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Product Description
Amazon.co.uk Review
There are two types of topical songwriters. You have your all-the-news-that's-fit-to-sing variety, with Phil Ochs representing its quintessence; for them, "topical" means "protest"--serious business, indeed. And then there's the laugh-to-keep-from-crying stripe spearheaded by Tom Lehrer. Social Studies finds Loudon Wainwright III throwing his lot in with the latter camp. Largely composed on demand for National Public Radio (the US equivalent of Radio 4), Social Studies finds the acerbic wordsmith taking aim at the likes of rough-and-tumble skater Tonya Harding, O.J. Simpson, imprisoned "Panamanian strongman" Manuel Noriega, and President Bill Clinton. With more a smirk than a scowl, Wainwright deftly skewers such 1990s icons as septuagenarian US Senator Jesse Helms ("If Jesse don't like it, it's probably not art / Jesse knows what's good, old Jesse is smart") with just enough bite to leave teeth marks. --Steven Stolder
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
ephemeral issues, enduring music,
This review is from: Social Studies (Audio CD)
British and American listeners are likely to have different responses to this album. Unlike Wainwright’s ‘regular’ releases, it wasn’t conceived as a self-contained song-cycle updating us on his personal life. (For the latest on that, check out the extraordinary Last Man On Earth). Instead, Social Studies is a collection of topical songs composed over an extended period, commenting on various phenomena in the daily news. By and large, the news is specifically American rather than European or world-wide, which means that non-American listeners may feel left in the dark by a too-intimate connection with 1980s/1990s politics/current affairs that passed them by. However, Wainwright’s charm, verve and craftsmanship win out over social ephemera, and I would recommend this album to anyone. ‘Jesse Don’t Like It’ is a pretty self-explanatory song about a philistine would-be censor, even if we’re not sure who Jesse Helms is. ‘Pretty Good Day’ is universal (and, in my opinion, one of the half-dozen best songs Wainwright has ever written. It’s up there with ‘April Fools Day Morn’, ‘School Days’ and ‘Your Mother And I’.) ‘What Gives’ is a splendidly witty commentary on the necrophilia of the commercial pop scene, and is wickedly well arranged and played to boot. As music, ‘Y2K’ is a good piece of funk, despite the fact that its lyrics refer to an event that’s now history, and ‘Tonya’s Twirls’ is a terrific piece of folk-country. Also I must confess I like the idea of an unsuspecting, sentimental country&western fan tapping his toes to ‘Number One’, Loudon’s jaunty Hank Williams-y paean to phone sex. Admittedly there are a few so-so tracks (the lyrics of ‘Bad Man’ may be trenchantly topical given our recent adventures with Saddam Hussein, but as a song it doesn’t really cut the mustard). 'Our Boy Bill' about Clinton, is pretty shoddy, too. But then, this tends to be the case with all Loudon Wainwright albums – lots of fine songs, a few less worthy ones. All in all, Social Studies is another sterling release. Not the first Wainwright album you should be investigating, but by no means the last.
2 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Musical satire,
By Peter Durward Harris "Pete the music fan" (Leicester England) - See all my reviews (No. 1 Hall OF FAME REVIEWER) (TOP 10 REVIEWER) (REAL NAME)
This review is from: Social Studies (Audio CD)
The album opens with What gives, which pokes fun at musical legends of the past, many of them now dead. I confess that I fail to see what message Loudon was trying to get across but it's a good trip down memory lane so I don't mind.The remaining songs are much easier to understand. Some of them may seem dated but they are often interesting for what they symbolize. For example, Tonya's twirls (about the ice-skater, Tonya Harding) reminds us about the pressures of competitive sport and the cheating that some are tempted into. Other songs deal with smokers, the trial of O J Simpson, Santa Claus, Bill Clinton, Bill Gates, Saddam Hussein and premium telephone lines. Loudon is sympathetic to smokers as they face ever more restrictions but pours scorn on the others. More seriously, Carmine Street is about somebody barricading themselves inside their house because of rioting in the streets. It was about Los Angeles but would be just as relevant to riots in London or anywhere else. With an album like this, it is difficult to know whether to recommend it or not. I enjoy listening to it occasionally despite the fact that most of the events that inspired the songs are old news. I try to relate them to something topical and in that way I still find most of them relevant, therefore still amusing.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta) Amazon.com:
4.0 out of 5 stars (9 customer reviews) 5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Too Topical?,
By Blake Watson "===Blake===" - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Social Studies (Audio CD)
A collection of songs written over about a ten year period on the latest fads and fashions, about as far from his usual stuff as you could get. An informal survey of Loudon fans had them all agreeing that this wasn't his best stuff, but no agreement on which songs were representative of decline in quality.I offer this opinion: They're all good, but how you view them has a lot to do with how personally you take the issue being addressed. Hate the (now common) practice of digging up a dead musicians tapes to record new songs? "What Gives?" is bound to resonate. A smoker forced to relocate to the streets in the current atmosphere of "no smoke tolerance"? "New Street People" is the song for you. The strongest songs on the album are probably those which are still startlingly relevant, whether through the cleverness of the songwriter or by accident of current events. "Leap of Faith" and "Inaugural Blues" apply depressingly to the current election. "Bad Man" and "Christmas Morning", about troubles with dictators and the middle east, will probably never go out of fashion. "Tonya's Twirls", though about ice skater Tonya Harding, has a nice twist in it that makes one reflect on the Olympics in general. "Carmine Street" and "Pretty Good Day So Far" are fair estimates of what being exposed to the news media can do to a person, both good and bad. You probably won't like all the songs or think some of them are just "so so", but it's almost guaranteed to be two or three on here that will be "worth the price of admission alone". 3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
As good as Loudon gets.,
By Jack Stamps(jstamps@sbec.tetn.net) - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Social Studies (Audio CD)
I heard Loudon sing most of these songs at the Cactus Cafe in Austin, Texas last month. AS usual, I was blown away by his wit, humor, sensitivity and musical prowess. Mr. Wainwright, no matter how you spell his name, is a real charmer.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Musical satire,
By Peter Durward Harris "Pete the music fan" - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Social Studies (Audio CD)
The album opens with What gives, which pokes fun at musical legends of the past, many of them now dead. I confess that I fail to see what message Loudon was trying to get across but it's a good trip down memory lane so I don't mind.The remaining songs are much easier to understand. Some of them may seem dated but they are often interesting for what they symbolize. For example, Tonya's twirls (about the ice-skater, Tonya Harding) reminds us about the pressures of competitive sport and the cheating that some are tempted into. Other songs deal with smokers, the trial of O J Simpson, Santa Claus, Bill Clinton, Bill Gates, Saddam Hussein and premium telephone lines. Loudon is sympathetic to smokers as they face ever more restrictions but pours scorn on the others. More seriously, Carmine Street is about somebody barricading themselves inside their house because of rioting in the streets. It was about Los Angeles but would be just as relevant to riots in London or anywhere else. With an album like this, it is difficult to know whether to recommend it or not. I enjoy listening to it occasionally despite the fact that most of the events that inspired the songs are old news. I try to relate them to something topical and in that way I still find most of them relevant, therefore still amusing. |
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