Lonelyland – Bob Schneider – tiny curations
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- Big Blue Sea
- Tokyo
- 2002
Bob Schneider has had many incarnations of bands in Austin, going back to the early 90’s; Joe Rockhead, The Ugly Americans, and The Scabs.
Each band grew more bold, raunchy, and popular over the years, culminating in the greatness of “The Scabs”. Favorites like “Tarantula” came from this band, a song that Bob still ends most big shows with today.
But it was his next venture in 1999, a revolving band of musicians that set him up on his solo career. It was 20 years ago, that he formed Lonelyland, as well as his ongoing every Monday night at 8:30 residency at the Saxon Pub.
Back in the day, which was a Monday, that was the place to be, a crowded legendary pub full of locals and glimpses of then girlfriend, Sandra Bullock, with her bottom perched up on the bar.
Actually, as far as I’m concerned, it is still the place to be on Monday nights. This is the place where you should take a date; and where you should take out of towners on an otherwise boring Monday evening. It is fun and entertaining. Bob’s take on songwriting is write as much as you can, and that there will be a lot of bad songs, but occasionally there may be some good ones, too. It is this intimate Monday night setting where he will showcase what he has recently been working on. So each show is new and different… Well, other than how each night will end, that will always be the same. He will ask for an audience suggestion of a song, in which he will then take that song’s lyrics and melodies and merge it into his “It’s Time to Go” song. Something like this…
Back when he started that Lonelyland residency, he warmed up, by releasing one album that year on his on Shock-a-rama label. But it was the following year in 2000, when he self-released another album; and album that would stay at the top of the Waterloo Records album charts for years to come, eponymously titled “Lonelyland”.
This album was so popular locally, that it gained national attention and was then distributed by Universal Records, gaining it an even wider audience.
There is so much good material here from Bob’s career, that I will feature a full “Deep Dives w/ Matt Comer” episode in the future. But today, I want to celebrate the creation of Lonelyland 20 years ago, and spotlight that album. Here are some of my favorite songs from a solid album full of good songs.
Oh by the way, I think Bob is deathly afraid of water, oceans, and drowning, as you may hear in recurring themes in much of his music, enjoy!
That was 2002.
Before that was my favorite track on the album, Tokyo.
And starting us off was Big Blue Sea, you may have heard it on a rom-com soundtrack from that period.
Bob can still be found each Monday night at the Saxon Pub in South Austin or elsewhere around town during the week. Actually, you can catch him tonight, for free, at the Shady Grove at 8. For Austin City Limits Radio’s, 26th year of Unplugged at the Grove. Thanks for listening.