Interesting Replacements News

[Jaimoe]

I lifted this story from Chart Attack. Man, I love this band:

New Replacements Songs Featured On Band Retrospective

Thursday March 30, 2006 @ 07:30 PM

By: ChartAttack.com Staff

The Replacements

Three original members of The Replacements have joined forces to record two new songs for a career retrospective, fuelling more reunion rumours.

Paul Westerberg, Tommy Stinson and Chris Mars recorded two new songs for the collection, Don't You Know Who I Think I Was?: The Best Of The Replacements, which will be out on June 13 via Rhino. "Message To The Boys" and "Pool & Dive" are the band's first new songs in 16 years. Guitarist Bob "Slim" Dunlap, who replaced Bob Stinson (who died of a 1995 drug overdose) in 1986, didn't take part in the sessions.

Session drummer Josh Freese took care of percussion chores while Mars (who's focused on his art career and hasn't sat behind a kit in years) just sang backing vocals on the new tracks, which were written by Westerberg and recorded in December at producer Ed Ackerson's Flowers studio in the band's hometown of Minneapolis, Minnesota.

The new activity is bound to spark more Replacements reunion speculation. But Westerberg told Billboard.com about a failed attempt to get the band back together for an October 2004 benefit show for Soul Asylum's Karl Mueller, who died of cancer last year, which signalled to him that there's no future for the group. He wouldn't specify who put the kibosh on the idea.

"Now I say there's probably no chance we'll get back together again," said Westerberg. "It bothered me for like an afternoon. But it did bother me for that long because I was secretly excited and some of them weren't."

The forthcoming 20-song compilation includes work from The Replacements' seven albums as well as from 1982's Stink EP. The group broke up in 1991, but their influence over alternative rock is still acknowledged by both their peers and young up-and-comers.

The long-rumoured Replacements box set still seems to be in the works, but won't be out until next year at the earliest. Westerberg and Stinson are apparently sifting through tapes and out-takes to include as bonus material for the package. According to a recent Rhinocast podcast interview with Stinson, the box set will include all of the band's albums, bonus tracks and "things that have been in the vault for a while." A DVD of live performances, including those from Saturday Night Live and England's Old Grey Whistle Test, are also slated for inclusion.

Expanded Rhino reissues of the band's albums are planned, but no release dates have been scheduled.

Since The Replacements' demise, Westerberg has released a number of solo albums under his own name and as Grandpaboy. Stinson has performed solo, fronted Bash & Pop and Perfect, and been a member of Guns N' Roses. Mars released four solo albums in the '90s but has been more focused on painting in recent years. Dunlap recorded two solo LPs in the '90s.

Westerberg asked Stinson to play bass on the soundtrack to the animated movie Open Season that he's scoring, which helped ease the tension that's plagued their relationship for years. Stinson is also working on the score for the forthcoming Jennifer Garner comedy, Catch And Release.

Here's the track list for Don't You Know Who I Think I Was?: The Best Of The Replacements:

"Takin A Ride"

"Shiftless When Idle"

"Kids Don't Follow"

"Color Me Impressed"

"Within Your Reach"

"I Will Dare"

"Answering Machine"

"Unsatisfied"

"Here Comes A Regular"

"Kiss Me On The Bus"

"Bastards Of Young"

"Left Of The Dial"

"Alex Chilton"

"Skyway"

"Can't Hardly Wait"

"Achin' To Be"

"I'll Be You"

"Merry Go Round"

"Message To The Boys"

"Pool & Dive"