The Lemonheads – The Outdoor Type

Attack of the Killer Track! is a series that explores tracks from artists from a variety of genres. Some of the tracks were singles, some of them were obscure b-sides or long forgotten album tracks. One thing is certain – all of them are killer tracks.

Ah, the great outdoors. In Washington State I have no lack of friends who rough it – camping in tents under the stars in the great outdoors. And there is a certain beauty in that and something that I admire. But I’ll be honest – 9 times out of 10  it just isn’t my thing. I like the comfort of a bed at night. And I might also like comfy pajamas, hot cocoa, and checking Facebook by the glow of my phone. It is a battle to be sure. A cabin isn’t so bad though. Back in the mid 90’s Evan Dando’s The Lemonheads brought these exact conundrums to a wider audience. The Outdoor Type was a single released from the 1996 album Car Button Cloth. An album that still confounds me to this day, it is made up of dark masterpieces and slight alternative rock throwaways in equal measure. Little talked about fact – The Outdoor Type was written by Tom Morgan and 1st recorded by his band Smudge in 1994. So The Lemonheads version is a cover. Evan Dando imbues the song with a sense of being lived in, and is equal parts funny & honest. In some ways, the sound points towards his 2003 solo album Baby I’m Bored – melodic, wistful, and just a tad country. For me, this is the quintessential song by The Lemonheads. I’ve played it more times than I know in the last 20 years, and I’d imagine the next 20 years hold more of the same in store. I don’t usually post the entire lyrics from a song, but this one still makes me smile and demands it.