The group's trademark violin-coated melodies and their ironic take on American culture put them one step away from being a novelty act in the eyes of many critics. But as the band would move from irreverently playful to experimental with their intricate, psychedelic pop meanderings they carved out their own niche in the music world. CVB consciously played with building a mystique about the band, using articles, liner notes and press interviews to weave a bizarre mythology about the band, to the point where it is still often difficult to distinguish fact from fiction.
CVB had roots in the earlier projects Sitting Duck and Estonian Gauchos, proto-CVB projects from which some of the earliest CVB songs originated. Original bandmembers from CVB's early recordings, including 'Telephone Free Landslide Victory,' included David Lowery, Chris Molla, and Anthony Guess, all of whom also did time in Eric Curkendall's project Box O'Laffs.
The core touring and recording contingent of this band consisted of David Lowery, Victor Krummenacher, Jonathan Segel and Greg Lisher with Anthony Guess on drums from early 1985 to fall 1985 for their first album, 'Telephone Free Landslide Victory'. Guess left the band in late 1985 following the tour and went on to collaborate with numerous other musicians and bands, including Pile of Disaster, World Entertainment War, Calm Down Juanita, the Hollywood Lightweights, Billy Dwayne & the Creepers, Travis Morrissey & The Good Ship, and his current project, I Die Everyday.
Chris Pedersen took over drumming in the late 80's and since reformation in 2000, with Cracker drummer, Frank Funaro. After signing to Virgin Records in 1988 and releasing two eclectic yet slightly more accessible LPs, they disbanded in 1990; singer David Lowery went on to found the band Cracker (with guitarist Johnny Hickman, a former member of Estonian Gauchos), while the other members - guitarists Greg Lisher and David Immerglück, bassist Victor Krummenacher and drummer Chris Pedersen - devoted themselves full-time to the Monks of Doom, which had begun several years earlier as a non-Lowery side project. Violinist Jonathan Segel went on to play with Granfaloon Bus, Dieselhed, Hieronymus Firebrain, Jack & Jill and more. Segel and Krummenacher also continue to release solo recordings. More recently Segel has been involved in experimental music, including collaborations with Fred Frith and Joelle Leandre. Krummenacher and Segel collectively run their own record label, Magnetic. Chris Pedersen moved to Australia and currently plays drums for the dub band Daktari.
In 2000, ex-members regrouped to compile the experimental rarity set Camper Van Beethoven Is Dead. Long Live Camper Van Beethoven. In 2002, they released Tusk. Allegedly recorded in 1987, it had all the same tracks as the Fleetwood Mac album of the same name, and a parody of the original album's cover art. A series of reunion tour dates followed with many of the band's former members. The group officially reformed in 2004 to record New Roman Times, their first official studio album in 15 years. A live concert disc was also released entitled In The Mouth of the Crocodile, capturing a 2004 reunion performance in Seattle. Also, segments of a 2004 performance in Chicago were released the following year as Discotheque CVB: Live In Chicago, which was only available at a limited number of record stores. The band continue to play live and co-host the Annual Cracker Camper Van Beethoven Campout, a 3-day alternative music festival in Pioneertown, CA held every September.
CVB's 1985 staple "Take the Skinheads Bowling" was covered by Teenage Fanclub and used as the title track for the 2002 Michael Moore film Bowling for Columbine. A portion of the original Camper Van Beethoven recording can be heard as an introduction to the DVD release of the film. The song has also been covered by many other artists, most notably Manic Street Preachers and Sugarlust, who play it in every show they do; they all have skinheads and it has become their signature cover song.
Members of Camper Van Beethoven collaborated with Eugene Chadbourne on a number of records under the name Camper Van Chadbourne.
The band's official site is campervanbeethoven.com
Bad Trip
Camper Van Beethoven Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
if you want to know why, it's cuz no one else does
somewhere along the line someone told you you were deep and sensitive
but youre not
Came to the party, drank all the beer, cuz we're a bad trip
well I can't tell you how glad I am that you live such bright and flashing lives
it's the perfect thing to keep you distracted
but if it went away, I guess you'd have to see yourself
Came to your party, ate all the d'heuvres, cuz we're a bad trip
we dented your parked car when we drove up onto the lawn
smoked your last cigarette and spilled the beer on the carpet
answered the phone and said you didn't live here anymore
and it was your mom
Came to your party, drank all the beer, cuz we're a bad trip
yeah, we're a bad trip
The lyrics to Camper Van Beethoven's "Bad Trip" present a satirical critique of those who take themselves too seriously, which is revealed through the band's sarcastic and rebellious attitude towards life. The opening lines are a direct address to the person who is taking themselves too seriously, and as the song goes on, the singer becomes more and more dismissive of this person's self-importance. The cynical tone is carried on in the lines that follow, where the singer points out that no one else takes the person seriously either, challenging their supposed depth and sensitivity.
The chorus of the song is where the real satirical bite lies: the singer asserts their members are bad news and there's no way to expect good things from them. While they take a lighthearted approach to life, they somehow inevitably cause damage and wreak havoc. The lines "smoked your last cigarette and spilled the beer on the carpet/answered the phone and said you didn't live here anymore/and it was your mom" are particularly biting, as it shows the band's disdain for convention, propriety, and respect. It is a song that aims to poke fun at those who take themselves too seriously and who think that the world gravitates towards their emotions, opinions, and beliefs.
Line by Line Meaning
you know, you really shouldn't take yourself so seriously
You should not be so serious about yourself.
if you want to know why, it's cuz no one else does
People do not take you seriously, and you might want to know the reason behind it.
somewhere along the line someone told you you were deep and sensitive
At some point, someone might have informed you about how profound and compassionate you were.
but youre not
However, you are not that way deep and sensitive person.
Came to the party, drank all the beer, cuz we're a bad trip
We drank all your beer at the party because we have a terrible influence on you.
well I can't tell you how glad I am that you live such bright and flashing lives
It's good to see you guys having such a vibrant and colorful life.
it's the perfect thing to keep you distracted
Your colorful lives are helping you stay distracted from a lot of things.
but if it went away, I guess you'd have to see yourself
However, if the distraction were to disappear, you would have to face who you are.
hope you wouldn't regret all the time you'd wasted
I hope you do not feel bad about the time you had spent being distracted.
Came to your party, ate all the d'heuvres, cuz we're a bad trip
We have a negative effect on you, which is why we ate all of your d'oeuvres.
we dented your parked car when we drove up onto the lawn
When we drove up onto your lawn, we unfortunately put a dent in your parked car.
smoked your last cigarette and spilled the beer on the carpet
We also smoked the last cigarette and caused a beer spill on the carpet.
answered the phone and said you didn't live here anymore, and it was your mom
We answered the phone and said you no longer lived there, and it turned out to be your mother who had called.
Came to your party, drank all the beer, cuz we're a bad trip
We drank all your beer at the party because we have a terrible influence on you.
yeah, we're a bad trip
We are a negative influence on you.
Lyrics © BMG RIGHTS MANAGEMENT US, LLC
Written by: KRUMMENACHER, LISHER, LOWERY, MOLLA, SEGEL
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Dirk Steiner
I remember seeing them on a tour in Germany after first discovering CVB in So Cal in a concert in OC back in the late 80s - great song.
MV G
Someone should cover this with a full orchestra.
handymandan2k
Like— take it seriously? Hmmm
Agapi Agapi
Awesome!
Neal Garbenis
Went to your party, ate all the d’heuvres, ‘cause we’re a bad trip!