Return to Magenta
Encyclopedia
Return to Magenta, issued in 1978, is the second album
by the rock
band Mink DeVille
. The album was the last to feature all the original members of the band. For this album, the band was joined by Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
member Steve Douglas
on sax and, on piano, Dr. John
, who would later collaborate with leadsinger Willy DeVille
after his move to New Orleans.
Return to Magenta continued in the vein of the first album, with a mixture of rock, soul
, blues
, and Latin rhythms. It was produced by Jack Nitzsche
, who also co-wrote a song with DeVille ("Just Your Friends"). Willy DeVille said about Cabretta
, Mink DeVille's album prior to Return to Magenta, "We went against strings
on the first album — decided it should be outright, raw, and rude." On Return to Magenta, however, Willy DeVille and producers Jack Nitzsche and Steve Douglas employed lavish string arrangements on several songs.
Willy DeVille sings a quasi-duet with singer-songwriter David Forman on the Forman-composed “’A’ Train Lady.” "Steady Drivin' Man" became a favorite of Willy DeVille fans; DeVille performed the song on his Acoustic Trio Live in Berlin
25 years after the original recording.
gave the album a C+, writing, “The main thing wrong with Willie DeVille is that he hasn't had a new idea since he decided he didn't like acid
in 1970. Even as the songpoet of greaser
nostalgia, he's got nothing to say..." Many reviewers believed that Mink DeVille's second album sounded too much like its first, and the band had not broken new ground (although Kid Leo, musical director of WMMS
in Cleveland
, ranked it as the eighth best rock album of all time.) Return to Magenta peaked at 126 on Billboard's
Pop Albums chart
.
: "Heat of the Moment", "Pullin' My String", and "It's So Easy." These songs were written by Willy DeVille and produced by Jack Nitzsche, who wrote the musical score for Cruising. The three songs appeared on the CD reissue of Willy DeVille's 1987 album Miracle
. "It's So Easy" is also on the soundtrack of Quentin Tarantino
's movie Grindhouse: Death Proof.
, who also wrote "Cadillac Walk," a song on Mink DeVille's previous album, Cabretta
.
The album cover includes a quote (dated March 13, 1978) about the band by Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
member Doc Pomus
, who would later co-write songs with Willy DeVille:
DeVille said about the song "I Broke that Promise": "It's one of my favorite songs in that album. I keep it in the bag to do it. It has a good feeling because it says, 'I broke that promise that was so important to me.' You can say 'I broke that promise that was so important to you,' but it's even worse to break a promise that's only important to whoever made the promise."
Mink DeVille toured North America with Elvis Costello
and Nick Lowe
after this album came out.
Willy DeVille lived for a time on Boulevard de Magenta
in Paris
, which may account for the album's name, Return to Magenta."See Laura Rangel (1993) Interviews: King Creole. Willy DeVille: Spanish Stroll. Said Willy DeVille, "I have une histoire d'amour with Paris... I've lived in Paris, on Magenta Boulevard." (Retrieved 1-29-08.)
Pianist Bobby Leonards said about Return to Magenta, "Willy had wanted to do an album much like the first one. He wanted to team up with Nitzsche to write some tunes, but Nitzsche wasn’t interested in doing that. All he wanted to do was produce. He was there to help. He didn’t actually say no. He said, 'Hey we’re wasting valuable time and you don’t have a lot of material. The record companies want you to produce a product every year, ten to twelve songs, but nobody writes that way. You do a record when you’ve got something. Don’t record unless you’re ready to record.'" He added, "I went back and erased most of my tracks, but some of mine are still on there.”
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 the rock
Rock music
Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
band Mink DeVille
Mink DeVille
Mink DeVille was a rock band known for its association with early punk rock bands at New York’s CBGB nightclub and for being a showcase for the music of Willy DeVille. The band recorded six albums in the years 1977 to 1985. Except for frontman Willy DeVille, the original members of the band played...
. The album was the last to feature all the original members of the band. For this album, the band was joined by Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum is a museum located on the shore of Lake Erie in downtown Cleveland, Ohio, United States. It is dedicated to archiving the history of some of the best-known and most influential artists, producers, engineers and others who have, in some major way,...
member Steve Douglas
Steve Douglas (saxophonist)
Steven Douglas Kreisman , better known as Steve Douglas, was an American saxophonist, flautist and clarinetist. Douglas is best known as a Los Angeles session musician, a member of The Wrecking Crew, who worked with Phil Spector, Brian Wilson and The Beach Boys...
on sax and, on piano, Dr. John
Dr. John
Malcolm John "Mac" Rebennack, Jr. , better known by the stage name Dr. John , is an American singer-songwriter, pianist and guitarist, whose music combines blues, pop, jazz as well as Zydeco, boogie woogie and rock and roll.Active as a session musician since the late 1950s, he came to wider...
, who would later collaborate with leadsinger Willy DeVille
Willy DeVille
Willy DeVille was an American singer and songwriter. During his thirty-five year career, first with his band Mink DeVille and later on his own, Deville created original songs rooted in traditional American musical styles. He worked with collaborators from across the spectrum of contemporary...
after his move to New Orleans.
Return to Magenta continued in the vein of the first album, with a mixture of rock, soul
Soul music
Soul music is a music genre originating in the United States combining elements of gospel music and rhythm and blues. According to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, soul is "music that arose out of the black experience in America through the transmutation of gospel and rhythm & blues into a form of...
, blues
Blues
Blues is the name given to both a musical form and a music genre that originated in African-American communities of primarily the "Deep South" of the United States at the end of the 19th century from spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts and chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads...
, and Latin rhythms. It was produced by Jack Nitzsche
Jack Nitzsche
Bernard Alfred "Jack" Nitzsche was an arranger, producer, songwriter, and film score composer. He first came to prominence in the late 1950s as the right-hand-man of producer Phil Spector, and went on to work with the Rolling Stones, Neil Young and others...
, who also co-wrote a song with DeVille ("Just Your Friends"). Willy DeVille said about Cabretta
Cabretta
Cabretta, known as Mink DeVille in the United States, was the 1977 debut album by Mink DeVille. It peaked at number 186 on the Billboard 200 chart and was voted the 29th best album of 1977 in the Village Voices Pazz & Jop critics' poll...
, Mink DeVille's album prior to Return to Magenta, "We went against strings
String instrument
A string instrument is a musical instrument that produces sound by means of vibrating strings. In the Hornbostel-Sachs scheme of musical instrument classification, used in organology, they are called chordophones...
on the first album — decided it should be outright, raw, and rude." On Return to Magenta, however, Willy DeVille and producers Jack Nitzsche and Steve Douglas employed lavish string arrangements on several songs.
Willy DeVille sings a quasi-duet with singer-songwriter David Forman on the Forman-composed “’A’ Train Lady.” "Steady Drivin' Man" became a favorite of Willy DeVille fans; DeVille performed the song on his Acoustic Trio Live in Berlin
Acoustic Trio Live in Berlin
Acoustic Trio Live in Berlin is a 2002 album by Willy DeVille. The album consists of concert recordings made in Berlin to celebrate DeVille’s 25 years’ of performing, and concert recordings made in Stockholm...
25 years after the original recording.
Reviews
Critic Robert ChristgauRobert Christgau
Robert Christgau is an American essayist, music journalist, and self-proclaimed "Dean of American Rock Critics".One of the earliest professional rock critics, Christgau is known for his terse capsule reviews, published since 1969 in his Consumer Guide columns...
gave the album a C+, writing, “The main thing wrong with Willie DeVille is that he hasn't had a new idea since he decided he didn't like acid
LSD
Lysergic acid diethylamide, abbreviated LSD or LSD-25, also known as lysergide and colloquially as acid, is a semisynthetic psychedelic drug of the ergoline family, well known for its psychological effects which can include altered thinking processes, closed and open eye visuals, synaesthesia, an...
in 1970. Even as the songpoet of greaser
Greaser (derogatory)
Greaser was a derogatory term for a Mexican in what is now the U.S. Southwest in the 19th century. The slur likely derived from what was considered one of the lowliest occupations typically held by Mexicans, the greasing of the axles of mule carts. It was in common usage among U.S...
nostalgia, he's got nothing to say..." Many reviewers believed that Mink DeVille's second album sounded too much like its first, and the band had not broken new ground (although Kid Leo, musical director of WMMS
WMMS
WMMS — branded 100.7 WMMS: The Buzzard — is a commercial radio station licensed to Cleveland, Ohio, widely recognized as one of the most influential rock stations in America throughout much of the history of FM broadcasting...
in Cleveland
Cleveland, Ohio
Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and is the county seat of Cuyahoga County, the most populous county in the state. The city is located in northeastern Ohio on the southern shore of Lake Erie, approximately west of the Pennsylvania border...
, ranked it as the eighth best rock album of all time.) Return to Magenta peaked at 126 on Billboard's
Billboard (magazine)
Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...
Pop Albums chart
Billboard 200
The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...
.
Songs for the Cruising (and Grindhouse: Death Proof) Soundtrack
During the Return to Magenta recording sessions, the band recorded three songs for the soundtrack of the movie CruisingCruising (film)
Cruising is a 1980 film directed by William Friedkin and starring Al Pacino. The film is loosely based on the novel of the same name, by New York Times reporter Gerald Walker, about a serial killer targeting gay men, in particular those associated with the S&M scene.Poorly reviewed by critics,...
: "Heat of the Moment", "Pullin' My String", and "It's So Easy." These songs were written by Willy DeVille and produced by Jack Nitzsche, who wrote the musical score for Cruising. The three songs appeared on the CD reissue of Willy DeVille's 1987 album Miracle
Miracle (Willy DeVille album)
Miracle is an album by Willy DeVille. Recorded in 1987, it was the first album that Willy DeVille recorded under his own name. Prior to Miracle, DeVille recorded six albums with the band Mink DeVille, the last four of which were really solo albums by Willy DeVille in that no members of the...
. "It's So Easy" is also on the soundtrack of Quentin Tarantino
Quentin Tarantino
Quentin Jerome Tarantino is an American film director, screenwriter, producer, cinematographer and actor. In the early 1990s, he began his career as an independent filmmaker with films employing nonlinear storylines and the aestheticization of violence...
's movie Grindhouse: Death Proof.
Other information
The song "Rolene" was written by Moon MartinMoon Martin
John David "Moon" Martin is an American singer, songwriter and guitarist.-Career:Martin gained recognition in the 1970s as a pop artist and composer...
, who also wrote "Cadillac Walk," a song on Mink DeVille's previous album, Cabretta
Cabretta
Cabretta, known as Mink DeVille in the United States, was the 1977 debut album by Mink DeVille. It peaked at number 186 on the Billboard 200 chart and was voted the 29th best album of 1977 in the Village Voices Pazz & Jop critics' poll...
.
The album cover includes a quote (dated March 13, 1978) about the band by Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum is a museum located on the shore of Lake Erie in downtown Cleveland, Ohio, United States. It is dedicated to archiving the history of some of the best-known and most influential artists, producers, engineers and others who have, in some major way,...
member Doc Pomus
Doc Pomus
Jerome Solon Felder, better known as Doc Pomus , was a twentieth-century American blues singer and songwriter. He is best known as the lyricist of many rock and roll hits. Pomus was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in the category of non-performer in 1992. He was also inducted into...
, who would later co-write songs with Willy DeVille:
- Mink DeVille knows the truth of a city street and the courage in a ghetto love song. And the harsh reality in his voice and phrasing is yesterday, today, and tomorrow — timeless in the same way that loneliness, no money, and troubles find each other and never quit for a minute. But the fighters always have a shot at turning a corner, and if you holler loud enough, sometimes somebody hears you. And truth and love always separate the greats from the neverwases and neverwillbes.
DeVille said about the song "I Broke that Promise": "It's one of my favorite songs in that album. I keep it in the bag to do it. It has a good feeling because it says, 'I broke that promise that was so important to me.' You can say 'I broke that promise that was so important to you,' but it's even worse to break a promise that's only important to whoever made the promise."
Mink DeVille toured North America with Elvis Costello
Elvis Costello
Elvis Costello , born Declan Patrick MacManus, is an English singer-songwriter. He came to prominence as an early participant in London's pub rock scene in the mid-1970s and later became associated with the punk/New Wave genre. Steeped in word play, the vocabulary of Costello's lyrics is broader...
and Nick Lowe
Nick Lowe
Nicholas Drain "Nick" Lowe , is an English singer-songwriter, musician and producer.A pivotal figure in UK pub rock, punk rock and new wave, Lowe has recorded a string of well-reviewed solo albums. Along with vocals, Lowe plays guitar, bass guitar, piano and harmonica...
after this album came out.
Willy DeVille lived for a time on Boulevard de Magenta
Boulevard de Magenta
The boulevard de Magenta is located in the IX and X arrondissements of Paris, in France.It begins at place de la République and 1, rue Beaurepaire, and ends at 1, boulevard de Rochechouart and 53, boulevard de la Chapelle.-Etymology:...
in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, which may account for the album's name, Return to Magenta."See Laura Rangel (1993) Interviews: King Creole. Willy DeVille: Spanish Stroll. Said Willy DeVille, "I have une histoire d'amour with Paris... I've lived in Paris, on Magenta Boulevard." (Retrieved 1-29-08.)
Pianist Bobby Leonards said about Return to Magenta, "Willy had wanted to do an album much like the first one. He wanted to team up with Nitzsche to write some tunes, but Nitzsche wasn’t interested in doing that. All he wanted to do was produce. He was there to help. He didn’t actually say no. He said, 'Hey we’re wasting valuable time and you don’t have a lot of material. The record companies want you to produce a product every year, ten to twelve songs, but nobody writes that way. You do a record when you’ve got something. Don’t record unless you’re ready to record.'" He added, "I went back and erased most of my tracks, but some of mine are still on there.”
Track listing
Unless otherwise noted, all songs by Willy DeVille.- “Guardian Angel” - 3:29
- “Soul Twist” - 2:32
- “’A’ Train Lady” (David Forman, Duke Levine) - 3:20
- “Rolene” (John MartinMoon MartinJohn David "Moon" Martin is an American singer, songwriter and guitarist.-Career:Martin gained recognition in the 1970s as a pop artist and composer...
) - 3:51 - “Desperate Days” - 2:49
- “Just Your Friends” (Willy DeVille, Jack NitzscheJack NitzscheBernard Alfred "Jack" Nitzsche was an arranger, producer, songwriter, and film score composer. He first came to prominence in the late 1950s as the right-hand-man of producer Phil Spector, and went on to work with the Rolling Stones, Neil Young and others...
) - 2:11 - “Steady Drivin' Man” - 3:40
- “Easy Slider” - 3:53
- “I Broke That Promise” - 3:05
- “Confidence to Kill” (R. Aherns, Louis X. ErlangerLouis X. ErlangerLouis X. Erlanger is an American is a rock and roll and blues guitarist best known for his work with the band Mink DeVille. Erlanger recorded three albums with the band: Cabretta , Return to Magenta , and Le Chat Bleu...
) - 1:53
Personnel
- Thomas R. "Manfred" Allen, Jr. – 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 ....
- Max & Bees - background vocalsBacking vocalistA backing vocalist or backing singer is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists...
- Willy DeVilleWilly DeVilleWilly DeVille was an American singer and songwriter. During his thirty-five year career, first with his band Mink DeVille and later on his own, Deville created original songs rooted in traditional American musical styles. He worked with collaborators from across the spectrum of contemporary...
– 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...
, 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...
, vocals - Mac Rebennack (Dr. John)Dr. JohnMalcolm John "Mac" Rebennack, Jr. , better known by the stage name Dr. John , is an American singer-songwriter, pianist and guitarist, whose music combines blues, pop, jazz as well as Zydeco, boogie woogie and rock and roll.Active as a session musician since the late 1950s, he came to wider...
– 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...
, 88s and reminiscent tonalities - Cleon Douglas – background vocals
- Steve DouglasSteve Douglas (saxophonist)Steven Douglas Kreisman , better known as Steve Douglas, was an American saxophonist, flautist and clarinetist. Douglas is best known as a Los Angeles session musician, a member of The Wrecking Crew, who worked with Phil Spector, Brian Wilson and The Beach Boys...
– 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... - Louis X. ErlangerLouis X. ErlangerLouis X. Erlanger is an American is a rock and roll and blues guitarist best known for his work with the band Mink DeVille. Erlanger recorded three albums with the band: Cabretta , Return to Magenta , and Le Chat Bleu...
– guitar, vocals - David Forman – vocals, background vocals
- Jackie KelsoJackie KelsoJohn Joseph Kelson Jr., better known by his stage name Jackie Kelso is an American jazz saxophonist, flautist, and clarinetist....
– saxophone - Bobby Leonards – piano, keyboardsKeyboard instrumentA keyboard instrument is a musical instrument which is played using a musical keyboard. The most common of these is the piano. Other widely used keyboard instruments include organs of various types as well as other mechanical, electromechanical and electronic instruments...
- Rubén Sigüenza – bass
Production
- Ken Anderson - design
- Steve DouglasSteve Douglas (saxophonist)Steven Douglas Kreisman , better known as Steve Douglas, was an American saxophonist, flautist and clarinetist. Douglas is best known as a Los Angeles session musician, a member of The Wrecking Crew, who worked with Phil Spector, Brian Wilson and The Beach Boys...
– 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... - Mark Howlett - recording engineerAudio engineeringAn audio engineer, also called audio technician, audio technologist or sound technician, is a specialist in a skilled trade that deals with the use of machinery and equipment for the recording, mixing and reproduction of sounds. The field draws on many artistic and vocational areas, including...
, mixingAudio mixing (recorded music)In audio recording, audio mixing is the process by which multiple recorded sounds are combined into one or more channels, most commonly two-channel stereo. In the process, the source signals' level, frequency content, dynamics, and panoramic position are manipulated and effects such as reverb may... - Roy Kohara - art directionArt directorThe art director is a person who supervise the creative process of a design.The term 'art director' is a blanket title for a variety of similar job functions in advertising, publishing, film and television, the Internet, and video games....
- Duana Lemay - cover photo
- Brian D. McLaughlin - liner photos
- Jack NitzscheJack NitzscheBernard Alfred "Jack" Nitzsche was an arranger, producer, songwriter, and film score composer. He first came to prominence in the late 1950s as the right-hand-man of producer Phil Spector, and went on to work with the Rolling Stones, Neil Young and others...
- arrangerArrangementThe American Federation of Musicians defines arranging as "the art of preparing and adapting an already written composition for presentation in other than its original form. An arrangement may include reharmonization, paraphrasing, and/or development of a composition, so that it fully represents...
, producer - Ken Perry - masteringAudio masteringMastering, a form of audio post-production, is the process of preparing and transferring recorded audio from a source containing the final mix to a data storage device ; the source from which all copies will be produced...
- Larry "Lord Logar" Rosen - roadRoad managerIn music industry, a Road Manager is a person who works with small to mid-sized tours...