Moisture
"Moisture" is a song by The Residents, the twenty-ninth track on their Commercial Album, released by Ralph Records on October 29th 1980. Like all tracks on the album, it is exactly one minute long. Later in the year, it was one of four songs from the album featured in the short film One Minute Movies, in a video directed by Graeme Whifler.
The song features a guitar solo from the group's frequent collaborator Snakefinger,[1] and contributions from Chris Cutler and Fred Frith, of Ralph Records stablemates Art Bears. The song was first previewed on the 7" Commercial Single, released October 10th 1980 exclusively in France and the UK by PRE Records, to promote the Commercial Album in those regions.
On his Highly Opinionated Guide to The Residents, Uncle Willie elected "Moisture" as the finest song on the album. Additionally, in 2020, The Cryptic Corporation asked The Residents to curate a selection of their favorite songs from their own back catalog for a Spotify playlist titled "Residents' Personal Favorites"; This was one of 40 songs chosen.
History
"Moisture" was recorded by The Residents between September and November 1979, during sessions for the Commercial Album. It features a guitar solo by their long-time friend and collaborator Snakefinger,[1] who appears on several songs from the album, as well as unspecified contributions from percussionist Chris Cutler and guitarist Fred Frith, both former members of the progressive rock band Henry Cow, and at the time of recording, members of Ralph Records stablemates Art Bears.
"Moisture" was first performed live in an encore of classic Residents songs at the October 1998 run of shows at the Fillmore. It was later re-recorded for the retrospective DVD Icky Flix in 2000, as part of the "One Minute Movies" suite, and subsequently performed on the DVD's 2001 promotional tour.
The song was re-recorded once more as a Commercial DVD easter egg with Nolan Cook and Carla Fabrizio in 2004. Finally, it was performed live again on the Faceless Forever 50th Anniversary tour, in an arrangement loosely resembling the Fillmore '98 version.
The song was covered by The Mommyheads for the semi-official tribute album Eyesore: A Stab at The Residents in 1996. A fan version of the song by OK Glass is featured on the bonus disc of the I AM A RESIDENT! 2xCD edition.
Music videos
Following the release of Commercial Album, "Moisture" was one of four songs from the album selected for inclusion in the short film One Minute Movies. The video for "Moisture", directed by Graeme Whifler, depicts a mannequin covered in cobwebs inside a futuristic room filled with stage lights. For the guitar solo part, the video cuts to a guitarist miming to the solo on the moon's surface. Back in the mannequin room, the doll is probed by insectoid arms, and finally The Residents are seen dancing in front of it.
A new video for the song was created by longtime Residents associate John Sanborn (who also created videos for "Dimples and Toes" and "Love Leaks Out"). Additionally, an easter egg video was produced by Sammi Selmo, using the Whifler video as a basis, and set to a new recording of the song.
Lyrics
Someone saw a strange amount of moisture on her lips, and it was also seen upon her arms and on her hips. No one knows exactly who she was or how she died, but when they opened up her purse they found a snail inside.[2]
List of releases
- Commercial Album (1980) [Version 1]
- Commercial Single (1980) [Version 1]
- Ralph Video Volume I (1983) [Version 2]
- Video Voodoo Volume I (1987) [Version 2]
- Twenty Twisted Questions (1992) [Version 2]
- Our Tired, Our Poor, Our Huddled Masses (1997) [Version 1]
- Icky Flix (2001) [Version 2] [Version 3]
- Petting Zoo (2002) [Version 1]
- Live! ...on the Outskirts (2002) [Version 4]
- Kettles of Fish on the Outskirts of Town (2003) [Version 4]
- Commercial DVD (2004) [Version 2] [Version 5] [Version 6]
- Icky Flix Live (2009) [Version 7]
- 80 Aching Orphans (2017) [Version 1]
- I AM A RESIDENT! (2018) [Version 8]
- Loss of the Lizard Lady (2018) [Version 3]
- Commercial Album pREServed (2019) [Version 1] [Version 3] [Version 6] [Version 9] (2023 LP only)
- Icky Flix (The Original Soundtrack Recording) (2020) [Version 3]
- Wormwood Box (2022) [Version 10]
- The Residents... Are Faceless! (2024) [Version 11]
- Commercial Book bonus disc (2024) [Version 12]
List of versions
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 Grove Street studio recording, September 1979 - July 1980 (1:00)
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 Video directed by Graeme Whifler - part of One Minute Movies, 1980
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 Icky Flix studio recording, ca.2000 (1:00)
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Icky Flix live recording; San Francisco, October 2001 (1:00)
- ↑ New video by John Sanborn, 2004
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Commercial DVD re-recording, c.2004 (1:00)
- ↑ Icky Flix live recording; Seattle, WA - March 2001 (1:00)
- ↑ Fan version by OK Glass, 2018
- ↑ 2021 RDX mix ("COMS 1-3 suite")
- ↑ Fillmore '98 recording; San Francisco, Halloween 1998 (1:34)
- ↑ Faceless Forever version; Hamburg, February 2023
- ↑ Radio ad (1:00)
See also
External links and references
- Commercial Album at The Residents Historical
- Commercial Album at RZWeb (archived via archive.org)
- Commercial DVD at The Residents Historical
- Commercial Album on Discogs
- Commercial DVD on Discogs
