Husker Du- Tonite Longhorn 2xLP (Sale price!)

2023 Record Store Day Release, 5,000 Pressed

A 2xLP set of rare, early Hüsker Dü live recordings, featuring original flyers and artwork. Drawn from the historical Hüsker Dü recording archives compiled by Terry Katzman, this double disc live set is an essential companion piece to the band's Savage Young Du Box Set. While the SYD release principally featured studio demos, the 28 tracks presented here are the aural and enchanting equivalent of a time machine that vividly thrusts the listener straight back to Husker Du's embryonic unsheathing on stage.

Side A dates to July 1979. Side B gives us a full year's evolution to July 1980, while Sides C and D land the listener in September 1980. Perhaps 120 people in total saw these three Longhorn performances. Until now, a handful at most have heard the playbacks. So, rare and fresh, it's all here: the songs, the driven performances, the small club intimacy of being in front of select friends, fans, and peers, with one fair shot at getting it right. These four sides compellingly document that you can't doubt that they did.

Side A - July 6. 1979 20:56

1 Insects Rule The World (Hart) (BMG Bumblebee BMI)
2 I’m Not Interested (Hart) (BMG Bumblebee BMI)
3 Sex Dolls (Hart) (BMG Bumblebee BMI)
4 Can’t See You Anymore (Mould) (Granary Music BMI)
5 Sexual Economics (Mould) (Granary Music BMI)
6 Do You Remember? (Mould) (Granary Music BMI)
7 Nuclear Nightmare (Hart/Mould/Norton) (BMG Bumblebee BMI) (Granary Music BMI) (Husker Music BMI)

Side B - July 16 1980 Tiger Night 22:17

1 All Tensed Up (Mould) (Granary Music BMI)
2 Strange Week (Hart) (BMG Bumblebee BMI)
3 Don’t Try To Call (Mould) (Granary Music BMI)
4 Industrial Grocery Store (Mould) (Granary Music BMI)
5 Do The Bee (Hart) (BMG Bumblebee BMI)
6 Do You Remember? (Mould) (Granary Music BMI)
7 Ode To Bode (Norton) (Husker Music BMI)
8 Don’t Have A Life (Norton) (Husker Music BMI)

Side C - Sept 25 1980 Homerock 20:40

1 All I’ve Got To Lose (Mould) (Granary Music BMI)
2 Don’t Try It (Mould) (Granary Music BMI)
3 Writer’s Cramp (Mould) (Granary Music BMI)
4 Gilligan’s Island (Hart) (BMG Bumblebee BMI)
5 What Went Wrong? (Mould) (Granary Music BMI)
6 Uncle Ron (Norton) (Husker Music BMI)
7 MTC (Norton) (Husker Music BMI)
8 Drug Party (Hart) (BMG Bumblebee BMI)

Side D - Sept 25, 1980 Homerock 22:15

1 Chinese Rock (Meyers, Colvin) (Dilapidated Music DoraFlo Music, Quick Fix Music BMI)
2 Termination (Norton) (Husker Music BMI)
3 Call On Me (Mould) (Granary Music BMI)
4 Gravity (Mould) (Granary Music BMI)
5 Statues (Hart) (BMG Bumblebee BMI)

Press Quotes

Fans will have the opportunity to experience Hüsker Dü's formative live sound from a period well before the legendary underground rock trio had officially released any music.

     —Jonathan Cohen, SPIN

The set captures the trio across four performances in Minneapolis in 1979 and 1980.

     —Allison Hussey, Pitchfork

Tonite Longhorn features 28 live recordings in all, and the 2xLP edition has original artwork by Grant Hart and liner notes from Thurston Moore.

     —James Rettig, Stereogum

A fascinating peak into the band's formative years and an early glimpse at their knack for pop melody

     —BrooklynVegan

Three shows recorded at Minneapolis club Jay's Longhorn between 1979 and 1980 capture a raw snapshot of a young band in flux, brimming with confidence and hopped up on speed ... those early Hüsker Dü sets at the Longhorn revealed a group quickly becoming fluent in punk and hardcore, foreshadowing a future in which their mastery of hooks and harmonies would transcend genre.

     —Matthew Ismael Ruiz, Pitchfork