CUBE E: The History of American Music in 3 E-Z Pieces
UNCLE WILLIE'S HIGHLY OPINIONATED GUIDE TO THE RESIDENTS
CUBE E: The History of American Music in 3 E-Z Pieces
When the Residents first suggested to me they had an idea
for a live show exploring the entire history of American
music—concluding with an overweight Elvis imitator murdered
by the music of English pop stars—I thought they were
crazy. Well . . . they are crazy. I mean I thought the idea
was far-fetched, over-reaching, and riddled with potential
pretensions that would make even Sting run in fear.
The Residents, however, had no such fears. A year later the
show opened for a short run in San Francisco before leaving
on an ambitious European tour. I stood nervously at the
back of the theater. Would an audience that had come to see
a “band” be satisfied when the curtain opened onto a group
of three dancers silhouetted against a giant crescent moon,
100 gallon hats on their heads and an electric campfire at
their feet? Would the audience riot at the vision of
stereotyped black slaves being twisted through a search for
“somethin’ to believe in”? Most importantly, would the
audience accept a kindly grandfather who imitates Elvis
Presley teaching a lesson to his two wooden dummy
grandchildren about the futility of looking for happiness
in places other than within yourself?
At this point in time, those fears seem so unfounded. Of
course the audience loved it. The next day the local
critics proclaimed it a masterpiece, and the rest is pretty
much history. The show created so much enthusiasm in Europe
in the fall of ’89, that, following a successful American
tour, they returned in the spring of ’90, to another series
of sold-out European shows.
The Residents had successfully done what so few “bands”
have been able to accomplish: They brought to venues around
the world more than a cliché rock ‘n’ roll show, they
presented a theatrical event—a Grand Guignol if you will.
Unlike the 13th Anniversary Show, Cube E visited fewer
cities, settling in for a multi-week stay at the finest
theaters in some of these cities. Only theatrical venues
hosted the shows. Six performances a week to smaller, more
intimate audiences proved to have a powerful effect on both
the performers and the audience. This show was, after all,
designed for such a stage.
The first act, “Buckaroo Blues,” (frontier music from 1850
to 1950) was originally conceived for a live television
broadcast on national German television, and written for
one static camera. Shortly after this well-received
conquering of the airwaves, the Serious Fun Festival
invited The Residents to perform at Lincoln Center in New
York. Asked to fill one hour of performance time, the
foursome rewrote “Buckaroo Blues” for a live audience and
created “Black Berry” (how black music, including
everything from voodoo and blues to jazz and soul, affected
the evolution of the American muse).This hour of
performance, premiering at Alice Tully Hall, would go on to
become Acts I and II of the Cube E show.
When the prospect of a world tour was being discussed in
the innermost of circles, the idea I described at the onset
of this tome came to life: The History of American Music in
3 E-Z Pieces. But what could be the third act? Why, “The
King and Eye,” of course. What better conclusion to the
evolution of American Music than the life and death of one
of our biggest rock icons: Elvis Presley? Country + Blues =
Rock.
And so the show came full circle, spanning from 1850 to
1950—the years that many argue mark the beginning and end
of what was truly American music: the songs of the plains
through to the demise of American rock and roll at the
hands of the British invasion.
An album captured the sounds of this show, taken from two
performances from the second European tour. The tour opened
at the prestigious Amsterdam Opera House, Het
Musiektheater, and that show was recorded using a
direct-to-digital system. The two recordings have been
intercut to create a single impression of the musical side
of this staggering performance piece.
The sights, on the other hand, are forever a memory. It’s
too bad you can’t see the towering black cube-head giant,
or the day-glow tits-and-ass Las Vegas scene, or the
mischievous wooden children, Shirley and Shorty while you
listen. I guess you have to use your imagination.
Imagination is, after all, what the Residents are all
about. The next time they come to me with a show idea based
on the fall of the Roman Empire or the big bang theory, I’m
certainly going to pay more attention.
- Rich Shupe