Chocolate and Cheese
| Chocolate and Cheese | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | September 27, 1994 | |||
| Recorded | Summer 1992–Spring 1994 | |||
| Length | 54:47 (original release) 99:36 (deluxe edition) | |||
| Label | Elektra Records | |||
| Ween chronology | ||||
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Chocolate and Cheese is a studio album by Ween, released on September 27, 1994 on Elektra Records.
Although Ween's previous album, Pure Guava, was their major label debut, Chocolate and Cheese was the first to be recorded in a professional studio.
On June 7th, 2024, a deluxe edition of the album was announced, comprising of three LPs of remastered songs and previously unreleased demos. The deluxe edition was released on August 2nd.[1]
Description and History[edit | edit source]
Ween had been signed to Elektra Records sometime in 1992 by A&R representative Steve Ralbovsky, who commented that their signing was in part because of Pure Guava's unique lo-fi sound.[2] Ween's manager at the time, Dave Ayers, later commented that Ween hypothetically could have made more albums with a similar production value to Pure Guava and the label would not have intervened.[3] Despite this, the band chose to have Chocolate and Cheese be recorded in a proper studio environment.
Demos for the album were recorded throughout the summer of 1992 at Graphic Sound Studio with Greg and Pat Frey.[4] Two of these demos would be included on the final album, "Baby Bitch" and "The HIV Song". The album proper would be recorded with Andrew Weiss at a rented space in an office park in Pennington, New Jersey,[5] from the fall of 1993 to the spring of 1994.[6]
Chocolate and Cheese was Ween's first album with a full live band, consisting of longtime producer Andrew Weiss on bass and friend of the band Claude Coleman, Jr. on drums.
Track Listing[edit | edit source]
Deluxe edition bonus LP tracks[edit | edit source]
Known Personnel[edit | edit source]
Sourced from the liner notes and/or Hank Shteamer's Chocolate and Cheese unless stated otherwise
- Gene Ween
- Dean Ween
- Andrew Weiss - producer, mixing, engineering, bass, noise effects on "Voodoo Lady"
- Claude Coleman - drums, percussion
- Ed Wilson - co-writer on "Freedom of '76"
- Mean Ween - vocals on "Candi"
- Patricia Frey Stephan - drums on "Baby Bitch"
- Scott Lowe - vocal arrangements on "What Deaner Was Talkin' About"
- Stephen Said - classical guitar on "Buenas Tardes Amigo"
- Greg Frey - recording engineer on "Baby Bitch" and "The HIV Song"
- Howie Weinberg - mastering
- John Kuczala - photography
- Danny Clinch - photography
- Ashley Savage - cover model
Quotes[edit | edit source]
We weren't in the habit of doing demos for songs and then re-recording them. Our typical thing was there's one version of it and that's the version that's on the record. Chocolate and Cheese was more rooting through the best of 50 or 60 songs, whittling it down and recording, like, 25 of them and leaving nine or ten off the record. It was a lot more structured and a lot more methodical than what we usually do, which is quantity not quality: do a song as fast as you can and then do another one.[3]
- Dean Ween in the press release for Chocolate and Cheese, July 1994:
Chocolate and Cheese is the fourth album by the group WEEN. It was recorded in an industrial park office space in Pennington, New Jersey, not far from where we live. As always, it was produced and mixed by Andrew Weiss. The title is a lot deeper than anyone might assume. I suppose you could look at this as our "bustin' out" album, the one that might establish us as the next COUNTING CROWS. Fuck it, we never even got to meet the chick on our cover. I feel that while this is our most mellow record, somehow it turned out to be the most agressive of the four. It is also worth mentioning that for the first time in four years, this record was recorded with everyone in perfect health. (except Andrew, who broke his ankle on a sheet of ice in January.) We really wanted to buy new Mercedes Benz's with our Pure Guava advance, but instead, we built our studio for Choc+Cheese. I drive a '78 Cadillac and Gener has a brown Mercury Cougar. I read that Green Day has already been named Punk Band of the Year by Time Magazine (7-94), maybe we'll be the Hard Rock Band of the Year. The next Collective Soul. We're really goin' for the whole banana this time. "Voodoo Lady" is gonna be the next "Feed The Tree." I was told that whilst filming his new movie, Oliver Stone had GUAVA cranking on the set and Woody Harrelson threatened to walk off unless "that shit got turned off." Woody. I saw you sing "Jailhouse Rock" on Letterman and the shit was weak. You're no Lisa Loeb. We had a million great video concepts for our record, none of which will see the light of day without serious help from Oliver Stone, and a large financial institution. We wanted to film in Africa, with a nation of tribesman behind us with Paul Simon's head superimposed on every one. No go. We wanted to film our video in a white Bronco with 50 L.A.P.D. cars and choppers chasing us, people holding up "go Deaner" signs. Forget it. Anyways, I'm pretty proud of the way this album ended up and I'm sure you'll like it too. '94 is our year, the whole banana........[7]
The stepped-up production — more conventional, state-of-the-art multitracking — that part of it was a conversation, but it was more like, "Here's what we wanna do — does the Elektra deal provide us with the up-front money to do it?" It wasn't like Elektra asked for a more hi-fi record. I think honestly they could've kept delivering Pure Guava and everybody would've been thrilled.[3]
References[edit | edit source]
- ↑ https://www.stereogum.com/2266938/ween-announce-chocolate-and-cheese-deluxe-reissue-with-previously-unreleased-tracks/news/
- ↑ H. Shteamer, Chocolate and Cheese, p.17
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 H. Shteamer, Chocolate and Cheese, p.42
- ↑ H. Shteamer, Chocolate and Cheese, p.85
- ↑ H. Shteamer, Chocolate and Cheese, p.43
- ↑ H. Shteamer, Chocolate and Cheese, p.39
- ↑ https://www.reddit.com/r/ween/comments/1elteq6/original_chocolate_and_cheese_press_kit
Scans[edit | edit source]
Back cover
Front cover & insert 1
Insert 2
Insert 3
Insert 4
CD
