Firesign Theatre

Library of Congress inductees The Firesign Theatre are the legendary comedy group behind such albums as Don’t Crush That Dwarf, Hand Me the Pliers and I Think We’re All Bozos on This Bus. Between albums from 1970-1972 they also hosted three weekly radio series on L.A. radio: The Firesign Theatre Radio Hour Hour, Dear Friends and Let’s Eat. Dear Friends spawned both a hit 1972 double-LP on Columbia Records—which all their fans memorized—and a twelve-LP syndicated series, with a dozen original broadcasts each spread over two LP sides—printed in a radio-only edition of 100 copies and bootlegged like hell ever since. Bizarre, freewheeling and hilarious, the original artifacts are today a $1000 investment on eBay that most fans have only ever experienced through nth-generation cassette dubs or cruddy internet bootlegs. Now Seeland Records and The Firesign Theatre are finally reissuing them all—and a whole lot more besides—in an insanely comprehensive release that will have Fireheads everywhere crying “Deputy Dan has no friends!” 
Duke of Madness Motors is a book / DVD package that takes a long-overdue trip through Firesign’s Dear Friends golden age of improv radio, when hanging out with the Firesign Theatre was as easy as extending an antenna. The DVD is a data disc with over 80 hours of MP3s covering every episode of every Firesign broadcast, 1970-1972, all completely restored and remastered, plus all the syndicated programs and some juicy bonus extras. Meanwhile the book contains a 108-page, full-color history of the era including an 8000-word essay, new interviews with all of Firesign and their producer and engineer, full show rundowns, original scripts, found objects, vintage collages and more.  
For anyone who’s ever sat enthralled by a Joe Frank story or a Jean Shepherd monologue, Duke of Madness Motors will be the perfect traveling companion, whether it’s a cross-country trip, a commute, or just a walk from the kitchen to the living room. Consider it an 80-hour audiobook of Ulysses as filtered through Buck Rogers, The Hour of Power, and Negativland’s Over the Edge—sponsored by your good friends at James Joyce Chevrolet of Redondo Beach. 
 
“The Firesign Theatre is a treasure of cultural commentary in the most friendly terms… it’s like having the American culture explode in front of you and land all over the wall.” —George Carlin 
“It’s extremely side-splitting funny, deeply layered, and at the same time subversive.” —John Goodman 
“A countercultural treasure of the highest order. Either you’ve never heard of them, or you have them memorized… I fall into the latter camp.” —Richard Metzger