Good is the first album by the Boston-based alternative rock trio Morphine.[1][2] It was released in 1992 on the Accurate/Distortion label.[3] It was reissued by Rykodisc in 1993[4] after the band signed with the label.[5]

Good
Studio album by
ReleasedSeptember 8, 1992
Recorded1991–1992
Studio
GenreAlternative rock
Length37:53
LabelAccurate/Distortion
Rykodisc
Producer
Morphine chronology
Good
(1992)
Cure for Pain
(1993)

Critical reception edit

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic     [6]
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music     [3]
MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide     [7]
(The New) Rolling Stone Album Guide     [8]

Trouser Press wrote that the album "establishes the goods, excavating a slippery, sultry groove that suggests blues and bebop without becoming either by providing ample room in the spacious mix for two evocative voices."[9] AllMusic wrote, "While it may not be as stellar as their future releases would be ... Good did a splendid job of introducing the Boston trio's highly original sound. While it was the alternative crowd who immediately latched onto Morphine, their music was geared more toward the jazz scene – a wailing saxophone, lead bass (played with a slide), and lyrics influenced by '50s beat poetry were all-important ingredients."[6]

Track listing edit

All tracks are written by Mark Sandman, except as noted

No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Good" 2:36
2."The Saddest Song" 2:50
3."Claire" 3:07
4."Have a Lucky Day" 3:24
5."You Speak My Language" 3:25
6."You Look Like Rain" 3:42
7."Do Not Go Quietly Unto Your Grave" 3:21
8."Lisa"Dana Colley0:43
9."The Only One" 2:42
10."Test-Tube Baby/Shoot'm Down" 3:11
11."The Other Side"Sandman, Colley3:50
12."I Know You (Part I)" 2:17
13."I Know You (Part II)" 2:45
Japanese edition bonus track
No.TitleLength
9."Shame" (between "Lisa" and "The Only One")2:44

2020 vinyl expanded edition edit

On September 9, 2019, the Run Out Groove label announced that Good had been voted as their next vinyl rerelease and would include a bonus record of unreleased tracks remastered from the original source tapes. It was released on January 17, 2020.[10]

  • side one (1-6) and two (7-13) as per original album
Side three
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Where's the Sun Go" 1:37
2."Shame" 2:43
3."The Only One" (live radio broadcast) 3:10
4."If You Live"Mose Allison3:54
5."Mom Bomb" 1:01
6."The Old Days (It's Not Like That Anymore)" 4:38
Side four
No.TitleLength
7."Let's Dance" (Mark voice message)
"Come Over" (early version)
0:17
2:13
8."The Saddest Song" (alternate version)4:03
9."Mona's Sister" (alternate version; with Treat Her Right)3:27
10."You're Worse — Looking Good" (edited rehearsal recording)2:18
11."Test-Tube Baby/Shoot'm Down" (longer alternate version)4:36
12."Yes idea"
"Morphine gig ad" (Mark voice message)
1:13
0:29
Notes
  • All tracks on side three and four were recorded between 1989 and 1991. All tracks, except "Shame" and "Mona's Sister", are previously unreleased.[11] "Shame" was released in 1993 as a B-side to the "Cure for Pain" single,[9] and "Mona's Sister" was included on the 2004 box set Sandbox: The Mark Sandman Box Set.[11]

Personnel edit

Adapted from the album's liner notes.[12]

Morphine
  • Mark Sandman – vocals, 2-string slide bass, organ, guitar, tritar
  • Dana Colley – baritone saxophone, tenor saxophone, double saxophone, triangle, backing vocals on "You Look Like Rain"
  • Jerome Deupree – drums
Additional musicians
  • Billy Conway – drums on "You Speak My Language" and "You Look Like Rain"
  • Jim Fitting – bass harmonica on "I Know You (Part I)"
Technical
  • Mark Sandman – producer
  • Paul Q. Kolderie – co-producer, engineer (1, 2, 4, 5, 7, 9, 10, 13)
  • Tom Dubé – co-producer, engineer (3, 8, 11, 12)
  • Mike Dineen – mixing (9)
  • Toby Mountain – mastering
  • Eric Pfeiffer - artwork
Notes
  • Tracks 1, 2, 4, 5, 7, 9, 10 and 13 recorded at The Outpost.
  • Tracks 3, 8, 11 and 12 recorded at Q Division and Fort Apache
  • Track 6 recorded at High-N-Dry.

References edit

  1. ^ "Morphine | Biography & History". AllMusic.
  2. ^ Buckley, Peter (November 26, 2003). The Rough Guide to Rock. Rough Guides. ISBN 9781843531050 – via Google Books.
  3. ^ a b Larkin, Colin (2006). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Vol. 5. MUZE. p. 903.
  4. ^ Gagnon, Tim (September 14, 2018). "Remembering Morphine's 'Cure For Pain,' The Record That Solidified Boston's Nocturnal Sound". WBUR. Retrieved 22 November 2022.
  5. ^ "Dreamworks' Morphine Serves Up A Shot Of Noir". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. February 8, 1997 – via Google Books.
  6. ^ a b Prato, Greg. Good at AllMusic. Retrieved September 26, 2011.
  7. ^ MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide. Visible Ink Press. 1999. p. 780.
  8. ^ Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian David (November 26, 2004). (The New) Rolling Stone Album Guide. Simon and Schuster. ISBN 9780743201698 – via Google Books.
  9. ^ a b "Morphine". Trouser Press. Retrieved 26 November 2020.
  10. ^ "Good [Expanded Edition]". AllMusic. Retrieved 23 November 2022.
  11. ^ a b Good (CD liner notes). Morphine. Run Out Groove. 2020. ROGV-083.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  12. ^ Good (CD liner notes). Morphine. Accurate Distortion. 1992. AD-1001.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)