Pleased to Meet Me (Expanded Edition)

iTunes Review

The Replacements, led by songwriter Paul Westerberg, focused on life’s beautiful losers, those cursed by circumstance and the fatal flaw that never allows success through the door, no matter how loud the knock of opportunity. Southern cult rocker, Big Star’s Alex Chilton is lauded in a song bearing his name, and it’s to his wild, weary spirit that the band’s raucous Stones-esque sound is based. This 2008 reissue contains 11 bonus tracks, including seven previously unreleased demos and alternate takes. Most impressive is the alternate take of “Alex Chilton” that gives listeners an insight into what the album would have sounded like without the extra production touches. The demo of a song only known as “Photo” — and apparently judged a throwaway — ranks among the band’s finest material. “Can’t Hardly Wait” is presented in altered form (additional versions, including a worthwhile acoustic take can be heard on the deluxe reissue of their previous album Tim), while “Bundle Up” and “Kick It In” further embellish the band’s legacy as loose-kicking rockers. Goofy covers of “Route 66,” “Tossin’ and Turnin’,” and “Cool Water” display the band’s eclectic choice in cover material. Their anarchic streak remains intact.