Willis (album) explained

Willis
Type:	Album
Artist:	The Pietasters
Cover:	Pietasters-Willis.jpg
Released:	October 7, 1997
Recorded:	Cherokee Recording Studio West Beach Recorders
Genre:	Ska/soul
Length:	45:58
Label:	Hellcat^[1]
Producer:	Brett Gurewitz
Prev Title:	Strapped Live!
Prev Year:	1996
Next Title:	Awesome Mix Tape vol. 6
Next Year:	1999

Willis is an album by the ska/soul band the Pietasters, released in 1997.^{[2] [3]} It was released during the mid- to late-1990s ska explosion, and reached No. 44 on the Heatseekers chart.^[4]

The album's first single was "Out All Night".^[5] The band supported the album by touring with the Cherry Poppin' Daddies.^[6]

Production

The album was produced and engineered by Brett Gurewitz.^{[7] [8]} It contains covers of the Outsiders' "Time Won't Let Me" and Martha and the Vandellas' "Quicksand".^[9]

Critical reception

The Washington Post wrote that "the Pietasters mix soul and garage-rock just like any frat-party band of the last four decades ... It's a venerable party-rock formula, but rendered fresh by not only the ska-derived musical accents but also the band's solid songwriting and sheer verve."^[10] The Hartford Courant thought that "the playing throughout is gloriously sloppy; the tone, pointedly ironic ... This is ska without regrets."^[11]

AllMusic wrote that the band returns "to their roots of '60s pop, soul, and Motown R&B, all fueled by a syncopated beat."

Track listing

1. "Crazy Monkey Woman" (Eckhardt/Goodin/Jackson) – 2:38
2. "Out All Night" (Eckhardt/Gurewitz/Linares) – 3:16
3. "Ocean" (Eckhardt/Goodin/Jackson) – 3:38
4. "Fat Sack" (Eckhardt/Goodin/Jackson) – 2:40
5. "Stone Feeling" (Eckhardt/Linares) – 4:06
6. "Higher" (Eckhardt/Goodin/Jackson) – 4:45
7. "Time Won't Let Me" (Tom King/Chet Kelly) – 3:06
8. "Without You" (The Pietasters) – 3:23
9. "Crime" (Eckhardt) – 5:02
10. "Quicksand" (H. Lewis/K. Lewis) – 2:46
11. "Bitter" (Eckhardt/Goodin/Jackson) – 3:53
12. "New Breed" (Jimmy Easter) – 2:59
13. "Moment" (Eckhardt/Goodin/Jackson) – 3:45

Personnel

• Stephen Jackson - vocals
• Tom Goodin - guitar
• Todd Eckhardt - bass guitar
• Rob Steward - drums
• Alan Makranczy - saxophone, backing vocals
• Jeremy Roberts - trombone, backing vocals
• Toby Hansen - trumpet
• DJ Selah - additional vocals on track 4
• Caroline Boutwell - farfisa
• Dave Pinkert - Hammond, B-3, Wurlitzer electric piano
• Andy Kaulkin - piano
• Carlos Linares - additional trumpet on track 7, creative consultant
• Brett Gurewitz - producer, engineer
• Don Cameron - assistant producer
• Paul Dugre - assistant producer
• Joe Breuer - assistant producer
• Paul Naguua - assistant producer
• Maurice Iragorri - assistant producer
• Milton Chan - assistant producer

Notes and References

1. Web site: The Pietasters. Christopher. Porter. November 21, 1997. Washington City Paper.
2. Web site: The Pietasters Biography, Songs, & Albums. AllMusic.
3. Book: Partridge, Kenneth. Hell of a Hat: The Rise of '90s Ska and Swing. September 14, 2021. Penn State Press. 978-0-271-09053-5 . Google Books.
4. Heatseekers. Billboard. October 25, 1997. Nielsen Business Media, Inc.. Google Books.
5. News: Warminsky III . Joe . D.C. AREA BAND THE PIETASTERS OFFER MORE THAN SLICE OF WARMED-OVER SKA . The Morning Call . 22 Nov 1997 . A43.
6. News: Lindquist . David . Sub teacher grades ska life high . The Indianapolis Star . 24 Oct 1998 . E4.
7. Web site: Bosstones Singer Sweetens Pietasters Future. https://web.archive.org/web/20180816225933/http://www.mtv.com/news/1137/bosstones-singer-sweetens-pietasters-future/. dead. August 16, 2018. MTV News.
8. News: Healy . James . ALBUM REVIEWS - SKA/R&B . The San Diego Union-Tribune . October 9, 1997 . Entertainment . 12.
9. News: Lustig . Jay . Beltway band blends ska with soul . The Star-Ledger . August 14, 1998 . Ticket . 4.
10. News: D.C. POP: BOUNCY, TRANCEY AND MOODY . The Washington Post . 9 February 2022.
11. News: Brown . Matthew . WILLIS -- THE PIETASTERS . Hartford Courant . 12 Feb 1998 . Calendar . 7.