Jane’s Addiction — Jane’s Addiction

Author: tracysigler | Posted: August 18th, 2007 | | Tags: , , , , , | 1 Comment »

Jane\'s Addiction -- Jane\'s Addiction

  • Artist: Jane’s Addiction
  • Title: Jane’s Addiction
  • Year: 1987
  • Format: Vinyl 12 in.
  • Rating (1-10): 9
  • Owner: Tracy
  • Acquired: 1987

I was surprised to read this went Gold. Not because it isn’t excellent, it truly is, but when I got it Jane’s Addiction were not well-known. Surely all these sales came after the success of their major label debut, Nothing’s Shocking. But this self-titled live album is their real debut. I believe my friend Ron Spencer first played this record for me. I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. How could these guys be so original, smart, and maybe a little weird and still rock so hard? Perry Farrell does not have a typical rock and roll voice, and he often uses all those effects, but he is incredibly intense. I can’t imagine a different voice sounding so right. And the impressive guitar heroics of David Navarro have never had a better home.

Most of the shredding is on side one. When I heard the opening bass line for “Whores” for the first time in a long while I got goose bumps. They eventually turn things upside down with some semi-acoustic songs. The best known is “Jane Says”, and this version is better to me than the later studio hit. Being real men, they throw in some great covers: “Rock & Roll” by The Velvet Underground and “Sympathy” by The Rolling Stones, with nary a pause in between.

Etched is the vinyl margins:

Side 1 – “It used to be secrets! I couldn’t give them away”
Side 2 – What made you look here?


One Comment on “Jane’s Addiction — Jane’s Addiction”

  1. 1 I’m Heavy Duty! » Jane’s Addiction — Nothing’s Shocking said at 3:25 pm on April 16th, 2008:

    […] because this was the major label debut for Jane’s Addiction and pretty much only fans of their first record were waiting for it to hit. At the time my brother and I had record store and a number of our […]

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