"I'm in love, what's that song?"

Debuting a playlist of my Top 25 Replacements songs

We’ve got more Replacements content. To go with my review of Bob Mehr’s Trouble Boys, I’ve put together a playlist of my Top 25 Replacements songs.

“Alex Chilton” was always going to be my pick for my favorite Replacements song. There’s so much I love about this, especially as an avowed lover of Big Star. The lyrics, the notion of “children by the millions scream[ing] for Alex Chilton" the great piece of advice to “never travel far without a little Big Star.” While the sheen of the major label production is apparent on this track, it still has those powerful guitars and a neat solo as well as the handclaps in the chorus. If you’ve ever loved a piece of music (which… if you’re reading this, you must), you have to understand in a deep way the line “I’m in love, what’s that song? Yes I’m in love with that song.”

Moving on from there, you get some of what made the Replacements so distinctive in the extended metaphor and melody of “Swingin Party” and the drinker’s lament in “Here Comes a Regular.” Those are definitely songs that I had to be a little older and lived a little more to really appreciate. The same goes for songs like “Androgynous” (which is really an amazing song when you listen to the lyrics, with a message that we honestly need more than ever now) and “Within Your Reach” and “Answering Machine.” While the raucous-ness of the Replacements is a part of what makes them distinctive, tracks like those I’ve just mentioned are what make them different. It makes so much sense that Chilton and Big Star were a kind of musical North Star to Westerberg.

When it comes to distilling the Replacements down to their essentials, I think about the “I Will Dare”/”Bastards of Young” combination. You have this almost pop sensibility of “Dare” and then this chaotic, shambolic mess (that’s also catchy as hell” of “Bastards.” I think I would point to those two songs as getting to the heart of the Replacements experience. It’s amazing the range of songs you have in this band’s oeuvre—the same group that produces “Color Me Impressed” or “Hold My Life” can get as beautiful as “Skyway” or anthemic as “Can’t Hardly Wait.”

Right now, I’ve been interesting with the. beginning and end of the Replacements experience. Prompted by reading Trouble Boys, I’ve gone back and spent a little more time with Sorry Ma, Forgot to Take Out the Trash, especially a song like “Johnny’s Gonna Die” that stands out on a album by and large made up of frenetic punk rock. Meanwhile, the Dead Man’s Pop reissue of Don’t Tell A Soul has me going back to that album. “Achin’ to Be” is really an incredible track that’s overshadowed by the other songs in the Replacements repertoire. “Portland” and “Talent Show” are great tracks from that era too, but “Achin’ to Be” is such a knockout.

The Dead Man’s Pop reissue of Don’t Tell A Soul and then the Let It Bleed reissue of Tim have opened those albums up, giving them a much better and more enjoyable sound. Thus, I’[ve ben listening to those albums quite a bit too.

Take a listen to my playlist and let me know what songs I’ve got too high, what ones are too low, and what songs I left off that should really be on there.