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For the album's title track, see It's a Shame About Ray (song).
It's a Shame About Ray
Lemonheads It's a Shame About Ray.jpg
Studio album by Lemonheads
ReleasedJune 2, 1992
Recorded1991–1992
StudioCherokee Studios in Los Angeles, California
GenreAlternative rock
Length29:46
LabelAtlantic
ProducerThe Robb Brothers
Lemonheads chronology
Lovey
(1990)		It's a Shame About Ray
(1992)		Come on Feel the Lemonheads
(1993)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic4.5/5 stars[1]
Chicago Tribune3/4 stars[2]
Encyclopedia of Popular Music4/5 stars[3]
Mojo5/5 stars[4]
NME8/10[5]
Pitchfork8.4/10[6]
Q4/5 stars[7]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide4/5 stars[8]
Select4/5[9]
Uncut4/5 stars[10]

It's a Shame About Ray is the fifth album by American alternative rock band the Lemonheads, released on June 2, 1992. Tom Morgan of Australian band Smudge helped author the album and the Robb Brothers produced it. At the time of principal recording, the band consisted of Evan Dando (lead vocals, guitar), Juliana Hatfield (bass, backing vocals) and David Ryan (drums). Though not originally on the album, the band's cover of "Mrs. Robinson" was added to the album in later pressings after it had become a major worldwide radio hit, and it features a later lineup of the band with Nic Dalton on bass.

History[edit]

The title track was partially inspired by a quote that band leader Evan Dando had seen in a Sydney newspaper in reference to Ray Martin losing his job as the presenter of The Midday Show. It became an international hit for the band, reaching #31 in the UK Top 100 as well as #5 on the Modern Rock Tracks chart in the U.S. The song was later included at #138 on Pitchfork Media's "Top 200 Tracks of the 90s" list.[11] The music video features Johnny Depp.[12]

"Alison's Starting to Happen" refers to Alison Galloway, the drummer for Smudge.

"Frank Mills" is a cover version of a song from the musical Hair.

Pressure from the record label caused the title of the song "Drug Buddy" to be reduced to the less provocative title "Buddy" when the album was reissued, only to be changed to "My Drug Buddy" on later releases.

"Confetti" was released as a single in the U.K., reaching #31.

The album reached #33 in the UK Top 100.

Actress Polly Noonan and her car appear on the cover of the album.[13]

Rereleases[edit]

After its initial release, the album was reissued with a cover of the song "Mrs. Robinson", originally written and recorded by Simon & Garfunkel. The Lemonheads' version was recorded to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the release of the film The Graduate. The band recorded the song in Berlin while tour, with Nic Dalton on bass guitar. It was released as a single.

The album was reissued by Rhino in 2008 as a collector's edition that includes several demo versions of album tracks, the B-side song "Shaky Ground" and a DVD containing the previously released (on VHS) Two Weeks in Australia.

Notable performances[edit]

The Lemonheads toured Australia in late 2010, playing the album in its entirety along with songs from their other albums.[14]

The band performed the entire album at London's Shepherds Bush Empire on September 14–15, 2005 as part of the All Tomorrow's Parties-curated Don't Look Back concert series, with "Mrs. Robinson" missing from the setlist.

Track listing[edit]

All songs by Evan Dando unless otherwise stated.

  1. "Rockin Stroll"
  2. "Confetti"
  3. "It's a Shame About Ray" (Words by Dando, Tom Morgan; music by Dando)
  4. "Rudderless"
  5. "My Drug Buddy"
  6. "The Turnpike Down"
  7. "Bit Part" (Words by Dando, Morgan; music by Dando)
  8. "Alison's Starting to Happen"
  9. "Hannah & Gabi"
  10. "Kitchen" (Nic Dalton)
  11. "Ceiling Fan in My Spoon"
  12. "Frank Mills" (James Rado, Gerome Ragni, Galt MacDermot)
Re-release bonus track
  2. "Mrs. Robinson" (Paul Simon)

Personnel[edit]

The Lemonheads
  • Evan Dando – guitar, vocals
  • Juliana Hatfield – bass guitar, backup vocals
  • David Ryan – drums
  • Nic Dalton – bass guitar on "Mrs. Robinson"
  • Jeff "Skunk" Baxter – slide guitar on "Hannah & Gabi"

Charts[15][edit]

Album – Billboard (United States)

YearChartPosition
1992Heatseekers3
1993The Billboard 20068

Singles – Billboard (United States)

YearSingleChartPosition
1992"It's a Shame About Ray"Modern Rock Tracks5
1992"Mrs. Robinson"Modern Rock Tracks8

References[edit]

  1. ^ Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "It's a Shame About Ray – The Lemonheads". AllMusic. Retrieved May 4, 2016.
  2. ^ Caro, Mark (July 16, 1992). "Lemonheads: It's a Shame About Ray (Atlantic)". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved May 4, 2016.
  3. ^ Larkin, Colin (2011). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music (5th concise ed.). Omnibus Press. ISBN 0-85712-595-8.
  4. ^ "The Lemonheads: It's a Shame About Ray". Mojo (173): 120. April 2008.
  5. ^ Cameron, Keith (July 11, 1992). "The Lemonheads – It's a Shame About Ray". NME. Archived from the original on August 17, 2000. Retrieved May 4, 2016.
  6. ^ Deusner, Stephen M. (March 28, 2008). "The Lemonheads: It's a Shame About Ray [Collector's Edition]". Pitchfork. Retrieved January 11, 2012.
  7. ^ "The Lemonheads: It's a Shame About Ray". Q (262): 148. May 2008.
  8. ^ Considine, J. D. (2004). "The Lemonheads". In Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian (eds.). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide (4th ed.). Simon & Schuster. p. 481. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8.
  9. ^ Perry, Andrew (August 1992). "Lemonheads: It's a Shame About Ray". Select (26): 91.
  10. ^ Mulvey, John (April 2008). "Lemonheads – It's A Shame About Ray". Uncut (131): 106. Retrieved October 22, 2016.
  11. ^ "Pitchfork Top 200 Tracks of the 90s", pitchfork.com.
  12. ^ Anderson, Kyle (June 2, 2010). "The Lemonheads Feel Some Shame: Wake-Up Video Bonus". MTV. Retrieved 29 May 2016.
  13. ^ "Cover girl relives Ray before Lemonheads", thomasconner.info.
  14. ^ "The Lemonheads 'It's A Shame About Ray' tour" Archived 2012-10-06 at the Wayback Machine, FasterLouder, 29 September 2010.
  15. ^ Awards in Allmusic : http://www.allmusic.com/album/its-a-shame-about-ray-mw0000092680/awards