It's my once yearly "It's My Blog and I'll Write About an Album If I Want to" post, and this year it's an album that's not quite as well-known as some I've written about in previous years, Liz Phair's classic debut, Exile in Guyville. I wrote about Phair's song "Perfect World" for a post in 2018, so no need for a recap bio (plus this year's album has 18 tracks which will make it long enough as is), but I would like to note that on Rolling Stone's list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All-Time, Exile was ranked #328 in their 2003 version, #327 in their 2012 update, and in their 2020 revision had jumped all the way to #56.
I have to admit that while I was familiar with (and loved) the track "Never Said," I didn't discover the album until twenty years after its release when I found it for a dollar while I still worked for the thrift shop. One day I popped it in the CD player in my car, and it spent the next six months as the soundtrack to my drive to work in deepest darkest Detroit.
And away we go...
6'1"--Phair opens with a guitar driven rocker that gives you a taste of a) her unconventional vocal style, and b) her often unbridled lyrics (Phair has said the album is not autobiographical, for those wondering, and that the characters/thoughts therein were created from her imagination). Favorite Line: "And I kept standing six-feet-one/Instead of five-feet-two/And I loved my life/And I hated you..."
Help Me Mary--A prayer of sorts that we've all had at one time or another: make me rich or famous so all the people who treated me like shit will be jealous. But with great guitar work. Favorite Line: "Weave my disgust into fame/And watch how fast they run to the flame..."
Glory--Phair slows it down with an acoustic number that also shows a touch of the spiritual--just who is that guy in the bar? Favorite Line: 'You are, you are shining some glory on me..."
Dance of the Seven Veils--A sparse song that features two breaks where Phair's voice goes from its usual low tone (contralto?) to a much higher (and tuneful) range (soprano?). A little on the dark side, lyrically. Favorite Line: "I know all about the ugly pilgrim thing/Entertainers bring May flowers..."
Never Said--Sounded great the first time I heard it, sounds just as great today. A pop song with an edge, one of Phair's all-time bests. The song is about how catty the music industry is but works in numerous other contexts. A great, great tune. Favorite Line: "And don't look at my hands in my pockets, baby/I ain't done anything wrong..."
Soap Star Joe--One of the great things about this album is the diversity of the songs--so many different musical and vocal styles. This one has a bit of harmonica, and the guitars owe a little to Eddie Cochran. Still culturally relevant, as it could be about half the men in MAGA. Favorite Line: "Check out the thinning hair/Check out the aftershave/Check out America/You're looking at it, babe..."
Explain It to Me--This is the one where it dawns on me what an incredible album this is for guitar lovers, with a cutting acoustic that repeats from beginning to end. May be about star athletes or their role in sports? The drum at the end mimicking a heartbeat is eerie. Favorite Line: "Give 'em your medicine/Fame injection..."
Canary--And of course the next song merely features a stark piano.... Though the album is supposed to be a song-by-song response to the Rolling Stones' classic Exile on Main Street (heard it but not enough to know--both albums feature 18 songs for what that's worth), this one actually sounds more influenced by the Velvet Underground (to me). A diatribe about women and the dangers of submissiveness for all concerned? Favorite Line: "I jump when you circle the cherry/I sing like a good canary..."
Mesmerizing--The Stones are all over this one, both vocally and with the guitar riffs. Playing hard to get? Wishing for a wizard? Favorite Line: "You tossed the egg up/And I found my hands in place, boy..."
Fuck and Run--This one is actually a lot more romantic than the title suggests, and one of the more catchy songs on the album. Though many folks far more skilled than I have written about this one, I think it's about the havoc our inner demons wreak--or maybe it's as simple as romantic longing. Favorite Line: "And whatever happened to a boyfriend/The kind of guy who tries to win you over?"
Girls! Girls! Girls!--A killer queen, and another one that reminds me of the Velvet Underground. The staccato guitar shows the beauty of simplicity. Favorite Line: "You've been around enough to see/That if you think you're it, you better check with me..."
Divorce Song--This one became one of my favorites, mostly for the bits of kindness amidst a relationship on the brink. A nice character study, and one of the better written songs on the album. Surprisingly catchy, too. Favorite Line: "But you've never been a waste of my time/It's never been a drag..."
Shatter--At the risk of sounding like a broken record (CD?), this is another one that reminds me of the Velvet Underground. The guitar is a wonder, capturing the dizzying and frightening prospect of maybe, just maybe being in love. Favorite Line: "But something about just being with you/Slapped me right in the face, nearly broke me in two..."
Flower--This one isn't your usual rock and roll fodder--backed by an industrial vibe Phair recites over a choral backing lyrics that are raw and racy. I vacillate between liking and hating this one...which is probably the point. Favorite Line: "Your face reminds me of a flower/Kind of like you're underwater/Hair's too long and in your eyes..."
Johnny Sunshine--The effects of bad romantic decisions? Similar to the previous song Phair sings over (and over and over) her vocals, in an endless loop, somewhat like the life the protagonist is living. Favorite Line: "You took the house, you went and changed the locks/Now I am stuck living out of a box..."
Gunshy--The ennui of timidity? This one is another guitar driven (amazed at how much more I've noticed the guitars as I write this post) song, with an understated vocal for an understated life. Favorite Line: "See-monkeys, do monkeys/Story of my life..."
Stratford-On-Guy--An airplane flight, and all that is seen or seemed by Liz Phair. The deeper I get into writing this, the more I wonder how the hell Rolling Stone only put this album at #56. Favorite Line: "It took an hour, maybe a day/But once I really listened the noise just fell away..."
Strange Loop--Phair closes with one of the more straightforward rockers on the album, with an extended break of jangly guitars. Being true to yourself and true to your lover isn't as easy as it seems. Neither is writing an album full of eighteen iconoclastic songs--a fine ending to a monumental album. Favorite Line: "They're saying I can't be true/But I only wanted more than I knew..."
Sorry it took a while...thanks for reading! Enjoy:
Republican = Traitor
Peace,
emaycee
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