the replacements

Stem-cell developments are not replacements
Amid all the hoopla over an exciting breakthrough in stem-cell research that uses skin cells instead of human embryos lies an important truth: The latest discovery should not replace research using embryonic stem cells.

The Bush White House and other politicians may pretend stunning studies in Japan and Wisconsin free them from their very uncomfortable, anti-science position on embryonic stem cells. They do not. Not yet, anyway.

Research should continue on both fronts ― with a reasonable supply of stem cells in both areas of study. The latest development, whereby human skin cells are reprogrammed to behave like embryonic stem cells, should be plus ― not in place of ― work with embryonic stem cells.

The new research means there will be a larger supply of cell lines to work with but it is not clear whether these cells have enough of the versatile attributes of stem cells derived from embryos.

The possible benefits for treating a variety of illnesses outweigh the political and religious concerns that for too long have stymied research in the U.S.

President Bush has been at odds with most Americans who understand that his decision to limit research with embryonic stem cells is a political one ― in direct conflict with science's need to advance.

It would be fantastic if new research ends the red-hot political debate. But there are still too many questions. The technique has been described by experts as still at a level of basic research.

Some politicians will see the new findings as an excuse not to have to worry about the more politically challenging use of embryonic stem cells. Presidential candidates in both parties should be pressed to say specifically how they view such federally funded research.

This should be a campaign issue. Bush has taught us that a president can stand in the way of practical scientific research.

The potential benefits for stem-cell research's impact on millions of lives are too important to let one avenue of research forestall or trump the other ― or to let another president stand in the way of scientific progress.

The Replacements
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For other uses, see The Replacements (disambiguation).
The Replacements


The Replacements in 1985, left to right: Paul Westerberg, Chris Mars, Bob Stinson, and Tommy Stinson
Background information
Origin Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA
Genre(s) Alternative rock
College rock
Punk rock
Hardcore punk
Post Punk
Years active 1979 ― 1991
2005
Label(s) Twin/Tone Records
Sire Records
Members
Paul Westerberg
Tommy Stinson
Slim Dunlap
Steve Foley
Bob Stinson
Chris Mars
The Replacements were an alternative rock band from Minneapolis, Minnesota. They began as a punk rock outfit, along with fellow Minneapolis band Hüsker Dü, but they gradually shifted to a more mainstream, pop-rock style. The band featured guitarist and vocalist Paul Westerberg, guitarist Bob Stinson, bassist Tommy Stinson, and drummer Chris Mars. Tommy Stinson was just 12 years old when the group first formed.

The band's early songs often depicted teenage angst and desire for independence. Songs such as "Kids Don't Follow" and "Bastards of Young" showed the band's desire to almost remain as free-spirited children. The band turned up drunk to many of their legendary live shows, performing chaotic cover songs that revealed their love of classic rock.[1] Nonetheless, Trouser Press claimed that they were, "for a time, the world's greatest rock'n'roll band."[2]

The Replacements released seven albums and one EP before breaking up in 1991 and toured with such artists as R.E.M. and Tom Petty. All members went on to various levels of success as solo artists after the dissolution of the band.

Contents
1 History
1.1 Formation and Twin Tone years (1979-1984)
1.2 Major label (1984-1991)
1.3 Breakup (1991-Present)
2 Legacy
3 Future Projects
4 Members
5 Discography
5.1 Albums
5.2 Compilation Albums
6 External links
7 References
8 Further reading



[edit] History

[edit] Formation and Twin Tone years (1979-1984)
The band first formed in Southwest Minneapolis as Dogbreath in 1979 as a punk rock group. Bob Stinson, his brother Tommy Stinson, and Chris Mars had been jamming together in the Stinsons' house when they were approached by Paul Westerberg and his guitar, bringing the four together for the first time. Westerberg had been performing in a Rush cover band and heard Dogbreath as he walked home each day. He vowed that he would join the group, but they already had a singer. Westerberg, through series of well-placed lies and manipulations, put the band at odds with their singer and tensions soon forced the singer to depart; Westerberg joined the band soon after. The band then took the name The Impediments for its first show, which was at a halfway house, but they were kicked out for being drunk. The person who booked them vowed to have them blacklisted in Minneapolis-St. Paul, so they quickly changed their name to The Replacements.

Their first album, 1981's Sorry Ma, Forgot to Take Out the Trash (on the local Twin/Tone Records label), features fast, aggressive songs, with lyric subjects ranging from drinking and driving to a love song about the cashier at a convenience store. Their punky songs dominated the band's set lists for years. However, singer/songwriter Paul Westerberg gave a hint of things to come on the B-side to the "I'm in Trouble" single. "If Only You Were Lonely" featured Westerberg alone on acoustic guitar, pouring out a soulful ballad that sounded more like a Merle Haggard song than it did the Replacements. Their first and only EP, 1982's Stink, was recorded in one day at Blackberry Way studio. It followed in the same style as their first album. After this the band started to turn to other styles of rock, apparent on their second album, 1983's Hootenanny. One listener at the time commented that it sounded like a compilation album.

The band was infamous for their rowdy, drunken shows. Sometimes the band would show up too drunk to play their own songs, and instead play covers, which they were also too drunk to play. It was not uncommon for them to play entire sets of covers, ranging anywhere from Bryan Adams' "Summer of '69" to Dusty Springfield's "The Look of Love". When they played CBGB, the New York City club, they performed a sloppy rendition of The Beatles's "Let It Be," but with Westerberg singing the lyrics to his very own "Fuck School". The band decided that they couldn't be the best band that ever played at the legendary venue, but they could be the worst.

While driving around in the van listening to tapes of their new work and arguing about what to name the album, they decided that the next song to come on the radio would be the name of their next album. That song was "Let It Be" by The Beatles. Let It Be, released in 1984, is considered a high-water mark of the 1980s alternative scene.[3] The band began to garner attention, especially when R.E.M. guitarist Peter Buck began name-dropping the band in interviews (and playing the mandolin solo on "I Will Dare"). A major-label bidding war broke out, eventually won by Sire Records. The band celebrated by releasing The Shit Hits the Fans, a cassette-only release from a booze-soaked gig in the Midwest that was allegedly confiscated from a fan once it was discovered that he had bootlegged the show.


[edit] Major label (1984-1991)
The Replacements' first major-label release, Tim on Sire, was produced by Tommy Erdelyi (a.k.a. Tommy Ramone of the Ramones). It contains songs like "Kiss Me on the Bus" and "Bastards of Young".

In 1986, UK label Glass Records released an LP called Boink!! that contained a mix of songs from Hootenanny and Stink, as well as "If Only You Were Lonely" (B-Side of "I'm in Trouble" single). Also included was a previously unreleased song called "Nowhere is my Home" that was produced by Alex Chilton. The songs were licensed from Twin/Tone.

Bob Stinson left the band following Tim ostensibly due to substance abuse, though some suggest the split was due more to creative tension; Stinson preferred the louder, faster Mats, while Westerberg was exploring new territory in ballads like "Here Comes a Regular" and "Swingin' Party." The remaining Replacements carried on as a trio for Pleased to Meet Me (1987) recorded in Memphis with Big Star producer Jim Dickinson. Minneapolis guitarist Slim Dunlap took over lead guitar duties for the subsequent tour, and soon became a full member of the band.

During this time, they acquired an "anti-video" reputation. The video for "Bastards of Young" featured nothing more than a single shot of a speaker, while "The Ledge" (which MTV would not play on account of the lyrical themes) featured the band sitting around in a room with chairs and a sofa doing nothing in particular. This video was recycled for "Alex Chilton". However, (prior to Stinson's departure) the band had appeared on Saturday Night Live and performed the then-new "Bastards of Young". The band was subsequently banned from SNL due to a combination of the band's state of inebriation and the fact that Westerberg swore during the live broadcast.

The band's next album, Don't Tell a Soul, was a quieter, less punky affair, largely considered a stab for mainstream success. While the move cost the Replacements appreciation of some hardcore fans, the album had a number of notable songs, such as "Achin' to Be" and "I'll Be You", which topped Billboard's Modern Rock chart. They then made a second appearance on network television -- on ABC's short-lived "Rock Awards" show -- where they performed a typically energetic version of "Talent Show" and caused a minor controversy when Westerberg responded to the network's censoring of the "feeling good from the pills we took" line by inserting an uncensored "it's too late to take pills, here we go" at the end of the song.

But there was trouble within the band following a disastrous tour opening for Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers. Westerberg recorded a new album largely with session musicians, but was persuaded to release it as a Replacements album. All Shook Down won critical praise and more mainstream attention, though the many guest players and Mars' quick departure from the band following the album's release led many to wonder about the future of the band.


[edit] Breakup (1991-Present)
Steve Foley was recruited as Mars' replacement in 1990, and the band embarked on a long farewell tour which lasted into the summer of 1991. On July 4, 1991, the band officially broke up following a Taste of Chicago performance in Grant Park, referred to by fans as "It Ain't Over 'Til the Fat Roadie Plays" because each member disappeared during the set, their respective roadies taking their places. This show was broadcast by Chicago radio station WXRT. There are several bootlegs floating around the Internet.

Tommy Stinson has been the bassist with Guns N' Roses since 1998, replacing charter GnR member Duff McKagan. He also played with the bands Bash & Pop and Perfect. In 2004 he released a solo CD titled Village Gorilla Head. Bob Stinson, who played in a few other bands after leaving the Replacements, including Static Taxi and The Bleeding Hearts, died in 1995.

Westerberg is a successful singer-songwriter signed to Vagrant Records and, under his alias, Grandpaboy, to Fat Possum Records. Folker, his latest album, was released in September 2004; it marks his return to the melodic low-fi of the Replacements.

Dunlap keeps a low national profile but is still very active in the local Twin Cities music scene. Mars primarily works as a visual artist.

In 1997 Reprise Records released the 2 CD set All For Nothing/Nothing For All. The All For Nothing disc collected cuts from Tim through All Shook Down, while the Nothing For All disc is a collection of B-sides and other previously non-CD tracks.

On March 28, 2006, Rhino records announced the release of a best-of The Replacements compilation, entitled Don't You Know Who I Think I Was?. It was released on June 13, 2006. The compilation consists of songs from both Twin/Tone and Sire/Reprise records years and includes two new songs entitled "Pool & Dive" and "Message To The Boys". Both songs were written by Westerberg and recorded by the band at Flowers Studio in Minneapolis. Session musician Josh Freese (The Vandals, A Perfect Circle, ex-Guns N' Roses) played drums on the two tracks, while Mars contributed backing vocals. Slim Dunlap did not participate in the sessions.


[edit] Legacy
The Replacements' career is chronicled in Michael Azerrad's book Our Band Could Be Your Life, a study of several important American underground rock groups. They were also paid homage (or were parodied) by They Might Be Giants with the 1986 song "We're The Replacements", which spurred rumors on MTV that John and John of TMBG had been former roadies for the band. I'm In Love With That Song: A Tribute to The Replacements was released on Tomboy Records in 1999 and included Mick Thomas and Nick Barker performing "Skyway". Tommy Womack has a tribute song on his album Circus Town titled simply "The Replacements." Jesse Malin covers "Bastards of Young" on his latest record released in 2007. It has many punk bands that were heavily influenced by the Replacements, redoing songs from the entire catalog. Highlights include TiltWheel doing Skyway, Against Me! doing Bastards of Young, and Tim Version doing Nowhere is My Home.


[edit] Future Projects
A book titled The Replacements: All Over But the Shouting: An Oral History by Jim Walsh was released on Nov 15, 2007. Tommy Stinson and Paul Westerberg have also mentioned in interviews that a box set of Replacements rarities and a DVD will be released.