Don't Tell a Soul

Don't Tell a Soul is the sixth studio album by the American rock band The Replacements, released on February 1, 1989 by Sire Records.[1]

Don't Tell a Soul
Studio album by The Replacements
Released	February 7, 1989
Recorded	1988–1989
Genre	Alternative rock
Length	38:37
Label	Sire
Producer	Matt Wallace, The Replacements
The Replacements chronology
Pleased to Meet Me (1987) Don't Tell a Soul (1989) All Shook Down (1990)

Recording and release

Don't Tell a Soul was the first Replacements album featuring Bob "Slim" Dunlap, who replaced founding guitarist Bob Stinson in early 1987.[2] The album was recorded at Cherokee Studios in Los Angeles and produced by Matt Wallace and the band. It was mixed by Chris Lord-Alge, who decided to give the record "a three-dimensional, radio-ready sound".[3] However, singer and guitarist Paul Westerberg was not satisfied with the new direction, commenting: "I thought the little things I'd cut in my basement were closer to what I wanted."[3]

Don't Tell a Soul was released on February 1, 1989 by Sire Records. The song "I'll Be You" was released as a single.[4] This proved to be the band's only appearance on the Billboard Hot 100: the song peaked at #51 on the May 13, 1989 chart, just ahead of "I Won't Back Down" by Tom Petty.[5]

In 2008, the album was remastered and reissued by Rhino Entertainment with 7 additional tracks and liner notes by Peter Jesperson.[6] In September 2019, Rhino released Dead Man's Pop, a box set featuring a remixed and resequenced version of Don't Tell a Soul (said to be closer to the band's original intentions) assembled by the album's producer, Matt Wallace, along with rarities, demos, and other unreleased tracks. It includes a two CD release of the 1989 live concert released on vinyl as The Complete Inconcerated Live.

Critical reception

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[2]
The Austin Chronicle	[7]
Chicago Sun-Times	[8]
Christgau's Record Guide	B+[9]
Entertainment Weekly	A−[10]
Los Angeles Times	[11]
Pitchfork	8.0/10[6]
Rolling Stone	[12]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide	[13]
Spin Alternative Record Guide	4/10[14]

Don't Tell a Soul received generally favorable reviews, with critics noting the music's more mature themes and increasing disillusionment, along with a more private outlook.[15] Ira Robbins of Rolling Stone praised Westerberg's writing, stating that Don't Tell a Soul "is full of his sharp-tongued wordplay and idiosyncratic musical structures."[12] In February 1990, the album was ranked at number 16 in The Village Voice's 1989 Pazz & Jop critics' poll.[16]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Paul Westerberg, except where noted.

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"Talent Show"		3:32
2.	"Back to Back"		3:22
3.	"We'll Inherit the Earth"		4:22
4.	"Achin' to Be"		3:42
5.	"They're Blind"		4:37
6.	"Anywhere's Better Than Here"		2:49
7.	"Asking Me Lies"		3:40
8.	"I'll Be You"		3:27
9.	"I Won't"		2:43
10.	"Rock 'N' Roll Ghost"		3:23
11.	"Darlin' One"	Paul Westerberg, Slim Dunlap, Chris Mars, Tommy Stinson	3:39

2008 CD reissue bonus tracks

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
12.	"Portland"		4:28
13.	"Wake Up"		2:13
14.	"Talent Show" (Demo Version)		2:54
15.	"We'll Inherit the Earth" (Mix 1)		4:02
16.	"Date to Church" (with Tom Waits)		3:49
17.	"We Know the Night" (Outtake)		3:28
18.	"Gudbuy t'Jane" (Outtake)	Noddy Holder, Jim Lea	4:09

Personnel

• Paul Westerberg – vocals, guitar, harmonica
• Tommy Stinson – bass, background vocals
• Chris Mars – drums, percussion
• Slim Dunlap – guitar, mellotron, keyboards, background vocals
• Matt Wallace - producer, engineer, cheerleader
• Chris Lord-Alge – mix engineer

References

1. "The Replacements official". The Replacements official. Retrieved 23 February 2017.
2. Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Don't Tell a Soul – The Replacements". AllMusic. Archived from the original on March 25, 2016. Retrieved March 25, 2016.
3. Mehr, Bob (2016). Trouble Boys: The True Story of the Replacements, the Last Rock 'n' Roll Band. Da Capo Press. p. 315. ISBN 0306818795.
4. "I'll Be You – The Replacements". AllMusic. Archived from the original on March 26, 2016. Retrieved 2016-03-26.
5. https://www.billboard.com/music/the-replacements/chart-history/alternative-songs/song/322621
6. Richardson, Mark (September 26, 2008). "The Replacements: Tim / Pleased to Meet Me / Don't Tell a Soul / All Shook Down". Pitchfork. Archived from the original on February 1, 2015. Retrieved March 26, 2016.
7. Caligiuri, Jim (October 10, 2008). "Tim, Pleased to Meet Me, Don't Tell a Soul, All Shook Down". The Austin Chronicle. Retrieved June 12, 2016.
8. McLeese, Don (February 6, 1989). "The Replacements, 'Don't Tell a Soul' (Sire)". Chicago Sun-Times. Archived from the original on March 12, 2017. Retrieved March 12, 2017.
9. Christgau, Robert (1990). "The Replacements: Don't Tell a Soul". Christgau's Record Guide: The '80s. Pantheon Books. p. 50. ISBN 0-679-73015-X. Archived from the original on March 3, 2016. Retrieved March 26, 2016.
10. Willman, Chris (October 3, 2008). "The Replacements' reissues". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved June 19, 2016.
11. Willman, Chris (January 29, 1989). "The Replacements 'Don't Tell a Soul.' Sire". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved August 31, 2016.
12. Robbins, Ira (February 9, 1989). "Don't Tell A Soul". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on March 16, 2015. Retrieved March 26, 2016.
13. Sheffield, Rob (2004). "The Replacements". In Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian (eds.). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide (4th ed.). Simon & Schuster. pp. 688–89. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8.
14. Weisband, Eric; Marks, Craig, eds. (1995). Spin Alternative Record Guide. Vintage Books. ISBN 0-679-75574-8.
15. Philips, Elizabeth; Robbins, Ira; Thomas, Evan. "Replacements". Trouser Press. Archived from the original on March 5, 2016. Retrieved March 26, 2016.
16. "The 1989 Pazz & Jop Critics Poll". The Village Voice. February 27, 1990. Archived from the original on March 3, 2016. Retrieved March 26, 2016.

External links

• Don't Tell a Soul at Discogs (list of releases)