10,000 Maniacs “In My Tribe” 1987. Today’s pull mainly an excuse for me to listen to “Like the Weather” because it’s been stuck in my head all day as the weather basically sucks (freezing rain nastiness). Though the album was released in ‘87, listening to it takes me back to ‘89 when I was a freshman at UW-Madison, living in the tiniest of tiny dorm room with a truly awful roommate (her music collection consisted of Billy Joel’s Greatest Hits, Skid Row and the Dirty Dancing soundtrack. On cassette. There may have been some Air Supply in there too, can’t remember). I’d lay in my loft bed until 2:00 in the afternoon, staring out the window and singing (in my head) “Like the Weather”

The color of the sky as far as I can see is coal grey
I lift my head from the pillow and then fall again
With a shiver in my bones just thinking about the weather
A quiver in my lip as if I might cry

Well by the force of will my lungs are filled and so I breathe
Lately it seems this big bed is where I never leave
Shiver in my bones just thinking about the weather
Quiver in my voice as I cry

What a cold and rainy day
Where on earth is the sun hid away?

Apparently I was not alone in my college-age attraction to this album and its various social commentary on issues like child abuse (“What’s the Matter Here?” –  a popular theme in the late 80′s i.e. “Luka” by Suzanne Vega, also from ‘87) , illiteracy, alcohol addiction, war and the environment. Allmusic reviewer Chris Woodstra observes “In My Tribe has served as one of the soundtracks for P.C. living and was required listening on college campuses in the late ‘80s.” A certain fascination with the Beat generation was also popular, at least with my friends, and 10,000 Maniacs had us covered with “Hey Jack Kerouac,” another favorite track of mine from this album. Those were also my days of trying on the neo-hippie label so I also loved 10,000 Maniacs cover of Cat Stevens “Peace Train,” a track that was removed in ‘89 from the U.S. CD version after comments made by Stevens (by then a Muslim convert and known as Yusuf Islam) that were perceived to be supportive of the fatwa on Salman Rushdie.