Song-X-Song: 'Thirteen'

Teenage Fanclub's Misunderstood Masterpiece Is Turning 30

Many critics were totally wrong about Teenage Fanclub’s Thirteen when it was released in 1993.

Although it was the Scottish band’s fourth album, Thirteen suffered from something of a sophomore slump thanks to the breakthrough success of their 1991 release, Bandwagonesque. The critical acclaim heaped on that album—which famously beat out Nirvana’s Nevermind for SPIN’s coveted Album of the Year award—set expectations unreasonably high for Teenage Fanclub’s follow up.

The sophomore slump can be a self-fulfilling prophecy for demanding critics, so some knives were already well-sharpened when Thirteen arrived. The bad reviews certainly weren’t universal—Rolling Stone called Thirteen "even sweeter than its predecessor"—but the worst reviews could be downright nasty.

It was a tough blow for talented band members Norman Blake (vocals/guitars), Raymond McGinley (vocals/guitars), Gerard Love (vocals/bass) and Brendan O’Hare (drums) who reportedly struggled to make Thirteen in the first place. The band followed up with 1995’s incredible Grand Prix and a long run of impressive albums leading to Nothing Lasts Forever (September 2023). Critics be damned.

Like many of my music-loving Gen X peers, I fell hard for Teenage Fanclub thanks to Bandwagonesque.

It’s a stunning collection that has become a ‘90s power pop touchstone, but Thirteen is the album that truly made me fall in love with the band. As is often the case with my favorite music, that has a lot to do with where I was in my life when I first heard it—but the songs are so unbelievably good that I’ve been listening to them ever since.

Thirty years later, Thirteen is still my go-to Teenage Fanclub album. So, I decided to give it a thorough listen and share some of my current impressions. If you never gave Thirteen a chance or if it has been a while since you revisited this misunderstood masterpiece, here’s your chance to dig in. You won’t be disappointed.

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What’s Your Favorite Teenage Fanclub Album?

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1. "Hang On"

Gerard Love delivers the perfect opening to an early ‘90s Teenage Fanclub record. What starts out as a grungy grind, soon transforms into a beautiful, Big Star-influenced pop song. Then, once they’ve got your foot tapping and your heart breaking, they indulge in an extended outro jam that is more Baroque than Big Muff π. “Hang On” perfectly captures TFC’s evolution up to this point, transforming the darker band on A Catholic Education (and the improvised follow up, The King) before the stunning power pop butterfly finally emerged with Bandwagonesque.

2. "The Cabbage"

When I think about peak Norman Blake power pop, I think about this song. That it’s called “The Cabbage” only adds to the strange allure. There is an undeniable driving energy to this mid-tempo rocker (thanks, in part, to O’Hare’s insistent back beat), that is perfectly juxtaposed to the mournful guitar throughout. This track also delivers one of my favorite power pop lyrics of all time:

Goodbye, girl, where did you go?
Woke up this morning and I didn't know
We were together, but now we're not
Asked you for nothing, that's what I got

3. "Radio"

After two lovesick songs, the band turns their uptempo attention to AM radio (although, let’s be honest, this one can get a little lovesick too). Given all the incredible songwriting talent within the band, one important fact that often gets overlooked about them—and creates some misconceptions—is that, at their core, early TFC is a reckless rock and roll band. And this song is proof positive of that fact, not only musically, but in the lyrical content too. More importantly, for the purposes of this article at least, “Radio” rounds out my favorite three-song run from any of their albums. It’s still beyond me how this song didn’t become a massive hit in the early ‘90s. (I guess I’ll chalk it up as another victim of the power pop curse.)

4. "Norman 3"

I love that this track uses a placeholder title (the third song that Norman Blake recorded for Thirteen...), with a refrain that repeats the title-worthy phrase “I’m in love with you, and I know that it’s you…” for almost three minutes. I’ve read reviews that knock the song for this repetition, but TFC certainly wasn’t alone among their power pop peers in being hyper-repetitive. In fact, given the Beatles’ penchant for artfully insistent phrases like “yeah yeah yeah,” I’d dare say it’s almost a hallmark of the genre going back to its roots. And, really, what’s more power pop than the overwhelming realization that you’re in love? I give “Norman 3” a ten.

5. "Song To The Cynic"

Speaking of reviewers, here’s a particularly cynical response to TFC’s third album from SPIN, the same publication that lauded their previous release. (Everybody’s entitled to their opinions, but you have to wonder about the editor that assigned this review to a writer who clearly already disliked the band):

“In case you were afraid Teenage Fanclub’s Bandwagonesque took twinkling stasis and toe-tapping impersonality as far as they could possibly go, not to worry. The Fanclub’s third album, Thirteen, is another giant leap forward in NutraSweetened post-Partridge Family neo-pop revisionism.” —Howard Hampton, SPIN

Taste is subjective—and I’ve certainly been guilty of writing nasty/snarky/cynical reviews myself, especially when I was younger and more invested in my own opinions—but Thirteen really shined a light on the commercial challenges TFC faced in the early ‘90s: They were too pop for the grunge crowd, and too grunge for the pop purists.

I have no idea if that’s in any way what this song’s about, but in re-listening to the album for this song-by-song breakdown, it struck me how prophetic it seems in retrospect: “And you won't leave your mark on me, I'm protected by an honesty…”

6. "120 Mins"

The first Raymond McGinley-penned track on Thirteen is a mournful meditation that dives deep into the Alex Chilton/Big Star influence that sometimes gets Thirteen dismissed as derivative (it’s roundly believed that the album’s title was taken from the Big Star song of the same name…although Blake has occasionally pointed out that the collection also features thirteen tracks.). “120 Mins” is a contemplative ballad that edges toward folk rock while seeming to tackle the relatable challenges of growing up in a rock and roll band. Given that the title of the song was also the name of an influential alternative rock show on MTV at the time—and that McGinley sings about wanting to see his lover’s face more than he wants to be “well-known” or “acclaimed”—I’ve long thought of this as a sneaky “life on the road” song.

7. "Escher"

For the follow up to “120 Mins,” McGinley delivers one of the album’s standout tracks. To my ears, you’d be hard-pressed to find a track that better captures the essence of TFC’s songwriting magic (“Everything Flows” from A Catholic Education, “December” from Bandwagonesque and “Sparky’s Dream” from Grand Prix are other great examples). From the ‘60s psych intro and evocative opening lyrics (“Tell your sins to me, And I'll do 'em all over with you”) to the machine gun drum rolls and tremendous guitar solo, this is a truly triumphant way to celebrate the halfway point of Thirteen.

8. "Commercial Alternative"

And then Blake is back with a mid-tempo rocker that once again leans into repetitive lyrics (“I want to thank you” this time around, instead of “I’m in love with you”). I wrote earlier about that cynical lens through which some reviewers approached Thirteen upon its release, but calling a should-have-been alternative rock hit like this “Commercial Alternative” in the early ‘90s is pretty cynical (and kind of hilarious) in its own right. This track might be among my favorite grooves on the album, mainly driven by the signature TFC guitars that are at turns chiming and soaring.

9. "Fear of Flying"

Plan a lazy Sunday afternoon barbecue with a handful of your oldest/closest friends. Fire up the grill, get the drinks chilling in the cooler, and crank the volume on the stereo. This song is a great way to establish the vibe. Sure, the band might be grappling with the artistic challenges of living up to the critical hype and commercial success of Bandwagonesque, but that’s not your problem. Grab a frisbee and feel the afternoon sun on your face. Hey hey HEY!

10. "Tears Are Cool"

Absolutely brutal:

You might say I know, but you always knew
I could be unkind, but I can't be cruel
All my lies are false, but your heart is true
When I see you cry, I think tears are cool

11. "Ret Liv Dead"

I love this album, but that doesn’t mean that I love every song. This track isn’t without its charm, and might even be a standout on a lesser band’s release, but its also the one I’m most likely to forget or skip. As previously mentioned, taste is subjective.

12. "Get Funky"

I’m a Blur fan, so this throwaway instrumental always reminded me of that band’s work on Leisure (along with some of the earlier Madchester bands). What I’ve never been able to decide is whether or not this was TFC’s attempt at an honest homage to their Brit/Pop peers, or a blatant piss take. I suspect it’s the latter…

13."Gene Clark"

TFC closed 1991’s Bandwagonesque with the stylistic departure of “Is This Music?” and pulled a similar trick with “Hardcore/Ballad” on 1995’s Grand Prix. I consider Thirteen’s closing track to be the centerpiece of that three-song album-closer cycle. It’s a beautiful send off to The Byrds’s songwriter who died in 1991, but done in a plodding style that is more akin to ‘70s Neil Young & Crazy Horse. Although it can be viewed as a sharp left turn, “Gene Clark” remains a favorite among diehard TFC fans.

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