Waiting for the Punchline is Extreme

Extreme (band)

Extreme is an American rock band, headed by frontmen Gary Cherone and Nuno Bettencourt, that reached the height of their popularity in the late 1980s and early 1990s.Among some of Extreme's musical influences are Queen and Van Halen...

's fourth album

Album

An album is a collection of recordings, released as a single package on gramophone record, cassette, compact disc, or via digital distribution. The word derives from the Latin word for list .Vinyl LP records have two sides, each comprising one half of the album...

, which was released in 1995. It was labeled as a "grunge" album, but despite stripped down production and frontman Gary Cherone

Gary Cherone

Gary Francis Caine Cherone is an American rock singer-songwriter. He is best known for his work with the rock group Extreme, as well as his short stint as the lead singer for Van Halen on their 11th album Van Halen III and subsequent tour. In recent years he has released solo recordings. In 2007,...

's gruffer, less-tuneful delivery, it otherwise lacked significant deviation from Extreme's style on previous recordings. The band subsequently disbanded in 1996 after guitarist Nuno Bettencourt

Nuno Bettencourt

Nuno Duarte Gil Mendes Bettencourt is a Portuguese guitarist and singer-songwriter best known for his role as the lead guitarist of the Boston rock band Extreme whose hits include the acoustic ballads "More Than Words" and "Hole Hearted"...

 informed Extreme that he was leaving the band to pursue a solo career. After the breakup, Cherone also joined Van Halen

Van Halen

Van Halen is an American hard rock band formed in Pasadena, California, in 1972. The band has enjoyed success since the release of its debut album, Van Halen, . As of 2007 Van Halen has sold 80 million albums worldwide and has had the most #1 hits on the Billboard Mainstream Rock chart...

 in the same year as their new singer, but left three years later.

Track listing

All songs written by Gary Cherone & Nuno Bettencourt, except "There Is No God", "Tell Me Something I Don't Know" and "Naked" by Gary Cherone, Nuno Bettencourt & Pat Badger.

1. "There Is No God" - 6:07
2. "Cynical
   Cynical (song)
   "Cynical" is the first single from rock band Extreme's fourth studio album Waiting for the Punchline.The song is representative of the style of the album, which, unlike Extreme's glam and funk metal in their first three albums, is more of a grunge driven hard rock sound.-Track listing:...
   
   " - 4:41*
3. "Tell Me Something I Don't Know" - 6:25
4. "Hip Today
   Hip Today
   Hip Today is the second and last single off Extreme's fourth studio album Waiting for the Punchline, released in 1995. It is the last single the band released before breaking up and reforming in 2007....
   
   " - 4:42
5. "Naked" - 5:46
6. "Midnight Express
   Midnight Express
   Midnight Express may refer to:* Midnight Express , a 1977 book by Billy Hayes and William Hoffer** Midnight Express , a 1978 film dramatization of the book...
   
   " - 3:58
7. "Leave Me Alone" - 4:47
8. "No Respect" - 3:51
9. "Evilangelist" - 4:49
10. "Shadow Boxing" - 4:34
11. "Unconditionally" - 5:01
12. "Fair-Weather Faith" - 4:49**
13. "Waiting For The Punchline" - 6:00***

* Listed as "Cynical F**k" (official title) in the album liner notes only.

** Not included on US edition.

*** Hidden track

Hidden track

In the field of recorded music, a hidden track is a piece of music that has been placed on a CD, audio cassette, vinyl record or other recorded medium in such a way as to avoid detection by the casual listener...

. It follows after several seconds of silence.

Credits

• Gary Cherone
  Gary Cherone
  Gary Francis Caine Cherone is an American rock singer-songwriter. He is best known for his work with the rock group Extreme, as well as his short stint as the lead singer for Van Halen on their 11th album Van Halen III and subsequent tour. In recent years he has released solo recordings. In 2007,...
  
   - lead vocals
• Nuno Bettencourt
  Nuno Bettencourt
  Nuno Duarte Gil Mendes Bettencourt is a Portuguese guitarist and singer-songwriter best known for his role as the lead guitarist of the Boston rock band Extreme whose hits include the acoustic ballads "More Than Words" and "Hole Hearted"...
  
   - guitars, backing vocals
• Pat Badger
  Pat Badger
  Pat Badger is the bassist in the band Extreme. He is also a former member of Daemon, In The Pink, Super Trans Atlantic, and Tribe of Judah....
  
   - bass guitar, backing vocals
• Paul Geary
  Paul Geary
  Paul Geary is an American rock and roll drummer and manager. He was once the drummer for the Funk metal band, Extreme...
  
   - drums
• Mike Mangini
  Mike Mangini
  Mike Mangini is an American drummer, and the current drummer for the progressive metal band Dream Theater. He has played for Annihilator, Extreme, James LaBrie, and Steve Vai, among others. He lectured at the Berklee College of Music in Boston and is also known for his work as a session musician...
  
   - drums on "Hip Today", "Leave Me Alone" and "No Respect"

Chart information

Year	Album / Single	Peak Chart Positions
		Billboard 200 Billboard 200 The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...	UK Albums Chart UK Albums Chart The UK Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales in the United Kingdom. It is compiled every week by The Official Charts Company and broadcast on a Sunday on BBC Radio 1 , and published in Music Week magazine and on the OCC website .To qualify for the UK albums chart...	US Mainstream Rock	US Modern Rock
1995	Waiting For The Punchline	#40	-	-	-
	"Hip Today"	-	-	#26	-

External links

1. Extreme - Waiting For The Punchline (1995) Album Info & Review at Rockpedia.co
2. Extreme - Running Gag (1995) EP Info & Review at Rockpedia.co