 2002, by Artemis Records. Zevon described it as "a meditation on death"; it was released several months before Zevon was diagnosed with terminal mesothelioma.

<i>Ill Sleep When Im Dead (An Anthology)</i> 1996 compilation album by Warren Zevon

I’ll Sleep When I’m Dead is a two-disc compilation album by American singer-songwriter Warren Zevon, released on Rhino Records in 1996. It spans his career from his eponymous debut album on Asylum Records to date of release, ignoring his disowned initial album from 1969, Wanted Dead or Alive. It contains tracks from all ten of his albums released during this period, and includes contributions to soundtracks and his one-off album with members of R.E.M., Hindu Love Gods.

<i>Mutineer</i> (album) 1995 studio album by Warren Zevon

Mutineer is the ninth studio album by American singer-songwriter Warren Zevon. The album was released on May 23, 1995, by Giant. The album largely consisted of home recordings. Bob Dylan covered "Mutineer" a number of times in concert after Zevon's passing.

<i>Hindu Love Gods</i> (album) 1990 studio album by Hindu Love Gods

Hindu Love Gods is the only album by American band Hindu Love Gods, which was released in 1990. The album was recorded around the same time as Warren Zevon's album Sentimental Hygiene, for which Zevon had enlisted Bill Berry, Peter Buck and Mike Mills of R.E.M. as players. The musicians also recorded this set of songs, mainly cover versions of old blues tunes, reputedly during late-night drunken recording sessions, not originally intending them for release.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hindu Love Gods (band)</span> Blues rock band

Hindu Love Gods was an American rock band that was, in essence, an occasional side project of members of R.E.M., with Warren Zevon and Bryan Cook.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mike Mills</span> Multi-instrumentalist for American alternative rock band R.E.M.

Michael Edward Mills is an American multi-instrumentalist, singer, and composer who was a founding member of the alternative rock band R.E.M. Though known primarily as the bass guitarist and backing vocalist of R.E.M., his musical repertoire also includes keyboards and occasional lead vocals. He contributed to a majority of the band's musical compositions and is the only member to have had formal musical training.

<i>Perfect Square</i> 2004 video by R.E.M.

Perfect Square is a 2004 concert film of the alternative rock band R.E.M., filmed on July 19, 2003, at the Bowling Green in Wiesbaden, Germany. It was released by Warner Reprise Video on March 9, 2004.

<i>R.E.M. Live</i> 2007 live album and DVD from R.E.M.

R.E.M. Live is a live album from R.E.M., recorded at the Point Theatre, Dublin, on February 26 and 27, 2005, the closing nights of the winter European leg of the Around the World Tour in support of their thirteenth studio album Around the Sun released in late 2004. It was released in the United Kingdom on October 15, 2007 and in the United States a day later as a two-Compact Disc audio set and a DVD, then released in February 2008 as a triple vinyl set. The performance was filmed by Blue Leach, who also directed Depeche Mode's Touring the Angel: Live in Milan.

Niko Bolas is an American music producer, sound engineer, and consultant. He is also a business developer in the fields of virtual reality and Internet radio. In 1989, Bolas founded Fakespace Music with Mark Bolas, Ian McDowall, and Christian Greuel. In 1995, Fakespace developed the Soundsculpt Toolkit, a software interface which lets music communicate with graphical elements of virtual reality.

<i>Live from Austin, TX</i> (R.E.M. album) 2010 video album by R.E.M.

Live from Austin, TX is a 2010 video album by R.E.M. recorded on March 13, 2008 for the television series Austin City Limits. The television broadcast aired on PBS starting March 24, 2008.

"Reconsider Me" is a single from Warren Zevon's 1987 album Sentimental Hygiene. The song failed to chart, but became a live staple in Zevon's concert performances. In 2006, a set of love songs were released under the name: Reconsider Me: The Love Songs.

<i>R.E.M. at the BBC</i> 2018 live album

R.E.M. at the BBC is a 2018 live album box set by American alternative rock band R.E.M. released on October 19, 2018. The eight-disc compilation features sessions recorded between 1984 and 2008, including a bonus DVD of videos. Additionally, a two-disc best-of collection was released on the same day.

References

  1. Mark Deming. "Sentimental Hygiene – Warren Zevon | Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards". AllMusic. Retrieved May 23, 2014.
  2. "CG: warren zevon". Robert Christgau. Retrieved May 23, 2014.
  3. Larkin, Colin (2007). Encyclopedia of Popular Music (4th ed.). Oxford University Press. ISBN   978-0195313734.
  4. "Warren Zevon: Sentimental Hygiene : Music Reviews : Rolling Stone". Rolling Stone . July 16, 1987. Archived from the original on October 2, 2007. Retrieved October 23, 2015.
  5. "How to buy Warren Zevon". Uncut . October 2023. p. 71.
  6. "Warren Zevon – Leave My Monkey Alone (1987, Vinyl)". Discogs .
  7. Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 348. ISBN   0-646-11917-6.