Song#: 2740
Date: 05/31/1986
Debut: 96
Peak: 87
Weeks: 4
Genre: Rock
Pop Bits: This four-man Boston-based band was headed up by brothers Dan and Warren Zanes. Dan initially began the band in 1980 with Tom Lloyd. Their brand of barroom rock gained enough fans in the Boston/New England area that the famous punk/garage rock label Slash came calling. The band was signed and in 1984 they released a debut album titled The Longest Day. The album was critically lauded and it even got them named the best new band of the year by Rolling Stone. Yet the good press didn't translate into sales and the album failed to chart. Undeterred, the band moved forward and recorded their second album, Boston, Mass. The album's first single, "Don't Run Wild," was able to get on the Rock chart briefly at #46. That attention helped this second single do a bit better. It got to #33 at Rock while crossing over to the Pop chart for a short month. The album charted at a minor #134, but it was an improvement over their debut. A third album, Stand Up, failed to capitalize on the momentum they had gained and when the dust settled Warren left the band and their Slash record deal ended. Dan and Tom moved ahead with two new band members and recorded the LP Smoking in the Fields for RCA, but it didn't do any better than their previous albums. The band then decided to break up and go their own ways.
ReduxReview: This song has a feel similar to material done by another Boston outfit, the J. Geils Band. Put Peter Wolf's voice on this and it would fit right into their catalog. The Del Fuegos were a terrific band but they were also one where it was hard to capture the energy from their live shows on to an album. They needed a standout track to get over the hump, but just didn't seem to have the right one. This song was one of their more sedate, pop-oriented efforts, but it still wasn't one that was going to catch on in a major way. It just seemed they couldn't find the right way to bridge their pub/garage sound with commercial rock and it finally got the best of them.
ReduxRating: 6/10
Trivia: Double Shot! 1) Dan Zanes would continue to work in music and in 1995 he was able to record a solo album titled Cool Down Time. The LP came and went, but it wasn't long before Zanes would find success in a different musical genre. After a move to NYC, Zanes began taking his young daughter to local playgrounds where he met other parents who were musicians. They began to jam together and play old folk/popular songs including some that entertained the kids. Tapes of their performances circulated around and soon Zanes decided he'd record a formal album of songs for families to enjoy. He began recording tunes and along the way asked for help from some of his musician friends such as Sheryl Crow and Suzanne Vega. In 2000, he released his first children's LP titled Rocket Ship Beach. The album was credited to Dan Zanes & Friends. It became quite popular and the following year he put out a follow-up. And then another. And another. Between 2000 and 2017, Zanes pushed out fourteen children's albums. His 2003 effort, House Party, would be nominated for a Grammy for Best Musical Album for Children. Then his 2006 LP Catch That Train! would win him the Grammy. Zanes' albums have featured many "friends" along the way including Rosanne Cash, Sandra Bernhardt, Aimee Mann, Lou Reed, Dar Williams, Deborah Harry, and many other. 2) In 1985, the Miller Brewing Co. was looking for a band to be in one of their commercials for their "made the American way" campaign. The Del Fuegos fit the bill and they appeared in an ad for Miller Beer. During one part of the commercial, the band's name is flashed on the screen followed by "Boston, Mass." Because of that, the band then decided to call their second album Boston, Mass. since it seemed like a logical way to tie the album into the exposure they got from the commercial.
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