A Guided Tour of Chicago
Encyclopedia
A Guided Tour of Chicago is a punk rock
album by the Chicago, Illinois band The Lawrence Arms
, released in 1999 by Asian Man Records
. It was the band's first album, notable because the band had not previously released any EP
s or 7" singles (traditionally, punk rock bands begin their careers with these types of short, low-budget releases before moving on to full-length studio albums).
At this early point in their career, several of the band's songs resembled those of their previous band The Broadways
, being political in nature (such as "Kevin Costner's Casino"), something which they later almost completely phased out in favor of personal/introspective lyrics. Singer/bassist Brendan Kelly
sings almost all of the lead vocals on this album, whereas on later works he and singer/guitarist Chris McCaughan
moved towards singing lead on roughly equal numbers of songs; and on Oh! Calcutta!
tended to share vocal duties within songs, by singing together and/or alternating lines.
Punk rock
Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
album by the Chicago, Illinois band The Lawrence Arms
The Lawrence Arms
The Lawrence Arms are an American punk rock band from Chicago, Illinois, formed in 1999. They have released five full-length albums and toured extensively.-Pre-history:...
, released in 1999 by Asian Man Records
Asian Man Records
Asian Man Records is a small, DIY record label run by Mike Park in Monte Sereno, California. Park started a record label and began releasing music in 1989 under the name Dill Records, with the Asian Man label established May 1996.-Artists:...
. It was the band's first album, notable because the band had not previously released any EP
Extended play
An EP is a musical recording which contains more music than a single, but is too short to qualify as a full album or LP. The term EP originally referred only to specific types of vinyl records other than 78 rpm standard play records and LP records, but it is now applied to mid-length Compact...
s or 7" singles (traditionally, punk rock bands begin their careers with these types of short, low-budget releases before moving on to full-length studio albums).
At this early point in their career, several of the band's songs resembled those of their previous band The Broadways
The Broadways
The Broadways were a short-lived punk band from Chicago, Illinois, formed in 1996 after the dissolution of the influential ska-punk band Slapstick. The latter's vocalist Brendan Kelly and trumpet player Dan Hanaway assumed the roles of bassist and guitarist, joined by Rob DePaola on drums and Chris...
, being political in nature (such as "Kevin Costner's Casino"), something which they later almost completely phased out in favor of personal/introspective lyrics. Singer/bassist Brendan Kelly
Brendan Kelly
Brendan Kelly may refer to:*Brendan Kelly *Brendan Kelly *Brendan Kelly...
sings almost all of the lead vocals on this album, whereas on later works he and singer/guitarist Chris McCaughan
Chris McCaughan
Chris McCaughan is the guitarist and vocalist in the band The Lawrence Arms. McCaughan was formerly the guitarist for the bands Tricky Dick and The Broadways ....
moved towards singing lead on roughly equal numbers of songs; and on Oh! Calcutta!
Oh! Calcutta! (album)
Oh! Calcutta! is a punk rock album by the Chicago, Illinois band The Lawrence Arms, released in 2006 by Fat Wreck Chords. It is the band's fifth full-length album and their third to be released on Fat Wreck Chords...
tended to share vocal duties within songs, by singing together and/or alternating lines.
Track listing
- "Intro" – 0:04
- "An Evening of Extraordinary Circumstance" – 2:57
- "Kevin Costner's Casino" – 1:45
- "A Guided Tour of Chicago" – 2:43
- "Take One Down and Pass it Around" – 1:46
- "Someday We're All Gonna Weigh 400 lbs." – 1:59
- "The Northside, the L&L, and Any Number of Crappy Apartments" – 3:12
- "Smokestacks" – 2:14
- "Detention" – 2:09
- "Uptown Free Radio" – 1:44
- "Eighteen Inches" – 5:59
Performers
- Chris McCaughanChris McCaughanChris McCaughan is the guitarist and vocalist in the band The Lawrence Arms. McCaughan was formerly the guitarist for the bands Tricky Dick and The Broadways ....
– guitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
, vocals - Brendan KellyBrendan KellyBrendan Kelly may refer to:*Brendan Kelly *Brendan Kelly *Brendan Kelly...
– bassBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
, vocals - Neil HennessyNeil HennessyNeil Kevin Hennessy is a musician and music producer/engineer from Chicago, Illinois.Hennessy currently plays in The Lawrence Arms, Colossal, The Falcon, The Smoking Popes and Demon Beach. He has also been a member of Noise By Numbers, Baxter, The Killing Tree, and Quattro.Hennessy works at Atlas...
– drumsDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
Album information
- Record label: Asian Man RecordsAsian Man RecordsAsian Man Records is a small, DIY record label run by Mike Park in Monte Sereno, California. Park started a record label and began releasing music in 1989 under the name Dill Records, with the Asian Man label established May 1996.-Artists:...
- Recorded spring of 1999 by Mike Giampa and Andy
- Photographs by Heather Hogan, Rachel Burns, Grant Quick, Brendan Kelly and Neil Hennessy
- Logo by Chris Bach
- Drawing by Marc Z