Let Them Eat Jellybeans
Encyclopedia
Let Them Eat Jellybeans!, subtitled "17 Extracts From Americas Darker Side", is a compilation album
released by Jello Biafra
's Alternative Tentacles
in 1981. It was one of the earliest compilations of underground music in the United States and its original release included an insert of all of the punk
bands known to be playing in the U.S. and Canada at that time. The first side of the LP
features songs by a number of bands that formed the canon of American hardcore punk
in the 1980s, while the second side features more of an art rock
sound.
The album's title comes from the phrase "Let them eat cake
" (supposedly said by Marie Antoinette
). The use of the word jellybeans is in reference to Ronald Reagan
, who was known to consider them his favorite candy.
At least two of the cuts on the punk side of the album have never been issued in the same form heard on Let Them Eat Jellybeans. The version of Black Flag's "Police Story" heard on ...Jellybeans! was recorded during the sessions for the Six Pack
EP and features Dez Cadena
on lead vocals, although the album's insert features the then-current Damaged
-era lineup with Henry Rollins
. Also, the version of Dead Kennedys
' "Nazi Punks Fuck Off!
" is a wholly different recording than the versions heard on both In God We Trust, Inc.
and the "Nazi Punks Fuck Off!" single.
According to Alternative Tentacles, it has not reissued the album because Black Flag would not give permission to use their track and because there has been "a falling out" between Biafra and another unnamed band on the record. Biafra would not re-release the album unless it is in its full, original form. Despite this, the album has been in widespread circulation on peer to peer file sharing networks and on the internet, plus used copies can be found in record stores.
Side Two:
Compilation album
A compilation album is an album featuring tracks from one or more performers, often culled from a variety of sources The tracks are usually collected according to a common characteristic, such as popularity, genre, source or subject matter...
released by 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...
's Alternative Tentacles
Alternative Tentacles
Alternative Tentacles is an independent record label originally based in San Francisco, California and was established in 1979. It was originally used as the label name by the Dead Kennedys for the self-produced single "California Über Alles", and after realizing the potential for an independent...
in 1981. It was one of the earliest compilations of underground music in the United States and its original release included an insert of all of the punk
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...
bands known to be playing in the U.S. and Canada at that time. The first side of the LP
Gramophone record
A gramophone record, commonly known as a phonograph record , vinyl record , or colloquially, a record, is an analog sound storage medium consisting of a flat disc with an inscribed, modulated spiral groove...
features songs by a number of bands that formed the canon of American hardcore punk
Hardcore punk
Hardcore punk is an underground music genre that originated in the late 1970s, following the mainstream success of punk rock. Hardcore is generally faster, thicker, and heavier than earlier punk rock. The origin of the term "hardcore punk" is uncertain. The Vancouver-based band D.O.A...
in the 1980s, while the second side features more of an art rock
Art rock
Art rock is a subgenre of rock music that originated in the United Kingdom in the 1960s, with influences from art, avant-garde, and classical music. The first usage of the term, according to Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary, was in 1968. Influenced by the work of The Beatles, most notably their Sgt...
sound.
The album's title comes from the phrase "Let them eat cake
Let Them Eat Cake
"Let them eat cake" is the traditional translation to English of the French phrase "Qu'ils mangent de la brioche", supposedly spoken by "a great princess" upon learning that the peasants had no bread...
" (supposedly said by Marie Antoinette
Marie Antoinette
Marie Antoinette ; 2 November 1755 – 16 October 1793) was an Archduchess of Austria and the Queen of France and of Navarre. She was the fifteenth and penultimate child of Holy Roman Empress Maria Theresa and Holy Roman Emperor Francis I....
). The use of the word jellybeans is in reference to Ronald Reagan
Ronald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan was the 40th President of the United States , the 33rd Governor of California and, prior to that, a radio, film and television actor....
, who was known to consider them his favorite candy.
At least two of the cuts on the punk side of the album have never been issued in the same form heard on Let Them Eat Jellybeans. The version of Black Flag's "Police Story" heard on ...Jellybeans! was recorded during the sessions for the Six Pack
Six Pack (EP)
-Band:* Dez Cadena – vocals, rhythm guitar* Greg Ginn – lead guitar* Chuck Dukowski – bass guitar* Robo – drums-Production:* Geza X – producer, recording engineer, mix engineer* Spot – producer* Raymond Pettibon – artwork...
EP and features Dez Cadena
Dez Cadena
Dez Paul Cadena is an American punk rock singer and guitarist. He was the third vocalist and later rhythm guitarist for hardcore punk band Black Flag. Since 2001 Cadena has played guitar with the Misfits...
on lead vocals, although the album's insert features the then-current Damaged
Damaged (Black Flag album)
Damaged is the debut studio album by the American hardcore punk band Black Flag. It was released in December 1981 through SST Records. In 2003, the album was ranked number 340 on Rolling Stones list of The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time....
-era lineup with Henry Rollins
Henry Rollins
Henry Rollins is an American singer-songwriter, spoken word artist, writer, comedian, publisher, actor, and radio DJ....
. Also, the version of 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....
' "Nazi Punks Fuck Off!
Nazi Punks Fuck Off!
"Nazi Punks Fuck Off" was the fifth single by the Dead Kennedys. The record was released in 1981 on Alternative Tentacles with "Moral Majority" as the b-side. Both are taken from the In God We Trust, Inc. EP, although the version of the title track on the EP is a different recording from the...
" is a wholly different recording than the versions heard on both In God We Trust, Inc.
In God We Trust, Inc.
In God We Trust, Inc. is a hardcore punk EP by the Dead Kennedys; it is now reissued with the Plastic Surgery Disasters album. The thrashing, lightning-fast beats and shouted vocals, on the first six tracks, resembles Washington D.C.'s punk bands of the time; more than on any other Dead Kennedys...
and the "Nazi Punks Fuck Off!" single.
According to Alternative Tentacles, it has not reissued the album because Black Flag would not give permission to use their track and because there has been "a falling out" between Biafra and another unnamed band on the record. Biafra would not re-release the album unless it is in its full, original form. Despite this, the album has been in widespread circulation on peer to peer file sharing networks and on the internet, plus used copies can be found in record stores.
Track listing
Side One:- "Ha Ha Ha" - performed by FlipperFlipper (band)Flipper is a punk band formed in San Francisco, California in 1979, continuing in often erratic fashion until the mid-1990s, then reuniting in 2005. The band influenced a number of grunge,, punk rock and noise rock bands...
- "The Prisoner" - performed by D.O.A.D.O.A. (band)D.O.A. is a hardcore punk band from Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. They are often referred to as the "founders" of hardcore punk, along with Black Flag, Bad Brains, Teen Idles, and Minor Threat. Their second album Hardcore '81 was thought by many to have been the first actual reference to...
- "Police Story" - performed by Black FlagBlack Flag (band)Black Flag was an American punk rock band formed in 1976 in Hermosa Beach, California. The band was established by Greg Ginn, the guitarist, primary songwriter and sole continuous member through multiple personnel changes in the band...
- "Pay to Cum" - performed by Bad BrainsBad BrainsBad Brains is an American hardcore punk band formed in Washington, D.C., in 1977. They are widely regarded as among the pioneers of hardcore punk, though the band's members objected to this term to describe their music. They are also an adept reggae band, while later recordings featured elements of...
- "Nazi Punks Fuck Off!Nazi Punks Fuck Off!"Nazi Punks Fuck Off" was the fifth single by the Dead Kennedys. The record was released in 1981 on Alternative Tentacles with "Moral Majority" as the b-side. Both are taken from the In God We Trust, Inc. EP, although the version of the title track on the EP is a different recording from the...
" - performed by Dead KennedysDead KennedysDead 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.... - "Paid Vacation" - performed by Circle JerksCircle JerksThe Circle Jerks are an American hardcore punk band, formed in 1980 in Los Angeles, California. It was formed by Black Flag's original singer, Keith Morris, and future Bad Religion guitarist Greg Hetson. They were among the preeminent hardcore punk bands of the L.A. scene in the late 1970s.The band...
- "Prostitution" - performed by Really RedReally RedReally Red was one of Houston Texas' first Punk bands in the late 70's, along with The Legionaire's Disease Band, Plastic Idols and the Hates. Their roots can be traced as far back as the late 60's when Ronnie Bond and Kelly Younger had a high school band called The Lords...
- "Jesus Entering from the Rear" - performed by The FeederzThe FeederzFeederz were a punk rock band from Arizona. They were known for their song Jesus Entering from the Rear, which featured on Alternative Tentacles', their Let Them Eat Jellybeans compilation, and for their provocative album covers. Feederz had strong Situationist tendencies, verging into communism...
- "Slave to My Dick" - performed by Subhumans
Side Two:
- "Isotope Soap" - performed by Geza XGeza XGeza Gedeon, professionally known as Geza X was a personality in the Los Angeles punk scene in the late 1970s. Geza produced records for a number of early California punk bands including the Dead Kennedys, The Germs, Black Flag, The Avengers and The Weirdos...
- "Persecution-That's My Song" - performed by BPeople
- "An Object" - performed by Wounds
- "Everyone's A Bigot" - performed by The OffsThe OffsThe Offs are a punk/ska band from San Francisco, started by guitarist Billy Hawk and singer Don Vinil, and later joined by former Hot Tuna drummer Bob Steeler and a rotation of horn players including Bob Roberts, Richard Edson and Roland Young...
- "Corporate Food" - performed by AnonymousAnonymous workAnonymous works are works, such as art or literature, that have an anonymous, undisclosed, or unknown creator or author. In the United States it is legally defined as "a work on the copies or phonorecords of which no natural person is identified as author."...
(Steve FiskSteve FiskSteve Fisk is a Washington-based audio engineer, record producer and musician.Fisk joined the instrumental rock band Pell Mell in 1982. With vocalist Shawn Smith, he formed Pigeonhed, which released its first album in 1993....
) - "Fun Again" - performed by Half JapaneseHalf JapaneseHalf Japanese is a punk rock band formed by brothers Jad and David Fair in their Coldwater, Michigan bedroom around 1975. Their original instrumentation included a small drum set, which they took turns playing; vocals; and an out of tune guitar...
- "Joke's On You" - performed by Christian Lunch
- "Sleep" - performed by Voice FarmVoice FarmVoice Farm is a music and video collective based in San Francisco known for their outrageous live shows and videos. Vocalist Charly Brown and sound designer Myke Reilly form the core of the group. Voice Farm's musical style has evolved from their influential early 80's synth-pop sound into what...