| Having a Party with Jonathan Richman | |
| Type: | studio |
| Artist: | Jonathan Richman |
| Cover: | Having a Party with Jonathan Richman.jpg |
| Released: | 1991 |
| Label: | Rounder[1] |
| Producer: | Brennan Totten |
| Prev Title: | Jonathan Goes Country |
| Prev Year: | 1990 |
| Next Title: | I, Jonathan |
| Next Year: | 1992 |
Having a Party with Jonathan Richman is an album by the American musician Jonathan Richman, released in 1991.[2] [3] Richman supported the album with a North American tour.[4]
The album contains live and studio tracks, performed by Richman with just his guitar and voice, with occasional percussion.[5] [6] It was produced by Brennan Totten. The songs are mostly about relationships, with Richman writing in the liner notes that his musical style and methods remain unchanged.[7] The cover photo was taken near Richman's home, around Sacramento, California.[8]
Trouser Press wrote: "In a pensive frame of mind for much of the record, Richman reconsiders past times with new-found gravity."[9] Entertainment Weekly called the album "one of his most clear-eyed and least coy records... It’s chock-full of simplistic—but not simpleminded—songs about puzzling relationships." The Columbus Dispatch praised "My Career as a Homewrecker" and "The Girl Stands Up to Me Now".[10] The Deseret News deemed Richman "the new wave Mister Rogers of folk."[11]
Robert Christgau described the album as the "confessions of a reluctant grownup." The Christian Science Monitor determined that, "as soon as the disc starts spinning and the strings start twanging, Richman delivers enough energy and wit to stop a roomful of conversation."[12] The Republican noted that "he's one very funny guy, with an impressive ability to make the most out of the obvious."
AllMusic wrote that, "without a band to support him, Richman grows more pensive than usual."