Q. Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo!

Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo! is the debut studio album by the American new wave band Devo. It was originally released in August 1978 on the Warner Bros. label (Virgin Records in Europe). Produced by Brian Eno, the album was recorded between October 1977 and February 1978, primarily in Cologne, West Germany.

Not to be confused with Are We Not Men? We Are Diva!.
Q: Are We Not Men?
A: We Are Devo!
Studio album by
Devo
ReleasedAugust 28, 1978 (1978-08-28)
RecordedOctober 1977 – February 1978
Studio
Genre
Length34:24
Label
Producer
Devo chronology
Mechanical Man EP
(1977)		 Q: Are We Not Men?
A: We Are Devo!
(1978)		 Duty Now for the Future
(1979)
Singles from Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo!
  1. "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction"
    Released: September 1977
  2. "Jocko Homo"
    Released: February 1978[5]
  3. "Come Back Jonee"
    Released: August 1978[6]
Alternative cover
Cover of European editions

The album received somewhat mixed reviews from critics and peaked at No. 78 on the U.S. Billboard chart and No. 12 on the UK Albums Chart. Recent reviews of the album have been more uniformly positive and the album has charted on several retrospective "best of" lists from publications including Rolling Stone, Pitchfork Media, and Spin.

On May 6, 2009, Devo performed the album live in its entirety for the first time as part of the Don't Look Back concert series curated by All Tomorrow's Parties. On September 16, 2009, Warner Bros. and Devo announced a re-release of Q: Are We Not Men? and Freedom of Choice, with a tour performing both albums.[7]

Production and recording

In 1977, David Bowie and Iggy Pop received a tape of Devo demo songs from the wife of Michael Aylward, guitarist in another Akron, Ohio band, Tin Huey.[8] Both Pop and Bowie, as well as Brian Eno and Robert Fripp, expressed interest in producing Devo's first release.[9] At Devo's New York debut show in 1977, Bowie proclaimed that "this is the band of the future, I'm going to produce them in Tokyo this winter."[9] Eventually, Eno was chosen to produce the album at Conny Plank's studio located near Cologne, Germany.[9] Bowie was busy with filming Just a Gigolo but helped Eno produce the record during weekends.[9][10] Two tracks, "Come Back Jonee" and "Shrivel-Up", were recorded at Different Fur in San Francisco, California; proprietor Patrick Gleeson co-engineered the album. All tracks were mixed at Plank's studio. Since Devo was without a record deal, Eno paid for the flights and studio cost for the band, confident that the band would be signed to a record contract.[9] In return for his work on the album, Eno asked for a share of any subsequent deals.[11]

The recording sessions were a source of frustration for Eno and Devo. Eno found the band unwilling to experiment or deviate from their early demonstrations of recorded songs.[12] Devo later admitted that "we were overtly resistant to Eno's ideas. He made up synth parts and really cool sounds for almost every part of the album, but we used them on three or four songs."[13] A majority of the tracks were later remixed by David Bowie; excluding "Space Junk", and "Shrivel Up", which had Eno's production still intact.

Packaging

The phrase "Are we not men?" is from The Island of Doctor Moreau (1896), by H. G. Wells.[14] It is part of the litany of the Law,[15] spoken by the Speaker of the Law to the Beast Folk, creatures surgically force-evolved by the mad doctor.

The cover was illustrated by Joe Heiner. According to an essay by Devo co-founder and bass guitarist Gerald Casale included on the Complete Truth About De-evolution DVD, the cover of their debut album is based on an image of the famous professional golfer Juan "Chi-Chi" Rodríguez that they had found on a golf strap. According to Casale, David Berman, Senior Vice President of business affairs at their recording company Warner Bros., decided that the image could not be used because "he was a golf fan and felt we were making fun of Chi Chi." The band offered to contact Rodriguez personally but had time constraints, due to the forthcoming production of their album. The manager of the company's art department, Rick Serini, recommended an artist who could airbrush and alter the face of the picture, while lead singer Mark Mothersbaugh offered a picture he'd procured from a local newspaper that morphed the faces of U.S. presidents John F. Kennedy, Lyndon B. Johnson, Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford. These ideas were later morphed with the original "Chi Chi" Rodriguez image to create the cover art of the album.[11]

The band did eventually get Rodriguez's permission to use the original photograph. Since the "morphed" album sleeves were already in production by that time, Serini claimed it would cost the band $2,500 to halt production and reinstate the image intended originally by the band, which forced the band to keep the morphed version. According to Casale, "we were able to come out with something that by the corporate interference and misunderstanding of the business side of Warner Bros. Records, actually unwittingly produced something far more Devo than the original [image]."[11] The original cover illustration, with Rodriguez's face intact, turned up on the picture sleeve for the band's third single "Be Stiff".

The European version has a completely different artwork, consisting of two photographs similar to the stills on the American version's inner sleeve (front cover: man with goggles, bow tie, and rubber gloves, back cover: heads with sunglasses under nylon stockings).[16]

A history of the design of the sleeve is presented in an episode of the podcast '99% Invisible'. Episode 328 – 'Devolutionary Design' contains interviews with members of the band, Chi-Chi Rodriguez and representatives of the record industry from the time.

Release

Devo received offers to release Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo! from Warner Bros., Island, Virgin and David Bowie's production company Bewlay Brothers.[9][13] Virgin obtained rights to release the album in the United Kingdom, while Warner Bros. held the rights for North America.[13] The album was released in the United States on August 28, 1978 and in the United Kingdom on September 1, 1978.[13][17] Virgin also released a picture disc version of the album,[18] illustrated with a still from the band's 1976 music film The Truth About De-Evolution.

In North America, Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo! peaked at No. 78 on the Billboard charts, while in the United Kingdom it entered the charts on September 16, 1978 and remained there for seven weeks, peaking at No. 12.[19][20] Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo! was also successful in Japan.[21] The album went "gold" in the United States on July 27, 2001 (2001-07-27) and "silver" in the United Kingdom on January 15, 1979.[17][22]

The album's opening track, "Uncontrollable Urge", has been used in several films and television shows, including; The Wolf of Wall Street, Fun with Dick and Jane, and Jackass.[23]

Critical reception
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[2]
Encyclopedia of Popular Music[24]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide[25]
Spin Alternative Record Guide9/10[26]
The Village VoiceB+[27]

Initial critical reaction to Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo! was somewhat mixed. Tom Carson, writing in Rolling Stone, claimed that "There's not an ounce of feeling anywhere, and the only commitment is to the distancing aesthetic of the put-on", and opined that "Devo lacks most of Eno's warmth and much of Bowie's flair for mechanized melodrama. For all its idiosyncrasies, the music here is utterly impersonal."[28] Critic Robert Christgau of The Village Voice gave the album a positive rating of a B+, but noted, "In small doses it's as good as novelty music ever gets, and there isn't a really bad cut on this album. But it leads nowhere."[27] Nonetheless, it was voted one of the best albums of the year in the Village Voice's Pazz & Jop critics poll for 1978.[29] In January 1980, Trouser Press also named it one of the best albums of 1978.[30]

Later reception of the album has been more uniformly positive. Steve Huey of the online music database AllMusic scored the album four and a half "stars" terming it "arguably Devo's strongest set of material, though several brilliant peaks can overshadow the remainder", and "a seminal touchstone in the development of American new wave."[2] Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo! has scored on several "best of" lists, including Spin's 50 Most Essential Punk Records, Pitchfork Media's top 100 albums of the 1970s and Rolling Stone's list of The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.[31][32][33] It is also listed in the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die.

Track listing
Side one
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Uncontrollable Urge"Mark Mothersbaugh3:09
2."(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction"
2:40
3."Praying Hands"
2:47
4."Space Junk"
2:14
5."Mongoloid"G. Casale3:44
6."Jocko Homo"M. Mothersbaugh3:40
Side two
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
7."Too Much Paranoias"M. Mothersbaugh1:57
8."Gut Feeling" / "(Slap Your Mammy)"
  • M. Mothersbaugh
  • B. Mothersbaugh
  • G. Casale
4:54
9."Come Back Jonee"
  • G. Casale
  • M. Mothersbaugh
3:47
10."Sloppy (I Saw My Baby Gettin')"
  • M. Mothersbaugh
  • B. Mothersbaugh
  • G. Casale
  • Gary Jackett
2:40
11."Shrivel-Up"
  • G. Casale
  • M. Mothersbaugh
  • B. Mothersbaugh
3:05
Total length:34:24

On the European version the second song appears as "Satisfaction (I Can't Get Me No)".[34]

Personnel

Devo

Production

Tour

To support the album, Devo undertook a lengthy world tour lasting from October 1978 to June 1979. The look of the tour was largely based around the live act they'd been developing throughout the previous year, with the only differences being the increased budget allowing for higher quality costumes and a basic set, and a focus on the album's material, whilst teasing then unreleased songs for the next album.

The show would open with 2 short films, the band's 1976 The Truth About Devolution film, followed by their 1978 Satisfaction and Come Back Jonee films. When the band arrived on stage Mark Mothersbaugh would appear with a modified electric guitar, which would only be used for the first two songs, "Satisfaction", and "Too Much Paranoias."

As the show would continue, the group's signature yellow suits would be gradually torn, until "Jocko Homo," where Devo would strip down to black shorts and T shirts with knee and shoulder pads. During the intro to "Smart Patrol" the group donned orange helmets, which were shaken off during the next song, "Mr. DNA." The show was ultimately concluded with lead singer Mark Mothersbaugh becoming Booji Boy and singing two songs, "Red Eye" and "The Words Get Stuck In My Throat."[37][38][39][40]

Concert Dates
Date Venue Notes
First Leg (1978–1979)
October 9, 1978 Starwood, West Hollywood, CA "The Visitors" Opened for DEVO[41]
October 10, 1978 This show was shot for their "Men Who Make The Music" Film
October 14, 1978 Saturday Night Live, New York, NY Television appearance, performing "Satisfaction" & "Jocko Homo", the album's two lead singles.
October 17, 1978 The Bottom Line, New York, NY Sold out shows
October 17, 1978
October 20, 1978 Showplace, Dover, NJ "The Two Timers" Opened for DEVO.
October 21, 1978 Gaston Hall, Georgetown University, Washington, DC "Razz" Opened for DEVO.
October 22, 1978 The Paradise, Boston, MA
October 24, 1978 El Casino, Metro Place des Arts, Montréal, QC, Canada
October 25, 1978 El Mocambo, Toronto, ON, Canada Show broadcast live on FM radio, Nash the Slash Opening
October 27, 1978 Punch And Judy Theatre, Grosse Pointe, MI Two Shows each on these dates
October 28, 1978
October 29, 1978 Bogart's, Cincinnati, OH
October 30, 1978 Agora Ballroom, Cleveland, OH Pre-Halloween Concert, opening for Willie Alexander And The Boom Boom Band
October 31, 1978 Akron Civic Theatre, Akron, OH Halloween Concert
November 1, 1978 B'ginnings, Schaumburg, IL
November 3, 1978 Walker Art Center Auditorium, Minneapolis, MN Broadcast on Radio, an excerpt from this show is heard on "Recombo DNA"
November 6, 1978 Dooley's, Tempe, AZ
November 8, 1978 Coffee House, University of California, Davis, CA DEVO played twice on this date, at 8 and 10:30 PM
November 10, 1978 Old Waldorf, San Francisco, CA This show was broadcast live on FM Radio, sold out show.
November 11, 1978
November 15, 1978 Kant Kino, Berlin, Germany The group's first show in Germany
November 16, 1978 Volksbildungsheim, Frankfurt, Germany
November 17, 1978 Markthalle, Hamburg, Germany
November 19, 1978 Theatre Le Palace, Paris, France The group's first show in France
November 21, 1978 Congresgebouw, The Hague, The Netherlands The group's first show in The Netherlands
November 21, 1978 Ancienne Belgique, Brussels, Belgium The group's first show in Belgium
November 26, 1978 Odeon Theatre, Edinburgh, United Kingdom Doll by Doll opened
November 27, 1978 Glasgow Apollo, Glasgow, United Kingdom
November 29, 1978 Newcastle City Hall, Newcastle, United Kingdom
November 30, 1978 Sheffield City Hall, Sheffield, United Kingdom According to attendee this show may have been rescheduled to December 13
December 1, 1978 Odeon Theatre, Birmingham, United Kingdom
December 2, 1978 Hammersmith Odeon, London, United Kingdom Doll by Doll Opening
December 3, 1978
December 4, 1978 Free Trade Hall, Manchester, United Kingdom
December 5, 1978 Old Grey Whistle Test, London, United Kingdom TV appearance filmed by never broadcast, the group perform "Satisfaction" [42]
December 6, 1978 Empire Theatre, Liverpool, United Kingdom Doll by Doll Opening
December 7, 1978 Colston Hall, Bristol, United Kingdom
December 9, 1978 Chorus, Paris, France Full concert filmed and broadcast on France 2 Program "Chorus"
December 17, 1978 Music Hall, Detroit, MI Attendees claim this show was at The Music Hall, but Newspaper Listings claim it was at the Masonic Auditorium[43]
December 27, 1978 Agora Ballroom, Atlanta, GA
December 29, 1978 Painters Mill Music Fair, Owings Mills, MD
December 30, 1978 Tower Theater, Upper Darby, PA
December 31, 1978 Avery Fisher Hall, New York, NY New Years Eve Show. Concert started at 12:15 AM
January 3, 1979 Mary Seaton Room, Kleinhans Music Hall, Buffalo, NY [44]
January 4, 1979 Akron Civic Theatre, Akron, OH
January 5, 1979 Music Hall, Detroit, MI
January 6, 1979 Park West, Chicago, IL
January 10, 1979 Paramount Theatre, Portland, OR
January 11, 1979 Paramount Northwest Theatre, Seattle, WA
January 12, 1979 Commodore Ballroom, Vancouver, BC, Canada
Second Leg (1979)
May 22, 1979 Festival Hall, Osaka, Japan DEVO's first show in Japan
May 23, 1979 Shi Kokaido Hall, Nagoya, Japan
May 28, 1979 Nippon Budokan Hall, Tokyo, Japan This show was filmed and broadcast for Japanese television.[45]
June 1, 1979 Campus Center Ballroom, University of Hawaii, Honolulu, HI This show was cancelled [46]
June 2, 1979 Last show of the tour, two shows performed

Setlist
  1. Wiggly World
  2. Secret Agent Man (Only performed on second leg)
  3. Pink Pussycat
  4. Satisfaction
  5. Too Much Paranoias
  6. Praying Hands
  7. Uncontrollable Urge
  8. Mongoloid
  9. Jocko Homo
  10. Smart Patrol
  11. Mr. DNA
  12. Sloppy
  13. Come Back Jonee
  14. Gut Feeling
  15. Slap Your Mammy
  16. DEVO Corporate Anthem
  17. In Heaven Everything Is Fine (Performed once, 12/29/78)
  18. Red Eye Express
  19. The Words Get Stuck In My Throat

Chart performance
Chart Peak
position
Australian Kent Music Report Albums Chart[47] 57
UK Albums Chart[48] 12
US Billboard 200[49] 78

Certifications
Organization Level Date
RIAA – U.S. Gold July 27, 2007 (2007-07-27)[22]

Covers

The song "Uncontrollable Urge" has been covered by numerous bands, among them SNFU for the tribute compilation We Are Not Devo.

Indie rock band Claw Hammer covered the album in its entirety on their 1991 release Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are NOT Devo![50]

Rob Dyrdek covered the song "Uncontrollable Urge" as the theme for the MTV Show Ridiculousness.

Notes
  1. Jackson, Josh; Martin, Garrett (September 8, 2016). "The 50 Best New Wave Albums". Paste. Retrieved November 10, 2017.
  2. Huey, Steve. "Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo! – Devo". AllMusic. Retrieved December 4, 2008.
  3. Jackson, Josh; Martin, Garrett (July 13, 2016). "The 50 Best Post-Punk Albums". Paste. Retrieved November 10, 2017.
  4. Wolk, Jon Dolan,Jason Fine,David Fricke,Elisabeth Garber-Paul,Andy Greene,Will Hermes,Rob Sheffield,Douglas; Stone, Rolling (April 6, 2016). "40 Greatest Punk Albums of All Time". Retrieved May 20, 2020.
  5. Strong 1998, p. 200
  6. Strong 1998, p. 201
  7. "Warner Bros. and Devo press release on re-release and tour". Archived from the original on January 7, 2010. Retrieved May 20, 2020.
  8. Adams 2002, p. 385
  9. Reynolds 2006, p. 80
  10. Sandford 1998, p. 172
  11. Casale, Gerald V. Drooling for Dollars (The Complete Truth About De-Evolution DVD Special Features) (DVD Region 1). Rhino Entertainment, 2003.
  12. Howard 2004, p. 199
  13. Reynolds 2006, p. 81
  14. Wells, H.G. (1896). The Island of Doctor Moreau. New York, Stone & Kimball.
  15. "Not to go on all-fours; that is the Law. Are we not Men?
    "Not to suck up Drink; that is the Law. Are we not Men?
    "Not to eat Fish or Flesh; that is the Law. Are we not Men?
    "Not to claw the Bark of Trees; that is the Law. Are we not Men?
    "Not to chase other Men; that is the Law. Are we not Men?" (The Island of Doctor Moreau; Chapter 12, Paragraph 18)
  16. Images from American Discogs entry vs. images from European Discogs entry.
  17. "British certifications – Devo". British Phonographic Industry. Type Devo in the "Search BPI Awards" field and then press Enter.
  18. Devo – Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo! at Discogs
  19. Warwick, Kutner & Brown 2004, p. 320
  20. "Devo > Charts & Awards". Allmusic. Retrieved June 9, 2008.
  21. Buckley 2003, p. 288
  22. "American certifications – Devo – Are We Not Men". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved April 12, 2018.
  23. "Devo Soundtrack Listing". internet movie database.
  24. Larkin, Colin (2011). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music (5th concise ed.). Omnibus Press. ISBN 978-0-85712-595-8.
  25. Evans, Paul (2004). "Devo". In Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian (eds.). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide (4th ed.). Simon & Schuster. pp. 232–33. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8.
  26. Weisbard, Eric; Marks, Craig, eds. (1995). Spin Alternative Record Guide. Vintage Books. p. 123. ISBN 0-679-75574-8.
  27. Christgau, Robert (October 30, 1978). "Christgau's Consumer Guide". The Village Voice. Retrieved December 6, 2008.
  28. "Devo : Review: Rolling Stone". Rolling Stone. November 30, 1978. Retrieved March 6, 2014.
  29. "The 1978 Pazz & Jop Critics Poll". The Village Voice. New York. January 22, 1979. Retrieved December 5, 2011.
  30. "Best Albums of the 1970s". Trouser Press. January 1980. Retrieved December 5, 2011.
  31. "Devo : Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo! > Review". PopMatters. February 20, 2003. Retrieved December 6, 2008.
  32. "Top 100 Albums of the 1970s: Pitchfork". Pitchfork Media. Archived from the original on December 9, 2008. Retrieved December 6, 2008.
  33. "447) Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo!". Rolling Stone. Straight Arrow (Special Issue). November 2003. Archived from the original on December 27, 2004.
  34. Images from European Discogs entry
  35. "Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo / Devo Live [Extra tracks, Import]". Retrieved December 5, 2011.
  36. "The Ultra Devo-lux Ltd. Edition". Devo Official Store. clubdevo.com. Archived from the original on March 7, 2012. Retrieved December 5, 2011.
  37. Devo – Live in Tokyo, Japan 5/28/1979 FULL VIDEO, retrieved January 2, 2020
  38. DEVO – Chorus – Full Concert (1978), retrieved January 2, 2020
  39. Devo Park West, Chicago, IL 6th January 1979 (60mins) New Wave Punk, retrieved January 2, 2020
  40. DEVO – 10/19/1978 – Dover, NJ, retrieved January 2, 2020
  41. "DEVO Live Guide – 1978". huboon.com. Retrieved December 30, 2019.
  42. Devo • Satisfaction HD • TOTP Outtake 1978, retrieved December 30, 2019
  43. "Devo Live Guide – 12/17/78 – Music Hall, Detroit, MI". huboon.com. Retrieved December 30, 2019.
  44. "DEVO Live Guide – 1979". huboon.com. Retrieved December 30, 2019.
  45. "Devo Live Guide – 05/28/79 – Noppin Budokan Hall, Tokyo, Japan". huboon.com. Retrieved December 30, 2019.
  46. "Devo Live Guide – 06/01/79 – Campus Center Ballroom, University of Hawaii, Honolulu, HI – CANCELLED". huboon.com. Retrieved December 30, 2019.
  47. Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992. St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 88. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  48. "UK Top 40 Hit Database". Archived from the original on May 12, 2008. Retrieved May 16, 2008.
  49. "allmusic (((Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo! > Charts & Awards > Billboard Albums)))". Retrieved May 16, 2008.
  50. Raggett, Ned. "Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are NOT Devo! – Claw Hammer". AllMusic. Retrieved December 17, 2013.

References
Reynolds, Simon (2006). Rip it Up and Start Again: Postpunk 1978–1984. Penguin. ISBN 0-14-303672-6.
Howard, David N. (2004). Sonic Alchemy: Visionary Music Producers and Their Maverick Recordings. Hal Leonard. ISBN 0-634-05560-7.
Adams, Deanna R. (2002). Rock 'n' Roll and the Cleveland Connection. Kent State University Press. ISBN 0-87338-691-4.
Sandford, Christopher (1998). Bowie: Loving the Alien. Da Capo Press. ISBN 0-306-80854-4.
Warwick, Neil; Kutner, Jon; Brown, Tony (2004). The Complete Book of the British Charts: Singles and Albums. Omnibus Press. ISBN 1-84449-058-0.
Buckley, Peter (2003). The Rough Guide to Rock. Rough Guides. ISBN 1-84353-105-4.
Strong, M. C. (1998). The Great Rock Discography. Giunti. ISBN 88-09-21522-2.
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