Blank Generation (album)
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| Blank Generation | ||||
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| Studio album by Richard Hell & the Voidoids | ||||
| Released | September 1977 | |||
| Recorded | Plaza Sound, New York Electric Lady Studios |
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| Genre | Punk rock | |||
| Length | 39:44 | |||
| Label | Sire (U.S., UK) Philips (Australia, Netherlands) |
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| Producer | Richard Gottehrer and Richard Hell | |||
| Richard Hell & the Voidoids chronology | ||||
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| Alternative cover | ||||
1990 CD reissue cover
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Blank Generation is the first album by American punk rock band Richard Hell and the Voidoids. It was produced by Richard Gottehrer and released in 1977 on Sire Records. The title track is loosely based on the single "The Beat Generation", a late-1950s collaboration between Bob McFadden and poet Rod McKuen.
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[edit] Cover design
The original album sleeve featured a front cover photo of frontman Richard Hell in black jeans and shirtless, opening a frayed jacket to reveal the phrase "YOU MAKE ME _______" written across his chest. The photo was taken by CBGB's unofficial photographer Roberta Bayley. The back cover featured a posed photo of Hell and the Voidoids taken by Kate Simon.[citation needed]
[edit] 1990 CD reissue
The 1990 CD reissue of Blank Generation differs in several respects from the original vinyl album. It includes two bonus tracks: a version of the pop standard "All the Way", and an original, "I'm Your Man" (not the Leonard Cohen song of same name). Both are outtakes from the original album sessions. Also, "Down at the Rock & Roll Club" is a noticeably different recording than that which appeared on the original LP; it features no drums during most of the verses. The CD album cover is also different from the original.
[edit] Track listing
All songs written and composed by Richard Hell, except as indicated.
| Side one | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length | ||||||
| 1. | "Love Comes in Spurts" | 2:03 | |||||||
| 2. | "Liars Beware" (Recorded at Electric Lady Studios) | Hell and Ivan Julian | 2:52 | ||||||
| 3. | "New Pleasure" (Recorded at Electric Lady Studios) | 1:58 | |||||||
| 4. | "Betrayal Takes Two" | Hell and Julian | 3:37 | ||||||
| 5. | "Down at the Rock and Roll Club" | 4:05 | |||||||
| 6. | "Who Says?" | 2:07 | |||||||
| Side two | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length | ||||||
| 1. | "Blank Generation" | 2:45 | |||||||
| 2. | "Walking on the Water" | John Fogerty and Tom Fogerty | |||||||
| 3. | "The Plan" | 3:56 | |||||||
| 4. | "Another World" (Recorded at Electric Lady Studios) | 8:14 | |||||||
| CD reissue bonus tracks | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length | ||||||
| 11. | "I'm Your Man" | 2:55 | |||||||
| 12. | "All the Way" | Sammy Cahn and Jimmy Van Heusen | 3:22 | ||||||
Recorded at Plaza Sound except as indicated.
[edit] Critical reception
| Professional ratings | |
|---|---|
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |   [1] |
| BBC Music | (favourable)[2] |
| Robert Christgau | A−[3] |
Allmusic called it "one of the most powerful [albums] to come from punk's first wave" and "groundbreaking punk rock that followed no one's template, and today it sounds just as fresh -- and nearly as abrasive -- as it did when it first hit the racks."[1] BBC Music was positive of the album in its 2007 review, calling it "a thrilling and improbably poignant listening experience".[2]
[edit] Personnel
- Richard Hell - vocals and bass guitar
- Robert Quine - guitar and backing vocals
- Ivan Julian - guitar and backing vocals
- Marc Bell - drums
[edit] References
- ^ a b Mark Deming. "Blank Generation". Allmusic. http://www.allmusic.com/album/r9172/review. Retrieved 4 January 2012.
- ^ a b Sid Smith (24 April 2007). "Richard Hell and the Voidoids Blank Generation Review". bbc.co.uk. http://www.bbc.co.uk/music/reviews/fv63. Retrieved 4 January 2012.
- ^ Robert Christgau. "Richard Hell and the Voidoids". robertchristgau.com. http://robertchristgau.com/get_artist.php?id=3006&name=Richard+Hell+and+the+Voidoids. Retrieved 4 January 2012.
[edit] Further reading
- Piero Scaruffi (2003). A History of Rock Music 1951–2000. iUniverse. ISBN 9780595295654. http://books.google.com/books?id=04KtwVkHNv0C&printsec=frontcover.
