So-Lo

Last updated

So-Lo
Solo Danny Elfman album art.jpg
Studio album by
ReleasedNovember 1984
RecordedApril 1983; July 1984
StudioGround Control (Santa Monica)
Genre
Length38:34
Label MCA
Producer Danny Elfman, Steve Bartek, Paul Ratajczak
Danny Elfman chronology
So-Lo
(1984)
Big Mess
(2021)
Oingo Boingo chronology
Good for Your Soul
(1983)
So-Lo
(1984)
Dead Man's Party
(1985)

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). [7] 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, [8] [9] 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".

Reissues

In 2014, So-Lo was reissued on CD by Varèse Sarabande, with one bonus track. [10] In 2022, a remaster was issued by Rubellan Remasters as an expanded edition CD with five bonus tracks, as well as a colored vinyl LP. [11]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Danny Elfman.

Side one
No.TitleLength
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
Side two
No.TitleLength
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
2014 CD bonus track
No.TitleLength
10."Gratitude (Single Edit)" (Video Edit)4:08
Total length:42:42
2022 CD bonus tracks
No.TitleLength
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
Total length:66:16

Personnel

"The Cast"

Additional musician

Technical

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Willman, Chris (January 3, 1985). "Oingo Boingo's Elfman Tries a 'So-Lo' Album". Los Angeles Times . Retrieved July 28, 2019.
  2. 1 2 Bartek, Steve (October 18, 2020). "Richard Blade interviews Oingo Boingo Former Members". YouTube. Richard Blade. Event occurs at 42m 13s. Archived from the original on December 21, 2021. Retrieved March 17, 2021.
  3. The Elfman Zone - Denver Post Article 1986
  4. 1 2 Amicone, Michael (April 16–29, 1990). "Odd Men Out". Music Connection . Vol. XIV, no. 8. p. 21.
  5. Rubellan Remasters (June 11, 2025). Rubellan Remasters - The Life & Death of a Reissue Label, Episode 8 (YouTube video). Self-published. Event occurs at 1:11. Retrieved June 14, 2025.
  6. Darling, Cary (May 5, 1987). "Oingo Boingo's Difficult Teenage Years". BAM .
  7. Beverly Hills Cop I 07. Danny Elfman - Gratitude
  8. Oingo Boingo - Gratitude - Universal Amphitheatre 1993.01.16
  9. Boingo at The Palace-Gratitude
  10. "Danny Elfman's 'So-Lo' album reissued on CD after more than a decade out of print". Slicing Up Eyeballs . December 11, 2014. Retrieved November 5, 2022.
  11. Duquette, Mike (November 4, 2022). "Rubellan Puts Flesh N' Blood Into Next Wave of Oingo Boingo Reissues on CD, Vinyl (UPDATED PRE-ORDER LINKS)". The Second Disc. Retrieved November 5, 2022.