Extreme was: Extreme began as a Boston area band called The Dream, which released a six-song EP in 1983. In 1985, The Dream became Extreme due to a naming conflict with a television station. In November of 1987, the band signed with A&M Records, the label on which they released all four of their albums. Their first album, which was self-titled, was released in March of 1989, and gained the band a fair amount of critical acclaim, but little mainstream attention. Even so, about 300,000 copies of the album were sold. In September of 1990, II Pornograffitti was released, once again garnering little attention outside of hard rock publications (although the album went gold in Canada) before...

..."More than Words" was released as a single in May of 1991. Its sudden success was a surprise to both the band and the label, to say the least. The song had, after all, been sent to radio stations as an afterthought, and the band was touring Europe at the time of release. But, for a couple of months, Extreme was the king of the airwaves. The band also had a couple of minor hits in "Hole Hearted" and "Get the Funk Out," the latter being the follow-up to "More than Words".

Then, later that year, Nirvana's Nevermind hit, and the great radio shift from L.A. Glam to Seattle Grunge began. With the music-buying public demanding angst, Extreme made the mistake of releasing a thoughtful, mature, and fleshed-out album as a follow-up to Pornograffitti. Most damning, though, was that 1992's III Sides to Every Story was hard rock, as the window for that style of music had come and gone. Radio didn't even take a nibble, and what should have been the defining statement of Extreme's career was overlooked by almost everybody.

The band channeled their disappointment at the reception of III Sides... into their next (and final) album, 1995's Waiting for the Punchline. Scathing in both a lyrical and musical sense, the CD became a staple of clearance bins within a few months of its release. Tentative plans were made for a fifth album, but, in 1996, guitarist Bettencourt decided to pursue a solo career. Later that year, Cherone joined Van Halen, making the band's demise official. Rumors of a reunion have surfaced every couple of years since then, and Cherone and Bettencourt have said nothing in interviews to discourage the idea, but, as of this writing, there's no hard evidence suggesting that a second incarnation of Extreme is imminent.

Discography

Extreme (1989)

  1. Little Girls 3:47
  2. Wind Me Up 3:37
  3. Kid Ego 4:04
  4. Watching, Waiting 4:54
  5. Mutha (Don't Wanna Go to School Today) 4:52
  6. Teacher's Pet 3:01
  7. Big Boys Don't Cry 3:34
  8. Smoke Signals 4:14
  9. Flesh N Blood 3:31
  10. Rock A Bye Bye 5:57
  11. Play With Me 3:29

II Pornograffitti (1990)

  1. Decadence Dance 6:49
  2. Li'l Jack Horny 4:52
  3. When I'm President 4:22
  4. Get the Funk Out 4:24
  5. More than Words 5:34
  6. Money (In God We Trust) 4:11
  7. It ('s A Monster) 4:25
  8. Pornograffitti 6:16
  9. When I First Kissed You 4:00
  10. Suzi (Wants Her All Day What?) 3:39
  11. He-Man Woman Hater 6:19
  12. Song for Love 5:55
  13. Hole Hearted 3:39

III Sides to Every Story (1992)

  1. Warheads 5:18
  2. Rest in Peace 6:02
  3. Politicalamity 5:04
  4. Color Me Blind 5:00
  5. Cupid's Dead 5:56
  6. Peacemaker Die 6:03
  7. Seven Sundays 4:18
  8. Tragic Comic 4:45
  9. Our Father 4:02
  10. Stop the World 5:58
  11. God isn't Dead? 2:02
  12. Don't Leave Me Alone (only available on the cassette version of the album)
  13. Everything Under the Sun I.Rise 'n Shine 6:22
  14. Everything Under the Sun II.Am I Ever Gonna Change? 6:56
  15. Everything Under the Sun III.Who Cares? 8:19

Waiting for the Punchline (1995)

  1. There is no God 6:08
  2. Cynical (orig. titled "Cynical Fuck") 4:42
  3. Tell Me Something I Don't Know 6:26
  4. Hip Today 4:42
  5. Naked 5:47
  6. Midnight Express 3:59
  7. Leave Me Alone 4:48
  8. No Respect 3:52
  9. Evilangelist 4:49
  10. Shadow Boxing 4:35
  11. Unconditionally 11:27


Sources: http://pages.infinit.net/extreme4/index.html
http://www.geocities.com/SoHo/Coffeehouse/2726/ExtremeEsteem.html

Ex*treme" (?), a. [L. extremus, superl. of exter, extrus, on the outside, outward: cf. F. extreme. See Exterior.]

1.

At the utmost point, edge, or border; outermost; utmost; farthest; most remote; at the widest limit.

2.

Last; final; conclusive; -- said of time; as, the extreme hour of life.

3.

The best of worst; most urgent; greatest; highest; immoderate; excessive; most violent; as, an extreme case; extreme folly.

"The extremest remedy." Dryden. "Extreme rapidity." Sir W. Scott.

Yet extreme gusts will blow out fire. Shak.

4.

Radical; ultra; as, extreme opinions.

The Puritans or extreme Protestants. Gladstone.

5. Mus.

Extended or contracted as much as possible; -- said of intervals; as, an extreme sharp second; an extreme flat forth.

Extreme and mean ratio Geom., the relation of a line and its segments when the line is so divided that the whole is to the greater segment is to the less. -- Extreme distance. Paint. See Distance., n., 6. -- Extreme unction. See under Unction.

Although this adjective, being superlative in signification, is not properly subject to comparison, the superlative form not unfrequently occurs, especially in the older writers. "Tried in his extremest state." Spenser. "Extremest hardships." Sharp. "Extremest of evils." Bacon. "Extremest verge of the swift brook." Shak. "The sea's extremest borders." Addison.

 

© Webster 1913.


Ex*treme", n.

1.

The utmost point or verge; that part which terminates a body; extremity.

2.

Utmost limit or degree that is supposable or tolerable; hence, furthest degree; any undue departure from the mean; -- often in the plural: things at an extreme distance from each other, the most widely different states, etc.; as, extremes of heat and cold, of virtue and vice; extremes meet.

His parsimony went to the extreme of meanness. Bancroft.

3.

An extreme state or condition; hence, calamity, danger, distress, etc.

"Resolute in most extremes."

Shak.

4. Logic

Either of the extreme terms of a syllogism, the middle term being interposed between them.

5. Math.

The first or the last term of a proportion or series.

In the extreme as much as possible. "The position of the Port was difficult in the extreme."

J. P. Peters.

 

© Webster 1913.

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