The Lawsuit Shimmy Begins

 

 

 In 1992 Kramer sold his Noise New York recording studio. He moved just across the Hudson River, where he'd found a house located 10 minutes outside of NYC that was going into foreclosure. Built into the house was a state-of-the-art 24-track recording studio. He dubbed the studio Noise New Jersey.

The first complete recording of Noise New Jersey, The Guilt Trip, is a sprawling behemoth. 36 songs recorded with friend & drummer David Licht along with Kramer's high school chum Randy Hudson. For his first solo effort, Kramer layers on an array of hot-wired psychedelia & ambiance on everything from simple pop song structures to grand instrumental overtures. 

The Guilt Trip was created during an emotionally violent period in Kramer's personal life. He was going through a divorce while handling a lawsuit Anne Magnuson had filed against him & Shimmy Disc. Magnuson sought compensation of $4.5 million, charging Kramer with fraud, breach of contract, & copyright infringement. Kramer hit back, filing a countersuit. The resulting legal imbroglio would last nearly three years.  

The Guilt Trip presented a series of songs that reference his legal troubles, including "Kathleen, I'm Sorry", "Not Guilty'" & '"Won't Get Far Without Me".  Lyrically, Kramer throws revenge, love, devotion, forgiveness, & atonement into the mix. He often refers to it as his "exorcism", insisting that he would not have survived the multiple traumas he was fighting without it. The healing power of Art is a constant theme of this huge piece of work.

Kramer - The Guilt Trip, Shimmy Disc shimmy 055, 1992.
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Disc One -
Ouverture
Stupid Summer
Got What I Deserved
Not Guilty
Wisdom Sits
Stubb's Hallucination
The Drowning Heart
Welcome Home
Swallow Up Jonah
Hello Music
The Murder of God
You Don't Know
The Wall of Sleep
The Guilt Trip
Wait for the Hate
Natasha Disappears
Big of You
My Friend Daniel

Disc Two -
The Maximus Poems
The Seven Seizures
Thank You Music
Kathleen I'm Sorry
God Will See You
I’m Your Fan
The Bosom Friend
I Love You
Next Time, Try Compassion
Charlotte's Brain
Mudd Hutt Four
The Well Hung Jury
Won't Get Far Without Me
Ball Five
She Won't Let Go
I've Seen the End
Coda.

Next I'll let you in on the secret of comedy.

Enjoy,
NØ