In My Tribe

10,000 Maniacs | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (October 25, 1990)
• Original Release Date: July 7, 1987
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Elektra / Wea
• ASIN: B000002H4S
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Audio Cassette  |  Vinyl  |  MiniDisc  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (73 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #14,660 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #30 in Music > Alternative Rock > Indie & Lo-Fi > Jangle Pop

Track Listings

1. What's The Matter Here?

2. Hey Jack Kerouac

3. Like The Weather

4. Cherry Tree

5. The Painted Desert

6. Don't Talk

7. Gun Shy

8. My Sister Rose

9. A Campfire Song

10. City Of Angels

11. Verdi Cries

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

28 of 29 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Solid Folk Rock Album, July 20, 2002

By 

Brian D. Rubendall (Oakton, VA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: In My Tribe (Audio CD)

In addition to being the band that launched Natalie Merchant's career, 10,000 Maniacs were among the best of the late 1980s college rock groups that gained popularity in the wake of R.E.M.'s success. "In My Tribe" was the Merchant and Company's best album, containing the ace single "Like the Weather," and accompanying material that is just as strong. Other highlights are the child abuse take "What's the Matter Here," the tribute "Hey Jack Kerouac," and the catchy "Don't Talk." Unfortunately, the band pulled their wonderful cover version of Cat Stevens's "Peace Train" off of subsequent pressings of this album after Stevens's coversion to radical Islam and his support of Ayatolah Khomeni's call for Muslims to kill author Salmon Rushdie for publishing "The Satanic Verses." While I support the band's thinking, it robs the album of one of its best performances.

Overall, an excellent record that sounds as fresh today as when it was released in 1987.

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Passionate, beautiful, important music, January 29, 2003

By 

Daniel Jolley "darkgenius" (Shelby, North Carolina USA) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: In My Tribe (Audio CD)

This really is an amazingly good album, filled with depth and passion and shaped by one of music's most distinct, compelling voices (Natalie Merchant). I actually bought this album long ago, before I had even heard any 10,000 Maniacs music. The name of the group had a certain appeal to me, and there is something about the cover and its enticing shade of purple that drew me to it. Of course, what matters here is really the music, and I think this album reveals the very heart and soul of Natalie Merchant and the Maniacs. Not yet superstars, all of the musicians poured copious amounts of passion into each and every song, making this music both incredibly enchanting to the ears and compelling to the heart and mind. Merchant's unique voice is a beacon of soul-seeking enlightenment examining themes most artists (as well as most people) often shy away from. For example, What's the Matter Here? focuses on child abuse, Don't Talk addresses a struggling alcoholic, and Gun Shy is a plaintive lament for a world in which soldiers are needed. Cherry Tree, my favorite, is a song about the personal shame illiteracy can engender in a person, and it expresses such passion and joy in the prospect of learning that it could well serve as the de facto theme song for any adult literacy program. Verdi Cries is, quite simply, hauntingly beautiful. It is unfortunate (yet understandable) that the group's cover of Cat Stevens' Peace Train was removed from later releases of the album because I quite enjoy it-it's certainly much better than the original.

About the Weather is really the only song I remember ever getting playing time on the radio, but there are at least half a dozen songs on here that I find even more enjoyable. R.E.M. fans might be interested to know that Michael Stipe lends his voice (albeit rather briefly) to A Campfire Song. I can't get very excited about My Sister Rose, but every other song on the album is simply fabulous. Merchant's devotion to the music is beyond question, considering the fact that she essentially collapsed from exhaustion during the tour that followed this impeccable album's release. It's almost impossible to get tired of any of these songs, no matter how many times you listen to them.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars is not enough, May 3, 2004

By 

Philip F. Attinger "hikecyclerock" (Winter Haven, FL) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: In My Tribe (Audio CD)

At age 17, I had an old blue VW Beetle with a tape deck, an invitation to visit my older brothers at the University of Alabama, a 2 1/2-hour drive, and this album on tape - recorded from an album. I listened to it all the way down and all the way back, and the stereo at the party that weekend played these tunes.
Now, 16 years later, I still have the tape - worn, cutting out in places. My sister pushed REC by mistake in the middle of "Don't Talk" and now her gasp is stuck in the middle of it - but I still listen. My favorites have to be "Cherry Tree," "Campfire Song," "Like the Weather" (of course), and "City of Angels."
It's the perfect soundtrack to a weekend or a life.