| Ramp | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 1991 | |||
| Genre | Alternative rock, alternative country | |||
| Label | Amazing Black Sand | |||
| Producer | Howe Gelb | |||
| Giant Sand chronology | ||||
| ||||
Ramp is an album by the American alternative rock band Giant Sand, released in 1991.[1][2] The album was released via frontman Howe Gelb's Amazing Black Sand label, before being picked up by Restless Records.[3]
Production
The majority of the album was produced by Gelb.[4] Victoria Williams contributed backing vocals to the album's second track, "Romance of Falling," the only track produced by Dusty Wakeman.[5][6] Pappy Allen also makes an appearance on Ramp.[7] The album was recorded in Los Angeles and Tucson.[6]
Critical reception
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic | |
| Robert Christgau | A- |
| The Encyclopedia of Popular Music | |
| MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide | |
| Spin Alternative Record Guide | 7/10[9] |
Robert Christgau wrote: "The first side makes something of the dissociated atmospherics that undermined the band's previous umpteen releases; the second's almost popwise. Together they're what country-rock was never really like, or wanted to be."[10] Trouser Press thought that "Gelb seems to have found a way to propel himself at will into a deconstruction zone where boogie can mutate into pre-rock vocal harmony ('Warm Storm') and Sun Ra can be construed as a lounge lizard (the slurry 'Jazzer Snipe')."[11] The Austin American-Statesman deemed it "the kind of revelatory release that makes one want to search out everything the band has previously recorded."[12]
The Spin Alternative Record Guide opined that the band "has mastered the art of rambling within a loose structure."[9]
Track listing
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Warm Storm" | |
| 2. | "Romance of Falling" | |
| 3. | "Wonder" | |
| 4. | "Welcome to My World" | |
| 5. | "Anti-Shadow" | |
| 6. | "Jazzer Snipe" | |
| 7. | "Z.Z. Quicker Foot" | |
| 8. | "Neon Filler" | |
| 9. | "Seldom Matters" | |
| 10. | "Resolver" | |
| 11. | "Nowhere" | |
| 12. | "Always Horses Coming" | |
| 13. | "Patsy's Blues" |
Personnel
- Joey Burns - bass
- John Convertino - drums
- Howe Gelb - guitar, vocals
References
- ↑ The Rough Guide to Rock (2nd ed.). Rough Guides Ltd. 1999. p. 408.
- ↑ "The Mojo Collection: 4th Edition". Canongate Books. November 1, 2007. Archived from the original on August 4, 2021. Retrieved August 4, 2021 – via Google Books.
- ↑ "Arts Journal". Arizona Daily Star. November 15, 1992. p. 11D.
- 1 2 MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide. Visible Ink Press. 1999. p. 482.
- 1 2 "Ramp - Giant Sand | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic". Archived from the original on 2021-08-04. Retrieved 2021-08-04 – via www.allmusic.com.
- 1 2 Armstrong, Gene (May 22, 1992). "Cacavas scores big with `Good Times'; Giant Sand shows improvement on `Ramp'". Arizona Daily Star. p. 3F.
- ↑ Cohen, Jason (Jan 1993). "Giant Sand's Wanderlust & Whimsy". Option (48): 76.
- ↑ Larkin, Colin (2006). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Vol. 3. MUZE. p. 736.
- 1 2 Spin Alternative Record Guide. Vintage Books. 1995. p. 166.
- ↑ "Robert Christgau: CG: Giant Sand". www.robertchristgau.com. Archived from the original on 2021-08-04. Retrieved 2021-08-04.
- ↑ "Giant Sand". Trouser Press. Archived from the original on 4 August 2021. Retrieved 4 August 2021.
- ↑ McLeese, Don (19 Mar 1993). "SOME ECLECTIC EVENING". Austin American-Statesman. p. B3.
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