Shootenanny!

Shootenanny! /ˈʃuːtənæni/ is the fifth studio album by American rock band Eels, released in 2003 by record label DreamWorks.

Shootenanny!
A black background with "EELS" written in gold and "SHOOTENANNY!" written in white.
Studio album by
Eels
ReleasedJune 3, 2003 (2003-06-03)
RecordedNovember 2002 – April 2003
GenreRock
Length43:19
LabelDreamWorks
ProducerE
Eels chronology
Souljacker
(2001)		 Shootenanny!
(2003)		 Blinking Lights and Other Revelations
(2005)

Background

While lead singer Mark Oliver "E" Everett was working on the double disc Blinking Lights and Other Revelations project, he had the idea to make a "succinct, direct and no bullshit" record, inspired by the writing style of blues singer-songwriter Muddy Waters.[1]

Before the recording of the album, Everett and drummer Jonathan Norton were in conflict. Norton left Eels after a Last Call with Carson Daly performance during the Souljacker tour, later telling a journalist his decision was "a business thing".[2] However, he participated in the recording sessions for Shootenanny!, working as a freelancer rather than a member of the band, with tensions still intact.[3] This would be the last album with new recordings from Norton, although earlier sessions featuring him would appear on the Blinking Lights album two years later.

Recording of the album took place for 10 days[4] during late November 2002 with minimal production.[5] The album was recorded onto two-inch tape and edited digitally using Pro Tools. Shootenanny! was recorded and mixed by Greg Collins, who recorded "Climbing to the Moon" on Electro-Shock Blues.

Title

The album's name comes from a neologism, coined by Everett, for "a social gathering at which participants engage in folk singing and sometimes dancing [a hootenanny], but mostly the shooting of guns."[6]

Release

"Saturday Morning" was released as a promotional single with the B-sides "Her", "Waltz of the Naked Clowns", and "Sad Foot Sign".

Shootenanny! was released on June 3, 2003 by record label DreamWorks. The album peaked at number 145 on the Billboard 200,[7] the first album to chart since Beautiful Freak in 1996.

Critical reception
Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic73/100[8]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[9]
Blender[10]
Entertainment WeeklyB+[11]
The Guardian[12]
Pitchfork2.8/10[13]
Rolling Stone[14]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide[15]
SpinC[16]
Stylus6.3/10[17]
The Village Voice(dud)[18]

Shootenanny! received a generally favorable response, though some critics were divided.[8]

Greg Kot of Entertainment Weekly called the album "downright moving at its best".[11] A negative review came from Chris Dahlen of Pitchfork, who wrote: "Musically and lyrically, E is spent – out of ideas, out of innovation, unable to cough up anything but by-the-numbers pop in the fourteen originals he wrote for this disc."[13] Dom Passantino of Stylus opined that the album "suffers from a lack of identity".[17]

Track listing

All songs written by E, except as noted.

  1. "All in a Day's Work" (E, Koool G Murder) – 3:24
  2. "Saturday Morning" (E, Koool G Murder) – 2:55
  3. "The Good Old Days" – 3:03
  4. "Love of the Loveless" – 3:32
  5. "Dirty Girl" – 2:41
  6. "Agony" – 3:07
  7. "Rock Hard Times" (E, Joe Gore) – 4:00
  8. "Restraining Order Blues" – 3:11
  9. "Lone Wolf" – 2:37
  10. "Wrong About Bobby" – 2:46
  11. "Numbered Days" (E, Gore) – 3:44
  12. "Fashion Awards" – 3:07
  13. "Somebody Loves You" – 3:02

Personnel

Eels

Additional musicians

Technical personnel

Charts
Sales chart performance for Shootenanny!
Chart (2003) Peak
position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[19] 38
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[20] 14
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[21] 45
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[22] 58
French Albums (SNEP)[23] 58
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[24] 56
Irish Albums (IRMA)[25] 44
Italian Albums (FIMI)[26] 58
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[27] 54
UK Albums (OCC)[28] 35
US Billboard 200[29] 145

The song "Agony" was used on the soundtrack of the SyFy TV show Stargate Universe in the 17th episode of the first season.[30]

References
  1. McMaham, Tim (July 16, 2003). "E is for Eels". Lazy-I. Retrieved June 23, 2022.
  2. Reid, Pat (August 2003). "Cowboys of the Galaxy". Rhythm. p. 57.
  3. Saccone, Teri (November–December 2008). "Butch Norton: Hands On". Drumhead. No. 18. p. 49.
  4. "Eels Looking Ahead To Next 'Masterpiece'". Billboard. July 24, 2003. Retrieved June 23, 2022.
  5. Hyman, Nick (October 1, 2003). "E of Eels". Under the Radar. Retrieved November 28, 2012.
  6. "Official Shootenanny! Page". Eels. Retrieved June 23, 2022.
  7. "Eels – Chart History | Billboard". Billboard. Retrieved April 17, 2015.
  8. "Shootenanny! Reviews – Metacritic". Metacritic. Retrieved June 6, 2013.
  9. Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Shootenanny! – Eels | Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards | AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved April 19, 2015.
  10. Harris, John. "Eels Shootenanny!". Blender. Archived from the original on August 11, 2004. Retrieved December 7, 2021.
  11. Kot, Greg (June 6, 2003). "[Shootenanny! review]". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved April 19, 2015.
  12. Peschek, David (May 30, 2003). "CD: Eels: Shootenanny | Music | The Guardian". The Guardian. Retrieved April 19, 2015.
  13. Dahlen, Chris (May 22, 2003). "Eels: Shootenanny! | Album Reviews | Pitchfork". Pitchfork. Retrieved June 6, 2013.
  14. Fine, Jason (June 12, 2003). "[Shootenanny! review]". Rolling Stone. No. 924. Archived from the original on May 24, 2003. Retrieved April 19, 2015.
  15. Cross, Charles R. (2004). "Eels". In Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian (eds.). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide (4th ed.). Simon & Schuster. pp. 273. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8.
  16. Harvilla, Rob (July 2003). "Eels: Shootenanny!/MC Honky: I Am the Messiah". Spin. p. 111. Retrieved 2018-05-24.
  17. Passantino, Dom (July 21, 2003). "Eels: Shootenanny". Stylus. Archived from the original on August 6, 2003. Retrieved April 19, 2015.
  18. Christgau, Robert (January 13, 2004). "MLK Fever". The Village Voice. Retrieved May 24, 2018.
  19. "Australiancharts.com – Eels – Shootenanny!". Hung Medien. Retrieved October 26, 2020.
  20. "Ultratop.be – Eels – Shootenanny!" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved October 26, 2020.
  21. "Ultratop.be – Eels – Shootenanny!" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved October 26, 2020.
  22. "Dutchcharts.nl – Eels – Shootenanny!" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved October 26, 2020.
  23. "Lescharts.com – Eels – Shootenanny!". Hung Medien. Retrieved October 26, 2020.
  24. "Offiziellecharts.de – Eels – Shootenanny!" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved October 26, 2020.
  25. "Irish-charts.com – Discography Eels". Hung Medien. Retrieved October 26, 2020.
  26. "Italiancharts.com – Eels – Shootenanny!". Hung Medien. Retrieved October 26, 2020.
  27. "Swisscharts.com – Eels – Shootenanny!". Hung Medien. Retrieved October 26, 2020.
  28. "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved October 26, 2020.
  29. "Eels Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved October 26, 2020.
  30. Stargate Universe Music - Season 1: "Pain" - TuneFind
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