The Pawn Shop Years

The Pawn Shop Years
Studio album by
Buick MacKane
ReleasedFebruary 25, 1997
Recorded1993, 1996
StudiosSweatbox, Austin, Texas
GenresGarage rock, rock 'n' roll
LabelRykodisc
ProducerTim Kerr

The Pawn Shop Years is the only album by the American band Buick MacKane, released on February 25, 1997.[1][2] Formed due to frontman Alejandro Escovedo's desire to lead a garage rock band, they were named for the T. Rex song.[3][4] The band supported the album with a North American tour.[5]

Production

Most of the album was recorded in 1996 at Sweatbox Studios, in Austin, Texas.[6][7] The band had been playing for eight years at that point, with a 1993 attempt at recording mostly derailed by drinking too much beer in the studio.[8][6] "Loose" is a cover of the Stooges song.[9] "The End" and "Say Goodnight" are versions of songs Escovedo recorded for earlier solo albums.[10] "John Conquest, You've Got Enough Dandruff on Your Collar to Bread a Veal Cutlet" was written in response to a negative review from an Austin music critic.[11]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusicStarStarStarStar[12]
Chicago TribuneStarStarStarHalf star[13]
Robert Christgau(dud)[14]
The Encyclopedia of Popular MusicStarStarStar[15]
Orlando SentinelStarStarStarStar[16]
Stereo ReviewStarStarStarStar[17]

The Sunday Times called the album "a twin guitar tequila slammer of a record, eased down by the lemon slice of Escovedo's pedigree songwriting skills".[6] The Chicago Tribune said that "the record's blend of great hooks and reckless bashing makes for a grimy good time."[13] Rolling Stone praised the "uproarious liquor-and-fuzz-box attack".[18]

The Times Colonist concluded that "The Pawn Shop Years comes, conquers and destroys with far more devastating effect than many a self-important hard rock band purporting to do this for a living."[19] The Orlando Sentinel labeled it an "unrepentant blast of nasty, dirty rock 'n' roll".[16] Stereo Review said, "Too polished to be punk and too straight-ahead to be a Seventies throwback, Buick MacKane is simply a terrific rock-and-roll band".[17] The Capital Times listed The Pawn Shop Years as the tenth best album of 1997.[20]

Track listing

No.TitleLength
1."The End" 
2."Falling Down Again" 
3."Black Shiny Beast" 
4."Edith" 
5."Queen Anne" 
6."Say Goodnight" 
7."Big Shoe Head" 
8."John Conquest, You've Got Enough Dandruff on Your Collar to Bread a Veal Cutlet" 
9."Wandering Eye" 
10."Loose" 

References

  1. ↑ Morris, Chris (January 18, 1997). "Record Derby". Billboard. Vol. 109, no. 3. p. 63.
  2. ↑ Goodman, David (1999). Modern Twang: An Alternative Country Music Guide & Directory. Dowling Press. p. 106.
  3. ↑ Terrell, Steve (March 7, 1997). "Terrell's Tune-Up". Pasatiempo. The Santa Fe New Mexican. p. 41.
  4. ↑ Trapp, Roger (February 2, 1997). "Lest We Forget Alejandro Escovedo". The Independent. p. 27.
  5. ↑ Fulmer, Douglas (April 16, 1997). "Band Hitting Hard with Punk-Blues-Rock Mix". The Plain Dealer. p. 8E.
  6. 1 2 3 Lee, Stewart (February 23, 1997). "On Record". The Sunday Times. p. 28.
  7. ↑ Beets, Greg; Whymark, Richard (2023). A Curious Mix of People: The Underground Scene of '90s Austin. University of Texas Press. p. 147.
  8. ↑ Cohen, Jason (February 1997). "True believer". Texas Monthly. Vol. 25, no. 2. pp. 62–65.
  9. ↑ Sullivan, Jim (April 17, 1997). "The Scene". Calendar. The Boston Globe. p. 28.
  10. ↑ Blake, Joseph (May 13, 1997). "Real rock is not for sissies". Times Colonist. p. F5.
  11. ↑ Provencher, Norman (May 22, 1997). "Buick MacKane plays hard and loud: Alejandro Escovedo mixes it up with Austin buddies". Ottawa Citizen. p. F2.
  12. ↑ "The Pawn Shop Years Review by Roch Parisien". AllMusic. Retrieved August 15, 2026.
  13. 1 2 Reger, Rick (March 7, 1997). "Album reviews". Chicago Tribune. p. 7.37.
  14. ↑ "Buick MacKane". Robert Christgau. Retrieved August 15, 2026.
  15. ↑ Larkin, Colin (1998). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Vol. III. MUZE. p. 1778.
  16. 1 2 Gettelman, Parry (April 25, 1997). "Great Work from South by Southwest Artists". Calendar. Orlando Sentinel. p. 6.
  17. 1 2 Milano, Brett (July 1997). "Buick MacKane: The Pawn Shop Years". Stereo Review. Vol. 62, no. 7. p. 74.
  18. ↑ Fricke, David (March 20, 1997). "On the edge". Rolling Stone. No. 756. p. 84.
  19. ↑ Parisien, Roch (April 3, 1997). "Roch on Music". Times Colonist. p. D10.
  20. ↑ Rasmussen, Eric (December 3, 1997). "'97's Best Wasn't Heard". The Capital Times. p. 1D.
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