It Crawled into My Hand, Honest
Encyclopedia
It Crawled into My Hand, Honest is the second 1968 studio album by The Fugs
, a band composed of anti-war poets. It was released in the USA by record company Reprise
. As of March 2009, the album is not currently available as a stand-alone CD, but the tracks appear in the 2006 3-CD box set, Electromagnetic Steamboat.
established a bookstore next to the apartment of beat
poet and publisher Tuli Kupferberg
in 1964, the two decided to form a band, The Fugs
, writing 50-60 songs between them prior to asking Ken Weaver
to join. In subsequent years, this core trio worked with a number of musicians as they produced a series of albums in quick succession. It crawled... was their fifth studio album.
The band built up a cult following, gaining admiration from counter-culture figures such as William S. Burroughs
and Abbie Hoffman
. They were known especially for their pro-drugs
, anti-war
stance, use of poetry
in their music, and large number of sexual references in their songs.
Due to their overt sexual content, The Fugs were at risk of censorship. However, while on Reprise Records, the company president Mo Ostin showed a willingness to release Fugs material uncensored. This era of freedom began with the release of the album Tenderness Junction
, released in early 1968. Work on It crawled.. began straight after.
The album was The Fugs' most expensive, costing around $25,000. The working title was Rapture of the Deep; this along with Tenderness Junction, and "It Crawled..." demonstrate The Fugs' enjoyment of including thinly-veiled sexual references in their work.
, with several complex and interesting compositions. This was partly due to personnel; Bill Wolf was added to the band, a talented bassist with a good harmony voice, along with Ken Pine, a skilled guitarist. Session musicians also added to the depth of the work; Band leader Sanders
later stated:
The songs on the album were diverse in style, from chants and spoken works to the frenetic psychedelic rock
of "Crystal Liaison". The Fugs also introduced the use of a pair of drummers at this period: founder member Ken Weaver
plus new recruit Bob Mason.
Despite the changes, the underlying approach of The Fugs remained irreverent and humorous. The album featured a high number of short tracks, many included for their comic value, such as "National Haiku Contest", a teenager's surreal haiku
in response to an unwanted pregnancy, and "Robinson Crusoe" a sketch on sexual frustration featuring Robinson Crusoe
and Man Friday
. In supporting tours, founding band member Kupferberg
used a wide range of unusual costumes, and punctuated performances with wild dances and witty satiric routines.
Political and social commentary also remained highly prominent, with tracks such the as pro-drugs eulogy "Marijuana", the redneck
satire "Johnny Pissoff Meets the Red Angel", and the pro-peace chant "Irene".
Side B
The Fugs
The Fugs are a band formed in New York in late 1964 by poets Ed Sanders and Tuli Kupferberg, with Ken Weaver on drums. Soon afterward, they were joined by Peter Stampfel and Steve Weber of the Holy Modal Rounders...
, a band composed of anti-war poets. It was released in the USA by record company Reprise
Reprise
Reprise is a fundamental device in the history of art. In literature, a reprise consists of the rewriting of another work; in music, a reprise is the repetition or reiteration of the opening material later in a composition as occurs in the recapitulation of sonata form, though—originally in the...
. As of March 2009, the album is not currently available as a stand-alone CD, but the tracks appear in the 2006 3-CD box set, Electromagnetic Steamboat.
History
When poet and publisher Ed SandersEd Sanders
Ed Sanders is an American poet, singer, social activist, environmentalist, author and publisher and has been a longtime member of the band The Fugs. He has been called a bridge between the Beat and Hippie generations.-Biography:...
established a bookstore next to the apartment of beat
Beat generation
The Beat Generation refers to a group of American post-WWII writers who came to prominence in the 1950s, as well as the cultural phenomena that they both documented and inspired...
poet and publisher Tuli Kupferberg
Tuli Kupferberg
Naphtali "Tuli" Kupferberg was an American counterculture poet, author, cartoonist, pacifist anarchist, publisher and co-founder of the band The Fugs.-Biography:...
in 1964, the two decided to form a band, The Fugs
The Fugs
The Fugs are a band formed in New York in late 1964 by poets Ed Sanders and Tuli Kupferberg, with Ken Weaver on drums. Soon afterward, they were joined by Peter Stampfel and Steve Weber of the Holy Modal Rounders...
, writing 50-60 songs between them prior to asking Ken Weaver
Ken Weaver (musician)
Ken Weaver is an American singer, songwriter and musician. Born on Galveston Island, Texas, he grew up in El Campo and went on to be a Russian translator for the Air Force. A drummer, Weaver joined Ed Sanders and Tuli Kupferberg to form the rock band The Fugs in 1964...
to join. In subsequent years, this core trio worked with a number of musicians as they produced a series of albums in quick succession. It crawled... was their fifth studio album.
The band built up a cult following, gaining admiration from counter-culture figures such as William S. Burroughs
William S. Burroughs
William Seward Burroughs II was an American novelist, poet, essayist and spoken word performer. A primary figure of the Beat Generation and a major postmodernist author, he is considered to be "one of the most politically trenchant, culturally influential, and innovative artists of the 20th...
and Abbie Hoffman
Abbie Hoffman
Abbot Howard "Abbie" Hoffman was a political and social activist who co-founded the Youth International Party ....
. They were known especially for their pro-drugs
DRUGS
Destroy Rebuild Until God Shows are an American post-hardcore band formed in 2010. They released their debut self-titled album on February 22, 2011.- Formation :...
, anti-war
Anti-war
An anti-war movement is a social movement, usually in opposition to a particular nation's decision to start or carry on an armed conflict, unconditional of a maybe-existing just cause. The term can also refer to pacifism, which is the opposition to all use of military force during conflicts. Many...
stance, use of poetry
Poetry
Poetry is a form of literary art in which language is used for its aesthetic and evocative qualities in addition to, or in lieu of, its apparent meaning...
in their music, and large number of sexual references in their songs.
Due to their overt sexual content, The Fugs were at risk of censorship. However, while on Reprise Records, the company president Mo Ostin showed a willingness to release Fugs material uncensored. This era of freedom began with the release of the album Tenderness Junction
Tenderness Junction
Tenderness Junction is a 1968 studio album by The Fugs, a band formed in 1964 by anti-war musician/poets Ed Sanders, Tuli Kupferberg and Ken Weaver. It was released in the U.S. by record company Reprise...
, released in early 1968. Work on It crawled.. began straight after.
The album was The Fugs' most expensive, costing around $25,000. The working title was Rapture of the Deep; this along with Tenderness Junction, and "It Crawled..." demonstrate The Fugs' enjoyment of including thinly-veiled sexual references in their work.
Musical style
In 1968, The Fugs' sound had developed considerably from their early works such as The Fugs First AlbumThe Fugs First Album
The Fugs First Album is the 1965 debut album by The Fugs, described in their All Music profile as "arguably the first underground rock group of all time". In 1966, the album charted #142 on Billboard's "Top Pop Albums" chart...
, with several complex and interesting compositions. This was partly due to personnel; Bill Wolf was added to the band, a talented bassist with a good harmony voice, along with Ken Pine, a skilled guitarist. Session musicians also added to the depth of the work; Band leader Sanders
Ed Sanders
Ed Sanders is an American poet, singer, social activist, environmentalist, author and publisher and has been a longtime member of the band The Fugs. He has been called a bridge between the Beat and Hippie generations.-Biography:...
later stated:
For back-up harmonies, we used some fine singers who had worked as Harry Belafonte's harmonists. You can hear them, say, on "Wide, Wide River," and "When the Mode of the Music Changes".
The songs on the album were diverse in style, from chants and spoken works to the frenetic psychedelic rock
Psychedelic rock
Psychedelic rock is a style of rock music that is inspired or influenced by psychedelic culture and attempts to replicate and enhance the mind-altering experiences of psychedelic drugs. It emerged during the mid 1960s among folk rock and blues rock bands in United States and the United Kingdom...
of "Crystal Liaison". The Fugs also introduced the use of a pair of drummers at this period: founder member Ken Weaver
Ken Weaver (musician)
Ken Weaver is an American singer, songwriter and musician. Born on Galveston Island, Texas, he grew up in El Campo and went on to be a Russian translator for the Air Force. A drummer, Weaver joined Ed Sanders and Tuli Kupferberg to form the rock band The Fugs in 1964...
plus new recruit Bob Mason.
Despite the changes, the underlying approach of The Fugs remained irreverent and humorous. The album featured a high number of short tracks, many included for their comic value, such as "National Haiku Contest", a teenager's surreal haiku
Haiku
' , plural haiku, is a very short form of Japanese poetry typically characterised by three qualities:* The essence of haiku is "cutting"...
in response to an unwanted pregnancy, and "Robinson Crusoe" a sketch on sexual frustration featuring Robinson Crusoe
Robinson Crusoe
Robinson Crusoe is a novel by Daniel Defoe that was first published in 1719. Epistolary, confessional, and didactic in form, the book is a fictional autobiography of the title character—a castaway who spends 28 years on a remote tropical island near Trinidad, encountering cannibals, captives, and...
and Man Friday
Man Friday
Friday is one of the main characters of Daniel Defoe's novel Robinson Crusoe. Robinson Crusoe names the man, with whom he cannot at first communicate, Friday because they first meet on that day...
. In supporting tours, founding band member Kupferberg
Tuli Kupferberg
Naphtali "Tuli" Kupferberg was an American counterculture poet, author, cartoonist, pacifist anarchist, publisher and co-founder of the band The Fugs.-Biography:...
used a wide range of unusual costumes, and punctuated performances with wild dances and witty satiric routines.
Political and social commentary also remained highly prominent, with tracks such the as pro-drugs eulogy "Marijuana", the redneck
Redneck
Redneck is a historically derogatory slang term used in reference to poor, uneducated white farmers, especially from the southern United States...
satire "Johnny Pissoff Meets the Red Angel", and the pro-peace chant "Irene".
Track listing
Side A- Crystal Liaison [3:17]
- Ramses II Is Dead, My Love [2:55]
- Burial Waltz [2:31]
- Wide, Wide River [2:58]
- Life Is Strange [2:40]
Side B
- Johnny Pissoff Meets the Red Angel [4:45]
- Marijuana [1:43]
- Leprechaun [0:15]
- When the Mode Of Music Changes [3:59]
- Whimpers From the Jello [0:24]
- Divine Toe, Pt. 1 [0:42]
- We're Both Dead Now, Alice [0:18]
- Life Is Funny [0:17]
- Grope Need, Pt. 1/Tuli, Visited By the Ghost of Plotinus/More Grope Need [0:43]
- Robinson Crusoe [0:21]
- Claude Pelieu and J.J. Lebel Discuss the Early Verlaine Bread Crust Fragments [4:41]
- National Haiku Contest [0:28]
- Divine Toe, Pt. 2 [0:52]
- Irene [1:14]
Personnel
- Tuli KupferbergTuli KupferbergNaphtali "Tuli" Kupferberg was an American counterculture poet, author, cartoonist, pacifist anarchist, publisher and co-founder of the band The Fugs.-Biography:...
- vocals - Ed SandersEd SandersEd Sanders is an American poet, singer, social activist, environmentalist, author and publisher and has been a longtime member of the band The Fugs. He has been called a bridge between the Beat and Hippie generations.-Biography:...
- vocals - Ken WeaverKen Weaver (musician)Ken Weaver is an American singer, songwriter and musician. Born on Galveston Island, Texas, he grew up in El Campo and went on to be a Russian translator for the Air Force. A drummer, Weaver joined Ed Sanders and Tuli Kupferberg to form the rock band The Fugs in 1964...
- drums, vocals - Ken Pine - guitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
, vocals - Danny Kootch - guitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
, violinViolinThe violin is a string instrument, usually with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is the smallest, highest-pitched member of the violin family of string instruments, which includes the viola and cello.... - Charles Larkey - bassBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....