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The Residents

Commercial Album (2LP)

2LP

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€38.00
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Tip! Commercial Album is an album released by art rock group the Residents in 1980. It is commonly considered a follow-up to their 1978 album Duck Stab/Buster & Glen, in that it retains the former album's pop-oriented song structures. The album contains 40 songs, each lasting exactly one minute - a deliberate allusion to Top 40 mainstream radio. The album's liner notes state that, to form a complete pop song, tracks from the album should be played three times in a row.

The album features a number of guest musicians, notably drummer Chris Cutler and guitarist Fred Frith of the recently disbanded Henry Cow. The credits mention Frith as an "Extra-Hard Working Guest Musician." Frith told author Cole Gagne that he recorded parts for around 25 tracks and was later told by a band member that he appeared on at least 15 of the released cuts, but that he could only identify himself on three tracks where he played bass. Other guests are credited under pseudonyms, such as Andy Partridge of XTC (as "Sandy Sandwich") and Lene Lovich (as "Mud's Sis"); Brian Eno and David Byrne appear on the album uncredited.

As a promotional stunt, the Residents purchased 40 one-minute advertising slots on San Francisco's most popular Top 40 radio station at the time, KFRC, such that the station played each track on the album over the course of three days. This prompted an editorial in Billboard magazine questioning whether the act was art or advertising.

Details
Cat. number: NRTLP009D, NRT009P7
Year: 2023

Format

Tracks A1 to B20 from the original LP [r=2044195] (Ralph Records, 1980).

All material remastered from the original tapes.

℗ & © 2023 The Cryptic Corporation, Cherry Red Records and MVD Entertainment

Initial copies ordered directly from Cherry Red included an additional 7".

Tracks E1-F3 are not named on release.

Release notes

2 LP set issued in a single sleeve with 12" inlay. Pre-orders from cherryred.co.uk included a limited 7" of [r27683481]. Tracks A1 to B20 from the original LP [r=2044195] (Ralph Records, 1980). All material remastered from the original tapes. ℗ & © 2023 The Cryptic Corporation, Cherry Red Records and MVD Entertainment

Tracklist
A1Easter Woman
A2Perfect Love
A3Picnic Boy
A4End Of Home
A5Amber
A6Japanese Watercolor
A7Secrets
A8Die In Terror
A9Red Rider
A10My Second Wife
A11Floyd
A12Suburban Bathers
A13Dimples And Toes
A14The Nameless Souls
A15Love Leaks Out
A16Act Of Being Polite
A17Medicine Man
A18Tragic Bells
A19Loss Of Innocence
A20The Simple Song
B1Ups And Downs
B2Possessions
B3Give It To Someone Else
B4Phantom
B5Less Not More
B6My Work Is So Behind
B7Birds In The Trees
B8Handful Of Desire
B9Moisture
B10Love Is…
B11Troubled Man
B12La La
B13Loneliness
B14Nice Old Man
B15The Talk Of Creatures
B16Fingertips
B17In Between Dreams
B18Margaret Freeman
B19The Coming Of The Crow
B20When We Were Young
CCOMS 1-3 RDX Suite (The 'Commercial Album' Multitrack Tapes)
DCOMS 1-3 RDX Suite (The 'Commercial Album' Multitrack Tapes)
Credits
Fred Frith
Guest [Extra Hard Working Guest Musician]
Chris Cutler
Guest [Special Appearances]
Don Jackovich
Guest [Special Appearances]
Muds Sis
Guest [Special Appearances]
Sandy Sandwich
Guest [Special Appearances]
Snakefinger
Guest [Special Appearances]
The Residents
Performer, Producer, Written-By
Scott Colburn
Transferred By, Restoration, Mastered By