TitleViolent Femmes
Year1982
LabelsSlash, Warner, London, Metro
Format12″, Cassette, CD
Length43.39
VariantsGreen, Peach 12″ Limited Pressings

Track Listing

  • Blister In The Sun
  • Kiss Off
  • Please Do Not Go
  • Add It Up
  • Confessions
  • Prove My Love
  • Promise
  • To The Kill
  • Gone Daddy Gone
  • Good Feeling
  • Ugly
  • Gimmie The Car

The Violent Femmes consists of Gordon Gano (lead vocals, rhythm guitar), Brian Ritchie (bass, lead and rhythm guitar, jaw harp, slide whistle) and Victor De Lorenzo (drums, percussion, vocals). The group emerged from the burgeoning Milwaukee music scene in 1981 and quickly captured critical attention with their innovative musical style. Mixing rock fundamentals, folk simplicity, rockablity rhythms and an original lyric approach, the Violent Femmes are, in the words of one writer, “clearly unlike any other known band on the contemporary music scene.”

The group garnered a small local following by playing acoustic sets in Milwaukee-area coffee houses. While performing for a crowd gathered to buy tickets to a Pretenders concert, they were spotted by Pretenders’ guitarist James Honeyman-Scott and asked to join the group’s American tour. A recording contract with Slash Records followed in 1982.

Violent Femmes, produced by Mark Van Hecke, contains 10 original songs composed by Gordon Gano. “Blister In The Sun,” “Prove My Love” and “Gone Daddy Gone” are among the cuts featured in the group’s intriguing and elective live show. The Compact Disc edition of Violent Femmes also features two cuts previously unavailable only on a limited-edition import single. Both “Ugly” and “Gimmie the Car” are Gano originals recorded shortly after the release of the band’s debut album.

Gordon Gano: guitar, violin, lead vocal
Brian Ritchie: acoustic bass guitar, xyolphone, electric bass, vocals
Victor De Lorenzo: snare drum and tranceaphone, drum set, scotch marching, bass drum, vocals
Mark Van Heck: piano on “Good Feeling” *Bonus Tracks

All selections written by Gordon Gano.
All selections published by Gordon Music Publishing ASCAP

Engineers: Glen L. Lorbiecki and John Tanner
Recorded at Castle Recording Company, Lake Geneva, Wisconsin, July 1982
“Ugly” and “Gimmie the Car” recorded at Music Works, London, August 31 and September 1, 1983

Back cover design: Laurie Lindblom and Geoff “Stinky”
Woman Front photo: Ron Hugo
Package Design: Jeff Price

Thanks to Robert Munger, Bryan King, 4TA and THE BONE
Special thanks to are friends who are no longer with us.

1 Blister in The Sun 2:23
2 Kiss Off 2:53
3 Please Do Not Go 4:15
4 Add It Up 4:44
5 Confessions 5:27
6 Prove My Love 2:37
7 Promise 2:48
8 To the Kill 3:59
9 Gone Daddy Gone 3:03
10 Good Feeling 3:49
11 Ugly* 2:19
12 Gimmie the Car* 5:04

*Bonus Tracks
PRODUCED BY MARK VAN HECKE
CD Pre-Mastering by WCI Record Group

Slash Records TM
Distributed by Warner Bros. Records Inc., A Warner Communications Company
W(R) (P)(C) 1982 Slash Records All Rights Reserved.
Unauthorized duplication is a violation of applicable laws.

The music on this Compact Disc was originally recorded on analog equipment. We have attempted to preserve, as closely as possible, the sound of the original recording. Because of its high resolution, however, the Compact Disc can reveal limitations of the source tape.

(C) 1982 Slash Records
Printed in the U.S.A.
9 23845-2