Dear Friends | ||||
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Compilation album by The Firesign Theatre | ||||
Released | January 1972 | |||
Recorded | September 1970 - February 1971 | |||
Genre | Comedy | |||
Length | 74:07 | |||
Label | Columbia | |||
Producer | The Firesign Theatre | |||
The Firesign Theatre chronology | ||||
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Professional ratings | |
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Review scores | |
Source | Rating |
The New Rolling Stone Record Guide |
Dear Friends is The Firesign Theatre's fifth album to be released on Columbia Records. It is a compilation album, collecting the best bits from the group's nationally syndicated radio program produced from September 1970 to February 1971.
All tracks by The Firesign Theatre
The dates following the track listing for the tracks on this album indicate the date of the live show at which this track was recorded.
Between September 9, 1970 and February 17, 1971 The Firesign Theatre performed Dear Friends, a live one-hour live show on radio station KPFK in Los Angeles. These shows were recorded by the group, and then edited into slightly shorter shows which they syndicated to radio stations across the country on 12 inch white label LPs.
The group later collected what they considered to be the best segments from the radio program and compiled a double album. The tracks on each side were selected thematically, and each side was given its own sub-title.
It is one of the few Firesign albums to mention that individual members wrote some of the pieces (Austin wrote "The T.B. Guide," Proctor wrote "The Chinchilla Show" and "Dr. Whiplash," Ossman wrote "Mark Time!" and Bergman wrote "$100 Ben" and several commercial parodies he performed individually). However, the label composer credit for all pieces is to the Firesign Theatre.
This album was originally released simultaneously on LP, cassette, 8-track, and reel-to-reel.
It has been reissued on CD at least twice