| A Reverse Willie Horton | |
| Type: | Studio |
| Artist: | The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion |
| Cover: | A_reverse_willie_horton_462.jpg |
| Released: | 1992 |
| Recorded: | 1992 |
| Genre: | Punk blues, alternative rock |
| Label: | Pubic Pop Can[1] |
| Producer: | Kramer[2] |
| Next Title: | The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion |
| Next Year: | 1992 |
A Reverse Willie Horton is either the debut album, or an early bootleg album, by the New York City-based Jon Spencer Blues Explosion.[1] [3] [4] Few copies of the album were produced; many songs appear on the group's next album, 1992's The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion, albeit in a different mix or recording altogether (the sound of A Reverse Willie Horton is closer to Crypt Style).[5] All three albums are made up of tracks recorded in 1991 by producer Kramer and engineer Steve Albini (in separate sessions).
The album was released as a black vinyl LP in an edition of 500 copies. The front and rear art work are two separate images pasted onto a plain black card sleeve (with the exception of white text reading 'JACKET ME IN CANA' on the rear).
During an interview with Fiz Magazine (Issue #5), Spencer discussed the various editions of the first album and hinted at the origins of the release: "When I was travelling around with the Gibson Bros. last year I had a tape of that with me because we had just done it. I let a few people dub it so maybe something came from that."
Dave Thompson, in Alternative Rock, called the album "deliciously downplayed racket, purposely recorded to sound like a pile of old blues records, rattling through the cheapest speakers in the world."[2] Spin acknowledged the mystery surrounding the recording and called it better than anything that Spencer's former band, Pussy Galore, had ever released.[1]
Pointing out that many of the songs appeared on the band's Caroline album, Trouser Press advised that the versions contained on A Reverse Willie Horton were superior, writing "with their echoey mixes and cardboard drums, they sound like they could’ve been appropriated from scratchy 45s found in a secluded Tennessee thrift shop."[5]