For the third album, Capitol Records made a deal with EMI in which the band would be signed solely to Capitol. Now under Capitol’s management rather than Thorne’s, recording went poorly and the resulting album, “Inner Sleeve” (1980), was not properly supported by the label, only 10,000 copies being pressed. It was a signal failure for the band, and although they continued playing for another two years, the large band (nine members at its height) had been reduced to four players, and essentially broke up in 1981.
History remembers the Shirts, perhaps unfairly, as one of the second-string bands on the CBGB/Max's Kansas City axis in the late 1970s, but unlike Tuff Darts, the Miamis, or the Laughing Dogs, the Shirts lasted long enough to cut three albums during their heyday, and though 1980s “Inner Sleeve” was a very different kettle of fish than their first two efforts, it was certainly an improvement over the eclectic but meandering Street Light Shine.
Mike Thorne, who had produced the Shirts' first two alums, was out of the picture, and while John Palladino and George Wadenius didn't bring much personality to these sessions, this is the most straightforward album the Shirts ever made, bringing the band's pop songcraft into tight focus and clearing away the pseudo-prog gingerbread that had cluttered the landscape of "Street Light Shine". the Shirts had been stripped down to a quintet by the time they went into the studio for "Inner Sleeve" (at one time there were nine musicians in the group) and the sessions sound like a band playing live with minimal fuss, though Annie Golden's lead vocals display a lot more gloss than before, as if someone on the project thought she had the potential to be the next Pat Benatar (thankfully, the Ronnie Spector influences of her best music still dominate).
And the pop side of the Shirts carries the day on Inner Sleeve, with "Time (Has Seen Me Lonely)," "Too Much Trouble," and "I Don't Wanna Know" ranking with their best would-be singles (and if "Pleasure Is the Pain" sounds a bit cheesy, it also sounds like the radio hit this band could have had if their label hadn't dropped the ball).
The Shirts lost their record deal and broke up within a year of “Inner Sleeve” arriving in stores, but though it represents a somewhat compromised vision of the band, with their artier gestures left behind, it also sounds sharp and compelling, proving this band had something to say right up to the end.
Track listing
01. I'm Not One of Those - 3:20
02. One Last Chance - 3:04
03. Can't Get it Through My Head - 3:54
04. I've Had It - 3:19
05. I Don't Wanna Know - 4:30
06. Pleasure is the Pain - 3:30
07. As Long as the Laughter Lasts - 3:24
08. Too Much Trouble - 3:02
09. Hanging Around - 3:41
10. Small Talk - 2:35
11. Time (Has Seen Me Lonely) - 2:48
Credits
Annie Golden - vocals
Ronald Ardito - guitar, keyboards, vocals
Arthur La Monica - guitar, keyboards, vocals
Producer – Georg Wadenius, John Palladino
Notes
Genre: Pop, Rock
Playtime: 37:08
Label: Capitol Records
© 1980
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