This article is about the album. For the term, see N/A.
Not Available is the fourth studio album by the American band the Residents, released in 1978.[2][3] The album was allegedly meant to only be released once its creators completely forgot about its existence (adhering to their "Theory of Obscurity," in which an artist's purest work is created without an audience) - however, due to ongoing delays in the release of Eskimo, Not Available was released to supply the demand for new Residents material, given their unexpected critical and commercial success following the release of the Duck Stab EP.
It is said that the lyrics and themes of Not Available arose from personal tensions within the group, and that the project began as a private psychodrama before being adapted into a possible operetta. While the project never took off theatrically, it was still molded into a sort of concept album, taking use of assorted musical ideas, some of them recorded for the group's unfinished film project, Vileness Fats.[4] It is unknown if further overdubs were added onto the album predating its release in 1978, though the pREServed single “Not Available (Work In Progress)” would indicate that additional overdubs and edits were made.
It is possible that the album was shelved not to fulfill the "Theory of Obscurity," but because it was simply too personally revealing.[5]
Musicedit
The music on Not Available is fairly different from any other music the Residents recorded in the time period it was supposedly conceived in, both in compositional skill and audio quality. Fans have theorized that the music could have been recorded at a later period.
The album is split into four parts and an epilogue, with the Residents' characteristic use of drum machines, classical percussion, cartoonish vocals, grand piano and horns, as well as notably the use of string synthesizers. The lyrics and plot of Not Available are told in a densely surrealistic manner, notably making use of a Greek chorus and a particular piano composition that is presented as a theme for one of the album's characters - the full recording was released in 2010 as "Available Piece."
A 2011 reissue of the album extended its duration by approximately seven minutes, allegedly its original length. A mix of the album's multitrack tapes (originally titled X is for Xtra) was released in 2019 on a deluxe edition of the album.
^ abThe Rolling Stone Album Guide. Random House. 1992. p. 587.
^Kelp, Larry (27 Nov 1979). "Residents: They're unknown—but not unloved". Oakland Tribune. p. C1.
^Liner notes for the Cherry Red 2018 edition of Not Available.
^Liner notes for the MVD 2011 edition of Not Available.
^ abSpin Alternative Record Guide. Vintage Books. 1995. pp. 332, 333.
External linksedit
Not Available on Prog Archives
January 01, 1970
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This article is about the album For the term see N A This article needs additional citations for verification Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources Unsourced material may be challenged and removed Find sources Not Available news newspapers books scholar JSTOR March 2024 Learn how and when to remove this message Not Available is the fourth studio album by the American band the Residents released in 1978 2 3 The album was allegedly meant to only be released once its creators completely forgot about its existence adhering to their Theory of Obscurity in which an artist s purest work is created without an audience however due to ongoing delays in the release of Eskimo Not Available was released to supply the demand for new Residents material given their unexpected critical and commercial success following the release of the Duck Stab EP Not AvailableStudio album by the ResidentsReleasedOctober 1978Recorded1974GenreRock opera 1 Length35 21 original LP 42 26 2011 reissue LabelRalphThe Residents chronologyFingerprince 1977 Not Available 1978 Duck Stab Buster amp Glen 1978 Contents 1 History 2 Music 3 Critical reception 4 Track listing 4 1 1987 CD bonus tracks 4 2 2011 extended edition 4 3 2018 pREServed edition 5 References 6 External linksHistory editIt is said that the lyrics and themes of Not Available arose from personal tensions within the group and that the project began as a private psychodrama before being adapted into a possible operetta While the project never took off theatrically it was still molded into a sort of concept album taking use of assorted musical ideas some of them recorded for the group s unfinished film project Vileness Fats 4 It is unknown if further overdubs were added onto the album predating its release in 1978 though the pREServed single Not Available Work In Progress would indicate that additional overdubs and edits were made It is possible that the album was shelved not to fulfill the Theory of Obscurity but because it was simply too personally revealing 5 Music editThe music on Not Available is fairly different from any other music the Residents recorded in the time period it was supposedly conceived in both in compositional skill and audio quality Fans have theorized that the music could have been recorded at a later period The album is split into four parts and an epilogue with the Residents characteristic use of drum machines classical percussion cartoonish vocals grand piano and horns as well as notably the use of string synthesizers The lyrics and plot of Not Available are told in a densely surrealistic manner notably making use of a Greek chorus and a particular piano composition that is presented as a theme for one of the album s characters the full recording was released in 2010 as Available Piece A 2011 reissue of the album extended its duration by approximately seven minutes allegedly its original length A mix of the album s multitrack tapes originally titled X is for Xtra was released in 2019 on a deluxe edition of the album Critical reception editProfessional ratingsReview scoresSourceRatingAllMusic nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp 1 The Rolling Stone Album Guide nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp 2 Spin Alternative Record Guide6 10 6 The Spin Alternative Record Guide labeled the album free form avant gardism 6 Track listing editAll tracks are written by The ResidentsSide oneNo TitleLength1 Part One Edweena 9 292 Part Two The Making of a Soul 9 59Total length 20 00Side twoNo TitleLength3 Part Three Ship s a Going Down 6 344 Part Four Never Known Questions 7 005 Epilogue 2 21Total length 16 38 1987 CD bonus tracks edit Tracks 6 11 taken from Title in Limbo a 1983 album made in collaboration with Renaldo and the Loaf No TitleLength6 Intro Version 1 237 The Shoe Salesman 4 108 Crashing 1 419 Monkey and Bunny 5 0010 Mahogany Wood 4 1411 The Sailor Song 6 05Total length 57 54 2011 extended edition edit No TitleLength1 Part One Edweena 10 552 Part Two The Making of a Soul 10 033 Part Three Ship s A Going Down 10 104 Part Four Never Known Questions 8 545 Epilogue 2 21Total length 42 26 2018 pREServed edition edit Disc OneNo TitleLength1 Part One Edweena 9 272 Part Two The Making of a Soul 9 523 Part Three Ship s a Going Down 6 334 Part Four Never Known Questions 6 595 Epilogue 2 356 Ship s a Going Down 1982 rehearsal 2 367 Ship s a Going Down live 1986 4 148 Mourning Glories live 2014 3 58Total length 46 14Disc Two X is for Xtra A Conclusion No TitleLength1 Mehico Ron Devoo 3 042 Theme from X with Roman Overtones 2 293 Theme from X pt 2 1 444 Solome and Goiter 1 475 New Mexico Dream 5 096 Ho Ho Bumped his Toe 0 497 Where to Begin 4 228 Fairly Well 4 099 Love Sprong 2 4710 Ah Spare us Gus 2 0911 Slow Texture 2 1712 Tennessee Williams 2 0613 Little A An Authentic Folk Song 2 1914 Asonarose 2 3015 Anaconda Montana 2 5316 Tune of the Unknown 1 3117 Soundtrack Music Piece 17 1 5418 O Solo Meow 3 3519 Mehico Ron Devoo Finale 2 31Total length 1 04 51 After 10 minutes of silence following track 19 an unlisted track plays lasting 4 46 References edit a b AllMusic review a b The Rolling Stone Album Guide Random House 1992 p 587 Kelp Larry 27 Nov 1979 Residents They re unknown but not unloved Oakland Tribune p C1 Liner notes for the Cherry Red 2018 edition of Not Available Liner notes for the MVD 2011 edition of Not Available a b Spin Alternative Record Guide Vintage Books 1995 pp 332 333 External links editNot Available on Prog Archives Official Not Available page Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Not Available amp oldid 1211294355, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
