So-Lo | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | November 1984 | |||
Recorded | April 1983; July 1984 | |||
Studio | Ground Control (Santa Monica) | |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 38:34 | |||
Label | MCA | |||
Producer | Danny Elfman, Steve Bartek, Paul Ratajczak | |||
Danny Elfman chronology | ||||
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Oingo Boingo chronology | ||||
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Singles from So-Lo | ||||
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So-Lo is the debut studio album by American musician Danny Elfman,released in 1984 by MCA Records. Recorded primarily by Elfman, [1] but also featuring the members of his band,Oingo Boingo,it was recorded when Elfman was offered a solo contract with MCA after the band had been dropped from I.R.S. Records. [2] The album marked the band's last release to feature bassist Kerry Hatch and keyboardist Richard Gibbs.
So-Lo was produced during a hiatus for Oingo Boingo,following the departure of Hatch and Gibbs. Elfman described the album as "a chance to experiment with slower tempos" [3] and added that "it was fun to do some ballads and try to snap out of that image that a lot of people have of me just writing real fast (...) tunes." [1]
While much of the instrumentation features synth programming from Elfman,Oingo Boingo's remaining members all performed on the album, [1] with Flea of the then-recently formed Red Hot Chili Peppers providing "additional bass guitar". The track "Lightning" had been recorded in 1983 for Good For Your Soul [ citation needed ] while Hatch and Gibbs were still with the band.
Despite rumors at the time of the band breaking up,Elfman later stated that So-Lo was "not made out of frustration" and that he was more committed to the group than ever before. [1] However,a 1987 article published in BAM magazine,in which Elfman was interviewed about the band's past,suggested that Oingo Boingo had in fact considered disbanding in 1984. [4]
In 2020,Oingo Boingo guitarist Steve Bartek stated that So-Lo was "mostly a band record",but that MCA "wasn't particularly interested" in Oingo Boingo and so had signed Elfman as a solo artist. However,Elfman wanted to continue the band and convinced MCA to change his recording contract to Oingo Boingo following the release of So-Lo. [2]
Original vinyl and cassette releases contained an alternate,earlier mix of the opening song,"Gratitude". Among other differences,this 5:04 mix included a spoken verse cut from all other versions;this was also the version used on the soundtrack to the film Beverly Hills Cop (1984). [5] The original CD release contained the full 5:12 album mix.
The missing verse is as follows:
I used to eat people like you for breakfast
I used to fly,high up in the sky
I used to chew up rocks and spit out gravel
I had a heart as cold as ice
This verse was retained for live performances of the song,sometimes with slightly different lyrics, [6] [7] and was also featured on the re-recording of the song for Boingo Alive in 1988.
The 12-inch single release for "Gratitude" used a shorter 4:42 mix,parenthetically named the "Short Version",and the accompanying music video featured an even shorter 4:08 edit. Confusingly,CD releases erroneously titled the 5:12 album mix as the "Short Version",while later vinyl reissues replaced the album mix with the 12-inch "Short Version".
In 2014,Varèse Sarabande reissued So-Lo on CD,with one bonus track. [8] In 2022,Rubellan Remasters issued a remaster of So-Lo as an expanded edition CD with five bonus tracks,as well as a colored vinyl LP. [9]
All tracks are written by Danny Elfman
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
1. | "Gratitude" (5:04 early vinyl & cassette; 4:42 "Short Version" on later issues) | 5:12 |
2. | "Cool City" | 3:26 |
3. | "Go Away" | 4:00 |
4. | "Sucker for Mystery" | 5:15 |
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
1. | "It Only Makes Me Laugh" | 4:03 |
2. | "The Last Time" | 4:07 |
3. | "Tough as Nails" | 4:35 |
4. | "Lightning" | 3:44 |
5. | "Everybody Needs" | 3:50 |
Total length: | 38:34 |
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
10. | "Gratitude (Single Edit)" (Video Edit) | 4:08 |
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
10. | "Gratitude (Original Version)" | 5:05 |
11. | "Gratitude (Extended Dance Version)" | 6:44 |
12. | "Gratitude (Single Version)" | 4:04 |
13. | "Gratitude (Tornado Version)" | 7:02 |
14. | "Gratitude (Short Version)" | 4:47 |
"The Cast"
Additional musician
Technical
Daniel Robert Elfman is an American film composer, singer, songwriter, keyboardist, and percussionist. He came to prominence as the singer-songwriter for the new wave band Oingo Boingo in the early 1980s. Since scoring his first studio film in 1985, Elfman has garnered international recognition for composing over 100 feature film scores, as well as compositions for television, stage productions, and the concert hall.
Oingo Boingo were an American new wave band formed by songwriter Danny Elfman in 1979. The band emerged from a surrealist musical theatre troupe, The Mystic Knights of the Oingo Boingo, that Elfman had led and written material for in the years previous. Their highest charting song, "Weird Science", reached No. 45 on the US Billboard Hot 100.
The Mystic Knights of the Oingo Boingo was an American surrealist street theatre troupe, formed by performer and director Richard Elfman in 1972. The group was led by Richard until 1976, when his brother Danny Elfman took over. The group evolved into an experimental musical theatre group, performing songs from the 1930s-40s and original material.
Only a Lad is the debut studio album by American new wave band Oingo Boingo, released in 1981, following their self-titled EP.
Dead Man's Party is the fifth album by American new wave band Oingo Boingo, released in 1985. The album contains the only two singles by the band to chart on the Billboard Hot 100: "Weird Science" at number 45, and "Just Another Day" at number 85.
Oingo Boingo is the debut EP by American new wave band Oingo Boingo, released in 1980.
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Nothing to Fear is the second studio album by American new wave band Oingo Boingo, released in 1982 on A&M Records.
Good for Your Soul is the third studio album by American new wave band Oingo Boingo, released in 1983. It was produced by Robert Margouleff and was the band's last album to be released on A&M Records.
Dark at the End of the Tunnel is the seventh studio album by American new wave band Oingo Boingo, released in 1990.
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Boingo is the eighth and final studio album by American new wave band Oingo Boingo. It was the band's only album recorded for their new label, Giant Records, as well as the only album to be released by the band's 1994–95 line-up.
Best O' Boingo is the second greatest hits album from American new wave band Oingo Boingo, released in 1991 by MCA Records. It features songs recorded during the band's years on MCA Records, from 1984's So-Lo through 1990's Dark at the End of the Tunnel. As such, the songs from the period when the band was on I.R.S. Records—as well as several others—are represented here by their re-recorded versions from the 1988 "live in the studio" album Boingo Alive.
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Select commercially released recordings of Danny Elfman's music for film, television, stage and the concert hall. For a full list of Elfman's compositions, see List of compositions by Danny Elfman. For Elfman's recordings as lead singer/songwriter for Oingo Boingo, see the Oingo Boingo discography page.
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