Clear Impetuous Morning

Clear Impetuous Morning is an album by the American band Jason & the Scorchers, released in 1996.[1][2] The band supported the album with a North American tour that included shows with Slobberbone.[3][4] The band's second studio album after their reunion, it was also their last with bass player Jeff Johnson.[5][6]

Clear Impetuous Morning
Studio album by
Released1996
LabelMammoth
ProducerWarner Hodges, Jeff Johnson
Jason & the Scorchers chronology
Both Sides of the Line
(1996)
Clear Impetuous Morning
(1996)
Reckless Country Soul
(1998)

Production edit

Produced by bandmembers Warner Hodges and Johnson, the album was recorded over three months at a friend's Nashville studio in an amp repair shop.[7][8] Frontman Jason Ringenberg considered the recording sessions for Clear Impetuous Morning to be the easiest of the band's career.[8] The band made more use of acoustic guitars than on previous albums, employing them on the majority of the songs.[9] Songwriter Tommy Womack worked on some of the songs.[10] Emmylou Harris sang on "Everything Has a Cost".[11] "Drugstore Truck Drivin' Man" is a cover of the Gram Parsons song, which Jason considered to be "an anti-Nashville-music-business song."[12][13] "Jeremy's Glory" is about the Civil War.[8] "Going Nowhere" is about a woman who decides to leave her hometown.[14]

Critical reception edit

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic     [15]
Entertainment WeeklyA[16]
USA Today    [17]

Entertainment Weekly wrote that "these country punkers once again prove themselves to be the only legitimate living incarnation of the Rolling Stones."[16] The Ottawa Citizen determined that "the Scorchers' sound tends to fade into a generic blues boogie obscurity, alongside the likes of the Georgia Satellites."[18] The Philadelphia Inquirer praised the "Hank Williams-meets-the-Sex-Pistols attack."[19] USA Today allowed that the album could be the band's "finest work ever."[17]

The Chicago Tribune concluded that the album "effectively meshes their past energy with a newfound slower-paced tunefulness."[20] Stereo Review stated: "Driven by the relentless guitar of Warner Hodges and the impassioned vocals of Jason Ringenberg, the Scorchers uncork some of their fiercest material."[21] The Sun Sentinel called the album "bristling with stinging licks and groove-a-licious tales of lovers, losers and loners."[22] The Lincoln Journal Star and The Sunday Times listed Clear Impetuous Morning among the best albums of 1996.[23][24]

Track listing edit

No.TitleLength
1."Self-Sabotage" 
2."Cappuccino Rosie" 
3."Drugstore Truck Drivin' Man" 
4."Going Nowhere" 
5."Uncertain Girl" 
6."2 + 1 = Nothing" 
7."Victory Road" 
8."Kick Me Down" 
9."Everything Has a Cost" 
10."To Feel No Love" 
11."Walking a Vanishing Line" 
12."Tomorrow Has Come Today" 
13."Jeremy's Glory" 
14."I'm Sticking with You" 

References edit

  1. ^ Sullivan, Jim (8 Sep 1996). "Bubbling under(ground)". The Boston Globe. p. N7.
  2. ^ "Jason & the Scorchers Biography by John Dougan". AllMusic. Retrieved 2 November 2023.
  3. ^ Finn, Timothy (31 Oct 1996). "Scorchers are almost too hot for Jason's vocals to handle". The Kansas City Star. p. E6.
  4. ^ "Critic's picks". Houston. Houston Chronicle. October 31, 1996. p. 3.
  5. ^ Lee, Stewart (October 20, 1996). "Rock". Culture. The Sunday Times. p. 28.
  6. ^ The Encyclopedia of Country Music. Oxford University Press. 2012. p. 262.
  7. ^ Gray, Michael (26 Sep 1996). "Scorching new 'morning'". Nashville Banner. p. C16.
  8. ^ a b c McLennan, Scott (13 Oct 1996). "Jason and the Scorchers ride high again". Datebook. Telegram & Gazette. p. 7.
  9. ^ McGuinness, Jim (October 18, 1996). "A Trailblazing Band Returns". Previews. The Record. Bergen County. p. 37.
  10. ^ Ridley, Jim; McCall, Michael (October 3, 1996). "Vital Signs". Nashville Cream. Nashville Scene.
  11. ^ Miller, Jay N. (18 Oct 1996). "Lyrics drive Jason and the Scorchers' latest". The Patriot Ledger. p. 21.
  12. ^ Crandall, Alan (July 1998). "Scorched Earth". Perfect Sound Forever.
  13. ^ Johnson, Kenneth (October 11, 1996). "Scorchers' 'Impetuous Morning' Is Hot Stuff". The Charlotte Observer. p. 4E.
  14. ^ Cantwell, David (November 21, 1996). "Jason & the Scorchers Clear Impetuous Morning". Music. Miami New Times.
  15. ^ "Clear Impetuous Morning Review by James Chrispell". AllMusic. Retrieved 2 November 2023.
  16. ^ a b Kim, Wook (October 4, 1996). "Clear Impetuous Morning". Entertainment Weekly.
  17. ^ a b Zimmerman, David (October 8, 1996). "Country". USA Today. p. 10D.
  18. ^ Blanchfield, Mike (25 Jan 1997). "Rock". Ottawa Citizen. p. F3.
  19. ^ Cristiano, Nick (11 Oct 1996). "Jason & the Scorchers". Features Weekend. The Philadelphia Inquirer. p. 18.
  20. ^ "Music". Friday. Chicago Tribune. 25 Oct 1996. p. 55.
  21. ^ Puterbaugh, Parke (Feb 1997). "Clear Impetuous Morning". Stereo Review. Vol. 62, no. 2. p. 135.
  22. ^ Schulman, Sandra (September 15, 1996). "Cow punk rides again". Sun Sentinel. p. 3F.
  23. ^ Wolgamott, L. Kent (27 Dec 1996). "It was the best (?!) of years". Lincoln Journal Star. p. D1.
  24. ^ "Records of the year". The Sunday Times. December 22, 1996. p. 32.