...broken bits of you and me.

...and on the eight day he rested...but I'll have to finish writing this piece first I suppose. Green Thoughts brought me to the Smithereens' proverbial table, even if I didn't stay for an extended period. Truth be told there was a lot vying for my attention in 1988.  Metal, rap, and classic rock all hit simultaneously in the two years or so leading up, and it wasn't probably until very early in 1989 that I made any conscious differentiation between mainstream and "alternative." The band, in question could have easily, and quite frankly did slot into both camps.  

Given the plaintive songwriting penchants of both Pat DiNizio and Jim Babjak that almost gives me an easy out in terms of scrutinizing the treasure trove of songs they brought into the world. I suppose what they lacked in eloquence they compensated for in sheer consistency and savvy.  Sure, I may not have liked/appreciated certain songs, but New Jersey's White Castle connoisseurs were never ones to slouch or sell a half-baked loaf of bread.  And they were tight as hell live.  In some ways every artist/band/etc should strive to be as on-point and defined as the Smithereens were.  Without realizing it they were impeccable role models.

Every album has a beginning, and this patchwork quilt of antecedents and tentative steps for G/T was actually assembled by DiNizio himself, though the circulation of it remains highly limited.  There are formal demos (naturally) but there are also numerous rough sketches, some as fleetingly brief as 45 seconds.  If there's an emphasis on anything here at all, it's numerous acoustic traipses cut at the Record Plant, though I'm not certain if it was at the L.A. or New York City branch.  Nonetheless, "Elaine," "Drown in My Own Tears" and "House We Used to Live In," function just as effectively within the context of more spartan instrumentation as they did in the guise of the more amplified finished products we've come to know (though I should note the latter of those three is a noticeably incomplete version).  And speaking of "Elaine" the "countryish" version that's part of this package isn't that radically different, though I can still justify the designation.  "Only a Memory" is represented in five separate takes, absorbing about 25% of this affair, but with a hook that potent, I'm hardly complaining.  No bona fide outtakes or wholly unique songs crop up in this collection, folks  Still, nothing beats the fly-on-the-wall intimacy of this preparation reel for the 'reens, not-so-difficult second album. Enjoy. 

01. Only A Memory [Pat Song Idea 9-87]

02. Only A Memory [Early Acoustic w-Drum Machine]

03. Only A Memory [Early Acoustic And Vocals]

04. Only A Memory [Take 1 - Electric Demo - Remixed By Pat~1

05. Drown In My Own Tears [Pat Song Idea 9-87]

06. Drown In My Own Tears [Electric Demo]

07. Elaine [Show Place Demo]

08. Elaine [Countryish Demo]

09. The World We Know [Electric Demo - No Vocals]

10. Especially For You [Electric Demo]

11. Only A Memory [Acoustic - Record Plant 11-19-87]

12. House We Used To Live In [Acoustic - Record Plant]

13. Something New [Acoustic - Record Plant]

14. The World We Know [Pat Song Idea Circa 1987]

15. Drown In My Own Tears [Acoustic - Record Plant]

16. Elaine [Acoustic - Record Plant]

17. Spellbound [Acoustic - Record Plant]

18. If The Sun Doesn't Shine [Acoustic - Record Plant]

19. Green Thoughts [Acoustic Song Idea Snippet]

Hear