Son of Sam I Am is an album by the American band Too Much Joy, released in 1988.[1][2] The first single was "Making Fun of Bums".[3] The band supported the album with a North American tour that included shows with Love Tractor.[4]Giant Records released a resequenced version of Son of Sam I Am in 1990.[5] While promoting the rerelease, the band was arrested on obscenity charges for covering 2 Live Crew songs at a show in Broward County.[6] Proceeds from the show were directed to retailers who had been arrested for selling As Nasty as They Wanna Be.[7]
Production
The album was produced by Michael James.[8] Most of the lyrics were written by singer Tim Quirk, who was influenced by Minor Threat and John Prine.[9] "That's a Lie" is a cover of the LL Cool J song.[10] "Clowns" samples Bozo the Clown; a lawsuit from Bozo led to the removal of the sample from later pressings.[11] "Hugo!" refers to the Gang of Four drummer Hugo Burnham.[12] "Bad Dog" is about S&M.[13] "Kicking (That Gone Fishing Song)" is about a young man with cancer.[14] "My Past Lives" deals with the concept of reincarnation.[15] The rerelease includes a cover of Terry Jacks's version of "Seasons in the Sun".[16]
Newsday wrote that "Too Much Joy is a pie-in-the-face to those who feel cutting edge rock has to have its source in adversity... There are knowing, snide stabs at the music business, pop culture, and their co-generationalists."[23] The Orlando Sentinel concluded that "cleverness rarely requires sincerity... It does require something more to carry an album though."[20]Robert Christgau noted that, "where formerly Tim Quirk spoke his lyrics in tune, now he mocks, expostulates, kid-drawls, projects, so that sometimes they sound smarter (and sassier) than they read."[17] The Los Angeles Times wrote that "they're at least as funny as Mojo Nixon desperately wants to be, and 20 times as tuneful."[19]
Trouser Press opined: "Sharpening both instrumental skills and songwriting wit, TMJ hit their stride on Son of Sam I Am, an accomplished rock album."[24]The New York Times determined that "songs like 'Worse' and 'Clowns' ... capture paranoia, kitsch overload, frustration, and the shrug that allows them to live with it all."[25] The Edmonton Journal said that "there's much more than bratty kitsch and a spunky garage band beat going on with this cheeky foursome."[26]The State appreciated that "there's plenty of teenage angst, but not one discouraging note amongst these power chords."[27]
AllMusic wrote that "most of the songs are sweet-and-sour power pop."[3]
