Romantic Depressive | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
![]() | ||||
Studio album by | ||||
Released | 1995 | |||
Label | Sugar Hill | |||
Producer | Mark Williams, Don Dixon | |||
Don Dixon chronology | ||||
|
Romantic Depressive is an album by the American musician Don Dixon, released in 1995 via Sugar Hill Records. [1] [2] The album was part of an attempt by Sugar Hill to expand its roster beyond a traditional acoustic style. [3] Dixon supported the album with a North American tour that included shows opening for Hootie & the Blowfish. [4] [5] Romantic Depressive was nominated for a NAIRD Indie Award. [6]
Produced by Mark Williams and Dixon, the songs were recorded over a period of four years. [7] [1] Dixon pulled from a pool of 30 songs. [8] He played most of the instruments. [9] The first half of the album is about romantic relationships; Dixon considered turning Romantic Depressive into a kind of concept album. [1] [10] "Lottery of Lives" is about the military draft. [1] "Good Golly Svengali" is an instrumental. [11] "25,000 Days" was cowritten by Marti Jones, Dixon's wife; Sugar Hill had originally wanted an album of Dixon-Jones duets. [12] [13] Bland Simpson played piano on "I Should Know Better". [14]
Review scores | |
---|---|
Source | Rating |
AllMusic | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
The Charlotte Observer | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
USA Today | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
USA Today praised Dixon's "well-crafted songs and bluesy, Southern-soul rasp." [17] The Santa Fe New Mexican called the album "a tuneful journey through the convolutions of a gently twisted sensibility," writing that "the real genius of these songs is how deceptively simple they seem." [12] The St. Louis Post-Dispatch determined that "Dixon once again fashions a sound that mixes the melodic qualities of Beatles-styled pop, the gritty groove of soul and a bit of country twang." [10] Stereo Review stated that "Dixon's subject matter is evenly divided between doleful reminiscences about love's labors and reflections on himself and the world from the vantage point of midlife." [14] The Charlotte Observer opined that "the songs are too laid-back." [15]
AllMusic noted that "everything here sheds new light on old traditions ... the sound is dense without being muddy, snappy without being shallow." [9] The Star-Gazette listed the album among the 10 best of 1995. [18] In 2008, the Pittsburgh City Paper deemed Romantic Depressive "old-school soul-pop." [19]
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
1. | "Righteous Side of Love" | |
2. | "Giving Up the Ghost" | |
3. | "I Should Know Better" | |
4. | "Angel Angel" | |
5. | "Everytime I Think of Home" | |
6. | "What You Saw" | |
7. | "Peace for the Last Time" | |
8. | "Good Golly Svengali" | |
9. | "25,000 Days" | |
10. | "Lottery of Lives" | |
11. | "Never Slow Down" |
Romantic Depressive | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
![]() | ||||
Studio album by | ||||
Released | 1995 | |||
Label | Sugar Hill | |||
Producer | Mark Williams, Don Dixon | |||
Don Dixon chronology | ||||
|
Romantic Depressive is an album by the American musician Don Dixon, released in 1995 via Sugar Hill Records. [1] [2] The album was part of an attempt by Sugar Hill to expand its roster beyond a traditional acoustic style. [3] Dixon supported the album with a North American tour that included shows opening for Hootie & the Blowfish. [4] [5] Romantic Depressive was nominated for a NAIRD Indie Award. [6]
Produced by Mark Williams and Dixon, the songs were recorded over a period of four years. [7] [1] Dixon pulled from a pool of 30 songs. [8] He played most of the instruments. [9] The first half of the album is about romantic relationships; Dixon considered turning Romantic Depressive into a kind of concept album. [1] [10] "Lottery of Lives" is about the military draft. [1] "Good Golly Svengali" is an instrumental. [11] "25,000 Days" was cowritten by Marti Jones, Dixon's wife; Sugar Hill had originally wanted an album of Dixon-Jones duets. [12] [13] Bland Simpson played piano on "I Should Know Better". [14]
Review scores | |
---|---|
Source | Rating |
AllMusic | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
The Charlotte Observer | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
USA Today | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
USA Today praised Dixon's "well-crafted songs and bluesy, Southern-soul rasp." [17] The Santa Fe New Mexican called the album "a tuneful journey through the convolutions of a gently twisted sensibility," writing that "the real genius of these songs is how deceptively simple they seem." [12] The St. Louis Post-Dispatch determined that "Dixon once again fashions a sound that mixes the melodic qualities of Beatles-styled pop, the gritty groove of soul and a bit of country twang." [10] Stereo Review stated that "Dixon's subject matter is evenly divided between doleful reminiscences about love's labors and reflections on himself and the world from the vantage point of midlife." [14] The Charlotte Observer opined that "the songs are too laid-back." [15]
AllMusic noted that "everything here sheds new light on old traditions ... the sound is dense without being muddy, snappy without being shallow." [9] The Star-Gazette listed the album among the 10 best of 1995. [18] In 2008, the Pittsburgh City Paper deemed Romantic Depressive "old-school soul-pop." [19]
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
1. | "Righteous Side of Love" | |
2. | "Giving Up the Ghost" | |
3. | "I Should Know Better" | |
4. | "Angel Angel" | |
5. | "Everytime I Think of Home" | |
6. | "What You Saw" | |
7. | "Peace for the Last Time" | |
8. | "Good Golly Svengali" | |
9. | "25,000 Days" | |
10. | "Lottery of Lives" | |
11. | "Never Slow Down" |