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Odessa
Studio album by the Handsome Family
Released	1994
Recorded	Kingsize Sound Laboratories, Chicago, Illinois
Genre	Rock
Length	47:16
Label	Carrot Top
Producer	Dave Trumfio, Brett Sparks
The Handsome Family chronology
Odessa (1994) Milk and Scissors (1996)

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music
Tom Hull – on the Web	A−

Odessa is the first album by American band the Handsome Family. It was released 1994 by Carrot Top Records.

Critical reception

AllMusic wrote that "Brett Sparks' plain but resonant Midwestern twang gives the songs on Odessa the ring of common truth, and he and Rennie Sparks had already established themselves as writers to be reckoned with, conjuring a lyrical voice that sounds homey and terribly alienated at the same time." Greil Marcus called the album an effort to "transfer the fatalism of the old murder ballads into modern life." Trouser Press wrote that "if Odessa has a fault, it’s lyrics that are sometimes too coyly knowing, tossing off pop cultural references to no real effect."

Track listing

1. "Here's Hopin'" – 3:26
2. "Arlene" – 3:37
3. "Pony" – 3:13
4. "One Way Up" – 3:19
5. "Water Into Wine" – 3:12
6. "Giant Ant" – 3:30
7. "Everything That Rises Must Converge" – 2:50
8. "Gorilla" – 3:37
9. "The Last" – 3:36
10. "Claire Said" - 3:41
11. "Moving Furniture Around" - 3:03
12. "Big Bad Wolf" - 3:18
13. "She Awoke With A Jerk" - 4:19
14. "Happy Harvest" - 2:35

Personnel

• The Handsome Family
  • Brett Sparks - guitar, vocals, keyboards
  • Rennie Sparks - bass, vocals, computer layout/design
  • Mike Werner - drums, vocals, art direction
• Dave Trumfio: acoustic guitar tracks 5, 7 and keyboards tracks 1, 4, 12
• Michael Hagler: 2nd guitar track 10, piano track 4
• Steve Thomas: pedal steel tracks 2, 5
• Mike Werner - art direction
• Diane Murphy - band photo
• Sheila Sachs - computer layout/design

References

1. ^ "Odessa - The Handsome Family | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic" – via www.allmusic.com.
2. "Carrot Top Records | Handsome Family".
3. Larkin, Colin (May 27, 2011). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Omnibus Press. ISBN 9780857125958 – via Google Books.
4. Hull, Tom (May 10, 2021). "Music Week". Tom Hull – on the Web. Retrieved May 13, 2021.
5. "The Handsome Family | Biography & History". AllMusic.
6. Buckley, Peter (October 11, 2003). The Rough Guide to Rock. Rough Guides. ISBN 9781843531050 – via Google Books.
7. ^ "Handsome Family". Trouser Press. Retrieved 11 October 2020.
8. Marcus, Greil (October 20, 2015). Real Life Rock: The Complete Top Ten Columns, 1986-2014. Yale University Press. ISBN 9780300218596 – via Google Books.
9. cf. Brett & Rennie Sparks (1994): Credits. In Odessa . Chicago: Carrot Top Records.

External links

• The Handsome Family official website

• 1994 debut albums
• Carrot Top Records albums
• The Handsome Family albums