Lolita Nation is the fourth official album by Game Theory

Game Theory (band)

Game Theory was an American rock band from 1981 to 1989. The group's lead singer, Scott Miller, went on to front the band The Loud Family. Game Theory is best known for its double LP Lolita Nation. The band favored hyper-literary references, a la Jean-Luc Godard, including the evident...

. Originally released in 1987 as a double LP, it is often considered to be the group's finest work. Mark Deming of Allmusic notes that the album contains "more than a few flat-out brilliant tracks" [], while William Ham, writing for Dancing About Architecture, praises its emotional impact, insularity, and melodic virtuosity. He also asserts that " [Scott] Miller's lyrics, like those of vintage Elvis Costello, careen all over the place verbally yet somehow manage to plug directly into the emotions."http://www.dancingaboutarc.com/essays/gameessay.html. Joe S. Harrington places Lolita Nation at number 4 on his list of the Top 100 Albums Of All Time http://www.blastitude.com/14/pg4.htm, while Culturespill's Omar Ghieth flatly calls it "the greatest album of all time." http://culturespill.com/?tag=lolita-nation. Although it garnered little commercial success upon its release, Lolita Nation has become a highly sought-after collector's item, with CD copies changing hands for as much as $100 in online auctions.

Track listing

All songs written by Scott Miller

Scott Miller (Californian musician)

Scott Miller was formerly a member of the 1980s power pop group Game Theory and lead singer of the group The Loud Family. Both bands were based in the San Francisco Bay Area...

 except where noted.

CD version

1. "Kenneth - What's The Frequency?" – 0:46
2. "Not Because You Can" – 3:04 (S. Miller/D. Thayer)
3. "Shard" – 0:22
4. "Go Ahead You're Dying To" – 0:37
5. "Dripping With Looks" – 4:00
6. "Exactly What We Don't Want to Hear" – 1:01
7. "We Love You Carol and Alison" – 3:27
8. "The Waist and the Knees" – 6:08
9. "Nothing New" – 4:21
10. "The World's Easiest Job" – 1:38
11. "Look Away" – 3:20 (D. Thayer)
12. "Slip" - 3:35
13. "The Real Sheila" - 3:35
14. "Andy in Ten Years" - 3:50
15. "Watch Who You're Calling Space Garbage Meteor Mouth/Pretty Green Card Shark" - 0:18
16. "Where They Have To Let You In" - 2:27 (G. Ray)
17. "Turn Me On Dead Man" - 0:28
18. "Mammoth Gardens" - 4:02 (D. Thayer/S. Miller)
19. "Little Ivory" - 3:17
20. "Museum of Hopelessness" - 0:10
21. "Toby Ornette" - 2:29 (S. LaFreniere)
22. "All Clockwork and No Bodily Fluid Makes Hal a Dull Metal Humbert / In Heaven Every Elephant Baby Wants to Be So Full of Sting / Paul Simon in the Park with Canticle / But You Can't Pick Your Friends / Vacuum Genesis / DEFMACROS / HOWSOMETH / INGDOTIME / SALENGTHS / OMETHINGL / ETBFOLLOW / AAFTERNOO / NGETPRESE / NTMOMENTI / FTHINGSWO / NTALWAYSB / ETHISWAYT / BCACAUSEA / BWASTEAFT / ERNOONWHE / NEQBMERET / URNFROMSH / OWLITTLEG / REENPLACE / 27" - 1:54
23. "One More For Saint Michael" - 3:50
24. "Choose Between Two Sons" - 1:32
25. "Chardonnay" - 4:28
26. "Last Day That We're Young" - 5:07
27. "Together Now, Very Minor" - 3:29

Vinyl version

Side 1

1. "Kenneth - What's The Frequency?"
2. "Not Because You Can" (S. Miller/ D. Thayer)
3. "Shard"
4. "Go Ahead You're Dying To"
5. "Dripping With Looks"
6. "Exactly What We Don't Want to Hear"
7. "We Love You Carol and Alison"
8. "The Waist and the Knees"

Side 2

1. "Nothing New"
2. "The World's Easiest Job"
3. "Look Away" (D. Thayer)
4. "Slip"
5. "The Real Sheila"
6. "Andy in Ten Years"

Side 3

1. "Watch Who You're Calling Space Garbage Meteor Mouth"
2. "Pretty Green Card Shark"
3. "Where They Have To Let You In" (G. Ray)
4. "Turn Me On Dead Man"
5. "Mammoth Gardens" (D. Thayer/S. Miller)
6. "Little Ivory"
7. "Museum of Hopelessness"
8. "Toby Ornette" (S. La Freniere)
9. "All Clockwork and No Bodily Fluid Makes Hal a Dull Metal Humbert"
10. "In Heaven Every Elephant Baby Wants to Be So Full of Sting"
11. "Paul Simon in the Park with Canticle"
12. "But You Can't Pick Your Friends"
13. "Vacuum Genesis"
14. "DEFMACROS"
15. "HOWSOMETH"
16. "INGDOTIME"
17. "SALENGTHS"
18. "OMETHINGL"
19. "ETBFOLLOW"
20. "AAFTERNOO"
21. "NGETPRESE"
22. "NTMOMENTI"
23. "FTHINGSWO"
24. "NTALWAYSB"
25. "ETHISWAYT"
26. "BCACAUSEA"
27. "BWASTEAFT"
28. "ERNOONWHE"
29. "NEQBMERET"
30. "URNFROMSH"
31. "OWLITTLEG"
32. "REENPLACE"
33. "27"
34. "One More For Saint Michael"
35. "Choose Between Two Sons"

Side 4

1. "Chardonnay"
2. "Last Day That We're Young"
3. "Together Now, Very Minor"

Personnel

• Guillaume Gassuan - Bass and Backing Vocals
• Gil Ray - Drums, Backing Vocals and Guitar
• Donnette Thayer
  Donnette Thayer
  Donnette Thayer is a vocalist and guitarist most active in the 1980s and early 1990s underground rock scenes. Thayer has been described as "the enchantress" , "a suave successor to California flower-pop" , and "Gaea personified"...
  
   - Guitar and Vocals
• Shelley LaFreniere - Synthesizers and Backing Vocals
• Scott Miller
  Scott Miller (Californian musician)
  Scott Miller was formerly a member of the 1980s power pop group Game Theory and lead singer of the group The Loud Family. Both bands were based in the San Francisco Bay Area...
  
   - Vocals and Guitar
• Mitch Easter
  Mitch Easter
  Mitch Easter is a songwriter, musician, and producer. As a producer, he is probably best known for his work with R.E.M. from 1981 through 1984, though he has also worked with many other acts including The Hang Ups, Pavement, Suzanne Vega, Game Theory, Marshall Crenshaw, Velvet Crush, and...
  
  - Producer and Engineer
• Robert Toren - Bass Guitar on "Toby Ornette"
• Eric Marshall - Electronic Bass Drum on "The Waist And The Knees"
• Zach Smith - Guitar Samples on "The Waist And The Knees"
• Rob Geller - Assistant Engineer