Rating:
Genre:
Rock
Release Date: 09/23/2008
All of the slick production of
Pleased to Meet Me couldn't prepare listeners for the glossy sound of
Don't Tell a Soul,
the Replacements' last-ditch attempt at mainstream success. Bathed with washes of synthesizers, shining guitars, backing vocals and a shimmering,
AOR production,
Don't Tell a Soul puts an end to
the Replacements and begins
Paul Westerberg's solo career. The bulk of the songs are self-consciously mature, as
Westerberg looks back on his career (the autobiographical
"Talent Show") and is haunted by the past (
"Rock N Roll Ghost," "Darlin' One"), as he attempts to refashion himself as a craftsman. A few of these attempts work, particularly the
country-rock ballad
"Achin' to Be" and the
arena rock stab
"I'll Be You," but the lite-
funk workout
"Asking Me Lies" and the stuttering
"I Won't" are flat-out embarrassing. And the rest of the album suffers from
Westerberg's determination to be adult. The songs are too self-consciously mature, and the band functions as a supporting act for the lyrics, which lack the unpretentious
poetry of his best work. Ironically,
Westerberg's desire to be an "adult" is the reason why radio ignored
Don't Tell a Soul, because it meant that the record lacked both rockers or power
ballads which would have given them air-time. And most old fans found the production too heavy to make sorting through the album worthwhile. [
Rhino's 2008 reissue of
Don't Tell a Soul serves up eight bonus tracks, every one a
lot livelier than the album proper. Nowhere is that truer than the silly, careening gospel piss-take
"Date to Church," recorded with
Tom Waits. In the days of
Hootenanny, this would have been a cornerstone of an LP, but in 1989, it was consigned to the B-side of
"I'll Be You." Also here are two songs originally released on the second disc of the 1997
All for Nothing/Nothing for All compilation: the mellow country-rocker
"Portland," whose chorus popped up on
"Talent Show," and
"Wake Up," a really good, really fast rocker that would certainly have given the album a needed dose of thunder. Then there's the group's fun, sloppy take on
101 Dalmatians'
"Cruella de Ville," taken from
Hal Willner's 1988 album
Stay Awake: Various Interpretations of Music from Vintage Disney Films, yet another performance that has more soul than the album itself. A sprightly, energetic demo of
"Talent Show" hints at what
Don't Tell a Soul could have sounded like without the gloss, and it's pretty appealing; an early mix of
"We'll Inherit the Earth" also strips away some of the sheen, but the song is still confused. Finally, there is the outtake
"We Know the Night" -- a solo
Westerberg number, something the album sorely needed -- and a fun romp through
Slade's
"Gudbuy t' Jane."]
~Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide
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