The Replacements : All Over but the Shouting: an Oral History

The Replacements are regarded by many as the most influential rock band to emerge from the 1980's, and are credited with influencing bands as diverse as Nirvana, Husker Du, The Pixies, REM.

Starting as a quartet, the Replacements made a name for themselves in the underground music scene of Minneapolis, often turning up to perform drunk and deciding to pay cover versions of other bands songs, yet still managing to do this better that the original bands!

Live, they were either brilliant or terrible, more often the latter, and decided that if they could not be the best band in the world they would be the worst!

Vocalist Paul Westerberg gave the group their appeal to teenagers and young adults with angst-ridden songs to replace their original punk rock as they moved to be the first grundge band.

The group moved towards the mainstream - seven LP's, and one EP from 1981 to 1990, by which time a combination of bad weed and good beer led to the bands breakup with their farewell tour in 1991. Despite the commercial success of their album Pleased to Meet Me in 1987 they were dogged by infighting, drugs, and alcohol, despite the quality of their music which was unique - as one critic wrote "Nirvana before Nirvana".

For the first time the history of this group is tracked from the first founding of the band - when guitarist Tommy Stimpson was just 12 - to being on the cover of "Rolling Stone", "Village Voice", TV interviews, Saturday Night Live, and their thunderous downfall - a piece of music history sure to be eagerly received.