Meet the Smithereens!

Performer: The Smithereens
Engineer: Kurt Reil
Producer: Dennis Diken; Jim Babjak; Kurt Reil; Pat DiNizio
Distributor: E1 Distribution (USA)

Notes: Personnel: Jim Babjak, Pat DiNizio (vocals, guitar); Dennis Diken (vocals, drums, percussion); John Hawken (piano); Dave Amels (organ); Kristin Reil (percussion); Kurt Reil (background vocals). Audio Mixer: Kurt Reil. Recording information: The House of Vibes, Highland Park, NJ. Authors: Dennis Diken; Dennis Mitchell ; Lenny Kay; Andy Babluk; Bruce Spizer. Have you met the Beatles? They had some hits back in the 1960s. On this 2007 release, mondo Beatle fans the Smithereens--who themselves had some chart action in the '80s--have reverently recreated the mop-tops' breakthrough 1964 album, breathing new life into the 12 classic gems that changed pop music forever. Although the arrangements never stray far from the originals, Pat Danizio and company infuse each track with their characteristic full-bodied sound, making "I Want to Hold Your Hand," "I Saw Her Standing There," and even ballads liked "This Boy" sound a little richer and a little more rocking. As a bonus, Lenny Kaye, promoter Sid Bernstein, and several other Beatle scholars provide educational and entertaining liner notes.

Rolling Stone (p.76) - 3 stars out of 5 -- "[A] fun tribute to the Beatles' American debut....They add some deadpan vocals and a bit of extra guitar crunch." Uncut (p.95) - 3 stars out of 5 -- "[S]turdy, infectious, seemingly effortless exercises in nostalgia." Mojo (Publisher) (p.114) - 3 stars out of 5 -- "'I Saw Her Standing There' is injected with a rollercoaster oomph that pulls you along in its wake."

The Smithereens filtered their '60s British Invasion pop/rock roots through an '80s alt-rock sensibility. Pat DiNizio's deep, moody vocals and Jim Babjak's thick, heavy guitar riffs added darkness and modernity to the classic pop structures of the group's songs. They broke big in the mid-'80s, and kept on chugging for quite a while, but, by the end of the '90s, DiNizio shifted his focus elsewhere, working as a solo act and running for political office in New Jersey. The outfit reunited in the late-'00s.

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