Mars Needs Guitars!
| Untitled | |
|---|---|
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |   link |
| Robert Christgau | B−[1] |
| Rolling Stone |  link |
Mars Needs Guitars! is Australian rock group Hoodoo Gurus' second album, released in 1985.[2] The title is a reference to the 1967 science fiction film, Mars Needs Women. Singles from the album were "Bittersweet" (1985) (reached #10 on Melbourne record charts),[3] "Like Wow – Wipeout" (1985, #28[3]), "Death Defying" (1986) and "Poison Pen" (1986). Mars Needs Guitars! reached No. 140 on the American Billboard 200 albums chart in 1986.
The title track, "Mars Needs Guitars" (also the B-side of "Bittersweet" single), was written by all five Gurus[4] and lead vocals were by Brad Shepherd. All other tracks were written[4] and featured lead vocals by Dave Faulkner.[5] Hayride to Hell (1995) is a short film written and directed by former Gurus member Kimble Rendall.[6]
"When we commenced the sessions for Mars Needs Guitars! we had a brand new drummer, Mark Kingsmill who altered our lives forever with his distinctive explosive style." - Dave Faulkner.[7]
The song "Bittersweet" was used in the video game MVP Baseball 2004.
The album was re-released by EMI on the 22 February 2005 with five bonus tracks, a fold out poster and liner tracks by Wally Kempton (Even/The Meanies). Three of the bonus tracks (13 to 15) were recorded live at Selina's, Sydney, in 1986.[5] In October 2010, it was listed in the book, 100 Best Australian Albums, with their previous album, Stoneage Romeos at No. 28.[8]
Track listing
Original release
All written tracks by Dave Faulkner unless otherwise indicated.[4]
- "Bittersweet" – 3:44
- "Poison Pen" – 4:09
- "In the Wild" – 3:07
- "Death Defying" – 3:21
- "Like Wow – Wipeout" – 3:09
- "Hayride to Hell" – 3:15
- "Show Some Emotion" – 2:56
- "Other Side of Paradise" – 3:31
- "Mars Needs Guitars" (James Baker, Clyde Bramley, Faulkner, Mark Kingsmill, Brad Shepherd)[4] – 2:52
- "She" – 3:28
2005 re-release
Songwriters same as above, with additional tracks by Faulkner unless indicated.
- "Bittersweet" – 3:44
- "Poison Pen" – 4:09
- "In the Wild" – 3:07
- "Death Defying" – 3:21
- "Like Wow – Wipeout" – 3:09
- "Hayride to Hell" – 3:15
- "Show Some Emotion" – 2:56
- "Other Side of Paradise" – 3:31
- "Mars Needs Guitars" – 2:52
- "She" – 3:28
- "Bring the Hoodoo Down" – 2:54
- "Turkey Dinner" – 4:14
- "Death Ship" (live) (Faulkner, Roddy Radalj, Alan Sharples)[4] – 2:42
- "In the Wild" (live) – 3:29
- "Teenage Head" (live) (Cyril Jordan, Roy Loney)[4] – 3:02
Personnel
Hoodoo Gurus
- Clyde Bramley — bass, backing vocals
- Dave Faulkner — lead vocals (except track 9), guitar, keyboards
- Mark Kingsmill — drums, cymbals
- Brad Shepherd — lead guitar, backing vocals, lead vocals (track 9), harmonica (mouth harp)
Additional credits
- John Bee — engineer
- Richard Allan — illustrations
- Charles Fisher — producer (except track 11)
- Don Bartley — mastering (remastering)
- Hoodoo Gurus — producer (track 11)
References
- ^ Christgau, Robert. "Mars Needs Guitars!". Robert Christgau.
- ^ a b Holmgren, Magnus; Georgieff, Didier; Hartung, Stephan. "Hoodoo Gurus". Passagen.se. Australian Rock Database (Magnus Holmgren). Archived from the original on 22 October 2013. Retrieved 24 March 2014.
- ^ a b Guest, Thomas J. (1991). Thirty Years of Hits. Collingwood, Melbourne: M. J. Maloney. ISBN 0-646-04633-0.
- ^ a b c d e f "Australasian Performing Right Association". APRA. Retrieved 30 November 2007.
- ^ a b c "Discogs entry on Mars Needs Guitars!". discogs.com. Retrieved 30 November 2007.
- ^ "Internet Movie Database entry on Kimble Rendall". IMDb. Retrieved 10 January 2008.
- ^ Faulkner, Dave (June 2000). "Pop and punishment". juliat. Archived from the original on 8 August 2007. Retrieved 27 January 2008.
- ^ O'Donnell, John; Creswell, Toby; Mathieson, Craig (October 2010). 100 Best Australian Albums. Prahran, Vic: Hardie Grant Books. ISBN 978-1-74066-955-9.