Nico [PA]

Performer: Blind Melon
Distributor: EMI Music Distribution

Notes: NICO is an Enhanced CD companion to the home video LETTERS FROM A PORCUPINE, and is playable on either a CD-ROM drive or a standard CD player. A portion of the proceeds from both NICO and LETTERS FROM A PORCUPINE go to benefit MAP (the Musicians Assistance Program). Blind Melon: Shannon Hoon (vocals, acoustic guitar); Christopher Thorn (acoustic & lap steel guitars, guitar, banjo, Mellotron, bell, tambourine); Rogers Stevens (acoustic & electric guitars, Hammond B-3 organ, congas, shakers, background vocals); Brad Smith (flute, acoustic bass, bass, dumbek, congas); Glen Graham (Mellotron, drums, hi-hat, congas, dumbek, percussion). Producers include: Blind Melon, Mike Napolitano, Mike Kelsey, Andy Wallace. Engineers include: Blind Melon, John Burton. This is an Enhanced CD, which contains both regular audio tracks and multimedia computer files. Personnel: Shannon Hoon (vocals, acoustic guitar); Terry Stevens (guitar, acoustic guitar, electric guitar, congas, shaker); Rogers Stevens (guitar, acoustic guitar, electric guitar, congas); Christopher Thorn (guitar, acoustic guitar, lap steel guitar, banjo, Mellotron, tambourine, bells); Michael Tackett, Miles Om Tackett (cello); Brad Smith (flute, double bass, congas, dumbek, background vocals); Danny Clinch (harmonica); Stephen Moses (trombone); Glenn Graham (Mellotron, drums, congas, hi-hat, dumbek, percussion). Audio Mixers: Mike Napolitano; Andy Wallace; Blind Melon. Recording information: Bad Animals, Seattle, WA (??/??/1991-03/07/1995); Bullet Sound Studio, The Netherlands (??/??/1991-03/07/1995); Christopher's Home Studio (??/??/1991-03/07/1995); Kelsey's Playground (??/??/1991-03/07/1995); Kingsway Studio, New Orleans, LA (??/??/1991-03/07/1995); Lafayette, IN (??/??/1991-03/07/1995); Mammoth Mountain, CA (??/??/1991-03/07/1995); River Sound Studios, New York, NY (??/??/1991-03/07/1995); Riversound Studio, New York, NY (??/??/1991-03/07/1995). Photographer: Danny Clinch. Unknown Contributor Roles: Liz Heller; Chris Jones ; Brad Smith . Named for the late Shannon Hoon's infant daughter, NICO is a collection of outtakes, previously-unreleased originals and a pair of covers. Blind Melon was regularly pegged as a happy-go-lucky, hippie throwback act, but this collection exposes a band that bristled with creativity. Among the discoveries here that show Blind Melon to be more than a back-up band for the Bee Girl are "Glitch," a hypnotic percussive song that evokes the Master Musicians Of Jajouka. Blind Melon's creative spark was surely a restless one. "Letters From A Porcupine" is a musical message left by singer Hoon on guitarist Christopher Thorn's answering machine. An impromptu session in Hoon's hotel room toward the end of a 19-month tour produced "Life Ain't So Shitty." The band's version of John Lennon's protest song "John Sinclair" shows off a major influence; a Steppenwolf cover ("The Pusher") provides some eerie foreshadowing.

Benefiting from the early-1990s grunge Zeitgeist without directly participating in it, Blind Melon explored the edges of classic guitar rock, with added touches of homespun folk and white funk. Their biggest hit was the gentle rocker "No Rain," whose sunny melody and uplifting video (featuring the "Bee Girl") belied its downcast lyrics. The song boosted the album to lofty chart heights, and the band enjoyed rock-star status for a brief time, until lead singer Shannon Hoon's drug-related death in 1995. Blind Melon reunited in 2006 with new singer Travis Warren.

Click Here for Shipping Options and Policies

Shipping or Dimension weight in pounds: 0.25