Monkey Rhythm was the name of Adam's previous band. The new name was selected during the recording of the self-titled album.
The second album (Steve, recorded by Gates/Greenberg/Winegar) was shelved by Geffen when the band was dropped. It has been reported that other labels made offers but the band broke up shortly afterward. Matt was quoted in the April 26, 1997 issue of Billboard: "Spent Poets broke up, basically because I wanted to sing my own songs".
The legal partnership/business formed by the band during the recording of the self-titled album was named "Uncle Lou's Traveling Circus of Pain".
Some members (notably: Gates, Greenberg, Winegar) are occasionally involved with Primus and/or related bands. Most of that is already documented on Primus sites, thus currently considered out of scope for this page.
Note that "Special" is named "What Makes You Think...?" on this advance.
The end of Side One features a small snippet from "You Don't Know Me" played backwards.
Artist: The Spent Poets
Title: The Spent Poets
Label: Geffen
Catalog Number: GEFD-24467 (MVCG-88 in Japan)
Release Date: 1992
Format: CD / cassette / LP
Tracks:
Mr. Einstein (4:18)
My Useless Heart (2:36)
Your Existential Past (3:52)
Grassheads (5:51)
Special (3:46)
Dogtown (5:42)
You Can't Kill Michael Malloy (2:54)
Walt Whitman's Beard (4:35)
He's Living With His Mother Now (5:19)
Ali Ali Ackbar (4:33)
The Rocks In Virginia's Dress (5:24)
You Don't Know Me (6:22)
Why Are You Sleeping With Mr. Brown? (5:00)
A Bad Case Of Melancholy (2:35)
Notes:
The Spent Poets:
John Berg - organ, sampled instruments, mellotron
background vocals on "Your Existential Past"
background vocals on "Grassheads"
piano on "Special"
intro piano on "The Rocks In Virginia's Dress"
mutations on "You Don't Know Me"
acoustic tamboura on "Why Are You Sleeping With Mr. Brown?"
Adam Gates - voice
acoustic guitar on "My Useless Heart"
background vocals on "Your Existential Past"
background vocals on "Grassheads"
mutations on "Dogtown"
outro fuzz bass guitar and mutations on "The Rocks In Virginia's Dress"
mutations on "You Don't Know Me"
Derek Greenberg - bass guitar
bass guitar and skank guitar on "Mr. Einstein"
mellotron and sampled oboe on "My Useless Heart"
acoustic and electric guitars, and background vocals on "Your Existential Past"
background vocals on "Grassheads"
lead and slide guitars on "Special"
backwards guitar on "Dogtown"
mellotron on "Ali Ali Ackbar"
bass guitar on "Why Are You Sleeping With Mr. Brown?"
Michael Urbano - drums
Matthew Winegar - guitars, sampled instruments, organ, vocals, mellotron
bass guitar, piano and mellotron on "Mr. Einstein"
acoustic and electric guitars, accordian, melodica and background vocals on "Your Existential Past"
drums and background vocals on "Grassheads"
lead and slide guitars on "Special"
lead organ on "Dogtown"
all instruments on "You Can't Kill Michael Malloy"
fretless bass on "Walt Whitman's Beard"
mellotron on "Ali Ali Ackbar"
piano solo, harmonica, and fretless bass on "The Rocks In Virginia's Dress"
outro detuned fuzz bass and mutations on "The Rocks In Virginia's Dress"
mutations, piano and electric piano on "You Don't Know Me"
fuzz bass on "Why Are You Sleeping With Mr. Brown?"
all instruments on "A Bad Case Of Melancholy"
Other Musicians:
Matt Wallace - background vocals on "Your Existential Past", unwanted scat vocal on "Why Are You Sleeping With Mr. Brown?"
Stephen "Doc" Kupka - saxophone on "Grassheads"
Steve Berlin - saxophone on "Grassheads"
Lisa Maxwell - saxophone on "Grassheads"
Lupe Refrain - aleatoric phone lunatic on "Grassheads"
Uncle Doug - Uncle Doug on "Grassheads"
Les Claypool - outro drums on "The Rocks In Virginia's Dress"
Larry LaLonde - outro feedback guitar on "The Rocks In Virginia's Dress"
Songwriting:
"Mr. Einstein", "My Useless Heart", "Dogtown", "Walt Whitman's Beard", "He's Living With His Mother Now", "Ali Ali Ackbar", "The Rocks In Virginia's Dress", and "Why Are You Sleeping With Mr. Brown" by Adam Gates.
"You Can't Kill Michael Malloy" by Matthew Winegar.
"Grassheads", "You Don't Know Me" and "A Bad Case Of Melancholy" by Adam Gates and Matthew Winegar.
"Your Existential Past" by Adam Gates and John Berg.
"Special" by Adam Gates and Derek Greenberg.
"You Don't Know Me" is the original eight-track demo version. It was re-recorded for the album but not used. "Special" was recorded twice, with the second version making it onto the album.
The outdoor band photo was taken (by Rusty Reniers) at the memorial for Emma Hanchett Crocker at the Mountain View Cemetery in Oakland, CA. (Note that the sky has been replaced with a computer-generated backdrop - most likely by The Bone Factory, rather than Mr. Reniers.)
"JJP = 666" (a joke directed at Jack Joseph Puig)
"A hearty "whatever" to Steven Rosen, Jack Joseph Puig, Matt Wallace, Mio Vukovic, Rusty Reniers, William Ireland Coleman, Peeetar, Mell, Jeffrey Taylor Light, our pals at Peer Music and Geffen, Mark at Paradigm, and those ugly bastards Primus"
The following tracks are also the original demos: "A Bad Case of Melancholy", "He's Living With His Mother Now", and "You Can't Kill Michael Malloy".
An excerpt from "You Can't Kill Michael Malloy" can be heard on Primus' "Frizzle Fry", which was co-produced by Matt.
Band Quotes:
Derek said in a YouTube comment: "I haven't heard this in AGES. I agree that Steve, the unreleased album, is far superior to this album, in terms of overall sound, musical performances and song-writing. I cringe when listening to most of these tracks. However, I do enjoy the following tracks: 'Mr. Einstein' - simply because to this day I think the lyrics are hilarious and clever - 'He's Living With His Mother Now' - because the Spent Poets recorded this as a demo on my old Tascam 38 1/2" 8-track recorder in our rehearsal studio - and because the lyrics (all about the mental breakdown of Syd Barrett) are well written, and 'Ali Ackbar' - simply because it's a catchy tune with wickedly clever lyrics. And I have happy memories of recording "You Don't Know Me" on the Tascam 38, where the demented middle section was created courtesy of Matt Winegar's deft manual control of the Tascam 38's primitive analog controls to create the results. I watched him create that entire middle section - where the tiniest mistake would result in erasure of precious pre-recorded material - and was amazed. Finally, I like the Mr. Brown track because the lyrics are clever and subversive, and some good decisions were made when editing the final track into one piece. Notice Matt Winegar's brilliant guitar playing throughout, most of which was edited out, but you get to enjoy moments of his brilliance."
Matt commented on Tape Op about the recording diary: "i think i'm referred to as "winegar" in the diary. what a lot of pain and misery to make a crappy record no one bought. the diary's really good though. i love the moving of kicks and snare's by 5ms what a waste of time."
The Japanese version of the album includes a Japanese-language brief bio of the band in the booklet
Some promotional copies are identical except for the word promotional added to the disc artwork (pictured).
Geffen has re-issued the album in a mid-price version (look for the Geffen Goldline logo in the lower left corner of the back cover). There are unconfirmed reports of differing sound quality.
Title: [No title, it is effectively "Selections from Steve"]
Label: Geffen
Catalog Number: ??
Release Date: ??
Format: one-sided promotional cassette
Tracks:
The Black Pope
Sleep
Heroin
Reasons To Drink (Single Version)
Prodigy Suit
Labeled "Promotional Copy. Not for Sale."
This item is notable for two reasons:
The "Single Version" of "Reasons To Drink" which runs 3:40 compared to the 2:33 album version. The differences are a 1) a repeat of the second chorus, 2) a repeat of the instrumental section without the guitar solo, and 3) a slightly longer fade out.
This one of the few (only?) manufactured Steve items that have surfaced.
See the entry for Steve for more recording details.
Unreleased Recordings:
Artist: The Spent Poets
Title: Steve Demos
Tracks:
Beatles Big Top
Pink Elephant
Sleep
Saville Row
Fair Weathered Friend
Prodigy Suit
Jack Is The Beast
Dope
The Phantom Of My Own Opera
Troubled Young Man
Mobius
I'd Like To
Reasons To Drink
Mrs. Thompson
Complicated Jane
Won't You Let Me Join Your Band?
I Want
Heroin
I Was Dead
The Black Pope
All recordings are 8-track demos, recorded on a Tascam 388.
Personnel on this recording:
Adam Gates
Derek Greenberg
Matt Winegar
Recorded and produced by Matthew Winegar.
Studio: The Jesus Room, Fremont, CA (aka Matt's Bedroom).
All music and lyrics by Adam Gates except: "Troubled Young Man" - music and lyrics by Matt Winegar, and "Mrs. Thompson" - music and lyrics by Derek Greenberg.
Matt wrote: "There's a pretty great story where Geffen tells us to quit sending them "fucking Beatles circus music". We immediately sent them a song called "Beatles Big Top"."
Artist: The Spent Poets
Title: Untitled EP (generally referred to as the "The Lost EP")
Label: Geffen
Catalog Number: was there one assigned?
Release Date: none, shelved by Geffen and never released
Tracks:
Saville Row
The Absolute Core Of Happiness
Fair Weathered Friend
Mrs. Paglia
4-track EP never released.
All recordings are 8-track demos.
Recorded and produced by Matthew Winegar.
Studio: The Jesus Room, Fremont, CA (aka Matt's Bedroom)
Artist: The Spent Poets
Title: Steve
Label: Geffen
Catalog Number: GEF-24610
Release Date: none, scheduled for 1993, shelved by Geffen and never released
Tracks:
Dope (3:14)
The Black Pope (4:15)
Prodigy Suit (4:25)
Sleep (3:12)
Heroin (3:58)
Jack Is The Beast (4:22)
Troubled Young Man (2:35)
Mobius (2:50)
Reasons To Drink (2:33)
Waiting For The Man (3:15)
Mrs. Thompson (2:37)
Pink Elephant (6:12)
All music and lyrics by Adam Gates except: "Troubled Young Man" - music and lyrics by Matt Winegar, and "Mrs. Thompson" - music and lyrics by Derek Greenberg.
Personnel on this recording:
Adam Gates
Derek Greenberg
Matt Winegar
Produced by The Spent Poets and David Bianco.
Engineered and Mixed by David Bianco.
Studios: Coast Recording, San Francisco, CA and The Jesus Room, Fremont, CA.
"Jack Is The Beast" and "Pink Elephant" recorded by Matthew Winegar. They are taken from the 8-track demos.
Adam wrote: "The album was made at Coast Recorders (when Dan Alexander owned he joint) and was engineered/produced by David Bianco. A few of the tracks were also recorded in Matt Winegar's bedroom (Matt did all the recording and played many of the instruments on all of the poets stuff) on a charmed Tascam 388. For this album the band consisted of myself, Matt and Derek Greenberg. We had fun making this music."
Derek said in a YouTube comment: "I met with Adam a few days ago and told him that I had just listened to the Steve album on YouTube recently and was pleasantly surprised by the experience. He was quick to point out its shortcomings, which are plentiful, but when I reminded him of nice moments such as the final chorus of 'Sleep', with that glorious slapback echo on his voice, he admitted that it was a good moment. I have a million complaints about the unreleased Steve album, but I also admit that there are some nice bits of music in there. For what it's worth, this is the only Spent Poets album that showcases Matt Winegar's incredible guitar playing - something that to this day I consider to be mind-blowing in its artistry and skill."
Matt on Tape Op: "We were dropped soon after Mio Vukivich (same A&R guy who dropped Wilco from Warners) told us to stop making "Circus music"."
How to hear it
Matt previously shared a WAV file of "Jack Is The Beast" in the Tape Op forums http://home.comcast.net/%7Evelvetsound/JACKISTHEBEAST2.wav
Adam posted the full set of "Steve" mp3s to the now dead MBO tumblr http://mboverdrive.tumblr.com/post/87322122666/i-was-once-in-a-band-called-the-spent-poets-we#disqus_thread, the zip file shared by Adam
Liner notes include the following biography: "On their self-titled debut, San Francisco's Spent Poets shower the listener with highly decorative orchestration, lavish melodies and a penchant for Beatlesque sounds -- they even sample Beatles' producer George Martin. One of the CD's prettiest songs, 'My Useless Heart' is a demonstratin of their superb songwriting skills and is a harbinger of great things to come from this band."
Artist: Various
Title: Stolar Tracks Volume 1
Label: None
Catalog Number: None
Release Date: 1992
Format: CD
Tracks:
My Useless Heart
Promotional CD for Stolar Vodka.
Liner notes include the following biography: "On their self-titled debut, San Francisco's Spent Poets shower the listener with highly decorative orchestration, lavish melodies and a penchant for Beatlesque sounds -- they even sample Beatles' producer George Martin. One of the CD's prettiest songs, 'My Useless Heart' is a demonstratin of their superb songwriting skills and is a harbinger of great things to come from this band."
Artist: Various
Title: CD Compilation #8
Label: MCA Records Canada
Catalog Number: MCAD-9224
Release Date: May 1992
Format: CD
Country: Canada
Tracks:
Dogtown (Edit)
Promotional CD.
This is possibly the same item as "DGC Comp. #8" that has shown up in some lists over the years.
Artist: Various
Title: KGEF: The Only Music That Matters
Label: Geffen
Catalog Number: PRO-CD-4400
Release Date: 1992
Format: CD
Country: USA
Tracks:
Dogtown
CD is one continuous track made to sound like a radio broadcast including: DJ chatter, songs, bumpers, caller requests and advertisements.
DJ chatter after the song: "You've been listening to The Spent Poets, with 'Dogtown' from their self-titled debut album on Geffen. This band emerging out of San Francisco is comprised of John Berg, Adam Gates, Derek Greenberg, Michael Urbano and Michael [sic] Winegar. Quite a unique sound. You'll be hearing a lot more about these guys in the future, I'm sure."
Worth noting is the lyrical change he makes - the original line is "And as she brings her hands to pray, She gave her life away, Nothing ever changes", but Jackson sings "And as she brings her hand to pray, She gave her life away, Something in her changes"
