Ballot Result is a posthumous live compilation album by Minutemen

Minutemen (band)

Minutemen were an American hardcore punk band formed in San Pedro, California in 1980. Composed of guitarist D. Boon, bassist Mike Watt and drummer George Hurley, Minutemen recorded four albums and eight EPs before Boon's death in an automobile accident in December 1985...

.

The story of Ballot Result starts with the Tour-Spiel

Tour-Spiel

Tour-Spiel is an EP by Minutemen released in 1984. It contained four songs, all covers.-Track listing:# Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Love # The Red and the Black # Green River # Lost...

EP in 1984. Minutemen had been given a copy of a tape of a live radio performance for the Virgin Vinyl Show they had done in Tucson, Arizona, four songs of which they used for the EP. The engineer of that particular session later claimed that Minutemen had not got his permission to use the recording and reacted by releasing a bootleg album, ...Just a Minute Men. The sudden existence of the bootleg album, which the engineer blatantly promoted through magazines like Spin

Spin (magazine)

Spin is a music magazine founded in 1985 by publisher Bob Guccione Jr.-History:In its early years, the magazine was noted for its broad music coverage with an emphasis on college-oriented rock music and on the ongoing emergence of hip-hop. The magazine was eclectic and bold, if sometimes haphazard...

and Flipside, upset Minutemen enough that the group decided to do an anti-bootleg album, 3 Dudes 6 Sides 3 Studio 3 Live. The group printed ballots which they passed out to fans during their summer and fall 1985 performances as well as planned to insert into the first pressing of their next studio album, 3-Way Tie (For Last)

3-Way Tie (For Last)

3-Way Tie is the fourth and final full-length album recorded by the American punk band Minutemen. It is particularly notable for featuring several cover songs by bands such as the Urinals, Meat Puppets, Blue Öyster Cult, Creedence Clearwater Revival and Roky Erickson and the Aliens. It was...

; the ballots would determine which songs the band would record for the live portion of the album.

The automotive death of guitarist and lead singer D. Boon

D. Boon

d. Boon born Dennes Dale Boon, was an American singer, songwriter and guitarist. Active between 1978, when he joined The Reactionaries, and 1985, when he was killed in a van accident, Boon was best known as the guitarist and vocalist of the Californian punk rock trio Minutemen.-Youth:Dennes Boon...

 on December 22, 1985 scuttled Minutemen, putting an end to both the band and the planned live album. Surviving members Mike Watt

Mike Watt

Michael David Watt is an American bassist, singer and songwriter.He is best known for co-founding the rock bands Minutemen, dos, and Firehose; , he is also the bassist for the reunited Stooges and a member of the art rock/jazz/punk/improv group Banyan as well as many other post-Minutemen...

 and George Hurley

George Hurley

George Hurley is a drummer noted for his work with The Minutemen and fIREHOSE.Even though he went to the same high school as D. Boon and Mike Watt he did not meet them until around 1978. That same year, Hurley formed The Reactionaries with Boon, Watt, and Martin Tamburovich...

, a few months from reuniting to form fIREHOSE

FIREHOSE

Firehose was an alternative rock band consisting of Mike Watt , Ed Crawford , and George Hurley .-History:...

 with singer/guitarist Ed Crawford

Ed Crawford

Charles Edward Crawford, aka ed fROMOHIO, is an American best known as the lead singer and guitarist for fIREHOSE, an alternative rock band he formed in 1986 with former Minutemen members Mike Watt and George Hurley .-Biography:In 1985, Minutemen vocalist and guitarist D. Boon was killed in a van...

, decided to use the ballots and existing live recordings (many sent in by fans and friends) to compile the album.

The final album contains all live recordings plus a few rarities and a couple of previously released studio tracks to compensate for the fact that Minutemen had not performed the song live yet (as in the case of "The Price Of Paradise" from 3-Way Tie...) or that no live recording of the song was available ("Song for El Salvador" from The Punch Line

The Punch Line

The Punch Line is the first 12-inch and third record release by influential American punk rock band Minutemen, and the fourth-ever release from SST Records. Less than half the length of most LPs, the total playing time for all eighteen songs is a mere fifteen minutes...

and "Dreams are Free, Motherfucker!" from Buzz or Howl Under the Influence of Heat

Buzz or Howl Under the Influence of Heat

Buzz or Howl Under the Influence of Heat is the sixth overall release from American hardcore punk band Minutemen.-History of the EP:...

, to give two examples.)

The CD version deletes most of the previously released studio recordings (except for "Shit You Hear at Parties" from The Politics of Time

The Politics of Time

The Politics of Time is the seventh overall release, third album-length release, and first compilation by American hardcore punk band the Minutemen....

, which SST didn't have the rights to at the time) but also, curiously, deletes the live version of "Hey Lawdy Mama". The cassette version adds a cover of "Fortunate Son" that was an outtake from the Joy

Joy (EP)

Joy is a three-song seven-inch EP by American hardcore punk band Minutemen. Recorded not long after the release of their first EP Paranoid Time, it was the first release that Minutemen had issued on their own New Alliance Records label in 1981...

sessions and a "Closing Jam" (from 1983) to the double vinyl track listing - these two tracks appear at the end of side one, after "Song For El Salvador".

Track listing

Side one

1. "Little Man With A Gun In His Hand" (Dukowski
   Chuck Dukowski
   Chuck Dukowski is an American punk rock musician, best known as a founding member and bass player for Black Flag. Dukowski wrote some of Black Flag's most popular songs, including "My War," "What I See," "I've Heard It Before" and "Spray Paint." He left the band before the release of My War, and...
   
   /Boon) – 3:03
2. "Political Song For Michael Jackson To Sing" (Watt) – 1:25
3. "I Felt Like A Gringo" (Watt) – 1:39
4. "Jesus And Tequila" (Carducci/Boon) – 2:52
5. "Courage" (Boon) – 2:55
6. "King Of The Hill" (Boon) – 3:00
7. "Bermuda" (Erickson
   Roky Erickson
   Roky Erickson is an American singer, songwriter, harmonica player and guitarist from Texas. He was a founding member of the 13th Floor Elevators and a pioneer of the psychedelic rock genre.-Biography:...
   
   ) – 3:07
   • All tracks on Side One from a live broadcast on WREK
     WREK
     WREK is the radio station staffed by the students of the Georgia Institute of Technology. It is located at 91.1 MHz and on channel 17 on the Georgia Tech cable TV network, GTCN...
     
      radio, Atlanta, GA
     Georgia (U.S. state)
     Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788...
     
     , on November 30, 1985

Side two

1. No One (remix) (Kira
   Kira Roessler
   Kira Roessler is an American bass guitarist, singer and Emmy award-winning dialogue editor. She is best known for her membership in the punk rock group Black Flag.-Biography:...
   
   /Watt) – 6:30
   • Remix by Ethan James
     Ethan James (producer)
     Ethan James was a musician, record producer, and recording engineer best known for his work on the Minutemen's seminal album Double Nickels on the Dime. He also produced and engineered albums for such acts as Black Flag, The Bangles, Rain Parade, Dos, and many others...
     
     , Radio Tokyo Studio, November 1985
2. Mr. Robot's Holy Orders (Hurley/Watt) – 7:45
   • From a live broadcast on WREK
     WREK
     WREK is the radio station staffed by the students of the Georgia Institute of Technology. It is located at 91.1 MHz and on channel 17 on the Georgia Tech cable TV network, GTCN...
     
      radio, Atlanta, GA
     Georgia (U.S. state)
     Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788...
     
     , on November 30, 1985
3. The Price Of Paradise (Boon) – 3:31
   • Previously issued track from 3-Way Tie (For Last)
     3-Way Tie (For Last)
     3-Way Tie is the fourth and final full-length album recorded by the American punk band Minutemen. It is particularly notable for featuring several cover songs by bands such as the Urinals, Meat Puppets, Blue Öyster Cult, Creedence Clearwater Revival and Roky Erickson and the Aliens. It was...
     
     (1985)
4. Song For El Salvador (Boon) – 0:31
   • Previously issued track from The Punch Line
     The Punch Line
     The Punch Line is the first 12-inch and third record release by influential American punk rock band Minutemen, and the fourth-ever release from SST Records. Less than half the length of most LPs, the total playing time for all eighteen songs is a mere fifteen minutes...
     
     (1981)

Side three

1. Ack Ack Ack (Talley-Jones/Johansen) – 0:32
2. History Lesson Part II (Watt) – 2:30
3. Hey Lawdy Mama (Kay/Byrom/Edmonton
   Steppenwolf (band)
   Steppenwolf are a Canadian-American rock group that was prominent in the late 1960s. The group was formed in 1967 in Los Angeles by vocalist John Kay, guitarist Michael Monarch, bassist Rushton Moreve, keyboardist Goldy McJohn and drummer Jerry Edmonton after the dissolution of Toronto group The...
   
   )
4. This Ain't No Picnic
   This Ain't No Picnic
   "This Ain't No Picnic" is a song by punk/alternative band Minutemen. It appears on their 1984 double album Double Nickels on the Dime, and was composed by their lead singer and guitarist D. Boon.-Background:...
   
    (Boon) – 1:46
5. The Cheerleaders (Boon) – 3:28
6. Time (Hell
   Richard Hell
   Richard Hell is a singer, songwriter, bass guitarist, and writer.Richard Hell was an innovator of punk music and fashion. He was one of the first to spike his hair and wear torn, cut and drawn-on shirts, often held together with safety pins...
   
   ) – 2:36
   • First six tracks from a Spin Radio taping done at KPFK
     KPFK
     KPFK is a listener-sponsored radio station based in North Hollywood, California, United States, which serves the Greater Los Angeles Area, and also streams 24 hours a day via the Internet...
     
     's studio in Los Angeles, CA
     Los Angeles, California
     Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
     
      in October 1985
7. Cut (Watt) – 2:01
8. Split Red (Boon/Watt) – 1:05
   • Both tracks from a live broadcast on KPFK
     KPFK
     KPFK is a listener-sponsored radio station based in North Hollywood, California, United States, which serves the Greater Los Angeles Area, and also streams 24 hours a day via the Internet...
     
     , January 2, 1983
9. Dreams Are Free, Motherfucker! (Crane/Boon/Hurley/Watt) – 1:09
   • Previously issued track from Buzz or Howl Under the Influence of Heat
     Buzz or Howl Under the Influence of Heat
     Buzz or Howl Under the Influence of Heat is the sixth overall release from American hardcore punk band Minutemen.-History of the EP:...
     
     (1983)

Side four

1. Shit You Hear At Parties (Boon/Watt) – 1:06
   • From a November 28, 1981 recording session that wasn't released until 1984 as part of the album The Politics Of Time
     The Politics of Time
     The Politics of Time is the seventh overall release, third album-length release, and first compilation by American hardcore punk band the Minutemen....
     
     
2. Hell (Second Take) (Boon/Watt/Hurley) – 7:05
   • Recorded February 2, 1984 in the garage of Saccharine Trust
     Saccharine Trust
     Saccharine Trust is a post-hardcore band from California that was started in 1980 by singer Jack Brewer and guitarist Joe Baiza.The band would frequently perform with SST labelmates Minutemen and Black Flag. Drummer Rob Holzman appeared on their 1981 debut Paganicons but left the band to play in...
     
     's Jack Brewer
     Jack Brewer
     Jack Brewer is a former American football safety in the National Football League for the Minnesota Vikings, New York Giants, Philadelphia Eagles, and the Arizona Cardinals.-College career:...
     
      with a handheld tape recorder.
3. Tour-Spiel (Watt) – 3:22
4. Take Our Test (Watt) – 2:03
   • From a soundboard cassette of a performance at the Indian Cultural Center in Albuquerque, NM
     Albuquerque, New Mexico
     Albuquerque is the largest city in the state of New Mexico, United States. It is the county seat of Bernalillo County and is situated in the central part of the state, straddling the Rio Grande. The city population was 545,852 as of the 2010 Census and ranks as the 32nd-largest city in the U.S. As...
     
      on May 25, 1985, during Black Flag's Loose Nut
     Loose Nut
     Loose Nut is an album released in 1985 by Black Flag on SST Records.-Track listing:#"Loose Nut" – 4:35#"Bastard in Love" – 3:20#"Annihilate this Week" – 4:44#"Best One Yet" – 2:37...
     
     tour.
5. The Punch Line (Watt) – 0:46
6. Search (Hurley/Watt) – 0:48
7. Bob Dylan Wrote Propaganda Songs – 1:16 (Watt)
   • From an audience cassette of a performance at Love Hall in Philadelphia, PA
     Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
     Philadelphia is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Philadelphia County, with which it is coterminous. The city is located in the Northeastern United States along the Delaware and Schuylkill rivers. It is the fifth-most-populous city in the United States,...
     
      on December 15, 1983 during a mini-tour of the East Coast with Hüsker Dü
     Hüsker Dü
     Hüsker Dü was an American rock band formed in Saint Paul, Minnesota in 1979. The band's continual members were guitarist Bob Mould, bassist Greg Norton, and drummer Grant Hart....
     
     
8. Badges (Watt) – 0:38
9. Tension (Tamburovich/Watt) – 1:33
   • From a cassette recording of a Minutemen band practice in the shed behind George Hurley's house sometime in September 1980
10. If Reagan Played Disco (Watt) – 1:15
    • From an audience cassette of an outdoor gig at Wilson Park in Torrance, CA
      Torrance, California
      Torrance is a city incorporated in 1921 and located in the South Bay region of Los Angeles County, California, United States. Torrance has of shore-front beaches on the Pacific Ocean, quieter and less well-known by tourists than others on the Santa Monica Bay, such as those of neighboring...
      
       on May 22, 1982 (Pictures of the gig can be seen on the inside of the Double Nickels On The Dime
      Double Nickels on the Dime
      Double Nickels on the Dime is the third studio album by American punk trio Minutemen, released on the Californian independent record label SST Records in 1984...
      
      album jacket (and CD insert).)
11. No! No! No! To Draft And War/Joe McCarthy's Ghost (Sambia)/(Watt) – 3:00
    • From an audience cassette of the encore of a performance in Madison, WI
      Madison, Wisconsin
      Madison is the capital of the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Dane County. It is also home to the University of Wisconsin–Madison....
      
       on May 2, 1985.

CD version

1. Little Man With A Gun In His Hand (Dukowski
   Chuck Dukowski
   Chuck Dukowski is an American punk rock musician, best known as a founding member and bass player for Black Flag. Dukowski wrote some of Black Flag's most popular songs, including "My War," "What I See," "I've Heard It Before" and "Spray Paint." He left the band before the release of My War, and...
   
   /Boon) – 3:03
2. Political Song For Michael Jackson To Sing (Watt) – 1:25
3. I Felt Like A Gringo (Watt) – 1:39
4. Jesus And Tequila (Carducci/Boon) – 2:52
5. Courage (Boon) – 2:55
6. King Of The Hill (Boon) – 3:00
7. Bermuda (Erickson
   Roky Erickson
   Roky Erickson is an American singer, songwriter, harmonica player and guitarist from Texas. He was a founding member of the 13th Floor Elevators and a pioneer of the psychedelic rock genre.-Biography:...
   
   ) – 3:07
8. No One (remix) (Kira
   Kira Roessler
   Kira Roessler is an American bass guitarist, singer and Emmy award-winning dialogue editor. She is best known for her membership in the punk rock group Black Flag.-Biography:...
   
   /Watt) – 6:30
9. Mr. Robot's Holy Orders (Hurley/Watt) – 7:45
10. Ack Ack Ack (Talley-Jones/Johansen) – 0:32
11. History Lesson Part II (Watt) – 2:30
12. This Ain't No Picnic
    This Ain't No Picnic
    "This Ain't No Picnic" is a song by punk/alternative band Minutemen. It appears on their 1984 double album Double Nickels on the Dime, and was composed by their lead singer and guitarist D. Boon.-Background:...
    
     (Boon) – 1:46
13. The Cheerleaders (Boon) – 3:28
14. Time (Watt) – 2:36
15. Cut (Watt) – 2:01
16. Split Red (Boon/Watt) – 1:05
17. Shit You Hear At Parties (Boon/Watt) – 1:06
18. Hell (Second Take) (Boon/Watt/Hurley) – 7:05
19. Tour-Spiel (Watt) – 3:22
20. Take Our Test (Watt) – 2:03
21. The Punch Line (Watt) – 0:46
22. Search (Hurley/Watt) – 0:48
23. Bob Dylan Wrote Propaganda Songs – 1:16 (Watt)
24. Badges (Watt) – 0:38
25. Tension (Tamburovich/Watt) – 1:33
26. If Reagan Played Disco (Watt) – 1:15
27. No! No! No! To Draft And War/Joe McCarthy's Ghost (Sambia)/(Watt) – 3:00

Musical Personnel

• D. Boon
  D. Boon
  d. Boon born Dennes Dale Boon, was an American singer, songwriter and guitarist. Active between 1978, when he joined The Reactionaries, and 1985, when he was killed in a van accident, Boon was best known as the guitarist and vocalist of the Californian punk rock trio Minutemen.-Youth:Dennes Boon...
  
   - guitar, vocals
• Mike Watt
  Mike Watt
  Michael David Watt is an American bassist, singer and songwriter.He is best known for co-founding the rock bands Minutemen, dos, and Firehose; , he is also the bassist for the reunited Stooges and a member of the art rock/jazz/punk/improv group Banyan as well as many other post-Minutemen...
  
   - bass, vocals
• George Hurley
  George Hurley
  George Hurley is a drummer noted for his work with The Minutemen and fIREHOSE.Even though he went to the same high school as D. Boon and Mike Watt he did not meet them until around 1978. That same year, Hurley formed The Reactionaries with Boon, Watt, and Martin Tamburovich...
  
   - drums
• Crane
  Crane (musician)
  Crane is a pseudonym of Richard Alan Krieger . He is a trumpeter and vocalist that has played and recorded with Minutemen on their albums Buzz or Howl Under the Influence of Heat and Project: Mersh, and with that group's D...
  
   - trumpet and backing vocals on "The Cheerleaders" and "Take Our Test"
• Kira
  Kira Roessler
  Kira Roessler is an American bass guitarist, singer and Emmy award-winning dialogue editor. She is best known for her membership in the punk rock group Black Flag.-Biography:...
  
  - bass on "Tour-Spiel"

The actual "Ballot Results"

According to the back cover of "Ballot Result", these results are from ballots received by SST Records between January and April of 1986.

1. This Ain't No Picnic
2. If Reagan Played Disco
3. Jesus And Tequila
4. Bob Dylan Wrote Propaganda Songs
5. King Of The Hill
6. Little Man With A Gun In His Hand
7. The Punch Line
8. No One
9. Courage
10. The Cheerleaders
11. History Lesson, Part II
12. Political Song For Michael Jackson To Sing
13. Joe McCarthy's Ghost
14. Shit You Hear At Parties
15. Paranoid Chant (*)
16. I Felt Like A Gringo
17. Search
18. Badges
19. Ack Ack Ack
20. Joy
21. Song For El Salvador
22. Dreams Are Free, Motherfucker!
23. The Price Of Paradise
24. Cut
25. Take Our Test
26. Tour-Spiel
27. Party With Me, Punker (*)
28. Tension
29. Hey Lawdy Mama
30. Split Red

An asterisk (*) denotes that the song was not able to be represented on the album.