Somery

In 1987 SST Records had purchased the Descendents' previous label New Alliance Records, releasing their 1987 album All and re-releasing all of their previous material.{{cite book |last=Chick |first=Stevie |title=Spray Paint the Walls: The Story of Black Flag |publisher=Omnibus Press |year=2009 |location=London |page=363 |isbn=978-1-84772-620-9}} Following the Descendents' final tours in spring and summer 1987, singer Milo Aukerman had left the band to pursue a career in biochemistry.{{cite AV media |last1=LaCour |first1=Deedle (Director) |last2=Riggle |first2=Matt (Director) |year=2013 |title=Filmage: The Story of Descendents/All |title-link=Filmage |medium=DVD |time=38:30. |location=Manchester |publisher=Rogue Elephant Pictures}}{{cite AV media notes |title=Hallraker: Live! |title-link=Hallraker: Live! |others=Descendents |year=1989 |first=Bill |last=Stevenson |author-link=Bill Stevenson (musician) |type=CD liner |publisher=SST Records |id=SST CD 205 |location=Lawndale, California}} The remaining members—bassist Karl Alvarez, guitarist Stephen Egerton, and drummer Bill Stevenson—relaunched the band under the name All, releasing three albums on the SST subsidiary Cruz Records between 1988 and 1991 with singers Dave Smalley and Scott Reynolds. SST also released the Descendents live albums Liveage! (1987) and Hallraker: Live! (1989), both recorded during the final two Descendents tours. Somery was released in 1991, compiling tracks from the Descendents' past studio releases. Stevenson created the cover art for the compilation while Egerton did the graphics.{{cite AV media notes |title=Somery |others=Descendents |year=1991 |type=CD liner |publisher=SST Records |id=SST CD 259 |location=Lawndale, California}} The Descendents would later reunite with Aukerman in 1995 to record Everything Sucks.

Stevenson remarked in 1993 that "Somery sold more than any of the Descendents albums put together. All the kids are just now getting into it, so that way they can buy one record and kind of get into it and see what it's all about, and then if they really like it they can buy all the other records. See, back when we were touring, nobody came to see us. It's only now [that] the Descendents have become popular."{{cite web |title=All – Interview |date=1993 |url=http://www.allcentral.com/html/articles.html#sv |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20010717124217/http://www.allcentral.com/html/articles.html#sv |url-status=dead |archive-date=2001-07-17 |work=allcentral.com |publisher=Suburban Voice |access-date=2015-03-10 }}

{{Music ratings

|rev3 = Tom Hull – on the Web

|rev3Score = B+ ({{Rating-Christgau|hm3}}){{cite web|last=Hull|first=Tom|authorlink=Tom Hull (critic)|date=April 19, 2021|url=http://tomhull.com/ocston/blog/archives/2938-Music-Week.html|title=Music Week|website=Tom Hull – on the Web|accessdate=April 20, 2021}}

}}

Stephen Thomas Erlewine of Allmusic gave Somery four and a half stars out of five, saying that although "a handful of great songs from their best albums are missing, Somery nevertheless selects the highlights from their occasionally uneven records, making it a useful and comprehensive retrospective."{{cite book |title=All Music Guide to Rock: The Definitive Guide to Rock, Pop, and Soul |editor1-last=Bogdanov |editor1-first=Vladimir |editor2-last=Woodstra |editor2-first=Chris |editor3-last=Erlewine |editor3-first=Stephen Thomas |editor3-link=Stephen Thomas Erlewine |year=2002 |edition=3rd |publisher=Backbeat Books |location=San Francisco |isbn=0-87930-653-X |page=303 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1-pH4i3jXvAC&pg=PA303 |access-date=2015-02-27}}{{cite web |last=Erlewine |first=Stephen Thomas |author-link=Stephen Thomas Erlewine |title=Review: Somery |website=Allmusic |url={{AllMusic|class=album|id=r5535|pure_url=yes}} |accessdate=2010-02-11}} Erlewine's colleague Mike DaRonco called it a felony that "Pep Talk" from All was not included on the compilation.{{cite web |last=DaRonco |first=Mike |title=Review: All |website=Allmusic |url={{AllMusic|class=album|id=r5539|pure_url=yes}} |accessdate=2010-02-11}} Rock critic Robert Christgau gave the album an A− rating, opining that the 1988 compilation Two Things at Once contained the band's best material, "But anyone beguiled, enthralled, or smacked between the eyes by how nakedly these guys don't quite understand their class rage and love-hungry sexual anxiety will hear through their bouts of misogyny and sophomoric humor for the 19 more tuneful if less inspired selections from three later and lesser albums, as in the tortured breakup song/metaphor 'Clean Sheets' and the fuckup/square's confession 'Coolidge'."{{cite web |last=Christgau |first=Robert |author-link=Robert Christgau |title=Review: Descendents – Somery |publisher=Consumer Guide |work=robertchristgau.com |url=http://www.robertchristgau.com/get_artist.php?id=1414&name=The+Descendents |accessdate=2015-02-09}} Jenny Eliscu of Rolling Stone called Somery "the only Descendents record to qualify as must-have. It's got virtually all of the winning songs, from the goofy hardcore tunes [...] to the more commercial-sounding rockers".{{cite magazine |last=Eliscu |first=Jenny |title=Descendents Biography |magazine=Rolling Stone |year=2004 |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/artists/descendents/biography |access-date=2010-02-14 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080821082421/http://www.rollingstone.com/artists/descendents/biography |archive-date=2008-08-21 |url-status=dead }}

{{track listing

| total_length = 53:12

| title1 = All

| note1 = from All, 1987

| writer1 = Bill Stevenson, Pat McCuistion

| length1 = 0:01

| title2 = My Dad Sucks

| note2 = from the Fat EP, 1981

| writer2 = Frank Navetta, Tony Lombardo

| length2 = 0:35

| title3 = Suburban Home

| note3 = from Milo Goes to College, 1982

| writer3 = Lombardo

| length3 = 1:40

| title4 = Silly Girl

| note4 = from I Don't Want to Grow Up, 1985

| writer4 = Stevenson

| length4 = 2:21

| title5 = Kids

| note5 = from Enjoy!, 1986

| writer5 = Stevenson

| length5 = 0:44

| title6 = Clean Sheets

| note6 = from All, 1987

| writer6 = Stevenson

| length6 = 3:12

| title7 = Sour Grapes

| note7 = from Enjoy!, 1986

| writer7 = Milo Aukerman, Doug Carrion

| length7 = 3:47

| title8 = Weinerschnitzel

| note8 = from the Fat EP, 1981

| writer8 = Stevenson, McCuistion

| length8 = 0:11

| title9 = Myage

| note9 = from Milo Goes to College, 1982

| writer9 = Stevenson

| length9 = 2:00

| title10 = Good Good Things

| note10 = from I Don't Want to Grow Up, 1985

| writer10 = Stevenson

| length10 = 2:19

| title11 = Van

| note11 = from All, 1987

| writer11 = Aukerman {{small|(lyrics)}}; Karl Alvarez, Stephen Egerton {{small|(music)}}

| length11 = 2:59

| title12 = Bikeage

| note12 = from Milo Goes to College, 1982

| writer12 = Stevenson

| length12 = 2:12

| title13 = Enjoy

| note13 = from Enjoy!, 1986

| writer13 = Aukerman, Carrion, Ray Cooper, Stevenson

| length13 = 2:10

| title14 = Theme

| note14 = from I Don't Want to Grow Up, 1985

| writer14 = Lombardo

| length14 = 2:12

| title15 = Coolidge

| note15 = from All, 1987

| writer15 = Alvarez

| length15 = 2:45

| title16 = I Like Food

| note16 = from the Fat EP, 1981

| writer16 = Stevenson

| length16 = 0:16

| title17 = I Wanna Be a Bear

| note17 = from Milo Goes to College, 1982

| writer17 = Lombardo, Navetta

| length17 = 0:41

| title18 = I Don't Want to Grow Up

| note18 = from I Don't Want to Grow Up, 1985

| writer18 = Lombardo

| length18 = 1:19

| title19 = Cheer

| note19 = from Enjoy!, 1986

| writer19 = Stevenson

| length19 = 3:01

| title20 = Pervert

| note20 = from I Don't Want to Grow Up, 1985

| writer20 = Aukerman {{small|(lyrics)}}, Lombardo {{small|(music)}}

| length20 = 1:45

| title21 = Hope

| note21 = from Milo Goes to College, 1982

| writer21 = Aukerman

| length21 = 1:59

| title22 = All-O-Gistics

| note22 = from All, 1987

| writer22 = Stevenson, McCuistion {{small|(lyrics)}}; Egerton {{small|(music)}}

| length22 = 3:00

| title23 = I'm Not a Loser

| note23 = from Milo Goes to College, 1982

| writer23 = Navetta

| length23 = 1:28

| title24 = Get the Time

| note24 = from Enjoy!, 1986

| writer24 = Aukerman

| length24 = 3:12

| title25 = Hürtin' Crüe

| note25 = from Enjoy!, 1986

| writer25 = Aukerman {{small|(music and lyrics)}}; Carrion, Cooper, Stevenson {{small|(music)}}

| length25 = 2:34

| title26 = Cameage

| note26 = from All, 1987

| writer26 = Stevenson

| length26 = 3:03

| title27 = Descendents

| note27 = from I Don't Want to Grow Up, 1985

| writer27 = Aukerman, Cooper, Stevenson {{small|(lyrics)}}; Lombardo {{small|(music and lyrics)}}

| length27 = 1:43

| title28 = No, All!

| note28 = from All, 1987

| writer28 = Stevenson, McCuistion

| length28 = 0:03

}}

;Band

• Karl Alvarez – bass guitar on tracks from All
• Milo Aukerman – vocals
• Doug Carrion – bass guitar on tracks from Enjoy!
• Ray Cooper – guitar on tracks from I Don't Want to Grow Up and Enjoy!
• Stephen Egerton – guitar on tracks from All, graphics
• Frank Navetta – guitar on tracks from the Fat EP and Milo Goes to College
• Tony Lombardo – bass guitar on tracks from the Fat EP, Milo Goes to College, and I Don't Want to Grow Up
• Bill Stevenson – drums, cover art, producer of tracks from I Don't Want to Grow Up, Enjoy!, and All

;Production

• Richard Andrews – engineer of tracks from Enjoy! and All
• Ethan James – engineer of tracks from Enjoy!
• Spot – producer and engineer of tracks from the Fat EP and Milo Goes to College
• David Tarling – producer and engineer of tracks from I Don't Want to Grow Up

{{Reflist}}

• [https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLLtkoXenQaFQzsGZSp8TlP3LNSc2dJAzH Somery] at YouTube (streamed copy where licensed)

{{Descendents}}

{{Authority control}}

Category:Descendents albums

Category:1991 compilation albums

Category:SST Records compilation albums

Category:Albums produced by Bill Stevenson (musician)