''Live PCPPEP'' is a live EP and first official live album by American

punk Punk or punks may refer to: Genres, subculture, and related aspects * Punk rock, a music genre originating in the 1970s associated with various subgenres * Punk subculture, a subculture associated with punk rock, or aspects of the subculture s ...

band

Butthole Surfers Butthole Surfers are an American rock band formed in San Antonio, Texas, by singer Gibby Haynes and guitarist Paul Leary in 1981. The band has had numerous personnel changes, but its core lineup of Haynes, Leary, and drummer King Coffey has ...

, released in September 1984. All songs were written by the Butthole Surfers, and recorded live at The Meridian in San Antonio, Texas, on March 25, 1984. This was the Surfers' final album on

Alternative Tentacles Alternative Tentacles is an independent record label established in 1979 in San Francisco, California. It was used by Dead Kennedys for the self-produced single " California Über Alles". After realizing the potential for an independent label, t ...

. ''Live PCPPEP'' and 1983's ''

'' were reissued as the ''

Butthole Surfers/Live PCPPEP ''Butthole Surfers/Live PCPPEP'' is the third compilation album by American punk band Butthole Surfers, released in January 2003. All songs were written by Butthole Surfers. This compilation contains the entirety of the band's first studio EP ...

'' CD on Latino Buggerveil in 2003. The Latino Buggerveil re-release also contains two additional live songs from the Meridian show, "Gary Floyd" and "Matchstick." ''Live PCPPEP'' is the first of three Surfers albums to feature clown imagery on the cover, the others being 1987's '' Locust Abortion Technician'' and 1995's '' The Hole Truth... and Nothing Butt''. The clown illustrations on its front and back covers were later combined and recolored for ''The Hole Truth...s front cover. In a bit of a rarity for the band, the back cover includes the album's track listing.

Music

The Surfers' first official live recording primarily contains performances of songs from the band's 1983 debut EP, ''

'' (a.k.a. ''Brown Reason to Live'', a.k.a. ''Pee Pee the Sailor''), leading some fans and critics to joke that they released the same album twice. This isn't strictly the case, as ''Live PCPPEP'' also has one track from the then-upcoming album, '' Psychic... Powerless... Another Man's Sac'' ("Cowboy Bob"), as well as another that's technically never been released on a Surfers studio album ("Dance of the Cobras", a tape experiment made out of a recording of "Woly Boly"). This was the last Surfers album on which

Gibby Haynes Gibson Jerome Haynes (born September 30, 1957) is an American musician, radio personality, painter, author and the lead singer of the band Butthole Surfers. Early life and career Born and raised in Dallas, Texas, Gibby Haynes is the son of actor ...

and

guitarist A guitarist (or a guitar player) is a person who plays the guitar. Guitarists may play a variety of guitar family instruments such as classical guitars, acoustic guitars, electric guitars, and bass guitars. Some guitarists accompany themselve ...

Paul Leary Paul Leary Walthall (born May 7, 1957), known as Paul Leary, is an American musician and music producer from Austin, Texas, best known as the lead guitarist and occasional lead vocalist for the American rock band Butthole Surfers. He is also t ...

would equally split

lead vocal The lead vocalist in popular music is typically the member of a group or band whose voice is the most prominent melody in a performance where multiple voices may be heard. The lead singer sets their voice against the accompaniment parts of the ...

duties, with Haynes singing most, if not all, of the songs on later releases. This album also marked the debut of the first female Surfer, Teresa Nervosa, who was one of the band's two

drummers A drummer is a percussionist who creates music using drums. Most contemporary western bands that play rock, pop, jazz, or R&B music include a drummer for purposes including timekeeping and embellishing the musical timbre. The drummer ...

(the other being King Coffey). With her arrival, the band's core classic lineup – Haynes, Leary, Coffey, and Nervosa – was set. With the exception of a number of different

bass Bass or Basses may refer to: Fish * Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species Music * Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in the bass range: ** Bass (instrument), including: ** Acoustic bass gu ...

players, it remained largely unchanged until Nervosa's final departure in 1989.

Background

''Psychic...'', the Surfers' first full-length album, was already complete by the time ''Live PCPPEP'' came out. Various band members have stated that they were unhappy with this recording's sound quality, but claim they had a financial need to release an album after ''Psychic...s debut was unexpectedly delayed. (It was finally released three months later.) With the concert already recorded, and

interested in publishing it, the band authorized its release. The album was recorded and assembled by Mike Taylor, a sound engineer at

San Antonio ("Cradle of Freedom") , image_map = , mapsize = 220px , map_caption = Interactive map of San Antonio , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = United States , subdivision_type1= State , subdivision_name1 = Texas , subdivision_t ...

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

BOSS Studios Boss may refer to: Occupations * Supervisor, often referred to as boss * Air boss, more formally, air officer, the person in charge of aircraft operations on an aircraft carrier * Crime boss, the head of a criminal organization * Fire boss, a p ...

, where the Surfers had recorded 1983's ''

''.Joe Nick Patoski and John Morthland, "Feeding the Fish: An Oral History of the Butthole Surfers," ''Spin Magazine'', 1996
, archived at Butthole Surfers fan website
Negro Observer
Though the size of the LP suggested a 33 rpm playback speed, it is played at 45 rpm. It was labeled 69 rpm.

Track listing

All songs written by the Butthole Surfers.

Side 1

# "Cowboy Bob" – 2:32 # "Bar-B-Q Pope" – 3:09 # "Dance of the Cobras" – 0:34 # "The Shah Sleeps in Lee Harvey's Grave" – 2:26

Side 2

# "Wichita Cathedral" – 2:45 # "Hey" – 2:17 # "Something" – 7:38

Personnel

–

lead vocals The lead vocalist in popular music is typically the member of a group or band whose voice is the most prominent melody in a performance where multiple voices may be heard. The lead singer sets their voice against the accompaniment parts of th ...

("Cowboy Bob," "Wichita Cathedral," and "Hey"),

saxophone The saxophone (often referred to colloquially as the sax) is a type of Single-reed instrument, single-reed woodwind instrument with a conical body, usually made of brass. As with all single-reed instruments, sound is produced when a reed (mouthpi ...

–

guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected string ...

, lead vocals ("The Shah Sleeps in Lee Harvey's Grave," "Something," and "Bar-B-Q Pope") *

Bill Jolly Bill(s) may refer to: Common meanings * Banknote, paper cash (especially in the United States) * Bill (law), a proposed law put before a legislature * Invoice, commercial document issued by a seller to a buyer * Bill, a bird or animal's beak Plac ...

–

* King Coffey –

drums A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair of matching drumsticks ...

* Teresa Nervosa – drums

References

{{Authority control Butthole Surfers albums 1984 live albums Live EPs 1984 EPs