Smartass – Attitude, Depression, Bourbon & Da Backbeat [DOWNLOAD]
Growing up just outside of Atlanta in the late 80’s/early 90’s was pretty cool. Not that Jonesboro, GA itself was cool or that school was cool (it actually sucked) but Atlanta had some really cool bands back then. When I was in high school and hanging w/ all my metalhead friends, there were two bands that were always talked about. Panda and SmartAss. Panda was pretty cool but I just never dug the fact that their mascot was a pink bear, but SmartAss, that was a band I could get behind.
They had a cassette that floated around my school called “The Cheap Ass EP” that we just played the shit out of. We manged to see them live a couple of times and always thought their shows were fun but then sometime after I got out of high school, things changed. SmartAss was still around but the lineup had changed and they actually turned into a much better band. The sound was less “metal” and more of the bloozy rock and roll sound that was being popularized by bands like The Black Crowes and even across the pond in the UK by the Quireboys.
Was this intentional in order to keep up w/ the trends? I’m not quite sure but they pulled it off and did it pretty well. The results were captured on an album called “Attitude, Depression, Bourbon & Da Backbeat” released in 1993. Back then, not just any band could put out CDs like they can now so it was a big deal. There was a huge CD release show at the International Ballroom and local favorites Mr. Fleckno and Lozt Cauz opened the show. I remember SmartAss playing with all the confidence and ability of the “big bands” and they really wowed the audience with a high energy, electrifying show.
15 years later, I can still listen to this album and remember how much fun a SmartAss show was. The production of this album is not all that great but then again, for the time I remember thinking it sounded so professional and amazing. While some of the songs are down right painful to listen to (Rubber Duck, Last Man On Earth, I Don’t Like It), others hold up quite well and are really fun to listen to (Feeling No Pain, Stones or Roses, In Turn). It’s a great little gem and reminder of the good times! Enjoy some SmartAss folks!
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