Minutemen Discography
The discography for the Minutemen, an American punk rock band, includes four studio albums, one live album, seven compilation albums, four music videos, and eight extended plays.
Formed in 1980 by guitarist D. Boon and bassist Mike Watt, the Minutemen signed to the Californian independent record label SST Records at their second concert. Their first extended play, Paranoid Time, appeared later that year, followed by the Joy EP (on their own label, New Alliance Records) and their first studio album, The Punch Line. The Minutemen continued to release new material throughout 1982 and 1983 to a mostly local audience. In 1984, the band released Double Nickels on the Dime, their only double album and best-selling release. They continued to release more material, including the commercially oriented Project: Mersh and 3-Way Tie (For Last), until Boon's untimely death in December 1985.
Following the band's breakup, SST Records purchased New Alliance and reissued a number of recordings on compact disc and vinyl. SST also released a live album, Ballot Result, and Minuteflag, the result of an earlier collaboration with Black Flag. A three volume compilation, Post-Mersh, which combined several of the Minutemen's EPs and albums, was released between 1987 and 1989. The band's songs continued to appear in compilations, videos and soundtracks; "Corona" was the theme music of MTV's Jackass. A compilation album featuring a selection of songs from the band's career, the Watt-compiled Introducing the Minutemen, was released in 1998. We Jam Econo, a feature-length Minutemen film, appeared in theaters in February 2005.
Studio albums
| Year | Title |
|---|---|
| 1981 | The Punch Line
|
| 1983 | What Makes a Man Start Fires?
|
| 1984 | Double Nickels on the Dime
|
| 1985 | 3-Way Tie (For Last)
|
Live albums
| Year | Title | Recorded | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1986 | Ballot Result
|
September 1980—30 November 1985 | Live recordings from throughout the Minutemen's career selected from the result of a fan ballot. |
Extended plays
| Year | Title | Comments |
|---|---|---|
| 1980 | Paranoid Time
|
Debut release. |
| 1981 | Joy
|
|
| 1982 | Bean-Spill
|
|
| 1983 | Buzz or Howl Under the Influence of Heat
|
|
| 1984 | Tour-Spiel
|
Comprises four cover songs. |
| 1985 | Project: Mersh
| |
| 1986 | Minuteflag
|
Collaboration with the members of Black Flag. |
| 1993 | Georgeless
|
Live EP of a concert in March 1980 with Frank Tonche as drummer. |
| 2011 | Minutemen/Saccharine Trust split 7-inch
|
3 songs each band recorded in 80/81 that were only available on Comp Records. |
Compilations
| Year | Title | Comments |
|---|---|---|
| 1984 | The Politics of Time
|
Features seven songs meant for a non-SST album, a number of live tracks, and a Reactionaries song. |
| 1985 | My First Bells
|
|
| 1987 | Post-Mersh Vol. 1
|
Combines The Punch Line and What Makes a Man Start Fires? on one CD. |
| 1988 | Post-Mersh Vol. 2
|
Combines the EPs Buzz or Howl Under the Influence of Heat and Project: Mersh on one CD. |
| 1989 | Post-Mersh Vol. 3
|
Combines four EPs (Paranoid Time, Joy, Bean-Spill, and Tour-Spiel) and The Politics of Time on one CD. |
| 1998 | Introducing the Minutemen
|
Compilation appearances
| Year | Compilation | Songs | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1980 | Cracks in the Sidewalk | "9:30 May 2" | Later released on My First Bells. The compilation was New Alliance Records' first release. |
| 1981 | Chunks | "Clocks" | Later released on My First Bells. |
| Rodney on the Roq: Volume 2 | "Search" | From The Punch Line. | |
| Life Is Beautiful So Why Not Eat Health Foods? | "Prelude" | T. Rex cover, later released on My First Bells. | |
| American Youth Report | "Working Men are Pissed" | Later released on The Politics of Time. | |
| The Future Looks Bright Ahead | "Punch Line", "Warfare", "Straight Jacket", "Tension" | Later released on The Punch Line. | |
| 1982 | Life Is Ugly So Why Not Kill Yourself? | "Shit You Hear at Parties", "Maternal Rite" | Later released on The Politics of Time. |
| 1983 | Hell Comes to Your House Part II | "Corona" | Later released on Double Nickels on the Dime. |
| The Blasting Concept | "Paranoid Chant", "The Maze", "Boiling", "Games" | "Paranoid Chant" and "The Maze" from Paranoid Time, and "Boiling" and "Games" from The Punch Line. | |
| We Got Power | "Party with Me Punker" | Later released on The Politics of Time. | |
| The Radio Tokyo Tapes | "I Felt Like A Gringo" | From Buzz or Howl Under The Influence of Heat. | |
| 1984 | Rat Music for Rat People Vol. 2 (CD Presents) | "Fake Contest (live - KCRW 11/27/82)" | Studio version from What Makes a Man Start Fires?. |
| Mystic Sampler #1 | "Party with Me Punker" | Later released on The Politics of Time. | |
| Meathouse 1 | "Split Red", "Base King", "Prelude" | "Split Red" from Bean Spill, "Base King" from The Politics of Time. "Prelude" is a T. Rex cover, later released on My First Bells. | |
| 1985 | The Radio Tokyo Tapes, Vol. 3 | "Time" | Richard Hell cover |
| 1986 | The Blasting Concept Vol. 2 | "Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Love" | Van Halen cover from Double Nickels on the Dime. Chorusless version of the song. |
| The 7 Inch Wonders of the World | "Validation", "The Maze", "Definitions", "Sickles and Hammers", "Fascist", "Joe McCarthy's Ghost", "Paranoid Chant" | All the songs of Paranoid Time. | |
| 1987 | The Best Of The Radio Tokyo Tapes | "I Felt Like A Gringo" | From Buzz or Howl Under the Influence of Heat. |
| 1988 | SST Acoustic | "Stories" | From 3-Way Tie (For Last). |
| 1990 | CMJ 10 | "Political Song For Michael Jackson To Sing" | From Double Nickels on the Dime. |
| Duck and Cover | "Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Love" | ||
| 1994 | Our Band Could Be Your Life | "Badges (live)" | A Minutemen tribute album, featuring covers of Minutemen songs by various artists. "Badges" is a live version recorded with Richard Derrick on drums. |
| 1997 | Live at WREK | "Political Nightmare" | From 3-Way Tie (For Last) |
| 2000 | Gimmie Indie Rock V.1 | "Political Song For Michael Jackson To Sing" | From Double Nickels on the Dime. |
| Under the Influence | "History Lesson - Part II", "Storm In My House" | ||
| 2002 | Modern Rock | "Courage" | From 3-Way Tie (For Last). |
| 2003 | D. Boon and Friends | "I Felt Like A Gringo", "Self-Referenced", God Bows to Math", "Themselves", "#1 Hit Song", "History Lesson - Part II" | "I Felt Like A Gringo" and "Self-Referenced" from Buzz or Howl Under The Influence of Heat, others from Double Nickels on the Dime. |
| 2004 | Party or Go Home | "Party with Me Punker" | From The Politics of Time. |
| Left of the Dial | "Political Song For Michael Jackson To Sing" | From Double Nickels on the Dime. |
Soundtrack appearances
| Year | Video | Songs | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1989 | Streets on Fire | "Paranoid Chant", "I Felt Like A Gringo" | Skateboarding video soundtracks. |
| Savannah Slamma III | "Dream Told By Moto", "Cut", "I Felt Like A Gringo" | ||
| 1995 | 5 Prime | "Little Man With A Gun In His Hand" | |
| 1998 | Strip Mall Heroes | ||
| 1999 | Magic | "Anxious Mofo" | |
| 2003 | Jackass: The Movie | "Corona" | Film soundtrack. "Corona" was also the theme music in the TV series. |
| 2004 | Levelland | "Little Man With A Gun In His Hand", "Shit From An Old Notebook", "This Ain't No Picnic", "History Lesson - Part II" | Film soundtrack. |
| 2004 | Word Wars | "Do You Want New Wave (Or Do You Want the Truth)", "The Glory of Man" |
Promotional releases
| Year | Title | Comments |
|---|---|---|
| 1984 | Wheels of Fortune
|
Sampler of nine songs from Double Nickels on the Dime. |
| 1985 | "Courage"
|
From their then-forthcoming album 3 Way-Tie (For Last), the single features three songs, "Courage", "What Is It?" and "Stories". |
Music videos
| Year | Title | Director | Album |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1984 | "Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Love" | Randall Jahnson | Double Nickels on the Dime |
| "This Ain't No Picnic" | |||
| 1985 | "King Of The Hill" | Project: Mersh | |
| "Ack Ack Ack" | John Talley-Jones | 3-Way Tie (For Last) |
Videography
| Year | VHS/DVD | Comments |
|---|---|---|
| 1986 | The Tour
|
Includes live performance by the Minutemen, Hüsker Dü, Meat Puppets, SWA, and Saccharine Trust as recorded in March 1985. |
| 2006 | We Jam Econo - The Story of the Minutemen
|
Two disc set. Includes the feature-length film We Jam Econo, the Minutemen's music videos and previously unseen interviews and scenes on the first disc, and several live shows on the second. |
| 2011 | "A History Lesson Part 1 Punk Rock in Los Angeles in 1984"
|
Live performances of 6 Minutemen songs in 1984 from the Olympic Auditorium in Los Angeles and the Cathay De Grande in Hollywood and an interview of Mike Watt. Also featured are performances and interviews of the Meat Puppets, Redd Kross, and Twisted Roots. |
Notes
- ^ Azerrad, 2001. p. 68
- ^ Azerrad, 2001. pp. 69-71
- ^ Azerrad, 2001. p. 82
- ^ Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Minutemen > Biography". Allmusic. Retrieved 2007-10-22.
- ^ Deming, Mark. "Ballot Result > Overview". Allmusic. Retrieved 2007-10-30.
- ^ Christgau, Robert. "CG: Minuteflag". RobertChristgau.com.
- ^ Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Post-Mersh, Vol 1. > Overview". Allmusic. Retrieved 2007-10-30.
- ^ "We Jam Econo : The Story of the Minutemen". TheMinutemen.com. Retrieved 2007-10-30.
- ^ "Odds and ends". Corndogs.org. Archived from the original on 2007-10-13. Retrieved 2007-11-12.
- ^ Weld, Henry. "Southern California: Compilation and Labels". Collectorscum.com. Retrieved 2007-11-12.
- ^ Weld, Henry. "Volume 3: Compilations from various states". Collectorscum.com. Retrieved 2007-11-12.
- ^ Dougan, John. "7 Inch Wonders of the World". Allmusic. Retrieved 2007-11-13.
- ^ "SST Acoustic Compilation". Allmusic. Retrieved 2007-11-13.
References
- Azerrad, Michael. Our Band Could Be Your Life. Little, Brown and Company, 2001. ISBN 0-316-78753-1