Too High to Die

Too High to Die is the eighth studio album by American rock band the Meat Puppets. The album was released on January 25, 1994, by London Records. It was produced by Butthole Surfers guitarist Paul Leary. The album's title is a parody of The Ramones' 1984 album Too Tough to Die.

Too High to Die
Studio album by
Meat Puppets
ReleasedJanuary 25, 1994
Recorded1993
StudioThe Warehouse, Memphis, Tennessee
Genre
Length52:06
LabelLondon
ProducerMeat Puppets, Paul Leary
Meat Puppets chronology
Forbidden Places
(1991)		 Too High to Die
(1994)		 No Joke!
(1995)

A limited edition of Too High to Die included the 10" vinyl promo EP Raw Meat. The cover art on this limited edition features more color than the simply pink-toned normal cover.

The album was supported by a lengthy tour, which included spots opening for the likes of Blind Melon, Soul Asylum, and Stone Temple Pilots (and shortly before the album's release, Nirvana).

Reception and legacy
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[2]
Christgau's Consumer Guide[3]
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music[4]
Entertainment WeeklyB–[5]
Los Angeles Times[6]
Rolling Stone[7]
Spin Alternative Record Guide8/10[8]

Too High to Die sold very well due to the success of its single "Backwater", which reached #2 and #11 on the Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks and Modern Rock Tracks charts respectively. The album itself also reached #1 on the Heatseekers chart, making it one of the Meat Puppets' most successful and highest ranking albums to date. The album was certified gold by the RIAA on October 6, 1994.

The rarely-seen video for "We Don't Exist" was nominated for "Best Metal/Hard Rock Video" at the 1995 MTV Video Music Awards, but lost to White Zombie's "More Human than Human".

In May 2012, the title of a book about the Meat Puppets' history borrowed part of the album's title, Too High to Die: Meet the Meat Puppets.[9]

In July 2014, Guitar World placed Too High to Die at number 44 in their "Superunknown: 50 Iconic Albums That Defined 1994" list.[10]

In October 2014, the Alternative Nation website listed Too High to Die at number 9 in their "Top 10 Alternative Rock Albums Of 1994" list.[11]

Track listing

All songs written by Curt Kirkwood, unless otherwise noted.

No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Violet Eyes" 3:51
2."Never to Be Found" 4:46
3."We Don't Exist" 3:44
4."Severed Goddess Hand" 2:59
5."Flaming Heart" 4:49
6."Shine" 3:50
7."Station"Cris Kirkwood2:22
8."Roof with a Hole" 3:34
9."Backwater" 3:42
10."Things" 4:06
11."Why?" 4:20
12."Evil Love"Cris Kirkwood3:07
13."Comin' Down" (features "Lake of Fire" as a hidden track) 6:56

Personnel

Meat Puppets

Production

  • Greg Calbi – mastering
  • Dave Jerden – mixing
  • Paul Leary – producer, mixing
  • Meat Puppets – producer
  • Stuart Sullivan – engineer, mixing
  • Brad Vosburg – engineer
  • G.E. Teel - assistant engineer
  • Josh Kiser – assistant
  • Michael Halsband – photography

Charts

Album – Billboard (North America)

Chart (1994) Peak

position

Billboard Heatseekers 1
US Billboard 200 62

Singles – Billboard (North America)

Year Single Chart Position
1994 "Backwater" Mainstream Rock Tracks 2
Modern Rock Tracks 11
The Billboard Hot 100 47
Top 40 Mainstream 31
"We Don't Exist" Mainstream Rock Tracks 28

References
  1. Francis, Claire. "20 Years On: Meat Puppets – 'Too High To Die'". Tone Deaf. Retrieved 26 December 2018.
  2. Prato, Greg. "Too High to Die - Meat Puppets Review". AllMusic. Retrieved 2017-10-22.
  3. Christgau, Robert (2000-10-15). "Meat Puppets: Too High to Die". Christgau's Consumer Guide: Albums of the '90s. Macmillan Publishing. p. 202. ISBN 9780312245603.
  4. Larkin, Colin (2011-05-27). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Omnibus Press. p. 2006. ISBN 9780857125958.
  5. Eddy, Chuck (1994-02-18). "Too High to Die". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 2017-10-22.
  6. Hochman, Steve (1994-02-06). "In Brief". Los Angeles Times. ISSN 0458-3035. Retrieved 2018-05-11.
  7. Weisel, Al (1994-06-02). "Too High to Die Review". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on 2007-10-01. Retrieved 2017-10-22.
  8. Weisbard, Eric; Marks, Craig (1995). Spin Alternative Record Guide. Vintage Books. ISBN 9780679755746.
  9. "Too High to Die: Meet the Meat Puppets: Greg Prato: 9781493752324: Amazon.com: Books". Amzn.com. Retrieved 2017-04-16.
  10. "Superunknown: 50 Iconic Albums That Defined 1994". GuitarWorld.com. July 14, 2014. Archived from the original on July 15, 2014. Retrieved July 14, 2014.
  11. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2015-06-03. Retrieved 2016-01-12.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
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