You Bought It – You Name It is the sixth studio album by the American singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Joe Walsh. The album was released in mid 1983, on the label Warner Bros., two years after Walsh's successful album There Goes the Neighborhood. It was Walsh's second and final studio album to feature George "Chocolate" Perry as producer.
The album was received negatively by the majority of music critics, while other reviewers noted good points to the album. It was also not as successful as Walsh's previous albums, peaking at #48 on the Billboard 200. However, Walsh found some moderate success with the single "Space Age Whiz Kids", about the pinnacle of the 1980s video arcade craze. The single peaked at #52 on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart, and at #21 on the Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks chart. An outtake from The Long Run, "Told You So" features a guest appearance from former Eagles' member Don Felder (who also co-wrote the track). The album also features contributions from two other Eagles' members Don Henley, and Timothy B. Schmit, as well as country singer-songwriter Michael Martin Murphey, session guitarist Waddy Wachtel, and the drummer Joe Vitale from Walsh's former band Barnstorm.
Cover artwork
The cover art for the album features an American aircraft carrier, USS Yorktown, at the Battle of Midway after being hit by enemy bombers that appears to be on fire (smoke is coming out of the funnel from damage to the funnel uptakes and engineering spaces). There is also someone in a fireman suit that has his feet up on the bench behind Walsh who is sitting on the bench next to him, while reading a book titled "Aircraft Carrier". On the back sleeve of the album, Walsh is holding a photograph of the fireman suit with the face cut out so his face appears through it. Additionally, the single release of the song "Space Age Whiz Kids" used the same image of Walsh.
Production and recording
After the success of his album There Goes the Neighborhood, Walsh decided that it was time to record its follow-up, and in July 1982, Walsh asked Bill Szymczyk to produce his new album and Walsh came up with the idea that he was going to rent a 2-inch 16-track non Dolby mobile truck to record the album, but Szymczyk disagreed with the idea completely, and Walsh immediately fired him. They later decided to record the album there and began working on the album in late September that year. They went to the Santa Catalina Island outside of Los Angeles for a 14-day recording session and recorded six of the album's ten tracks in an old ballroom on the island. The other four tracks for the album were recorded in a different studio; the album was not finished until the end of the year.[1] The album contains hard rock songs such as "I Can Play That Rock & Roll" and a cover of the Dick Haymes track "Love Letters". It also contains more introspective material such as "Class of '65", and a song titled "I.L.B.T.s", an acronym for "I Like Big Tits".
Critical reception
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [2] |
| Robert Christgau | B+[3] |
In a contemporary review, music critic Robert Christgau wrote that the album is "Joe Walsh's Comedy Album" adding that the album features "one pop standard gone studio-reggae, the ultimate (last?) video-game song, a cross between "Boobs a Lot" and "Dolly Parton's Hits," "Class of '65" for bathetic relief, and a song called "I Can Play That Rock & Roll" that isn't stupid (though it comes close)."[3] In a retrospective review for AllMusic, critic James Chrispell wrote of the album "Rather retro in feel, like the title, it harkens back to a wackier time. Good, but flawed."[2]
Track listing
All tracks are written by Joe Walsh, except where noted.
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "I Can Play That Rock & Roll" | 3:03 | |
| 2. | "Told You So" |
| 3:54 |
| 3. | "Here We Are Now" | 3:54 | |
| 4. | "The Worry Song" |
| 4:37 |
| 5. | "I.L.B.T.s" |
| 2:53 |
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6. | "Space Age Whiz Kids" |
| 3:40 |
| 7. | "Love Letters" | 3:11 | |
| 8. | "Class of '65" | 4:27 | |
| 9. | "Shadows" | 5:09 | |
| 10. | "Theme from Island Weirdos" |
| 3:35 |
| Total length: | 38:23 | ||
Personnel
Credits are adapted from the album's liner notes.[4]
- Joe Walsh – lead vocals, guitars, slide guitar, synthesizers, linnDrums
- Waddy Wachtel – rhythm guitar, synthesized Guitar
- George "Chocolate" Perry – bass guitar, backing vocals
- Joe Vitale – bass guitar, flute, piano, drums, keyboards, backing vocals, syndrum
- Additional personnel
- Kevin Dukes – rhythm guitar (on "Space Age Whiz Kids", and "Love Letters")
- Don Felder – guitars, backing vocals (on "Told You So")
- Joe Pruessner – bass guitar (on "Class of '65")
- Don Henley – backing vocals (on "Here We Are Now")
- Timothy B. Schmit – backing vocals (on "Here We Are Now")
- Michael Martin Murphey – backing vocals (on "Class of '65")
- Bill Szymczyk – backing vocals
Production
- Producers: Joe Walsh, George Perry, Bill Szymczyk
- Engineer: Jim Nipar
- Assistant engineer: Terry Nelson
- Mastering: Ted Jensen
- Head Technical Engineer: Scott Stogel
- Record Plant Mobile: Mark Eshelman
- Direction: Irving Azoff
- Art direction: Jeff Adamoff
- Design: Jeff Adamoff
- Photography: Jim Shea
- Hand Coloring: Bob Jacobs
Charts
Album - Billboard (United States)
| Year | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|
| 1983 | Pop Albums | 48 |
Singles - Billboard (United States)
| Year | Single | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1983 | "I Can Play That Rock & Roll" | Mainstream Rock | 13 |
| "Space Age Whiz Kids" | Mainstream Rock | 21 | |
| Pop Singles | 52 |
See also
- List of albums released in 1983
- Joe Walsh's discography
References
- ^ http://www.nysse.com/jw/anthology.html
- ^ a b Chrispell, James. "You Bought It – You Name It > Review". Allmusic. Retrieved 9 July 2011.
- ^ a b Christgau, Robert (24 January 1984). "Christgau's Consumer Guide". The Village Voice. New York. Retrieved 29 April 2013.
- ^ You Bought It – You Name It liner notes. Warner Bros. 1983.
External links
- You Bought It – You Name It at Discogs (list of releases)