IT'S A SHAME ABOUT EVAN....

That this song only reached #44 in the UK singles charts must have been very dispiriting to Evan Dando, the other members of Lemonheads and all concerned at the major label that was their home at the time.

For years, the music papers had been full of fawning articles about this songwriter genius that the world was doing its best to ignore.  Three hugely acclaimed LPs on an indie label recorded and released between 1987 and 1989 persuaded Atlantic Records to shell out the cash and persuade the band to sign on the dotted line.  There was more praise for the 1990 LP Lovey but not much in the way of sales.  Two years later, It's A Shame About Ray was released.....

The title track was the first single to be lifted from the LP and it took the band into the UK charts for the first time and also sold pretty well in the USA.  Out of the blue, the follow-up single turned out to be a cover of Mrs Robinson which had been recorded as part of the promotional activities to support the release of The Graduate on video.  This stormed into the Top 20 where it hung around for quite a few weeks at the back end of 1992.  The label immediately re-issued It's A Shame About Ray and tagged Mrs Robinson on as an extra track.

The end of year polls in all sorts of publications tipped huge things for Lemonheads and their main main in particular.  Among the accolades thrown his way was being named one of the 50 most beautiful people on the planet......

By all rights the next release should have been a smash, but Confetti stalled, as I said at #44 in early 1993.  The good thing for all concerned was that another LP was recorded and ready, and Come On Feel The Lemonheads was released a short time later, with its first single Into Your Arms reaching #14 and providing the band with their biggest hit, while the LP went Top 5.

But just as the band was about to be taken to the bosom of mainstream audiences, Evan Dando admitted to a long-standing drug problem (as evidenced by at least one brutally honest lyric previously recorded) and all too soon the likes of the UK tabloid press, which was and still is important to helping any act achieve the crossover from indie or cult into the big time, was concentrating on the negative aspects.  Lemonheads haven't had a chart hit since......

I was lucky enough to see the band live in the early 90s and then catch a solo Evan Dando show a few years later.  On both occasions he was in great voice and was hugely entertaining giving us a great mixture of indie, country, folk and even a wee bit of grunge thrown in.  I don't suppose he has any regrets about how it all turned out.....

Later this year, Lemonheads will be touring the UK performing the whole of It's A Shame About Ray along with other classic tracks from the back catalogue. I won't make it along myself to the Glasgow show myself as I'll literally just be back from holiday, but I do recommend it as potentially a great night out.  In the meantime here's the four tracks from the 10" version of Confetti:-

mp3 : Lemonheads - Confetti
mp3 : Lemonheads - My Drug Buddy
mp3 : Lemonheads - Confetti (acoustic)
mp3 : Lemonheads - Ride With Me (live)


Happy Listening.