From the collection of Firesign Theatre fan Glen Banks come
these MP3s from a guest DJ set on KNAC-FM Long Beach performed by Michael
McKean, probably in August 1974. These cuts came from a rescued work tape, only some of which was broadcast. “Her Own
Sandwich” is a Righteous Brothers parody about the death of Mama Cass. “Long
Beach Suite” and the KNAC-FM legal ID are two short folk ballads about the refinery
emission-drenched wonderfulness that is Long Beach. “MPX Cassettes” is an ad
for a consumer brand of cassette tapes with a celebrity endorsement by Patti
Hearst. “Grey Toupee” pays tribute to disgraced President Richard Nixon. The
National Association of Progressive Radio Announcers PSA “Vote Til It Hurts” is
a real PSA, featuring McKean as Tony LaMone urging listeners to vote. And the
various Spots are tributes to Fred May and his wife, long-time staples of
Channel 13 in Los Angeles, who together produced endless identical-sounding ads
with the wife’s voice drenched in echo. “Massage-A-Rama” and the “Sid’s Wood
City” ad sequence are pretty goofy, but then the Gap took the gag to its
logical extreme and cooked up four incredibly offensive variants, three of
which were included on their 1977 album The
Bronze Age of Radio. Trust me, the only time in this planet’s history when
these spots have been allowed to air was when a radio station had the actual
members of the Gap handy to take all the blame if necessary. (NOTE: the Freddie
Herbie spot and the last set of Fred May ads come not from Glen Banks but from my
archive, and have a different, forgotten source, probably Alan Olsen and
Michael Pearce. Thanks everybody!)
KNAC-FM legal ID
Her Own Kind of Sandwich
MPX Cassettes
NAPRA PSA: Vote 'Til It Hurts
Grey Toupee
Spots (A Tribute to Fred May): Massage-A-Rama
Spots (A Tribute to Fred May): Sid’s Wood City / Bill’s
Hovercraft School / Broxon Formula 19 / Arnold’s Rubberama
Spots (A Tribute to Fred May): Dago Menswear / Jigaboo’s Car
Wash / Kike National Bank / Mr. Spic Taco Tavern
Public Service Announcement: Freddie Herbie for the National
Necrophilia Foundation (radio version)
Long Beach Suite
Aircheck audio
DISCLAIMER: To the best of my knowledge, this work is out of print and not available for purchase in any format. If you are the artist and are planning a reissue, please let me know and I’ll remove it from the blog. Also please get in touch if you’ve lost your art &/or sound masters and would like to talk with me about my restoration work.
I had been looking for those Fred May parodies forever. Thanks! Swell blog you got here.
ReplyDeleteYou're welcome! Kill Ugly Radio!
DeleteAs an old Firesign fan (primarily TTTDHMTP) and former indie radio DJ, I enjoy your site a lot. I can tell you that three of the four Fred May tribute spots (Car Wash, Bank, Taco) were heard occasionally on KTIM-FM in San Rafael, California, in the 1976-1977 time frame. That's where I first heard them. My roommate and I used to imitate them at parties.
ReplyDelete