Paul Westerberg

Paul Westerberg: Dead Man Shake (as Grandpaboy)Dead Man Shake (as Grandpaboy) (2003)
Fat Possum Records

Reviewer Rating: 4

Contributed by: adamAdam
(others by this writer | submit your own)
Published on October 21st 2003There's a wonderful, low-fi simplicity to early rock and roll that's been lost in a lot of today's music. Paul Westerberg's Grandpaboy is one of the few modern acts from a rock background that has been able to successfully capture that sound without sounding derivative, ironic or blatantly nos.

There's a wonderful, low-fi simplicity to early rock and roll that's been lost in a lot of today's music. Paul Westerberg's Grandpaboy is one of the few modern acts from a rock background that has been able to successfully capture that sound without sounding derivative, ironic or blatantly nostalgic. Dead Man Shake is an album of material that could have been written in the 40s and 50s, filtered through the lens of early garage and punk.

While Westerberg's clean and sober solo outings have largely split the opinions of old time `Mats fans, the Grandpaboy releases continue to revive the sloppy revelry The Replacements were celebrated for. If you fail to see the charm in dirty old blues standards recorded in a single "warts-and-all" take, you're missing what makes Dead Man Shake so enjoyable.

It's not hard to see where Westerberg's influences are here, as tracks like "Get A Move On" could have been a long lost Rolling Stones tune. You can hear the imprints of blues legends tunes like "Take Out Some Insurance" and "Natural Mean Lover." There's a batch of respectable covers as well, including John Prine's "Souvenirs" and a trembling version of the Sammy Davis Jr. standard "What Kind Of Fool Am I." Westerberg even picks up a slide guitar for a wailing version of Hank Williams Sr.'s landmark "I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry." My favourite tracks on Dead Man Shake are the original compositions, particularly the shuffling Minneapolis anthem "MPLS" and the delta-blues drug tale "O.D. Blues." The highlight of the record is "Vampires & Failures," a haunting and infectious tune that's one the best of the year.

Dead Man Shake doesn't fall into the trap of being a low-appeal side project simply because it doesn't carry Westerberg's name on the cover. This holds up well to anything he's recorded in his solo career and is a fun, loose record in a year that's been filled with heavy, self-important releases. It's great that Fat Possum's behind this, because it fits in perfectly with the label's bare-knuckle blues sound.

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Fine Print: The following comments are owned by whoever posted them. We are not respon sible for them in any way. Seriously.

Anonymous (October 28, 2003)

I hate you so much.

Anonymous (October 24, 2003)

Since when does this website allow posts about Wuss-Rock? Paul Westerberg has a vagina and titties.

Anonymous (October 24, 2003)

Po-Boy sanwiches kick ass.

-sickboi

Anonymous (October 24, 2003)

Everytime I read the name I always want to pronounce it grand-pooba or poorboy.

Anonymous (October 23, 2003)

thanks ill be looking into those

Drizzt7_drek (October 23, 2003)

We've got an mp3 of MPLS on the website if you wanted to hear it.

http://www.fatpossum.com/albums/80377.html

TheOneTrueBill (October 23, 2003)

I'd say get Let It Be and Stink, then Pleased to Meet Me, Hootenany, and Tim. Then Don't Tell a Sould and All Shook Down. The last two are good, but in a vastly different way. Here's the breakdown

1-3... Awesome Punkish Rock & Roll
4-6... Indie Rock peak
7-8... Singer/Songwriter territory.

And if possible, try to get a copy of the second disc of the best of. It has tons of awesome B-sides on it.

Anonymous (October 23, 2003)

i got the joe henry on tues with the new strummer and i have to say both albums are incredible so much emotion and the songwriting cannot be beat, i probably would have gotten this as well but they didn't have it at the store i went to. im looking to expand on my mats collection i have sorry ma what other would you people suggest

FortyMinutesWest (October 22, 2003)

Mats Sundin?

TheOneTrueBill (October 22, 2003)

You seriosuly need to fix that. What 'Mats albums do you have?

Anonymous (October 22, 2003)

The scary thing is that with this record and Come Feel Me Tremble, I now have more Westerberg solo records than Replacements records.

Anonymous (October 22, 2003)

I only listen to Joe Henry when I got a
couple bottles of two buck chuck and some imported fromage and crackers.

A niggas got to eat!