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Willis is an album by the ska/soul band the Pietasters, released in 1997.[3][4] It was released during the mid- to late-1990s ska explosion, and reached No. 44 on the Heatseekers chart.[5]

Willis
Studio album by The Pietasters
Released	October 7, 1997
Recorded	Cherokee Recording Studio West Beach Recorders
Genre	Ska/soul
Length	45:58
Label	Hellcat[1]
Producer	Brett Gurewitz
The Pietasters chronology
Strapped Live! (1996) Willis (1997) Awesome Mix Tape vol. 6 (1999)

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[2]

The album's first single was "Out All Night".[6] The band supported the album by touring with the Cherry Poppin' Daddies.[7]

Production

The album was produced and engineered by Brett Gurewitz.[8][9] It contains covers of the Outsiders' "Time Won't Let Me" and Martha and the Vandellas' "Quicksand".[10][11]

Critical reception

The Washington Post wrote that "the Pietasters mix soul and garage-rock just like any frat-party band of the last four decades ... It's a venerable party-rock formula, but rendered fresh by not only the ska-derived musical accents but also the band's solid songwriting and sheer verve."[12] The Hartford Courant thought that "the playing throughout is gloriously sloppy; the tone, pointedly ironic ... This is ska without regrets."[10]

AllMusic wrote that the band returns "to their roots of '60s pop, soul, and Motown R&B, all fueled by a syncopated beat."[2]

Track listing

1. "Crazy Monkey Woman" (Eckhardt/Goodin/Jackson) – 2:38
2. "Out All Night" (Eckhardt/Gurewitz/Linares) – 3:16
3. "Ocean" (Eckhardt/Goodin/Jackson) – 3:38
4. "Fat Sack" (Eckhardt/Goodin/Jackson) – 2:40
5. "Stone Feeling" (Eckhardt/Linares) – 4:06
6. "Higher" (Eckhardt/Goodin/Jackson) – 4:45
7. "Time Won't Let Me" (Tom King/Chet Kelly) – 3:06
8. "Without You" (The Pietasters) – 3:23
9. "Crime" (Eckhardt) – 5:02
10. "Quicksand" (H. Lewis/K. Lewis) – 2:46
11. "Bitter" (Eckhardt/Goodin/Jackson) – 3:53
12. "New Breed" (Jimmy Easter) – 2:59
13. "Moment" (Eckhardt/Goodin/Jackson) – 3:45

Personnel

• Stephen Jackson - vocals
• Tom Goodin - guitar
• Todd Eckhardt - bass guitar
• Rob Steward - drums
• Alan Makranczy - saxophone, backing vocals
• Jeremy Roberts - trombone, backing vocals
• Toby Hansen - trumpet
• DJ Selah - additional vocals on track 4
• Caroline Boutwell - farfisa
• Dave Pinkert - Hammond, B-3, Wurlitzer electric piano
• Andy Kaulkin - piano
• Carlos Linares - additional trumpet on track 7, creative consultant
• Brett Gurewitz - producer, engineer
• Don Cameron - assistant producer
• Paul Dugre - assistant producer
• Joe Breuer - assistant producer
• Paul Naguua - assistant producer
• Maurice Iragorri - assistant producer
• Milton Chan - assistant producer

References

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