Former Mats Westerberg and Stinson Jam in Minneapolis, Continue to Tease Me

(LimeWire) What with Paul Westerberg's 45:00 and recent news of his recent jam session with former Replacements bassist Tommy Stinson, I'm pretty much beside myself with hope that attending a Replacements show will no longer be a pipe dream. This wouldn't be the first false alarm for fans, though ... a much-rumored reunion for Coachella 2008 was met with timidity by Westerberg and Stinson, who fear the ramifications of bringing the band back to life, along with its reputation.

Says Westerberg to Billboard, "I'm very hesitant about dragging the name out there and what damage we could do to the legend. Whatever we did, someone would want something else. If I went up there straight, they'd want us wasted. If we were fucked up, they'd want us to be this or that." Aw, Paulie. We just want the tunes! Anyway, I doubt many of the Replacements' original fans are still Living the Life, as it's been seventeen years since the band officially split.

While Bobby Stinson and Chris Mars probably won't show up, Soul Asylum/Prince drummer Michael Bland seems like a likely contender to round out the reunion crew. The three met up last month to "mess around" in the studio, but claim nothing was recorded. Stinson remarks, "That's getting to first base. We're sort of still in the dugout chewing gum." So, what's third base, guys? Eh? Please? Ain't too proud to beg, now ... Fine. I'll just content myself with this pile of lovely Mats reissues from Rhino.

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Westerberg, Stinson 'Mess Around' In Minneapolis

(Billboard) Giving fans further hope for some kind of Replacements reunion, group principals Paul Westerberg and Tommy Stinson joined forces last month to "mess around" in Minneapolis with Soul Asylum/Prince drummer Michael Bland.

Stinson told the Minneapolis Star-Tribune that the trio didn't roll any tape, because "that's getting to first base. We're sort of still in the dugout chewing gum." But he assured that he and Westerberg are "good friends, and I'm sure we're going to work together again."

Westerberg's manager, Darren Hill, confirmed the sessions to Billboard but added there are "no plans beyond that right now."

The Replacements, who split in 1991, have been back in the spotlight this year as Rhino has rolled out expanded reissues of the band's complete studio catalog. The second and final batch, covering the band's major-label years with Sire, was released Sept. 23.

After years apart, Westerberg and Stinson hit the studio in 2006 to record two new songs for a Replacements retrospective and additional material for the animated film "Open Season."

In separate interviews with Billboard earlier this year, both men said the door isn't closed for some kind of project between them, although they added that Replacements drummer Chris Mars was unlikely to participate, owing to his thriving post-Replacements career as an artist.

Westerberg and Stinson have been tempted by numerous lucrative offers to reunite for festivals such as the 2008 Coachella, but "at the last minute, it just didn't seem like the right thing to do, so we didn't do it," Stinson said. "But I think Paul and I have something to offer each other still. I think that's pretty obvious when we get together."

"I'm very hesitant about dragging the name out there and what damage we could do to the legend," Westerberg said. "Whatever we did, someone would want something else. If I went up there straight, they'd want us wasted. If we were f--ked up, they'd want us to be this or that."

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Album reissues the bane of our existence

(Tri-City Herald) Reissues are the curse of any hardcore fan or collector. By being in tune with your roster of faves, you faithfully grab everything a band throws out -- great or mediocre -- often amassing a half-dozen CDs or more, depending on the band's longevity. But labels don't know the meaning of too much.

It's happened more times than I can count. I've got everything the Replacements put out between Hootenany (1983) and All Shook Down (1990). I bought All for Nothing/Nothing for All just because it was such a well put together best-of double album. Then a few years ago, another best-of came out with two new songs penned by frontman Paul Westerberg.

Had to have it.

Now Rhino (the record label I love to hate, hate to love) is re-releasing all of the 'Mats records with deluxe edition treatment, including six or seven tracks of rare or unreleased demos or outtakes that I've yet to hear.

I can't very well ignore that can I?

The same thing happened years ago with Rhino's amazing reissues of Elvis Costello's finest, which were loaded with extras.

Sure, it's easy to, say, just go to Hastings and sell off the old copies. You'll still have all the music. Right, but then I wouldn't have the originals. How would it look if I was showing off my collection and all of my favorite bands were represented by compilations and rarities?

Terrible, right? You'd think I was a poser.

I will eventually pick them all up. But I'm also going to have to weed out a couple of CDs that are dead to me and use 'em as a trade-in toward the Westerberg-penned soundtrack for the animated flick Open Season.

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Greatness Remembered

(Knox News) Let's establish this: If you never heard The Replacements in the band's 1980s heyday, you owe it to yourself to listen now. The Replacements were the soul of rock 'n' roll - wild, raucous, smart and dangerous.

These four discs complete the deluxe re-release of the Minneapolis band's complete catalog. Following three albums and an EP on the independent Twin/Tone Records (all re-released earlier this year with bonus tracks), The Replacements signed with Sire Records, seemingly poised for the big time. "Tim" and (especially) "Pleased To Meet Me") hold up in all their glory.

Even with the departure of guitarist Bob Stinson before recording began, "Pleased to Meet Me" is the band's most stunning moment - the disc blends the ferocity of punk with gorgeous pop (the string- and brass-laden "Can't Hardly Wait" may be the most sublime rock song of the 1980s).

The surprise is that the group's last two discs ("Don't Tell a Soul" and "All Shook Down") are better than you remember.

At the time, "Soul" was seen as a sellout. Doubtless, the group intentionally watered down the sound in hopes of scoring a radio hit (the effort failed), but the songs, including "Talent Show," "I'll Be You" and "Achin' to Be," stand up well.

"All Shook Down" is sometimes viewed as singer Paul Westerberg's first solo album rather than a band effort, but the tracks still crackle with what was left of the band's spirit.

The four discs many bonus tracks (mostly early takes of album cuts) generally just let you in on how Westerberg and company changed each one for the better.

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Tommy Says So

(Star Tribune) Like a lot of things that involve rehashing the Replacements' legacy, Tommy Stinson admitted he was a tad skeptical about reissuing their eight albums with bonus tracks. In the end, though, he realized "you get a little more of the story of those records in those extra tracks."

After reissuing the Minneapolis band's first four discs in April, Rhino Records put out new versions of the final four albums two weeks ago with six to 10 bonus cuts apiece.

"We grabbed the best that there was, and some of it was still pretty rough," said Stinson, who joined the Replacements on bass when he was only 12 and stayed alongside frontman Paul Westerberg until the end (1991). "All the tracks we picked helped tell the story. You can hear the time and the moment captured. Whether it was a good moment or not is open to debate."

Stinson talked by phone last week from New Orleans, where he was writing songs with Dave Pirner of Soul Asylum, another band he sometimes plays in, along with Guns N' Roses. He also jammed with Westerberg in Minneapolis recently but described it only as "messing around." We'll see.

Here's how Tommy described some of the extras on the reissues.

"TIM" (1985)

"Nowhere Is My Home," an outtake from scrapped sessions with the band's hero Alex Chilton producing: "It wound up being probably the best track of those sessions. It was one we had played quite a bit before it came time to record, so when we did record it, we were probably kind of sick of it.

"We were inspired to work with Alex, because we were such big Big Star fans. Like so many things, what it was supposed to be and ended up being wound up completely different, and in this case it wasn't all that fruitful."

Complete Article Here

Under The Influence: "Left Here In The Dark"

The Mats used to play this Vertebrats cover quite often. The Vertebrats formed in Champaign, IL in 1978. This is from their reunion show in 1992.

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If Magazine Reviews Remasters

Here's a nice in-depth review of the new remasters. It's pretty long, so I provided a link to the complete article.

In the early ‘80s, The Replacements excelled as part of the indie Twin/Tone label in the early, evolving at a rapid pace from snot-nosed punkers to semi-polished snot-nosed pros. However, it was the second half of their career with a major label that really defined their sound and created a legacy that's still being aped by rock and roll posers today.

Too bad, the ‘Mats didn’t reap anything from those rewards.

Generally what happens to groups like the Replacements once they jump aboard the major label bandwagon, is their sound becomes more homogenized, more pop, more mainstream – which is not say the Replacements didn’t do just that.

But as a preface, their sound was heading into that direction anyway during their last Twin/Tone release LET IT BE. So it’s not a surprise that their Sire Records debut TIM from 1985 was the crunchiest and poppiest the group had ever been.

Complete Review Here

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Possible new Replacements project in the works

UGH... I welcome ANY new music by Tommy and Paul, but please don't call it 'The Replacements.'


(City Pages) Chris Reimenshneider is reporting that Replacements members Tommy Stinson and Paul Westerberg have begun "messing around" in the studio with local producer and drummer Michael Bland. From the Pop Life blog:

He sounded enthusiastic about the sessions and said, “It was a lot of fun.” When I asked if they did any recording, though, he answered, “Nah, that’s getting to first base. We’re sort of still in the dugout chewing gum.” As for the general state of the two former ‘Mats mates relationship, he said, “We’re good friends, and I’m sure we’re going to work together again.”

The last time Westerberg and Stinson recorded together was in 2006, when they laid down two tracks for Don't You Know Who I Think I Was?: The Best of the Replacements with Chris Mars.

In other 'Mats news, Paul Westerberg has released another online-only track, "Bored of Edukation," which is available for 89 cents through Amazon.

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