Ween (partially found demo songs/tapes from experimental rock band; 1985-2007)
Ween is an American experimental rock band formed in New Hope, Pennsylvania, in 1985. They have gained a large cult following and critical praise for their genre-hopping music, "brown" sound (drawing on psychedelic music), and crude sense of humor, among other aspects. They released 9 studio albums and 2 compilations before disbanding in 2012, eventually reforming in 2016.
Since their formation, they have recorded numerous demo tapes and songs alongside their official releases. While most of their extensive demo-and-outtake discography is widely available and shared on platforms such as YouTube, there are some songs and even entire tapes that have yet to resurface. Some songs were known to be played on Weenradio, and others shared on file-sharing site WeenFTP.[1] Unfortunately, certain Weenradio broadcasts aren't known to have been recorded and WeenFTP has long since been rendered inoperative. Further complicating matters is the lack of information for a majority of the tapes.
Lost/Partially Found Tapes[2]
Tape | Recorded | Status | |
---|---|---|---|
1 | Ween WAD | 1985 | Existence Unconfirmed[3] |
2 | Mrs. Slack | 1985? | Partially Found |
3 | We Broke Up | 1987 | Lost |
4 | Ween/Smersh | 1987 | Lost |
5 | Focus | 1989? | Lost |
6 | Eindhoven EP | 1990 | Possibly Found |
7 | Caprice Classic | 1991 | Lost |
8 | Springstuff | 1991 | Lost |
9 | The Freedom Tape | 1992 | Partially Lost |
10 | Créme de Menthe | 1993 | Lost |
11 | Music for Drunk Irish Homos | 1995 | Lost |
12 | Various pre-1990 tapes (Kim Tulio, John Ward, The Polish Lightbulb Joke, Mike Banks) | mid-to-late 1980s | Partially Found |
13 | Jug is Quaid | 1990s? | Partially Found |
14 | Various The Pod demo tapes (Pork Roll Egg and Cheese, The Stallion, Wedd Whore) | Early 1990s | Lost |
Lost/Unresurfaced Songs
Name | Outtake/Demo? | Sessions for... | |
---|---|---|---|
1 | Kevin the Honky | Demo | The Mollusk |
2 | Gotta Burn on My Arm | Demo | Pure Guava |
3 | I Got It | Demo | Pure Guava |
4 | Boston Chicken | Outtake | 12 Golden Country Greats[4] |
5 | Louise | Outtake | White Pepper |
6 | Streetfight | Demo | None (around Chocolate and Cheese era) |
7 | Israel | Demo | Unknown (rerecorded for the Shinola, Vol. 1 compilation) |
Status
The Freedom Tape is by far the most complete of the known tapes, but still missing several songs, including alternate versions of What Deaner Was Talking About, Don't Shit Where You Eat, and Fluffy.[5] The only song to resurface (and, by extension, the only known song) from Jug is Quaid is Albino Sunburned Girl. The Eindhoven EP is sometimes rumored to be a live show guitarist Dean Ween shared in 2018.[6]
Certain .shn files were recovered from a WeenFTP archive by a Discord server dedicated to lost Ween media, but it is currently unknown exactly what songs have been recovered. The Mrs. Slack, Polish Lightbulb Joke, Kim Tulio, Mike Banks, and John Ward tapes were compiled, among others, for Prime 5, a 1988 compilation that resurfaced in 2017.
References
- ↑ Post regarding the status of a Weenradio broadcast containing certain songs listed in the article. Retrieved 22 Apr '21
- ↑ A comprehensive list of known rare Ween releases, including lost ones. Retrieved 22 Apr '21
- ↑ Discogs entry for the alleged Ween WAD tape. Retrieved 22 Apr '21
- ↑ Photo shared by 12 Golden Country Greats producer Ben Vaughn, showing an early tracklisting for the album that includes the lost "Boston Chicken". Retrieved 22 Apr '21
- ↑ Reddit thread about the Freedom tape's tracklist. Retrieved 22 Apr '21
- ↑ YouTube upload of the live show rumored to be the Eindhoven EP. Retrieved 22 Apr '21