Jukebox Saturday: One of the albums that saved my soul- Bob Mould's Workbook

I'm sure every music fan has spent the night involved in a rousing session of "Top 5".  It usually starts with the classic Desert Island Top 5, and then digresses into more specific categories.  I'd list my entire Top 5 here, but that would eliminate future installments.

I don't know if I have a desert island top 5.  I prefer to think of it as the top 5 albums that saved my soul.  Albums that got me through the tough times and heart breaks.  All you other freaks who see the Universe through the hole in the middle of an LP understand where I'm coming from.

One of the albums that saved my soul was the first solo album by Bob Mould.  Workbook is a masterpiece of Melancholia, Heartache, Pain, Regret, and ultimately redemption seen through the post-punk soul of a brilliant songwriter.  The album is sincere emotion with an unfiltered purity, that (for me) reminds me of my place in the Universe.

Take a minute and listen to the full album.  It is an amazing work from beginning to end.

Track listing

All tracks composed by Bob Mould; except where indicated.
"Sunspots" – 2:04
"Wishing Well" – 5:10
"Heartbreak a Stranger" – 5:50
"See a Little Light" – 3:31
"Poison Years" – 5:23
"Sinners and Their Repentances" – 4:04
"Brasilia Crossed With Trenton" – 6:37
"Compositions For the Young and Old" – 4:39
"Lonely Afternoon" – 4:27
"Dreaming, I Am" – 4:16
"Whichever Way the Wind Blows" – 6:25
"All Those People Know" – 3:41 (Workbook 25 bonus track)
The 25th anniversary edition "Workbook 25"  features a bonus live disc from the Cabaret Metro in Chicago.

AllMusic Review by Stephen Thomas Erlewine


Arriving after years of sonic bombast in Hüsker Dü, the reflective, acoustic nature of Bob Mould's first solo album, Workbook, was a bold statement of renewal. Like all of Mould's work, it's an intensely introspective record, finding him purging demons left over from the dissolution of Hüsker Dü. Instead of relying on raging guitars, Mould explores a wide variety of styles, from pure pop ("See a Little Light") to reflective folk laced with cellos. It's an astonishing array of styles, and the songs are among Mould's finest. For many observers, the record established him as a major songwriter, but it also established a way for underground post-punk artists to mature -- echoes of Workbook could be heard throughout the '90s, from R.E.M.'s elegiac Automatic for the People to Nirvana's use of cellos on In Utero and Unplugged. But Workbook remains a stunning work of individuality, marrying a distinctive body of songs with an original musical vision. Occasionally, the production is a little too pristine, but the power of the songs cannot be diminished.