While Pere Ubu have never been widely popular—usually categorized as "underground rock"—they have a devoted following, have been hugely influential on several generations of avant-garde musicians and are a critically acclaimed American musical group. To define their music, Pere Ubu coined the term Avant Garage to reflect interest in both avant-garde music (especially Musique concrète) and raw, direct garage rock.
When Cleveland-based band Rocket From The Tombs fragmented some members formed Dead Boys, while David Thomas and guitarist Peter Laughner joined with guitarist Tom Herman, bass guitarist Tim Wright, drummer Scott Krauss and synthesist Allen Ravenstine to form Pere Ubu in 1975. At the time the band formed, Herman, Krauss, and Ravenstine lived in a house owned by Ravenstine.
Pere Ubu's first single (their first five releases were singles on their own "Hearthan" label) was "30 Seconds Over Tokyo" (inspired by the "Doolittle Raid" and named after a film depicting the raid), backed with "Heart of Darkness"; followed by "Final Solution" in 1976. One review noted that "30 Seconds..." "was clearly the work of a garage band, yet its arty dissonance and weird experimentalism were startlingly unique."
Of their second single, "Final Solution" (backed with "Cloud 149"), one reviewer wrote that Ubu's "call for a 'final solution' was the cry of teen angst run down in the decaying rust belt of America, and unlike the British punks who were looking around England the same year, seeing no future, and hating what they saw, Ubu reveled in it." They would rarely perform this song after some listeners misinterpreted it as being associated with the 'Nazi final solution'.
After "Street Waves", their third single, Pere Ubu signed to Blank Records, a short-lived imprint of Mercury Records.
Laughner left the group after their first two singles, and died soon afterward after a struggle with drug addiction. Tony Maimone signed on as bassist after Tim Wright left to join DNA.
In 1978 they released their debut album, The Modern Dance, which sold poorly but has proven influential. With the song "Sentimental Journey," the debut also introduced the practice of re-appropriating titles from well-known popular songs: Pere Ubu's "Sentimental Journey" has no obvious relation to the Doris Day hit song of the same name; "Drinking Wine Spodyody" has no apparent connection to the Sticks McGhee song (later revived by Jerry Lee Lewis). This practice has continued through 2006's Why I Hate Women, which has a song called "Blue Velvet" (again, no relation to the 1963 hit song by Bobby Vinton).
Special note should be made of Ravenstine's contributions to Pere Ubu. While most synthesizer players tended to play the instrument as they would a piano or organ, Ravenstine generally opted instead to make sounds that were reminiscent of spooky sound effects from 1950s science fiction films, or perhaps electronic music and musique concrète.
Dub Housing was released in 1978 and New Picnic Time in 1979. The group briefly disbanded in 1979, but reformed soon afterward with Tom Herman replaced by Mayo Thompson (of Red Krayola).
The Art of Walking was released in 1980, and by the release of Song of the Bailing Man in 1982, Krauss was replaced by Anton Fier. The group disbanded again soon afterwards; Krauss and Maimone formed Home and Garden, while Thomas worked on a solo career, notably with Richard Thompson and with members of Henry Cow.
By the late 1980s, one of Thomas' solo projects eventually featured much of Pere Ubu. The band was reformed again in 1987, with Jim Jones and Chris Cutler joining for the release of The Tenement Year in 1988, a far more pop-oriented album than ever before. The following year, the track "Waiting for Mary" (off the album 1989 Cloudland) appeared on MTV briefly. After the recording of Cloudland, Ravenstine left the group (although he made a guest appearance on Worlds in Collision in 1991) and later became an airline pilot. Eric Drew Feldman joined the band in time for the Cloudland tour and the recording of Worlds in Collision but left afterwards, joining Frank Black.
Story of My Life was released in 1993 on Imago Records; Maimone left (once again) to join They Might Be Giants, and Michele Temple and Garo Yellin joined the band for the Story of My Life tour and feature on Ubu's 1995 album, Ray Gun Suitcase. Robert Wheeler has played synthesizer and theremin with Pere Ubu since 1994. Krauss left the band during the Ray Gun Suitcase sessions. For the Ray Gun Suitcase tour, guitarist Jim Jones departed as a touring member (although he continued to contribute to recordings), founding guitarist Tom Herman replaced him for the tour.
Concurrent with the 1996 release of the Datapanik in Year Zero box set, Jim Jones retired due to health problems. Tom Herman returned to the band after a twenty year absence to tour with the band in 1995, and went on to record Pennsylvania in 1998 and St. Arkansas in 2002. Jim Jones contributed guitar tracks to each album as well, and guitarist Wayne Kramer of MC5 fame joined the band for their 1998 summer tour. Herman left again in 2005, being replaced by Keith Moliné, of David Thomas's "solo" group Two Pale Boys. The new lineup completed an album entitled Why I Hate Women, which was released on September 19th 2006.
On 18 February 2008, Jim Jones passed away at his Cleveland residence.
The Book Is On The Table
Pere Ubu Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I have a good newest for you
The duble MP4 have a new music
It′s looks likes the table
So... It's a little bit different
The name is "the book is on the table"
Let′s play DJ
I'm sorry
Everything is on the table
The book is on the table
The dog is on the table
The cat is on the table
The chick is on the table
And everybody is on the table
Table, table, table, table, table, table...
And everybody is on the table
And everybody is on the table
And everybody is on the table, table, table, table...
The book is on the table
The woman is on the table
The man is on the table
The chair is on the table
And everybody is on the table
Table, table, table, table, table, table...
Table, table, table, table, table, table...
The book is on the table, table, table, table, table...
And everybody is on the table, table, table, table...
And everybody is on the table, table, table, table...
Table, table, table, table, table, table, table, table, table,
Table, table...
And everybody is on the table!
The lyrics to Pere Ubu's song "The Book Is On The Table" may seem nonsensical at first glance, but they can be interpreted in a variety of ways. The repetition of phrases like "the book is on the table" and "table, table, table" creates a rhythmic and hypnotic effect, drawing attention to the concept of a table as a central point of gathering.
One possible interpretation is that the table symbolizes a meeting place or a space where people come together. It suggests a sense of unity and inclusivity, as everyone and everything mentioned in the song is on the table. The repetition of "table" reinforces this idea and emphasizes the importance of this shared space.
Another interpretation could be that the lyrics playfully highlight the absurdity and randomness of everyday life. By placing objects like books, animals, and people on the table, the song suggests a blurring of boundaries and a disregard for conventional order. It may be a whimsical commentary on the chaos and unpredictability of existence, urging listeners to embrace and find humor in life's quirks.
Line by Line Meaning
The book is on the table
The book is placed upon the flat surface
The dog is on the table
The domesticated canine is positioned on the flat surface
The cat is on the table
The feline creature is situated on the flat surface
The chick is on the table
The young bird is resting on the flat surface
And everybody is on the table
And every individual is positioned on the flat surface
Table, table, table, table, table, table...
The repeated utterance of 'table' denotes the presence of numerous flat surfaces
The woman is on the table
The female adult is located on the flat surface
The man is on the table
The male adult is placed on the flat surface
The chair is on the table
The piece of furniture designed for sitting is positioned on the flat surface
Table, table, table, table, table, table...
The repeated utterance of 'table' emphasizes the abundance of flat surfaces
And everybody is on the table
And every individual is situated on the flat surface
Table, table, table, table, table, table, table, table, table
Repeatedly mentioning 'table' highlights the profusion of flat surfaces
Table, table...
The word 'table' is reiterated to emphasize its significance
And everybody is on the table!
And each and every individual is present on the flat surface
Writer(s): Tony Maimone, David Lynn Thomas, Tom Herman, Allen Ravenstine, Scott Krauss, Allen Thomas Ravenstine
Contributed by Colin L. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Stan Menshic
What a fantastic track always loved it! very mysterious sounding
cocoy granada
Truly ahead of their times, thisBAND!
cocoy granada
🌛⭐↗🎧↘⭐🌜
MV
Avan gard
thisklik
Avant garage :)