THE WAITRESSES - Bruiseology

It's unfortunate that all most people remember The Waitresses for (if they remember them at all) is I Know What Boys Like and Christmas Wrapping. Not that those aren't good songs, but the band had so many other noteworthy moments in its brief, two LP existence. Take, for example, 1983's Bruiseology, the second album. Apparently, the record was rushed to market after the first LP, Wasn't Tomorrow Wonderful?, and by the time it came out The Waitresses had pretty much fallen apart with the departure of lead singer Patty Donahue.

You can't really tell the band was going through troubled times by the quality of the material on Bruiseology. It's as witty and hooky as the debut, and probably a bit more unique. Guitarist Chris Butler, a man who penned all the band's songs from a woman's perspective, really came up with some excellent material, and Donahue delivered it just as convincingly as she did on Wasn't Tomorrow Wonderful.

The LP contains my personal favorite Waitresses track, the melodic, thoughtful Make the Weather. Although the song was released as a single it failed to make much of a mark, which is a shame because it represents the band at its smartest and most captivating.

Other highlights include the cheerleader anthem opener A Girl's Gotta Do and the manic, anxiety-ridden title track. Luxury, a six-and-a-half-minute epic, and the biting, sardonic closer They're All out of Liquor, Let's Find Another Party, are also worth noting. Even when the band slipped in an instrumental (Pleasure) and put bassist Tracy Wormworth on lead vocals (Spin) the results are entertaining, which is quite a feat, since Donahue's sarcastic, theatrical delivery was arguably the most important ingredient of The Waitresses.

After Bruiseology was released and Donahue left the band, Butler and company continued on very briefly for some live shows with Holly Beth Vincent on vocals. When The Waitresses were officially no more, Butler went on to release some solo recordings and Wormworth could be seen for many years as a member of the house band on The Rosie O'Donnell Show. Sadly, Patty Donahue passed on in 1996 after a battle with lung cancer.

Neither of the band's full albums has been released on CD. As of now, you can only find certain tracks on greatest hits compilations. Buy the latest one here or on itunes. Until it's reissued, here is my vinyl rip of Bruiseology in its entirety:

The Waitresses - Bruiseology (1983)

Track listing:
1 - A Girl's Gotta Do
2 - Make the Weather
3 - Everything's Wrong If My Hair Is Wrong
4 - Luxury
5 - Open City
6 - Thinking About Sex Again
7 - Bruiseology
8 - Pleasure
9 - Spin
10 - They're All out of Liquor, Let's Find Another Party


WEB LINKS:
- The Waitresses on Wikipedia
- Very informative Waitresses fan site
- I Know What Boys Like video on Youtube