Firesign Theater
lin...@taurus.cs.nps.navy.mil
can't find anything other groups that look likely.
DaLNZ, Lt, USN
Ahh.... I see;.. you are,.. a sailor
Chuck Lavazzi
>Is this the right group for an old Firesign fan? I've been searching and
>can't find anything other groups that look likely.
>
didn't actually do all that much musical stuff. What would you like to
discuss? This pickle? How about this two bit ring from a Crackerback
jox?
Actually, I do have a question. Some years ago I came into
posession of 11, count 'em 11 LP transcriptions of episodes of the "Dear
Friends" radio show from 1970-71. I copied them on to cassette and have
been baffling listeners to my weekly radio show with excerpts from them
for years now. What I want to know is: are there any more of these, or
is this the extent of the treasure trove?
Some of the best bits from this 11 hours of stuff was issued in the
early 70s on the "Dear Friends" 2-LP set, but the originals have some real
goodies on them, including the boys reading A. A. Milne's "Eeyore's Birthday",
an episode of "The Fuse of Doom", and some episodes of the "Mutt and Smut
Show".
>
>DaLNZ, Lt, USN >Ahh.... I see;.. you are,.. a sailor
How about: "He's no fun, he fell right over!"
Or: "Hell, no! I'm gonna cut the soles off my shoes, sit in a tree, and learn
to play the flute!"
Chuck
No .sig, no frills, no foolin'
--
The opinions expressed are not necessarily those of the University of
North Carolina at Chapel Hill, the Campus Office for Information
Technology, or the Experimental Bulletin Board Service.
internet: bbs.oit.unc.edu or 152.2.22.80
Zev Winicur
> Actually, I do have a question. Some years ago I came into
>posession of 11, count 'em 11 LP transcriptions of episodes of the "Dear
>Friends" radio show from 1970-71. I copied them on to cassette and have
>been baffling listeners to my weekly radio show with excerpts from them
>for years now. What I want to know is: are there any more of these, or
>is this the extent of the treasure trove?
Question on the radio shows. How long were they? 1/2 hour? hour? 15 minutes?
I ask because I wondered just how much of the radio shows were found on the
album "Dear Friends." My folks have the album and although I haven't listened
to it for a while, the song "Toad Away" is going through my head as we speak.
_______ __ , _____/ *
| \ / | * Zev Winicur
| \ | * win...@beagle.colorado.edu
______|_ | \ | *
Chuck Lavazzi
>Chuck....@bbs.oit.unc.edu (Chuck Lavazzi) writes:
>> Actually, I do have a question. Some years ago I came into
>>posession of 11, count 'em 11 LP transcriptions of episodes of the "Dear
>>Friends" radio show from 1970-71. I copied them on to cassette and have
>>been baffling listeners to my weekly radio show with excerpts from them
>>for years now. What I want to know is: are there any more of these, or
>>is this the extent of the treasure trove?
>
>Question on the radio shows. How long were they? 1/2 hour? hour? 15 minutes?
>I ask because I wondered just how much of the radio shows were found on the
>album "Dear Friends." My folks have the album and although I haven't listened
>to it for a while, the song "Toad Away" is going through my head as we speak.
>
one-hour shows, the last one being a "Celebs for Papoon" election special,
which may come in handy this November.....
>
>
>_______ __ , _____/ *
> | \ / | * Zev Winicur
> | \ | * win...@beagle.colorado.edu
>______|_ | \ | *
Chuck
Matthew Marchese
>In article <winicur.706222623@beagle> win...@boulder.Colorado.EDU (Zev Winicur) writes:
>>Chuck....@bbs.oit.unc.edu (Chuck Lavazzi) writes:
>>> Actually, I do have a question. Some years ago I came into
>>>posession of 11, count 'em 11 LP transcriptions of episodes of the "Dear
>>>Friends" radio show from 1970-71. I copied them on to cassette and have
>>>been baffling listeners to my weekly radio show with excerpts from them
>>>for years now. What I want to know is: are there any more of these, or
>>>is this the extent of the treasure trove?
>>
>>Question on the radio shows. How long were they? 1/2 hour? hour? 15 minutes?
>>I ask because I wondered just how much of the radio shows were found on the
>>album "Dear Friends." My folks have the album and although I haven't listened
>>to it for a while, the song "Toad Away" is going through my head as we speak.
>>
> Sorry...didn't make that very clear, did I? What I have are 11
>one-hour shows, the last one being a "Celebs for Papoon" election special,
>which may come in handy this November.....
>
doing nowadays? The last thing that I saw from them was the video Nick
Danger: Case of the Missing Yolks. They were also doing a radio show on
KROQ in L.A. about 10 years ago. It had some good running gags about
Victor's House of Barbequed Bats (with the secret guano sauce). The
Nick Danger video had some great commercial parodies like Rat in a Box
and Booby Chew. Finally, I heard a terrifically funny musical version
of the the Emergency Broadcast System radio spot which i'm almost certain
was done by Fireside. Can anyone confirm or deny this?
-------------------------------------------------------------
Supernatural, perhaps...Baloney, perhaps not..-Bela Lugosi |
-------------------------------------------------------------
Matt Marchese The opinions expressed here are not
Cray Research those of my employer, my wife, my church, or
DKRZ myself...But they are the opinions of Elvis
Hamburg, Germany as revealed to me through the medium of my
pet hamster, Lee Harvey Oswald...
Chuck Lavazzi
>>
>This may be straying off the subject but what are the guys from Fireside
>doing nowadays? The last thing that I saw from them was the video Nick
>Danger: Case of the Missing Yolks. They were also doing a radio show on
>KROQ in L.A. about 10 years ago. It had some good running gags about
>Victor's House of Barbequed Bats (with the secret guano sauce). The
>Nick Danger video had some great commercial parodies like Rat in a Box
>and Booby Chew. Finally, I heard a terrifically funny musical version
>of the the Emergency Broadcast System radio spot which i'm almost certain
>was done by Fireside. Can anyone confirm or deny this?
>
reference to the fact that most of the Four or Five Crazee Guys were fire signs.
Second, the group is still producing records and CDs; the most recent
was (I think) "Eat or Be Eaten", from the video of the same name. To date they
have about 13 albums to their credit.
Third, Dave Ossman is no longer with them and is doing radio theatre
on his own. He did a workshop for us here at KDHX-FM in St. Louis a few years
back and ended it with a live show. I had the privelege of doing a scene with
him on stage. The man is a *damn* good actor!
Last year one of my listeners gave me a tape with some Firesign Theatre
commercials on it (yes, REAL commercials!) that were a real hoot. The best ones
were for a company called "Jack Poet Volkswagen" which is obviously too good
to be fictional.
>-------------------------------------------------------------
>Supernatural, perhaps...Baloney, perhaps not..-Bela Lugosi |
>-------------------------------------------------------------
>
>Matt Marchese The opinions expressed here are not
>Cray Research those of my employer, my wife, my church, or
>DKRZ myself...But they are the opinions of Elvis
>Hamburg, Germany as revealed to me through the medium of my
> pet hamster, Lee Harvey Oswald...
daniel lindsey
was complete up to that point, has never been the same. I'd like to know what
all is out there that I need to acquire.
I'm particularly interested in acquiring videos. I can remember seeing (at
a theatre) some foolery which _May_ have included portions of 'Anything You
Want too'. Also I definitely rented at a mainstream video store in Oregon
something involving Nick Danger and Rocky Rococo. The first instance could
be attributed to excessive doses of recreational chemicals, but the Oregon
incident was after I married, settled down, etc.
Trivia--what's the title of the feature length western written (I think
in toto, but its possible they only contributed) by the 4 or r Krazee guys?
And if anyone knows where I can get a VHS of said movie, please Email me
so we can begin negotiations.
Also, haven't I seen Phil Proctor pitching products? Haven't seen hide
nor hair of any of the rest for years.
DaLNZ
Not Insane (but something like it)
daniel lindsey
Missing first lines of this read:
Does anyone out there have access to the secret Morse Science High School
archives which it is said will reveal to the enlightened the full and complete
compendia of Firesign works (audio _and_ video)??
DaLNZ
Standing on the >>>MOVING<<< Rubber Line
Chuck Lavazzi
reauests info on a catalog of Firesign Theatre schtuff and then asks:
> Trivia--what's the title of the feature length western written (I think
>in toto, but its possible they only contributed) by the 4 or r Krazee guys?
>And if anyone knows where I can get a VHS of said movie, please Email me
>so we can begin negotiations.
First Electric Western" or someone like him. >:-)> I had a copy at one time
but may have bulked it; I'll check.
As for the catalog, I'd be interested myself. I don't know of one.
> Also, haven't I seen Phil Proctor pitching products? Haven't seen hide
>nor hair of any of the rest for years.
Proctor does, in fact, show up on commercials and now and them in films
or on TeeVee. Dave Ossman (as yours truly noted here earlier) is involved with
radio theatre projects all over the place. Don't know about Bergman or Austin.
Proctor and Bergman did a few albums as a duo in the 70s that were pretty
hilarious: "TV or Not TV" and "What This Country Needs" (both for Columbia/CBS)
and "Give Us A Break" (Mercury). The latter includes a reggae/calypso parody
called "Lemon Car" this is sheer genius.
>DaLNZ
>Not Insane (but something like it)
Chuck
No.sig, no frills, no foolin'
daniel lindsey
> The movie (not a very good one, IMHO) is "Zachariah", subtitled "The
>First Electric Western" or someone like him. >:-)> I had a copy at one time
>but may have bulked it; I'll check.
Yup, that's the one I was thinking of, tho' I thought the subtitle was
`The All Electric Western'. I have to respectfully disagree with you as to
its quality. I saw it when in high school and was going through a Herman Hesse
phase. I thought the way they rolled Siddartha into the gunfighter role was
_totally_ inspired. Reasonable people can disagree (something most of the
flamers you find on usenet groups don't seem to understand). :-)
>Proctor and Bergman did a few albums as a duo in the 70s that were pretty
>hilarious: "TV or Not TV" and "What This Country Needs" (both for Columbia/CBS)
>and "Give Us A Break" (Mercury). The latter includes a reggae/calypso parody
>called "Lemon Car" this is sheer genius.
Yeah, I have both of those, and agree that they're preety good, but I still
think the best stuff is the full complement. What do you think of Ossman's
solo album (can't think of the title offhand)? Course, if you rilly like
Procter-Bugman, what you need is a Hun'dred-Dollah Shine
DaLNZ
--Don't mind him...he's just a Syncopathic Killah'.....
Fil Feit
_Sounds_ like P&B.
--f2
--
Well, if it isn't Toto Slushhead.... How's the little dog?
M. Edward Borasky
>And, Proctor and Bergman also had a hand in the very odd movie Americathon.
I don't know WHAT happened to two geniuses like Proctor and Bergman that
caused them to make such a film. It was stupid, it wasn't funny, there
was some very sick writing in a feeble attempt at black humor. I felt
very sorry for all the people involved with the film. It could have
been so much, but...................................................
Larry Yaeger
>doing nowadays? The last thing that I saw from them was the video Nick
>Danger: Case of the Missing Yolks. They were also doing a radio show on
>KROQ in L.A. about 10 years ago. It had some good running gags about
>Victor's House of Barbequed Bats (with the secret guano sauce). The
>Nick Danger video had some great commercial parodies like Rat in a Box
>and Booby Chew. Finally, I heard a terrifically funny musical version
>of the the Emergency Broadcast System radio spot which i'm almost certain
>was done by Fireside. Can anyone confirm or deny this?
After the "Yolks" video, the Firesign (not Fireside) guys did a wonderful
album and video, both titled "Eat or Be Eaten". Despite the fact that
David Ossman did not work on this album, it *finally* (IMHO) returned to
to genius level of some of their earlier works. The video especially is
absolutely inspired. "Eat" is available still on CD, and I think you can
still get the video, too.
Speaking of which, Bog bless Mobile Fidelity, eh? I'd like to personally
thank whoever it is at MF that's been getting the Firesign stuff out on
CD. And I'd like to beg him for a few of the solo efforts, especially
"Roller Maidens from Outer Space" (Phil Austin's), "How Time Flies" (David
Ossman's), and "TV or Not TV" (Proctor and Bergman's). IMO, "Roller Maidens"
is right up there with "Bozos", contending for best of their efforts.
Oh yeah, Proctor and Bergman have done at least one series of "Power" short
segments for NPR, about a Hollywood casting agent who wants to rule the
world. Great stuff!
And just to tantalize, I'll tell of a tape I heard once, in the possession
of Phil Proctor, called "The Pink Hotel Burns Down". This was a test
recording they did for a record that never happened. It's about 10 min.
long. And is a story of hackers and videogames that predated the current
virtual reality hoopla by quite a few years. One of my favorite bits by
the 4 or 5 Crazy Guys, but one which will never see the light of day.
<Big Sigh>
Phil Proctor continues to work in commercials, with the occasional guest
spot on this or that television series. Peter Bergman and Phil Austin
had a writing team/company called "Pyro Playhouse" (really :-) for a
while, but I'm not sure if it's still alive or not. David Ossman has
been producing or directing a number of NPR radio specials over the
years.
Unfortunately, I don't see the guys much anymore, especially now that I've
moved from the City of Angles (not a typo:-) to the SillyClone Valley, but
my wife and I had the singular pleasure and honor of having Phil Proctor
as the primary preacher, Reverend Perry Stroika of the First and Last Church
of Glasnost, for our wedding, and Peter Bergman as "The Heckler".
Hmm. Any netters out there involved in the George Papoon for President
Campoon of '76?
- larryy
P.S. The name of that KROQ show was "Hollywood Nite Shift", with Phil Austin,
Frazier Smith, and Michael C. Gwynne, if I remember correctly. And I don't
recall exactly how many "Dear Friends" radio episodes there were... it was
around 11 or 12, though, so the person who originally asked that has all
of them, or all but one. I have a set also, but they've been buried by two
or three moves, and I don't have easy access to them at the moment.
--
-lar...@apple.com
"Shi Nou Kou Sho Inu Neko Programmer" - Takada Naoki
Chuck Lavazzi
>Chuck....@bbs.oit.unc.edu writes:
>
>>Proctor and Bergman did a few albums as a duo in the 70s that were pretty
>>hilarious: "TV or Not TV" and "What This Country Needs" (both for Columbia/CBS)
>>and "Give Us A Break" (Mercury). The latter includes a reggae/calypso parody
>>called "Lemon Car" this is sheer genius.
>
>Yeah, I have both of those, and agree that they're preety good, but I still
>think the best stuff is the full complement. What do you think of Ossman's
>solo album (can't think of the title offhand)? Course, if you rilly like
>Procter-Bugman, what you need is a Hun'dred-Dollah Shine
>
Insane" comes to mind...). P&B just had a less oblique and more "joke-
oriented" approach. As a radio programmer, I especially appreciate the fact
that a number of their routines make good "drop_in" material, esepcially the
cuts from "Give Us a Break".
Ossman's "How Time Flys" LP has some impresive material and mostly
works well as radio theatre, although it tends to fall apart towards the end.
He had some good folks working with him (including the ubiquitous Harry
Shearer, now touring with Spinal Tap) and "The Years in Your Ears" is now
sounding eerily prophetic.
>DaLNZ
>--Don't mind him...he's just a Syncopathic Killah'.....
Chuck Lavazzi
[a whole bunch of useful Firesign Theatre information]
>
>P.S. The name of that KROQ show was "Hollywood Nite Shift", with Phil Austin,
>Frazier Smith, and Michael C. Gwynne, if I remember correctly. And I don't
>recall exactly how many "Dear Friends" radio episodes there were... it was
>around 11 or 12, though, so the person who originally asked that has all
>of them, or all but one. I have a set also, but they've been buried by two
>or three moves, and I don't have easy access to them at the moment.
>--
That was me, in fact. Thanks for the information. I *do* have one
additional bit of Firesign Trivia that I forgot: a 60-minute air check of the
show Ossman did with me and the co-hosts of the show just before mine here
on KDHX in St. Louis. We concocted the whole thing the night before at a
local bar called Blueberry Hill after Ossman's live show (he was in town for a
radio theatre seminar at the station and the live show was the final event).
The ingention of some Rock 'n' Roll Beer and other chemicals undoubtedly had
an influence.
Anyway, the gimmick was that George Leroy Tirebiter (Ossman, of course)
was in town to promote the new colorized version of "Babes in Khaki" and was
making a guest appearance at the station. I interviewed him about the film
and even played some (obviously phone) musical excerpts, along with an
equally phony tongue-in-cheek review of the movie by my (now ex-) wife, who
was one of the stations performing arts critics at the time. The results were
rather droll, if I do say so myself....>:-)>
>-lar...@apple.com
>
>"Shi Nou Kou Sho Inu Neko Programmer" - Takada Naoki
Matthew Marchese
Thanks for refreshing my memory re: Hollywood Nite Shift and *Fireside* :)
Theatre. Speaking of "The Frayz" he was (or is) one of the weirdest radio
hosts that I have ever been privileged to hear. The last I heard he had
moved to KLOS in L.A. and had his act toned down substantially. This was
several years ago and I have no idea where he is now, unfortunately.
-------------------------------------------------------------------
"Experiments are what life was made for! Why, without experiments |
we wouldn't FIND THINGS OUT!" - Dr. Helsinki -------------------
-----------------------------------------------
Matt Marchese
daniel lindsey
>After the "Yolks" video, the Firesign (not Fireside) guys did a wonderful
>album and video, both titled "Eat or Be Eaten". Despite the fact that
>David Ossman did not work on this album, it *finally* (IMHO) returned to
>to genius level of some of their earlier works. The video especially is
>absolutely inspired. "Eat" is available still on CD, and I think you can
>still get the video, too.
>Speaking of which, Bog bless Mobile Fidelity, eh? I'd like to personally
>thank whoever it is at MF that's been getting the Firesign stuff out on
>CD. And I'd like to beg him for a few of the solo efforts, especially
>"Roller Maidens from Outer Space" (Phil Austin's), "How Time Flies" (David
>Ossman's), and "TV or Not TV" (Proctor and Bergman's). IMO, "Roller Maidens"
>is right up there with "Bozos", contending for best of their efforts.
Thx for keeping my dream alive. Not only do I find fewer and fewer
places which even sell LPs, there are vanishingly few salesmen who have ever
heard of the Firesign. The last one I ran across told me that not only was
none of their stuff on cd, but likely never would be. This has made me despair
that I could ever regain a complete collection. I repeat an earlier request:
is there anyone out there with a comprehensive list of Firesign works??
I second Larry's opinion of Roller Maidens as the best _solo_ work, and
agree that it is as good as anything in the pantheon.
I vaguely remember something called "Lawyer's Hospital" as being one of
the albums I had heard about but not actually seen.
DaLNZ
Stones, Stones...What do holes in Lake Acne have to do with _My Tube_!!!???.
Kevin Cole; Washington DC
> lar...@Apple.COM (Larry Yaeger) writes
>
>>After the "Yolks" video, the Firesign (not Fireside) guys did a wonderful
>>album and video, both titled "Eat or Be Eaten". Despite the fact that
>>David Ossman did not work on this album, it *finally* (IMHO) returned to
>>to genius level of some of their earlier works. The video especially is
>>absolutely inspired. "Eat" is available still on CD, and I think you can
>>still get the video, too.
>
>>Speaking of which, Bog bless Mobile Fidelity, eh? I'd like to personally
>>thank whoever it is at MF that's been getting the Firesign stuff out on
>>CD. And I'd like to beg him for a few of the solo efforts, especially
>>"Roller Maidens from Outer Space" (Phil Austin's), "How Time Flies" (David
>>Ossman's), and "TV or Not TV" (Proctor and Bergman's). IMO, "Roller Maidens"
>>is right up there with "Bozos", contending for best of their efforts.
If you know of any places to get their CD's, PLEASE post!!!
Porgie Tirebiter, Ralph Spoilsport, and I are standing on our heads waiting...
Ooops, he's no fun. He fell right over. ;-)
--
========== U.S. Mail =============================== E-Mail =================
Kevin Cole <Flatline> | Bitnet: CADS...@GALLUA.BITNET
Gallaudet Research Institute (GRI) | Internet: KJC...@GALLUX.GALLAUDET.EDU
Washington, D.C. 20002-3625 | UUCP: ...!psuvax!gallua.bitnet!kjcole
(202) 651-5575 x4592 | The WELL: kjcole
Larry Yaeger
> Thx for keeping my dream alive. Not only do I find fewer and fewer
>places which even sell LPs, there are vanishingly few salesmen who have ever
>heard of the Firesign. The last one I ran across told me that not only was
>none of their stuff on cd, but likely never would be. This has made me despair
>that I could ever regain a complete collection. I repeat an earlier request:
>is there anyone out there with a comprehensive list of Firesign works??
Well, I don't have time (or functioning memory cells) to produce such a list
at the moment, but I can tell you off the top of the ol' bean what's on CD
so far:
* "Waiting For the Electrician (or Someone Like Him)"
* "How Can You Be In Two Places At Once When You're Not Anywhere At All"
(the Marx/Lennon album)
* "Don't Crush That Dwarf, Hand Me the Pliers"
* "I Think We're All Bozos on this Bus"
* Aarggh... I lied... there's also a release from Rhino that features Nick
Danger, but I can't recall the title.
* "Eat Or Be Eaten"
The first 4 titles are from Mobile Fidelity. Can't recall the "Eat" label,
though I'd like to thank them for supporting the guys.
> I vaguely remember something called "Lawyer's Hospital" as being one of
>the albums I had heard about but not actually seen.
"Lawyer's Hospital" was one of the Rhino releases on vinyl. Don't think
it's come out on CD. All the Rhino releases were rehashed early radio
recordings, and are better than 99.9% of the comedy floating loose today,
but not up to the quality of the earlier (or later!) Firesign material, IMO.
>...[and someone else asked where to get this stuff]...
Bug your local CD store. Mobile Fidelity is a major label with a lot of
excellent releases. I have no doubt that your local store has lots of
Mobile Fidelity rock music releases. Tell them to order the Firesign
Theater CDs too!!
Tower Records, Circular Motions, and Compact Disc Warehouse in the San
Francisco Bay Area all have one or more of the Firesign CDs in stock
from time to time. Seldom all at the same time, and they're not that
good about stocking them in general, but if you keep your eyes open, or
ask, you can eventually pick them all up.
The back of the recent release of "Electrician" had a tantalizing
statement about another TFT release coming soon. I think I heard/read
somewhere else that it was to be "Dear Friends". (I'd rather see
"Roller Maidens" or "How Time Flies" or "Everything You Know Is Wrong"
or "TV or Not TV" or "Not Insane"... in about that order of preference.)
Your Obdt. Svt.,
larryy
SIMMONS KURT JOSEPH
Fidelity labs. "Dear Friends" 70 plus minutes covering 29 routines.
(I was not a big fan back then so I do not know if it is exactly what
the album was. It says two lps on one CD. I also saw Nick Danger on
another CD while I was in the store. $17.99 each.
Kevin Cole; Washington DC
Columbia Records Master Fidelity series (or is it really Mobile Fidelity?) So
for whatever it's worth:
MFCD 758 -- Dear Friends
MFCD 762 -- Waiting For the Electrician
MFCD 880 -- Don't Crush That Dwarf
MFCD 834 -- How Can You Be In Two Places At Once
MFCD 785 -- I Think We're All Bozos On This Bus