Lucky Sperms – The Man [7''] (1991, Ecstatic Peace!)

 

Lucky Sperms was a collaboration between Mike Watt of fIREHOSE and Sonic Youth. They recorded their only single in January of 1987, "Walking the Cow" backed with "Tomorrow Never Knows/Glass Onion". In 1986 Watt collaborated with Sonic Youth appearing on the Ciccone Youth album and single. The Lucky Sperms single sounds like they wanted to recreate that magic but were unsure what songs to cut, so they came up with these two. Although none of the band member's names are on the cover art which is created by Raymond Pettibon, who did many of the Minutemen's covers and 'Goo' by Sonic Youth, it sends a giant clue of who the artists on the wax are. 

Watt takes the lead on vocal, or as former Minutemen calls it "spiel", on both tracks. The cover of Daniel Johnston's classic "Walking the Cow" is a little faster than his version on fIREHOSE's 1991 album 'Flyin' the Flannel' but has a simplicity to it that is reminiscent of Johnston's original. The arrangement he would go on later to create on the album version four years later is a bit stronger. This sounds like the demo version of that song. On this track he is backed only by Steve Shelley on drums. Watt must be one of the first artist's outside of Austin to cover Johnston with his version of "Bermuda" appearing on '3-Way Tie for Last' via the telephone in 1985. 

"Tomorrow Never Knows/Glass Onion" is a cover of the Lennon/McCartney song and is a typical B-side throw-away track. Watt's spiel is distorted and a bit demonic. The structure of the song hardly resembles the original; which is not a bad thing. Sonic Youth backs him in their typical fashion but apparently Thurston does nothing on the track be cause his credit is nada. This is one of the stranger covers of the song, interesting but not at all ground breaking. [SOURCE: RATE YOUR MUSIC] 

 

Label: Ecstatic Peace! – E #15 

Format: Vinyl, 7", 45 RPM 

Country: US 

Released: 1991 

Style: Art Rock, Noise, Alternative Rock
 

Tracklist:  

A Walking The Cow 

B Tomorrow Never Knows / Glass Onion

 

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