Second Hand Smoke - Sublime

...he was.

Second Hand Smoke
This album is a mixture of songs recorded during the sublime sessions, previously unreleased songs and remixes of other songs (dubbed - or smoothed out if you will). Its one of Sublimes more chilled out reggae style releases in comparison to their other albums which include more ska and punk. It was released in 1997 so had nothing to do with Brad, and is just a way of releasing all the previously unrelased ...
...ranges from a hip hop attitude as used in songs such as Dont push to a more mellow emotion style as used in Badfish. The guitar work is pretty simple muted chord (Staccato, to be technical) to give the reggae and ska sound with some solos in too. I think the bass is used well on this album since their is little variation in the guitars the bass sometimes carries the melody of the songs which gives the songs a cool sound.

Standout Tracks, ... more

First off, RIP Bradley Nowell

Sublime
Was a great reggae/ska-punk band lead by the inspiring and greatly talented Bradley Nowell. A lot of their songs cover wide a range of syles including reggae, ska, hip hop, punk, folk with some jazz like bits thrown in sometimes, as well as plenty of other sound effects and cool DJ work dotted throughout their songs. In 1996, the lead
vocalist/guitarist Bradley Nowell died of a heroin overdose at the age of 28. Not only was Brad a great guitarist, his lyrics and the way he sung is really hard to top. Singing with so much emotion, you really feel his pain when listening to sublime. I read somewhere how he could only write when he was high which is why all his pain is conveyed in the way he sings and the lyrics he writes. Also whilst i was learning to play the guitar, i constantly heard Brad's name being mentioned in the same sentence as the likes of Clapton, Hendrix, Van halen, Chuck Berry etc, showing what a great talent he was.

Second Hand Smoke
This album is a mixture of songs recorded during the sublime sessions, previously unreleased songs and remixes of other songs (dubbed - or smoothed out if you will). Its one of Sublimes more chilled out reggae style releases in comparison to their other albums which include more ska and punk. It was released in 1997 so had nothing to do with Brad, and is just a way of releasing all the previously unrelased studio record material. Brads style of singing on this album ranges from a hip hop attitude as used in songs such as Dont push to a more mellow emotion style as used in Badfish. The guitar work is pretty simple muted chord (Staccato, to be technical) to give the reggae and ska sound with some solos in too. I think the bass is used well on this album since their is little variation in the guitars the bass sometimes carries the melody of the songs which gives the songs a cool sound.

Standout Tracks, out of the 19 amazing tracks, heres the best 10, that i believe carry the album.

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1.Doin Time (uptown dub) - 3:47
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This song is a remake of the original doin' time of the album sublime. As the name suggests (uptown dub) this is a slightly uptempo version. There is more emphasis on the ska with plenty of brass with a couple of keyboard and guitar riffs in between. There is also a nice jazz solo. Only a small section of the original lyrics are used and are sung with a reggae-esque attitude.

"evil i've come to tell you that she's evil
most definitely
evil ornery scandalous and evil
the tension is getting hotter
i'd like to hold her head underwater"

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2.Get out! (remix) - 3:40
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The use of sound effects and plenty of good disc scratching by the DJ makes this song pretty special. This is also more of a hip hop song. It sounds pretty weird because the tempo of the song changes and it uses parts from the original song plus new bits which makes the singing sound pretty inconsistant but that all adds to the effect making this a well produced song. Sometimes i like songs like this, which constanly change and lack structure or consistancy.

"But some jealous punk snuck up around the back
He tried to take the lovin over me
Oh I got in a fistfight
And wound up in jail all night"

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3.Romeo - 4:31
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Romeo is a pretty fast played ska type song with a slight latino twang to it making it standout from the the other ska songs. With Brad just singing in time with the beat. It slows down for a cool solo. After Brad sings in a reggae style. It eventually slows down to a chill reggae beat for the last 30 seconds. The lyrics are very good with a mix of Brads usual songwriting to writing with a reggae/hip hop kind of attitude.

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4.New Realisation 2:22
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I love this song because its so different from the rest of the album. This is the kind of song that could have done well in a pop chart. Brad sings normally in this ie minus the geniune emotion and minus the reggae and hip hop. He actually sounds like that guy from Human Race in this. The guitar plays C &F repeatedly to give a constant rhythm while the bass lines add the variation. The lyrics are top notch, and here is my favourite line:

"Oh, what fun it would be to blow my mind and fall into the sun"

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6.Slow ride 4:22
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Slow Ride is "slow" chilled out song with a good beat. The guitars play constant muted beats (ie that reggae sound), while the bass lines provide most of the rhythm. This is one of my favourite songs. I like the chorus in this song because it provides a nice variation. The chorus is sung in exactly the way "coming together" (Beatles) is sung making it sound excellent.

"Whoa, Maybe it's how your body moves I just don't know,
Maybe it's just the way you move so slow."

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7.Chick on my tip 3:16
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A very different song from the rest of the album, it sounds kind of like a song from a musical, with a real dancehall kind of sound to it. The reason mainly is because the guitar is practically non existant and the drums and bass carry this song. The lyrics are pretty dirty ;) too.

"It's Friday night and there's going to be another chick on my tip
But it won't be you baby."

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9.Trenchtown rock 1:42
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This is a cover of original Bob Marley song, it has great lyrics and Bradley sings it well as he sings the following lyric as if he really means it:

"One good thing about music, when it hits you
Feel no pain"

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10.Badfish 3:07 *Best song*
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I cant say enough good things about this song. It really does show absolute talent and you will most definately feel something when you here this. From reading the lyrics im pretty sure Bradley is cleverly using a situation of a fish and comparing it to his own drug habit. Its a really emotional song with a constant reaggae beat. The way Brad sings it is really amazing. Its softly and emotionally sung. The lyrics to the chorus are really amazing:

"Ain't got no quarrels with god
Ain't got no time to grow old
Lord knows I'm weak
Won't somebody get me off of this reef "

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11.Drunk Drivin' 0:18
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18 seconds?! This song is absoultely amazing. The whole lyrics are written below but the chord progression used in this song is really nice.

"Drunk driving is what I like to do.
I like drunk driving with you."

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12.Saw red 1:58
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w/Gwen Stefani (of No Doubt)
Saw Red is a fast ska type song for the verse and then kicks in some overdrive for a more powerchord punk chorus. Gwen Stefani adds her original singing to the frame to making this a good song.

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...........and the rest
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The rest of the songs are pretty good but i think the album tails of towards the end and unless youre really into Sublime or remixed songs, you probably wont like them very much.

The CD case is is pretty cool but theres no lyrics! Theres a bit on how this was compiled and plenty of pictures which is nice.

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Conclusion
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I think that anyone who likes a bit of reggae or ska would like this. Though this is the kind of album that most people may like, even if just a few songs. I usually listen to punk, metal and oldies (weird combination i know) and i love this. And i challenge you to listen to this album and not liking Badfish because that is a wonderful song. As always the singing, lyrics and guitar playing from Brad is exceptional. The bass is really good too, providing so much more rhythm than with most bands. I would give this 5 stars but the quality of some of the tracks not mentioned here not up to Sublimes usual high standards.

This qoute from the official sublime website sums up Sublime and all of their songs: "Brad's music was truly unique. It was filled with passion and when he sang he would sing his heart out and went for it all the way. He would sit on street corners and just play his guitar and sing. His art and his creativity can only be described as a gift."

Thanx
 

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