Customer Reviews

MALL to MARS

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I usually don't go to the Mall. But When Bill Spooner opened one up, it was worth the trip. This shophmore release from (one of the the fromer Tubes members)is just a little slow getting off the ground.But the booster rockets engage and the flight is most enjoyable. Of special note is the title song Mall to Mars. Firm backing in all areas and a solid vocal preformance, make this kick ass. Spooner has always had a good sense for being a bit cyinical and this is eveident in the lyrics you hear throughtout these offerings. It adds additional entertainment to his story telling. Upscale Yuppie and all the following songs also present solid backing vocals. And the tremandous backing from Prairie Prince on drums doesn't hurt at all !!! Spooner does a great jobs with his vocal presentation but he could use some extra help to add some additional "body" with the presntation. Over all well worth the purchase.

I think I found the funnybone the Tubes seem to have lost. It's on Bill Spooner's Mall to Mars. This is no Tubes record, but it's as close as you can get since there heyday in the late 70's. Spooner is an unsung guitar hero and emotive vocalist. Stand out tracks are "Mall to Mars", "Fryboy" and "Upscale Yuppie Seafood Restaurant Blues". A heartfelt rendition of the Richard and Linda Thompson classic "Dimming of the Day" is worth the price of the cd itself. Over all this cd has some great moments. Check it out!

Spooner's second solo disc (following the uneven but interesting "First C.H.U.D." in 1985) finds good ole Sputnik with his sense of humor still intact. Perhaps the track "They Kicked Me Out Of The Band" is a bit of a cathartic release for him, too. Not all of the material shines, but his cover of Richard and Linda Thompson's "Dimming of the Day" pre-dates Bonnie Raitt's version by a year or two and is just as good. "Upscale...Blues" is note-for-note Sputnik, and "Hermuta" is a track from the EARLY days of the Tubes (or The Beans, or however far back you want to take it). Could have done without the "Star Trek" theme and the pedestrian "Grooves In Orbit". But to the Tubes fans everywhere this is an indispensible collector's item. Bill would release solo disc #3 "Demolicious" soon after, and see if you can track down some tunes by his sometime-band The Folk-Ups.

Bill "Sputnik" Spooner, one of the founding members of The Tubes, has his second solo effort with the Mall to Mars.

This is a fun album, with a lot of blues influences, and some of the songwriting qualities that made The Tubes what they were and are. There is a lot of humor here, but no need to check your sensibilities at the airlock. Its all fun.

There are many good, fun tracks on this CD, and a couple more mellow ones to balance it all out. "Upscale Yuppie Seafood Restraunt Blues" is an experiment in song titles with more than five words and time signatures to boot. "Upscale" is in a 7/4 structure, and this gives it an odd, almost rushed feeling in some ways, but it meshes so well with the lyrics that it feels just right. Grooves in orbit sounds like a fun exploration of the music and fun to come while you shop your way to the red planet.

Fry Boy makes me think of Beavis and Butthead for some reason (not that I was a big fan or watched the show a lot, its just what the song makes me think of), and makes you question ever going to a fast food joint again, especially if you see that fry boy in the back. They Kicked me Out of the Band has a bluesy feel, in a more lighthearted manner. Dimming of the Day has a much slower tempo and relaxed feel, romantic in a way. A Tubes song 'back in the day', "Hermuta" is an updated take on an old Sputnik original.

The theme from Star Trek is an interesting instrumental peice, with a good arrangement, especially for a rock band. The final track wrapping up the CD and the space theme is "When Stars Collide", again, an interesting arrangement and very well done.

Although some tracks may be weaker than others in some respects, the overall fun, good time feeling remains stable throughout.