When the Replacements made their way into Twin City's underground rock scene, they were initially lumped in with the local hardcore crowd, but their debut album, 1981's Sorry Ma, Forgot to Take Out the Trash was obviously made of different things.
Paul Westerberg's sloppy, full-bodied rhythm guitar gave Bob Stinson plenty of room for his repurposed Steve Howe licks, Tommy Stinson's basslines were lively and carried their share of the melody, and drummer Chris Mars had the stamina and the muscle to keep up with it all.
Though the Replacements sounded scrappy and exciting here, what truly set them apart was Westerberg's songs -- they were clever, funny, and self-deprecating, the work of a young man with a fully functioning bullshit detector whose arrogance about his talent was balanced by his obvious insecurities about life, work, women, and himself.
Westerberg was more than willing to rage ("Careless," "Takin' a Ride," "Don't Ask Why") and occasionally wear his heart on his sleeve ("Customer," "Johnny's Gonna Die"), though he knew folks would only stick around if he was funny, and Sorry Ma is very funny indeed, and genuinely inspiring in its sloppy but heartfelt wallop.
| A1 | Takin A Ride | 2:23 | |
| A2 | Careless | 1:08 | |
| A3 | Customer | 1:29 | |
| A4 | Hangin Downtown | 2:00 | |
| A5 | Kick Your Door Down | 3:05 | |
| A6 | Otto | 2:07 | |
| A7 | I Bought A Headache | 2:25 | |
| A8 | Rattlesnake | 1:30 | |
| A9 | I Hate Music | 1:38 | |
| B1 | Johnny's Gonna Die | 3:30 | |
| B2 | Shiftless When Idle | 2:16 | |
| B3 | More Cigarettes | 1:15 | |
| B4 | Don't Ask Why | 1:50 | |
| B5 | Something To Dü | 1:36 | |
| B6 | I'm In Trouble | 2:07 | |
| B7 | Love You Till Friday | 1:51 | |
| B8 | Shutup | 1:20 | |
| B9 | Raised In The City | 1:56 |
