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Satellite Rides

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Released
  
March 20, 2001

Satellite Rides (2001)
  
Drag It Up (2004)

Release date
  
20 March 2001

Label
  
Elektra Records

Length
  
44:26

Artist
  
Old 97's

Producer
  
Wally Gagel

Genre
  
Alternative country

Satellite Rides httpsuploadwikimediaorgwikipediaen445Old

Recorded
  
Peternales Studios in Austin, Texas

Similar
  
Old 97's albums, Alternative country albums

Book of poems old 97 s


Satellite Rides is the fifth studio album by American country/rock band Old 97's, first released in the second quarter of 2001 (see 2001 in music). Though track 9, "Weightless", refers to outer space while the chorus croons "ride on, ride on" to an unspecified audience, the album's title does not appear in the lyrics but was later used for the song "In The Satellite Rides A Star" on the band's follow-up album, 2004's Drag It Up.

Contents

Lyrically, the songs have lead singer and songwriter Rhett Miller writing about characters other than himself, albeit personal references remain. "Rollerskate Skinny" is a song about actress Winona Ryder, whom Miller very briefly dated; the title refers to Holden Caulfield's description of his sister in the novel The Catcher in the Rye, while "Buick City Complex" refers to workers affected by General Motors' decision to close its failed mega-factory in Flint, Michigan. Miller wrote the song "Am I Too Late" for his grandmother, Ahnece Pugh. The album features two songs sung by bassist Murry Hammond, "Up The Devil's Pay" and "Can't Get A Line".

"Question" is often performed live with a French verse. Miller re-recorded "Question" and "Singular Girl" with a full band for his 2006 solo album, The Believer.

"Satellite Rides" is also a pseudonym under which the band plays, including a show at the Tractor Tavern in Seattle, Washington on August 31, 2008.

In the satellite rides the star


Soundtrack appearances

"Question" was used in a commercial for Fuse TV network in the United States. It featured sock puppets. "Question" was also used in the season 2 episode 15, "His Story" of Scrubs, when Turk proposes to Carla, originally broadcast on January 16, 2003. "Question" was used in the season 1 episode 19, "Young Hearts Spark Fire" of Scorpion, originally broadcast on March 23, 2015.

"King of All the World" was used in the film Out Cold.

Track listing

  1. "King of All the World" - 2:52
  2. "Rollerskate Skinny" - 3:52
  3. "Buick City Complex" - 3:39
  4. "Bird in a Cage" - 3:48
  5. "Up the Devil's Pay" (vocals by Murry Hammond) - 3:49
  6. "What I Wouldn't Do" - 3:47
  7. "Question" - 2:15
  8. "Am I Too Late" - 2:32
  9. "Weightless" - 3:45
  10. "Can't Get a Line" (vocals by Murry Hammond) - 2:52
  11. "Designs on You" - 3:49
  12. "Book of Poems" - 3:32
  13. "Nervous Guy" - 3:56

Early pressings of the album included an EP of five songs recorded live at Fantasy Studios in Berkeley, California on September 25, 1999 for local radio station, KFOG, and one leftover studio track:

  1. "Barrier Reef" (Live) - 3:47
  2. "Victoria" (Live) - 4:02
  3. "Nineteen" (Live) - 3:27
  4. "Timebomb" (Live) - 3:37
  5. "Valentine" (Live) - 3:18
  6. "Singular Girl" - 4:15

Personnel

  • Ken Bethea – electric, acoustic, 6 string & 12 string guitars, slide guitar, lap steel, accordion
  • Murry Hammond – bass guitar, backing vocals, lead vocals on "Can't Get a Line" and "Up the Devil's Pay"
  • Rhett Miller – electric, acoustic, 6 string & 12 string guitars, mouth trumpet, vocals
  • Philip Peeples – drums, shakers, maracas, tambourine
  • Songs

    1King of All the World2:54
    2Rollerskate Skinny3:54
    3Buick City Complex3:41

    References

    Satellite Rides Wikipedia