The Replacements

Bob Stinson was kicked out of the Replacements after Tim, allegedly because he was unwilling to make the musical leap forward necessary for Pleased to Meet Me. With Stinson left the band's hardcore roots, leaving behind the conflicting desires of Paul Westerberg's wish to be a serious singer/songwriter and for the group to become either the Faces or Big Star. That conflict is played out throughout Pleased to Meet Me, and it isn't helped by the stultifying clean and detailed production by Jim Dickinson. Chris Mars and Tommy Stinson are reigned in tighter than ever before, giving most of the songs a strangled, distanced feel which isn't helped by Dickinson's canned guitar sounds and the odd production flourishes, including the occasional sax and keyboard. The full-blown production works on the horn- and string-drenched "Can't Hardly Wait," but it makes mindlessly rocking filler like "Shooting Dirty Pool" and "Red Red Wine" irritating. For the most part, Westerberg's songs make the clean sound tolerable, particularly on the Stonesy "I.O.U.," the suicide sketch of "The Ledge," the power pop of "Never Mind" and "Valentine," and the lovely acoustic "Skyway." But the fan love letter "Alex Chilton" reveals more than necessary -- even though Westerberg is shooting for stardom, he has more affinity for the self-styled loser, which means he never wants to make the full leap to the mainstream. And that can only hurt a record like Pleased to Meet Me, which has stardom in its sights. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide