SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: THE WATERBOYS – THE WATERBOYS PRESENT: RIPS FROM THE CUTTING ROOM FLOOR

THE WATERBOYS
THE WATERBOYS PRESENT: RIPS FROM THE CUTTING ROOM FLOOR
SUN RECORDS

The Waterboys, in particular Mike Scott, the founder and only original member from 1981, have never done what was expected of them. For example, in April 2025, they released a concept and tribute album about Dennis Hopper. That album, Life, Death and Dennis Hopper, was not so out of character as it was unexpected. Now the band has released a companion piece, The Waterboys Present: Rips From the Cutting Room Floor. This album features songs recorded for and during their last album, but did not find their way onto the finished album.

Listening to The Waterboys Present: Rips From the Cutting Room Floor, it is easy to see why these songs were left off. Not because the songs are bad, far from it, but because they would not have fit. The songs are largely instrumental and not the most conventional. To their credit, The Waterboys could have simply re-released Life, Death and Dennis Hopper with a bonus album, but that would mean fans had to rebuy that album, so a new, separate album has been assembled. Which was a wise decision, as these songs form a different view of Dennis Hopper. It is also a very different-sounding album.

The Waterboys Present: Rips From the Cutting Room Floor is a very interesting and different album. The album kicks off with a narrative set to a dance beat from the late 1990s or early 2000s, “Western Roll Call.” Again, it is quite a burst of energy, it is quite short, and it does a great job in introducing the songs left over from the previous album. This is followed by the odd “The Next Time I Saw Elvis,” again a great dance beat featuring Henry Dobson Jr. on vocals telling of the time Hopper met Elvis Presley in 1956. “Cinema, C’est La Vie” is a breath of fresh air, with a 1960s R&B vibe going on, with some fine organ playing.

LIFE, DEATH AND DENNIS HOPPER ALBUM REVIEW

And this is how the album unfolds. It is much more experimental than the last and sometimes it isn’t. By the time we get to hear Mike Scott sing, on the ninth song, “Still Raging On,” it is very welcome. Some tracks, like “Cowboy Bill, Guy Grand and Kansas,” have a great sound and great guitar work. And others like, “Funkout At The Mud Palace” really set the tone of the times (late 1960s, early 1970s). The best track on the album is an alternative version of “Golf, They Say (James Version).” It is a brilliant way to end the album and gives a small glimpse as to how some of these songs would have fit on the original. It follows the wonderful spoken line “A Few Words About Dennis Hopper.”

The album, in feeling, is closer to 2019’s Where the Action Is, which seemed to be a bit more realized and, in an odd way, more focused. I understand and welcome experimental albums, such as The Waterboys Present: Rips From the Cutting Room Floor when the albums are done extremely well. And while I understand that this is a companion to Life, Death and Dennis Hopper, it is uneven at parts. It is interesting for the most part, and the playing is, as always, top-notch. Some of the narrative is not necessary for the original album, as Scott conveyed all of this without being too direct. The best track on the album is a remix of a song featured on their last album. “Golf, They Say (James Version)” closes the album and it is a remarkable song, more powerful than the original version.

The Waterboys Present: Rips From the Cutting Room Floor allows fans to see behind the curtain and hear material that was intended for another album but left off. These songs are not rejects, but they are different. There are a lot of interesting things throughout, and Scott and company know how to layer instruments and sounds to create a movie in your mind’s eye. Full marks to Mike Scott and the band for trying something different, and full marks for making it a stand-alone album.

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