Character Assassination (album)
Encyclopedia
Character Assassination is the eighth solo album by Australian guitarist and songwriter Ed Kuepper
recorded in 1994 and released on the Hot label. Early pressings of the album were released with an additional disc Death to the Howdy-Doody Brigade containing the undubbed master versions of all songs but one from Character Assassination and one new song.
for the Best Independent Release at the ARIA Music Awards of 1995
and Kuepper was nominated for Best Male Artist.
The Allmusic review by Ned Raggett awarded the album 4 stars and states "Kuepper once again demonstrates his talent for instantly appealing, addictive music on Character Assassination. The whole album is for the most part a stripped-down experience, not an unplugged or wholly acoustic effort by any means and often taking a faster pace, but eschewing Kuepper's fiercer guitar work and fuller arrangements for a calmer, less explosive turn".
Bonus Disc: Death to the Howdy-Doody Brigade
Ed Kuepper
Ed Kuepper is an Australian guitarist, vocalist and songwriter. He co-founded the seminal punk band The Saints, the experimental post-punk group Laughing Clowns and later the grunge-like The Aints...
recorded in 1994 and released on the Hot label. Early pressings of the album were released with an additional disc Death to the Howdy-Doody Brigade containing the undubbed master versions of all songs but one from Character Assassination and one new song.
Reception
The album spent 3 weeks in the Australian charts in 1994 peaking at number 32. Character Assassination was nominated for an ARIAARIA Music Awards
The Australian Recording Industry Association Music Awards is an annual series of awards nights celebrating the Australian music industry, put on by the Australian Recording Industry Association...
for the Best Independent Release at the ARIA Music Awards of 1995
ARIA Music Awards of 1995
The Ninth Australian Recording Industry Association Music Awards was held on 20 October 1995 at the Sydney Convention & Exhibition Centre. There had been a 19-month gap since the previous award ceremony which was moved to be "closer to the business end of the music industry's year"...
and Kuepper was nominated for Best Male Artist.
The Allmusic review by Ned Raggett awarded the album 4 stars and states "Kuepper once again demonstrates his talent for instantly appealing, addictive music on Character Assassination. The whole album is for the most part a stripped-down experience, not an unplugged or wholly acoustic effort by any means and often taking a faster pace, but eschewing Kuepper's fiercer guitar work and fuller arrangements for a calmer, less explosive turn".
Track listing
- All compositions by Ed Kuepper except as indicated
- "By the Way" - 4:03
- "Little Fiddle (and the Ghost of Xmas Past)" - 4:23
- "Cockfighter" - 3:43
- "My Best Interests at Heart" - 4:27
- "Take It by the Hand" - 3:46
- "La Di Doh" - 5:07
- "I'm with You" - 3:07
- "Ill Wind" - 6:37
- "So Close to Certainty" - 4:44
- "A Good Soundtrack (Pushin' Fear)" - 3:36
- "Ring of FireRing of Fire-Music:* Ring of Fire, a Johnny Cash song, written by his wife, June** Ring of Fire: The Best of Johnny Cash, an album by Johnny Cash** Ring of Fire , a musical theater production on the life of Johnny Cash...
" (June Carter CashJune Carter CashValerie June Carter Cash was an American singer, dancer, songwriter, actress, comedienne and author who was a member of the Carter Family and the second wife of singer Johnny Cash...
, Merle KilgoreMerle KilgoreWyatt Merle Kilgore was an American singer, songwriter, and manager.-Early life:Although born in Chickasha, Oklahoma, Merle Kilgore was raised in Shreveport, Louisiana. He was the son of Wyatt and Gladys B. Kilgore...
) - 4:04 - "If I Had a Ticket" - 2:40
Bonus Disc: Death to the Howdy-Doody Brigade
- "By the Way" - 4:03
- "Little Fiddle (and the Ghost of Xmas Past) - 4:23
- "Cockfighter" - 3:43
- "My Best Interests at Heart" - 4:27
- "Take It by the Hand" - 3:46
- "La Di Doh" - 5:07
- "I'm with You" - 3:07
- "Ill Wind" - 6:37
- "So Close to Certainty" - 4:44
- "A Good Soundtrack (Pushin' Fear)" - 3:36
- "Ring of Fire" (Cash, Kilgore) - 4:04
- "Number 10" - 2:40
- Recorded at Electric Avenue Studio, Rozelle, Sydney, Australia.
Personnel
- Ed KuepperEd KuepperEd Kuepper is an Australian guitarist, vocalist and songwriter. He co-founded the seminal punk band The Saints, the experimental post-punk group Laughing Clowns and later the grunge-like The Aints...
- vocals, acoustic guitarAcoustic guitarAn acoustic guitar is a guitar that uses only an acoustic sound board. The air in this cavity resonates with the vibrational modes of the string and at low frequencies, which depend on the size of the box, the chamber acts like a Helmholtz resonator, increasing or decreasing the volume of the sound...
, electric guitarElectric guitarAn electric guitar is a guitar that uses the principle of direct electromagnetic induction to convert vibrations of its metal strings into electric audio signals. The signal generated by an electric guitar is too weak to drive a loudspeaker, so it is amplified before sending it to a loudspeaker...
, elastic stringed guitar, bassBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
, bottleBottleA bottle is a rigid container with a neck that is narrower than the body and a "mouth". By contrast, a jar has a relatively large mouth or opening. Bottles are often made of glass, clay, plastic, aluminum or other impervious materials, and typically used to store liquids such as water, milk, soft... - Mark Dawson - 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 ....
, percussion - Barry Turnbull - bass
- Linda Neil - violinViolinThe violin is a string instrument, usually with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is the smallest, highest-pitched member of the violin family of string instruments, which includes the viola and cello....
- Naomi Star, Toni Mott - backing vocals
- Miroslav BukovskyMiroslav BukovskyMiroslav Bukovsky is one of Australia's leading jazz trumpeters and composer/arrangers.He has won the Jazz Action Society's Jazz Composers Competition several times and also teaches and does session work. He won an ARIA Award for Best Jazz Album of 1994 with his band Wanderlust, formed in 1991,...
, Julian Gough, Herb Cannon - horn sectionHorn sectionIn music, a horn section can refer to several groups of musicians. It can refer to the musicians in a symphony orchestra who play the horn . In a British-style brass band it refers to the tenor horn players. In popular music, it can also refer to a small group of wind instrumentalists who augment a... - Charlie McMahonCharlie McMahonCharlie McMahon is an Australian didgeridoo player. The founder of the group Gondwanaland, McMahon was one of the first non-Aboriginal musicians to gain fame as a professional player of the instrument.He is also the inventor of the didjeribone, a sliding didgeridoo made from two lengths of...
- didgeridooDidgeridooThe didgeridoo is a wind instrument developed by Indigenous Australians of northern Australia around 1,500 years ago and still in widespread usage today both in Australia and around the world. It is sometimes described as a natural wooden trumpet or "drone pipe"... - Jim ConwayJim ConwayJim Conway is an Australian harmonica player and with his brother, Mic Conway, was a co-founder of the 1970s humour, theatre and rock group, The Captain Matchbox Whoopee Band....
- harmonicaHarmonicaThe harmonica, also called harp, French harp, blues harp, and mouth organ, is a free reed wind instrument used primarily in blues and American folk music, jazz, country, and rock and roll. It is played by blowing air into it or drawing air out by placing lips over individual holes or multiple holes...
, jaw harp - Peter Burgess - washboardWashboardA washboard is a tool designed for hand washing clothing. With mechanized cleaning of clothing becoming more common by the end of the 20th century, the washboard has become better known for its originally subsidiary use as a musical instrument....