Wikipedia

Violent Femmes (album): Difference between revisions

Browse history interactively
← Previous edit
Content deleted Content added
VisualWikitext
→Personnel: Instrumentation is listed as per the original album credits.
→top: intro: some basic context of who the artist is
 
(302 intermediate revisions by more than 100 users not shown)
Line 1:
{{short description|1983 studio album by Violent Femmes}}
{{Infobox Album <!-- See Wikipedia:WikiProject_Albums -->
{{Use mdy dates|date=June 2025}}
|Name = Violent Femmes
|Type = Studio{{Infobox album
|Artist name = [[Violent Femmes]]
|Cover type = Violent_Femmes.jpgstudio
|Released artist = [[November 30]] = [[1982Violent Femmes]]
| cover = Violent Femmes.jpg
|Recorded = '''All songs''': July 1982 at Castle Studios in [[Lake Geneva, Wisconsin]]<br>'''Track 11 & 12''': Music Works Studios in [[London]] on [[August 31]]-[[September 1]], [[1983]]
|Genre alt = [[Alternative rock]] =
|Length released = 43:21April 13, 1983
|Label recorded = [[SlashJuly Records]]1982
|Producer venue = [[Mark Van Hecke]] =
| studio = Castle Recording Studios, [[Lake Geneva, Wisconsin]]
|Reviews =
| genre = {{flatlist|
*[[All Music Guide]] {{rating-5|5}} [http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=10:o9vyxdkbjolg link]
* [[Folk punk]]<ref>{{cite magazine |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=MyoEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA56 |title=Gordon Gano: Hitting the Ground |magazine=[[CMJ New Music Monthly]] |issue=106 |date=October 2002 |access-date=August 29, 2020 |last=Molanphy |first=Chris |page=56 |archive-date=February 16, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240216212304/https://books.google.com/books?id=MyoEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA56#v=onepage&q&f=false |url-status=live }}</ref>
*[[Robert Christgau]] (B+) [http://www.robertchristgau.com/get_artist.php?name=violent+femmes link]
* [[post-punk]]<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.pastemagazine.com/music/the-50-best-post-punk-albums/ |title=The 50 Best Post-Punk Albums |website=[[Paste (magazine)|Paste]] |date=July 13, 2016 |access-date=August 29, 2020 |last=Jackson |first=Josh |archive-date=October 31, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211031075903/https://www.pastemagazine.com/music/the-50-best-post-punk-albums/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
*''[[Rolling Stone]] {{rating-5|4}} [http://www.rollingstone.com/artists/violentfemmes/albums/album/99584/review/6068109/violent_femmes link]
* [[alternative rock]]<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.allmusic.com/song/add-it-up-mt0011342658 |title=Add It Up – Violent Femmes |website=[[AllMusic]] |access-date=August 29, 2020 |last=Huey |first=Steve |archive-date=November 30, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211130122912/https://www.allmusic.com/song/add-it-up-mt0011342658 |url-status=live }}</ref>
| Last album =
}}
| This album = '''''Violent Femmes'''''<br/>(1982)
| length = {{Duration|m=36|s=15}}
| Next album = ''[[Hallowed Ground (Violent Femmes album)|Hallowed Ground]]''<br/>(1984)
| label = [[Slash Records|Slash]]
| producer = Mark Van Hecke
| prev_title =
| prev_year =
| next_title = [[Hallowed Ground (Violent Femmes album)|Hallowed Ground]]
| next_year = 1984
| misc = {{Singles
| name = Violent Femmes
| type = studio
| single1 = [[Gone Daddy Gone]]
| single1date = 1983
}}
}}
 
'''''Violent Femmes''''' is the debut album by American [[folk punk]] band [[Violent Femmes]]. Mostly recorded in July 1982, the album was released by [[Slash Records]] on [[Phonograph record|vinyl]] and on [[cassette tape|cassette]] in April 1983,<ref>{{cite news |last1=Editorial Staff |first1=Cash Box |title=Abundance Of Major Titles Set For Second Quarter |url=https://worldradiohistory.com/hd2/IDX-Business/Music/Archive-Cash-Box-IDX/80s/1983/CB-1983-04-02-OCR-Page-0011.pdf |work=[[Cashbox (magazine)|Cash Box]] |___location=New York |publisher=The Cash Box Publishing Co. |date=April 2, 1983 |access-date=2021-07-22 |archive-date=2021-07-22 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210722111752/https://worldradiohistory.com/hd2/IDX-Business/Music/Archive-Cash-Box-IDX/80s/1983/CB-1983-04-02-OCR-Page-0011.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Editorial Staff |first1=Cash Box |title=Violent Femmes - Slash 23845-1 |url=https://worldradiohistory.com/hd2/IDX-Business/Music/Archive-Cash-Box-IDX/80s/1983/Cash-Box-1983-04-23-OCR-Page-0008.pdf |work=[[Cashbox (magazine)|Cash Box]] |___location=New York |publisher=The Cash Box Publishing Co. |date=April 23, 1983 |access-date=2021-07-22 |archive-date=2021-07-22 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210722111752/https://worldradiohistory.com/hd2/IDX-Business/Music/Archive-Cash-Box-IDX/80s/1983/Cash-Box-1983-04-23-OCR-Page-0008.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=White|first=Adam|url=http://archive.org/details/billboardbookofg00whit|title=The Billboard Book of Gold & Platinum Records|date=1990|publisher=Billboard Books|others=Internet Archive|isbn=9780823075478 }}</ref> and on [[CD]] in 1987,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.textfiles.com/music/rock.cdc |title=The Compact Disc Connection Database : WAR23845 * $11.79 VIOLENT FEMMES VIOLENT FEMMES WARNER BROTHERS 07/87 :44 |publisher=Textfiles.com |access-date=October 20, 2013 |archive-date=April 3, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130403050125/http://textfiles.com/music/rock.cdc |url-status=live }}</ref> with two extra tracks, "Ugly" and "Gimme the Car".
[[Violent Femmes]] released their eponymous debut album, '''''Violent Femmes''''', in 1982. The album has gone on to become one of the most acclaimed cult albums, in spite of having never achieved massive fame, and went platinum about ten years after it was released.
== Album ==
Most of the songs on the album were written when the songwriter, [[Gordon Gano]], was still in high school in [[Milwaukee, Wisconsin]]. ''Violent Femmes'' peaked at #171 on [[Billboard Music Charts|Billboard]]'s Top 200 album chart.
 
In 2002, [[Rhino Records]] remastered the album, filled out the disc's length with [[demo (music)|demos]] and added another disc of live tracks and a radio interview for a 20th anniversary special edition, with liner notes by [[Michael Azerrad]].
Of particular note are the first two songs, regarded by Femmes fans as two of the best songs on the album. "[[Blister in the Sun]]" is a clever song with a chanted chorus that grows quieter and quieter until erupted in a climactic recitation at full volume. "Kiss Off" is, lyrically, most typical for Violent Femmes. In it, the singer expresses the whole gamut of teenage emotions, from a desire for acceptance to a stubborn hatred for those who are accepted, conformity, playfulness, angst and rebellion. The legendary "counting" section is at the climax of the song, when the singer recites issues he is facing in his life and the corresponding amount of drugs he has taken to cope with each issue, it begins "I take one, one, one 'cause you left me and two, two, two for my family and three, three, three for my heartache, and four, four, four for my headaches" with the tension slowly mounting, then erupting with "ten, ten, ten, ten for EVERYTHING! EVERYTHING! EVERYTHING! EVERYTHING!." This lyric brings Violent Femmes' characteristic humor into the song at its most tense and potentially melodramatic.
 
''Violent Femmes'' is the band's most successful album to date. The [[Recording Industry Association of America]] (RIAA) certified the album [[music recording certification|gold]] four years after its release and [[music recording certification|platinum]] four years after that, despite it never having appeared on the [[Billboard 200|''Billboard'' 200]] albums chart. After achieving platinum certification on February 1, 1991, the album finally charted on the ''Billboard'' 200 for the first time on August 3, 1991, and peaked at number 171. Since [[Nielsen Music]] began electronically tracking sales in 1991, the album has sold 1.8 million copies. Blending RIAA certifications and Nielsen Music sales data, the record's American sales were estimated at three million as of 2016.<ref>{{cite magazine |url=https://www.billboard.com/pro/billboard-200-chart-moves-loretta-lynn-full-circle/ |title=Billboard 200 Chart Moves: Loretta Lynn Earns Her Highest Charting Album Ever With 'Full Circle' |magazine=[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]] |date=March 18, 2016 |access-date=August 25, 2020 |last=Caulfield |first=Keith |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160318224203/http://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/chart-beat/7263810/billboard-200-chart-moves-loretta-lynn-full-circle |archive-date=March 18, 2016 |url-status=live}}</ref>
''Violent Femmes'' has been called [[folk punk]]; it is an amalgamation of multiple influences. The first wave of punk music (bands like [[the Sex Pistols]] - ''[[Never Mind the Bollocks, Here's the Sex Pistols]]'' - 1977) had largely burned itself out by 1978. [[Post punk]] music had split off into multiple, widely varying genres. Violent Femmes incorporated influences from several of them, most notably the dark Gothic sounds of [[the Cure]] (''[[Three Imaginary Boys]]'' - 1979) and [[Siouxsie & the Banshees]] (''[[Kaleidoscope (Siouxsie album)|Kaleidoscope]]'' - 1980), as well as [[New Wave music|New Wave]] acts like [[Depeche Mode]] (''[[Speak and Spell (album)|Speak and Spell]]'' - 1981) and art rock with a punk atmosphere like [[Devo]] (''[[Question: Are We Not Men? Answer: We Are Devo!|Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo!]]'' - 1978) and [[Joy Division]] (''[[Unknown Pleasures]]'' - 1979); even the pop-punk of [[the Go-Gos]] (''[[The Beauty and the Beat]]'' - 1981) influenced the album. Gordon Gano's blunt, snappy delivery and his humorously nihilistic tales about outsiders, drugs and sex hark back to the proto-punk of the Velvet Underground in 1967 (''[[The Velvet Underground]]''). Additional [[post-punk]] artists like [[Elvis Costello & the Attractions]] (''[[This Year's Model]]'' - 1978), [[Adam & the Ants]] (''[[Dirk Wears White Sox]]'' - 1979), [[Talking Heads]] (''[[More Songs About Buildings and Food]]'' - 1978) can be heard in ''Violent Femmes''. Folk influences were also important in shaping the sound of Violent Femmes. Late-era [[Bob Dylan]] (''[[Desire (album)|Desire]]'' - 1976) and the [[hard rock]]ing folk of [[Jefferson Airplane]] (''[[Surrealistic Pillow]]'' - 1967) had a great influence on the development of Violent Femmes.
 
==Background==
As one of the premiere cult albums of all time, ''Violent Femmes'' helped kickstart the college and alternative rock movements that began in the 1980s with bands like [[R.E.M. (band)|R.E.M.]] (''[[Reckoning (R.E.M. album)|Reckoning]]'' - 1984), [[The Replacements]] (''[[Let It Be (Replacements album)|Let It Be]]'' - 1984), [[Hüsker Dü]] (''[[New Day Rising]]'' - 1985), and later the [[Pixies (band)|Pixies]] (''[[Doolittle (album)|Doolittle]]'' - 1989) and [[Sebadoh]] (''[[Sebadoh III|III]]'' - 1991) and peaked with the mainstream success of [[Nirvana (band)|Nirvana]] (''[[Nevermind]]'' (1991) and other [[grunge]] bands in the early 1990s. Quirky songs like "Kiss Off" and "Blister in the Sun", with sing-along choruses and a fast-paced, tension-building beat, helped define what eventually became known as [[alternative rock]]. The distinctive, catchy and powerful riffs and choruses established the album as [[power pop]], influencing later bands like [[Weezer]] (''[[Weezer (Blue Album)|Weezer]]'' - 1994) which similarly used teenage, outcast angst to fuel quirky, pop-oriented songs and establish a devoted audience who sympathized with the outsider point-of-view. In addition, as the inventors (and, perhaps, the only practitioners of) [[folk punk]], Violent Femmes also influenced later folk musicians such as [[David Gray (musician)|David Gray]] (''[[A Century Ends]]'' - 1993).
Most of the songs on ''Violent Femmes'' and its [[Hallowed Ground (Violent Femmes album)|follow-up]] were written when songwriter [[Gordon Gano]] was an 18-year-old high-school student in [[Milwaukee]], [[Wisconsin]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/hallowed-ground-mw0000195423 |title=Hallowed Ground – Violent Femmes |website=[[AllMusic]] |access-date=October 20, 2013 |last=Monger |first=James Christopher |archive-date=September 25, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130925023046/http://www.allmusic.com/album/hallowed-ground-mw0000195423 |url-status=live }}</ref>
 
The album was recorded at Castle Recording Studios in [[Lake Geneva, Wisconsin]] in July 1982. It was self-funded before they had signed with their record label, Slash. Gano said, "It was a strange situation because we hadn't met anyone from Slash or been to Los Angeles when we signed with them. The good thing was because we recorded the album first, it was exactly the way we wanted. There was no executive influence."<ref>{{cite magazine| work= [[Rock Australia Magazine|RAM]]| title=Time Out|author=[[Stuart Coupe]]|issue=232|page=22}}</ref>
The cover photograph is by [[Ron Hugo]].
 
==Cover==
The cover model is Billie Jo Campbell, a three-year-old girl who was walking down a [[Los Angeles]] street when she and her mother were approached and offered $100 for the photograph that became the album cover. The photograph depicts Campbell peering into the window of a house in [[Laurel Canyon, Los Angeles|Laurel Canyon]]. Campbell recollects: "I remember looking into that building, and they kept telling me there were animals in there, and I was pissed off ... I didn't know why they were making me look in this building. I had no idea there were photographers there. I was ... pissed off that I couldn't see the animals and I was all cranky by the end of it."<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.mtv.com/news/1567107/iconic-album-cover-kids-where-are-the-nirvana-baby-korns-little-girl-and-others-now/ |title=Iconic Album-Cover Kids: Where Are The Nirvana Baby, Korn's Little Girl And Others Now? |website=[[MTV News]] |date=August 14, 2007 |access-date=June 29, 2021 |last=Harris |first=Chris |archive-date=June 29, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210629175007/http://www.mtv.com/news/1567107/iconic-album-cover-kids-where-are-the-nirvana-baby-korns-little-girl-and-others-now/ |url-status=dead }}</ref>
 
==Reception==
{{Music ratings
| rev1 = [[AllMusic]]
| rev1score = {{Rating|5|5}}<ref name="AM">{{cite web |url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/violent-femmes-mw0000192210 |title=Violent Femmes – Violent Femmes |website=[[AllMusic]] |access-date=February 19, 2013 |last=Huey |first=Steve |archive-date=February 9, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130209072650/http://www.allmusic.com/album/violent-femmes-mw0000192210 |url-status=live }}</ref>
| rev2 = ''[[Blender (magazine)|Blender]]''
| rev2score = {{Rating|4|5}}<ref>{{cite magazine |url=http://www.blender.com/guide/reviews.aspx?id=727 |title=Violent Femmes: Violent Femmes (Deluxe Edition) |magazine=[[Blender (magazine)|Blender]] |access-date=July 20, 2019 |last=Kemp |first=Rob |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20041103132323/http://www.blender.com/guide/reviews.aspx?id=727 |archive-date=November 3, 2004 |url-status=dead}}</ref>
| rev3 = ''[[Pitchfork (website)|Pitchfork]]''
| rev3score = 9.1/10<ref>{{cite web |url=https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/23130-violent-femmes/ |title=Violent Femmes: Violent Femmes |website=[[Pitchfork (website)|Pitchfork]] |date=May 21, 2017 |access-date=May 21, 2017 |last=Hyden |first=Steven |author-link=Steven Hyden |archive-date=May 21, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170521070932/http://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/23130-violent-femmes/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
| rev4 = ''[[Q (magazine)|Q]]''
| rev4score = {{Rating|4|5}}<ref>{{cite magazine |title=Violent Femmes: Violent Femmes |magazine=[[Q (magazine)|Q]] |issue=194 |date=September 2002 |page=130}}</ref>
| rev5 = ''[[Rolling Stone]]''
| rev5score = {{Rating|4|5}}<ref name="RS">{{cite magazine |url=http://www.rollingstone.com/artists/violentfemmes/albums/album/99584/review/6068109/violent_femmes |title=Violent Femmes: Violent Femmes |magazine=[[Rolling Stone]] |date=June 23, 1983 |access-date=September 9, 2012 |last=Considine |first=J. D. |author-link=J. D. Considine |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070211211102/http://www.rollingstone.com/artists/violentfemmes/albums/album/99584/review/6068109/violent_femmes |archive-date=February 11, 2007 |url-status=dead}}</ref>
| rev6 = ''[[The Rolling Stone Album Guide]]''
| rev6score = {{Rating|4|5}}<ref>{{cite book |chapter=Violent Femmes |last1=Coleman |first1=Mark |last2=Sisario |first2=Ben |author2-link=Ben Sisario |title=The New Rolling Stone Album Guide |title-link=The Rolling Stone Album Guide |editor1-last=Brackett |editor1-first=Nathan |editor1-link=Nathan Brackett |editor2-last=Hoard |editor2-first=Christian |editor2-link=Christian Hoard |publisher=[[Simon & Schuster]] |edition=4th |year=2004 |isbn=0-7432-0169-8 |page=[https://archive.org/details/newrollingstonea00brac/page/852 852]}}</ref>
| rev7 = ''[[The Sacramento Bee]]''
| rev7score = {{Rating|4|4}}<ref>{{cite news |title=Meet the 'Press,' shadow fans |newspaper=[[The Sacramento Bee]] |date=June 30, 2002 |last=Macias |first=Chris}}</ref>
| rev8 = ''[[Spin Alternative Record Guide]]''
| rev8score = 10/10<ref>{{cite book |chapter=Violent Femmes |last=Wyman |first=Bill |title=Spin Alternative Record Guide |title-link=Spin Alternative Record Guide |editor1-last=Weisbard |editor1-first=Eric |editor1-link=Eric Weisbard |editor2-last=Marks |editor2-first=Craig |publisher=[[Vintage Books]] |year=1995 |isbn=0-679-75574-8 |pages=427–428}}</ref>
| rev9 = ''[[Uncut (magazine)|Uncut]]''
| rev9score = {{Rating|4|5}}<ref>{{cite magazine |title=Violent Femmes: Violent Femmes |magazine=[[Uncut (magazine)|Uncut]] |issue=64 |date=September 2002 |pages=122–123}}</ref>
| rev10 = ''[[The Village Voice]]''
| rev10score = B+<ref name="VV">{{cite news |url=https://robertchristgau.com/xg/cg/cgv5-83.php |title=Christgau's Consumer Guide |newspaper=[[The Village Voice]] |date=May 31, 1983 |access-date=November 3, 2015 |last=Christgau |first=Robert |author-link=Robert Christgau |archive-date=September 24, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924141632/http://www.robertchristgau.com/xg/cg/cgv5-83.php |url-status=live }}</ref>
}}
 
In a contemporary review for ''[[Rolling Stone]]'', [[J. D. Considine]] wrote that ''Violent Femmes'' was precocious yet dynamic, with a good balance between Gano's direct lyrics and the full sound of the music.<ref name="RS"/> [[Robert Christgau]] of ''[[the Village Voice]]'' compared Gano to [[Jonathan Richman]] of [[the Modern Lovers]].<ref name="VV"/> Gano himself grew tired of comparisons to Richman, as by his own account he was actually trying to sound like [[Steve Wynn (songwriter)|Steve Wynn]] of [[the Dream Syndicate]].<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.violentfemmesrecords.com/articles/noise.html |title=Violent Femmes: Big Noise From Wisconsin |newspaper=[[LA Weekly]] |date=May 20–26, 1983 |access-date=September 9, 2012 |last=Lloyd |first=Robert |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131021083926/http://www.violentfemmesrecords.com/articles/noise.html |archive-date=October 21, 2013 |url-status=dead}}</ref>
 
In a retrospective write-up for [[AllMusic]], Steve Huey called ''Violent Femmes'' "one of the most distinctive records of the early [[alternative rock|alternative]] movement and an enduring cult classic," noting that "the music also owes something to the Modern Lovers' minimalism, but powered by [[Brian Ritchie]]'s busy acoustic bass riffing and the urgency and wild abandon of [[punk rock]], the Femmes forged a sound all their own," while crediting Gano for keeping "the music engaging and compelling without overindulging in his seemingly willful naiveté."<ref name="AM"/>
 
''Violent Femmes'' has been included in lists of [[List of 1980s albums considered the best|the best albums of the 1980s]] by publications such as ''[[Pitchfork (website)|Pitchfork]]'', who in a 2002 list ranked it 36th,<ref>{{cite web |url=https://pitchfork.com/features/lists-and-guides/the-top-100-albums-of-the-1980s/?page=7 |title=The Top 100 Albums of the 1980s |website=[[Pitchfork (website)|Pitchfork]] |date=November 21, 2002 |access-date=November 30, 2021 |page=7 |archive-date=November 30, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211130133208/https://pitchfork.com/features/lists-and-guides/the-top-100-albums-of-the-1980s/?page=7 |url-status=live }}</ref> and ''[[Slant Magazine]]'', who in a 2012 list ranked it 21st.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.slantmagazine.com/music/best-albums-of-the-1980s/ |title=The 100 Best Albums of the 1980s |website=[[Slant Magazine]] |date=March 5, 2012 |access-date=October 20, 2013 |archive-date=March 26, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190326211745/https://www.slantmagazine.com/music/best-albums-of-the-1980s/ |url-status=live }}</ref> In 2014, ''[[PopMatters]]'' listed ''Violent Femmes'' as an essential alternative rock album of the 1980s.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.popmatters.com/184696-184696-hope-despite-the-times-12-essential-alternative-rock-albums-f-2495629508.html |title=Hope Despite the Times: 12 Essential Alternative Rock Albums from the 1980s |website=[[PopMatters]] |date=August 27, 2014 |access-date=October 27, 2015 |page=1 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181130125416/https://www.popmatters.com/184696-184696-hope-despite-the-times-12-essential-alternative-rock-albums-f-2495629508.html |archive-date=November 30, 2018 |url-status=dead}}</ref> It also placed at number 974 in the 2000 edition of the book ''[[All Time Top 1000 Albums]]'',<ref>{{cite book |title=All Time Top 1000 Albums |title-link=All Time Top 1000 Albums |last=Larkin |first=Colin |author-link=Colin Larkin |publisher=[[Virgin Books]] |edition=3rd |year=2000 |isbn=0-7535-0493-6}}</ref> and was included in the book ''[[1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die]]''.<ref>{{cite book |chapter=Violent Femmes: Violent Femmes |last=Jacobson |first=Seth |title=1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die |title-link=1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die |editor-last=Dimery |editor-first=Robert |publisher=[[Universe Publishing]] |year=2006 |isbn=978-0-7893-1371-3 |page=503}}</ref>
 
==Track listing==
{{Track listing
All songs written by [[Gordon Gano]], except as noted.
| headline =Side one
# "[[Blister in the Sun]]" – 2:25
| all_writing=[[Gordon Gano]], except where noted
# "Kiss Off" – 2:56
|title1= [[Blister in the Sun]]
# "Please Do Not Go" – 4:15
|length1=2:25
# "Add It Up" – 4:44
|title2=Kiss Off
# "Confessions" – 5:32
|length2=2:56
# "Prove My Love" – 2:39
|title3=Please Do Not Go
# "Promise" – 2:49
|length3=4:15
# "To the Kill" – 4:01
|title4=[[Add It Up]]
# "[[Gone Daddy Gone]]" (Gano, [[Willie Dixon]]) – 3:06
|length4=4:44
#"Good Feeling" – 3:52
|title5=Confessions
===CD bonus tracks===
|length5=5:32
11. "Ugly" – 2:21<br/>
}}
12. "Gimme the Car" – 5:04
 
{{Track listing
==Personnel==
| headline =Side two
*[[Gordon Gano]] - guitar, [[violin]], lead vocals
|title1=Prove My Love
*[[Brian Ritchie]] - acoustic [[bass guitar]], electric bass guitar, [[xylophone]], [[vocals]]
|length1= 2:39
*[[Victor DeLorenzo]] - drum set, Scotch marching [[bass drum]], [[snare drum]] and [[tranceaphone]], vocals
|title2=Promise
*[[Mark Van Hecke]] - [[piano]]
|length2=2:49
|title3=To the Kill
|length3=4:01
|title4=[[Gone Daddy Gone]]
|writer4=Gano, [[Willie Dixon]]
|length4=3:06
|title5=Good Feeling
|length5=3:52
}}
 
{{Track listing
for more information on the band and their backing group 'the Horns of Dilemma', including anecdotes about their experiences together, see http://www.vfemmes.com/bandinfo.html
| headline = US CD bonus tracks
|title11=Ugly
|length11=2:21
|title12=Gimme the Car
|length12=5:04
}}(Recorded at Music Works Studios, [[London]], August 31–September 1, 1983)<ref>{{Citation|title=Violent Femmes – Ugly / Gimme The Car (1983, Vinyl)|date=December 1983|url=https://www.discogs.com/Violent-Femmes-Ugly-Gimme-The-Car/release/1328392|language=en|access-date=2021-06-29|archive-date=2021-06-29|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210629175006/https://www.discogs.com/Violent-Femmes-Ugly-Gimme-The-Car/release/1328392|url-status=live}}</ref>
 
{{Track listing
==Influence==
| headline = 20th Anniversary Edition bonus tracks{{anchor|20th Anniversary Edition}}
* [[Ethan Hawke]]'s character in the 1994 film ''[[Reality Bites]]'', plays a cover of "Add It Up" with his band Hey That's My Bike.
|title11=Girl Trouble
* A May 2005 episode of the television series ''[[How I Met Your Mother]]'' featured engaged couple, Marshall and Lily, trying to sneak into a [[high school]] [[prom]] to see if the band, [[The 88]], who Marshall had tentatively booked for the wedding, could play the couple's song, which was "Good Feeling."
|note11=demo
* [[Gnarls Barkley]]'s 2006 debut album ''[[St. Elsewhere]]'' featured a [[cover version]] of "Gone Daddy Gone."
|length11=3:07
* "Add It Up" was used as a track on the [[computer video game]] [[Tony Hawk's Underground 2]].
|title12=Breakin' Up
* The film, ''[[Lost and Delirious]]'' features "Add It Up" in a scene.
|note12=demo
* [[Richard Cheese and Lounge Against the Machine]] covered the song "[[Add It Up]]" into a [[Lounge]] style on their [[2005]] album "[[Aperitif for Destruction]]".
|length12=5:17
* "Gone Daddy Gone" borrows a complete verse from [[Willie Dixon]]'s 1954 song "I Just Want To Make Love To You." The Femmes give proper credit for this in the liner notes of their debut album.
|title13=Waiting for the Bus
* The song "Blister in the Sun" is the song on the previews for the show ''[[Psych (TV series)|Psych]]'' on the [[USA Network]].
|note13=demo
* The song "Blister in the Sun" plays at the beginning of the ''[[My So-Called Life]]'' episode entitled "Betrayal," originally aired January 12, 1995.
|length13=2:08
* "Blister in the Sun" appears in the movie ''[[Grosse Pointe Blank]]'' as part of a radio retrospective on the '80s.
|title14=Blister in the Sun
* "Gone Daddy Gone" also features in the seminal '90's Italian film [[Jack Frusciante è uscito dal gruppo]].
|note14=demo
* Songs from this album were covered by [[Guster]] (with some assistance from its creators) on an episode of [[MTV2]]'s short-lived Album Covers series in [[2004 in music|2004]].
|length14=2:35
* The song "Blister in the Sun" is played as the background music in a 2007 ''[[Wendy's]]'' commercial.
|title15=Kiss Off
|note15=demo
|length15=2:49
|title16=Please Do Not Go
|note16=demo
|length16=4:18
|title17=Add It Up
|note17=demo
|length17=4:35
|title18=Confessions
|note18=demo
|length18=5:20
|title19=Prove My Love
|note19=demo
|length19=2:50
|title20=Ugly
|note20=UK single
|length20=2:22
|title21=Gimme the Car
|note21=UK single
|length21=5:07
}}
 
{{Track listing
| headline = 20th Anniversary Edition bonus live disc
|title11=Girl Trouble
|note11=demo
|length11=3:07
|title12=Breakin' Up
|note12=demo
|length12=5:17
|title13=Waiting for the Bus
|note13=demo
|length13=2:08
|title14=Blister in the Sun
|note14=demo
|length14=2:35
|title15=Kiss Off
|note15=demo
|length15=2:49
|title16=Please Do Not Go
|note16=demo
|length16=4:18
|title17=Add It Up
|note17=demo
|length17=4:35
|title18=Confessions
|note18=demo
|length18=5:20
|title19=Prove My Love
|note19=demo
|length19=2:50
|title20= [[Michael Feldman (radio personality)|Michael Feldman]] Interview from [[WHA (AM)|WHA-FM]]
|length20=4:09
|title21= Kiss Off
|note21=live on WHA-FM
|length21=3:31
}}
 
{{Track listing
| headline = 40th Anniversary Deluxe Edition (disc 1)
|title11=Ugly
|note11=UK single
|length11=2:22
|title12=Gimme the Car
|note12=UK single
|length12=5:07
|title13=Girl Trouble
|note13=demo
|length13=3:07
|title14=Breakin' Up
|note14=demo
|length14=5:17
|title15=Waiting for the Bus
|note15=demo
|length15=2:08
|title16=Blister in the Sun
|note16=demo
|length16=2:35
|title17=Kiss Off
|note17=demo
|length17=2:49
|title18=Please Do Not Go
|note18=demo
|length18=4:18
|title19=Add It Up
|note19=demo
|length19=4:35
|title20=Confessions
|note20=demo
|length20=5:20
|title21=Prove My Love
|note21=demo
|length21=2:50
}}
 
{{Track listing
| headline = 40th Anniversary Deluxe Edition (disc 2)
|title1=Special
|note1=live at Beneath-It-All Café, Milwaukee, WI - 9/12/1981
|length1=4:27
|title2= Country Death Song
|note2=live at Beneath-It-All Café, Milwaukee, WI - 9/12/1981
|length2=5:25
|title3= To the Kill
|note3=live at Beneath-It-All Café, Milwaukee, WI - 9/12/1981
|length3=4:19
|title4= Never Tell
|note4=live at Beneath-It-All Café, Milwaukee, WI - 9/12/1981
|length4=7:17
|title5= Break Song
|note5=live at The Jazz Gallery, Milwaukee, WI - 12/8/1981
|length5=0:41
|title6=Her Television
|note6=live at The Jazz Gallery, Milwaukee, WI - 12/8/1981
|length6=2:28
|title7= How Do You Say Goodbye
|note7=live at The Jazz Gallery, Milwaukee, WI - 12/8/1981
|length7=2:43
|title8= Theme and Variations
|note8=live at The Jazz Gallery, Milwaukee, WI - 12/8/1981
|length8=0:54
|title9= Prove My Love
|note9=live at Folk City, New York, NY - 1/26/1983
|length9=3:19
|title10= Gone Daddy Gone
|note10=live at Folk City, New York, NY - 1/26/1983
|writer10=Gano, Dixon
|length10=3:32
|title11= Promise
|note11=live at Folk City, New York, NY - 1/26/1983
|length11=3:09
|title12= In Style
|note12=live at Folk City, New York, NY - 1/26/1983
|length12=3:43
|title13= Add It Up
|note13=live at Folk City, New York, NY - 1/26/1983
|length13=6:15
}}
 
{{Track listing
| headline = 40th Anniversary Deluxe Edition digital bonus tracks
|title11=Ugly
|note11=UK single
|length11=2:22
|title12=Gimme the Car
|note12=UK single
|length12=5:07
|title13=Girl Trouble
|note13=demo
|length13=3:07
|title14=Breakin' Up
|note14=demo
|length14=5:17
|title15=Waiting for the Bus
|note15=demo
|length15=2:08
|title16=Blister in the Sun
|note16=demo
|length16=2:35
|title17=Kiss Off
|note17=demo
|length17=2:49
|title18=Please Do Not Go
|note18=demo
|length18=4:18
|title19=Add It Up
|note19=demo
|length19=4:35
|title20=Confessions
|note20=demo
|length20=5:20
|title21=Prove My Love
|note21=demo
|length21=2:50
|title22=Special
|note22=live at Beneath-It-All Café, Milwaukee, WI - 9/12/1981
|length22=4:27
|title23= Country Death Song
|note23=live at Beneath-It-All Café, Milwaukee, WI - 9/12/1981
|length23=5:25
|title24= To the Kill
|note24=live at Beneath-It-All Café, Milwaukee, WI - 9/12/1981
|length24=4:19
|title25= Never Tell
|note25=live at Beneath-It-All Café, Milwaukee, WI - 9/12/1981
|length25=7:17
|title26= Break Song
|note26=live at The Jazz Gallery, Milwaukee, WI - 12/8/1981
|length26=0:41
|title27=Her Television
|note27=live at The Jazz Gallery, Milwaukee, WI - 12/8/1981
|length27=2:28
|title28= How Do You Say Goodbye
|note28=live at The Jazz Gallery, Milwaukee, WI - 12/8/1981
|length28=2:43
|title29= Theme and Variations
|note29=live at The Jazz Gallery, Milwaukee, WI - 12/8/1981
|length29=0:54
|title30= Prove My Love
|note30=live at Folk City, New York, NY - 1/26/1983
|length30=3:19
|title31= Gone Daddy Gone
|note31=live at Folk City, New York, NY - 1/26/1983
|writer31=Gano, Dixon
|length31=3:32
|title32= Promise
|note32=live at Folk City, New York, NY - 1/26/1983
|length32=3:09
|title33= In Style
|note33=live at Folk City, New York, NY - 1/26/1983
|length33=3:43
|title34= Add It Up
|note34=live at Folk City, New York, NY - 1/26/1983
|length34=6:15
}}
 
==Personnel==
;Violent Femmes
*[[Victor DeLorenzo]]&nbsp;– [[snare drum]], tranceaphone, [[drum kit|drum set]], scotch marching bass drum, [[backing vocals]]
*[[Gordon Gano]]&nbsp;– [[acoustic guitar|acoustic]] and [[electric guitar]]s, [[violin]], [[lead vocals]]
*[[Brian Ritchie]]&nbsp;– [[acoustic bass guitar|acoustic]] and [[electric bass guitar]]s, [[xylophone]], backing vocals
 
;Additional personnel
*Mark Van Hecke&nbsp;– [[Record producer|production]], [[piano]] on "Good Feeling"
 
==Charts==
{| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders"
'''Album'''
|+Chart performance for ''Violent Femmes''
{| class="wikitable" border="1" cellspacing="2" cellpadding="2"
!Chart (1983–1986)
!align="left"|Year
!Peak<br />position
!align="left"|Chart
!align="left"|Position
|-
!scope="row"|Australian Albums ([[Kent Music Report]])<ref name=aus>{{cite book|last=Kent|first=David|author-link=David Kent (historian)|title=Australian Chart Book 1970–1992|edition=illustrated|publisher=Australian Chart Book|___location=St Ives, N.S.W.|year=1993|isbn=0-646-11917-6|page=330}}</ref>
|align="left"|1983
| style="text-align:center;"|34
|align="left"|The [[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]] 200
|align="left"|171
|-
!scope="row"|US [[Billboard 200|''Billboard'' 200]]<ref>Whitburn, Joel; ''Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Albums'', 1955–1996; p. 819. {{ISBN|0-89820-117-9}}</ref>
|}
| style="text-align:center;"|171
'''Single'''
{| class="wikitable" border="1" cellspacing="2" cellpadding="2"
!align="left"|Year
!align="left"|Single
!align="left"|Chart
!align="left"|Position
|-
!Chart (1991)
|align="left"|1983
!Peak<br />position
|align="left"|"Blister in the Sun"
|align="left"|Mainstream Rock
|align="left"|26
|-
{{album chart|Australia|31|artist=Violent Femmes|album=Violent Femmes|rowheader=true|access-date=October 27, 2022}}
|-
!Chart (2024)
!Peak<br />position
|-
! scope="row"| Greek Albums ([[IFPI Greece|IFPI]])<ref>{{cite web |title=Official IFPI Charts – Top-75 Albums Sales Chart (Week: 2/2024) |url=http://www.ifpi.gr/charts_en.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240117204823/https://www.ifpi.gr/charts_el.html |archive-date=January 17, 2024 |access-date=January 17, 2024 |publisher=[[IFPI Greece]]}}</ref>
| style="text-align:center;"| 55
|}
 
==Certifications==
{{certification Table Top|caption=Certifications for ''Violent Femmes''}}
{| class="wikitable" border="1" cellspacing="2" cellpadding="2"
{{certification Table Entry|type=album|region=Australia|award=Platinum|number=2|certyear=1992|source=book|id=295}}
!align="left"|Organization
{{certification Table Entry|type=album|region=United States|artist=Violent Femmes|title=Violent Femmes|award=Platinum|certyear=1991}}
!align="left"|Level
{{Certification Table Bottom|format=3col|nosales=yes=}}
!align="left"|Date
 
|-
==References==
|align="left"|RIAA – USA
{{Reflist|30em}}
|align="left"|Gold
 
|align="left"|[[December 8]] [[1987]]
==External links==
|-
<!-- This is a licensed stream for the album, which is allowed under Wikipedia polices -->
|align="left"|RIAA – USA
*[https://archive.today/20130416111926/http://www.radio3net.ro/dbartists/supersearch/VmlvbGVudCBGZW1tZXM=/Violent%20Femmes ''Violent Femmes''] ([[Adobe Flash]]) at [[Radio3Net]] (streamed copy where licensed)
|align="left"|Platinum
 
|align="left"|[[February 1]] [[1991]]
{{VFemmes}}
|-|}
 
{{Authority control}}
[[Category:Violent Femmes albums|Violent Femmes (album)]]
[[Category:1982 albums|Violent Femmes (album)]]
[[Category:Debut albums|Violent Femmes (album)]]
 
[[sv{{DEFAULTSORT:The Violent Femmes (musikalbumAlbum)]]}}
[[Category:Violent Femmes albums]]
[[Category:Slash Records albums]]
[[Category:1983 debut albums]]
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Violent_Femmes_(album)"