Just Like the Fambly Cat
Studio album by
Grandaddy
ReleasedMay 9, 2006
RecordedModesto, California, United States
Genre
Length61:14
LabelV2
ProducerJason Lytle
Grandaddy chronology
Excerpts from the Diary of Todd Zilla (EP)
(2005)		 Just Like the Fambly Cat
(2006)		 Last Place
(2017)

Just Like the Fambly Cat is the fourth studio album by American indie rock band Grandaddy. It was released on May 9, 2006 by record label V2.

The album reached No. 171 on the Billboard 200, No. 10 on the Top Independent Albums chart and No. 50 on the UK Albums Chart. It was well received by music critics.

Content

The album's title is a reference to frontman Jason Lytle's desire to leave his home town of Modesto, California without any fuss, stating that cats will "do that, almost out of respect and not wanting to put people out ... because when the family cat dies, he doesn't make a big deal about it ... He just disappears".[3][4]

Recording

Lytle spent eighteen months recording the album at a studio in Modesto, California.[5] Regarding the recording process, Lytle noted "During the one-and-a-half years that I recorded this album I lost my girl, my friends, my home, estranged my family, got sober, got wasted ... I got too many things going on. The band breaking up only became a reality at the end of the recording. Many songs that people claim to be directly related to the band are actually directly related to other things I had going on."[6]

The album does not feature any of the other band members, apart from Aaron Burtch who performed "most of" the album's drums.[6] Lytle chose to credit the album to the band, stating "It's much more natural to imagine a band rocking out together than it is to imagine one frustrated guy at 4:30am in his boxer shorts and messed up hair, slaving over the same keyboard part for four-and-a-half hours. I recorded and wrote all of the music and the parts [but] I didn't want to distract the listener from whatever they needed to think when they heard the music."[6]

Release

Just Like the Fambly Cat was released on May 9, 2006, by record label V2. The album reached No. 171 on the Billboard 200 and No. 10 on the Top Independent Albums chart,[7] as well as No. 50 on the UK Albums Chart.[8]

Reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic74/100[9]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[10]
Entertainment WeeklyB+[11]
The Guardian[12]
The Independent[13]
Mojo[14]
NME7/10[15]
Pitchfork6.8/10[16]
Spin[17]
Uncut[18]
The Village VoiceA−[19]

Critical response to the album was positive. AllMusic reviewer Tim Sendra called the album "a fine epitaph".[10] Mojo gave it three stars,[14] as did Spin, who called it "equal parts bang and whimper".[17] Billboard commented on the albums "more personal" lyrics and called the album "a worthy coda to a woefully under-appreciated band".[20] The Boston Globe described it as "a gorgeous album that should be admired much like a fleeting sunny afternoon or a sad foreign movie viewed without subtitles".[21] The Stranger gave it a three-star review, noting an "air of melancholic finality" and calling the songwriting "the best it's been since The Sophtware Slump".[22] The Guardian called it "a sad record ... but an inspiring one too".[12]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Jason Lytle, except "Shangri-La (Outro)" by Jeff Lynne

No.TitleLength
1."What Happened..."2:19
2."Jeez Louise"3:41
3."Summer... It's Gone"5:30
4."Oxygen/Aux Send"1:08
5."Rear View Mirror"6:08
6."The Animal World"4:53
7."Skateboarding Saves Me Twice"3:22
8."Where I'm Anymore"6:07
9."50%"1:02
10."Guide Down Denied"6:32
11."Elevate Myself"3:41
12."Campershell Dreams"3:44
13."Disconnecty"3:34
14."This Is How It Always Starts"6:46
15."Shangri-La (Outro)" (hidden track)2:16

Personnel

Grandaddy
Additional personnel
  • Kevin Garcia – backing vocals
  • Rusty Miller – backing vocals
  • Lauren Goldfarb – dialogue (track 1)
  • Lucea Legnini – dialogue (track 1)
Technical
  • Lucky Lew – engineering
  • Dave Trumfio – mixing
  • Greg Calbi – mastering
  • Jen Murse – digital finesse
  • Adrian Mendoza – "photo help"

References

  1. ↑ Keefe, Jonathan (May 10, 2006). "Grandaddy Just Like the Fambly Cat | Album Review | Slant Magazine". Slant. Archived from the original on April 21, 2020. Retrieved July 3, 2016.
  2. ↑ Hogan, Marc (May 9, 2006). "Grandaddy: Just Like the Fambly Cat". Pitchfork. Retrieved June 9, 2023.
  3. ↑ Kaufman, Gil (September 21, 2005). "Grandaddy Can't Wait to Leave Home – But They Have to Finish Telling It Off First". MTV. Retrieved December 12, 2014.
  4. ↑ Barton, Laura (May 19, 2006). "'Stuff Doesn't Happen Unless I'm Alone'". The Guardian. Retrieved December 12, 2014.
  5. ↑ "NME News Grandaddy Name New Album | NME.com". NME. September 20, 2005. Retrieved December 12, 2014.
  6. 1 2 3 Diver, Mike (June 28, 2006). "Grandaddy, from Beyond the Grave: Jason Lytle Talks to DiS". Drowned in Sound. Archived from the original on February 11, 2017. Retrieved December 12, 2014.
  7. ↑ "Grandaddy". Allmusic. Retrieved 16 January 2012.
  8. ↑ "Grandaddy". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 16 January 2012.
  9. ↑ "Reviews for Just Like The Fambly Cat by Grandaddy". Metacritic. Retrieved July 11, 2016.
  10. 1 2 Sendra, Tim. "Just Like the Fambly Cat – Grandaddy". AllMusic. Retrieved January 16, 2012.
  11. ↑ Hermes, Will (May 8, 2006). "Just Like the Fambly Cat". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on January 18, 2017. Retrieved July 11, 2016.
  12. 1 2 Lynskey, Dorian (May 5, 2006). "Grandaddy, Just Like the Fambly Cat". The Guardian. Retrieved January 16, 2012.
  13. ↑ Gill, Andy (May 12, 2006). "Album: Grandaddy". The Independent. Archived from the original on May 20, 2006. Retrieved July 11, 2016.
  14. 1 2 "Grandaddy: Just Like the Fambly Cat". Mojo (151): 102. June 2006.
  15. ↑ "Grandaddy: Just Like the Fambly Cat". NME: 33. May 20, 2006.
  16. ↑ Hogan, Marc (May 9, 2006). "Grandaddy: Just Like the Fambly Cat". Pitchfork. Retrieved January 16, 2012.
  17. 1 2 Harris, Keith (June 2006). "Grandaddy: Just Like the Fambly Cat". Spin. 22 (6): 81. Retrieved July 11, 2016.
  18. ↑ "Grandaddy: Just Like the Fambly Cat". Uncut (109): 108. June 2006.
  19. ↑ Christgau, Robert (June 27, 2006). "Consumer Guide: All in the Family". The Village Voice. Retrieved July 11, 2016.
  20. ↑ Teitelman, Bram (May 13, 2006). "Grandaddy – Just Like the Fambly Cat". Billboard. p. 49. Retrieved January 16, 2012.
  21. ↑ Muther, Christopher (May 12, 2006). "Grandaddy: Just Like the Fambly Cat". The Boston Globe. p. D17.
  22. ↑ Vettese, John (May 2, 2006). "Grandaddy: Just Like the Fambly Cat". The Stranger. Retrieved January 16, 2012.
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