Key Lime Pie
Encyclopedia
Key Lime Pie is a 1989 album
by Camper Van Beethoven
, also known as CVB. It was the band's final album before breaking up in 1990, although the band has reunited and released new material in recent years. It was produced by Dennis Herring
, who had also produced the band's previous album, Our Beloved Revolutionary Sweetheart
.
Key Lime Pie was the only Camper Van Beethoven album not to feature founding violinist/multi-instrumentalist/vocalist Jonathan Segel
, who left the band before the album was recorded. The band's core lineup on the album consisted of vocalist/rhythm guitarist/frontman David Lowery
, bassist Victor Krummenacher
, lead guitarist Greg Lisher
and drummer Chris Pedersen
. Most of the violin parts were played by non-member Don Lax. Near the end of the recording of the album, violinist Morgan Fichter was hired as the replacement for Segel. Fichter played only on the tracks "Pictures of Matchstick Men
" and "Flowers," although she sings harmony vocals on a few other tracks and appears on the record's cover. On the tour for the album, the band was also joined by steel guitarist/mandolinist/guitarist David Immerglück
, a member of CVB's side project The Monks of Doom
.
Lowery has been quoted in interviews as saying that, although the entire band (save for Fichter) played on the basic tracks, Greg Lisher was the only other member to have contributed significantly to the album's recording, with most of the overdubbing and studio polishing having been done by Lowery, Lisher and producer Dennis Herring. Lisher's distinctive psychedelic lead guitar playing is arguably the album's most distinctive instrumental feature, although the band's use of violin also has a great influence on the sound of the record.
The album featured a darker lyrical outlook as compared to the band's previous record, although there is still a great deal of the band's trademark humor. It was also the most political record that CVB had released, with tracks like "When I Win the Lottery," "Sweethearts" and "Jack Ruby" providing some humorous political and social commentary. Lowery said in an interview that "All Her Favorite Fruit" was based on the romance between Jessica Swanlake and Roger Mexico from the Thomas Pynchon
novel Gravity's Rainbow
.
It also featured less of the band's world-music influence, although there are still elements of CVB favorites like ska
and Eastern European music in songs like "Opening Theme" and "Borderline." In place of the world-music influence, there are even more elements of Americana evident in many of the songs. Psychedelia, another staple of the band's eclectic sound, is also very much in evidence, although songs like "The Light From a Cake" and "Flowers" feature a more-orchestrated, less-dissonant version of psychedelic music than did the band's earlier albums.
The album was CVB's most commercially successful record, with "Pictures of Matchstick Men" becoming an alternative rock hit.
Singles - Billboard (North America)
Album
An album is a collection of recordings, released as a single package on gramophone record, cassette, compact disc, or via digital distribution. The word derives from the Latin word for list .Vinyl LP records have two sides, each comprising one half of the album...
by Camper Van Beethoven
Camper Van Beethoven
Camper Van Beethoven is an American alternative rock group formed in Redlands, California in 1983.An eclectic band, Camper Van Beethoven mixes elements of pop, ska, punk rock, folk and alternative country, as well as various types of world music. Their aggressive musical pluralism created a...
, also known as CVB. It was the band's final album before breaking up in 1990, although the band has reunited and released new material in recent years. It was produced by Dennis Herring
Dennis Herring
Dennis Herring is an American record producer, engineer, mixer, and musician. Herring has produced for The Hives, Elvis Costello, Counting Crows, Modest Mouse, Camper Van Beethoven, and Jars of Clay. Herring owns a 24-track recording studio, Sweet Tea Studios, which is located in Oxford, Mississippi...
, who had also produced the band's previous album, Our Beloved Revolutionary Sweetheart
Our Beloved Revolutionary Sweetheart
Our Beloved Revolutionary Sweetheart is a 1988 album by Camper Van Beethoven, released on Virgin Records. It was the band's first major-label album, and was produced by Dennis Herring, the first time the band had used an outside producer....
.
Key Lime Pie was the only Camper Van Beethoven album not to feature founding violinist/multi-instrumentalist/vocalist Jonathan Segel
Jonathan Segel
Jonathan Segel is an American composer and multi-instrumentalist. He has played with Camper Van Beethoven, Sparklehorse, Eugene Chadbourne, and Dieselhed.-Biography:...
, who left the band before the album was recorded. The band's core lineup on the album consisted of vocalist/rhythm guitarist/frontman David Lowery
David Lowery
David Lowery is an American guitarist, vocalist and songwriter; he is the founder of alternative rock band, Camper Van Beethoven, and co-founder of the more traditional rock band, Cracker...
, bassist Victor Krummenacher
Victor Krummenacher
Victor Krummenacher is an American musician and bass guitarist who is a founding member of alternative rock band Camper Van Beethoven. He also helped form CVB offshoots Monks of Doom and Camper Van Chadbourne and has pursued a solo career as a singer-songwriter...
, lead guitarist Greg Lisher
Greg Lisher
Greg Lisher is the lead guitar player for Camper Van Beethoven, from 1986 until 1990, and again from 2000 to present.He was the lead guitarist for the Monks of Doom, from 1986 until 1993, and again from 2003 to present....
and drummer Chris Pedersen
Chris Pedersen (musician)
Chris Pedersen is an American-born musician, best known as the drummer of the groups Camper Van Beethoven and Monks of Doom. He currently resides in Australia.-Musical career:...
. Most of the violin parts were played by non-member Don Lax. Near the end of the recording of the album, violinist Morgan Fichter was hired as the replacement for Segel. Fichter played only on the tracks "Pictures of Matchstick Men
Pictures of Matchstick Men
"Pictures of Matchstick Men" is the first hit single by Status Quo, released in November 1967. It reached number seven in the British charts, number eight in Canada, and number twelve on the Billboard Hot 100, becoming their only hit single in the United States...
" and "Flowers," although she sings harmony vocals on a few other tracks and appears on the record's cover. On the tour for the album, the band was also joined by steel guitarist/mandolinist/guitarist David Immerglück
David Immerglück
David Immerglück is an American multi-instrumentalist who is best known as a guitarist in the alternative rock bands Counting Crows, Camper Van Beethoven and the Monks of Doom...
, a member of CVB's side project The Monks of Doom
Monks of Doom
The Monks of Doom are an American alternative rock band, formed in California in 1986. Working within the indie rock aesthetic framework , the band's music drew from post-punk, progressive rock and folk rock traditions...
.
Lowery has been quoted in interviews as saying that, although the entire band (save for Fichter) played on the basic tracks, Greg Lisher was the only other member to have contributed significantly to the album's recording, with most of the overdubbing and studio polishing having been done by Lowery, Lisher and producer Dennis Herring. Lisher's distinctive psychedelic lead guitar playing is arguably the album's most distinctive instrumental feature, although the band's use of violin also has a great influence on the sound of the record.
The album featured a darker lyrical outlook as compared to the band's previous record, although there is still a great deal of the band's trademark humor. It was also the most political record that CVB had released, with tracks like "When I Win the Lottery," "Sweethearts" and "Jack Ruby" providing some humorous political and social commentary. Lowery said in an interview that "All Her Favorite Fruit" was based on the romance between Jessica Swanlake and Roger Mexico from the Thomas Pynchon
Thomas Pynchon
Thomas Ruggles Pynchon, Jr. is an American novelist. For his most praised novel, Gravity's Rainbow, Pynchon received the National Book Award, and is regularly cited as a contender for the Nobel Prize in Literature...
novel Gravity's Rainbow
Gravity's Rainbow
Gravity's Rainbow is a postmodern novel written by Thomas Pynchon and first published on February 28, 1973.The narrative is set primarily in Europe at the end of World War II and centers on the design, production and dispatch of V-2 rockets by the German military, and, in particular, the quest...
.
It also featured less of the band's world-music influence, although there are still elements of CVB favorites like ska
Ska
Ska |Jamaican]] ) is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1950s, and was the precursor to rocksteady and reggae. Ska combined elements of Caribbean mento and calypso with American jazz and rhythm and blues...
and Eastern European music in songs like "Opening Theme" and "Borderline." In place of the world-music influence, there are even more elements of Americana evident in many of the songs. Psychedelia, another staple of the band's eclectic sound, is also very much in evidence, although songs like "The Light From a Cake" and "Flowers" feature a more-orchestrated, less-dissonant version of psychedelic music than did the band's earlier albums.
The album was CVB's most commercially successful record, with "Pictures of Matchstick Men" becoming an alternative rock hit.
Track listing
All songs written by Krummenacher/Lisher/Lowery/Pedersen, except where noted.- "Opening Theme" – 2:21
- "Jack Ruby" – 5:22
- "Sweethearts" – 4:45
- "When I Win the Lottery" – 3:38
- "(I Was Born in a) Laundromat" – 3:43
- "Borderline" – 3:48
- "The Light from a Cake" – 2:43
- "June" – 4:24
- "All Her Favorite Fruit" – 5:14
- "Interlude" – 1:03
- "Flowers" (Curkendall/Hart/Lowery) – 2:58
- "The Humid Press of Days" – 2:44
- "Pictures of Matchstick MenPictures of Matchstick Men"Pictures of Matchstick Men" is the first hit single by Status Quo, released in November 1967. It reached number seven in the British charts, number eight in Canada, and number twelve on the Billboard Hot 100, becoming their only hit single in the United States...
" (Rossi) – 4:08 - "Come on Darkness" – 3:14
Personnel
- Greg Allen - Photography
- Tim Steelbone Cook - Pedal Steel
- Tim Cook - Pedal Steel
- Peter Doell - Second Engineer
- Danny Faragher - Background Vocals
- Davey FaragherDavey FaragherDavey Faragher is an American bass guitarist from Redlands, California. Faragher's career took off and received critical notice as a founding member of the nineties band, Cracker, and his following work with The Imposters, the backing band for Elvis Costello since 2001.Faragher is an accomplished...
- Background Vocals - Morgan Fichter - Violin, Vocals
- Mark Herman - Mixing
- Dennis HerringDennis HerringDennis Herring is an American record producer, engineer, mixer, and musician. Herring has produced for The Hives, Elvis Costello, Counting Crows, Modest Mouse, Camper Van Beethoven, and Jars of Clay. Herring owns a 24-track recording studio, Sweet Tea Studios, which is located in Oxford, Mississippi...
- Producer, Engineer - Garth HudsonGarth HudsonEric Garth Hudson is a Canadian multi-instrumentalist. As the organist, keyboardist and saxophonist for Canadian-American rock group The Band, he was a principal architect of the group's unique sound...
- Organ, Talking - Victor KrummenacherVictor KrummenacherVictor Krummenacher is an American musician and bass guitarist who is a founding member of alternative rock band Camper Van Beethoven. He also helped form CVB offshoots Monks of Doom and Camper Van Chadbourne and has pursued a solo career as a singer-songwriter...
- Bass, Vocals - Andre Lansel - Photography
- Don Lax - Fiddle, Strings
- Bruce Licher - Design
- Greg LisherGreg LisherGreg Lisher is the lead guitar player for Camper Van Beethoven, from 1986 until 1990, and again from 2000 to present.He was the lead guitarist for the Monks of Doom, from 1986 until 1993, and again from 2003 to present....
- Guitar, Vocals - David LoweryDavid LoweryDavid Lowery is an American guitarist, vocalist and songwriter; he is the founder of alternative rock band, Camper Van Beethoven, and co-founder of the more traditional rock band, Cracker...
- Guitar, Harmonica, Keyboards, Vocals - Mary O'Neil - Background Vocals
- Charles Paakkari - Engineer, Second Engineer
- Chris PedersenChris Pedersen (musician)Chris Pedersen is an American-born musician, best known as the drummer of the groups Camper Van Beethoven and Monks of Doom. He currently resides in Australia.-Musical career:...
- Percussion, Drums, Vocals - Csaba Petocz - Engineer, Mixing
- Hammer Smith - Harmonica
- Wally Sound - Background Vocals
- Shawna Stobie - Mixing
- Howie WeinbergHowie WeinbergHowie Weinberg is a music mastering engineer who has worked with numerous bands.- Career :He has worked at Masterdisk, New York City, since 1977...
- Mastering - Vince Zermeno - Mixing
Charts
Album - Billboard (North America)| Year | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|
| 1989 | The Billboard 200 | 141 |
Singles - Billboard (North America)
| Year | Single | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1989 | "Pictures of Matchstick Men" | Modern Rock Tracks | 1 |