If'n

If'n
Studio album by Firehose
Released	1987
Recorded	September–October 1987; Radio Tokyo, Venice, California
Genre	Alternative rock
Label	SST
Producer	Ethan James, Mike Watt
Firehose chronology
Ragin', Full On (1986) If'n (1987) Fromohio (1989)

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[1]

If'n is the second album by the American alternative rock band Firehose, released in 1987.

The sound on the album is less incendiary than Ragin', Full On, moving away from the harder-edged Minutemen style to a mellower, funk-driven, humorous, "good-time rock'n'roll" direction (one which Minutemen had themselves explored on the EP Project Mersh). The songs are also more stylistically consistent - where the previous album had material from various sources (including Kira Roessler), If'n is more centered on Mike Watt's writing, showing a band that has gelled and found its own identity apart from Watt and Hurley's previous (and more well-known) band Minutemen. Many of the songs remained audience favorites for years to come ("Making the Freeway", "From One Cums One" and the humorous "Me & You, Remembering"). The album includes the group's first "heavy" song, "Thunder Child".

The album name is a reference to an episode of the television show Bewitched, which has a song called "If'n".^[2]

The left side of the album cover has a picture of Hüsker Dü, Minutemen's former colleagues at SST Records.

Track listing

1. "Sometimes"
2. "Hear Me"
3. "Honey, Please"
4. "Backroads"
5. "From One Cums One"
6. "Making the Freeway"
7. "Anger"
8. "For the Singer of R.E.M."
9. "Operation Solitare"
10. "Windmilling"
11. "Me & You, Remembering"
12. "In Memory of Elizabeth Cotton" (See Elizabeth Cotten)
13. "Soon"
14. "Thunder Child"

Personnel

• Ed Crawford- vocals, guitar
• Mike Watt- vocals, bass
• George Hurley- drums

References

1. If'n at AllMusic
2. "Serena has gone hippie and ends up on the front page of the newspaper and Darrin has to explain to the Tates about her identical cousin. After hurting Serena's feelings, Darrin can't provide proof of his story. Samantha also sings the If'n song." Plot Summary for Bewitched "Hippie, Hippie, Hooray" (1968) (Season 4, Episode 21) at IMDB