Alcatraz
Studio album by
Released1999
RecordedMarch–April 1999
GenrePunk rock, pop punk
LabelLookout!
ProducerKevin Army
The Mr. T Experience chronology
Road to Ruin
(1998)
Alcatraz
(1999)
Yesterday Rules
(2004)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
Pitchfork Media6.7/10

Alcatraz is an album by the Berkeley punk rock band the Mr. T Experience, released in 1999 by Lookout! Records.[2][3] It was the band's last album to include bassist Joel Reader, who left the group after its release.[4]

Production

The album was produced by Kevin Army.[5] It was recorded at multiple studios around the Bay Area, to ensure that the songs were sonically distinct.[5] The album's sound differed from the band's previous two efforts, incorporating organ, keyboards, and acoustic instrumentation.[6][7]

Critical reception

The Dallas Observer deemed Alcatraz "a good, old-fashioned rock album."[8] SF Weekly wrote: "Deliberately seeking out the sonically claustrophobic atmosphere of such '80s favorites as Elvis Costello's Armed Forces and Joe Jackson's I'm the Man, the album achieves a level of nearly paranoid musicianship, rife with extemporaneous fills and exceedingly tight instrumental interplay."[5]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Dr. Frank

No.TitleLength
1."I Wrote a Book About Rock and Roll" 
2."Naomi" 
3."Self-Pity" 
4."Hey Emily" 
5."Tomorrow is a Harsh Mistress" 
6."Two of Us" 
7."Our Days Are Numbered" 
8."We're Not No One" 
9."Re-Activate Your Heart" 
10."Perhaps" 
11."She's My Alcatraz" 
12."I Feel for You" 
13."We'll Get By" 

Personnel

  • Dr. Frank vocals, guitar
  • Joel Reader bass
  • Jim "Jym" Pittman drums
  • Eric Noyes hammond organ on tracks 1, 3, 8, & 10, piano on tracks 1 & 4
  • Gabe Meline – hammond organ on track 13, piano on track 10, ARP on track 5
  • Kevin Army – piano solo on track 4
  • Paige O'Donoghue – backwards laughing on track 9
  • Todd Grady trumpet on track 2

Album information

  • Produced, engineered, and mixed by Kevin Army in March and April 1999
  • Recorded at Foxhound Sound Studios, Roof Brothers Studios, Sharkbite Studios, and Studio 880 in Oakland, California, and at Laughing Tiger Studios in Marin County, California
  • Tracks 1-12 mixed at Foxhound Sound, track 13 mixed at Roof Brothers
  • Assistant engineers: Matthew Farina, Dave Simon-Baker
  • Mastered by John Golden
  • Photography by Jennifer Juniper Stratford
  • Art by Chris Appelgren

References

  1. "Alcatraz - The Mr. T Experience | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic" via www.allmusic.com.
  2. "Mr. T Experience". Trouser Press. Retrieved July 1, 2021.
  3. "Sixpence None the Richer, Mr. T Experience ..." MTV News.
  4. "The Mr. T Experience | Biography & History". AllMusic.
  5. 1 2 3 "Growing Pains". SF Weekly. September 1, 1999.
  6. Masley, Ed (October 15, 1999). "ARE YOU MR. T EXPERIENCED?". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT. p. 32.
  7. "Show Business Is My Life". East Bay Express. Retrieved July 1, 2021.
  8. Crain, Zac (March 9, 2000). "The Mr. T Experience". Dallas Observer.
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