Sound ... Goodbye to Your Standards
{{Infobox album
| name = Sound ... Goodbye to Your Standards
| type = studio
| artist = the Mighty Lemon Drops
| cover = Sound ... Goodbye to Your Standards.jpg
| alt =
| released = 1991
| recorded =
| venue =
| studio =
| genre = Alternative rock
| length =
| producer = Andy Paley
| prev_title = Laughter
| prev_year = 1989
| next_title = Ricochet
| next_year = 1992
}}
Sound ... Goodbye to Your Standards is an album by the English band the Mighty Lemon Drops, released in 1991.{{Cite web|url=https://www.allmusic.com/artist/the-mighty-lemon-drops-mn0000474336/biography|title=The Mighty Lemon Drops Biography, Songs, & Albums|website=AllMusic}}{{cite magazine |last1=Jennings |first1=Dave |title=Albums — Sound by the Mighty Lemon Drops |magazine=Melody Maker |date=Jun 22, 1991 |volume=67 |issue=25 |page=33}}
The album's first single was "Unkind", which peaked at No. 28 on Billboard's Modern Rock Tracks chart.{{cite news |last1=Kim |first1=Jae-Ha |title=Lemon Drops offer tart, tight musicianship |work=Chicago Sun-Times |date=September 30, 1991 |department=Features |page=34}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.billboard.com/artist/the-mighty-lemon-drops/|title=The Mighty Lemon Drops|website=Billboard}} The band supported the album by touring with Sister Double Happiness; they were also part of the ill-fated 1991 festival A Gathering of the Tribes.{{cite news |last1=Heim |first1=Chris |title=Mighty Lemon Drops and Sister Double Happiness |work=Chicago Tribune |date=27 Sep 1991 |department=Friday |page=N}}{{cite news |last1=Catlin |first1=Roger |title=What's New |work=Hartford Courant |date=September 19, 1991 |department=Calendar |page=5}}{{cite news |last1=Shuster |first1=Fred |title=Rock News & Notes |work=Los Angeles Daily News |date=June 28, 1991 |page=L32}}
Production
The album was produced by Andy Paley.{{cite news |last1=Harbaugh |first1=Chris |title=Recordings on Review |work=Dayton Daily News |date=June 7, 1991 |department=Go! |page=17}} About half of the songs were written by guitar player David Newton. The album was recorded live in the studio, in about two weeks.{{cite news |last1=Harris |first1=Paul A. |title=Lemon Drops Band Is Not Soured on the 'Mersey' Beat |work=St. Louis Post-Dispatch |date=September 19, 1991 |department=Calendar |page=8}} Most of its songs are about relationship issues.
Critical reception
{{album ratings
|rev1 = AllMusic
|rev1score = {{rating|2|5}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/sound-mw0000674618|title=Sound|website=AllMusic}}
|rev2 = Calgary Herald
|rev2score =B-{{cite news |last1=Alberts |first1=Sheldon |title=Recent Releases |work=Calgary Herald |date=26 May 1991 |page=E5}}
|rev3 = The Encyclopedia of Popular Music
|rev3score = {{rating|3|5}}{{cite book |last1=Larkin |first1=Colin |title=The Encyclopedia of Popular Music |date=2006 |publisher=MUZE |volume=5 |page=746}}
|rev4 = Houston Chronicle
|rev4score = {{rating|2.5|4}}{{cite news |last1=Racine |first1=Marty |title=Sound... The Mighty Lemon Drops |work=Houston Chronicle |date=June 9, 1991 |department=Zest |page=15}}
|rev5 = MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide
|rev5score = {{rating|2|5}}{{cite book |title=MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide |date=1999 |publisher=Visible Ink Press |page=756}}
|rev6 = The Tampa Tribune
|rev6score = {{rating|3|4}}{{cite news |last1=Perez |first1=Steven |title=Pop that won't rot your teeth |work=The Tampa Tribune |date=June 14, 1991 |department=Tampa Bay Times |page=19}}
}}
Trouser Press wrote: "Stumbling through faint stabs at blues, beat-era rock'n'roll and ravedelia, the group sounds lost and bored, a plight exacerbated by the dire production, which is not only flat and sloppy but inconsistent at that."{{cite web |title=Mighty Lemon Drops |url=https://trouserpress.com/reviews/mighty-lemon-drops/ |website=Trouser Press |access-date=19 March 2022}} Spin panned the "excessive echo, non-distinct, nondescript vocals, and inefficient layers of guitar."{{cite magazine |last1=O'Connor |first1=Rob |title=Spins |magazine=Spin |date=Jul 1991 |volume=7 |issue=4 |page=77}} The Indianapolis Star opined that "the Drops nearly redeem the lackluster material with some sterling performances."{{cite news |last1=Lucas |first1=Tim |title=The Mighty Lemon Drops Sound |work=The Indianapolis Star |date=1 July 1991 |page=C2}}
The St. Petersburg Times determined that "dream-like melodies, stoked by '60s-flavored rhythms, steal effective moments in cuts such as 'Unkind', 'My Shadow Girl' and 'Too High'."{{cite news |last1=Hall |first1=Dave |title=The Mighty Lemon Drops Sound |work=St. Petersburg Times |date=14 June 1991 |department=Weekend |page=16}} The Los Angeles Times deemed the album "perhaps the group's best effort, due to pop-master Andy Paley's production and musical collaboration."{{cite news |last1=Washburn |first1=Jim |title=These Lemon Drops Could Use a Fresher Flavor |work=Los Angeles Times |date=20 Sep 1991 |department=Calendar |page=22}} The Calgary Herald stated: "Soft and accessible, it's also too safe and a little bit too familiar."
AllMusic wrote that "Sound is a reminder of how most alternative rock, in the months before Nirvana broke, was just as boring and predictable as anything in the mainstream."
Track listing
{{Track listing
| all_writing =
| title1 = Too High
| length1 =
| title2 = Unkind
| length2 =
| title3 = My Shadow Girl
| length3 =
| title4 = Barry's Poem
| length4 =
| title5 = Always
| length5 =
| title6 = Big Surprise
| length6 =
| title7 = Cold, Cold Heart
| length7 =
| title8 = Annabelle
| length8 =
| title9 = You Don't Appreciate Anything
| length9 =
| title10 = Colorful-Loving-Me
| length10 =
| title11 = Ready, Steady, No!
| length11 =
}}