Customer Reviews

What Up, Dog?

5 star:		(16)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Just what it was that made Was (Not Was) so very special is a little hard to pin down: the crisp tight production, the ability to seamlessly go from funky r'n'b to lounge to rock to heartbreaking ballads to whatever other style they chose, the sensational vocals of Sir Harry Bowens and Sweet Pea Atkinson or their ability to write memorable melodies and couple them with some of the wittiest, most bizarre or touching lyrics in popular music? Could be all of the above. Whatever it was, they are all amply demonstrated on this album - their finest hour. For me, the achingly beautiful and tragi-comic balladry of Somewhere In America, Anything Can Happen and Anytime Lisa are standouts. But then so are the funky (and so clever) Spy In The House Of Love, Out Come The Freaks and Boy's Gone Crazy. Despite the wide range of styles there is not a dud track here and in 2002 this album still sounds as strong and fresh as it ever did.

Read the other reviews. This is the album to take with you if you are tranferred to the moon. It is the best of Weiss & Fagenson's simply incredible sampler albums. All of them are must-haves.

Check out this partial lyric (from _Shadow and Jimmy_, track 15):

Men without women are like fish without
Water to swim in
With their eyes bugging out
They flop on the beach
And look up at the girls
Who are just out of reach

Now, this lyric is delivered (by Sir Harry, I believe) totally straight, and very musically. But I was listening to this album again today, and I had to pull my car over to the side of the road to keep from killing someone, I was laughing so hard.

I wish that 1) Weiss and Fagenson would get off their duffs and release their first WNW album on CD (I have the vinyl), and 2) They would release the "new" material that was rumored to be in the can circa 1999-2000.

I love these guys.

The title What Up Dog? begs the reviewer to open his comments with: Well, I'll tell you what up. These are two goofy guys (David and Don) from Detroit who make jumping dance tempo R&B with a heavy touch of zany lyrics - sort of Chic meets Jonathan Richman. Lead vocalists Sir Harry Bowens and Sweet Pea Atkinson sound as sweet and soulful as Little Anthony fronting the Imperials (Somewhere In America There's A Street Named After My Dad, Love Can Be Bad Luck, Anything Can Happen, Wedding Vows In Vegas). The two crooners will have you thinking that you're listening to Motown's Greatest Hits. The straight-up dance numbers (Spy In The House Of Love, Out Come The Freaks, Robot Girl, Walk Like A Dinosaur) are robust and rhythmic. Pop the CD in your car player and do the funky chicken (or whatever it's call this week) on your drive to work. I was in tears when the clubs stopped playing this stuff about 10 years ago.

What Up Dog? is a jaunting dance grove, but what pushes the CD into the realm of masterpiece is the lyrical craziness. `Somewhere In America' there is a quiet neighborhood with "no saber-tooth neighbors" and "no day care Felinis." In `Spy In The House Of Love' the spy admits "I used a tiny camera - I thought I'd Japanese her." `11 MPH' is a funky composition about assignation. `Anytime Lisa' is the town tramp whom David and Don treat with compassion. And the grand finale is the cynical `Dad I'm In Jail.' Must be heard to be appreciated. Danceable R&B with lyrics actually worth paying attention to. Contagious material.

I was cleaning out some old CD's and picked this one up. I hadn't listened to it in a long time and figured I'd give it to my ex-husband, since I knew he liked it way back when. Well, on the way to his house, I listened to it in the car. By the time I got there, I had decided to keep it! I forgot just how great this CD is. Really great stuff. My youngest loves "Walk the Dinosaur", "Robot Girl", and "Dad I'm in Jail". You can't get "Spy in the House of Love" out of your head. Very groovable. You really want to move to this music. Great writing too... "11 mph" is great, as is "Somewhere in America there's a Street named after my Dad".

This has got to be the most criminally underated album of all time. It has the lot, great vocals, humour, style, fantastic playing and an eclectic mix of styles. Perhaps it was just too clever to achieve popular acclaim. Too bad that they dont still make records, although the Orquestre Was album is rather good too. Highly recommended.

This record is fun whether you dance, groove or like lyrics with a sense of humor. Both the tunes and the messages they carry will stick with you. Great, pleasantly funky record for an outdoor barbeque (although you'll have some explaining to do when "Dad, I'm in Jail" starts up!)

This is the one. If I could only listen to one CD on an extended stay on a tropical island, this would be the one. What can I say? I've been listening to this disc at least once a month since its debut in 1989 and I still find it fresh, funky and exciting.

The sheer variety of music on the album is a marvel. From the pure adolescent pop of "Anything Can Happen" to the hard rocking "11 mph" to the slinky urban reggae of "Shadow & Jimmy," it's all here. Favorite tracks are probably "Somewhere in America" (one of the greatest opening tracks of all time) and "Out Come the Freaks."

This is a band at its short-lived peak. I've always hoped Don Was would someday open the vault and release other material recorded by the band around this time. If such music exists, it would probably kick the butt of most of the stuff on the radio today. Most highly recommended.

PS. Does anybody know why the follow-up album, "Are You OK?" has been out of print for so long? It's not bad, it just pales in comparison to "What Up Dog."

I must admit it took me some time to fully appreciate this album--more specifically, it took me making fun of my brother's tastes when he played this in his car back when it was new, letting it drop off my radar for a long time, and then hearing a Was doing some insightful musical commentary on NPR.

So, I decided to take another chance. I don't know why, except maybe because I found it for cheap, and I was in the midst of grabbing up some Smithereens and 80's Bowie and other retro pleasures.

Most of the other stuff turned out to sound quite dated and poor, but this album really caught my attention for the first time. The Was boys have a wonderfully spontaneous and playful spirit through this album, something like an early prototype of Barenaked Ladies sensibility, except with a different record store section to play with. Was (Not Was) pull off a range of soul and R & B and pop that almost sounds like a compilation of old singles from underground AM radio--some soulful tunes like "Spy in the House of Love," but then a little goofy but danceable with "Out Come the Freaks" and of course "Walk the Dinosaur," and then onto the almost Hasil Adkins strangeness of the title track and the ever classic "Dad, I'm in Jail."

The album is all held together by the musicianship of the Was boys, who respect and explore each song fully and find its own rhythm and humor.

This is well worth another listen, if you ditched it before, like I did.

Most people know Don Was for his producing Bonnie Raitt's comeback album of '89, the B-52's '89 hit album and others. But few know that he was with the band Was Not Was. This album I still remember from 1988. It didn't sell as well, but it is a wonderful 64 minute album of some pop and soul songs just very well performed and done. I love Spy In the House of Love and its live mystery feel. The Boom Boom Shaka laka laka boom chorus of Walk the Dinosaur is still superb. But another favorite is Wedding Vows in Vegas and its humor. The album has some funny titles, but the songs cover a wide range of American music in its span. This was the setting point for Don Was' musical dominance in the early '90s!

This was one of the first albums I ever bought on my own (I was 11 years old and I had fallen in love with Walk the Dinosaur). Little did I know how excellent it was, and that I'd continue to listen to it for the next ! I'm so excited to see that this disc has a loyal, if small, following. It has more personalities than a schizophrenic. Those who only remember "Walk the Dinosaur" are missing out on the amazingly witty writing and fun tunes of the rest of What Up, Dog? I've had enough of my tape player eating my eleven-year-old tape and now I'm getting the CD. Underrated, witty, and terrific.