Blame the Messenger

Blame the Messenger
Studio album by David Thomas & The Wooden Birds
Released	January 1987 (1987-01)
Recorded	September 23–24, 1986
Studio	Suma Recording (Painesville, OH)
Genre	Art rock, experimental rock
Length	39:18
Label	Rough Trade/Twin/Tone
Producer	Chris Cutler
David Thomas chronology
Monster Walks the Winter Lake (1986) Blame the Messenger (1987) Erewhon (1996)

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
Allmusic
Robert Christgau	C+

Blame the Messenger is the fifth studio album by experimental singer-songwriter David Thomas, released in January 1987 by Rough Trade and Twin/Tone Records. In 1997, the album was remastered by Paul Hamann and David Thomas for its inclusion in the Monster anthology box set.

Track listing

All lyrics are written by David Thomas; all music is composed by Chris Cutler, Jim Jones, Tony Maimone and Allen Ravenstine, except "My Town" and "Friends of Stone" by David Thomas

Side one

No.	Title	Length
1.	"My Town"	3:07
2.	"A Fact About Trains"	4:23
3.	"King Knut"	5:30
4.	"When Love Is Uneven"	3:29
5.	"The Storm Breaks"	3:35

Side two

No.	Title	Length
1.	"The Long Rain"	4:13
2.	"Having Time"	4:53
3.	"Friends of Stone"	3:18
4.	"The Velikovsky 2-Step"	6:50

Personnel

Adapted from the Monster Walks the Winter Lake liner notes.

The Wooden Birds

• Chris Cutler – drums, production
• Jim Jones – electric guitar, acoustic guitar, backing vocals
• Tony Maimone – electric bass guitar, acoustic bass guitar, backing vocals
• Allen Ravenstine – EML synthesizer, piano, backing vocals
• David Thomas – lead vocals, accordion

Production and additional personnel

• Michael Bishop – mastering
• Paul Hamann – engineering
• Mik Mellen – cover art
• John Thompson – design

Release history

Region	Date	Label	Format	Catalog
United Kingdom	1987	Rough Trade	LP	ROUGH 120
United States		Twin/Tone		TTR 87105

External links

• Blame the Messenger at Discogs (list of releases)