Stranger Than Supper
Stranger Than Supper (AKA Booger Breath, Poot for Thought & Chopped Liver) is an outtakes & rarities sampler by The Residents. It is the only UWEB release to be available outside of the club, and gave an impression of the type of music the club released to encourage membership.
Background
Compilation
In late 1988, The Residents launched their second official fan club, Uncle Willie's Eyeball Buddies, AKA UWEB. UWEB offered two things to its members; newsletters detailing The Residents' latest activities, and exclusive access to archival Residents CDs. Two years and four CDs into the fan clubs' existence, Uncle Willie conceived of a sampler album to entice newer fans who may need to be aware of the club. The sampler was 'Stranger Than Supper,' AKA Booger Breath (On Left Spine) & Poot for Thought (On Right Spine).
The sampler contained 50% exclusive music and 50% tracks from previous or upcoming UWEB releases. It's mostly material from the mid-1980s to the then present but does contain a single track recorded in 1971 by the pre-Residents group Residents Uninc. Several of the tracks exclusive to the LP were intended to appear on Daydream B-Liver, but their inclusion on Supper led to them being removed from B-Liver's track listing.[1]
Release
Stranger Than Supper was released in October of 1990 and was the only UWEB release available outside the club and was designed to act as a sampler album for it. It was also the only UWEB release on vinyl. UWEB gave the initial vinyl the catalogue number USP00011, and the CD pressing the USP00012.
Artwork / Packaging
The album's artwork is an edit of the eyeball design first used for the groups' 1979 T-Shirts. Porno/Graphics had designed the eyeball look for the cover of the Eskimo album and then re-used this specific image for the 1983 Mole Show Live album.
It is the first UWEB release to feature the word 'Resident' on any of its artwork.[2]
Track Listing
All songs written by The Residents except where noted
- Intro / Somethin' Devilish [From the unreleased Daydream B-Liver] (2:59)
- Teddy Bear (Mann/Lowe) (3:45)
- Why Didn't I Think Of That? (0:55)
- New Orleans (Ft. Tony Janssen) (2:01)
- Lament [From The Snakey Wake] (3:21)
- Die In Terror / Eva's Warning (Residents/Snakefinger) [From 13th Anniversary Tour - Live In The U.S.A.] (7:36)
- Suzanna (1:52)
- Land Of 1000 Dances / Double Shot (Kenner/Smith/Vetter) [From Buckaroo Blues] (11:42)
- Mr Skull's New Year's Eve Song (6:26)
- This Is A Man's World (Brown/Newsome) [From Liver Music] (4:55)
Liner Notes
A Word From Our Sponsor: Perhaps there is nothing more remarkable to note than the fact that the live opening track 'Something Devilish' and the live second track, while similar in mood and style, are separated time-wise by over eighteen years and by an observing audience difference of over 18 million people, thanks to the mighty power of television.
In the eighteen year span that all of these songs were recorded, The Residents have revealed themselves to be more to contend with than most expected. The flood of critically acclaimed albums, videos and performances is truly unmatched by any artistic group in america. These projects only tell part of a very complex story behind the anonymous band.
This is where Uncle Willie steps in.
While UWEB (Uncle Willie's Eyeball Buddies) shares many concepts with the traditional 'fan club', the difference is that UWEB produces a series of compact discs by The Residents that delve into their world of experimentation through studio and live recordings. For example, when The Residents stepped on stage at the Lincoln Centre in New York in July of 1989 to perform 'Buckaroo Blues' from the CUBE-E Show for the first time, UWEB members had been listening to the 'Buckaroo Blues' CD for almost six months. As of this writing in July of 1990, 'Buckaroo Blues' has still not appeared on any commercial release.
This CD is intended to share with the public some of the material that UWEB has released or plans to release to members in the coming year. This is not an act of artistic mercy for you.
Credits
- Uncle Willie: Liner Notes
- Tony Janssen: Drums on 'New Orleans'