Talk:Duck Stab!/Buster & Glen

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Notes From Ralph

"When Eskimo had run into one of its many problems back in late 1977, The Residents saw that the planned release date was impossible. They agreed to release two new EP discs - one for the Spring and one for the Fall - in order to work on on Eskimo. So Duck Stab was introduced in February of '78, with a second EP, Buster & Glen, recorded that same spring for a November release.

As it turned out, the handling and manufacture of the Duck Stab EP proved that EP's are too awkward and expensive for marketing efficacy. Therefore, the two EP's are now Siamese twins, forever locked in a 12 inch format. Duck Stab/Buster & Glen became the Residents’ record with the most jive, snap and airplay."

- Buy Or Die!, February 1979

[Duck Stab! is] material recorded in a lull of new material and as a break from routine during the ESKIMO sessions. Original pressings (distinguishable by shiny coated stock used on labels) were of inferior quality. Copies of this release were marked alone and in sealed packages with a folded 2 color poster & matching t-shirt with font & back designs. 20,000 copies pressed.

[Duck Stab / Buster & Glenn is] An album featuring all material from the DUCK STAB EP coupled with newer material recorded especially for this release. Album apparently produced due to the overwhelming popularity of the more accessible sound of DUCK STAB which was hindered by poor sound quality inherent in a 7 inch 33 1/2 disc.

- The W.E.I.R.D. Complete Discography & Recording History, September 1979

"Duck Stab was recorded and released to alleviate the lack of recent Residents output created by the ESKIMO album, which by this time was almost two years old, and still remained unfinished. DUCK STAB was surprising to everyone who had simply labeled The Residents as "too weird" -- the tunes were catchy and snappy, and even got some radio airplay. In addition, the lyrics to all the songs are printed on the back cover, making the record unique among all the currently-produced Residents recordings. The front cover does not picture a real duck, as some animal lovers had feared at the time."

The record was intended to be the first of two EPs to be released in 1978; but it was soon discovered that the sound quality of DUCK STAB was only mediocre, as the recording contained too much musical material (over 16 minutes) for a 7" release. The EP was also quite difficult to market, and it did not sell very well. Consequently, DUCK STAB was simply combined with the unreleased material intended for the other EP to later form the DUCK STAB / BUSTER AND GLEN album.

COLLECTOR INFO: The first pressings of DUCK STAB (2500 copies) had bright, coated stock record labels, and were of inferior sound quality. Later pressings (12,500 copies total) had duller matte stock labels, and were marginally improved. The first 750 of these later copies were packaged in a special "promo gift pack' , consisting of a Duck Stab T-shirt and poster, along with the EP. The record was then sold separately, and was soon phased out after the DUCK STAB / BUSTER AND GLEN album was released. Upon moving from Grove Street, Ralph Records unearthed a few boxes of the records (which had been lost), and the EP was again offered for sale, until the new-found supply was exhausted. In general, Ralph was very careless with the DUCK ST AB records, having been disillusioned with the below-par sound quality of the recording. Many copies were lost, broken, warped, and destroyed for various reasons; because of this, how many records still exist will always remain a mystery. (perhaps 6000-9000.) In 1978, Ralph also pressed six I-sided copies of DUCK STAB on 12" clear vinyl. The other side (which was blank) was to be silkscreened with some type of design -- probably the album cover -- but the project was never completed. Most of these ultra-rare albums reside in the Cryptic Corporation archives.

[The] album features all the material from the DUCK STAB EP, together with the unreleased material which was slated for BUSTER AND GLEN. This release remains one of the most popular Residents recordings, as it is both easily accessible and listenable. Having received a fair amount of airplay, it has been characterized as "hallucinogenic Walt Disney." The back cover, intended for the unreleased BUSTER AND GLEN EP, features photographs of Buster and Glen, which were found by a Cryptic officer in the Residents' studio.

COLLECTOR INFO: DUCK STAB / BUSTER AND GLEN remains in print, and has no collectable variations. Over 40,000 copies have been pressed so far."

- The Cryptic Guide to The Residents, 1986

"The fifth LP release by The Residents, “Duck Stab”, started off its life as an EP of seven songs. The record proved to be a big hit and was soon united with a second EP, “Buster & Glen”, to form the LP, “Duck Stab / Buster & Glen”. All the tracks from the two EPs are represented here.

This release, recorded in 1977, startled the world’s ears with its “modern-day nursery rhyme” characterisations."

-East Side Digital CD pressing Liner Notes, 1987

Duck Stab is the seven-song EP that lifted many people across the country out of the slumber of the Seventies. Never before had we heard such words, such rhymes, such rhythms, and such instruments whose origins were unknown.

This EP stands out in contrast to The Residents' earlier albums. The songs are short and concise. The misty veil has been lifted, revealing clear lyrics which are well crafted to a fanciful perfection. The music, complex and commanding, cooperates with the lyrics to create a most startling and vivid world.

After Duck Stab was released in February of '78, the follow-up EP, Buster & Glen, was added to it to form a single album, which was later released in November of that year.

Musically, it's difficult to describe this diverse album. There is the silky, seductive, and murky aspect which appears on "Blue Rosebuds" where the music creates a supporting liquid background upon which the lyrics float. As found on most of the album, there is a balance between the music and the lyrics. They never step on each other as they take turns moving in and out of the foreground.

There are many moments when the music brings itself into the foreground. A fine one, is the hypnotic and sparkling metallic percussion sequence which occurs three times on "Elvis And His Boss". Another, is the percolating bass and percussion on "The Laughing Song".

Special notice should be paid to the supreme sensual mastery of the analog electronics on "Krafty Cheese". Due to the primitive technology available at the time, it required great skill and patience to synthesize these sounds. In addition, The Residents possessed a certain artistic sensibility which allowed them to create sounds which were distinctively their own.

The lyrics play a very dominant role on this album. They are like rhyming instruments that project pictures before our eyes. There is a style emerging in the imagery and particularly in the rhythm of the lyrics. The Residents use words for the sake of their sounds, for the images they create, and for how they feel when leaving the tongue. Who could tamper with the following verses?

An oily ole egg with a red peg leg Thought a porcupine was his daughter.

A red red rose saw a big pig pose On the edge of a silver dollar. - Laughing Song

Skinny found a "Hello Dolly" Record in the hall. He sold it to a truck driver In the fall. - Hello Skinny

Every word is perfect. The images created are strong, and the words that were lucky enough to have been chosen may not themselves understand why they were. Why is it important that we know where he found the record? And why should we care in what season he sold it, or that he sold it at all?

Duck Stab represents the crystallization of a style. A style which will re-emerge, fully developed, on the Commercial Album.

- David Willenbrink, Uncle Willie's Highly Opinionated Guide To The Residents, 1992

"At some point in 1977, The Residents happened to stumble onto a review of their album, The Third Reich 'N' Roll, and the reviewer was joyously proclaiming, 'Kids today don't want to listen to music like The Residents make. There is no fun in it. You certainly can't dance to it.' That kind of pissed The Residents off, not so much because he said their music was no fun, but more because it implied that kids were complete idiots.

So The Residents set out to make an album of shorter, more fun tunes to prove to the world that it would be just as unpopular as their other recordings. So The Residents recorded Duck Stab.

However, when it came out in 1978, it was an instant smash. The kids ate it up, proving that The Residents were wrong yet again, and the pesky reviewer knew what he was talking about. The kids were idiots after all.

Duck Stab produced several instant classics. Hello Skinny, Constantinople, Bach is Dead, and Blue Rosebuds became anthems of Residents mania. The very reviewer who didn't take to earlier Residents works proclaimed, 'Duck Stab lifts the country out of the slumber of the Seventies.'

Even now, 30 long years later, Duck Stab is, to many people, the ultimate Residents album. The kids obviously grew into adult idiots. The Residents gave up trying to prove that catchy music would be unpopular and announced that next they would record an album of wind noises and grunting. Which is exactly what they did. But that is another story."

- Big Brother, BOG, 2008

Cosmichobo1 _(Admin) (talk) 02:07, February 18 2023

Duck Stab started life in February, 1978, as a seven-song EP. It featured songs sung clearly, with understandable (if nonsensical) lyrics -- a first for The Residents. The EP was a runaway success, selling out the first pressing very quickly. The band had to press more, which for them was very unusual.

Unfortunately, the sound quality of the EP was poor because The Residents had tried to squeeze sixteen minutes of music onto the record. The band decided to re-release the songs in an album in order to improve the sound. They took a similar, unreleased EP called Buster & Glen and made it into side two of the new album. Duck Stab / Buster & Glen was released the following November, and was later renamed as simply Duck Stab.

The album was as big a success. It was also a critical success thanks to the accessibility of the music and the clever, Lewis Carroll-flavoured lyrics (not to mention Snakefinger's amazing guitar work).

- Duck Stab!/Buster & Glen at The Residents Historical

"That framed picture of the man and the dog, that picture was in the house of one of The Residents'... I think it was the grandmother of his wife, and he found this picture, and fell in love with it. And then, the grandmother of his wife died and they were getting rid of all of her stuff, and he said 'I want this picture, I've gotta have this picture'. And so, the story is that Buster and Glen - Buster is the dog and Glen is the guy... But the story was that Glen was a homeless person who at times had a bed in the basement of the grandmother's house, and sometimes he would get drunk, have no place to go, and he would crawl into that basement, and sleep on a bed in the basement. And then one day, just out of nowhere, they discovered his body on the beach. Nobody knew exactly how he died or what the situation was, but the dog, Buster, was guarding his body."

"The only thing that existed before [The 13th Anniversary Show] was the Mole Show, and there's nothing [from Duck Stab!] from the Mole Show, but the Mole Show did have a "Satisfaction" encore, and you know in a lot of ways, "Satisfaction" was done around the same time as Duck Stab!, so I think it has certain connections."

- Homer Flynn, Cacophony Podcast - Obscure Music for Obscure People, Episode 1 - "Homer Flynn on The Residents and Duck Stab", January 13th 2022

ImaginaryJacques _(Admin) 💀 (talk) 07:32, 18 February 2023 (UTC)