The Special Goodness (album)

The Special Goodness is the debut album by Patrick Wilson, generally considered to be the debut album by his side-project of the same name.
==Overview==
The album, which is affectionately known as The Bunny Record due to its original cover art, was recorded in March and April of 1996, before the completion of Pinkerton. The album was recorded digitally, at Wilson's preference.Watkin, Paul, & Wilson, Patrick. (January 11, 1997). Rivers Runs Through It - Drummer Patrick Wilson of Weezer. Drop-D Magazine. Retrieved from https://dropd.com/issue/38/Weezer/. While it is credited on its art as a Patrick Wilson solo release, it is typically considered the first release under his side project The Special Goodness.
All songs were written and primarily performed by Wilson. "Pay No Mind" and "Pardon Me" would be later revisited for the 2003 album Land Air Sea. Though unconfirmed, some fans speculate that the album's lyrics reflect Wilson's experiences during initial rise to stardom, and the personal dynamics within the band, specifically disillusionment with rock stardom, and the behavior of Rivers Cuomo from this period.
==Release==
:::—Game Informer interview with Pat Wilson, February 1997
The album was originally set to be released by Geffen Records, and at least two different promo CD-rs for the album were printed and released by the label in late 1996.Koch, Karl. appendix B: Solo, Side and Other band releases + related. Collectors Discography. Archived from the original on Weezerpedia at Collectors Discography - Appendix B. However, for unknown reasons, the label decided against signing the band, and the album was not released through DGC. The album would ultimately be released exclusively in Japan in 1998, by the indie label Rock Records.
Numerous other attempts to have the album released in America were made by the band, though none were successful. In late 1999, Wilson was in talks with label Loosegroove Records, who would print a handful of prototype CD-r singles containing the song "I'm with You Sister" (alongside two other Bunny Album tracks). Similarly to Geffen, however, this deal fell through. Again in 1999, the label Vast Records (who previously released the tribute compilation Hear You Me! A Tribute To Mykel And Carli, featuring Weezer and related bands) attempted to have the album released in the US through Universal.Vast Records. (October 11, 2000). News. vastrecords.com. Archived from the original at https://web.archive.org/web/20020207181330/http://www.vastrecords.com/indexnew.shtml. However, by late 2000, it became clear this, too, would not be possible. With a new Special Goodness album on the horizon (At Some Point, Birds and Flowers Became Interesting) and after multiple failed attempts, a US release of the album was abandoned.
===Handmade copies===
While the album was released officially in Japan utilizing the standard bunny artwork, there were also numerous (possibly one-of-a-kind) handmade versions sold while the band toured throughout 1999 and 2000. These handmade CD-rss are mostly parodies of popular artwork or other album covers, usually with cut-and-paste images of the members of the hip-hop group Handsome Boy Modeling School placed over faces. The artwork for most, if not all, of these cover variants were done by Karl Koch, working with inspiration from Mikey Welsh, who loved the idea and was an avid collage artist in his spare time on the road. Koch found a large stack of Handsome Boy Modeling School promotional stickers and some discarded promotional CDs at one of the clubs on the Special Goodness 1999 tour, and decided that these elements would be the basis for all CDs sold for the rest of the tour. The very first versions were sold, and then color photocopies were made of some of the favored designs to keep up with the demand as the tour went on. Koch saved a few examples of each, but several were one-of-a-kind and their survival rate is unknown. Some of these alternate releases have been cataloged online. However, as a result of the band's lack of popularity in addition to the album's lack of official release, they are generally sparsely known and rare.
====Documented copies====
Image:The Special Goodness CD Alt 1.png|Fall 1999 tour version; most copies photocopied in black and white
Image:Bunny Fall 1997 Tour Black and White photocopied (higher quality).jpg|Photocopied version
Image:The Special Goodness CD Alt 2.png|Fall 1999 tour version; most copies photocopied in black and white; uses artwork from a Chinese propaganda poster from 1974
Image:Bunny Album Fall 1997 Tour Color Handmade copy (higher quality).jpg|Similar copy, previously belonging to weezer.net webmaster Anuj
Image:The Special Goodness CD Alt 3.png|Fall 1999 tour version; most copies photocopied in black and white, uses artwork from Gene Clark's Roadmaster
Image:Screenshot-18.png|Example of a disc from the Fall 1999 tour releases
Image:The Special Goodness CD Alt 4.png|Spring 2000 tour version; numerous photocopied versions in different colors; slimline jewel case
==Personnel==
*Patrick Wilson - Guitar, bass, vocals, percussion
*Pat Finn - bass on 8
*Tony Lash - percussion on 4 & 8, keyboards on 8, producer, engineer, mixing
==Track Listing==
All songs written by Patrick Wilson.
==Gallery==
Image:Bunny-Record-cover.jpg|Official Japanese release cover
Image:Bunny Album insert.jpg|Insert
Image:Bunny Album Insert Open.jpg|Insert (open)
Image:Bunny Album Back Cover.jpg|Back cover
Image:Bunny Album Disc.jpg|Disc
Image:DGC Bunny Album Promo Cover 1.jpg|1996 DGC promo CD-r cover
Image:DGC Bunny Album Promo Cover 2.jpg|1996 DGC promo CD-r cover
==See also==
*List of Patrick Wilson songs
*"I'm with You Sister"
==References==
Category:Patrick Wilson
Category:The Special Goodness
Category:The Special Goodness albums
Category:1998 releases
Category:Self-titled records