Vocal Performances was a 12" EP released by Pere Ubu frontman David Thomas in 1981. The EP was released on Rough Trade Records as Trade 5/12. As per its title, Vocal Performances features two (mostly) a cappella recordings from Thomas.
The first track, "Petrified", argues that evolutionary thinking and Latin nomenclature have poorly captured the charm and dignity of dinosaurs such as the Haplocanthosaur, Pterosaur and Archaeopteryx. The second track is "Sloop John B", a cover of the traditional song made famous on Pet Sounds by the Beach Boys. Thomas has argued elsewhere that Pet Sounds is the greatest album of music ever recorded.
"Petrified" was recorded at Bushflow Studio in Akron, Ohio, and features a clarinet solo by Ralph Carney. An ensemble version of the track appears on the Pere Ubu album Song of the Bailing Man. "Sloop John B" was recorded on a portable cassette recorder at the Hotel Slavia in London. A copy of this performance was later overdubbed with drums and trumpet, and released on Thomas's album, The Sound of the Sand and other songs by the Pedestrians.
Read more about Vocal Performances: Track Listing
Famous quotes containing the words vocal and/or performances:
“With sweet May dews my wings were wet,
And Phoebus fir’d my vocal rage;
He caught me in his silken net,
And shut me in his golden cage.
He loves to sit and hear me sing,
Then, laughing, sports and plays with me;
Then stretches out my golden wing,
And mocks my loss of liberty.”
—William Blake (1757–1827)
“This play holds the season’s record [for early closing], thus far, with a run of four evening performances and one matinee. By an odd coincidence it ran just five performances too many.”
—Dorothy Parker (1893–1967)