| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [2] |
| Christgau's Record Guide | B+[3] |
| Encyclopedia of Popular Music |  [4] |
| PopMatters | 9/10[5] |
| Rolling Stone | (positive)[6] |
Warren Zevon is the second studio album by American musician Warren Zevon. This album was recorded in 1975 and released on May 10, 1976, by Asylum Records. A remastered version of the album with special bonus tracks was released in 2008 by Rhino Records.[5]
Critical reception
Reviewing in Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies (1981), Robert Christgau wrote: "I am suspicious of singer-songwriters who draw attention to phrases like 'hasten down the wind,' and I would suggest a moratorium on songs about the James Brothers that don't also rhyme 'pollution' and 'solution.' But I like the way Zevon resists pigeonholes like 'country-rock' while avoiding both the banal and the mystagogical, and I like quatrains like: 'And if California slides into the ocean/Like the mystics and statistics say it will/I predict this motel will be standing/Until I pay my bill.'"[3]
Track listing
All songs written by Warren Zevon.
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Frank and Jesse James" | 4:33 |
| 2. | "Mama Couldn't Be Persuaded" | 2:53 |
| 3. | "Backs Turned Looking Down the Path" | 2:27 |
| 4. | "Hasten Down the Wind" | 2:58 |
| 5. | "Poor Poor Pitiful Me" | 3:04 |
| 6. | "The French Inhaler" | 3:44 |
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 7. | "Mohammed's Radio" | 3:40 |
| 8. | "I'll Sleep When I'm Dead" | 2:56 |
| 9. | "Carmelita" | 3:32 |
| 10. | "Join Me in L.A." | 3:13 |
| 11. | "Desperados Under the Eaves" | 4:45 |
Personnel
- Warren Zevon - harmonica, piano, rhythm guitar, string arrangements, vocals
- Jackson Browne - harmony vocals on tracks 2, 3 & 11, piano on track 10, slide guitar on track 3
- Lindsey Buckingham - guitar on track 3, harmony vocals on tracks 5 & 7
- Rosemary Butler - harmony vocals on track 10
- Jorge Calderón - harmony vocals on tracks 8 & 11
- Marty David - bass guitar on track 3
- Ned Doheny - guitar on track 10
- Phil Everly - harmony vocals on tracks 1 & 4
- Glenn Frey - rhythm guitar on track 9, harmony vocals on tracks 6 & 9
- The Gentlemen Boys - background vocals on track 11
- Bob Glaub - bass guitar on tracks 1, 2, 4 - 7 & 9 - 11
- Don Henley - harmony vocals on track 6
- Billy Hinsche - harmony vocals on track 11
- Bobby Keys - saxophone on tracks 5, 7 & 10
- David Lindley - banjo on track 1, fiddle on tracks 1, 2 & 5, slide guitar on tracks 4 & 7, guitar on track 9
- Gary Mallaber - drums on tracks 3 & 8
- Roy Marinell - bass guitar on track 8
- Stevie Nicks - vocals on track 7 & 10
- Bonnie Raitt - harmony vocals on track 10
- Fritz Richmond - jug on track 8
- Sid Sharp - strings on tracks 4, 6 & 11
- J.D. Souther - harmony vocals on tracks 2 & 11
- Waddy Wachtel - guitar, vocals
- Carl Wilson - harmony vocals on track 11, vocal arrangements
- Jai Winding - piano on track 5, organ & synthesizer on track 10, vocals on track 11
- Larry Zack - drums on tracks 1, 2, 4 - 7 & 9 - 11
- The Gentlemen Boys consisted of: Jackson Browne, Jorge Calderón, Kenny Edwards, J. D. Souther and Waddy Wachtel.
Production
- Producer: Jackson Browne
- Engineer: Fritz Richmond
- Mixing: John Haeny
- Arranger: Warren Zevon
- Vocal Arrangement: Carl Wilson
Charts
| Chart (1976) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Billboard Top LPs & Tape | 189 |
References
- ^ "Warren Zevon - Warren Zevon - Songs, Reviews, Credits - AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved 16 November 2018.
- ^ Mark Deming. "Warren Zevon - Warren Zevon | Songs, Reviews, Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved 2015-10-23.
- ^ a b Christgau, Robert (1981). "Consumer Guide '70s: Z". Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies. Ticknor & Fields. ISBN 089919026X. Retrieved March 23, 2019 – via robertchristgau.com.
- ^ Larkin, Colin (2007). Encyclopedia of Popular Music (4th ed.). Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0195313734.
- ^ a b "Warren Zevon: Warren Zevon". PopMatters. Retrieved 2015-10-23.
- ^ "Warren Zevon: Warren Zevon : Music Reviews : Rolling Stone". Web.archive.org. 1976-07-15. Archived from the original on October 1, 2007. Retrieved 2015-10-23.