Duck Stab/Buster & Glen
Duck Stab!/Buster & Glen, later renamed as just Duck Stab, is the fifth studio album by The Residents, released in November 1978. It is named after the first side of the album, Duck Stab!, a seven-song EP released earlier in 1978 featuring shorter songs similar to the first side of Fingerprince. Buster and Glen, the B-side of the album, was intended to follow Duck Stab! presumably in early 1979.
| Duck Stab/Buster & Glen | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | November 1978 | |||
| Recorded | October 1977-August 1978 | |||
| Genre | Avant-garde, new wave[1] | |||
| Length | 34:30 | |||
| Label | Ralph East Side Digital | |||
| Producer | The Residents | |||
| The Residents chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Buster & Glen cover | ||||
 | ||||
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |   |
| Christgau's Record Guide | A–[3] |
| Glorious Noise | (Recommended) [4] |
After the first pressing of Duck Stab! quickly sold out—which was an oddity for the band—they decided to re-release it as an album, merged with the unreleased Buster and Glen. This was also in part due to the audio quality of the original EP, which The Residents stated was poor.[5]
The shorter length of the songs made the album more accessible for fans who had recently heard "Satisfaction", and songs like "Constantinople" and "Hello Skinny" helped cement the band's cult following. This album features guitar by Philip "Snakefinger" Lithman.
The album was reissued in 2018. It was digitally remastered, and included extra live, rehearsal, unreleased and reimagined tracks. It was released within a six panel digipack sleeve bringing the total of songs to 40.[6]
Track listing
All tracks written and composed by The Residents, except "Sinister Exaggerator", composed by The Residents and Snakefinger.
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Constantinople" | 2:23 |
| 2. | "Sinister Exaggerator" | 3:28 |
| 3. | "The Booker Tease" | 1:04 |
| 4. | "Blue Rosebuds" | 3:08 |
| 5. | "Laughing Song" | 2:12 |
| 6. | "Bach Is Dead" | 1:12 |
| 7. | "Elvis and His Boss" | 2:29 |
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 8. | "Lizard Lady" | 1:54 |
| 9. | "Semolina" | 2:48 |
| 10. | "Birthday Boy" | 2:41 |
| 11. | "Weight-Lifting Lulu" | 3:11 |
| 12. | "Krafty Cheese" | 1:59 |
| 13. | "Hello Skinny" | 2:41 |
| 14. | "The Electrocutioner" | 3:20 |
| Total length: | 34:30 | |
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 15. | "Disaster" | 3:48 |
| 16. | "Plants" | 3:14 |
| 17. | "Farmers" | 5:27 |
| 18. | "Twinkle" | 1:58 |
| Total length: | 49:04 | |
2018 pREServed edition
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 15. | "Guylum Bardot '78" | 1:07 |
| 16. | "Soulful Sax" | 2:20 |
| 17. | "Ow Boutthat" | 0:50 |
| 18. | "When Johnny Comes Marching" | 1:37 |
| 19. | "Unlisted" | 2:00 |
| 20. | "Santa Dog '78" | 1:52 |
| Total length: | 44:00 | |
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Bach Is Dead (1982 Rehearsal)" | 1:21 |
| 2. | "Birthday Boy (1982 Rehearsal)" | 3:42 |
| 3. | "Constantinople (1982 Rehearsal)" | 2:11 |
| 4. | "DS / BAG Suite (Tromsø, Inconvenienced, 1986)" | 13:22 |
| 5. | "Semolina (Live, 1986)" | 3:56 |
| 6. | "Hello Skinny (Icky Flix Version)" | 3:06 |
| 7. | "Constantinople (Icky Flix Version)" | 2:28 |
| 8. | "Lizard Lady / Hello Skinny (Live 2005)" | 5:10 |
| 9. | "Semolina (Live 2011)" | 3:47 |
| 10. | "Lizard Lady (Live 2011)" | 3:42 |
| 11. | "Blue Rosebuds (Live 2014)" | 3:08 |
| 12. | "Weightlifting Lulu (Live 2014)" | 3:30 |
| 13. | "Blue Rosebuds RMX (3:24)" | 3:24 |
| 14. | "Booker Tease (Re-Imagined)" | 2:24 |
| 15. | "Weight-Lifting Lulu (Re-Imagined)" | 3:17 |
| 16. | "Constantinople (Adobe)" | 1:55 |
| 17. | "Bach Is Dead (Re-Imagined)" | 2:26 |
| 18. | "Laughing Song (Re-Imagined)" | 2:23 |
| 19. | "The Electrocutioner (Re-Imagined)" | 2:39 |
| 20. | "Hello Skinny (Re-Imagined)" | 4:04 |
| Total length: | 1:11:0 | |
Personnel
- Guests
- Snakefinger – vocals, guitar
- Ruby – vocals on "The Electrocutioner"
- G. Whifler – photography
- Pore No Graphics - cover art
In popular culture
- The album is among the albums contained in Robert Dimery's book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die.[7]
- "Blue Rosebuds" was covered by Shock Headed Peters on the compilation album "Devastate To Liberate" in December 1985
- "Sinister Exaggerator" is covered by Primus on their 1992 EP Miscellaneous Debris. The songs "Constantinople" and "Hello Skinny" were released as a CD single by Primus and are also included as bonus tracks on the 2002 reissue of Frizzle Fry.
- "Bach is Dead" is covered by Idiot Flesh on their 1997 album Fancy.
- "Hello Skinny" and "The Electrocutioner" are covered by Flat Earth Society on their 2000 album Bonk.
References
- Ten Little Piggies Liner Notes
- McCarthy, Kieran. Duck Stab/Buster & Glen at AllMusic
- Christgau, Robert (1981). "Consumer Guide '70s: R". Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies. Ticknor & Fields. ISBN 089919026X. Retrieved March 10, 2019 – via robertchristgau.com.
- Glorious Noise review
- "Historical - The Residents: Duck Stab". Retrieved 2018-05-14.
- "Duck Stab/Buster and Glen - 2018 Reissue". Discogs.
- Robert Dimery; Michael Lydon (23 March 2010). 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die: Revised and Updated Edition. Universe. p. 58. ISBN 978-0-7893-2074-2.