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Sunday, December 8, 2013

Classic Camper Van Beethoven reissues on the way

Since I did a feature on the band for their most recent studio album, I can't wait to hear these reissues. Read more details from the press release...

When indie superstars Camper Van Beethoven signed with Virgin Records in the late ’80s, it seemed inconceivable. How could that irreverent act, a band with great wit and wide-ranging instrumentation, move to a major label without “selling out” and sacrificing all that made them great?

As it turned out, the first three tracks on Our Beloved Revolutionary Sweetheart were a pop song, an instrumental and an adaptation of a dirge about death. Heck, the release even had a love song for Patty Hearst. No, Camper Van Beethoven hadn’t sold out. They just had better distribution now.
 
On Feb. 4, Omnivore Recordings will proudly revisit a time when Camper Van Beethoven helped pioneer American alt-rock, with reissues of the band’s first two Virgin albums: Our Beloved Revolutionary Sweetheart and Key Lime Pie.
 
Produced by Dennis Herring (Elvis Costello, Counting Crows, Modest Mouse), Our Beloved Revolutionary Sweetheart finds itself reissued on CD with 10 bonus tracks, and on vinyl for the first time since its original issue.
 
Featuring new photos and liners in both the CD and LP, the album is being released in tandem with its acclaimed follow-up Key Lime Pie, with full cooperation from the band itself.
 
Key Lime Pie, also produced by Herring, was a logical next chapter in the saga of CVB while offering higher production value. From a track about Jack Ruby to a cover of Status Quo’s “Pictures of Matchstick Men,” Key Lime Pie was a slice above the rest and a fitting dessert for the 1980s.
 
This reissue contains nine bonus tracks on the CD. The nearly hour-long album was originally pressed on one LP, but Omnivore has expended it to two LPs (for better sound) and added a bonus track to Side 4 that plays at 45 rpm.
 
It’s been a few years since the end of the ’80s but Camper Van Beethoven has proved timeless. Our Beloved Revolutionary Sweetheart attests to that. It’s even spelled out in the title: beloved, revolutionary and a real sweetheart.
 
The band, which broke up after the two Virgin recordings, has reunited and continues to record and tour today.
 
Our Beloved Revolutionary Sweetheart CD Track List:

1. Eye Of Fatima (Pt. 1)
2. Eye Of Fatima (Pt. 2)
3. O Death
4. She Divines Water
5. Devil Song
6. One Of These Days
7. Turquoise Jewelry
8. Waka
9. Change Your Mind
10. My Path Belated
11. Never Go Back
12. The Fool
13. Tania
14. Life Is Grand
 

Bonus Tracks:
15. Love Is a Weed
16. Harmony In My Head
17. Wade In the Water
18. Eye Of Fatima Pts. 1 & 2 (Edit)
19. The Day That Lassie Went To The Moon (Live)
20. One Of These Days (Live)
21. Smash It Up (Live)
22. Seven Languages (Live)
23. Kodachrome (Live) “Kodachrome”® is a registered trademark for color film
24. Hanging Around (live)
25. Pope Festival

Our Beloved Revolutionary Sweetheart LP Track List:

Side One
1. Eye Of Fatima (Pt. 1)
2. Eye Of Fatima (Pt. 2)
3. O Death
4. She Divines Water
5. Devil Song
6. One Of These Days
7. Turquoise Jewelry
 

Side Two
1. Waka
2. Change Your Mind
3. My Path Belated
4. Never Go Back
5. The Fool
6. Tania
7. Life Is Grand

Key Lime Pie CD Track List:

1. Opening Theme
2. Jack Ruby
3. Sweethearts
4. When I Win The Lottery
5. (I Was Born In A) Laundromat
6. Borderline
7. The Light From A Cake
8. June
9. All Her Favorite Fruit
10. Interlude
11. Flowers
12. The Humid Press Of Days
13. Pictures Of Matchstick Men
14. Come On Darkness
 

Bonus Tracks:
15. Closing Theme (Aka Guitar Hero)
16. (I Was Born In A) Laundromat (Edit)
17. Country 2 (Demo)
18. Good Guys & Bad Guys (Live)
19. Wasted (Live)
20. Take The Skinheads Bowling (Live)
21. Before I Met You (Live)
22. L’aguardiente (Soho Natural Sesson)
23. (I Don’t Want To Go To The) Lincoln Shrine (Soho Natural Session)

Key Lime Pie LP Track List:

Side One
1. Opening Theme
2. Jack Ruby
3. Sweethearts
4. When I Win The Lottery

Side Two
1. (I Was Born In A) Laundromat
2. Borderline
3. The Light From A Cake
4. June
5. All Her Favorite Fruit
 

Side Three
1. Interlude
2. Flowers
3. The Humid Press Of Days
4. Pictures Of Matchstick Men
5. Come On Darkness

Side Four (Plays at 45 prm from the center out)
1. Closing Theme (aka Guitar)

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