Candy Apple Grey

Candy Apple Grey is the fifth album by the alternative rock band Hüsker Dü, released in 1986. It was their first major label album, though Warner Bros. had initially lobbied to release Flip Your Wig until the band decided to let SST have it. Candy Apple Grey also marks the completion of the band's transition from hardcore punk to a more well-rounded sonic style which would later come to be known as alternative rock or college rock. As usual, Bob Mould and Grant Hart individually wrote tracks on the album. While the band's earlier, more frenetic style is still evident, Candy Apple Grey also features more introverted, toned-down material, including a relatively large amount of acoustic guitar.

Candy Apple Grey
Studio album by Hüsker Dü
Released	March 1986
Recorded	October 1985–January 1986
Genre	Alternative rock
Length	37:04
Label	Warner Bros.
Producer	Bob Mould and Grant Hart
Hüsker Dü chronology
Flip Your Wig (1985) Candy Apple Grey (1986) Warehouse: Songs and Stories (1987)

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[1]
Chicago Tribune	[2]
Q	[3]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide	[4]
Select	4/5[5]
Spin Alternative Record Guide	8/10[6]
The Village Voice	A[7]

The singles released from this album were "Sorry Somehow" and "Don't Want to Know If You Are Lonely", both written and sung by Hart. The latter was accompanied by a promotional video which earned airtime on MTV. Candy Apple Grey was the first Hüsker Dü album to chart on the Billboard Top 200, but despite receiving exposure on radio as well as MTV, it got no higher than #140.

Re-release

Candy Apple Grey was officially re-released on Record Store Day (April 19, 2014) on heavyweight grey vinyl.[8]

Track listing

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"Crystal"	Bob Mould	3:28
2.	"Don't Want to Know If You Are Lonely"	Grant Hart	3:29
3.	"I Don't Know for Sure"	Mould	2:27
4.	"Sorry Somehow"	Hart	4:25
5.	"Too Far Down"	Mould	4:37
6.	"Hardly Getting Over It"	Mould	6:02
7.	"Dead Set on Destruction"	Hart	2:59
8.	"Eiffel Tower High"	Mould	2:49
9.	"No Promise Have I Made"	Hart	3:39
10.	"All This I've Done for You"	Mould	3:09

Personnel

• Bob Mould – guitar, vocals, keyboards, percussion
• Grant Hart – drums, vocals, percussion, keyboards
• Greg Norton – bass guitar

Covers

"Dead Set On Destruction was covered by Minneapolis band Trip Shakespeare on its 1992 EP Volt.[9]

References

1. Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Candy Apple Grey – Hüsker Dü". AllMusic. Retrieved March 18, 2010.
2. Kot, Greg (October 11, 1992). "As Bob Mould Went, So Went Rock Music". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved June 12, 2016.
3. "Hüsker Dü: Candy Apple Grey". Q (74): 133. November 1992.
4. Sheffield, Rob (2004). "Hüsker Dü". In Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian (eds.). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide (4th ed.). London: Fireside Books. p. 399. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8.
5. Cavanagh, David (November 1992). "Hüsker Dü: Candy Apple Grey / Warehouse: Songs and Stories". Select (29): 95.
6. Weisband, Eric; Marks, Craig, eds. (1995). "Hüsker Dü". Spin Alternative Record Guide (1st ed.). New York: Vintage Books. p. 187. ISBN 0-679-75574-8.
7. Christgau, Robert. "Christgau's Consumer Guide". The Village Voice. Retrieved June 12, 2016.
8. "RECORD STORE DAY 2014- GLIDE'S ESSENTIAL 30 RECORD STORE DAY EXCLUSIVES". Glide Magazine. Retrieved 2015-02-15.
9. McIntosh, Gregory. "Trip Shakespeare, Volt". Allmusic.com. Retrieved 2020-08-14.