Paul Westerberg started his musical career fronting the 80s alternative rock icons, The Replacements. Upon their break-up in 1991, Westerberg wasted no time getting to work on a solo career, contributing two tracks to the soundtrack for the hit movie Singles. Both should have helped him break onto the charts, but despite appreciable airplay, neither "Dyslexic Heart" or "Waiting For Somebody" took off. His first solo record, "14 Songs," should have introduced the world to Westerberg's songwriting genius, but for some reason it failed to happen. This is one of the best records of the 90s in my book. Ever prolific, Westerberg continued to release records under his name, as well as Grandpaboy, and has appeared on lots of soundtracks and tribute albums. Most notably, some of his best work in years appears on the soundtrack to the 2006 animated film Open Season. In 2015, he teamed up with Juliana Hatfield to release a singe album as The I Don't Cares. While his more recent efforts are low-fi adventures from his basement studio, I rank his work during the late 80s and early 90s with some of finest tunes out there. "World Class Fad," from his 1993 solo debut, should have made Westerberg the household name he deserves to be.
One of the greatest sins in the history of the music charts is the virtual absence of a band like The Replacements. Led by the songwriting genius of Paul Westerberg, the band only managed a single chart appearance at the twilight of their career together when "I'll Be You" peaked at #51 in 1989. Many other entities have recognized their hugely influential role in the annals of rock. For example, "Here Comes A Regular" and "I Will Dare" are both in the R&R Hall of Fame. The band formed in Minneapolis in 1979 around brothers Bob and Tommy Stinson (who was a member of Guns N' Roses from 1998-2014, and also side bands Bash & Pop, and Perfect). They released their first album in 1981, a raw thrash record called "Sorry Ma, Forgot To Take Out The Trash." The band's sound quickly evolved as they began to incorporate new genres into their songwriting, and Westerberg was growing into a talented lyricist with a knack for snark and wordplay. He'd soon be tackling issues of addiction, suicide, spousal abuse, politics, and more. The band's 1984 album "Let It Be" is widely considered to be one of the best of the era. The album was not a commercial success at the time, but did get the band signed to the major label Sire. Two more back-to-back masterpieces would follow with "Tim" and "Pleased To Meet Me." In-between those records, the band dismissed Bob Stinson since he showed clear disdain for the less rocking songs and suffered major issues with substance abuse (which took his life in 1995). Slim Dunlop replaced him for the rest of the band's career, which included two more albums, "Don't Tell A Soul" and "All Shook Down." While these two albums are gems in their own way, they were a far cry from The Replacements of old and more like solo efforts from Westerberg. Picking a single song to highlight their brilliance is nearly impossible. They're one of the few bands in which every song they've ever done is worthy of a listen. Nonetheless, I'm going with "The Ledge," a track about solitude and suicide from 1987's "Pleased To Meet Me." This haunting song should have broken the band, but the video was banned from MTV. Not because of the visuals (in true Replacements style, the video just shows the band hanging out on a sofa and chairs), but due to the lyrics alone.
If you only know the Goo Goo Dolls for their material since their monster hit "Iris," you'd guess their earlier records were done by a completely different band. The Buffalo-based band started out as a garage and punk outfit in 1986 with the raspy vocals of bassist Robby Takac singing lead on most of the songs. The more radio-friendly voice usually associated with the Goo Goo Dolls is guitarist John Rzeznik, but you didn't hear much of his singing until the third record, "Hold Me Up." Early records by the Goo Goo Dolls also featured numerous amped-up cover tunes and a couple guest vocalist spots for Buffalo area lounge singer Lance Diamond, who happened to live in the same apartment building as Takac. By their fourth record, 1993's "Superstar Car Wash," Takac and Rzeznik were sharing vocal duties about 50/50 and the songs became more focused. They still had a punchy hard rock sound, but the hooks in these tunes were amazing. "We Are The Normal" featured lyrics written by their idol, Paul Westerberg (The Replacements), and started getting the band some decent airplay. The breakthrough record would come next, "A Boy Named Goo," in 1995 thanks to a DJ that started spinning a very atypical Goo's track called "Name." Featuring Rzeznik on vocals, this acoustic-driven rock tune would lay the foundation for the Goo Goo Dolls that was to prevail through the 90s. "Name" went to #5 and the next single, "Naked," got to #47. Then the band recorded "Iris" for the film City of Angels - it remains the longest running #1 song ever on the Billboard Hot 100 Airplay Chart (an astonishing 18 weeks). The Goo Goo Dolls crank out generic pop rock now, catering to the trendy sounds of the day. They still make records and draw huge crowds, but haven't seen the top 40 since 2005 when "Better Days" hit #36. "Girl Right Next To Me" goes back to my favorite Goo's record, a masterpiece of 90s rock, "Superstar Car Wash."
