Deliverance - What a Joke

What is going on here?

I used to own this album back in 91 through 94. Haven't listened to it since then.

Holy cow this is a terrible album. It truly is a joke. I think maybe I only listened to it then because it was metal man!!!

The production is poor and muted and the song writing and the playing seem flat and uninspired.

It's almost as if they didn't want to make this album but were forced to by the label. Perhaps that is why during the intro they say "the label needs us to make another record" or something like that. I always thought that was just guys talking but maybe it's what they truly felt. With the amount of short silly songs, it really makes me wonder where their hearts were.

Perhaps someone who knows the history on this album can confirm or deny my observations.

I seem to recall someone saying Jimmy considered it to be a joke. I was surprised to hear that because, to be honest, I love it. It was hard and heavy, front to back. I agree about the production but it's still my favorite Deliverance album.

The story is supposedly, they were trying to get fired off of Intense and decided the best way to do it would be put out an album that was a joke. But they stayed on Intense for another album anyway

I honestly love this album as well, sure the joke songs are filler, but enjoyable

IMO it has some killer songs,










And some killer covers

Adding to the irony of the title was the blow up on the CMR a few years ago when the album was reissued with this cover and JPB2 left a flaming rant about it on the forum and made a lot of the members to quit metal and turn to smooth jazz.

If you look at the "real" songs on there, I think they are some of the fastest and tightest ones from that era of their catalog.

deathisgain said: wrote:If you look at the "real" songs on there, I think they are some of the fastest and tightest ones from that era of their catalog.

This.

I don't think it's a terrible album at all...some killer songs on here such as Pseudo Intellectual, A Product of Society, Prophet of Idiocy.....love the raw speed of this album....

New Creation wrote:...Holy cow this is a terrible album...

I wholeheartedly agree.  The only songs I can stomach* from the album are Chipped Beef, Purgatory Sandwich With Mustard, Silent Night, and the Attack rerecording.  I'm the only one I know who liked "Stay of Execution" better than "What a Joke!".

*pun inententional

d@v!d wrote:Adding to the irony of the title was the blow up on the CMR a few years ago when the album was reissued with this cover and JPB2 left a flaming rant about it on the forum and made a lot of the members to quit metal and turn to smooth jazz.

That explains my newfound fascination with jazz..I had no idea the stupid album cover was responsible, I thought I just got old.  Still prefer God-honoring metal to all other genres, however.

Hardcore Christian's post is the story I heard too.


On the old Deliverance website (was this taken down?!?) Jimmy himself said that if you took out the filler it made a great EP.  That's pretty much how I feel, and Bodachi, I too prefer Stay of Execution.


Have you heard the re-recorded What a Joke song?  The production is much better and it doesn't have the spoken-word part.

eatbugs wrote:Hardcore Christian's post is the story I heard too.


On the old Deliverance website (was this taken down?!?) Jimmy himself said that if you took out the filler it made a great EP.  That's pretty much how I feel, and Bodachi, I too prefer Stay of Execution.


Have you heard the re-recorded What a Joke song?  The production is much better and it doesn't have the spoken-word part.

 When was "What A Joke" re-recorded?

Pershing1134 wrote:

eatbugs wrote:Hardcore Christian's post is the story I heard too.


On the old Deliverance website (was this taken down?!?) Jimmy himself said that if you took out the filler it made a great EP.  That's pretty much how I feel, and Bodachi, I too prefer Stay of Execution.


Have you heard the re-recorded What a Joke song?  The production is much better and it doesn't have the spoken-word part.

 When was "What A Joke" re-recorded?

It was on the "Stay" remaster that came out last year. I tried to find it but it seems to be sold out. It was a limited run "never to be pressed again" kind of thing. Ah - just found it on CDBaby and it does have a sound clip.

http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/deliverance23

MikeInFla wrote:It was on the "Stay" remaster that came out last year. I tried to find it but it seems to be sold out. It was a limited run "never to be pressed again" kind of thing. Ah - just found it on CDBaby and it does have a sound clip.

http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/deliverance23

Wow that sounds amazing!

We need to hear What A Joke entirely re-recorded minus the joke songs, throw in a couple new ones and you would have thrash masterpiece

New Creation wrote:What is going on here?

I used to own this album back in 91 through 94. Haven't listened to it since then.

Holy cow this is a terrible album. It truly is a joke. I think maybe I only listened to it then because it was metal man!!!

The production is poor and muted and the song writing and the playing seem flat and uninspired.

It's almost as if they didn't want to make this album but were forced to by the label. Perhaps that is why during the intro they say "the label needs us to make another record" or something like that. I always thought that was just guys talking but maybe it's what they truly felt. With the amount of short silly songs, it really makes me wonder where their hearts were.

Perhaps someone who knows the history on this album can confirm or deny my observations.

I interviewed Jimmy on ROXXcast and he told me there as well as He has said it in other interviews that YES they were TRYING to get kicked off of the label.  There are SOME REAL songs on the album and they are very good for example Silent Night.  But for the most part the whole album was a JOKE album to try to get kicked off of the label.

huh... I hate that version of Silent Night   skip button every time...

am I the only one?

crucifyd wrote:huh... I hate that version of Silent Night   skip button every time...

am I the only one?

No.  I also can barely listen to it these days.  It was an awesome novelty when it was released, but in the intervening years, I have grown to, well, "loathe' might not be quite accurate, but I have developed a distaste for it.

Many important and true things said here, want to add that

 if you leave the short songs, jokes and covers it is one of the most important thrash albums
   in metal history!

If you have an EP with the following songs:

    1. Prophet of idiocy
    2. Pseudo intellectual
    3. What a joke
    4. A product of society

you get the finest in songwriting and
most perfect played thrash riffs, songs and beats in metal history.
And I listen to a lot of secular stuff also.

If you are a guitar player:
Try to play the rhythm guitars this fast heavy and exactly as they are on that album
and you will know what I mean.

I think the album What A Joke kills...

most records that I love, I didn't love on first listen, I rarely even like a record the first time I hear it. for example, I couldn't stand Stop The Bleeding the first time I heard it. now it is top 10 all time, but I loved WAJ from the first note strike back in 1991 (with the exception of Silent Night)


also, I had forgotten about the re-recorded song What A Joke so I went and listened to it and...I think it's blah, the vocal are just awkward, doesn't have the same snare snap and I don't think it sounds as heavy. much prefer the original.

I love the whole album except for Silent Night.  Even the novelty tracks (Chipped Beef is a favorite riff), which help to break up the album.  Normally I get worn out or bored from a whole album of thrash, and they really help with that.  I much prefer humorous but heavy vs. an acoustic song or ballad that other bands used at the time, which broke up albums in a bad way.

Thanks guys. Wow, what a thread, I really awoke something here.

Like I said, I loved this album years ago, but didn't enjoy it on my recent listen.

I will take some suggestions here and not listen to the production, but the songs themselves. I'll also skip past all joke songs and try just the actual trash songs with a message, and see if I enjoy it more.

I enjoy this album. Not my favorite D album, but still a good listen. Love the title track, It's The Beat, and Chipped Beef.

WaJ is by far my least fave D record - I think it's their least inspired album.  Afte Forever is an ok cover and it does have a few moments but to me the songs are just not memorable.  Coming off of their S/t & Weapons I suppose most albums might not meet expectations... but it was dull.  I do love the direction Jimmy took the band after WaJ - Stay of Execution, Learn, River Disturbance, Camelot - just great stuff imo.

I Really love What a Joke album. (BTW, it's a kind of love or hate album).
Despite the jokes, explained by the fact that they wanted to get fired from the label (and from what I could gather, there were also a verbal agreement with another label), there are killer songs in it.

I also think that we could do more than an simple EP of this album.

I see that there are some likes and dislikes to one or another song, so here are the tracklist I wish the album could have to make it near-perfect:

Prophet of Idiocy (3:25)
Pseudo Intellectual (7:15)
What A Joke (6:20)
Chipped Beef (2:02)
It's The Beat (1:56)
A Product of Society (4:42)
J.I.G (2:09)
Purgatory Sandwich with Mustard (2:58)
Attack (3:38)


9 Tracks, we could get an awesome LP from the good songs. But what I really hate in this album is the Black Sabath cover. It doesn't fit in a thrash metal album.

Thiago-Brazil wrote:I Really love What a Joke album. (BTW, it's a kind of love or hate album).
Despite the jokes, explained by the fact that they wanted to get fired from the label (and from what I could gather, there were also a verbal agreement with another label), there are killer songs in it.

I also think that we could do more than an simple EP of this album.

I see that there are some likes and dislikes to one or another song, so here are the tracklist I wish the album could have to make it near-perfect:

Prophet of Idiocy (3:25)
Pseudo Intellectual (7:15)
What A Joke (6:20)
Chipped Beef (2:02)
It's The Beat (1:56)
A Product of Society (4:42)
J.I.G (2:09)
Purgatory Sandwich with Mustard (2:58)
Attack (3:38)


9 Tracks, we could get an awesome LP from the good songs. But what I really hate in this album is the Black Sabath cover. It doesn't fit in a thrash metal album.

See I would do 10 songs, just add back in the Sabbath cover

I love the After Forever cover!  Especially how they threw in the riff from Symptom of the Universe, arguably the first thrash riff ever.  The cover actually introduced me to Black Sabbath who became one of my all-time faves....