Use With Headphones Late At Night (Best of 1990​-​2000)

by Tadpoles

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1.
Snapper 03:41
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©1992 Parker, BMI daffodilly petals are in bloom 
the moment you walk into the room 
and each time that i ask you to come in 
your head puts my head into a spin 
reaching unknown destinations tonight 
ride with me i'll take you out of sight
 confusion rules where once was sane 
patterns in my brain spell out your name t
his could be coming just in time
 love you so much it blows my mind 
ride with me i'll take you out of sight
2.
Umbrella Smile 03:18
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©1994 Parker, BMI just wondering 
its alright to light this fire here 
just wandering around 
colliding senses
 would you like to see umbrella smiles 
that last for a million years
 just wondering 
its alright to see your memories 
just wandering around
 colliding senses
 would you like to be 
umbrella smiling
 through the darkest seas 
come on
3.
Blossom 02:53
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©1992 Parker, BMI hallucinate your mind in time 
let it float away 
hallucinate that you are mine 
let it float away 
all along you were wrong 
you let it float away 
hallucinate it won't be long 
let it float away 
away 
away 
away 
away
4.
The Ride 04:20
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©1992 Parker, BMI i woke up dead and you were there 
there you were on my bed 
telling me the sun was blue
 and there wasn't anything else to do
 we took the sled and got the tree 
for christmas day you and me 
it was big and shiny like a million story airplane standing on its side
 we got on and took a ride 
the captain said you better hide
 no one knows where we're going to 
no one knows what we're gonna do 
we flew past jupiter we flew past mars
 our friends drove by us in their cars
 you didn't care neither did i
 on this ride we're going to fly 
lets do it for the ride
 go along for the ride
 its a day and nighttime trip 
i think i think we're going to flip 
look out for the twists 
there's one we almost missed 
look out for the twists
 there's one we almost missed 
its a day and nighttime trip i think i think we're gonna flip 
its a day and nighttime trip i think i think we're gonna flip
5.
Race You To The Mustard Patch 04:41
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©1996 Parker / Max, BMI Dropped out and see it fall away 
Climb up catch what they say 
Drop down and be there fall away 
Get up race you to the day 
The only way Get a little closer to the tone 
Vibrate for everyone you know 
When you stop you've never been away 
Get up race you to the day
 The only way
6.
Nazareth 05:35
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©1996 Parker, BMI Nazareth 
you're taking my mind 
you're taking my money 
you're taking your time 
Nazareth 
you're baking my mind
 you're making me funny 
you're making me blind 
Nazareth 
you're just like a train 
thats going insane 
thats leaving today 
Nazareth 
can you spare me a dime 
i wanna get high 
if i can't i might cry Nazareth 
c'mon make me a deal 
i wanna feel real 
for that i would kill 
 Nazareth 
i love all your lights 
they really shine bright mon 
you're right out of sight 
Nazareth 
i'll take you to bed 
a dream in my head 
until i am dead
 Nazareth
 you're taking my mind 
you're taking my money
 you're taking your time
7.
Ride The World Around The Sun 03:20
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©1992 Parker, BMI Ride the world around the sun with me
 Pack all your things 
Your ticket to ecstacy 
Ride the world around the sun 
Checking it out you're gonna have fun 
Ride the world around the sun with me 
Check it out and see what you can be
8.
At Least I'm Not Like Jonathan Carver 05:46
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©1996 Parker / Max / N. Kramer, BMI Aren't you tired of coming down 
You want to float not be around 
Aren't you tired 
Aren't you tired 
Aren't you tired like really wired His name appeared in lights that day 
Her neon dress began to fray 
Don't you know what its like 
Don't let it be an oversight When you're lazy lying on some grass
 Following all the dusty paths 
You watch the sky slide past your face 
When morning comes you've won the race 
Then parachute land on the floor 
You hit the ground feeling sore
 Your knees buckle but you give it more 
Step inside your first balloon 
Blow it up and make it bloom
9.
Know Your Ghosts 04:21
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©1997 N. Kramer / Max, BMI I used to see the truth inside of what you said 
Instead of thinking you're a kid 
But those days seem so far away 
I can only vaguely remember High tides, low tides come and gone
 Two more mooncalves torn asunder 
Save me a whistle in eighteen years 
Or don't; its all the same to me Know your ghosts and you will never be alone 
Never be alone never be alone 
Know your ghosts Know your ghosts and you will never be alone 
Never be alone never be alone 
Know your ghosts
10.
Jaded Jean 03:49
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©1998 Parker/Max, BMI If you could see like jaded jean 
You wouldn't have a need for dreams 
Like jaded jean in her jaded scene 
She's planting seeds 
A garden queen You can find her at home almost every night 
Writing letters on sheets of white 
Or jade green 
From her garden stream
 She's consciously falling asleep
 Jaded jean Would you believe 
Her father's at home 
Watching the clocks
 While mommy's alone 
And would you believe 
In all of these things 
If you could see 
Like jaded jean If you could work out everything 
And fill the holes the ashes bring 
You wouldn't have a need for dreams 
Like jaded jean 
In her jaded scene The stories come before she falls asleep 
She draws the people she wants to meet
 They live in houses filled with schemes
 The sun rises up 
And floods her streams Would you believe
 Her father's at home 
Watching the clocks
 While mommy's alone 
And would you believe
 In all of these things 
If you could see 
Like jaded jean If you could be like jaded jean 
You wouldn't have a need for dreams
11.
Rainbowmaker 05:46
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©1998 N. Kramer, BMI Rainbows have a way of knowing
And welcoming the light
Flying its flag Rainbows have a way of showing 
And teaching about light
 Naming all the colors Water with its peace with time 
Can block and bend the ligh t
I want to be that water I am a rainbow chaser 
I want to get that pot 
Of gold at the end I want to see the way
 I want to know the way 
Sailing on the waves 
Floating in the waves 
Feeling a part of time 
Feeling all of the time I want to be a rainbowmaker 
I want to be a prism-man
 I want to show my colors I want a sky, each star an eye 
Mirroring me back my man 
Shining on me, shining me I want to be, be understood 
And I want, want to be heard 
I want to be cared about I want to be a rainbowmaker 
To refract a tiny piece
 Of all the distance of light I want to be a rainbowmaker 
I want to be a prism-man 
I want to show you my colors I want to see the way 
I want to know the way 
Sailing on the waves
 Floating in the waves 
Feeling a part of time 
Feeling all of the time
12.
Firecracker 04:44
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I believe in colors 
So bright and full 
So extreme I believe in light 
Florescent, candle 
And the sun It's not enough
 To not be afraid of electricity 
You've got to believe 
You've got to believe Give me your hums, your drums
 Your drones and moans and 
All the riches of your Gold Coast Give me your wings, your web
 Give me your heart and head
 Give me your smoke ghost The past is past, the future's best 
I'm standing here
 Ready for anything that comes You and me will not 
Go down in history
 We'll just be disappeared and drowned But, there's a lot of freedom out there 
And I'm just trying for my piece
 Oh, you've got to believe
 You've got to believe Show me your wrist, your lips, your kiss
 Your needs and knees 
Show me what you fear most Show me your ankle, show me your elbow
 Show me your anger 
Show me your smoke ghost
 Show me
13.
Judas, This Is Jesus 03:03
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Judas, This Is Jesus It's raining Silver Help Me
14.
Crash Of The Bug (Super Beetle Radio Mix) 04:15
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You're driving in your car 
Not going very far 
A sunday sunny drive
 Feels good to be alive Your friends are in the back 
Ask you where you're at 
Some take the wrong turn
 The moonlight tavern burns At the bottom of the hill
 A wooden house is filled
 You've got to climb the stairs 
Your friends are unaware
15.
Whirlaway (single mix) 04:28
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From temperate climes, through rain, set sail
 Ribbons of water, they sparkle and spangle 
In the coming sun, falling through liquid streets 
Into the jungle and out of the rain Steal into dreamtiger eyes and slowly leave behind 
Domino days of time, inches of distance 
Slip past the double-edged sword of building 
The cost of building more, or of just maintaining 
Feel the dreamtigers prowling free and easy 
But ribbons of memory still tumble and tangle 
And turn into questions, "Can your friends trust you now?" Only dreamtigers never have a need to change In time, as night declines, fleeting and fading 
Ribbons of laughter, they jingle and jangle 
And all the dream-tigers retreat back into the trees 
With green, smiling eyes, at the coming of the day
16.
Sunrise Ocean Bender (Ampreon Mix) 06:52
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Nothing to believe in 
Nothing worth seeing
 It's ok The dunes are frozen 
Throw rocks in the ocean 
The waves are astounding 
The heart keeps on pounding 
It's ok Your arms are golden 
Your sunlights are broken
 When night is falling 
You hear me calling Can you tell me how to see 
Can you tell me how to look 
I can't find my way inside 
I haven't read the book
 It's ok The sunrise ocean bender
 The sunrise ocean bender
17.
Smile If You've Crossed Over (Orgmonica Mix) 07:31
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(Instrumental)

about

Use With Headphones Late At Night (Best of 1990-2000) (2001) is the first career spanning compilation CD by Tadpoles. The record features tracks from each studio album, plus four previously rare or unreleased tracks. Tracks 1-8 feature remastered works from He Fell Into The Sky and Far Out. Tracks 9-12 are identical to the versions on Smoke Ghost and Track 13 is taken directly from the Know Your Ghosts E.P.. The final four songs are previously unreleased alternate mixes of Whirlaway tracks. "Crash Of The Bug (Super Beetle Radio Mix)" and "Whirlaway (Mp3 Single Mix)" were edited and mixed by Gene Holder (the dB's).

PITCHFORK REVIEW
Tadpoles
Use With Headphones Late
at Night: Best of 1990- 2000 [Bakery; 2001]
7.5



There are styles of music that I figure will probably always be around in some form, and psychedelia is one of them. I have a lot of reasons for thinking that, but the main one is that, as a genre, it's so adaptable. The advent of decent recording technology was one of the main things that made truly psychedelic music possible in the first place, so it seems natural that the music should continue to evolve with the technology. Secondly, psychedelia is at best a vaguely defined genre distinction, so it's easy to apply it to music that comes decidedly from a rock or pop standpoint, but is colored on the edges with noise and effects.
The Tadpoles pretty much exemplify what most American psychedelic music sounded like in the 1990s-- melodic rock wrapped in blankets of fuzz, heavily processed guitars and the occasional electronic studio effect. The Tadpoles were adept enough at jamming and developing themes, but they were at their best when working with concise, punchy songs. Then they broke up in 2000 ("indefinite hiatus," they called it), and leader Tom Parker pulled together this retrospective as a eulogy of sorts for the band. By and large, he's come up with a good overview of their catalog, taking four tracks from each of the band's four studio LPs, and one track from 1997's Know Your Ghosts EP.
The 78-minute disc starts where it logically should, with four songs from the band's debut album, 1994's He Fell into the Sky, and proceeds chronologically from there. As such, it gives a clear view of just how much the Hoboken, NJ band progressed during their career. "Snapper" opens things in a haze of stompbox fuzz, with Parker's tenor voice hanging low in the mix. Original drummer Michael Kite Audino lays on the toms hard, and the sheets of distortion sometimes give way to cleanly strummed guitar chords, and even something that might be described as a solo at one point (albeit not a very melodic one).
The vocals stay fairly buried and the guitar tones largely the same for the other three selections from He Fell, the best of which is probably the slow-burning "The Ride," which features some fine playing from bassist David Max and a gloriously muddy buildup near the end. The four selections from 1996's Far Out show progress almost immediately, with Nick Kramer's heavily processed guitar coming to the fore after the departure of co-guitarist Andrew Jackson.
"Race You to the Mustard Patch" drips in wah pedals and vocal effects, while the Nick Kramer-sung "Nazareth" remains squeaky-clean until about 2\xBD minutes in, when it briefly explodes in a ball of distortion and flailing lead lines. "Ride the World Around the Sun" features dueling guitars orbiting a solid bassline, while "At Least I'm Not Like Jonathan Carver" begins floating somewhere in space before congealing halfway through into a heavy, aggressive attack.
The portion of the disc devoted to 1998's excellent Smoke Ghost album is probably the most solid portion of the compilation, as the band finally hit on a combination of songwriting and sound that balanced the two equally. Kramer puts his voice out in front for "Know Your Ghosts," and the band allows for considerably more space in the arrangement, setting up some dramatic guitar breaks. "Jaded Jean" could easily have been a single, falling into the same noise-tainted pop territory that the Jesus and Mary Chain nurtured in the 80s.
Both Parker and Kramer had come a long way with their singing by this point, which allowed them not only to handle better, rangier melodies, but also gave them the confidence to put them up front in the mix, a move that greatly increases the immediacy of the songs. The only disappointing thing about this section of the disc is that Parker has chosen not to include Smoke Ghost's excellent opener "When I Feel," which is easily one of the band's best songs. Still, the propulsive, effects- drenched "Firecracker" is a reasonable substitute, if not an ideal one.
"Judas, This Is Jesus," from the Know Your Ghosts EP, follows, breaking the chronological flow for a few moments, but it's unlikely that any listener would mind, as the song doesn't sound like a step back at all. It begins with an answering machine message of a man saying, "Judas, this is Jesus. It's raining silver. Help me," a clip that reverberates over the course of the whole instrumental, which is otherwise a sticky concoction of molten guitar mayhem.
Whirlaway, the band's final album (and their only effort not recorded for their own Bakery label) had by far the clearest sound of any of their releases, incorporating more keyboards and electronics and largely eschewing the fuzz that typified their early work. Instead, the distortion on "Crash of the Bug" is more controlled and less opaque. The guitars take on more melodic tasks, too, soaring in tandem behind the verses and bridging the gaps between vocal passages. Final drummer Adam Boyette lays down a furious groove on that album's title song, giving Max the chance to toss off an impressive bass lead at one point and ably supporting the fluid guitar leads.
Unfortunately, the last two tracks each find the band gazing a little too hard at their shoes, ending the disc on a fairly unengaging note, but overall, Use with Headphones Late at Night is a satisfying look at the Tadpoles' studio career. Perhaps the most unfortunate thing about it is that it only focuses on their studio material, neglecting to include a single track from The Tadpoles Destroy Terrastock, an EP documenting their ferocious performance at the original Ptolemaic Terrascope-sponsored Terrastock festival in 1997. As far as definitive statements on what the band was capable of at their best, that EP just may be it.
Aside from that, though, there's little to gripe about. This is, in the end, a faithful overview that serves as a fine introduction to one of the great overlooked psychedelic acts of the 90s. Of course, it also catches them wandering here and there, but by and large, Use With Headphones Late at Night concentrates on the band's most focused work. For most people, this is all the Tadpoles you'll ever need. You may still want to try and catch them destroying Terrastock, though.
— Joe Tangari, Pitchfork, February 19, 2002

credits

released September 11, 2001

Use With Headphones Late At Night (Best of 1990-2000)' was compiled and mastered by Todd Parker at DBS Digital in Hoboken, New Jersey. Additional mastering was provided by Pablo Martin. Album artwork and design were created by Ann Manca.

©2001 Tadpoles/Bakery Records

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Tadpoles Hoboken, New Jersey

Tadpoles, based in Hoboken, NJ, disbanded in 2000 after releasing 4 critically acclaimed studio albums, 1 live album and 1 E.P. all on their own Bakery Records label (except for their last studio album, Whirlaway, which was released on Australia's Camera Obscura Records.) The group was formed by vocalist/guitarist, Todd Parker and original drummer, Michael Kite Audino in New York City in 1990. ... more

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