HomeThe Lemonheads' 'It's A Shame About Ray' revisited
Mar 13, 2008, 12:11 PM | by Shirley Halperin
Categories: Concert Reviews, Music, On the Scene, SXSW Festival, Who Else Remembers This?
Last night, the Lemonheads played the first of several South By Southwest shows, performing their classic album, It's a Shame About Ray, from start to finish. The record is being reissued this month by Rhino, 16
years after its original release, and judging by the average age of those in attendance — I'd guess most were in their mid- to late-30s — the nostalgia
factor was in full effect. Even the fact that the band's current incarnation
features only one original member, singer and songwriter Evan Dando,
didn't matter to this downright giddy audience.
And justifiably so. Dando was in fine form — seemingly sober, focused and, most importantly, rehearsed. Things started a little shaky when he had a hard time reaching the high notes on the opening song, "Rockin Stroll," but heading into the set, which clocked in at exactly 30 minutes (the perfect length for an album, I'd argue), he hit his stride. The title track "It's a Shame About Ray" never sounded better, and with the sing-along that ensued for "My Drug Buddy," "Bit Part," where the crowd handled Juliana Hatfield's part as if on cue, and a glorious rendition of the Hair number, "Frank Mills," the night was a runaway success. There was some chatter among the diehards as to whether the band would play their cover of Simon & Garfunkel's "Mrs. Robinson," which was recorded to promote the video release of The Graduate (it also appeared on the soundtrack to Wayne's World 2), then added to Ray on a later pressing. They didn't.
Which was a good thing and it got me thinking: what is the quintessential song of this nearly perfect gem of a record? Is it "Rudderless," with its eerie refrain, "Hope in my past?" Is it "Alison's Starting to Happen," which was a modest college radio hit? Is it my personal favorite, "Hannah & Gabi," with that killer pedal steel melody? Any Lemonheads loyalists among you, PopWatchers? Let's debate like it's 1992.
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