Album · Me First and the Gimme Gimmes
Take a Break by Me First and the Gimme Gimmes
Take a Break is an album by Me First and the Gimme Gimmes, released in 2003. 1 song from it has charted on rock radio countdowns, with 3 countdown appearances in total. The biggest is “I Believe I Can Fly”, on 3 lists with a best position of #56.
Take a Break, the fourth album from Me First and the Gimme Gimmes, landed on Fat Wreck Chords on July 1, 2003, and this time the San Francisco punk supergroup set its sights on R&B. Every song is a cover, as always, and every one gets the same treatment: floored tempo, buzzsaw guitars and Spike Slawson crooning over the top with a straight face. The 1995 crew of Slawson, Fat Mike, Joey Cape, Chris Shiflett and Dave Raun was still intact.
The gag runs deeper for anybody who grew up on punk records. As on Blow in the Wind before it, several tracks open by swiping a classic riff: "Crazy" kicks off with Black Flag's "Six Pack", "Save the Best for Last" with the Sex Pistols' "Pretty Vacant", and "I'll Be There" with the intro to the Cars' "Just What I Needed". Their pogo-ready run at "I Believe I Can Fly" is exactly as ridiculous, and as much fun, as it sounds.
Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.
Songs from Take a Break on radio countdowns
| # | Song | Strength | Lists | Best | #1s | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | I Believe I Can Fly | 3 | #56 | – | 2003 |
Only songs that appear on at least one countdown are listed. Release data from MusicBrainz.