''New Picnic Time'' is the third album by American

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wale ...

band

Pere Ubu Pere Ubu is an American rock group formed in Cleveland, Ohio, in 1975. The band had a variety of long-term and recurring band members, with singer David Thomas being the only member staying throughout the band's lifetime. They released their ...

. It was released in September 1979 by

Chrysalis Records Chrysalis Records () is a British independent record label that was founded in 1968. The name is both a reference to the pupal stage of a butterfly and a combination of its founders' names, Chris Wright and Terry Ellis. It started as the Ell ...

. Reportedly the album sessions were stressful and contentious, and after touring, the group disbanded. They would reform a matter of months later, with

Mayo Thompson Mayo Thompson (born February 26, 1944) is an American musician and visual artist best known as the leader of the experimental rock band Red Krayola. Background Mayo Thompson’s formal education includes Garden of Arts Kindergarten until Holy ...

replacing founding guitarist Tom Herman. The lyrics for the song "The Voice of the Sand" are based upon the poetry of

Vachel Lindsay Nicholas Vachel Lindsay (; November 10, 1879 – December 5, 1931) was an American poet. He is considered a founder of modern ''singing poetry,'' as he referred to it, in which verses are meant to be sung or chanted. Early years Lindsay was born ...

. The album was reissued in 1989 on CD by

Rough Trade Records Rough Trade Records is an independent record label based in London, England. It was formed in 1976 by Geoff Travis, who had opened a record store off Ladbroke Grove. It is currently run by co-managing directors Travis and Jeannette Lee and ...

, in 1999 on CD by

Thirsty Ear Records Thirsty Ear Recordings is an American independent record label. It was founded in the late 1970s as a marketing company for the then-unnamed alternative music field, and expanded to issue its own records in 1990. Thirsty Ear came to prominence ...

, in 2008 on CD on

Cooking Vinyl Cooking Vinyl is a British independent record label, based in Acton, London, England. It was founded in 1986 by former manager and booking agent Martin Goldschmidt and his business partner Pete Lawrence. Goldschmidt remains the current owner an ...

. On the 1989 Rough Trade CD, the song "Jehovah's Kingdom Comes!" was re-titled "Hand A Face A Feeling" (a phrase from the lyrics). For subsequent reissues the song was remixed, removing all references to

Jehovah Jehovah () is a Romanization, Latinization of the Hebrew language, Hebrew , one Tiberian vocalization, vocalization of the Tetragrammaton (YHWH), the proper name of the God in Judaism, God of Israel in the Hebrew BibleOld Testament. The Tetr ...

, and re-re-titled "Kingdom Come". On the 2017 Fire Records reissues (and the 2016 box set ''Architecture of Language 1979 - 1982'') the song was edited, removing approximately twenty-five seconds of music. The title of the opening track "Have Shoes Will Walk (The Fabulous Sequel)" has also varied from release to release.

Critical reception

The ''

Cambridge Evening News The ''Cambridge News'' (formerly the ''Cambridge Evening News'') is a British daily newspaper. Published each weekday and on Saturdays, it is distributed from its Milton base. In the period December 2010 – June 2011 it had an average daily c ...

'' wrote that the album "veers wildly between irritatingly inconsequential noises ... and surprisingly catchy riffs."

Track listing

All songs written by Pere Ubu ( David Thomas, Tom Herman,

Tony Maimone Tony Maimone (born September 27, 1952) is a bass guitarist, producer, and recording engineer, who lives in Brooklyn, New York. He was a member of Pere Ubu from the mid-1970s to the early 1990s, often playing with the drummer Scott Krauss. The ...

Allen Ravenstine Allen Ravenstine (born May 9, 1950) is an American keyboard player, most recognized for his work in the experimental rock group Pere Ubu. In 1991, he quit music to become a commercial airline pilot. History Early years Allen Ravenstine was ...

and Scott Krauss). #"Have Shoes Will Walk (The Fabulous Sequel)" – 3:16 #"49 Guitars & One Girl" – 2:51 #"A Small Dark Cloud" – 5:49 #"Small Was Fast" – 3:39 #"All the Dogs Are Barking" – 3:03 #"One Less Worry" – 3:46 #"Make Hay" – 4:03 #"Goodbye" – 5:18 #"The Voice of the Sand" – 1:28 (lyrics based on a

poem Poetry (from the Greek language, Greek word ''poiesis'', "making") is a form of literature, literary art that uses aesthetics, aesthetic and often rhythmic qualities of language to evoke meaning (linguistics), meanings in addition to, or in ...

) #"Jehovah's Kingdom Comes!" – 3:17

Personnel

;Pere Ubu * David Thomas – vocals, organ *Tom Herman – guitar, bass guitar, organ *

– bass guitar, guitar, piano *

– EML synthesizers, saxophone *Scott Krauss – drums ;Technical *Pere Ubu – production *Ken Hamann – production, engineering, mixing *Paul Hamann – engineering *John Thompson - design

References

External links

* {{Authority control Pere Ubu albums 1979 albums Chrysalis Records albums Rough Trade Records albums Cooking Vinyl albums Fire Records (UK) albums