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Turn Up The Suck - Live Board Tapes 1990​-​1995

by Willie Wisely

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jennytheshipper
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jennytheshipper I went to a number of the shows on this album. I love WW3. Still not over Willie cutting his hair, tbh.
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1.
Good morning little school girl Good morning little school girl Can I go home Can I go home with you Don’t want to hurt your feelings I once was a school boy too Sometimes I don’t know what Time’s I don’t know what Woman what in this world Woman what in this world’s with you Don’t want to hurt my feelings Either get mad with you Oh, who’s that coming Who’s that coming She’d all dressed up and pretty She’d all dressed up and pretty, oh yeah Oh who’s that my baby Just as soon see her dead Going to buy me an airplane Going to buy me an airplane Going to fly all over shitty Going to fly all over shitty part of town Don’t want to hurt my baby Ain’t going to let my airplane down Good morning little school girl Good morning little school girl Can I go home Can I go home with you Don’t want to hurt your feelings I once was a school boy too
2.
Good morning little school girl Good morning little school girl Can I go home Can I go home with you Don’t want to hurt your feelings I once was a school boy too Sometimes I don’t know what Time’s I don’t know what Woman what in this world Woman what in this world’s with you Don’t want to hurt my feelings Either get mad with you Oh, who’s that coming Who’s that coming She’d all dressed up and pretty She’d all dressed up and pretty, oh yeah Oh who’s that my baby Just as soon see her dead Going to buy me an airplane Going to buy me an airplane Going to fly all over shitty Going to fly all over shitty part of town Don’t want to hurt my baby Ain’t going to let my airplane down Good morning little school girl Good morning little school girl Can I go home Can I go home with you Don’t want to hurt your feelings I once was a school boy too
3.
Give me a slow burn I’ll sing a torching tune Give me a slow burn Oh I’ll sock it to you good Not too hard or too soft Just as steady ahead as she goes (steady as she goes) So give me a slow burn And don’t turn up your nose Turn up your nose Turn up your nose Give me a dew drop Oh, I’ll suck the fuck off your ear Give me a wet spot Oh I’ll gladly tighten my rear Not too much just enough Just as long as I lay in repose (I curl my toes) Give me a slow burn And don’t turn up your nose Turn up your nose Turn up your nose Give me a rug burn Oh you’re so damn hard on the knees Let’s move to the sofa I’ll be much more eager to please Not too far or too near Just as long as our lips can compose So give me a slow burn And don’t turn up your nose (don’t) Turn up your nose Turn up your nose Turn up your nose Yeah, turn up your nose Turn up your nose Your panty hose Tear off your clothes Tear off your clothes (Tear off your clothes) Tear off your monster (Tear off your clothes) Take out your monster Tear off your clothes Knock on the window Knock on the door Holy bejesus can’t stand it no more Rip them off
4.
You and I We held our codes Long before toting heavenly loads Let’s go home right now Let’s go home and tell the story I’m going to put on my robe in glory (on this robe in glory) Let’s go home to tell… (let’s go home) I will put on this robe in glory (on this robe in glory) Let’s go home to tell the story (let’s go home) You and I We stole the show Long before toting heavenly loads Let’s go home right now Let’s go home and tell the story I’m going to put on my robe in glory (on this robe in glory) Let’s go home to tell… (let’s go home) I will put on this robe in glory (on this robe in glory) Let’s go home to tell the story (let’s go home) Well I’ve been coming over hills and mountains I will drink from that Christian fountain And you know all of God’s sons and daughters that morning Will drink that old healing water I’m going to put on my robe in glory Let’s go home to tell… (let’s go home) I will put on this robe in glory (on this robe in glory) Let’s go home to tell tel tell (let’s go home) I’m a going to wear this robe in glory Let’s go home and tell the story
5.
They wouldn’t pay to fix it up Now they’re going to pay, they’ll see it burning down They wouldn’t pay to fix it up Now they’re going to pay, they’ll see it burning down We’re going to take six buckets of kerosene We’re going to burn it down Mr. & Mrs. Jones live upstairs For slightly more than forty years or so Mr. & Mrs. Jones live upstairs For slightly more than forty-four years or so We’re going to take six buckets of kerosene We’re going to burn it down Spill a quart in every room or so Wake up little suzy they ain’t found her yet Spill a quart in every room or so Wake up shit-head put out your cigarette Better listen up now ain’t nobody going to raise a fuss Just help old Joe out on down, out on to the street Yeah, ain’t nobody going to raise a fuss or make a stink Just help old Joe out on to the street We’re going to take six buckets of kerosene We’re going to burn it down Six buckets of kerosene (Six buckets of kerosene) Six buckets of kerosene (Six buckets of kerosene) Six buckets of kerosene (Six buckets of kerosene) Six buckets of kerosene (Six buckets of kerosene) We’re going to take six buckets of shit We’re going to burn it down
6.
Shake shake it here Shake shake it there Shake shake everywhere Mellow down easy Mellow down easy Mellow down easy when all you want to do is blow your top You shuffle shuffle here You shuffling money over there You shiffly shaffly shuffling you dealing drugs everywhere Mellow down easy Mellow down easy Mellow down easy and selling your aspirin all over everywhere Shake shake it there Pepper shake salt pepper over there You drip a little blood and oh you’re off to the races anywhere Mellow down easy Mellow down easy You bet on your horses and you don’t care how much money you lose anywhere Shake shake it here Shake shake it there You spring a lout you sprout a sproke you broke your string everywhere Mellow down easy Mellow down easy Mellow down easy when all you want to do is blow your top
7.
There’ll be some changes made There’ll be some changes made Me and my best friends Are going to see our favorite band The crowd is reeling On down at Union Hall If tonight’s like any other We’ll spare the details from our mother But tonight, maybe tonight A different breeze begs to blow There’ll be some changes made There’ll be some changes made There’ll be some changes made How else am I going to break those chains You’d better get your gears engaged We’ll be dropping from the rafters A real natural disaster We’ll be smashing chairs on tables Trashing anything fell our way If tonight gets kind of crazy I’ll be slipping it to my old lady And I’ll be nose down in the saw dust When the breeze starts to blow There’ll be some changes made There’ll be some changes made There’ll be some changes made How else am I going to break those chains You’d better get your gears engaged There’ll be some changes made There’ll be some changes made There’ll be some changes made How else am I going to break those chains You’d better get your gears engaged There’ll be some changes made There’ll be some changes made I know it may seem strange There’ll be some changes made How else am I going to break those chains You’d better get your ass in gear
8.
Potato chips How my mouth just drips Potato chips How my mouth just drips Crunch, don’t bring lunch All I want is chips Potato chips drip Potato chips drip Drip, drip, drip, drip, don’t bring lunch Just chips It doesn’t matter where I am I’ll always find a bag around In a bar or a picinic Or a baseball ground Potato chips How my mouth just drips Potato chips Drippy… All I want is chips Potato chips The roof of my mouth is slit Potato chips Oh the salt just gets in there, it’s the pits Crunch, crunchdon’t bring lunch All I want is more chips Potato chips In Cananada they got salt and pepper chips Potato chips In Canada they got salt and vinegar chips Potato chips Oh and they smell like All I want is my chips I can’t control myself anywhere Even when there’s no bags around I get desperate, I get antsy Oh and I start seeing them on the ground Potato chips Chips, oh potato chips Potato chips yummy… pooh Crunchy crunchy, don’t bring lunchy All I want is more chips
9.
A vacant lot The tent goes up The poster shouts You saints and you moaners come gather your kindred and go They’re filing in They’re falling out The preacher grins Cecil Biumphrey will lead us to Zion again You go to God You speak in tongues Ya’ll getting real In shanty town You’re lost, you’ve found The gospo feel The organ pumps The thunder thumps Of pending doom Well Sister will sing jubilee if you’re all clapping hands The clouds descend The flaps blow in The preacher grins A stranger appears at the rear and he’s here and he’s gone You go to God You speak in tongues Ya’ll getting real In shanty town You’re lost, you’ve found The gospo feel You go to God You speak in tongues Ya’ll getting real In shanty town You’re lost, you’ve found The gospo feel In shanty town You’re lost, you’ve found The gospo feel In shanty town You’re lost, you’ve found The gospo feel
10.
Clouds so swift the rain falling in Going to see a movie called Gunga Din Pack up your tent get all your bags McGuinn You ain’t going nowhere Oo-wee riding behind Tomorrow’s the day that my bride’s going to come Oo-wee we’re going to fly Down into the easy chair GHenghis Kahn and his brother Don Couldn’t keep on keeping on We’ll climb that bridge after it’s gone After windward passage Oo-wee riding behind Tomorrow’s the day that my bride’s going to come Oo-wee we’re going to fly Down into the easy chair I want a bird that sings and dog that takes wing A horn that toots and a bee that stings A rubber that flies and a bird that cries A dog that snores and some skin with pores Oo-wee riding behind Tomorrow’s the day that my bride’s going to come Oo-wee we’re going to fly Down into the easy chair…
11.
Blue for two big ears Ears big like bells Poor old Theodore Pity my man Ted The kids would hide Sneak up behind him with rulers (Ted you better watch your ass) 'Cause you'll run home with your ears split like cauliflower Blue for two big ears Big ears ears big like bells Poor old Theodore Well pity little Ted Well he asked hi ma, "Please can I grow my hair long?" (Ted you better turn and run) ‘Cause she comes back with a razor, a bowl, and a towel (she’s gonna cut your fucking hair off, run) But then Ted met Michelle She said, "With flaps like that you ought to be a jazz cat." (Better to hear your sharps and flats) Now when Ted blows all them ladies they circle more like crows When he sings gossamers all take wings When he plays their all fighting like blue jays Blues for two big ears Ears big like bells Poor old Theodore Well blow my, my man Ted
12.
I'll get your love I'll take your wheels I'll get m'druthers You've got them legs that kill a man You've got that part in your hair You've got the wind behind you You've got the world in despair You've got the earth between your knees You're hummin' like an old Frigidaire You've got the world bent down behind you You've got the world in despair You've got the bellie that chides You’ve got the earth besides You’ve got that belly full of brew And a pithy disposition, tan me black and blue I'll take your love I'll get my wheels I'll take m'druthers I'll take your love Get m'druthers
13.
Well I don’t feel tomorrow Like I’m feeling today, hey, hey, hey If I do not feel tomorrow Like I’m feeling today, hey, hey, hey I shall pack up my belongings And make my getaway Well I don’t need nothing, no… Just my shoulder and my pack (potato, potato) Well I don’t need nothing, no… Just my shoulder and my pack (potato, potato) Well sometimes all I want is Just to see the preecher ball the jack I’ve got them St. Louie blues Well I’m as blue as I can be Well my woman’s got the heart like a rock Like a rock cast in the sea Well I don’t need nothing Just my bowl and my pipe, hey, hey, hey (potato, potato) Well I don’t need nothing Just my bowl and my pipe, hey, hey, hey (potato, potato) Well sometimes all I need is just King Cole And his old fiddle fife I got them St. Louie blues Well I’m as blue as I can be Well my woman’s got the heart like a rock Cast in the sea
14.
When you see two women walking hand in hand Neither one jealous of the other one’s man They got a good understanding They got a good understanding You know a good understanding Can make everything alright When you see two dogs licking on the same bone There ain’t no fussing no fighting going on They got a good understanding They got a good understanding A good understanding Can make everything alright The lion and the lamb lay there side by side Then Grover comes over and licks the tom cat right in the eye They got a good understanding You know a good understanding You know a good understanding Can make everything alright A good understanding Can make everything alright A good understanding Can make everything alright
15.
Well I don't like you, but I love you Seems that I'm always, thinking of you Oh, oh, oh, you treat me badly I love you madly You really got a hold on me You really got a hold on me Oh baby now, I don't want to stay here, don’t want to sit here Don't wanna spend another day here Oh, oh, oh, you I want to quit now My love can’t sit You really got a hold on me You really got a hold on me Baby, I love you and I all I want you to do Is just hold on me, hold me, hold me, hold me Well I don't want you, but I need you Don’t want to kiss you, but I got to Oh, oh, oh, just can’t stay You really got a hold You really got a hold Baby, I love you and I all I want you to do Is just hold on me, hold me, hold me, please hold me Tied up, tied up Well I don't like you, but I love you Seems that I'm always, thinking of you Oh, oh, oh, you treat me badly I love you madly You really got a hold on me You really got a hold on me Baby, I love you and I all I want you to do Is just hold on me, hold me, hold me, hold me ==========as published=========== I don't like you, but I love you Seems that I'm always thinkin' of you You treat me badly, I love you madly You've really got a hold on me (You really got a hold on me) You really got a hold on me (You really got a hold on me) Baby, I don't want you, but I need you Don't wanna kiss you, but I need to You do me wrong now, my love is strong now You've really got a hold on me (You really got a hold on me) You really got a hold on me (You really got a hold on me) Baby, I love you and all I want you to do Is just hold me, hold me, hold me, hole me Tighter, tighter I wanna leave you, don't wanna stay here Don't wanna spend another day here I wanna split now, I can't quit now You've really got a hold on me (You really got a hold on me) You really got a hold on me (You really got a hold on me) Baby, I love you and all I want you to do Is just hold me, hold me, hold me, hole me (Please, squeeze) You really got a hold on me (You really got a hold on me) I said you really got a hold on me (I said you really got a hold on me) You know, you really got a hold on me (You know, you really got a hold on me) You know, you really got a hold on me (You know, you really got a hold on me) I said you really got a hold on me (I said you really got a hold on me) You know, you really got a hold on me (You know, you really got a hold on me)
16.
Potato chips How my mouth just drips Potato chips How my mouth just drips (drip) Crunch, don’t bring lunch All I want is chips (bring it down) Potato chips Potato chips Drip, crunch, munch, munch, crunch, crunch Potato chips How my mouth just drips Potato chips How my mouth just drips Crunch, crunch, don’t bring lunch All I want is my chips How my mouth just drips Potato chips How my mouth just drips Crunch, crunch, don’t bring lunch All I want is my chips It doesn’t matter where you are You can always find a bag around In a bar or a picinic In a baseball ground How my mouth just drips Potato chips How my mouth just drips Crunch, crunch, don’t bring lunch All I want is my chips It doesn’t matter where you are You can always find a bag around In a bar or a picinic In a baseball Chips How my mouth just drips Drippy, crunchy… Crunch, crunch, don’t bring lunch All I want is my chips

about

Touring up to 150 shows a year, the original Willie Wisely Trio developed a musical language unlike anything before or since. These live recordings, culled from a massive archive of cassette board tapes, are proof. Peter Anderson (drums), James Voss (upright bass), Willie Wisely (guitar & vocals), and Greg Wold (trombone).

Lo-Fi Heaven: Boom Box On The Dash

As a musician it is easy to know what you’re doing in the moment, but to remember what you were playing 22 years ago is very difficult. Over time, the mind alters sonic memory. What we think we heard ceases to be what actually occurred.

I remembered Trio shows as loud, sprawling affairs. Turns out, they were often quiet and diminutive. I remembered Trio shows as a repeating set list of my more effective songs; but in reality we knew over 100 songs, and played a lot of stuff we didn’t know so well. I also remembered the malignant band disagreements and the foulness of hard work, far from home, for low money. Turns out our shows sounded joyful and idealistic. The most distorted thought I had was that our albums were precise documents of our sound. But those studio chronicles contain a fraction of what we accomplished on a nightly basis. Turns out, only rarely did a studio recording sound like the shows I recently heard while listening to over a hundred cassettes of the band playing live. Hard touring had created a singular sound and I’d forgotten most of what we did together on stage.

The inspiration for releasing TURN UP THE SUCK is to fill the memory gaps. It certainly isn’t to show off the high fidelity of these crunchy recordings, or the steadiness of the grooves, nor the perfect pitch of the players. We were a mess, but also a cocktail of joy. None of us would likely again endeavor upon such a formative musical voyage. We were compelled by youthful idealism, stemming from a believe that our vision was unique and that the world ought to hear our music. The business of music is based upon bottling this idealism. But the Trio’s lack of widespread renown is evidence that we were better at letting genies out of bottles than putting them in.

It’s only luck that the archive of cassettes survived. Back in the day, we never listened to them–just threw them into the middle compartment of the van at 2am. After a show, we would usually be too disappointed or drunk to care. Plus, the tape deck situation in the van was dangerous, with a big late-80′s boom box resting unteathered on the dash, soaking up not a little of the driver’s peripheral vision. At night, it was best to keep that monster on the floor where Cheetos and Coke could spill on it.

Turns out the decades were kind to the cardboard boxes that housed the archive––narrowly escaping a basement flood and mold; magically not being erased by long years stored next to the magnets of loud speakers, and hiding deep enough in my mom’s attic to avoid her unsentimental purges. Against all odds, evidence of our wild-eyed years survived.

SUCK is 16 songs (culled from roughly 1,000), each containing a different aspect of our peculiar abandon. We dig the way the lo-fi, unmixed quality makes the band seem even more weird and old than we were. Certainly we never felt understood in the moment of our first run (1989-1993), as evinced by the several tracks on the album which are NOT followed by applause––and on one occasion, only the ridicule of hyena-like laughter (thanks Mike Ruekberg). There’s an old proverb I wrote just now, and it probably went something like this: laugh if you like, but like it when you laugh.

Following are some of the comments made via email by the Trio as we first listened to 60 of the prime performances I found in the archive:

“The sound of cocaine.”

“OK. So we just played the most evil, vibey version of “Good Morning Little School Girl“. At our rubbery best with drums and bass totally solid, but Greg and I painting this pushy-pully masterwork. Most instruments are hard panned. The fidelity is as if the tape is crumpling and warbling off the reel. It’s so wrong that it’s a bit bone chilling. The song ends. Nobody claps. AWESOME!!!!!!”

“I’m telling you guys now. We’re gonna make another record someday, and it’s gonna be on four track cassette.”

“You guys are some of the most attractive musicians I have ever known.”

“Stage banter indicates that some guy who had seen us in the Virgin Islands was in the audience–or perhaps he WAS the audience.”

“Nice! Were we opening for Trip Shakespeare?”

“Man, I don’t even remember that tune… was it originally recorded on wire?”

“There is a potent “jack White/Black Keys before jack white/black keys” record lurking in here with a few tweaks.”

“Mellow Down Easy is my fave I think. It reeks of Muddy Water & Beefheart. I had no idea it was that good. It was the essence/spirit of all of our hero’s.”

“Peter said he felt as if he wasn’t listening to himself play. I know that I’ve forgotten nearly every guitar chord progression and lick on there. Can’t imagine dreaming up this stuff now.”

“I’ve spent so many years trying to do things other than continue my musical illuminations. Minding click tracks, worrying about merch sales, proving I can hit the high notes, making sure the wedding party can hear the lyrics, building an audience, constraining artistic vision to labels, formats, genres, peer pressure, chasing fads, writing sound a-likes for clients, blah blah blah. After a couple decades of that, it’s easy to forget that illumination and inspiration is everything.”

credits

released March 9, 2012

Peter Anderson: drums, backing vocals
James Voss: upright bass, backing vocals
Willie Wisely: electric guitar, vocals
Greg Wold: Trombone, backing vocals

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Willie Wisely Saint Paul, Minnesota

Equal parts Minnesotan music scene veteran and Laurel Canyon resident/devotee, Willie Wisely remains that rare bird mixing profound power pop with arena-sized showmanship, a troubadour on an all night rave up, a cold kombucha on a hot California day, a McCartney-ite taking a break from his Japanese import of “Ram” for a quick Canyon run listening to João Gilberto. ... more

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