Tear of Thought
Release date October 26th, 1992
| Vocals: | Bass: | Guitar: | Guitar: | Drums: |
| Dave Gleeson | Paul Woseen | Grant Walmsley | Richard Lara | Brad Heaney |
The second album from The Screaming Jets was recorded at Gotham Studios outside Melbourne during April 92. Also produced by Steve James who did the first album “All For One”.
Debuted Nationally at number 3 on release and re-appeared in the top 5 incredibly 18 months later. Has since gone double platinum.
Dave write’s:
We decided to get away from the temptations of the notorious Kings Cross, where we recorded the first album and still were living. (Dying???)
We went to Gotham studios in suburban Melbourne and stayed in a fantastic house. There was a pool, a massive pool table, we had a live in cook and cleaner, and we all tried, repeat tried, to stay completely focussed on the job at hand. But the best laid plans……I remember at least a few times!!!! Sneaking out after curfew and not returning ’til a day or so later, but I wasn’t Robinson Crusoe….
Steve James and Dave Price were at the controls again, ably assisted by little Matty Thomas. We also enlisted the mixing skills of Micajah Ryan from America, and Kevin Shirley also mixed a couple of tracks.
We thought we had a dilemma with so many tracks but we thought ‘stuff it’ and put em all on. In America the release was shortened to 12 songs and the cover was changed.
The US release did not have the tracks ‘Alright’, ‘Everytime’, Rich Bitch’ or ‘Hard Drugs’.
DREAM ON
Written by Paul Woseen
Paul writes:
I think this song was a note to myself to tell me to slow down a little. It was written (just before dawn) in Rushcutter’s Bay in a house where the Jets were all living. It’s a song about one night in that very messy year when I was the evil anti-hero “Captain Consumption”, complete with a bath towel as a cape.
HERE I GO
Written by Paul Woseen
(released as a single July 1993)
Paul writes:
I wrote this on the verandah of a cottage in Cooks Hill, Newcastle, where I was living at the time. I was pretty strung out this day and more than a bit on the wrong side of the edge. I sat there and played guitar for almost 14 hours and this was one of the songs that came out of that session.
MEET ANYBODY
Written by Grant Walmsley
Grant writes:
A comment on my lack of compassion for politicians in general. I think this was the time of the Gulf war as well. Those who know me, know of my disgust toward the attitudes of men in power, who are getting further and further out of touch with how the average, peaceful, humanitarian family man lives.
ALRIGHT
Written by Grant Walmsley
Grant writes:
I vividly remember writing this one in the two bedroom flat that we, (plus
our manager and others),used to live in. Situated in the Kings Cross area, the
sunroom was pure bliss catching some rays and escaping the none stop action
of our surrounds. I wrote a few songs in this special little retreat
undetected by the other guys. I still need to be my own company
regularly. Anyway, this song came about from being completely fed up with
people making decisions on our behalf without us being consulted. From
Governments to teachers to record companies to managers, it didn’t matter
who. The fact is that it’s too late after the fact. “Dont Fuck With Us” was
the vibe on this one.
I really like the change in the song going into the quiet start of the solo
and then the solo section climbing and going off . A real ball tearer
live. Oh yeah I think I played some slide guitar on that one too.
NIGHT CHILD
Written by Paul Woseen
Paul writes:
Guys will say anything for sex, I guess. I really like the music in this,
however in hindsight, I should have done a lyric re-write.
HELPING HAND
Written by Paul Woseen
(released as a single November 1993, achieved gold status. Number 1 on National airplay chart for April ’94……6 months after it’s release!)
Paul writes:
This was written not long after my Mum had passed away. I chose to deal with it (or more likely not deal with it) by going on a long and intense bender. Somewhere along the way, grief turned into denial and an excuse for consumable abuse. The songs lyrics were my way of asking for help even though I’d forgotten what I needed the help for, or if I really wanted it at all.
EVERYTIME
Written by Grant Walmsley
Grant writes:
The irony of this song is that it is about my solace and the need for self reflection. At the time I was living with the whole band and manager and hangers on in a 2 bedroom flat in Kings Cross. I always loved the melody of the main riff and chorus. I remember Steve James hearing the song when we were looking for songs to go on the album and insisting on it being there. I used my 63 strat on this (and much of the album including Helping Hand). What a guitar. Unfortunately I had to swap it for a 69 black Les Paul Custom. Oh the dilemmas I have to face.
LIVING IN ENGLAND
Written by Grant Walmsley
(released as 5 track EP June 92)
Grant writes:
I love playing this song. I may be a Hippy but I am definitely a Punk as well. Nothing like aggression and power at a gig. I wrote this on our 2nd or 3rd trip around the globe. Its basically a diary of the places we saw and things we did….. New Orleans, Cocaine, London etc.. etc.. What a hard life. And ‘Angel Heart’ really is straight out of New Orleans.
You can hear Dave say faster, faster on the recording and I remember Brad,(1st drummer) who was an impeccable time keeper and an amazingly precise drummer having a problem with it speeding up, but its pretty hard to talk Dave or I down when we have a vibe for something.
THINK
Written by Paul Woseen
(released as a single August 1992)
Paul writes:
This was written at the same cottage but in the backyard with my bullie red cattle cross “Sam the Superdog” as an audience. It’s just an observation of some of the situations that were going on in the news at the time (and still are!!) – nothing specific. Just my comment on the continuing problems of the “haves” walking over the top of the “have nots”.
BEST OF YOU
Written by Paul Woseen
Paul writes:
A song to myself somewhat indirectly. Sometimes I write a “sort of” letter to work things out. The ‘you’ in the song is me, being talked to by me – yes, I’m definitely one of those people that walk down the street talking to themselves.
RICH BITCH
Written by Paul Woseen
Paul writes:
This is actually a song about a guy that I went to school with – I just changed the gender for the song – you know the type. Mr. Popular-footy star-surfer-rich folks-all the girls loved him-WANKER.
TUNNEL
Written by Gleeson / Lara
(released as a single July 1994)
Dave writes:
HARD DRUGS
Written by Walmsley / Bryce
Grant writes:
Well what can I say…….. a short autobiography of the band. Rock n Roll hey. Check out the snort at the end of the song… “that was real”…. and Dave I believe.
SICK & TIRED
Written by Paul Woseen
Paul writes:
Is about the circles of circumstances that I/we/people get ourselves in. Unhappy with situations and surroundings so we drink or get out of it to forget about those things that we’re sick and tired of. Then it turns around and we get sick and tired of the consumption.
SHIVERS
Written by Roland Howard
Originally recorded by ‘Boys Next Door’ in May 1979.
(released as a single January 1993)
FEEBLE
Written by Grant Walmsley
Grant writes:
Vividly remember writing this in the bath at the St Moritz Hotel in New York. I had been on the road for over a year and incredibly fed up with living in each others back pocket. I had just seen my girl off at the airport in Dallas the week before and as the line goes “there’s nothing like the feeling at the boarding gate” You may as well rip your heart out to save you the pain of not knowing when you are going to see your true love again. There was a lot of baby sitting to do concerning the band who were having problems and the only peace I ever got was in the bath… “a bath to take my burdens”
One of my favourite songs with the best version, the bonus track on the Shivers’ single.
WORMS (UNLISTED)
Traditional