Bad Timing is a 1997 studio album by American musician Jim O'Rourke, and his first to be released by the Drag City label. Although O'Rourke had previously established himself with a prolific output of experimental music beginning in the late 1980s, this album marked the beginning of his series of albums released by Drag City focusing on more traditional instrumentation and song structures.[6] It is an instrumental album, consisting largely of Jim O'Rourke's acoustic guitar playing (much in the style of John Fahey), sometimes with additional instrumentation.

Bad Timing
Studio album by
ReleasedAugust 25, 1997
Recorded1997
Genre
Length44:06
LabelDrag City[1]
ProducerJim O'Rourke
Jim O'Rourke chronology
Happy Days
(1997)
Bad Timing
(1997)
Eureka
(1999)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[2]
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music[3]
MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide[4]
Pitchfork Media9.1/10[5]

The album is named after the 1980 film Bad Timing: A Sensual Obsession, directed by Nicolas Roeg.[7] It is one of a trio of O'Rourke albums, along with Eureka and Insignificance, to be named after Roeg films from the 1980s.

Critical reception

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MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide wrote that the album's "four long, shape-shifting instrumentals blend O'Rourke's finger-picking with electronic textures and orchestrations for horns and string that abruptly, mischievously change mood."[4] Tiny Mix Tapes wrote that the album "shows O’Rourke taking his John Fahey worship to a majestic extreme."[8]

Track listing

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All tracks are written by Jim O'Rourke

No.TitleLength
1."There's Hell in Hello But More in Goodbye"9:37
2."94 the Long Way"13:58
3."Bad Timing"10:00
4."Happy Trails"10:33
Total length:44:06

References

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  1. ^ "Jim O'Rourke - Bad Timing | Drag City". www.dragcity.com.
  2. ^ AllMusic review
  3. ^ Larkin, Colin (2006). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Vol. 6. MUZE. p. 336.
  4. ^ a b MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide. Visible Ink Press. 1999. p. 843.
  5. ^ Richardson, Mark (February 12, 2017). "Jim O'Rourke: Bad Timing". Pitchfork Media. Retrieved February 12, 2017.
  6. ^ "Jim O'Rourke | Biography & History". AllMusic.
  7. ^ Ratliff, Ben (September 2, 2009). "Once Insider, Now Outsider, and Liking It (Published 2009)". The New York Times – via NYTimes.com.
  8. ^ "DeLorean: Jim O'Rourke - Bad Timing (1997)". Tiny Mix Tapes.