This playlist includes songs recorded in two different studios around the Philadelphia area in 1975. David Sound was a small one-man operation, as was Veritable, but Doug Fearn at Veritable Recording Company found ways to better record and produce the sound of the band. The David Sound sessions took place early on in Kirk’s short association with Duck Soup, singing lead on two of the songs, and back-up on “Back in the Fifties” which Richard leads with his droll delivery.
No one in the band played or owned a Koto, so Richard brought an LP of Japanese music to the studio to “borrow” the intro you hear on “Bombers Over Tokyo”. The bomb sound effect at the end was added the same way.
“Magic Dancer” and “Change My Name” were two studio recordings at Veritable that seemed likely candidates to suit the taste of the record company execs -- or so the group thought. Who ever really knew what the record companies wanted? Both songs were written by Richard and sung by Kirk.
Jimmy also sang lead on some songs, including “Man of Trees” which was written by Bicey, and is one of two songs here that are extracted from the full-length WIOQ concert (in case you don’t have a half-hour for the whole thing right now, and want to hear the best 2 songs from that broadcast). The full name of the other song is “I Hope You Never Have to Boogie Like I Do” -- Richard’s way of letting the audience know that they should count themselves lucky. Boogie-ing sure is hard work.
The WIOQ concert was something of a big deal for the band, bringing their sound to a larger audience within the radio station’s range over the Philadelphia vicinity. It was a regular feature for them to broadcast local acts in live performances that were pre-recorded onto tape -- largely for logistical and scheduling reasons -- plus it was better than a 7-second delay if things turned too blue or got out of hand. You know how rock bands can be. Veritable’s studio was often used to record these concerts, and the band’s recent connection with Doug Fearn had been instrumental in their getting that opportunity for the airplay.
The concert was an energetic, almost boisterous performance, with everyone obviously having a very good time. The mid-point interview with Richard is highly entertaining, with the host having a hard time keeping up with Richard’s wit and intellect. The peanut gallery also offers a colorful background throughout. This recording was captured on Bicey’s reel-to-reel tape deck straight off an FM radio the night of the broadcast at the Bryn Mawr apartment he shared with Bill K. The sound is somewhat compressed by the transmission, but that’s what the whole audience heard. More or less. Regardless, it is a nifty audio time capsule of the band, and well worth a listen.