wandajune6's Full Review: Shooting Rubberbands at the Stars by Edie Brickell...
It is the summer of 1990 and my sister and I are at home, resentful of our baby-sitter. We are eleven years old and far too mature to have a baby-sitter, but our parents insist nonetheless. They call her a “chauffeur” to make us feel better about the situation, but it never worked. We spent that summer fighting for shotgun in her beat up old car; we got forced to listen to Edie Brickell and the New Bohemian’s first album, “Shooting Rubberbands at the Stars.”
When I first heard this album, it was a cassette with many spots missing. The baby-sitter (who’s name I cannot remember), played the album on repeat. If I remember correctly, she heard them in concert on her college campus with a boyfriend and was hooked. Looking back, I’m not sure if it was the music that hooked her or the boyfriend, but she played it constantly nonetheless. It took me a long time to gain any interest in the album but when I finally did, I was hooked.
So here I am at the end of the summer, eleven years old and without the album I was so attached to. The baby-sitter went back to college and I was stuck. So I started saving up my allowance for a month (it was 1990!) and went out to buy it.
Within a week of my purchase, my parents threatened to destroy “Shooting Rubberbands at the Stars.” I had played the entire album on repeat starting when I got it home. I bought a T-shirt in a local record store to profess my adoration to the world. I would howl along at the top of my lungs when I got home from school and my parents were still not home. I was obsessed.
So, here’s the album:
What I Am This is the most famous song from the album. Everyone has done it from ska bands to Baby Spice. This wasn’t a favorite until years later in AP Philosophy when my teacher talked about it in class. It was the first time that I really listened to the lyrics of the song and it blew my mind. “I’m not aware of too many things. I know what I know if you know what I mean.” Now if that’s not profound, I don’t know what is.
Little Miss S This is a feminist statement. It’s about a woman who lives for others, not herself. She bases her life around what others think of her. This song hit me at a point when popularity was all that really mattered on the playground. For many years, it was the only song I truly identified with. Today, I see it as a lesson that I need to remind myself of on occasion.
Love Like We Do this is one of my favorite love songs. “I’m happy even when the times are rough ‘cause any time with you is good enough when we love like we do.” In my mind, that’s the truest sign of love.
Circle “I quit. I give up. Nothing’s good enough for anybody else it seems. And being alone is the best way to be.” This, in many ways, is one of the best songs about friendship I’ve come across. It talks about a circle or friends and how they notice when someone’s missing. In this song, Edie Brickell’s voice seems incredible- it just seems to fill the room when you play it. It’s melancholy, but describes feelings we all have.
She “You can’t judge her for that; she knows where her head is at.” “You call her home sweet home.” This is a song about a woman who defines herself through others. Yet, for all that you want to judge her for it, Edie Brickell tells us that we can’t. She’s the perfect woman on the surface, but shallow. “And you want to move in.”
Keep Coming Back This is one of my favorite songs of all time. For me, it’s a song about almost any relationship when you just can’t get the person out of your mind. “You’re much more than this, the spiritual bliss. No matter who I’m with, I miss you.” “You’re magnetism breaths through the moonlit breeze.” “Desperately trying’ to get you off my mind, but ya keep coming back!” I don’t know anyone who can’t identify with this at some point in life. “Do you know how that feels…..?”
Also, listen to the bonus track. It is one of the best songs on the album. It is short, but Edie Brickell's voice has never sounded more beautiful. For me, this song is a must for any mix tape.
Every song on this album is something I identify with. My understanding of the songs continues to grow as I get older, leading me to conclusions that were far different from those I came to when I first heard “Shooting Rubberbands at the Stars.” Edie Brickell has an incredible voice and the New Bohemians have an amazing energy. The album falls somewhere between the categories of rock and folk, but has an energy that is unique unto it.
Since “Shooting Rubberbands at the Stars” came out, much has changed for the group. They put out a few later albums, but nothing ever reached the success of “Shooting Rubberbands at the Stars.” Edie Brickell is now married to Paul Simon. They have one or more rugrats and seem to be in marital bliss. The New Bohemians have released other albums that I have never heard but am told are unimpressive. They put out a new album on an independent label within the last year, but I have never been able to get a copy.
Now that I’m in college, I’m finding dozens of people with this album. While it started as something played mainly on college campuses, there are many other people my age that grew up with this, either through baby-sitters or siblings. Many of us grew up with this and will replace our copies as they die (I’m on my second copy!) I would recommend this album to anyone.
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