Great B-sides: If Only You Were Lonely by The Replacements
The Replacements started as a bratty punk band, but as the 1980s wore on they lost their rough edges. They signed to a major label and shot for mainstream success. Their best years are generally reckoned to be the mid 1980s, as they stretched from the hardcore punk bandwagon they jumped onto at the start of their career.
On 1984’s artistic breakthrough, Let It Be, the immature charm of ‘Gary’s Got A Boner’ shared space with leader Paul Westerberg’s heartfelt efforts like ‘Sixteen Blue’, showing that Westerberg was an outstanding songwriter when he wasn’t playing drunken slacker.
But even in The Replacements’ early years of imitating punk orthodoxy there were traces of vulnerability from Westerberg. ‘Johnny’s Gonna Die’ was a heartfelt plea to Westerberg’s idol, Heartbreakers’ guitarist Johnny Thunders, a standout track on 1981’s debut Sorry Ma, Forgot to Take Out the Trash. The countrified ‘If Only You Were Lonely’, however, was pushed out to a b-side – it was probably too much of a departure from punk to fit on the album itself, even if its heartfelt humour is a great encapsulation of Paul Westerberg’s writing talents.
Best line?
Twenty push-ups this morning, that was half my goal
Paul Westerberg
Tonight I’ll be doin’ pull-ups
On the toilet bowl
Well, I walked out of work
And I was tired as hell
Another day’s come and gone and oh well
Somewhere there’s a drink with my name on itWell, I ordered a Scotch as I bust through them doors
Spilled half on my jeans
The other half on the floor
When I saw you standing by that video gameWell, I ain’t very good
But I get practice by myself
Forgot my one line
So I just said what I feltIf only you were lonely,
If only you was lonely too,
If only you was lonely
I’d go home with youTwenty push-ups this morning, that was half my goal
Tonight I’ll be doin’ pull-ups
On the toilet bowl
And somewhere somebody’s throwin’ upWell, I broke the seal on my door
And I poured myself to bed
The whirlpool spinning around in my head
Around in my headThere was liquor on my breath
And you were on my mind
And I’ll be dreamin’ of that smile
Without a care in the worldIf only you were lonely,
If only you was lonely too,
If only you was lonelyI walked out of the kitchen I was tired as hell
Another day’s here and oh well
Somewhere there’s a smile with my name on it.
One of my favourite Mats numbers. It cuts right to the heart of the matter.
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I don’t think it would make my favourite list, but it’s very good and daring for a band that were considered punk.
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Admittedly my Favourites list is quite a long list.
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I generally opt for 2/3 of Let It Be, Tim, and Pleased To Meet Me before much else gets a look in.
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I’m a big All Shook Down fan
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It’s kind of like a Westerberg solo album but it’s still very good. Always enjoyed Torture.
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It really is
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I suppose the pull-ups is one form of exercise!
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I think the overall health benefits from reducing drinking would be more beneficial though…
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I love that album. Nice one!
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I like their mid period stuff (Let It Be, Tim, Pleased To Meet Me) even better.
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That lyric you pulled out is a classic!
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Paul Westerberg has a lot of great one liners and aphorisms. “Telling me questions and asking me lies”, “I hate music, it’s got too many notes!”, “We’ll inherit the earth, but we don’t want it”
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Great stuff there. I need to check out some more of their music
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Great tune, but then the Mats have got so many great songs. Westerberg is an excellent song writer and this one is proof that it was there from the start
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Yeah, I enjoy it more than most of his stuff from the debut album. More where his heart was at, I think.
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Your speaking to the converetd
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Yes I assumed you enjoyed this and that we’ve discussed this great band previously on several occasions.
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He really does string the words together.
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