[14][15] Entertainment Weekly wrote: "Morrissey’s creaky voice is the perfect instrument to tell these proud losers’ tales.

"[18] Rolling Stone stated that "Morrissey's songs capture the stark, hardscrabble milieus of a subterranean New England culture—rootless drifters, despondent cabbies, beery, down-on-their-luck deckhands.

"[20] The Colorado Springs Gazette-Telegraph determined that, "unlike the '70s sensitive men (Jackson Browne, James Taylor), who wore out their welcome by whining about messed-up relationships, Morrissey and his peers ... seem to address their male inadequacies with at least a snicker of humor"; the paper listed the album among the 20 best of 1993.

[21][22] The Chicago Tribune noted that "Morrissey's characters are inevitably middle-aged, crumbling around the edges, and yet, somehow, dealing with it.

"[23] AllMusic wrote that "the sound on this album is more stripped down, as basic as a Lou Reed record and just as effective.