Jump to content

Dot (song)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

"Dot"
Single by All
from the album Percolater
B-side
Released1992 (1992)
Studio
GenrePunk rock
Length6:19
LabelCruz (CRZ-024)
Songwriter(s)Scott Reynolds
Producer(s)Bill Stevenson, Stephen Egerton
All singles chronology
"She's My Ex"
(1989)
"Dot"
(1992)
"Shreen"
(1994)
Audio sample

"Dot" is a song by the American punk rock band All, written by singer Scott Reynolds and released as a single and music video from the band's 1992 album Percolater. The single also includes the song "Can't Say", written by bassist Karl Alvarez and drummer Bill Stevenson, and a cover version of "A Boy Named Sue", a 1969 song written by Shel Silverstein and made famous by Johnny Cash.

Background

[edit]
"Dot" was written by singer Scott Reynolds.

"Dot" was recorded with the rest of Percolater at Chapman Recording Studios in Kansas City, Missouri and at Nightingale Studio in Nashville, Tennessee.[1] Stevenson and guitarist Stephen Egerton served as record producers and additional recording engineers.[1] The recordings were mixed by John Hampton at Ardent Studios in Memphis, Tennessee.[1] "Can't Say" and "A Boy Named Sue" were also recorded during the Percolater sessions but were left off of the album.[1] "Dot" was released through Cruz Records in 1992 as a 10-inch single, cassette single, and CD single.

The music video for "Dot" shows the band members performing the song on a set made to resemble the interior of a house, with Reynolds using various props related to the song's lyrics such as a telescope, telephone, and mirror. Stevenson did not think "Dot" was the strongest choice of song for a music video. Reynolds later recalled that "When we went to record the 'Dot' video, it was really apparent that Bill was dissatisfied. He wasn't happy".[2] "At that point I was idealizing we would put our foot forward visually with a song that maybe had more of an eighth note drive to it," said Stevenson, "but on that record I didn't have really any good songs, so it's like 'Okay, a lot of lip from you, Stevenson. Where's your good song?' And it's like 'I don’t have any.'"[2]

Reception

[edit]

Deborah Orr of CMJ New Music Report said "'Dot' is classic All, whizzy and boiling over with happy punk sentiments."[3] Mike DaRonco of Allmusic focused his comments on the single's others songs, saying "'Can't Say' has the same heartfelt lyrics and all-around goofiness that All are known for. But what makes the single worthwhile is their rendition of Johnny Cash's 'A Boy Named Sue': just listening to the normally high-pitched voice of Scott Reynolds trying to do his best Man in Black imitation is a scream."[4]

Track listing

[edit]
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Dot"Scott Reynolds2:00
2."A Boy Named Sue" (originally performed by Shel Silverstein)Shel Silverstein2:16
3."Can't Say"Karl Alvarez (music and lyrics), Bill Stevenson (music)2:03
Total length:6:19

Personnel

[edit]
Band[1]
Production[1]
  • E – additional engineering
  • Erik Flettrich – additional engineering
  • John Hampton – mixing engineer
  • Rich Hanson – additional engineering
  • G.E. Teel – additional engineering

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b c d e f Dot (CD liner). All. Long Beach, California: Cruz Records. 1992. CRZ CD 024.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  2. ^ a b LaCour, Deedle (Director); Riggle, Matt (Director) (2013). Filmage: The Story of Descendents/All (DVD). Manchester: Rogue Elephant Pictures. Event occurs at 49:20.
  3. ^ Orr, Deborah (May 22, 1992). "Review: All – Percolater". allcentral.com. CMJ New Music Report. Archived from the original on July 17, 2001. Retrieved March 14, 2015.
  4. ^ DaRonco, Mike. "Review: Dot". Allmusic. Retrieved March 14, 2015.