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We're Not Who You Think We Are

Certain Songs #1876: The Replacements – “Little Mascara”

July 27, 2020 by Jim Connelly

Album: Tim
Year: 1985

. . .

For the moon, you keep shooting

It takes a pretty strong song to not be totally crushed by being in the middle of “Left of The Dial” and “Here Comes a Regular,” but in a weird way, “Little Mascara” keeps from being being crushed by being the most normal Replacements song on Tim, with one huge exception.

It doesn’t have any acoustic guitars, it’s powered by a Stonesy riff it’s got a great Bob Stinson guitar solo and — here’s the exception — it’s not about Paul Westerberg spouting his angst all over the place. I guess “Androgynous” was kinda like that, too, though it was inspired by real-life events. But “Little Mascara” is more of a character study, about a character that he made up, but at the same time, you could also imagine the woman who is at the center of the story being somebody he knew in 1981 who got all settled down by 1983, and was already disliking it.

You and I fall together
You and I sleep alone
After all, things might be better
After one, and there’s one that’s long gone
For the moon, you keep shootin’
Throw your rope up in the air
For the kids, you stay together
You nap ’em and you slap ’em in a highchair

What’s so remarkable about “Little Mascara” is just unremarkable it is on the surface, and yet, and yet, on nearly every other album released in 1985 it would have the best song, a gorgeous combination of powerful rock, gorgeous melody and poignant subject matter.

All you ever wanted
Was someone to take care of ya
All you’re ever losin’ is
A little mascara
Little mascara
Little mascara

I find that I don’t have a whole lot to say about “Little Mascara” — I don’t relate to the words in the same way I relate to the words of nearly all of his other songs — and I don’t have any anecdotes about how it affected my life. Still, I can tell you that I’ve often heard “all you’re ever losin'” as “all of your illusion,” which doesn’t make as much lyrical sense — the assumption is that she’s in tears — but is still kinda sorta poetical. And I love the ghostly backing vocals on “mas-carrrrr-a”. And of course, Paul’s utter empathy throughout. It’s one of my favorite Replacements contradictions, how a band that could be such complete public assholes could turn around and pull off a song with such a high emotional intelligence.

Afternoon, things are quiet
Settle back now if you can
Stations clip by like a rocket
Don’t you worry if you wonder why he ran

There’s a nice compare and contrast here between Billy Bragg’s immortal “Levi Stubbs Tears,” which is also about a woman dealing with the aftermath of a shitty relationship, though the woman in the latter song clearly had a harder time of it, and took her solace in a specific thing as opposed to channel surfing in tears.

And you can hear those tears on the bridge, as Paul just continues on from the final “little mascara” and holding out the word “cryyyyyyyyyyyy” over and over again until Bob swoops in with his guitar solo, which is short, sweet and sad. And that’s another notable thing about “Little Mascara:” it was the final appearance of Bob Stinson on a (U.S.) Replacements album during his lifetime.

After that, “Little Mascara” roars towards its conclusion, Westerberg adding more depth on the final chorus.

All you ever wanted
Was someone Ma’d be scared of
All you’re ever losin’ is
A little mascara
Little mascara
Little mascara

And on that last chorus, I love the pause between “all you’re ever losing is” and the last rounds of “little mascara” — and the guitar counterpoint deep in the background, as well.

As “Little Mascara” fades at the end, Paul screaming “crryyyyyyyyyyy” once again, the tears he’s singing about setting up the sadness of the final song, I’m always left a little gobsmacked at just how great the Replacements had become, to stick such a song where they did. If Let It Be seemed like a bolt from the blue, then putting a song on Tim that was so offhandedly great — kinda like “Our Love Was, Is” on The Who Sell Out — seemed to show that they could they might be able to do this for a long long time.

“Little Mascara”

“Little Mascara” live in Milwaukee, 2015

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Filed Under: Certain Songs Tagged With: Little Mascara, Tim

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. JZ says

    July 29, 2020 at 11:09 pm

    Fuck yeah. This is so right on. Your writing on the Replacements is truly inspiring. Thank you.

    Here’s the thing about being a college radio DJ in the 1980s: I felt connected to something bigger. Something potentially world-changing. It’s hard to explain, but a whole universe of bands were held together by nothing more than fanzines, apartment couches, alt-weeklies and college radio. But nothing less than, too. •••We had the sincerity and certainty of youth that all of these bands were better than most of what was being played on the commercial rock stations, and that we had a mission to get their music out to other people who would appreciate that.•••

  2. Jim Connelly says

    July 30, 2020 at 9:09 am

    Thanks!!!!

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Previously on Medialoper

  • Certain Songs #2047: The Rolling Stones – “No Expectations (Rock and Roll Circus 12-1968)”
  • Certain Songs #2046: The Rolling Stones – “Blood Red Wine”
  • Certain Songs #2045: The Rolling Stones – “Salt of The Earth”
  • Certain Songs #2044: The Rolling Stones – “Stray Cat Blues”
  • Certain Songs #2043: The Rolling Stones – “Street Fighting Man”

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