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Tenacious D (album)

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Tenacious D is the first studio album by the American satirical rock band Tenacious D, released on September 25, 2001 by Epic Records. The album's polished production was a departure from the band's acoustic origins, due in part to the production of the Dust Brothers. The subject matters of the songs include cannabis use, sexual intercourse and anarchy.

"Tribute" was the first single released from the album, followed by "Wonderboy". Both singles had music videos filmed for them, with the Liam Lynch directed Tribute video achieving cult status.

While Tenacious D did not achieve chart success after its release, it was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America by the end of 2005.[2]

History

For their first album, they enlisted the help of drummer Dave Grohl, keyboardist Page McConnell of Phish, guitarist Warren Fitzgerald, and bass player Steven Shane McDonald. The Dust Brothers produced the album. The majority of the songs on their debut album stem from early versions as seen on their HBO TV series, Tenacious D. The record itself does not list the song titles on the back cover as is the convention but instead on the back cover of the jacket; therefore one must open the CD (after presumably buying it) to read them. This is perhaps to allow songs with expletives or words otherwise deemed offensive to escape censorship or omission. Despite only charting at #38 in the UK, it has sold over 400,000 copies and has gone platinum as a result.

The band's signature song is "Tribute," an homage to the "greatest song in the world," which—according to the duo—they once performed and has now unfortunately been forgotten. Early versions of the song incorporated guitar riffs borrowed from Led Zeppelin's "Stairway to Heaven," suggesting that the so-called "greatest song" is in fact "Stairway to Heaven," although they do say that the greatest song in the world "doesn't actually sound anything like this song." The duo's film, The Pick of Destiny (released 2006), suggests that the song is in fact a tribute to the melody played against Satan in a rock off, which appeared in the song "Beelzeboss (The Final Showdown)" on their 2006 album, also named The Pick of Destiny.

Their song "Wonderboy" (#34 UK, #48 Australia) and its video were also well-received. "Wonderboy" was a tale of an unlikely superhero, portrayed by Black in the video, as he formed an alliance with a fellow adventurer Young Nasty Man (Gass) and attempted to destroy a fire-breathing hydra. (Note: Wonder Boy is also the name of an unrelated video game series, as well as a 1968 single by The Kinks.) Their song "Dio" was a tribute of some sorts to the heavy metal singer Ronnie James Dio of the band Dio and one-time singer of Black Sabbath. In the song they ask that Dio stop playing metal music and allow them to fill his shoes. Dio himself liked the song enough that he let the band appear in his next music video "Push." The third single from the album, "Fuck Her Gently," was released in May 2004. The video was animated by John Kricfalusi, creator of Ren and Stimpy, and features Jack and Kyle as nude cherubs on the shoulders of Satan.

The recording session for the album began with a two-day session at Neil Diamond's studio in Los Angeles. They were able to use the studio because Diamond had just appeared with Black in the film Saving Silverman, in which Black plays a Neil Diamond cover singer. "Diamond claims it was the Liberty Records studio," King says. "It's a really old place."[3] At least one song was cut from the final release of the album. A studio recording of "Jesus Ranch," the final song from the HBO shorts (the closing credits feature the end of "The Road"), was omitted from the album because "it just didn't cut the mustard" (quoted by the D in the FAQ section of their website). The HBO version can be found on their DVD, The Complete Masterworks, and a recorded studio demo can be found on their 2002 EP, D Fun Pak.

Imagery

File:Major 15.jpg
The Devil Card.

The front cover features Black and Gass standing naked below the Devil.[4] The pose is similar to that shown on the Devil tarot card. Due to the Satanic nature of the cover, the album was briefly recalled from stores.[5] The Devil card signifies sexual desire, uncontrolled energy, vice and addiction.[6] The band performed in front of this at concerts.[7]

Track listing

All songs written by Tenacious D, except where noted.

  1. "Kielbasa" – 3:02
  2. "One Note Song" – 1:24
  3. "Tribute" – 4:08
  4. "Wonderboy" – 4:07
  5. "Hard Fucking" – 0:36
  6. "Fuck Her Gently" – 2:03
  7. "Explosivo" – 1:56
  8. "Dio" – 1:41
  9. "Inward Singing" – 2:13
  10. "Kyle Quit the Band" – 1:30
  11. "The Road" – 2:20
  12. "Cock Pushups" – 0:47
  13. "Lee" – 1:02
  14. "Friendship Test" (Bob Odenkirk) – 1:31
  15. "Friendship" – 2:00
  16. "Karate Schnitzel" – 0:37
  17. "Karate" – 1:05
  18. "Rock Your Socks" – 3:33
  19. "Drive-Thru" – 3:01
  20. "Double Team" – 3:11
  21. "City Hall" – 6:48 (actual full track is 9:02 long)
    • A hidden track called "Malibu Nights" makes up the last 47 seconds of "City Hall".

Song information

"Kielbasa"

The song "Kielbasa" is basically a fusion of two songs, ("Kielbasa Sausage" and "Tenacious D Time") originating from the Tenacious D television series. "Dianetics" in the FAQ section on the official website, a fan asked if "The D" are Scientologists, to which Jack Black responded: "No, but we infiltrated the Scientology celebrity center (a fact gathering research mission) in the hopes of doing a loosely based cult episode, but we got cold feet. Those dudes are all about money and brainwashing. I can't speak for Rage [Kyle Gass] but I believe that God is an unfathomable force of love and cosmic sadness."

"Tribute"

Main article: Tribute (song)

"Wonderboy"

Main article: Wonderboy

"Fuck Her Gently"

Main article: Fuck Her Gently

"Dio"

The song is a tribute to Ronnie James Dio, Jack Black's idol, that calls for the singer to "pass the torch" on to Tenacious D. Reportedly, Dio approved of the song[8] and let Tenacious D appear in the video for his single, "Push." In addition, Dio also appeared in the 2006 film Tenacious D in: The Pick of Destiny,[9] playing himself.

"Karate"

This song recounts the consequences of Kyle's theft of Jack's schnitzel. At the end of the track, there is backmasked speech. This, when played in reverse is quite clearly Jack Black saying "Eat donkey crap."[10] The song lasts for 1:05.

"City Hall"

In the longest song on the album, lead singer Jack Black paints an anarchic uprising of the political system. The song is described by the D, and others[11] as a rock opera.

Critical response

Tenacious D's first album featured a variety of reactions from the critics. Entertainment Weekly described the release as being "hilarious," and "no mere comedy record."[12]. All Music Guide said it "rocks so damn hard" but it reflects on the lack of some of the songs from the HBO episodes.[13]. Splendid magazine said of Tenacious D, "As entertainment, Tenacious D succeeds surprisingly well - for the first few listens.... The only long-term replay value you'll get from this record will come from playing it for friends who haven't heard it."[14]

Chart performance

Peak chart positions Certifications
UK[15] NLD[16] SWE[17] NOR[18] GER
[19] 		AUS[20] NZ[21] U.S.[22] UK[23] AUS[24] IRE[25]
33 38 33 19 37 47 13 42 Platinum Gold Gold

Credits

Personnel Role/contribution[1]
Jack Black lead vocals, guitar
Kyle Gass lead acoustic guitar, vocals
Dust Brothers Mixing (on tracks 2,5,6,9,12,14,16,17,19)
Dave Grohl drums, guitar (on tracks 4,7,8,11,18,20,21)
Steve McDonald bass
Warren Fitzgerald electric guitar
Page McConnell keyboards
Alfredo Ortiz percussion (on tracks 3,15,18,20)
Woody Jackson sitar on track 1
Andrew Gross strings (on tracks 4,6)
Ken Andrews guitar (tracks 3,10,11,15) and mixing (tracks 1,3,4,7,8,10,11,13,15,18,20,21)
John King echoplex (on track 7)
Page McConnell keyboards
Tony Schloss Assistant engineer
Cameron Webb Assistant mixing engineer
Adam Kasper Engineer for Dave Grohl sessions
Bernie Becker Engineer at ArchAngel
Tom Baker Mastering
Matt Marshall A & R
Brandy Flower Art direction and design
Sean Murphy Photography
Matthew Gass Photography

References

  1. ^ a b Template:Cite cd notes
  2. ^ RIAA
  3. ^ Gaby Alter (2002-03-01). "TENACIOUS D". MIX. Retrieved 2006-12-21. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  4. ^ A Keeps, David (2002-11-03). "Prepare for D-DAY". The Independent on Sunday. Retrieved 2008-03-02. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  5. ^ Dickerson, Jeff (2001-10-01). "Tenacious D, Tenacious D". The Michigan Daily. Retrieved 2008-03-02. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  6. ^ Meaning of the Devil Tarot Card
  7. ^ Heisinger, Andrea (2001-03-12). "Weezer performs to sold-out Kansas City crowd". Daily Nebraskan. Retrieved 2008-03-02. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  8. ^ Mark Binelli (2001-11-29). "73% of the Way to Being the World's Greatest Rock Band". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2007-01-01. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  9. ^ Mark Binelli (2001-11-29). "73% of the Way to Being the World's Greatest Rock Band". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2007-01-01. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  10. ^ Tenacious FAQs
  11. ^ Robin A. Rothman (2001-09-10). "Tenacious D Rock Your Socks". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2006-12-21. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  12. ^ Ken Tucker (2001-09-24). "Music Review: Tenacious D". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 2006-12-21. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  13. ^ Stephen Thomas Erlewine. "Music Review: Tenacious D". All Music Guide. Retrieved 2006-12-21.
  14. ^ George Zahora (2001-12-18). "Splendid Magazine reviews Tenacious D: Self-Titled". Splendid Magazine. Retrieved 2006-12-21. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  15. ^ "UK Albums chart". Everyhit.com. Retrieved 2008-02-14.
  16. ^ "Discografie Tenacious D" (in Dutch). Dutchchars.nl. Retrieved 2008-02-14.
  17. ^ "Discography Tenacious D" (in Swedish). Swedishcharts.com. Retrieved 2008-02-14.
  18. ^ "Discography Tenacious D" (in Norwegian). Norwegiancharts.com. Retrieved 2008-02-14.
  19. ^ "Tenacious D album chart history" (in German). Musicline.de. Retrieved 2008-02-09.
  20. ^ "Tenacious D". australian-charts.com. Retrieved 2008-02-14.
  21. ^ "Discography Tenacious D". Charts.org.nz. Retrieved 2008-02-14.
  22. ^ "RIAA Searchable database – Gold and Platinum". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved 2008-01-03.
  23. ^ "BPI Searchable database – Gold and Platinum". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 2008-01-03.
  24. ^ "ARIA". Australian certifications. Retrieved 2008-01-03.
  25. ^ "The Irish Charts". IRMA. Retrieved 2008-01-03.
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