So Sick Edits

Replacements Dig Deep for ‘Sorry Ma, Forgot to Take Out the Trash’ Box Set

A reverent document of one of rock’s most irreverent bands, a new deluxe box set will commemorate the 40th anniversary of the Replacements’ first album, Sorry Ma, Forgot to Take Out the Trash.

Two-thirds of the collection’s 100-song tracklist is previously unreleased, featuring the first demos the ‘Mats ever cut, alternate mixes and versions of songs, outtakes, and a recording of a 1981 concert. The box set, which contains four CDs and an LP and is available for preorder, is due out October 22nd. Preorders include a replica flyer for the Minneapolis gig captured on the collection’s live album.

The box set includes a book containing rare photos and liner notes by Replacements biographer Bob Mehr. Earlier this year, Mehr won a Grammy for his liner notes for the last Replacements reissue, Dead Man’s Pop. The band’s former manager, Peter Jesperson, also penned a remembrance for the release.

The collection’s first CD contains the original album remastered, along with the B-side, “If Only You Were Lonely.” The second, dubbed Raised in the City, features the group’s first demo recordings alongside studio demos for songs that made Sorry Ma, outtakes, and basement recordings. The third disc, Tape’s Rolling, features outtakes and alternate mixes of songs from the album alongside frontman Paul Westerberg’s home demos for “You’re Pretty When You’re Rude” and “If Only You Were Lonely.” And the fourth disc, Unsuitable for Airplay, features a professional live recording captured at Minneapolis’ 7th Street Entry on January 23rd, 1981, some of which had been broadcast on the radio station KFAI. The LP in the set, Deliberate Noise, features a version of the album made from the alternate renditions of the songs. (Some of the outtakes previously appeared on past Replacements reissues.)

When Rolling Stone ranked the 40 Greatest Punk Albums of All Time, Sorry Ma came in at Number 29. “Definitive proof that Midwestern drunkards could be as fast, loud, and sloppy as any New York junkie, with resident poet Paul Westerberg croaking about booze and despair over the band’s ‘power trash,’” the magazine wrote. “What truly set them apart was the humor that came through in lyrics like ‘I hate music!/It’s got too many notes!’”

Sorry Ma, Forgot to Take Out the Trash (Deluxe Edition) Tracklist

Disc One: Original Album (2021 Remaster)

1. “Takin A Ride”
2. “Careless”
3. “Customer”
4. “Hangin Downtown”
5. “Kick Your Door Down”
6. “Otto”
7. “I Bought a Headache”
8. “Rattlesnake”
9. “I Hate Music”
10. “Johnny’s Gonna Die”
11. “Shiftless When Idle”
12. “More Cigarettes”
13. “Don’t Ask Why”
14. “Somethin to Dü”
15. “I’m in Trouble”
16. “Love You Till Friday”
17. “Shutup”
18. “Raised in the City”
19. “If Only You Were Lonely” – B-Side

Disc Two: Raised In The City – The Early Recordings

1. “Try Me” – Demo
2. “She’s Firm” – Demo
3. “Lookin for Ya” – Demo
4. “Raised in the City” – Demo
5. “Shutup” – Demo
6. “Don’t Turn Me Down” – Demo
7. “Shape Up” – Demo
8. “I Hate Music” – Studio Demo
9. “Careless” – Studio Demo
10. “Shutup” – Studio Demo
11. “Otto” – Studio Demo
12. “Get on the Stick” – Studio Demo
13. “Oh Baby” – Studio Demo
14. “Raised in the City” – Studio Demo
15. “Shiftless When Idle” – Studio Demo
16. “More Cigarettes” – Studio Demo
17. “You Ain’t Gotta Dance” – Studio Demo
18. “Don’t Turn Me Down” – Studio Demo
19. “Rattlesnake” – Basement Version
20. “Takin’ a Ride” – Basement Version
21. “Lie About Your Age” – Basement Version
22. “We’ll Get Drunk/Customer” – Basement Version
23. “Johnny Fast” – Basement Version
24. “Mistake” – Basement Version
25. Basement Jam – Rehearsal

Disc Three: Tape’s Rolling – Studio Outtakes, Alternates & Home Demos

1. “Careless” – Alternate Version
2. “Takin a Ride” – Alternate Version
3. “Shutup” – Alternate Version
4. “Otto” – Alternate Mix
5. “Raised in the City” – Alternate Version
6. “Rattlesnake” – Alternate Mix
7. “Love You Till Friday” – Alternate Version
8. “Customer” – Alternate Version
9. “Somethin to Dü” – Alternate Version
10. “Johnny’s Gonna Die” – Alternate Version
11. “I’m in Trouble” – Alternate Version
12. “I Hate Music” – Alternate Version
13. “We’ll Get Drunk”
14. “More Cigarettes” – Alternate Mix
15. “Get Lost” – Instrumental
16. “Hangin Downtown” – Alternate Version
17. “Shutup” – Alternate Version 2
18. “Somethin to Dü” – Alternate Version 2
19. “Don’t Ask Why” – Alternate Mix
20. “Kick Your Door Down” – Alternate Mix
21. “Love You Till Friday” – Alternate Mix
22. “Johnny’s Gonna Die” – Alternate Mix
23. “Like You” – Outtake
24. “Get Lost” – Outtake
25. “A Toe Needs a Shoe” – Outtake
26. “You’re Pretty When You’re Rude” – Solo Home Demo
27. “If Only You Were Lonely” – Working Version/Solo Home Demo
28. “Bad Worker” – Solo Home Demo
29. “You’re Getting Married” – Solo Home Demo

Disc Four: Unsuitable for Airplay – The Lost KFAI Concert (Live at the 7th St Entry, Minneapolis, MN, 1/23/81)

1. “Careless”
2. “Takin a Ride”
3. “Trouble Boys”
4. “Hangin Downtown”
5. “Like You”
6. “Off Your Pants”
7. “Get Lost”
8. “Excuse Me”
9. “Customer”
10. “I Wanna Be Loved”
11. “Mistake”
12. “My Town”
13. “Shiftless When Idle”
14. “Oh Baby”
15. “I’m in Trouble”
16. “Johnny’s Gonna Die/All By Myself”
17. “More Cigarettes”
18. “Otto”
19. “Don’t Ask Why”
20. “Slow Down”
21. “Somethin to Dü”
22. “Love You Till Friday”
23. “Raised in the City”
24. “Rattlesnake”
25. “All Day and All of the Night”
26. “I Hate Music”
27. “Shutup”

LP: Deliberate Noise – The Alternate Sorry Ma… Vinyl Track Listing

Side One

1. “Takin a Ride” – Alternate Version
2. “Careless” – Alternate Version
3. “Customer” – Alternate Version
4. “Hangin Downtown” – Alternate Version
5. “Kick Your Door Down” – Alternate Mix
6. “Otto” – Alternate Mix
7. “I Bought a Headache” – Alternate Mix
8. “Rattlesnake” – Alternate Mix
9. “I Hate Music” – Studio Demo

Side Two

1. “Johnny’s Gonna Die” – Alternate Mix
2. “Shiftless When Idle” – Studio Demo
3. “More Cigarettes” – Alternate Mix
4. “Don’t Ask Why” – Alternate Mix
5. “Somethin to Dü” – Alternate Version 2
6. “I’m in Trouble” – Alternate Version
7. “Love You Till Friday” – Alternate Mix
8. “Shutup” – Alternate Version
9. “Raised in the City” – Alternate Version