Just Desserts: the Complete Waitresses

Well, it's about time! I waited forever for someone put this out. Years ago Cherry Red were going to do the first album on CD. They received initial approval and we started compiling a track listing. Then the approval was revoked for some reason and the project scrapped. I'm happy someone finally made it happen.The Waitresses were one of those bands that received heavy rotation on early MTV, which is what introduced me to them. That and their theme song for the short lived but definitive New Wave TV series 'Square Pegs'. But there was a lot more to the band than just those two songs. And despite the generally zany and upbeat music, it seemed that turbulence was often happening in the band.Wasn't Tomorrow Wonderful was the classic debut album. It's loaded with catchy hooks, spunky lyrics, and Patty's wonderful in-your-face attitude. Don't mess with that girl! Their best known song 'I Know What Boys Like' is delivered in such a bored, deadpan manner that's hysterical, and the amusing music video still get played. Aside from 'Jimmy Tomorrow', there really isn't a bad song in the batch. 'Heat Night', 'Redland', 'Go On', Wise Up' all have fun and clever lyrics and catchy party music full of quirky keyboards, squealing sax, and herky-jerky rhythms.I Could Rule The World If I Could Only Get The Parts was a mini LP to cash in on the surprise success of their fun Xmas tale 'Christmas Wrapping'. It also included another great single 'Bread and Butter', which was given the dance mix treatment as well, though no video was made for any of the songs. Shame, as they could have been a riot.Bruiseology is where the fractures start appearing. Of the 10 original album tracks, Patty is absent from 2 of them. One is an instrumental, the other is sung by bassist Tracy Wormworth. But the album is still excellent with more quirky humor and catchy rhythms. 'Luxury' has always been a favorite, with it's multi-tempo toe-tapping pace changes. 'Spin', sung by Tracy, is really good but I can't help but wonder what it would have been had Patty sung it. The song used to promote the album was the so-so 'Make The Weather'. I think they could have chosen a better song but they did create an amusing music video. Patty in that blue raincoat making those faces is hilarious!Loads of credit needs to go to Chris Butler for making this band work. He was the mastermind behind the music and Patty was his outlet. It was a perfect, yet dysfunctional match. I remember when it was announced that Patty passed away in the mid-90s at the age of 40, I was so sad because there could never be a full scale reunion. Though many band members have appeared on those "Whatever happened to..." shows, I would have loved to see Patty sitting there with a cigarette (which is what ultimately did her in) giving a subtle attitude.The CD is entirely remastered from studio master tapes. There have been some liberties taken by re-equalizing the music to pull out more bass. It works well on the first album but becomes very overbearing on Bruiseology, to the point that some distortion is introduced in the left channel, which can be heard in the opening of 'A Girl's Gotta Do' and a few other tracks. Though slightly disappointing, it wasn't anything I couldn't restore with a little software tweaking. There has been a little bit of compression added, though no heavy brickwalling, thankfully.The title is a little misleading, as it should have been called The Complete Polydor Recordings. As other have mentioned, their earlier material is not here, but that's fine with me. Most didn't include Patty, and the one that did, 'Astronettes', has no lyrics other than the title of the song. All the best stuff is included here. The booklet is very thick and a great read. It also includes reproductions of the picture sleeves from the original releases. An all-around great package.

In their short early 80s career, the Waitresses released 2 LPs and 1 EP. While they've gotten the best-of treatment a few times, and their most famous singles ("I Know What Boys Like" and "Christmas Wrapping") have appeared on countless compilations, this is the very first time those original 2 LPs and EP have ever been reissued on CD.The Waitresses were originally a side project of Chris Butler's, their chief songwriter, while working with Tin Huey. But they're also famous for drummer Billy Ficca (of Television fame) and the highly distinctive vocal work of Patty Donahue (who died tragically young, in 1996, of lung cancer).Listening to this collection, it's hard to see why it's taken so long for the Waitresses to get to CD - exactly 30 years since their final vinyl release! Both LPs and the EP are filled with smart, well-written, catchy songs. While the 1990 compilation  The Best of The Waitresses  did an admirable job collecting highlights from their career, plenty of great songs like "Go On", "Redland", and "Quit" were left in the land of vinyl and cassette only. In fact, their isn't a weak song on their debut, and while they are probably best remembered for clever lyrics delivered by Donahue, their entire catalog is full of catchy guitar riffs and propulsive rhythm tracks (which makes the two instrumentals in this collection a joy), and more than a few homages to some of their musical heroes (e.g., the "Aladdin Sane"-esque piano solo in "Everything's Wrong If My Hair Is Wrong").This collection adds a few rarities, like the b-side "Hangover 1/1/83", an alternate version of the title track from "Bruiseology" sung by bassist Tracy Wormworth, some single mixes of "Bread and Butter", and a live take of the Tin Huey number "I Could Rule the World if I Could Only Get the Parts" (from their sole EP release). The sound of the collection is great throughout - as good or better than the 1990 compilation CD.The lengthy liner notes detail the band's history and include new interview content with Chris Butler (but no other band members). Butler mentions that he saw the Waitresses two albums as part of a "trilogy", and even got so far as making demos of the 3rd album, which of course was never recorded. A shame.In a similar vein, Butler mentions a number of early Waitresses tracks that didn't make it to this collection (which, despite being subtitled "THE COMPLETE WAITRESSES", is more accurately identified by the sticker on the shrinkwrap as "the complete Polydor recordings") but perhaps there's a future rarities collection in the works... though hopefully it won't take 30 more years to get it.The Waitresses are finally getting the reissue treatment they deserve. And if you like this, definitely check out their sole live release, too:  King Biscuit Flower Hour .

Since it is very hard to find ANY new stuff from the Waitresses, this collection is golden for those who want it. But face it, this is shovelware and do not expect any frills. On my automobile, a normal CD has a name for the artist and each song. This one has "No Artist Name" and I had to hand edit "Waitresses" for that field -- no problem really. But worse was each and every song had "No Title" and that takes a looong while to hand edit all of those. Only 2 or 3 other albums ever have had that lack of information, as read by my car's audio system.You get good sound quality, apparently every song ever put on vinyl by the Waitresses from their several albums (the King Biscuit Flour Hour album is separate), and multiple versions of "Bread and Butter". For people who wax nostalgic about the Waitresses, this album is a must-have despite its shortcomings.

If you're a fan of The Waitresses, do not hesitate to buy this CD. Although it is missing some tracks that would really make it a "complete" collection (as a few other reviewers have discussed), it's still great. The packaging is very well-done, too - the liner notes by Chris Butler are a great read. (Also, if you're interested in hearing the songs that weren't included - you just might be able to find pretty much all of them on the internet if you look hard enough....)Incidentally, I also HIGHLY HIGHLY recommend the King Biscuit Flower Hour live album. The Waitresses sound amazing in studio recordings, but as a live band, they were truly in a league of their own. (And it's worth it just to hear Patty Donahue's voice without the sneering, detuned multi-tracked effect that was used on most of her studio vocals.)

I love this bands output, 2 LP's & an EP of smart songwriting, intensely involving music & a vocalist who delivered these mini urban novellas with deceptive skill & nuance. Best known for the season perennial "Christmas Wrapping" which is a gem, this collects all but one of their tracks in one set. Chris Butler's songs compressed the plots of a couple of dozen of the best films you'll never see into 4 minutes of musical brilliance, delighted to own them all on CD at last.

The Waitresses are an acquired taste. ‘Quirky’ would be the best word to describe this band. They kind of remind me of The Dishes, a late ‘70s proto-New Wave band who played the bar scene in Toronto but never really found mainstream success. You need to be a fan of Patty Donahue’s snotty delivery and talk-singing to really appreciate this stuff. Some may find it grating and be satisfied with downloading “I Know What Boys Like”—their best and most famous song. Most people may not know them by name but Gen Xers will clue in if you mention the theme song from “Square Pegs”, the 1982-83 CBS sitcom that gave Sarah Jessica Parker her first regular TV gig. Incidentally, the version of “Square Pegs” that appears here contains additional verses/lyrics so it plays more like a regular song that just a short TV theme.For all its rawness and unpolished sound, there is a charm and sincerity here that is undeniable. They take the mundane and add some humor and…voila! You’ve got amusing tracks like “No Guilt” or “Everything’s Wrong if My Hair Is Wrong”. Creativity is evident too, like when they employ an old-fashioned typewriter sound effect on the opening of “Quit” or ape showtunes on “Wasn’t Tomorrow Wonderful?”. If they ‘d hooked up with a good producer, one who could have shaped their sound into something more cohesive, bigger success could have followed. This is evident on the remix of “Bread and Butter” which is very textured, sophisticated and has more commercial appeal than the original mix.There is some filler here and even I admit some songs do not merit repeat listens, but this CD does what it’s supposed to do—bring the fans the collected works of The Waitresses. It comes with a nice booklet detailing the band’s history and the sound quality is uniformly great on both discs. I detect nuances in “I Know What Boys Like” never heard before, so they obviously took great care in remastering this. This CD is already commanding inflated prices on the secondary collector’s market. I was lucky to get a copy on Amazon for a decent price five years after its release.

Sadly this band is no more. But this album encapsulates a moment in time excellently. A thoroughly enjoyable album.