Steve Espinola --"Angelfish"(aka "Songs 1982-7")

Part 1: 1. Hopeful Applicant 1984 (Providence, Rhode Island) 2. My Friends (Espinola/Peterson) 3. Maryanne (Espinola/Fisher) 4. Table Manners 5. I Looked at You (Peterson/Espinola) October Songs: 6. Love Wahoo Wahoo (Didn't Take Much Time To Fall In Love) 7. Why'd Ya Keep Her Hangin' On? 8. He's My Best Friend 9. Sing To Me 10. Doldrums 11. You Don't Say Much 12. Nowhere [live] 13. My Thesaurus 14. Lament For Who 15. Tom and Suzie 16. After the Breakup (Espinola/Peterson) 17. Biddle-Dee-Boop 18. Dennis' Song Part 2 (Leftovers): 19. She'll Never Know [live] 20-21. You Are A Slime [live] (Espinola/Greenblatt) 22. Song About Rebecca Going to France While Tim and Steve Aren't (Espinola/Fisher) 23. New York Trains Don't Stop For Nobody [live] 24. Sloppy Unfinished Mess 25. The Castle Song 26. Rock 'n' Roll Christmas (Espinola/Fisher) 27. When the Sun Comes Up Tomorrow 28. Brown's Response Total Running Time: Approximately 77 minutes

This is a remastered CD rerelease of a late 1987 cassette compilation, recorded on various open reel and cassette 4-tracks from 1982 through early 1987. Which is to say, it's my teenage stuff. It was sold at my shows on and off for a few years. It's poppy, folky, eclectic, vulnerable, funny, secretly commercially ambitious, and sometimes a little weird. Dwight (Do) Peterson, co-star of the Stuck album, produced and played on much of it.

This album seems to have a staying power for some that I never could have predicted. I continue to get orders for it, 18 years later, at a consistent rate, mostly from people who had a broken 10th generation bootleg cassette copy. I'm proud of much of it, and a little jealous of the young guy who is not quite me anymore. Favorites include "You Are A Slime" (later recorded by Madison, Wisconsin band The Merkins), "My Thesaurus," "Table Manners," and the song I submitted as my application essay to Brown University. The 1987 recording "I Looked At You," which The Roches broadcast over the sound system at their 1988 or '89 Town Hall concert, is eerily similar to the chorus of the 1991 hit "Safe From Harm" by Massive Attack. Coincidence? Or skulduggery? You decide.

The CD is around 77 minutes long. I went through an anxiety attack deciding whether or not to delete the most awkward stuff, much of which comes after the 1-hour mark. I'd certainly hate to be judged as an artist today on the basis of some of these first songs. But much of the "Angelfish" mail I get requests at least one of those specific recordings. So, for now, I'm leaving it as is, embarrassing furry teen mustache, warts, and all. Perhaps the innocence of it all should be honored and left uncensored. Buyer be aware and beware.

If you are one of the musicians who played on this album, please contact me!

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