''Waiting for the Electrician or Someone Like Him'' is the first

comedy Comedy is a genre of fiction that consists of discourses or works intended to be humorous or amusing by inducing laughter, especially in theatre, film, stand-up comedy, television, radio, books, or any other entertainment medium. The term o ...

album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as Digital distribution#Music, digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early ...

recorded by

the Firesign Theatre The Firesign Theatre (also known as the Firesigns) was an American surreal humour, surreal comedy troupe who first appeared on November 17, 1966, in a live performance on the Los Angeles radio program ''Radio Free Oz'' on station KPFK FM broad ...

. It was originally released in January 1968 by

Columbia Records Columbia Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music, Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the North American division of Japanese Conglomerate (company), conglomerate Sony. It was founded on Janua ...

Synopsis

The first side of the original LP presented a trilogy of three related plays, presented as continuously connected tracks progressing in time. The second side presented a longer, separate play.

"Temporarily Humboldt County"

The first section runs 9 min 14 sec, and satirizes the displacement of the American Indians (

David Ossman David Ossman (born December 6, 1936 in Santa Monica) is an American writer and comedian, best known as a member of the Firesign Theatre and screenwriter of such films as '' Zachariah''. Early life Ossman attended Pomona College, where he starre ...

and

Phil Austin Philip Baine Austin (April 6, 1941 – June 18, 2015) was an American comedian and writer, best known as a member of the Firesign Theatre. Early life and education Austin was born in Denver, Colorado and later grew up in Fresno, California, att ...

), first by

Spanish conquistador Conquistadors (, ) or conquistadores (, ; meaning 'conquerors') were the explorer-soldiers of the Spanish Empire, Spanish and Portuguese Empires of the 15th and 16th centuries. During the Age of Discovery, conquistadors sailed beyond Europe to ...

s, then by

American frontier The American frontier, also known as the Old West or the Wild West, encompasses the geography, history, folklore, and culture associated with the forward wave of United States territorial acquisitions, American expansion in mainland North Amer ...

smen, and finally by the US government forcing them onto a reservation, which it uses as a " cobalt testing range". The title comes from friends of the Firesign Theatre telling them that the local Indians in

Humboldt County, California Humboldt County () is a county located in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 136,463. The county seat is Eureka. Humboldt County comprises the Eureka–Arcata–Fortuna, California Micropolitan Statistica ...

added "temporarily" to the name as a way of saying no one could really own the land. The section ends with a bomb explosion, followed by the sound of wind blowing, and the Indians coming out of it portraying a raid in a Hollywood western.

"W. C. Fields Forever"

This 7 min 39 sec track segues as the Indians wander silently through the desert and come upon

Peter Bergman Peter Michael Bergman (born June 11, 1953) is an American actor best known for his portrayals on soap operas, such as Cliff Warner on '' All My Children'' (1979–89) on ABC as well as Jack Abbott on ''The Young and the Restless'' (1989–prese ...

welcoming them to the "Lazy O Magic Circle Dudes Ranch and Collective Love Farm", a

hippie A hippie, also spelled hippy, especially in British English, is someone associated with the counterculture of the 1960s, originally a youth movement that began in the United States during the mid-1960s and spread to different countries around ...

commune A commune is an alternative term for an intentional community. Commune or comună or comune or other derivations may also refer to: Administrative-territorial entities * Commune (administrative division), a municipality or township ** Communes of ...

. The commune's spiritual leader, the perpetually drunk/stoned "Tiny Doctor Tim" (Proctor), is a parody of

Timothy Leary Timothy Francis Leary (October 22, 1920 – May 31, 1996) was an American psychologist and author known for his strong advocacy of psychedelic drugs. Evaluations of Leary are polarized, ranging from bold oracle to publicity hound. He was "a her ...

Philip Proctor Philip Proctor (born 1940) is an American actor, comedian and a member of the Firesign Theatre. He has performed voice-over work for video games, films and television series. Career Of the four members of Firesign Theatre, Proctor has had t ...

impersonation An impersonator is someone who imitates or copies the behavior or actions of another. There are many reasons for impersonating someone: *Entertainment: An entertainer impersonates a celebrity, generally for entertainment, and makes fun of ...

W. C. Fields William Claude Dukenfield (January 29, 1880 – December 25, 1946), better known as W. C. Fields, was an American comedian, actor, juggler, and writer. Fields's comic persona was a misanthropic and hard-drinking egotist who remained a sympathe ...

actually appeared on the first track, dedicating the cobalt testing range; this track title parodies the

Beatles The Beatles were an English rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the most influential band of all time and were integral to the developme ...

song "

Strawberry Fields Forever "Strawberry Fields Forever" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles, written by John Lennon and credited to Lennon–McCartney. It was released on 13 February 1967 as a double A-side single with "Penny Lane". It represented a departur ...

"Le Trente-Huit Cunégonde"

This 7 min 19 sec track segues into a future world in which the 1960s hippie

counterculture A counterculture is a culture whose values and norms of behavior differ substantially from those of mainstream society, sometimes diametrically opposed to mainstream cultural mores.Eric Donald Hirsch. ''The Dictionary of Cultural Literacy''. Hou ...

has now replaced the mainstream cultural establishment. Police (Proctor and Bergman) patrol searching for "non-groovy" people ''not'' in possession of drugs, such as a grandmother (Austin) whom they arrest to be "returned for re-grooving". A teenager named

Malcolm X Malcolm X (born Malcolm Little, later Malik el-Shabazz; May 19, 1925 – February 21, 1965) was an American Muslim minister and human rights activist who was a prominent figure during the civil rights movement. A spokesman for the Nation of Is ...

John Lennon John Winston Ono Lennon (born John Winston Lennon; 9 October 19408 December 1980) was an English singer, songwriter, musician and peace activist who achieved worldwide fame as founder, co-songwriter, co-lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of ...

(Austin) is still being breast-fed by his mother (Proctor), and gets in trouble with his school principal (Proctor) for studying instead of hanging out and "relating" with his peers by smoking

marijuana Cannabis, also known as marijuana among other names, is a psychoactive drug from the cannabis plant. Native to Central or South Asia, the cannabis plant has been used as a drug for both recreational and entheogenic purposes and in various tra ...

. A US senator who sounds like

Robert F. Kennedy Robert Francis Kennedy (November 20, 1925June 6, 1968), also known by his initials RFK and by the nickname Bobby, was an American lawyer and politician who served as the 64th United States Attorney General from January 1961 to September 1964, ...

(Proctor) chairs a committee which also returns people for re-grooving, and the "Secretary of Peace" (Ossman) directs bomber aircraft to drop copies of ''

Naked Lunch ''Naked Lunch'' (sometimes ''The Naked Lunch'') is a 1959 novel by American writer William S. Burroughs. The book is structured as a series of loosely connected vignettes, intended by Burroughs to be read in any order. The reader follows the narr ...

'' on

Nigeria Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf o ...

Side two: "Waiting for The Electrician or Someone Like Him"

This single, 17 min 48 sec track begins as a

Turkish language Turkish ( , ), also referred to as Turkish of Turkey (''Türkiye Türkçesi''), is the most widely spoken of the Turkic languages, with around 80 to 90 million speakers. It is the national language of Turkey and Northern Cyprus. Significant sma ...

instruction record, and immediately follows its listener on a

Kafkaesque Franz Kafka (3 July 1883 – 3 June 1924) was a German-speaking Bohemian novelist and short-story writer, widely regarded as one of the major figures of 20th-century literature. His work fuses elements of realism and the fantastic. It typi ...

trip overseas. An unnamed innocent (Austin) is manipulated by mysterious strangers and authority figures into situations beyond his control. (In the written script, the character is called simply "P." for Phil, a reference to Kafka's use of "K." in '' The Castle.'') A highlight of side two is the "Beat the Reaper" sketch, a mock

game show A game show is a genre of broadcast viewing entertainment (radio, television, internet, stage or other) where contestants compete for a reward. These programs can either be participatory or Let's Play, demonstrative and are typically directed b ...

in which the contestant (Austin) is injected with a disease and must guess what it is in order to win the

antidote An antidote is a substance that can counteract a form of poisoning. The term ultimately derives from the Greek term φάρμακον ἀντίδοτον ''(pharmakon) antidoton'', "(medicine) given as a remedy". Antidotes for anticoagulants are s ...

; if the contestant fails to self-diagnose, he is sent home with the disease. This segment is also featured on both the ''

Forward Into The Past ''Forward Into the Past'' is a 1976 compilation album by the Firesign Theatre. It presents the "Greatest Hits" from their nine Columbia albums and includes two tracks that were previously released only on a single. Track listing Side one #" ...

'' and '' Shoes for Industry: The Best of the Firesign Theatre'' compilation albums.

Issues and reissues

''Waiting for the Electrician or Someone Like Him'' was originally released on Mono LP, Stereo LP, and 8-Track. * Mono LP: Columbia CL-2718 * Stereo LP: Columbia CS-9518 * 8 track: 18C-09518 It has been re-released on CD at least three times * 1992: Mobile Fidelity MFCD-762 * 2001: Sony * 2001: Laugh.com LGH1071 Some of the 2001 Sony CDs omit the first 16 seconds of the beginning of track 4 due to a mastering error. The defective Sony re-release and some non-defective copies also end with an un-marked bonus track "The Mantras and The Chakras". This track, lasting 4:08, is not included on any other Firesign release.

Cover

On the cover of the LP the name of the group is rendered "Firesign ''Theater''." On their next album, ''

How Can You Be in Two Places at Once When You're Not Anywhere at All ''How Can You Be in Two Places at Once When You're Not Anywhere at All'' is the second comedy album recorded by the Firesign Theatre. It was originally released in July 1969 by Columbia Records. Track listing Side one This side of the vinyl LP ...

,'' the name is spelled "Firesign ''Theatre''." The latter spelling has been used consistently since that time.

Citations

* * *

References

* * Marsh, Dave, and

Greil Marcus Greil Marcus (born June 19, 1945) is an American author, music journalist and cultural critic. He is notable for producing scholarly and literary essays that place rock music in a broader framework of culture and politics. Biography Marcus wa ...

. "The Firesign Theatre." ''

The New Rolling Stone Record Guide ''The Rolling Stone Album Guide'', previously known as ''The Rolling Stone Record Guide'', is a book that contains professional music reviews written and edited by staff members from ''Rolling Stone'' magazine. Its first edition was published in 1 ...

''. Ed. Dave Marsh and John Swenson. New York: Random House, 1983. 175–176. *

External links

A transcription of "Temporarily Humboldt County"
{{Authority control 1968 debut albums The Firesign Theatre albums Albums produced by Gary Usher Columbia Records albums 1960s comedy albums