| The Great White Wonder | |
| Type: | studio |
| Artist: | The Pooh Sticks |
| Border: | yes |
| Recorded: | Hollywood First Audio, Los Angeles/Vuurland Studios, Utrecht |
| Genre: | Indie pop |
| Label: | Cheree |
| Producer: | Steve Gregory |
| Prev Title: | Formula One Generation |
| Prev Year: | 1990 |
| Next Title: | Million Seller |
| Next Year: | 1993 |
The Great White Wonder is the second full-length album by the Welsh band The Pooh Sticks. The album was released in June 1991 and is the band's final album release on an independent label before signing to RCA Records in 1992. The album features guest vocals from Amelia Fletcher.
The Pooh Sticks released this album in 1991 after a 1990 tour of America, and the album reflected their "embrace of kitsch Americana".[1] Like their previous work, The Great White Wonder takes bit of material (song titles, guitar riffs, melodies) of 1970s music icons and molds them into something of their own. This release features nods to Neil Young,[2] Helen Reddy,[3] Kim Fowley,[4] Smokey Robinson, Ozark Mountain Daredevils, Peter Frampton, Jonathan Richman, Lou Reed, Sweet, Chic, James Taylor and Sham 69. Despite a poor response both at home and in America it was voted Spin's 'Number 1 Album of 1991 You Didn't Hear'.[5]
"Tough and tight like early punk, hooky like sugar pop" is how Joe Levy of Spin has described The Great White Wonder. He also writes that their "obsession with recapturing innocent thrills...keeps them on the right side of parody". He closes by saying the album is "brilliant, clever, and sarcastic, but more importantly, incredible fun." Also from Spin, Regina Joseph in describing the influence of the 1970s on the album writes that the band "shamelessly wallow[s] in the goofiest dreck of that misbegotten era" and closes by writing that the album's "triumph lies in creating cool parody while keeping it as innocent as child's play." Jason Ankeny of AllMusic writes that the band "rape, plunder and pillage the history of pop music with manic glee" in reference to their use of old source material, and concludes that they are "in love with pop music" and the album is "their valentine to rock & roll." In his New York Times review of the album, Milo Miles calls the band "a potent, ingenious rock-and-roll band" and comments on the album's "bright vocal harmonies and guitar-pumped melodies of mid-60's pop".
All songs written by Steve Gregory unless otherwise noted.