Review: Smile From the Streets You Hold [Frusciante Countdown]

Smile From the Streets You Hold- John Frusciante

[Countdown to Enclosure]

by: Sabrina G

Ah. Smile From the Streets You Hold. This is an odd release. The album itself is highly sought after, given the very limited period it was on the market (August 1997 to sometime in 1998). It’s one of the more expensive titles in the Frusciante catalogue, copies can be upwards of $30 on eBay (I lucked out and got mine for $3.50 at my local record store. Let that be a lesson in supporting your local record store, kids). However, despite the mad rush to own the album… it’s typically regarded as the worst in John Frusciante’s discography. That is, of course, entirely a matter of opinion.

The history of the album is pretty dark; it’s comprised mainly of outtakes and extras from Niandra Lades and Usually Just a T-Shirt, one track from back in 1988, and a few songs recorded specifically for the album in 1996 or so. That year was, of course, a brutal one for John’s drug addictions. I’ll be the first to agree with critics: the album is a bit of a mess. You can tell that John’s drug use was out of control just by listening to a few tracks (i.e. the infamous bong hit at the start of the eighteen track version** of ‘For Air’) and that his health had deteriorated as a result (i.e. coughing can be heard towards the end of ‘Breathe’ and a few other tracks).

If there’s anything that will hint at what you’re in for, it’s the opening song. ‘Enter a Uh’ is a pretty lengthy track, just over eight minutes long. John’s vocals are almost strained, yet still full of power and passion. The guitar track is somber, almost moody, and subdued slightly beneath the vocals. While it is a pretty good look at what’s to expect on the rest of the album, there are a few exceptions, mostly within the earlier recordings.

‘A Fall Thru the Ground’ is the earliest recording on the album, from when John was just eighteen years old. One thing that I notice is a difference in the vocals. John’s voice here is a bit more powerful, untainted by drug abuse. The guitar sound is a bit fuller, more energetic (for lack of a better term). Despite the slight difference in sound, it still clings to the experimental and unconventional elements that are incredibly present with all of John’s music.

Two noteworthy tracks that didn’t make it on to Niandra feature the actor/musician River Phoenix. ‘Height Down’ and ‘Well, I’ve Been’ were originally intended to be included on Niandra Lades and Usually Just a T-Shirt under different names but were taken off following River’s passing at the request of his family. ‘Height Down’ might just be my favorite track on the album; lead vocals by River, a beautiful guitar track, and excellent lyrics. ‘Well, I’ve Been’ is one of the stranger songs on the album. There are two vocal tracks going, one is John singing, the other is a reversed recording of River talking a bit of nonsense into a tape recorder. There is a reversed version posted on YouTube and it’s worth listening to if you’re at all curious about the garble of River speech buried within the song.

In my review of Niandra Lades and Usually Just a T-Shirt, I referred to it as a “lo-fi” classic. I stand by that, but this album is probably even more deserving of the title. While the production value was lowered for a pretty tragic reason, the result is a really rough and raw sound.  Lo-fi isn’t something that can be appreciated by every listener out there, I understand that. But the album really shouldn’t be cast aside as worthless because it was recorded in a less than professional way. To me, a lowered quality can sometimes make the music sound a bit purer. It probably goes back to my weird DIY punk rock ethics thing but I digress…

There isn’t a song on this album that doesn’t have the most beautiful and distinctive guitar sound. While the vocals are rough and can distract from the music beneath them, the guitar is constantly incredible. But, then again, we are talking about John Frusciante here. It’s a very specific guitar tone that I don’t really hear outside of these first two Frusciante releases. I think the amazing guitar work on the album is often overlooked due to the (admittedly obvious) stigma that comes along with being a “drug album”.

I think it’s easy to write off Smile From the Streets You Hold as nothing more than that, some project thrown together last minute by a junkie looking for drug money. But, in actuality, it’s so much more than that. While John was definitely using and there is debate as to what exactly motivated the release, it doesn’t make it any less of an album. I will admit that it’s not the best album in the Frusciante catalogue, but that doesn’t change the way I feel about it. I think it’s beautiful, obviously dark and a little tough to listen to… but it really is an incredible album; there is no restriction on the creativity poured into every aspect of it. Nothing was held back. I might be among the minority of Fru fans who really adore this album, but so be it. It’s a masterpiece of lo-fi and experimental rock. If you can look past the label of “drug album”, it is a really easy album to at the very least appreciate.

**Two different versions of the album were released – a seventeen track version and an eighteen track version. There are a few small differences between the two; the eighteen track version has the bong hit mentioned above and a longer version of ‘Life’s A Bath’, and the title track was split into two different songs.