1978 Warren Zevon – Excitable Boy

Bob Glaub, Danny Kortchmar, Jeffrey Porcaro, Jim Horn, Leland Sklar, Linda Ronstadt, Rick Marotta, Russ Kunkel, Waddy Wachtel, Warren Zevon

Excitable Boy is the third studio album by Warren Zevon. The album was released on January 18, 1978, by Asylum Records. It includes the top 40 success “Werewolves of London”. The album brought Warren to commercial attention and remains the best-selling album of his career. A remastered and expanded edition was released in 2007.

The tracks “Excitable Boy” and “Werewolves of London” were considered macabrely humorous by some critics. The historical “Veracruz” dramatizes the United States occupation of Veracruz, and likewise “Roland the Headless Thompson Gunner” is a fictionalization of a mercenary in Africa. “Lawyers, Guns and Money” is a tongue-in-cheek tale of a young American man’s adventures in Cold War era Latin America. In addition, there are two ballads about life and relationships (“Accidentally Like a Martyr” and “Tenderness on the Block”), as well as a dance tune (“Nighttime in the Switching Yard”).

Tracks

1 Johnny Strikes Up The Band (Warren Zevon) 2:54
2 Roland The Headless Thompson Gunner (David Lindell, Warren Zevon) 3:49
3 Excitable Boy (LeRoy Marinell, Warren Zevon) 2:43
4 Werewolves Of London (LeRoy Marinell, Waddy Wachtel, Warren Zevon) 3:31
5 Accidentally Like A Martyr (Warren Zevon) 3:44
6 Nighttime In The Switching Yard (Jorge Calderon, David Lindell, Waddy Wachtel, Warren Zevon) 4:19
7 Veracruz (Jorge Calderon, Warren Zevon) 3:34
8 Tenderness On The Block (Jackson Browne, Warren Zevon) 3:58
9 Lawyers, Guns And Money (Warren Zevon) 3:38

Biography

Warren Zevon

Musicians

1 Johnny Strikes Up The Band

Bass	Leland Sklar
Drums	Russ Kunkel
Guitar	Waddy Wachtel
Piano	Warren Zevon
Percussion	Danny Kortchmar
Background Vocals	Waddy Wachtel

2 Roland The Headless Thompson Gunner

Bass	Bob Glaub
Drums	Russ Kunkel
Guitar	Waddy Wachtel
Organ	Warren Zevon
Piano	Warren Zevon
Background Vocals	Jackson Browne
Background Vocals	John David Souther
Background Vocals	Jorge Calderon
Background Vocals	Kenny Edwards
Background Vocals	Waddy Wachtel

3 Excitable Boy

Bass	Bob Glaub
Drums	Russ Kunkel
Guitar	Waddy Wachtel
Piano	Warren Zevon
Sax	Jim Horn
Background Vocals	Jennifer Warnes
Background Vocals	Linda Ronstadt
Background Vocals	Waddy Wachtel

4 Werewolves Of London

Bass	John Mcvie
Drums	Mick Fleetwood
Guitar	Waddy Wachtel
Piano	Warren Zevon

5 Accidentally Like A Martyr

Bass	Leland Sklar
Drums	Russ Kunkel
Guitar	Waddy Wachtel
Background Vocals	Karla Bonoff
Background Vocals	Jackson Browne
Background Vocals	John David Souther
Background Vocals	Jorge Calderon
Background Vocals	Kenny Edwards
Background Vocals	Waddy Wachtel

6 Nighttime In The Switching Yard

Bass	Bob Glaub
Drums	Jeffrey Porcaro
Guitar	Danny Kortchmar
Guitar	Waddy Wachtel
Background Vocals	Jackson Browne
Background Vocals	John David Souther
Background Vocals	Jorge Calderon
Background Vocals	Kenny Edwards
Background Vocals	Waddy Wachtel

7 Veracruz

Bass	Kenny Edwards
Drums	Rick Marotta
Guitar	Waddy Wachtel
Jarana	Luis Damian
Requinto	Manuel Vasques
Piano	Warren Zevon
Recorder	Jim Horn
Harp	Arthur Gerst
Background Vocals	Jorge Calderon

8 Tenderness On The Block

Bass	Kenny Edwards
Drums	Rick Marotta
Guitar	Waddy Wachtel
Piano	Warren Zevon
Background Vocals	Jackson Browne
Background Vocals	John David Souther
Background Vocals	Jorge Calderon
Background Vocals	Kenny Edwards
Background Vocals	Waddy Wachtel

9 Lawyers, Guns And Money

Guitar	Kenny Edwards
Drums	Rick Marotta
Guitar	Waddy Wachtel
Piano	Warren Zevon

Liner Notes

Producer – Jackson Browne, Waddy Wachtel
Engineer – Dennis Kirk, Greg Ladanyi
Engineer (Assistant) – George Ybarra, Serge Reyes
Mixed By – Dennis Kirk, Greg Ladanyi

Design – Jimmy Wachtel
Photography – Jimmy Wachtel, Lorrie Sullivan

Recorded At The Sound Factory
Phonographic Copyright Elektra/Asylum Records
Copyright Elektra/Asylum Records