Album · Golden Smog
Down by the Old Mainstream by Golden Smog
Down by the Old Mainstream is an album by Golden Smog, released in 1995. 2 songs from it have charted on rock radio countdowns, with 3 countdown appearances in total. The biggest is “V”, on 2 lists with a best position of #509.
Down by the Old Mainstream, the 1995 debut album from Golden Smog, is the sound of a loose gang of Minneapolis-St. Paul musicians having the time of their lives. The loose-knit supergroup drew on members of the Jayhawks, Soul Asylum, the Replacements, Wilco and Big Star, with Gary Louris, Dan Murphy, Kraig Johnson and Marc Perlman at its core, and they produced it themselves for Rykodisc. The name, by the way, comes from a Flintstones episode.
It's alt-country at its most relaxed and generous: twangy guitars, ragged harmonies, back-porch ballads and barroom rockers, with nobody's ego in the driver's seat. "V" and "Red Headed Stepchild" have been picked up by rock radio's countdowns. The title comes from a line in "Radio King", the album's closing track, a line that also turns up in Wilco's "Someday Soon" on Being There.
Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.
Songs from Down by the Old Mainstream on radio countdowns
| # | Song | Strength | Lists | Best | #1s | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | V | 2 | #509 | – | 2009–2023 | |
| 2 | Red Headed Stepchild | 1 | #623 | – | 2023 |
Only songs that appear on at least one countdown are listed. Release data from MusicBrainz.