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The Firesign Theatre
"How Can You Be In Two Places At Once When You're Not Anywhere At All"

© Columbia/Legacy Records

October 26 - 01, 2008

Year of Release: 1969
Rating:
  • How Can You Be In Two Places
    At Once
    When You're Not
    Anywhere At All
    1. Drink To Me
      Only With Thine
      (Mr. Catherwood
      And Ensemble)
      CD retitled as:
      The Ralph
      Spoilsport Mantrum
    2. The Policemen's Brawl
      (Officers Bradshaw
      And Henderson)
      CD retitled as:
      Zeno's Evil
    3. Yankee Doodle
      Came To Terms
      (All Fecal People's
      Chorus)
      CD retitled as:
      The Land Of
      The Pharoahs
    4. Uber Dubbing Over Alice
      (Arry 'n' Friends)
      CD retitled as:
      Vacancy -
      No Vacancy
    5. You Ain't Got No Friends
      On The Left
      (Babe And The
      Unknown Soldiers)
      CD retitled as:
      The Lonesome
      American
      Choo-Choo
      Don' Wan' Stop
      Here Any Mo'
    6. "We're Bringing The War Back Home!" From "Babes In Khaki"
      (Lily Lamont)
      CD retitled as:
      Babes In Khaki
      1. Babes In Khaki
      2. TV Or Not TV
  • The Further Adventures Of Nick Danger

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    Saturday Night Live, Second City Television, Monty Python ... Comedy groups very popular throughout the 1970s and mid-1980s... But this wasn't the reason why I took an interest in another late 1960s-1970s comedy group, called The Firesign Theatre. It was the album cover for this week's review, How Can You Be In Two Places At Once When You're Not Anywhere At All: Pictures of a famous comedian and rock and roll star were on the front cover. And like the album's title, both pictures of these famous celebrities had no resemblance. All Hail Marx/Lennon was another album title for this release, as pictures of Groucho Marx (The Marx Brothers) and a bearded John Lennon (The Beatles) captured my attention.

    The Firesign Theatre consisted of Phillip Austin, Peter Bergman, David Ossman, and Phillip Proctor. How Can You Be In Two Places At Once When You're Not Anywhere At All was the group's second album of their career, released in 1969. The original vinyl LP consisted of two tracks: Side One, having six comedy sketches as one album side, and on Side Two, a look at an old time radio show concept, taken after the radio show, Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar. (After learning of this old-time radio show concept, now I was really interested.)

    The CD version breaks Side One's sketches as seven individual tracks, with different titles.
    Original TitleCD Title
    Drink To Me Only With Thine
    (Mr. Catherwood And Ensemble)
    The Ralph Spoilsport Mantrum
    The Policemen's Brawl
    (Officers Bradshaw And Henderson)
    Zeno's Evil
    Yankee Doodle Came To Terms
    All Fecal People's Chorus)
    The Land Of The Pharoahs
    Uber Dubbing Over Alice
    Arry 'n' Friends)
    Vacancy - No Vacancy
    You Ain't Got No Friends On The Left
    (Babe And The Unknown Soldiers)
    The Lonesome American Choo-Choo Don' Wan' Stop Here Any Mo'
    "We're Bringing The War Back Home!" From "Babes In Khaki"
    (Lily Lamont)
    Two Tracks:
    1. Babes In Khaki
    2. TV Or Not TV
    In listening to each sketch, it resembles the Old-Time Radio format, as it was updated (based on the times) with stories of war, changes, murder, and music relations, such as The Beatles and Bob Dylan. Side One has the comparisons of Monty Python dialogue in some places, and yet it does keep your attention, in hearing how the Firesign Theatre can keep up with storylines relating to the current trends. Yet, its the "Nick Danger" radio episode that is the gem. It's Old-Time Radio brought back to the surface, as OTR shows had long passed by 1969.

    Reviews from Amazon.com of this album proves to those Firesign fans, that their comedy was and is worth listening to. For OTR fans, How Can You Be In Two Places At Once When You're Not Anywhere At All captures Old-Time Radio formats as if it never went away, including sound effects, theatrical music fillers, and enthusiastic character portrayals.

    Also, check out The Firesign Theatre website. The Flash display of their albums is great to watch, as it features sound bites and album covers from their 30-year + span. Listening to this week's album review will encourage those to discover more of the Firesign Theatre, and listen to the debut album, and albums after How Can You Be In Two Places At Once When You're Not Anywhere At All.




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