WARREN ZEVON
''MR. BAD EXAMPLE''
OCT 1991
GIANT
40:15
1/Finishing Touches
Warren Zevon/4:06
2/Suzie Lightning
Warren Zevon/4:03
3/Model Citizen
LeRoy Marinell / Waddy Wachtel / Warren Zevon/4:39
4/Angel Dressed in Black
Waddy Wachtel / Warren Zevon/4:24
5/Mr. Bad Example
Jorge Calderón / Warren Zevon/3:21
6/Renegade
Warren Zevon/4:50
7/Heartache Spoken Here (Feat. Dwight Yoakam)
Warren Zevon/3:48
8/Quite Ugly One Morning
Warren Zevon/3:53
9/Things to Do in Denver When You're Dead
LeRoy Marinell / Waddy Wachtel / Warren Zevon/2:52
10/Searching for a Heart
Warren Zevon/4:16
Jorge Calderón /Bass, Vocal Harmony
Dan Dugmore /Guitar, Pedal Steel
Bob Glaub /Bass
Jim Keltner /Drums
Tito Larriva /Vocal Harmony
Kipp Lennon /Vocal Harmony
Mark Lennon /Vocal Harmony
Michael Lennon /Vocal Harmony
David Lindley /Cumbus, Fiddle, Guest Artist, Lap Steel Guitar, Saz
Jeff Porcaro /Drums
Waddy Wachtel /Guitar, Producer, Vocal Harmony
Dwight Yoakam /Guest Artist, Vocal Harmony
Jordan Zevon /Guest Artist, Vocal Harmony
Warren Zevon /Guitar, Harmony, Keyboards, Soloist, Vocals
REVIEW
by Mark Deming
After two albums that placed Warren Zevon in unexpected surroundings -- 1987's scrappy Sentimental Hygiene, which employed R.E.M. as Zevon's house band, and 1989's Transverse City, an elaborate and epic-scale depiction of a world in collapse -- 1991's Mr. Bad Example seemed like a return to familiar ground, at least at first glance. Frequent guitar foil Waddy Wachtel produced the sessions, and a number of other friends and collaborators from his salad days also popped up, including David Lindley, Jorge Calderon, Jim Keltner, and Jeff Porcaro. But if Mr. Bad Example was leaner, breezier, and more concise than the two discs that preceded it, it also carried an air of Zevon battling against the sound and style fans expected of him, and reflected the mind of an artist who had learned to pursue his own vision no matter what others expected of him. "Finishing Touches" is as bitter a kiss-off to a former lover as anyone has committed to plastic, "Model Citizen" is hardly more charitable in its depiction of an unfortunately average guy ("It's the white man's burden/And it weighs a ton"), and "Susie Lightning" and "Angel Dressed in Black" are witty but mordant commentaries on love in the '90s. However, that's not to say that Zevon is without a sense of humor; the title cut is a hilarious shaggy dog tale of one man's love affair with global irresponsibility, and "Things to Do in Denver When You're Dead" is worthy of its title. And while the final cut is called "Searching for a Heart," the song confirms Zevon had one that was battered but still functioning when he recorded this album. Mr. Bad Example doesn't make an immediate connection like some of Warren Zevon's best work, but the songs are well-crafted and it grows with repeated listening.
BIOGRAPHY
By Jason Ankeny
One of the most acute and savagely satiric songwriters of his era, Warren Zevon was born in Chicago on January 24, 1947. His formative years were as colorful as the scenarios played out in his music: his father was a professional gambler, a lifestyle which forced the family to move frequently, and Zevon spent most of his formative years in California and Arizona. He learned to play piano, focusing primarily on classical material before a disintegrating home life led him into pop music, as well as a few run-ins with the law; after his parents divorced when he was 16 years old, Zevon hopped into the Corvette his father won in a card game and headed for New York to become a folk singer. His music found little response, however, and he returned to California, eventually releasing his first recordings as part of the duo Lyme & Cybelle. Session work followed before Zevon issued his solo debut Wanted Dead or Alive in 1969; the LP received a poor reception, and so he returned to session work and composed advertising jingles, and also served as the Everly Brothers' pianist before the duo's breakup. Following a 1974 sabbatical to Spain, Zevon returned to Los Angeles, where his longtime friend Jackson Browne had secured him a recording deal; with Browne in the producer's seat, Zevon cut a self-titled offering which was met with lavish critical praise upon its 1976 release. His 1978 follow-up Excitable Boy established him as a wholly unique talent, and earned a sizable hit with its wry single "Werewolves of London."
However, Zevon had fallen prey to alcoholism, and his personal demons sidelined him for the next two years; 1980s Bad Luck Streak in Dancing School and 1981's live set Stand in the Fire marked his gradual return to form, and the promise of his early work was restored on 1982's brilliant release The Envoy. The album fared miserably on the charts, however, and Zevon again fell off the wagon. A long period of therapy and counseling followed before, newly sober and revitalized, he issued Sentimental Hygiene in 1987, recorded with backing assistance from members of R.E.M. (In 1990, another collection of material from the sessions featuring Zevon and R.E.M.'s Peter Buck, Mike Mills and Bill Berry was released under the name Hindu Love Gods.) He continued his comeback in 1989 with Transverse City, a concept record inspired by science fiction's cyberpunk movement, and 1991's Mr. Bad Example. In 1993, Zevon issued his second live album, Learning to Flinch, followed in 1995 by Mutineer. His next studio effort, Life'll Kill Ya, did not appear until early 2000. It was a moderate success, enough to inspire him to step back into the studio after touring the U.S.. My Ride's Here, which featured a guest appearance from David Letterman of all people, was released in the spring of 2002. Several months later, Zevon was diagnosed with mesothelioma, an inoperable form of lung cancer, and doctors expected him to live no more than a few months. Zevon decided to work on a final album, with the help of a handful of celebrity friends and collaborators; The Wind was released in August of 2003, nearly a year to the day after Zevon learned of his condition, and he lived long enough to see its release, as well as the birth of his first grandchildren.
''MR. BAD EXAMPLE''
OCT 1991
GIANT
40:15
1/Finishing Touches
Warren Zevon/4:06
2/Suzie Lightning
Warren Zevon/4:03
3/Model Citizen
LeRoy Marinell / Waddy Wachtel / Warren Zevon/4:39
4/Angel Dressed in Black
Waddy Wachtel / Warren Zevon/4:24
5/Mr. Bad Example
Jorge Calderón / Warren Zevon/3:21
6/Renegade
Warren Zevon/4:50
7/Heartache Spoken Here (Feat. Dwight Yoakam)
Warren Zevon/3:48
8/Quite Ugly One Morning
Warren Zevon/3:53
9/Things to Do in Denver When You're Dead
LeRoy Marinell / Waddy Wachtel / Warren Zevon/2:52
10/Searching for a Heart
Warren Zevon/4:16
Jorge Calderón /Bass, Vocal Harmony
Dan Dugmore /Guitar, Pedal Steel
Bob Glaub /Bass
Jim Keltner /Drums
Tito Larriva /Vocal Harmony
Kipp Lennon /Vocal Harmony
Mark Lennon /Vocal Harmony
Michael Lennon /Vocal Harmony
David Lindley /Cumbus, Fiddle, Guest Artist, Lap Steel Guitar, Saz
Jeff Porcaro /Drums
Waddy Wachtel /Guitar, Producer, Vocal Harmony
Dwight Yoakam /Guest Artist, Vocal Harmony
Jordan Zevon /Guest Artist, Vocal Harmony
Warren Zevon /Guitar, Harmony, Keyboards, Soloist, Vocals
REVIEW
by Mark Deming
After two albums that placed Warren Zevon in unexpected surroundings -- 1987's scrappy Sentimental Hygiene, which employed R.E.M. as Zevon's house band, and 1989's Transverse City, an elaborate and epic-scale depiction of a world in collapse -- 1991's Mr. Bad Example seemed like a return to familiar ground, at least at first glance. Frequent guitar foil Waddy Wachtel produced the sessions, and a number of other friends and collaborators from his salad days also popped up, including David Lindley, Jorge Calderon, Jim Keltner, and Jeff Porcaro. But if Mr. Bad Example was leaner, breezier, and more concise than the two discs that preceded it, it also carried an air of Zevon battling against the sound and style fans expected of him, and reflected the mind of an artist who had learned to pursue his own vision no matter what others expected of him. "Finishing Touches" is as bitter a kiss-off to a former lover as anyone has committed to plastic, "Model Citizen" is hardly more charitable in its depiction of an unfortunately average guy ("It's the white man's burden/And it weighs a ton"), and "Susie Lightning" and "Angel Dressed in Black" are witty but mordant commentaries on love in the '90s. However, that's not to say that Zevon is without a sense of humor; the title cut is a hilarious shaggy dog tale of one man's love affair with global irresponsibility, and "Things to Do in Denver When You're Dead" is worthy of its title. And while the final cut is called "Searching for a Heart," the song confirms Zevon had one that was battered but still functioning when he recorded this album. Mr. Bad Example doesn't make an immediate connection like some of Warren Zevon's best work, but the songs are well-crafted and it grows with repeated listening.
BIOGRAPHY
By Jason Ankeny
One of the most acute and savagely satiric songwriters of his era, Warren Zevon was born in Chicago on January 24, 1947. His formative years were as colorful as the scenarios played out in his music: his father was a professional gambler, a lifestyle which forced the family to move frequently, and Zevon spent most of his formative years in California and Arizona. He learned to play piano, focusing primarily on classical material before a disintegrating home life led him into pop music, as well as a few run-ins with the law; after his parents divorced when he was 16 years old, Zevon hopped into the Corvette his father won in a card game and headed for New York to become a folk singer. His music found little response, however, and he returned to California, eventually releasing his first recordings as part of the duo Lyme & Cybelle. Session work followed before Zevon issued his solo debut Wanted Dead or Alive in 1969; the LP received a poor reception, and so he returned to session work and composed advertising jingles, and also served as the Everly Brothers' pianist before the duo's breakup. Following a 1974 sabbatical to Spain, Zevon returned to Los Angeles, where his longtime friend Jackson Browne had secured him a recording deal; with Browne in the producer's seat, Zevon cut a self-titled offering which was met with lavish critical praise upon its 1976 release. His 1978 follow-up Excitable Boy established him as a wholly unique talent, and earned a sizable hit with its wry single "Werewolves of London."
However, Zevon had fallen prey to alcoholism, and his personal demons sidelined him for the next two years; 1980s Bad Luck Streak in Dancing School and 1981's live set Stand in the Fire marked his gradual return to form, and the promise of his early work was restored on 1982's brilliant release The Envoy. The album fared miserably on the charts, however, and Zevon again fell off the wagon. A long period of therapy and counseling followed before, newly sober and revitalized, he issued Sentimental Hygiene in 1987, recorded with backing assistance from members of R.E.M. (In 1990, another collection of material from the sessions featuring Zevon and R.E.M.'s Peter Buck, Mike Mills and Bill Berry was released under the name Hindu Love Gods.) He continued his comeback in 1989 with Transverse City, a concept record inspired by science fiction's cyberpunk movement, and 1991's Mr. Bad Example. In 1993, Zevon issued his second live album, Learning to Flinch, followed in 1995 by Mutineer. His next studio effort, Life'll Kill Ya, did not appear until early 2000. It was a moderate success, enough to inspire him to step back into the studio after touring the U.S.. My Ride's Here, which featured a guest appearance from David Letterman of all people, was released in the spring of 2002. Several months later, Zevon was diagnosed with mesothelioma, an inoperable form of lung cancer, and doctors expected him to live no more than a few months. Zevon decided to work on a final album, with the help of a handful of celebrity friends and collaborators; The Wind was released in August of 2003, nearly a year to the day after Zevon learned of his condition, and he lived long enough to see its release, as well as the birth of his first grandchildren.
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