The Days of Wine and Roses

Last updated
The Days of Wine & Roses
Thedaysofwineandroses1982.jpg
Studio album by
Released1982
RecordedSeptember 1982
Genre Post-punk, jangle pop, Paisley Underground
Length42:33
Label Ruby Records/Slash (original release)
Rhino Records (reissue)
Rough Trade Records
Producer Chris D.
The Dream Syndicate chronology
The Dream Syndicate (EP)
(1982)
The Days of Wine & Roses
(1982)
Medicine Show
(1984)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svg [1]
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [2]
Pitchfork 8.5/10 [3]
Q Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [4]
Spin Alternative Record Guide 8/10 [5]
Uncut Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svg [6]
The Village Voice B+ [7]

The Days of Wine and Roses is the second record and the debut full-length album by American alternative rock band the Dream Syndicate. Produced by Chris D. (of the Flesh Eaters/Divine Horsemen), it was recorded in Los Angeles in September 1982 and released later that year on Chris D.'s Ruby Records, which was a division of Slash Records. It was released for the first time on CD in 1993. 2001 and 2015 reissues on CD featured different bonus tracks.

Contents

The phrase "days of wine and roses" is originally from the poem "Vitae Summa Brevis" by the English writer Ernest Dowson (1867–1900):

They are not long, the days of wine and roses:
Out of a misty dream
Our path emerges for a while, then closes
Within a dream.

The album is ranked number 99 in Blender 's 100 Greatest Indie-Rock Albums Ever. [8]

Track listing

This is the track listing of the original release. Later re-releases have included bonus tracks from the earlier Down There EP, rehearsals, alternate takes, and the 1981 single recorded by 15 Minutes (a Steve Wynn collaboration with members of the Davis, California band Alternate Learning).

All tracks written by Steve Wynn except as noted.

Side One
  1. "Tell Me When It's Over" – 3:27
  2. "Definitely Clean" – 3:25
  3. "That's What You Always Say" – 3:08
  4. "Then She Remembers" – 4:03
  5. "Halloween" (Karl Precoda) – 6:29
Side Two
  1. "When You Smile" – 4:10
  2. "Until Lately" – 6:50
  3. "Too Little, Too Late" – 3:17
  4. "The Days of Wine and Roses" – 7:22
Bonus Tracks (2001 Rhino Records reissue)
  1. "Sure Thing" (Down There EP version)
  2. "That's What You Always Say" (Down There EP version)
  3. "When You Smile" (Down There EP version)
  4. "Some Kinda Itch" (Down There EP version)
  5. "Too Little, Too Late" (Rehearsal version)
  6. "Definitely Clean" (Rehearsal version)
  7. "That's What You Always Say" (15 Minutes)
  8. "Last Chance For You" (15 Minutes)
Bonus Tracks (2015 Omnivore CD reissue)
  1. "Is It Rolling, Bob?" (rehearsal recording)
  2. "A Reason" (rehearsal recording)
  3. "Still Holding on to You" (rehearsal recording)
  4. "Armed with an Empty Gun" (rehearsal recording)
  5. "Like Mary" (rehearsal recording)
  6. "Outside the Dream Syndicate" (rehearsal recording)

Personnel

Related Research Articles

<i>Ultramega OK</i> 1988 studio album by Soundgarden

Ultramega OK is the debut studio album by American rock band Soundgarden, released on October 31, 1988, by SST Records. Following the release of the EPs Screaming Life (1987) and Fopp (1988), both for the Sub Pop record label, Soundgarden signed with SST and went to work on their debut full-length. The resulting album contained elements of heavy metal, psychedelic rock, and hardcore punk. The band supported the album with a tour of the United States, as well as its first overseas tour.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Dream Syndicate</span> American alternative rock band

The Dream Syndicate is an American alternative rock band from Los Angeles, California, originally active from 1981 to 1989, and reunited since 2012. The band is associated with neo-psychedelia and the Paisley Underground music movement; of the bands in that movement, according to the Los Angeles Times, the Dream Syndicate "rocked with the highest degree of unbridled passion and conviction." Though never commercially successful, the band met with considerable acclaim, especially for its songwriting and guitar playing. Bandleader Steve Wynn reformed the band in 2012, and a fifth studio album was released in February 2017.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Steve Wynn (musician)</span> American musician

Steven Lawrence Wynn is an American singer, musician and songwriter. He led the band The Dream Syndicate from 1981 to 1989 in Los Angeles, afterward began a solo career, and then reformed The Dream Syndicate in 2012.

Paisley Underground is a musical genre that originated in California. It was particularly popular in Los Angeles, reaching a peak in the mid-1980s. Paisley Underground bands incorporated psychedelia, rich vocal harmonies and guitar interplay, owing a particular debt to 1960s groups such as Love and the Byrds, but more generally referencing a wide range of pop and garage rock revival.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ruby Records</span> American record label

Ruby Records is an American record label, founded predominantly as a rock music label subsidiary of Slash Records. The original version of the label released seven albums in 1981 and 1982.

<i>Then Play On</i> 1969 studio album by Fleetwood Mac

Then Play On is the third studio album by the British blues rock band Fleetwood Mac, released on 19 September 1969. It was the first of their original albums to feature Danny Kirwan and the last with Peter Green. Jeremy Spencer did not feature on the album apart from "a couple of piano things". The album offered a broader stylistic range than the straightforward electric blues of the group's first two albums, displaying elements of folk rock, hard rock, art rock and psychedelia. The album reached No. 6 on the UK Albums Chart, becoming the band's fourth Top 20 LP in a row, as well as their third album to reach the Top 10. The album's title, Then Play On, is taken from the opening line of William Shakespeare's play Twelfth Night—"If music be the food of love, play on".

<i>Sonic Youth</i> (EP) 1982 EP by Sonic Youth

Sonic Youth is the debut EP by American rock band Sonic Youth. It was recorded between December 1981 and January 1982 and released in March 1982 by Glenn Branca's Neutral label. It is the only recording featuring the early Sonic Youth lineup with Richard Edson on drums. Sonic Youth differs stylistically from the band's later work in its greater incorporation of clean guitars, standard tuning, crisp production and a post-punk style.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Green on Red</span> American rock band

Green on Red was an American rock band, formed in the Tucson, Arizona punk scene, but based for most of its career in Los Angeles, California, where it was loosely associated with the Paisley Underground. Earlier records have the wide-screen psychedelic sound of first-wave desert rock, while later releases tended more towards traditional country rock.

<i>Too-Rye-Ay</i> 1982 studio album by Dexys Midnight Runners

Too-Rye-Ay is the second studio album by English pop band Dexys Midnight Runners. It was released in July 1982 by Mercury Records. The album is best known for the hit single "Come On Eileen", which included the refrain that inspired the album's title. It was the band's most successful album, debuting at number two on the UK Albums Chart.

<i>Grateful Dead</i> (album) 1971 live album by Grateful Dead

Grateful Dead is an album by rock band the Grateful Dead. Released on September 24, 1971 on Warner Bros. Records, it is their second live double album and their seventh album overall. Although published without a title, it is generally known by the names Skull and Roses and Skull Fuck. It was the group's first album to be certified gold by the RIAA and remained their best seller until surpassed by Skeletons from the Closet.

<i>Stage</i> (David Bowie album) 1978 live album by David Bowie

Stage is the second live album by English musician David Bowie, recorded on the Isolar II Tour, and released through RCA Records in 1978. Stage has been reissued numerous times, each with expanded track listings.

<i>His Hand in Mine</i> 1960 studio album by Elvis Presley

His Hand in Mine is the fifth studio album by American singer and musician Elvis Presley, released on November 23, 1960 by RCA Victor in mono and stereo, catalog number LPM/LSP 2328. It was the first of three gospel albums that Presley would issue during his lifetime. Recording sessions took place on October 30 and 31, 1960, at RCA Studio B in Nashville, Tennessee. It peaked at #13 on the Top Pop Albums chart. It was certified Gold on April 9, 1969 and Platinum on March 27, 1992 by the Recording Industry Association of America.

<i>Medicine Show</i> (album) 1984 studio album by The Dream Syndicate

Medicine Show is the second studio album by The Dream Syndicate. It was released in 1984.

<i>Document and Eyewitness</i> 1981 live album by Wire

Document and Eyewitness is the first live album by the post-punk band Wire, released in July 1981 by Rough Trade Records. It marked the end of the first period of Wire's activity (1977–1980) and the end of their association with EMI. Recorded in February 1980 at the Electric Ballroom in London – at the final gig of Wire's first period – the original release came with a 45 rpm 12" EP that featured recordings from a July 1979 show at the Notre Dame Hall in London, along with one track from a March 1979 gig at Le Pavillon in Montreux, Switzerland.

<i>Live at Rajis</i> 1989 live album by The Dream Syndicate

Live at Raji's is a live album and by Los Angeles band The Dream Syndicate.

<i>Out of the Grey</i> (The Dream Syndicate album) 1986 studio album by The Dream Syndicate

Out of the Grey is the third studio album by The Dream Syndicate, a Los Angeles-based alternative rock band, released in 1986.

<i>Ghost Stories</i> (The Dream Syndicate album) 1988 studio album by The Dream Syndicate

Ghost Stories is the fourth studio album by the Los Angeles-based alternative rock band The Dream Syndicate. It was released in 1988, just a year before the band broke up. The album was re-released in 2004, with eight additional tracks recorded live for radio.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alternate Learning</span> American power pop/new wave band

Alternate Learning was a power pop/new wave band from 1977 to 1982, based in Davis, California and fronted by Scott Miller, a singer-songwriter later known for his work as leader of the 1980s band Game Theory and 1990s band the Loud Family.

<i>The Lost Weekend</i> (album) 1985 studio album by Danny & Dusty

The Lost Weekend is an album by the American duo Danny & Dusty, released in 1985 by A&M Records. Danny is Dan Stuart from the band Green on Red and Dusty is Steve Wynn from the band the Dream Syndicate. Their backing band featured members of Green on Red, the Dream Syndicate and the Long Ryders.

<i>How Did I Find Myself Here?</i> Album by The Dream Syndicate

How Did I Find Myself Here? is the fifth studio album by American alternative rock band the Dream Syndicate. It was released on September 8, 2017, almost 30 years after the band's last album, and after three years of touring. The recording band included front man Steve Wynn and former band members, as well as a collaborator on Wynn's side projects.

References

  1. Deming, Mark. "The Days of Wine and Roses – The Dream Syndicate". AllMusic . Retrieved January 31, 2018.
  2. Larkin, Colin (2011). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music (5th concise ed.). Omnibus Press. ISBN   978-0-85712-595-8.
  3. Deusner, Stephen M. (June 24, 2023). "The Days Of Wine and Roses (40th Anniversary Expanded Edition) | Pitchfork". Pitchfork . Retrieved June 24, 2023.
  4. "The Dream Syndicate: The Days of Wine and Roses". Q (182): 144. October 2001.
  5. Weisbard, Eric; Marks, Craig, eds. (1995). Spin Alternative Record Guide . Vintage Books. ISBN   0-679-75574-8.
  6. "The Dream Syndicate: The Days of Wine and Roses". Uncut (52): 194. September 2001.
  7. Christgau, Robert (December 28, 1982). "Christgau's Consumer Guide". The Village Voice . Retrieved January 31, 2018.
  8. "Blender's 100 Greatest Indie-Rock Albums Ever". 14 November 2007. Retrieved July 22, 2018.