''Book of Bad Thoughts'' is an album by the American band

Uncle Green Formed in Basking Ridge, New Jersey in 1980, the band Uncle Green consisted of Matt Brown (guitar and vocals), Jeff Jensen (guitar, vocals), Bill Decker (bass and keyboards), Pete McDade (drums), and Danny Giordano (tambourine and vocals). Brow ...

. It was released in 1992 via

Atlantic Records Atlantic Recording Corporation (simply known as Atlantic Records) is an American record label founded in October 1947 by Ahmet Ertegun and Herb Abramson. Over the course of its first two decades, starting from the release of its first recor ...

. ''Book of Bad Thoughts'' was the band's final album, although all four members would regroup as 3 Lb. Thrill. The album's first single was "I Know All About You". Uncle Green supported the album by opening for the

Levellers The Levellers were a political movement active during the English Civil War who were committed to popular sovereignty, extended suffrage, equality before the law and religious tolerance. The hallmark of Leveller thought was its populism, as sh ...

on a North American tour.

Production

The album was produced by Brendan O'Brien, who also played organ on a number of tracks. The singer and guitar player Matt Brown wrote three-fourths of the songs on the album; Uncle Green rerecorded two songs from ''What an Experiment His Head Was''. ''Book of Bad Thoughts'' was recorded in Los Angeles; the band was allowed complete control over all aspects of the album's production. Uncle Green used a

Mellotron The Mellotron is an electro-mechanical musical instrument developed in Birmingham, England, in 1963. It is played by pressing its keys, each of which causes a length of magnetic tape to contact a Capstan (tape recorder), capstan, which pulls i ...

on the opening track.

Critical reception

Trouser Press ''Trouser Press'' was a rock and roll magazine started in New York in 1974 as a mimeographed fanzine by editor/publisher Ira Robbins, fellow fan of the Who, Dave Schulps, and Karen Rose under the name "Trans-Oceanic Trouser Press" (a reference ...

'' wrote: "Although not a great album—too much of the writing is overweening, and there are times when it sounds like the work of two separate bands—''Book of Bad Thoughts'' is a solid effort from a thoughtful and practical outfit." The ''

Chicago Tribune The ''Chicago Tribune'' is an American daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Founded in 1847, it was formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper", a slogan from which its once integrated WGN (AM), WGN radio and ...

'' thought that "'You`re Getting Into It', with its interweaving mellotron and accordion, is the sound of a band flexing newly discovered muscles." ''

Stereo Review ''Sound & Vision'' was an American magazine, purchased by AVTech Media Ltd. (UK) in March 2018, covering home theater, audio, video and multimedia consumer products. Before 2000, it had been published for most of its history as ''Stereo Review' ...

'' opined that "Uncle Green betrays a romantic fatalism worthy of Squeeze in 'She's Storing It Up', admitting that the inevitable comeuppance is deserved while guitars arpeggiate restlessly." '' The Republican'' allowed that the band "possesses some fairly sharp pop sensibilities but reveals little else over the course of 12 tracks." ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

'' concluded that the band "scores big on seamless major-label debut that bristles with hook-laden tunes à la Beatles circa 1966." ''

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'', locally known as ''The'' ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'' or ''WP'', is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C., the national capital. It is the most widely circulated newspaper in the Washington m ...

'' determined that "principal songwriter Matt Brown seems most comfortable when emulating the music-hall-influenced style of Squeeze." ''

The Indianapolis Star } ''The Indianapolis Star'' (also known as ''IndyStar'') is a morning daily newspaper that began publishing on June 6, 1903, in Indianapolis, Indianapolis, Indiana, United States. It has been the only major daily paper in the city since 1999, whe ...

'' deemed the album "immensely likeable." ''

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution ''The Atlanta Journal-Constitution'' (''AJC'') is an American daily newspaper based in metropolitan area of Atlanta, Georgia. It is the flagship publication of Cox Enterprises. The ''Atlanta Journal-Constitution'' is the result of the merger ...

'' wrote that the songs "have the kind of clean, ringing wallop that used to make AM radio such godhead, while the band's chops are still raw enough to reek ever so slightly of the garage."

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

called it "a little-heard gem—a '90s rock record of the highest order."

Track listing

References

{{Authority control 1992 albums Uncle Green albums Albums produced by Brendan O'Brien (record producer) Atlantic Records albums