Maybe You've Been Brainwashed Too is the debut studio album by American alternative rock band the New Radicals. Released October 16, 1998, it is their only album release before disbanding in 1999. The album charted in several North American and European countries, and was frontman Gregg Alexander's third album, following two unsuccessful albums released in 1989 and 1992, respectively. For the album's recording, Alexander enlisted numerous session musicians and is the only band member to perform on every song. The album's musical style was compared to numerous rock artists, including Billy Corgan, Chumbawamba, and the Rolling Stones.
The album spawned two singles. \"You Get What You Give\" was released as the first single off the album, and was commercially successful worldwide, reaching number one in Canada and New Zealand and peaking in the top 40 in the US and the UK, among other countries. The album's second single, \"Someday We'll Know\", was released shortly after the group disbanded. It was far less successful than its predecessor, entering the top 40 only in Brazil and failing to chart on the Billboard Hot 100.
01. Mother We Just Can’t Get Enough [05:45]
02. You Get What You Give [05:04]
03. I Hope I Didn’t Just Give Away The Ending [06:39]
04. I Don’t Wanna Die Anymore [04:18]
05. Jehovah Made This Whole Joint For You [04:13]
06. Someday We’ll Know [03:39]
07. Maybe You’ve Been Brainwashed Too [05:22]
08. In Need Of A Miracle [03:45]
09. Gotta Stay High [03:05]
10. Technicolor Lover [03:45]
11. Flowers [03:53]
12. Crying Like A Church On Monday [05:04]
Background and recording
Prior to forming the New Radicals, lead singer Gregg Alexander released two solo albums, Michigan Rain (1989) and Intoxifornication (1992). Both albums were commercially unsuccessful, generating no charting singles and receiving mixed reviews from critics.[6][7] Before forming the group, Alexander had been dropped by two record labels: A&M and Epic Records.[6] In 1997, Alexander signed to MCA Records and allegedly received a $600,000 advance.[8]
When recording Maybe You've Been Brainwashed Too, Alexander stated that he \"completely ripped up the rules that applied to [his] first two records.\"[6] While the album was credited to the New Radicals, it is often considered to be a Gregg Alexander album,[6][9] as he wrote and produced most of its songs, played several instruments on it, and is the only constant member of the band.[1] In reference to the wide variety of musicians he recruited to record the album, Alexander stated, \"Most of that record was me pulling favors with studios or musicians that had played on earlier records and were like, 'Oh, Gregg's down on his luck — let's go play on his demo for the hell of it, we'll have a good laugh, have a couple of beers and maybe smoke a jay or whatever.'\"[6]
In addition to the songs included on the album, the New Radicals recorded several other songs during the recording session. Alternate mixes of tracks were released on singles: the radio edit of \"You Get What You Give\" is on its parent single,[10][11] the instrumental cut of \"Someday We'll Know\" is included on some pressings of its parent single,[12] and the radio edit of \"Mother We Just Can't Get Enough\" appears on its parent single (which was never officially made available for sale due to the band's split).[13] Additionally, a song titled \"The Decency League\" was included as a B-side to \"Someday We'll Know\".[12]
Composition and musical style
The lyrical and musical content of Maybe You've Been Brainwashed Too was compared to a variety of artists. The Encyclopedia of Popular Music likened the New Radicals' politically oriented lyrics to British rock band Chumbawamba.[14] In Entertainment Weekly's review of the album, critic Tom Sinclair compared the album's music to that of Hanson.[5] The Los Angeles Times compared the New Radicals to the Rolling Stones and the Beatles.[15] Alexander's vocal performance drew frequent comparisons to Billy Corgan of The Smashing Pumpkins,[3][14] while a review by AllMusic suggested his vocals were similar to Mick Jagger's.[2] In Consequence of Sound, critic Justin Gerber commented that the album \"made Gregg Alexander the 90's answer to Phil Spector, without the bad rap of murdering people.\"[16]
Many critics also compared Alexander's songwriting and vocal performance to those in earlier R&B: The Virgin Encyclopedia of Nineties Music compared \"In Need of a Miracle\" to \"the blue- eyed soul side of Todd Rundgren,\" and likened \"Mother We Just Can't Get Enough\" to \"Style Council's breezier moments,\"[17] while Spin felt \"Technicolor Lover\" was influenced by Prince and Paul Smith.[18] Music critic Robert Christgau also felt that Todd Rundgren, as well as Hall & Oates, were clear influences to Alexander, also comparing the lyrics to Bob Dylan and Meat Loaf.[8]
