Tube Trippiness3 Out Of 5 Stars
Trying to follow all the reissues on all sorts of labels can make a Tubes fan crazy. Their theatrical brand of rock and roll combined sex, vaudeville and an under-rated quality of musicianship. Depending on how you ask, The Tubes peakedin any variety of their many albums, and this particular collection, "Goin' Down The Tubes," collects highlights, alternate takes and for some odd reason, the entirety of "Remote Control." That was my main reason for picking this up in the first place, though that's since been nullified by an actual re-master/reissue of "Remote Control" as a stand alone deluxe CD. But would I give "Goin' Down" up because of that? No way.
The disc opens with a couple of oddities, a half live/half re-edited version of "White Punks on Dope" (that also neuters the F-word) and then an alternate take of "Up From The Deep" than the one on the debut. Then you get three re-mastered tracks from the debut, including the seminal "White Punks On Dope" is all it's glitzy glory. (Which begs the question of why this, or the bulk of The Tubes' albums not been given a proper re-issue? "White Punks" sounds amazing here.) The slicker "Young and Rich" may have tried to make lightning strike twice with "What Do You Want From Life," but the real clincher was Fee Waybill and Re Styles duet on the S&M meets boy-girl Phil Spector mashup, "Don't Touch Me There."
There are a few songs from the disappointing "Now," which you can find re-issued but it was a hot-mess of a record. And how is this for cover selections? "My Head is My Only House Unless It Rains" and "Love Will Keep us Together"? Yes, Captain Beefheart and Captain and Tennille. That's one wild pair of captains. Onetime and one album member Mingo Lewis gets a showcase on his instrumental "God Bird Change" (from "Now"), which sounds close to fusion jazz/rock. That's just the first disc of "Goin' Down."
The aforementioned "Remote Control" takes up 11 of disc two's 17 tracks. The rest of "Goin' Down" is taken from concert material, I'm guessing from the "Now" tour and - I think - the "What Do You Want From Live" - double album, including a lively version of The Beatles' "I Saw Here Standing There." Just in case you missed it the first two times, "White Punks On Dope" gets a thorough workout with the audience going berserk. This was the period where The Tubes could have been the contemporaries of anyone from Zappa to Alice Cooper with a plenty of sideshow comedy thrown in for good measure. That's what makes "Goin' Down The Tubes" a best bet for Tubes fans that don't want to chase after the getting harder to find earlier CD's.
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