Pure Juice is the debut album by alternative rock band Summercamp, released in 1997 by Maverick Recording Company.

Background and promotion

After signing with Madonna's Maverick Records in late 1996, Summercamp began working on their major label debut. Summercamp would be heavily hyped in the press, with Madonna telling MTV that the band were better than Oasis. Pure Juice was released on June 17, 1997, and that same month the band joined the 1997 edition of the Lollapalooza festival, which ran to August. To further promote the album, a music video was made for the single "Drawer".

Reception

"Drawer" peaked at #21 on the Modern Rock chart in the US, receiving airplay in the summer of 1997. Another single, "Should I Walk Away", became a top ten hit in Japan. Jason Ankeny of AllMusic gave the album two and a half stars, labelling it "derivative and highly formulaic" and "heavily influenced by late-'70s radio". Sky Daniels of R&R magazine commented in 1997 that, "Summercamp continues a natural progression for Santa Barbara bands, beginning with a harder faster approach than its predecessors, but still yielding the prerequisite humm-ability that living in Paradise elicits." In July 1997, R.S. Murthi of Malaysian paper the New Straits Times gave the album's sound four out of five stars, and the performances three out of five stars. He wrote, "the harmonies are not terrific, but they work, and often enhance the instrumental textures. If you need an analogy let's just say the band sounds like a less folkish Toad the Wet Sprocket."

Appearances in other media

In 1998, "On Her Mind" appeared in the film BASEketball, and in 2000 the song "Nowhere Near" appeared on the soundtrack for Digimon: The Movie. "Play It By Ear" was also used in the Buffy the Vampire Slayer episode "Crush".

Track listing

All songs produced by Chris Shaw and Summercamp.

Band members

Additional personnel