Holiday in Cambodia
Encyclopedia
"Holiday in Cambodia" was the second single by the American punk
band Dead Kennedys
. The record was released in May 1980 on Alternative Tentacles with "Police Truck
" as the b-side. The title track was re-recorded for the band's first album, Fresh Fruit for Rotting Vegetables
(1980), and the version that appeared on this single, as well as the single's b-side, are available on the rarities album Give Me Convenience or Give Me Death
(1987). The cover picture of the single is taken from the 6 October 1976 Massacre
in Thailand
, and depicts a member of the rightist crowd beating the corpse of a student protester with a metal chair.
The song attacks both Eastern totalitarianism
and Western complacency. The song's lyrics offer a satirical view of young, self-righteous Americans (So you been to school/For a year or two/And you know you’ve seen it all/In daddy’s car/Thinkin’ you’ll go far...) and contrast such a lifestyle with a brutal depiction of the Pol Pot
regime of Cambodia
(Well you’ll work harder/With a gun in your back/For a bowl of rice a day/Slave for soldiers/Till you starve/Then your head is skewered on a stake).
The re-recording of this song that appears on Fresh Fruit for Rotting Vegetables is different from the single version, being fifty-five seconds longer and featuring an extended guitar noise intro as well as an extended solo. While the original performance includes the satirically quoted word "niggers", subsequent performances by the reformed Dead Kennedys, and other artists listed here have substituted the word "brothers" in its place. Biafra, however, has often in the past and currently, replaced the word with "blacks".
In October 1998, Jello Biafra
was sued by former members of the Dead Kennedys. According to Biafra, the suit was a result of his refusal to allow "Holiday in Cambodia" to be used in a commercial for Levi's Dockers
; Biafra opposes Levi's due to what he believes are their unfair business practices and sweatshop
labor. However, the other members claimed that their royalties had been defrauded. "The record industry has been skimming royalties owed artists since the beginning," according to Dead Kennedys guitarist East Bay Ray. "This case is no different from blues musicians being taken advantage of in the twenties and thirties. Many people doubted the claims we made against our former record label back in 1998 but with this announcement there is no denying we were the victims here." Record Label Drops Legal Action
Punk rock
Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
band Dead Kennedys
Dead Kennedys
Dead Kennedys are an American punk rock band formed in San Francisco, California in 1978. The band became part of the American hardcore punk movement of the early 1980s. They gained a large underground fanbase in the international punk music scene....
. The record was released in May 1980 on Alternative Tentacles with "Police Truck
Police Truck
"Police Truck" is a song by the Dead Kennedys. The song was originally released in May, 1980, as the B-side of the "Holiday in Cambodia" single and later released in June 1987 on the DKs' compilation album, Give Me Convenience or Give Me Death...
" as the b-side. The title track was re-recorded for the band's first album, Fresh Fruit for Rotting Vegetables
Fresh Fruit for Rotting Vegetables
Fresh Fruit for Rotting Vegetables is the debut album by the American hardcore punk band Dead Kennedys. It was released in September 1980 through Faulty Products in the United States and through Cherry Red Records in the United Kingdom.It has been certified by BPI gold.The best selling and...
(1980), and the version that appeared on this single, as well as the single's b-side, are available on the rarities album Give Me Convenience or Give Me Death
Give Me Convenience or Give Me Death
-Personnel:* Jello Biafra - vocals, producer, artwork, compiler* East Bay Ray - guitar, echoplex, producer, mixer* Klaus Fluoride - bass, backing vocals * D.H...
(1987). The cover picture of the single is taken from the 6 October 1976 Massacre
6 October 1976 Massacre
The Thammasat University Massacre, or Massacre of 6 October 1976 , was an attack on students and protesters that occurred on the campus of Thammasat University and at Sanam Luang in Bangkok. Students from various universities were demonstrating against the return to Thailand of Field Marshal...
in Thailand
Thailand
Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
, and depicts a member of the rightist crowd beating the corpse of a student protester with a metal chair.
The song attacks both Eastern totalitarianism
Totalitarianism
Totalitarianism is a political system where the state recognizes no limits to its authority and strives to regulate every aspect of public and private life wherever feasible...
and Western complacency. The song's lyrics offer a satirical view of young, self-righteous Americans (So you been to school/For a year or two/And you know you’ve seen it all/In daddy’s car/Thinkin’ you’ll go far...) and contrast such a lifestyle with a brutal depiction of the Pol Pot
Pol Pot
Saloth Sar , better known as Pol Pot, , was a Cambodian Maoist revolutionary who led the Khmer Rouge from 1963 until his death in 1998. From 1976 to 1979, he served as the Prime Minister of Democratic Kampuchea....
regime of Cambodia
Cambodia
Cambodia , officially known as the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia...
(Well you’ll work harder/With a gun in your back/For a bowl of rice a day/Slave for soldiers/Till you starve/Then your head is skewered on a stake).
The re-recording of this song that appears on Fresh Fruit for Rotting Vegetables is different from the single version, being fifty-five seconds longer and featuring an extended guitar noise intro as well as an extended solo. While the original performance includes the satirically quoted word "niggers", subsequent performances by the reformed Dead Kennedys, and other artists listed here have substituted the word "brothers" in its place. Biafra, however, has often in the past and currently, replaced the word with "blacks".
In October 1998, Jello Biafra
Jello Biafra
Jello Biafra is an American musician, spoken word artist and leading figure of the Green Party of the United States. Biafra first gained attention as the lead singer and songwriter for San Francisco punk rock band Dead Kennedys...
was sued by former members of the Dead Kennedys. According to Biafra, the suit was a result of his refusal to allow "Holiday in Cambodia" to be used in a commercial for Levi's Dockers
Dockers
Dockers is a brand of khaki garments from Levi Strauss & Co.Levi Strauss & Co., then specialized in denim, introduced the Dockers brand in 1986. Dockers became a leading brand of business casual clothing for men led by Bob Siegel. In 1987, Dockers introduced a women's line...
; Biafra opposes Levi's due to what he believes are their unfair business practices and sweatshop
Sweatshop
Sweatshop is a negatively connoted term for any working environment considered to be unacceptably difficult or dangerous. Sweatshop workers often work long hours for very low pay, regardless of laws mandating overtime pay or a minimum wage. Child labour laws may be violated. Sweatshops may have...
labor. However, the other members claimed that their royalties had been defrauded. "The record industry has been skimming royalties owed artists since the beginning," according to Dead Kennedys guitarist East Bay Ray. "This case is no different from blues musicians being taken advantage of in the twenties and thirties. Many people doubted the claims we made against our former record label back in 1998 but with this announcement there is no denying we were the victims here." Record Label Drops Legal Action
Covers and other versions
- It is covered by Earth CrisisEarth CrisisEarth Crisis is an American metalcore band from Syracuse, New York, active from 1989 until 2001, reuniting in 2007. Their most recent record, To the Death, was released in May 2009 through Century Media....
. - It is covered by Lääz RockitLääz RockitLääz Rockit are a Power/Thrash band formed in San Francisco, California in 1982. Although one of the lesser-known groups of the Bay Area thrash metal scene, each album in their history has received high critical marks...
. - It is covered by BoysetsfireBoysetsfireBoysetsfire is a post-hardcore band from Newark, Delaware and West Chester, Pennsylvania that formed in October 1994. Boysetsfire is composed of guitarists Chad Istvan and Josh Latshaw, drummer Matt Krupanski, and vocalist Nathan Gray. The band is currently auditioning for a new...
. - It is parodied by Richard Cheese to resemble Christmas songChristmas musicChristmas music comprises a variety of genres of music normally performed or heard around the Christmas season, which tends to begin in the months leading up the actual holiday and end in the weeks shortly thereafter.-Early:...
. - Instrumental version of it appears on Bay Area pianist DJ Lebowitz's Beware of the Piano.
- At the 2007 MTV Video Music Awards2007 MTV Video Music AwardsThe 2007 MTV Video Music Awards, honoring the best music videos from the previous year, took place on September 9, in Las Vegas at The Palms. The 2007 VMAs were the smallest VMAs ever held in MTV history, eliminating 13 awards, re-naming many of the remaining awards, and having only four...
, on September 9, Foo FightersFoo FightersFoo Fighters is an American alternative rock band originally formed in 1994 by Nirvana drummer Dave Grohl as a one-man project following the dissolution of his previous band. The band got its name from the UFOs and various aerial phenomena that were reported by Allied aircraft pilots in World War...
, along with Serj TankianSerj TankianSerj Tankian is a Lebanese-born Armenian-American singer–songwriter, composer, multi-instrumentalist, playwright, record producer, poet, and political activist...
(on vocals) covered the song in The Palms Casino Hotel,in one of the Fantasy Suites. Serj TankianSerj TankianSerj Tankian is a Lebanese-born Armenian-American singer–songwriter, composer, multi-instrumentalist, playwright, record producer, poet, and political activist...
and the Foo FightersFoo FightersFoo Fighters is an American alternative rock band originally formed in 1994 by Nirvana drummer Dave Grohl as a one-man project following the dissolution of his previous band. The band got its name from the UFOs and various aerial phenomena that were reported by Allied aircraft pilots in World War...
have played the song while Tankian supported the Foo Fighters on their UK tour. Tankian has played it while touring solo. Foo Fighters released it as a b-side to their "Long Road to RuinLong Road to Ruin"Long Road to Ruin" is the second single from the Foo Fighters' sixth studio album Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace . The music video was released on November 1, 2007, with the single released on December 3, 2007...
" single. - Released in October 12, 2010, the Covers of the DamnedCovers of the DamnedCovers of the Damned is an EP of covered songs, recorded for Atreyu's Congregation of the Damned Tour, in support of their fifth album, Congregation of the Damned. The performers were a collaboration of Atreyu, along with their tourmates Blessthefall, Chiodos, Endless Hallway and Architects...
EP by Atreyu and their fellow tour-mates (BlessthefallBlessthefallBlessthefall is an American metalcore band from Phoenix, Arizona, currently signed to Fearless Records. The band was founded in 2003 by guitarist Mike Frisby, drummer Matt Traynor, and bassist Jared Warth. Their debut album, His Last Walk, with original vocalist Craig Mabbitt, was released April...
, ChiodosChiodosChiodos is an American post hardcore band from Davison, Michigan. Formed in 2001, the group was originally known as "The Chiodos Bros," the band's name was a tribute to filmmakers Stephen, Charles, and Edward Chiodo, responsible for the film Killer Klowns from Outer Space. Chiodos released their...
, Endless Hallway and Architects) contained a cover of this song as its second track
In other media
- It is featured in ClassClass (film)Class is a 1983 American movie that was directed by Lewis John Carlino, the writer/director of the 1979 film The Great Santini. It features the film debuts of actors Andrew McCarthy, John Cusack, Virginia Madsen, Lolita Davidovich, and Alan Ruck....
. - It is featured in NeighborsNeighbors (film)Neighbors is a 1981 film based on the book by Thomas Berger. It was released through Columbia Pictures, directed by John G. Avildsen and stars John Belushi as Earl, Dan Aykroyd as Vic , Cathy Moriarty as Ramona, Kathryn Walker as Enid, and Lauren-Marie Taylor as Elaine. The film takes liberties...
. - It is featured in episode of Druckfrisch.
- It is featured in Punk's Not Dead.
- It is featured in 1994 comedy movie Spider and Rose.
- It is featured in Leos CaraxLeos CaraxLeos Carax is a French-born film director, critic, and writer. Carax is noted for his poetic style and his tortured depictions of love. His first major work was Boy Meets Girl , and his notable works include Lovers on the Bridge and the controversial Pola X...
's 1984 film Boy Meets Girl. - It is referenced on disc Tercer asalto of the Spanish group Def Con DosDef Con DosDef Con Dos is a rap rock band from Madrid, Spain.Greatly influenced by hip hop bands Beastie Boys, Public Enemy, and Run D.M.C., and rock band Siniestro Total, they started rapping over hip hop bases created by producer Julián Hernández...
. - Master track is downloadable content Rock BandRock BandRock Band is a music video game developed by Harmonix Music Systems, published by MTV Games and Electronic Arts. It is the first title in the Rock Band series. The PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 versions were released in the United States on November 20, 2007, while the PlayStation 2 version was...
. - Altered cover version of its album version is featured in Guitar Hero III: Legends of RockGuitar Hero III: Legends of RockGuitar Hero III: Legends of Rock is a music video game, the third main installment in the Guitar Hero series, and the fourth title overall...
.