"The Man Who Was Too Loud"

SUBJECT: "It's a song about Jonathan Richman," he says, referring to the former Modern Lovers leader and author of such rock and roll classics as "Roadrunner" and "Pablo Picasso."
"Now he plays kinda quiet. He didn't want to be loud anymore and damage anyone's eardrum. I always thought that was an interesting thing about him, kinda weird and rebellious." - Frank in an interview, 98 [www.smugmagazine.com]

That was done on a John Peel radio program a few years ago, so it's not new. But I never got a good take of it. We tried to do it on [1996's] Cult of Ray. I started playing it in 1994, I think. I wrote it in the wee hours before the John Peel session in England. I think I had certain key phrases in the song, and I had recently learned some details about the career of Jonathan Richman, so I sort of wrote the song about him. I understand he was a louder performer in the past, and at one point turned down--his reason being he didn't want to damage the ears of young people and old people. I just thought that was really interesting.
- Frank in an interview with BAM, 98

From James L Boyd...
This is almost nothing, but I found a tiny anecdote about someone playing with Jonathan Richman, where he'd complained that they were too loud, and according to this article.

"I moved back to LA and saw a Chicago duo named Jason & Allison one night and they told the story of how they'd opened for Johnathan Richman & he'd complained that they were too loud. They'd met Frank Black and he told them the same thing happened to him."

So I think we know where "The Man Who Was Too Loud" comes from, since it's about Richman!

LYRICS:
though he loved to rock and roll / all these many years / he cared about the old people's / and little children's ears / though he was a guitar man / he reflected and he vowed / never will I ever be / no ne'er again / the man who was too loud / Jonny's not a poor man / no, he never gets him down / now that he is free / he is not proud / he don't need power / just to make a sound / He's not the man that he used to be / oh no, the man who was too loud / I will play softly / I will play softly / Softly now / 'cause I was the man who was too loud / it's not becouse he don't respect / The popular music star / you know I saw him open up / for the king of the surf guitar / do not think he does not like / The cheering of the crowd / no, he is glad that they came to see / the man who used to be / the man who was too loud / Jonny is a rich man / yeah he still gets around / he's glad to be the cat who meowed / he don't need the power / Just to get his sound / he's not the man that he used to me / oh no, the man who was too loud / I will play softly / I will play softly / I will play softly now / 'cause I was the man who was too loud

HISTORY: Frank's been playing this song since '94. He recorded/released a version on a Peel Session ep with the band Teenage Fanclub, before re-recording it for the first Catholics record.

LIVE: 94/98

ACOUSTIC: 94