Album III
Encyclopedia
Album III, as its title indicates, is the third full album from Loudon Wainwright III
. It was originally released in 1972 on Columbia Records
. Album III would spawn Loudon Wainwright's most popular hit single, "Dead Skunk
", making this his commercial 'breakthrough' album. "Dead Skunk
" was, however one of the many 'novelty songs' sprinkled throughout Wainwright's career, and rather pigeonholed him as a latter-day Tom Lehrer
, to the extent that he appeared in three episodes of M*A*S*H*. Although Wainwright has maintained an ironic, sometimes sepulchral sense of humor, Dead Skunk
, despite its commercial success, has dogged him ever since, as he comments on 1985's album I'm Alright, "Were you embarressed about 'Dead Skunk'"?
Nevertheless, Album III launched Wainwright into a mid-1970s commercial heyday, even if his serious side was ignored in favor of his clownish one.
This is also the first of his albums to feature a full backing band (on many tracks). Wainwright mostly eschewed a rocking sound for a stripped down acoustic one from the early 1980s onwards.
Loudon Wainwright III
Loudon Snowden Wainwright III is a Grammy Award-winning American songwriter, folk singer, humorist, and actor. He is the father of musicians Rufus Wainwright, Martha Wainwright and Lucy Wainwright Roche, brother of Sloan Wainwright, and the former husband of the late folk singer Kate McGarrigle.To...
. It was originally released in 1972 on Columbia Records
Columbia Records
Columbia Records is an American record label, owned by Japan's Sony Music Entertainment, operating under the Columbia Music Group with Aware Records. It was founded in 1888, evolving from an earlier enterprise, the American Graphophone Company — successor to the Volta Graphophone Company...
. Album III would spawn Loudon Wainwright's most popular hit single, "Dead Skunk
Dead Skunk
"Dead Skunk" is a 1973 novelty song by Loudon Wainwright III.The song is musically a simple folk song based on acoustic guitar, but accompanied by drums and strings. The lyrics, which literally interpreted describe a dead skunk in the middle of a busy road and the smell it produces for pedestrians,...
", making this his commercial 'breakthrough' album. "Dead Skunk
Dead Skunk
"Dead Skunk" is a 1973 novelty song by Loudon Wainwright III.The song is musically a simple folk song based on acoustic guitar, but accompanied by drums and strings. The lyrics, which literally interpreted describe a dead skunk in the middle of a busy road and the smell it produces for pedestrians,...
" was, however one of the many 'novelty songs' sprinkled throughout Wainwright's career, and rather pigeonholed him as a latter-day Tom Lehrer
Tom Lehrer
Thomas Andrew "Tom" Lehrer is an American singer-songwriter, satirist, pianist, mathematician and polymath. He has lectured on mathematics and musical theater...
, to the extent that he appeared in three episodes of M*A*S*H*. Although Wainwright has maintained an ironic, sometimes sepulchral sense of humor, Dead Skunk
Dead Skunk
"Dead Skunk" is a 1973 novelty song by Loudon Wainwright III.The song is musically a simple folk song based on acoustic guitar, but accompanied by drums and strings. The lyrics, which literally interpreted describe a dead skunk in the middle of a busy road and the smell it produces for pedestrians,...
, despite its commercial success, has dogged him ever since, as he comments on 1985's album I'm Alright, "Were you embarressed about 'Dead Skunk'"?
Nevertheless, Album III launched Wainwright into a mid-1970s commercial heyday, even if his serious side was ignored in favor of his clownish one.
This is also the first of his albums to feature a full backing band (on many tracks). Wainwright mostly eschewed a rocking sound for a stripped down acoustic one from the early 1980s onwards.
Track listing
- "Dead SkunkDead Skunk"Dead Skunk" is a 1973 novelty song by Loudon Wainwright III.The song is musically a simple folk song based on acoustic guitar, but accompanied by drums and strings. The lyrics, which literally interpreted describe a dead skunk in the middle of a busy road and the smell it produces for pedestrians,...
" – 3:05 - "Red Guitar" – 1:49
- "East Indian Princess" – 2:56
- "Muse Blues" – 2:53
- "Hometeam Crowd" – 1:49
- "B Side" – 2:26
- "Needless To Say" – 3:14
- "Smokey Joe's Cafe" – 2:31
- "New Paint" – 3:00
- "Trilogy (Circa 1967)" – 3:11
- "Drinking Song" – 2:55
- "Say That You Love Me" – 2:30
Personnel
- Loudon Wainwright IIILoudon Wainwright IIILoudon Snowden Wainwright III is a Grammy Award-winning American songwriter, folk singer, humorist, and actor. He is the father of musicians Rufus Wainwright, Martha Wainwright and Lucy Wainwright Roche, brother of Sloan Wainwright, and the former husband of the late folk singer Kate McGarrigle.To...
– GuitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
, vocalsSingingSinging is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. One who sings is called a singer or vocalist. Singers perform music known as songs that can be sung either with or without accompaniment by musical instruments... - David AmramDavid AmramDavid Amram is an American composer, musician, conductor, and writer. As a classical composer and performer, his integration of jazz , ethnic and folk music has led him to work with the likes of Charlie Parker, Thelonious Monk, Dizzy Gillespie, Lionel Hampton, Willie Nelson, Langston...
– French horn - Brooks Arthur – EngineerEngineerAn engineer is a professional practitioner of engineering, concerned with applying scientific knowledge, mathematics and ingenuity to develop solutions for technical problems. Engineers design materials, structures, machines and systems while considering the limitations imposed by practicality,...
- Charlie Brown – GuitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
, Electric guitarElectric guitarAn electric guitar is a guitar that uses the principle of direct electromagnetic induction to convert vibrations of its metal strings into electric audio signals. The signal generated by an electric guitar is too weak to drive a loudspeaker, so it is amplified before sending it to a loudspeaker... - Richard Crooks – drumsDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
- Richard Davis – BassBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
- Thomas Jefferson Kaye – GuitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
, ArrangerArrangerIn investment banking, an arranger is a provider of funds in the syndication of a debt. They are entitled to syndicate the loan or bond issue, and may be referred to as the "lead underwriter". This is because this entity bears the risk of being able to sell the underlying securities/debt or the...
, Rhythm GuitarRhythm guitarRhythm guitar is a technique and rôle that performs a combination of two functions: to provide all or part of the rhythmic pulse in conjunction with singers or other instruments; and to provide all or part of the harmony, ie. the chords, where a chord is a group of notes played together...
, ProducerRecord producerA record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music... - Bill KeithBill Keith (musician)Bill Keith is a five-string banjoist who made a significant contribution to the stylistic development of the instrument. In the 1960s he introduced a variation on the popular "Scruggs style" of banjo playing which would soon become known as melodic style, or "Keith style." -Professional...
– BanjoBanjoIn the 1830s Sweeney became the first white man to play the banjo on stage. His version of the instrument replaced the gourd with a drum-like sound box and included four full-length strings alongside a short fifth-string. There is no proof, however, that Sweeney invented either innovation. This new...
, Steel guitarSteel guitarSteel guitar is a type of guitar or the method of playing the instrument. Developed in Hawaii in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, a steel guitar is usually positioned horizontally; strings are plucked with one hand, while the other hand changes the pitch of one or more strings with the use... - Kenny KosekKenny KosekKenny Kosek, born in 1949 in The Bronx, New York, is an American fiddler who plays bluegrass, country, klezmer, folk music and roots music. In addition to his solo career, he has performed with many other well-known performers and contributed to film and television soundtrack music. He is also a...
– FiddleFiddleThe term fiddle may refer to any bowed string musical instrument, most often the violin. It is also a colloquial term for the instrument used by players in all genres, including classical music...
, ViolinViolinThe violin is a string instrument, usually with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is the smallest, highest-pitched member of the violin family of string instruments, which includes the viola and cello.... - Hugh McCrackenHugh McCrackenHugh McCracken is a rhythm guitar player and session musician, arranger and producer based in New York.Especially in demand in the 60s, 70s and 80s, he appears on many recordings by Steely Dan, as well as albums by Donald Fagen, Jimmy Rushing, Billy Joel, Roland Kirk, Roberta Flack, B. B...
– GuitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with... - Don Payne – Electric bassBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
- Elliott RandallElliott RandallElliott Randall is an American guitarist, most known for being a session musician with popular artists. Randall has played the well-known guitar solos from Steely Dan's hit "Reelin' in the Years" and Fame. Legendary Led Zeppelin guitarist Jimmy Page has reputedly said that Randall's solo on...
– Electric guitarElectric guitarAn electric guitar is a guitar that uses the principle of direct electromagnetic induction to convert vibrations of its metal strings into electric audio signals. The signal generated by an electric guitar is too weak to drive a loudspeaker, so it is amplified before sending it to a loudspeaker... - Jim Ryan – GuitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
- David SanbornDavid SanbornDavid Sanborn is an American alto saxophonist. Though Sanborn has worked in many genres, his solo recordings typically blend jazz with instrumental pop and R&B. He released his first solo album Taking Off in 1975, but has been playing the saxophone since before he was in high school...
– SaxophoneSaxophoneThe saxophone is a conical-bore transposing musical instrument that is a member of the woodwind family. Saxophones are usually made of brass and played with a single-reed mouthpiece similar to that of the clarinet. The saxophone was invented by the Belgian instrument maker Adolphe Sax in 1846... - Sailor Bob Schmidt – HarmonicaHarmonicaThe harmonica, also called harp, French harp, blues harp, and mouth organ, is a free reed wind instrument used primarily in blues and American folk music, jazz, country, and rock and roll. It is played by blowing air into it or drawing air out by placing lips over individual holes or multiple holes...
- Tom Watson – Electric bassBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
- Eric WeissbergEric WeissbergEric Weissberg is an American banjo player, best known for the theme from the movie Deliverance.-Biography:Eric Weissberg went to the University of Wisconsin–Madison, then the Juilliard School of Music. He joined an early version of the Greenbriar Boys , but left before they made any recordings....
– DobroDobroDobro is a registered trademark, now owned by Gibson Guitar Corporation and used for a particular design of resonator guitar.The name has a long and involved history, interwoven with that of the resonator guitar...
, GuitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with... - Teddy Wender – PianoPianoThe piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...
Release history
- LP: Columbia KC 31462 (U.S.)
- LP: CBS 65238 (UK)
- CD: Sony CK31462 (August 20, 1990 re-release)