Rocktrospectiva: The Gentle Indie Lost Classic "Eventually" Turns 30

Released on 30 April 1996 "Eventually· was the 2nd., solo studio album by US indie icon Paul Westerberg, the album spawned the single "Love Untold." The album started out in Atlanta, with producer Brendan O'Brien. Although those sessions produced good results—the leadoff single, "Love Untold", among them—Westerberg and O'Brien parted ways. O'Brien was pressed for time, and Westerberg needed more time to write enough songs to fill out a full album.  The song "Good Day" was written for late Replacements guitarist Bob Stinson. It references "Hold My Life", a track from the album

From the folk pop of opener "These Are the Days," it was clear he was more focused than ever. "You've Had It With You" arkens back to the more ragged Replacements vibe, while "MamaDaddyDid" and "Once Around the Weekend" were somewhat paint-by-numbers alt-pop for the era—radio-friendly pop songs, perfect for a soundtrack near you. 

The album was full of these mid-tempo, melody-driven adult pop songs that, while fine, fail to really catch fire at first. Paul Westerberg quit drinking around the time of The Replacements'  demise and began to mature. Some people never will forgive Paul for simply growing up. His first solo album  was an excellent, if slightly uneven record. Until today Eventually was his most fully realized solo album. Every song is excellent and brilliantly ordered in sequence of songs, each song builded on the previous one to create a sum that is greater than its parts.

It starts off brilliantly with "These Are the Days" and continued to grew, "Love Untold" was a heartbreaking ode to two potential lovers who never get a chance to meet. Westerberg’s attention to small details is captured as perfectly here as it’s ever been. It’s those small details that has made Westerberg one of the greatest, if unfortunately underrated songwriters of his generation. He captures all the heartbreak, the angst, the joy and the passion that we all feel from time to time. He knows how to convey what we all feel inside. "Ain't Got Me" was another excellent song that segues beautifully into  "You've Had it With You." 

Then it came "MamaDaddyDid" revealed his ambivalence towards having children & his own parents’ inability to raise him. Although I guess he had a change of heart a few years later, when he did in fact have a child. "Hide N Seekin" was probably the type of song that his fans crucify him for back then, the one of the most touching songs of his entire career "Good Day," a piano & strings-based ballad, a hopeful, positive ode to being alive sung with heartfelt passion. A tribute to fallen, former Mats guitarist Bob Stinson.

In the end, "Eventually" was one of those albums where everything came together all at once and is clearly a lost classic.

 

Eventually Track List: 

 

1. These Are The Days

2. Century

3. Love Untold

4. Ain't Got Me

5. You've Had It With You

6. MamaDaddyDid

7. Hide n Seekin

8. Once Around The Weekend

9. Trumpet Clip

10. Angels Walk

11. Good Day

12. Time Flies Tomorrow