Son of Sam I Am
Studio album by
Released1988
GenreRock, power pop
LabelAlias
ProducerMichael James
Too Much Joy chronology
Green Eggs and Crack
(1987)
Son of Sam I Am
(1988)
Cereal Killers
(1991)

Son of Sam I Am is an album by the American band Too Much Joy, released in 1988.[1][2] The first single was "Making Fun of Bums".[3] The band supported the album with a North American tour that included shows with Love Tractor.[4] Giant Records released a resequenced version of Son of Sam I Am in 1990.[5] While promoting the rerelease, the band was arrested on obscenity charges for covering 2 Live Crew songs at a show in Broward County.[6] Proceeds from the show were directed to retailers who had been arrested for selling As Nasty as They Wanna Be.[7]

Production

The album was produced by Michael James.[8] Most of the lyrics were written by singer Tim Quirk, who was influenced by Minor Threat and John Prine.[9] "That's a Lie" is a cover of the LL Cool J song.[10] "Clowns" samples Bozo the Clown; a lawsuit from Bozo led to the removal of the sample from later pressings.[11] "Hugo!" refers to the Gang of Four drummer Hugo Burnham.[12] "Bad Dog" is about S&M.[13] "Kicking (That Gone Fishing Song)" is about a young man with cancer.[14] "My Past Lives" deals with the concept of reincarnation.[15] The rerelease includes a cover of Terry Jacks's version of "Seasons in the Sun".[16]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[3]
Robert ChristgauA−[17]
Dayton Daily News[18]
Los Angeles Times[19]
MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide[8]
Orlando Sentinel[20]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide[21]
The Virgin Encyclopedia of Dance Music[22]

Newsday wrote that "Too Much Joy is a pie-in-the-face to those who feel cutting edge rock has to have its source in adversity... There are knowing, snide stabs at the music business, pop culture, and their co-generationalists."[23] The Orlando Sentinel concluded that "cleverness rarely requires sincerity... It does require something more to carry an album though."[20] Robert Christgau noted that, "where formerly Tim Quirk spoke his lyrics in tune, now he mocks, expostulates, kid-drawls, projects, so that sometimes they sound smarter (and sassier) than they read."[17] The Los Angeles Times wrote that "they're at least as funny as Mojo Nixon desperately wants to be, and 20 times as tuneful."[19]

Trouser Press opined: "Sharpening both instrumental skills and songwriting wit, TMJ hit their stride on Son of Sam I Am, an accomplished rock album."[24] The New York Times determined that "songs like 'Worse' and 'Clowns' ... capture paranoia, kitsch overload, frustration, and the shrug that allows them to live with it all."[25] The Edmonton Journal said that "there's much more than bratty kitsch and a spunky garage band beat going on with this cheeky foursome."[26] The State appreciated that "there's plenty of teenage angst, but not one discouraging note amongst these power chords."[27]

AllMusic wrote that "most of the songs are sweet-and-sour power pop."[3]

Track listing

No.TitleLength
1."Making Fun of Bums" 
2."Song for a Girl Who Has One" 
3."Clowns" 
4."My Past Lives" 
5."That's a Lie" 
6."Hugo!" 
7."Kicking (That Gone Fishing Song)" 
8."Life Is Flowers" 
9."Connecticut" 
10."Bad Dog" 
11."1964" 
12."Worse" 

References

  1. "Too Much Joy Biography by Mark Deming". AllMusic. Retrieved 11 December 2023.
  2. Semon, Craig S. (14 Apr 1991). "Too Much Joy happily states its wacky case". Datebook. Telegram & Gazette. p. 11.
  3. 1 2 3 "Son of Sam I Am Review by Stewart Mason". AllMusic. Retrieved 11 December 2023.
  4. Moon, Tom (7 Apr 1989). "Love Tractor and Too Much Joy". Features Weekend. The Philadelphia Inquirer. p. 30.
  5. Wyman, Bill (September 27, 1990). "Too Much Joy". Arts & Culture. Chicago Reader.
  6. "Band arrested on obscenity charges". St. Petersburg Times. 12 Aug 1990. p. B5.
  7. Hill, Edward (August 10, 1990). "Solidarity". News. The Plain Dealer.
  8. 1 2 MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide. Visible Ink Press. 1996. p. 686.
  9. Hoekstra, Dave (April 28, 1989). "Too Much Joy twists '60s rock 'n' roll". Weekend Plus. Chicago Sun-Times. p. 7.
  10. Kane, Dan (September 30, 1990). "Too Much Joy 'Son of Sam I Am'". Stars. Herald American. p. 26.
  11. McLeod, Kimbrew (2007). Freedom of Expression®: Resistance and Repression in the Age of Intellectual Property. University of Minnesota Press. p. 64.
  12. Popson, Tom (28 Apr 1989). "Cows, clowns, dancing bubbles and Too Much Joy". Friday. Chicago Tribune. p. 1.
  13. Jenkins, Mark (3 Aug 1990). "Look at What's In With the Outsiders". The Washington Post. p. N16.
  14. LaSalle, Mick (February 9, 1989). "Too Much Joy – S.F. Record Company Produces a Gem". San Francisco Chronicle. p. E2.
  15. Gnerre, Sam (September 28, 1990). "'Son of Sam I Am' Too Much Joy". Daily Breeze. p. E12.
  16. Rasmussen, Eric (August 9, 1990). "New Releases Are Swelling Rock Turf". The Capital Times. p. 1D.
  17. 1 2 "Too Much Joy". Robert Christgau. Retrieved 11 December 2023.
  18. Warren Murray, Anne (August 10, 1990). "Recordings on Review". Go!. Dayton Daily News. p. 19.
  19. 1 2 Willman, Chris (20 Jan 1991). "Record Rack". Calendar. Los Angeles Times. p. 83.
  20. 1 2 Fields, Curt (2 Apr 1989). "Too Much Joy". Calendar. Orlando Sentinel. p. 5.
  21. The Rolling Stone Album Guide. Random House. 1992. p. 711.
  22. Larkin, Colin (1998). The Virgin Encyclopedia of Dance Music. Virgin. p. 342.
  23. Robins, Wayne (26 Mar 1989). "New Releases". Part II. Newsday. p. 25.
  24. "Too Much Joy". Trouser Press. Retrieved 11 December 2023.
  25. Pareles, Jon (18 Aug 1989). "Rock Album of the Week". The New York Times. p. C23.
  26. Metella, Helen (21 Oct 1990). "Son of Sam I Am Too Much Joy". Edmonton Journal. p. C4.
  27. Miller, Michael (May 19, 1989). "Too Much Joy, 'Son of Sam I Am'". The State. p. 11D.
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