OVER THE EDGE on KPFA
THE EDGE OF LENNY BRUCE (June '90) Solo.
The comedian who changed comedy forever, Lenny Bruce fused social and political anxieties with amazingly perceptive reflection, improvising most of it in a rapid blaze of expletive laden language for which he was eventually hounded literally to death. Smokey dives, beatniks, jazz, and 50's/60's hipness formed his environment, with the cops watching every move. By the end of his career, he was talking almost exclusively about his own legal problems which, while tedious to some at the time, now stands as some pretty unusual (and insightful) comedy schtick. We cover many of his routines from the earliest to much from the late and less familiar performances, backed with mutilated jazz mixes, and punctuated by caller's comments, routines, and phone tapes of other social rebels. The nature of language, How To Speak Hip, dirty words, toilet humor, religion, Gene Shepherd, stand-up show business, reefer bits, getting busted, the F.C.C., humorless judges, Dick Vaughn does Lenny Bruce (!), and on and on... An epic ode to honesty as tragedy. And "Nobody wants to go home." Three 100 cassettes. Dolby B $25.00
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THE NEW PRODUCT (Oct. '90) Solo
A leisurely paced, wide ranging look at the whole idea of new products. Historical invention and the industrial revolution, to modern developments in the ideas, technology, and marketing behind products. Not as ponderous as this sounds, but if you get this you can skip school. Includes a wonderful dumpster cassette on which a woman pursues her idea for a new kind of gambling chip(!) by discussing it with friends on the phone, recording her meeting with a lawyer, etc. (Ends 1/2 into side six). Three 100 cassettes. Dolby B. $20.00
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THE UNMELTING POT (Dec. '90) Solo
A very unusual beginning has your host killing time by just talking with callers, followed by the all too touchy subject of creeping ethno-centricity in all things American. Lengthy dialogs on this phenomenon taped from modern media mixed with ironic songs and E.B. White's "The Book of Merlin". (Politically incorrect, a little too short, and far too intellectual to be full price). Two 90 cassettes. Dolby B. $15.00
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BEATLE'S HELL (Dec. '90) Solo.
The Black Hole Tube Of Transreality is a franchised Fridatronics brain operated quantum amusement facility of fantasy realization. This one takes you to Beatle's Hell. "Please follow the green beam of light to the black disk. Now stand in the center of the black disk and the tube will lower around you..." Early to late, you are surrounded by more than than enough chopped up Beatle information, music, and out takes to get you through the night. Also The Rutles, Tube electronics, and Tube Receptacle. Infamous phone anarchist, "Adrian" finally fits right in when the concept is Hell. Remixed documentaries keep the tube rolling on straight poop, using that quantity of publicity as a kind of Hell. "Are you a Mod or a Rocker? No, I'm a Mocker!" A few unmodified things for bug collectors and a lot of mutilated combinations for the trip. Three 100 cassettes. Dolby B $25.00
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CHRISTIANITY IS STUPID (April '91) Richard Lyons and Don.
Richard of Negativland is Dick Bush tonight and I am Mark Feign doing a preemption show "replacing" O.T.E. This "pilot" format is a debate on religion in general and Christianity in particular. Dick is representing the Evangelical Fundamentalist ideology and Mark promotes Atheistic Reason and, after opening position statements, we take calls. Some listeners are well aware of where our tongues are, but due to our sustained seriousness and a rather believable level of contentiousness, many seem to think this is actually real. Our call-in format is very occasionally interrupted with scripted polemics and pro and con songs, but we stick to our "replacement" format by not indulging at all in our usual mix techniques and doing 3 hours of TALK. Highly unusual, surprisingly entertaining, and sometimes actually provocative, this is a head turning, one of a kind classic. Two 90 cassettes. Dolby B $20.00
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THE NEW NUMBERS MAN (Aug. '91) Solo
The second of two shows which have delt with a real-life character called "The Numbers Man". He was a habitual caller to The Larry King radio show, and taping all his calls became a habit of ours. Using these tapes, as well as a lengthy piece on his life and death which NPR aired, and related numbers material and music, we pay homage to one of the strangest intellectual obsessions ever to make a fool of itself. The premise is that God reveals himself to us through numerical signals in everyday statistics. The coincidental depth of this insight is all in the details. Three 100 cassettes. Dolby B. $25.00
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CELEBRITY NIGHT (Sept. '91) Solo.
This is the show which announces the now infamous lawsuit against Negativland's "U2" single by Island Records. After playing side one of the "U2" single, I begin reading the initial injunction filed by Island, and then mix a lot of material related to U2, the band and the single, including the original U2 spy plane affair with the Soviet Union, lots of Casey Kasem, U2 interview bits, material that went into and was left out of the single, more readings from the injunction, etc. A little preliminary audio version of the magazine about this whole legal saga which Negativland later released, ("The Story Of The Letter U and The Numeral 2"). Also, Elizabeth Claire Prophet's list of Satanic celebrity rock videos followed by Negativland's use of same in "Michael Jackson", a Miss California contest set to appropriate lyrics, Celebrity P.S.A. edits, Orsen Wells making movies and doing commercial voice-overs, and a Negativland studio piece called, "Jolly Green Giant", using those voice-over out takes, celebrity strategies in advertising, and Andy Warhol. (Ends 1/2 into side 4.) Two 90 cassettes. Dolby B $15.00
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THE COPYWRONG SHOW (Oct. 91) Solo
A rousing mix of material related to our sued U2/Negativland single and music copyright issues, historical and contemporary talk about copyright evolution and constraints, along with a lot of old and new music which employs appropriation remixed together. A show about creating dangerously. Two 90 cassettes. Dolby B. $20.00
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A JAPANESE THANKSGIVING (Nov. '91) Solo.
At the height of our national self-doubts about a Japanese economic takeover, we honor this upside down epoch with a holiday tribute. Japanese tourists browse, we learn the language, Japanese monsters suddenly become ironic, the Sadistic Mika Band plays on, cameras click, automobiles and their parts are compared, Japanese TV quiz shows blare, and "You are in the business of going out of business" as Nintendo uses government assisted predatory capitalism to control 85% of the U.S. video game market. They're no slackers when it comes to making wacky music either, but "To most Japanese, 'made in America' simply means cheap". Lots of mixed modern Japanese music, soundtrack edits from Mothra, local Prefecture weather reports, Sumo wrestling, and booper antics, altogether forming foreign parts broadcasting which proudly proclaims, "Assembled in the U.S.A". Two 90 cassettes (made in Japan). Dolby B $20.00
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RADIO WARS (Dec. '91) Solo.
Loosely revolving around the then new tendency towards "shock talk radio" (now bigger than ever in "conservative" America), this is a mix of examples, network media features about the phenomenon, jamming with Dale Embry's rude uses of CB radio, Roger Waters' "Radio Kaos", soundtrack edits from the film, "Talk Radio", San Francisco underground radio of the 60's, Receptacle instructions, how to be a radio announcer, satellite radio automation, some of "JamCon '84", the future of AM, management vs. creativity, and "Top 40 radio is dead and its' corpse is stinking up the airwaves." Receptacle callers are nicely tuned in, station after station changes formats like butchers trying to find the perfect cut, publicity stunts, payola for hits, and air pollution all over our dials. Three 100 cassettes. Dolby B $25.00
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CLUES II (Jan. '92) Solo.
The second show to deal with detectives, sleuths, and the mystery genre. Beginning with my "Adventures of Jack Queenking, Ace Detective", which reappears throughout, a wide variety of detective fiction is intermixed, mostly from classic radio days when this stuff ruled the airwaves. Rocky Jordan, Pat Novak, Sam Spade, Richard Diamond, Johnny Holiday, Mike Waring, The Green Hornet, girl detectives, Firesign Theater detectives, society detectives, low life detectives, reluctant, sarcastic, bitter, and resigned, all couched in loopy old and new detective jazz...and suspiciously, Receptacle input is particularly strange tonight. Also, real life P.I., Josiah Thompson, relating the in's and out's and philosophy of real life private investigating, interviews with turned wise guys, Sargent Friday interrogates a caller, a dope fiend confesses, and Jack Queenking finally meets the Weatherman. Two 90 cassettes. Dolby B $20.00
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THE DOPEY SHOW (Jan. '92) Solo.
Exploring drugs and drug lore with Jack Van Impe, John Shirley, William Borroughs, Beau Grites, Timothy Leary, Hunter S. Thompson, network media features on drugs and drug history, the lure of altered consciousness, the consequences, and a wide variety of drug inspired music. From legal coke in the 1800's, to the acid revolution, to cyberpunk drug chips of our fictional futures, everybody must get stoned. Also, a lot of drug based comedy and satire from "the hooked generation", the law loosens in California PSA's from the good old days, Moscow's narcotics squad, "Are you ever accused of being a square?", and let's not forget alcohol. The booper got high for this show and... I can't quite remember.. but I think I did too. "Gonna quit it tomorrow, but tomorrow never comes..." Two 90 cassettes. Dolby C $20.00
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THE GUN EXCHANGE (Feb. '92) Solo
A pseudo hoax show in which "Mark Feign" hosts a call-in for people who want to trade guns (No sales were allowed because this is non-commercial radio). This turned out to be a great show even though it is slowed down by technical difficulties in the first half hour (one of the first shows done after KPFA moved into a new building with all new equipment.) A lot of call-ins with many folks playing along and some taking it rather seriously, broken up with mix sections of gun related material. Deadpan pro gun and kind of scary at times - this is one of only two shows I have ever done at KPFA which required me to appear before KPFA's program council the next day to explain just exactly what I was up to. Three 100 cassettes. Dolby C. $25.00
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NEWS FROM HOWLAND (March '92) Solo
A rambling odyssey concerned with our leader, C. Elliot Friday's home base, Howland Island, and some of the lore which surrounds it. This includes news and correspondence about the lawsuits from Island Records and SST Records, recorded attempts by operators to reach Howland by phone, all kinds of stuff about islands, and Amelia Earheart's tragic last flight to Howland in 1938. Some small bits from this show appear in "The Time Zones Exchange Project" (Over The Edge Vol. 8) CD. Two 90 cassettes. Dolby C. $20.00
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THE LATE, LATE CARTOONS (June '92) Solo.
Walt Frizzy hosts a late night cartoon mix. A classic psycho-clown juggling cartoon soundtracks as catharsis, with the mentally disturbing Frizzy reading whatever mail the show has gotten. Add an endless supply of old and new cartoon fragments, kid targeted advertising, some childish Receptacle input, and cartoon talk both in and out of cartoons. As the "Letters to Frizzy" turn the dubious personal life of Walt Frizzy into an open book, and promoting Crumble Junkies continues to sustain his insanity, hoards of small, personable birds and animals are repeatedly smashed and mutilated as a wide variety of kick-ass violence for children is drawn from the imaginations of fun loving adults with pencils, all of whom started doing this as a kid. Luckily, you can only hear and not see. Two 90 cassettes. Dolby C $20.00
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MUSIC IS A CRIME (Aug. '92) Solo
Presenting some of the many ways music is associated with crime. This includes everything from organized crime's influence in the corporate music business, to copyright infringement, to violence and suicide attributed to the effects of music. More on U2, Casey Kasim, and Negativland's criminal activities, as well as murder and music. Three 100 cassettes. Dolby C. $25.00
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MUSIC FOR LAWYERS, SLUGS, AND LOBSTERS (Dec. '92) Solo
The first of two shows devoted to Negativland's live Knitting Factory tour around the East Coast in late '92. We not only recorded the performances, but also the bus ride, the diner stops, the CB conversations between truckers on the road, and our conversations. We shared a bus and the stage with Amy Denio, Roy Nathanson and Anthony Coleman, and our tech crew. The title refers to subjects, lyrics, and stage names used by each of us on the tour. This show has some of everything that happened. Two 90 cassettes. Dolby C. $20.00
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MUSIC FOR LAWYERS, SLUGS, AND LOBSTERS II (Dec. '92) Solo
More of the same, only more. If you get both these shows, you will have a complete set of the pieces Negativland played in our 2 hour stage shows, as they were spaced consecutively throughout both broadcasts. This one also fills in many aspects of our on-the-road taping which get short shrift in the first show, as well as more negativland performances and more from our musical cohorts. This is actually the better show of the two if you're only getting one. Three 100 cassettes. Dolby C. $25.00
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THE HISTORY OF TUBES (Jan. '93) Solo
In an "educational" vein, this show presents the history of early radio with actually informative material from many sources. It includes narrative concerning the chronological progression of discoveries and inventions leading to and then advancing the development of radio, as well as examples of old radio programming, historic radio events, etc. Of course, it often goes all wacky with callers who have their own ideas about radio. This is a big ode to my favorite medium. Three 100 cassettes. Dolby C. $25.00
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ALL ART RADIO (Feb. '93) Solo.
Crosley Bendix hosts another edition of radio "by, for, and about artists". In a fresh attempt to popularize the subject, Mr. B begins with an exciting fictional art mystery offering cash prizes, mixed with various real life adventures in art crime. This phases into Receptacle input and overlapping material on Andy Warhol, Robert Irwin on perception, the fastest painter in the world, and all art music. Crosley gets behind the phones for another "Paint Line", dedicated exclusively to the esthetic problems of painters. As usual, an unbelievable number of painters are listening and their technical problems range from suspiciously implausible to philosophical negativity so convincing that Crosley looses faith in art altogether and closes down The Paint Line. Guns as sculpture, Carl Andre discusses his work and its public, the Jeff Koons art copyright case, Crosley's original arts review of "Squant", the newly discovered fourth primary color (a later version appears on the "Negativland Presents OTE vol. 5" CD), minority esthetic evaluations, a Negativland studio piece commissioned by Bob's Media Ecology called, "Tribal Mandate", how to pick up girls in art museums, unauthorized billboard transformations, Cristo's art kills someone, Survival Research, and lots more from the life and times of Andy Warhol throughout. Three 100 cassettes. Dolby C $25.00
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I WAS A RUSSIAN IN SPACE (Feb. '93) Solo.
With the help of several cut up documentaries and a little Radio Moscow fiction on the subject, we focus on the whole history of the Soviet space program, beginning with the U.S./Soviet competition for Nazi rocket scientists after world War II, all the way to the moon and the melancholy demise of the whole system thereafter. For a brief moment in time, the Soviet Cosmonauts had it all - the biggest rockets, the most advanced missions, and an unbeatable trail of "firsts" in space exploration. We never did advance much beyond them while they were in business, but our economy simply outlived their's. From the beginning of Soviet rocket development, just as in the U.S., their scientists worked mostly with the stars in their eyes, blinding themselves to the obvious intercontinental ballistic implications being eyed by their military. However, their work resulted in the Cold War, which then happened to provide the internationally competitive basis for a high priority race into space which never would have proceeded so rapidly otherwise. This relatively uncelebrated rise-and-fall story is told over lots of Russian pop music, booper accompaniment, and occasional Receptacle interjections. Two 90 cassettes. Dolby C $20.00
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THE TRAIL OF FEATHERS (March '93) Solo
This monumental epic traces the history of the decimation of Native North Americans from the earliest Spanish contact through Geronimo's downfall- four centuries of rather serious mixing! This may be the "heaviest" show available, a juggernaut of carefully collected and rearranged material, with virtually no callers to interrupt the iron willed direction of the white man at the controls trudging relentlessly through bloody time. I can't explain this one, but I respect it. It's a mix with humor in it, but it's also a heartbreaker. Three 100 cassettes. Dolby C. $25.00
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A PIDDLE DIDDLE DISNEYLAND (Aug. '93) Negativland
We join Doug Piddle and Peter Diddle of the Piddle Diddle Report as they broadcast live from Disneyland. Joining Doug and Peter is Rex Everything, famous unpublishable author, and modern noise group, Negativland. While Rex knowledgeably exposes every dark little nook and cranny in the sordid history of Disneyland, the Weatherman is taking one ride after another and reporting via CB to Doug and Peter's skybox on the Mattrerhorn. In between, Negativland does some kind of noise manipulation thing with Disney material. Highly irreverent and probably even more illegal, this show is a radio-only gem. Two 90
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PLAN X (Sept. '93) Solo
All these shows involve various degrees of "Receptacle Programming"- the employment of unscreened, undelayed public access to our broadcast signal via telephone. "Plan X" is one of the best examples of what happens when Receptacle Programming becomes the primary focus of a show. The idea is that, given the opportunity, listeners will provide their own programming! That is "Plan X", but I still don't dare show up with no material... (Ends 1/3 into side six). Three 100 cassettes. Dolby C. $20.00
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CRASH RECEPTACLE (Sept. '93) Solo.
Audio violence and the sound of blood pervade this dive into an empty pool of frozen surprise. Emphasizing the automobile and the violent ends they race towards, J. G. Ballard, Gregory Whitehead, and others lay claim to exploiting our fears and apprehensions in the midst of screaming tires, breaking glass, and medical aftermaths. "Crash Injury Trauma" by Isolrubin BK of the Netherlands stays in the CD player for most of this show, augmented by Road Warrior music and dialog, car parts as memory aids, My Mother The Car, Nervous Norvis and other crash/death songs, car ads emphasizing excitement, and lots of Receptacle callers crashing in and out. The boffo audio flow and dynamics of this entire mix surprises even me - you just can't beat CRASHES for punctuation! Two 90 cassettes. Dolby C $20.00
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HOWARD AND AMELIA (Nov. '93) Solo
Another "docufiction" of sorts, in which we focus on the lives and times of Howard Hughes and Amelia Earheart. Did you know they knew each other? Did you know that they both knew C. Elliot Friday in 1938, and that Amelia did reach Howland Island on her last flight, and that Hughes was there to welcome her? But what lay in store for them both, only Friday knows for sure...and maybe Leland Googleberger. This very interesting show hints of much that is to come from the increasingly off-planet minds of Negativland. Three 100 cassettes. Dolby C. $25.00
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SEX DIRT (Dec. '93) Negativland
Now here's something for everyone! The whole group shows up to try out a record idea live. It's mostly about the Weatherman and what he's really like and what he really likes and what he really DOESN'T LIKE! Lots and lots and lots of live, improvised sex music. Eat it raw here, before it turns into a puny little CD. Parental guidance suggested. Three 100 cassettes. Dolby C. $25.00