ViewAskewbian

III Sides to Every Story was Extreme's follow up to the band's most popular album, Pornographitti. Released 30 years ago this week, I remember playing the hell out of this album back when all my buds were listening to grunge.

I just gave it a spin for the first time in a very long time and, well, this album is amazing and actually provides a really interesting soundtrack to todays world with it's themes of politics, war, religion, racism and faith. The album also dips into various musical genres: rock, funk, classical and even a bit of hiphop.

There really isn't a tune I don't like. Rest in Peace was the more popular cut on the album but Stop The World was also an amazing single while tunes like Warheads rocked and Seven Sunday's showed Gary Cherone's vocal range. However, the best thing on this awesome album is the finale: the 20+ minute Everything Under the Sun Parts 1-3. The final moments that build to a symphonic crescendo merging all three parts together is just fantastic.

I can't believe this was a commercial failure only selling 700,000 copies. Granted the grunge era was strong at this point which might have been a factor as well as not really having a tune like More Than Words that grabbed a wider audience.

Still, I totally suggest those who haven't heard it to give it a spin (especially with a good set of headphones to hear the stereo mix, sound effects, instrumentation changing ears etc.). Again, given the current climate of things, I certainly have a new appreciation for a lot of the messages the brand was trying to get across with this album.

story

I'm sorry, but I don't know any of these songs. I do like that they kept up the portmanteau work with their third track, however.

ViewAskewbian

Yeah, none of the songs were real hits though one might be hard pressed to name an Extreme tune that isn't on Pornographitti but the entire album is solid and moves through various section: The first is heavier stuff / the second slower and more introspective / the third is epic

brainee

A random-seeming thread to see ... but I agree with you 100% I loved this album when it came out. Just like you say, an eclectic mix of songs with an absolutely epic finale. And while not as successful as the hits from their earlier album "Rest in Peace" and "Stop the World" got heavy play on alternative rock stations (and if you listened to those kinds of stations in the early 90s then you heard those songs, even if the titles don't ring a bell).

And then came Waiting for the Punchline, whose title seems like a cruel joke. Weak songs and seemed like a transparent effort to hop on the grunge bandwagon (and getting rid of most of the stuff that made their last 2 albums so good).

EdTheRipper

Such an underrated cd! I always felt like it just got lost in the shuffle due to when it came out. I'm partial to "Tragic Comic", but there really isn't a single bad track on the entire cd.

sportsfan64

I was a fan of Rest In Peace.

ViewAskewbian

Tragic Comic was a fav of mine growing up. When things were really getting crazy during the pandemic I sent a friend the tune Stop The World which is what reminded me of this album and now I am playing that one a lot. Finally got around to listening to the entire thing as a whole and, yeah, not a bad track.

BONUS: I can do part of Martin Luther King's famed "Dream" speech because of this album. :P

bunkaroo

This is by far their best and one of the best albums of the 90s. Absolute masterpiece. Excellent sound and perfect execution on all fronts. A victim of terrible timing with the grunge era.

For those who don’t know, the CD version (and inexplicably, most digital versions) are missing the song “Don’t Leave Me Alone” which slots in right after “God Isn’t Dead” and before the final “Truth” side. It was on the cassette version (I see it’s on the vinyl above too) but omitted from the CD due to length. It’s a gorgeous ballad with a really great synth solo.

I had the cassette first and did a double take when I later got the CD. Such a shame many have heard this record without that song in context. It can be found on the Stop the World CD single and I think maybe the Tragic Comic single. I’m not sure if it’s out there for digital purchase or streaming but here it is on YouTube:

[email protected]

My friend Bob St. John was the engineer on this (and all) Extreme albums. He recently posted some of his memories of these sessions on FB, if you want check it out.

https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100086263147373

ViewAskewbian

I KNEW something felt like it was missing. I had the cassette in my teens (it's now long gone) and listening to the album recently had a nagging feeling I was missing something but couldn't quite figure it out. When I posted the image that listed the missing track I thought it was maybe the outro to God Isn't Dead but it still didn't seem right. Thanks for the heads up. I will try to track that tune down to complete the album again.

ViewAskewbian

Awesome! Thanks for sharing this and please pass along to Bob how this is one of the most amazing albums of 90s, played the hell out of it growing up and remains amazing on many levels. His work did not go unappreciated.

bunkaroo

Pretty amazing to read that post. The songs seem so perfectly slotted into the theme and flow of the record I would have never guessed some of them were written years prior.

JZ1276

I have always liked this album a lot. The production really stands out.
Don't Leave Me Alone is also available on Extragraffitti compilation album (3-CD edition) and Tragic Comic single.
The version of Stop the World from The Best of Extreme: An Accidental Collocation of Atoms? has a clean fade instead of merging into the next track like the album version.

stvn1974

I haven't heard Pornograffiti or III Sides To Every Story in decades. I just ordered both on CD.

Geofferson

This is a great read, thanks for sharing. Great album that deserved - and still deserves - more attention