Allmusic had this to say about the Residents: "Over the course of a recording career spanning several decades, the Residents remained a riddle of Sphinx-like proportions; cloaking their lives and music in a haze of willful obscurity, the band's members never identified themselves by name, always appearing in public in disguise -- usually tuxedos, top hats and giant eyeball masks -- and refusing to grant media interviews. Drawing inspiration from the likes of fellow innovators including Harry Partch, Sun Ra, and Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band, the Residents channelled the breadth of American music into their idiosyncratic, satiric vision, their mercurial blend of electronics, distortion, avant-jazz, classical symphonies and gratingly nasal vocals reinterpreting everyone from John Philip Sousa to James Brown while simultaneously expanding the boundaries of theatrical performance and multimedia interaction.
It was commonly accepted that the four-member group emigrated to San Francisco, California from Shreveport, Louisiana at some point in the early '70s. According to longtime group spokesman Jay Clem -- one member of the so-called Cryptic Corporation, the band's representative body -- they received their name when Warner Bros. mailed back their anonymous demo tape, addressed simply "for the attention of residents". Finding no takers for their oddball sounds, the Residents founded their own label, Ralph Records, for the purposes of issuing their 1972 debut "Santa Dog", released in a pressing of 300 copies which were mailed out to luminaries from Frank Zappa to President Richard Nixon. Their debut full-length, 1974's "Meet the Residents", reportedly sold fewer than 50 copies before the group was threatened with a lawsuit from Capitol Records over its cover, a twisted, dada-esque parody of the art to "Meet the Beatles".
The follow-up, 1974's neoclassical excursion "Not Available", was recorded with the intention of its music remaining unissued; locked in cold storage upon its completion, only a 1978 contractual obligation resulted in its eventual release. 1976's "The Third Reich 'N Roll" was the next official offering, a collection of pop oldies covers presented in a controversial jacket portraying Adolf Hitler clutching an enormous carrot. After a 1976 concert in Berkeley, California which cloaked the Residents behind an opaque screen, wrapped up like mummies -- the most famous of only three live performances mounted during their first decade of existence -- they issued an abrasive 1977 cover of The Rolling Stones' "Satisfaction", which became an underground hit on both sides of the Atlantic at the peak of the punk movement. As the decade drew to a close, the group released a flurry of recordings, further building upon their growing cult following; among them were 1978's "Duck Stab", 1979's "Eskimo" (purportedly a collection of native Arctic chants) and 1980's "Commercial Album", a compilation of 40 one-minute "pop songs" that aired on San Francisco radio only because the Residents played them during the advertising time they bought.
In 1981 the Residents embarked upon their "Mole Trilogy", a prog rock collection of albums -- 1981's "Mark of the Mole", 1982's "The Tunes of Two Cities" and 1985's "The Big Bubble" -- recounting an epic battle between a pair of tribes named the Moles and the Chubs; a lavish, multimedia tour, "The Mole Show", followed. In the interim, the group also mounted another ambitious project, the "American Composer" series, although only two of the projected titles -- 1984's "George & James" (a reinterpretation of songs by George Gershwin and James Brown) and 1986's "Stars & Hank Forever" (celebrating John Philip Sousa and Hank Williams) -- ever appeared. Instead, in the wake of financial and corporate difficulties which resulted in the creation of a New Ralph label, the Residents issued the one-off "God in Three Persons" (a talking blues outing), and 1989's "The King and Eye" (a reinterpretation of Elvis Presley standards).
After losing control of the Ralph label as well as their back catalog, the Residents regained the rights to their music in 1990 and began reissuing long-out-of-print material as well as the new "Freak Show", a meditation on circus sideshows and carnival dementia. Four years later, Freak Show was reissued as a CD-ROM, marking the group's first leap into the new digital interactive technology; "Have a Bad Day" followed in 1996, and included the soundtrack to the CD-ROM game "Bad Day on the Midway." In 1997, the band celebrated their silver anniversary with the release of the career-spanning overview "Our Tired, Our Poor, Our Huddled Masses". "Wormwood: Curious Stories From the Bible" followed the next year, with "Roadworms" (songs from Wormwood as performed in the stage show) being issued in mid-2000. They followed that up with the awesome "Icky Flix" DVD, an incredibly detailed collection of their videos that featured both old and new soundtracks, 5.1 Digital Stereo Surround sound, countless hidden videos and in-depth histories of each individual track. That was followed by another one of their rare tours, which saw them incorporate the DVD into their live act and bring out guest singer Molly Harvey for some truly creative duets. The "Petting Zoo" retrospective followed in the spring of 2002, acting as a budget sampler for new fans and giving old fans something to tide them over while several high concept projects neared completion. The first was "Demons Dance Alone", a complicated pop album that hearkened back to the catchier material from "Duck Stab" and the "Commercial Album". That was followed in 2002 by a live retrospective called "Kettles Of Fish On The Outskirts Of Town" that contained 3 cd's and a DVD, and a further look at their past via remasters and remixes put out by EuroRalph (including a remix of their previously unreleased and notorious "Warner Brothers Demo"). A DVD of the Demons Dance Alone tour came out in 2004 and another new project, "Animal Lover" was released in 2005."
Summer of 2006 brought the internet download project, The River of Crime: Episodes 1-5. River of Crime was their first project with Warner Music Group's Cordless label. Following the success of "River of Crime", The Residents launched their weekly Timmy video project on YouTube. In 2007 they did the music for the documentary "Strange Culture" and also released a double instrumental album, "Night of the Hunters". On the Fourth of July, 2007, the planned October release of their latest project with Mute Records, The Voice of Midnight (a music theater adaptation of E.T.A. Hoffmann's short story Der Sandmann), was announced on their website.
On the 21st of May 2008 they announced on their website that their first North America tour since "Demons Dance Alone" for a project entitled "The Bunny Boy" is set to begin on October 9th in New York — later an earlier date was added for Santa Cruz. Soon, it was announced that the tour will also include Europe, starting November 13th. On June 3rd, the Residents.com website boasted the planned release of "The Bunny Boy" which was released on September 1st. The website had posted information in which Foxboro claimed this would be a Farewell Tour; it was later revealed that this was nothing more than a mistake by Foxboro.
In October 2017, Hardy Fox identified himself as both the anonymous primary composer and producer for The Residents as well as the pseudonymous Charles Bobuck.
Hardy Fox died on October 30, 2018.
The Dying Oilman
The Residents Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Maybe I'm crazy
I couldn't be good
Maybe I'm mad
I couldn't be good
Don't get in my way because
I couldn't be good
But I'm bad
I never thought it be like this
I just figured it'd be a brand new El Dorado every year from now on
Aw, who is this guy in the mirror
He looks so weak and pasty
I always wanted to take little Sam
To see that Sphinx statue over there in Egypt
I still don't like the idea of that guy over in Denver
Firefloodin' on my field
Asshole's so dumb he wouldn't know a pisspot from a kumquat
God, he could cost me a thousand barrels a day out of that field
Always wanted to see all that stuff they got over there in Europe
And take little Sam and Earline both
God, I need a smoke
Don't seem like one little smoke would matter that much now
I gotta go back for more of them treatments tomorrow
Green
The whole goddamn place is green
But it ain't grass green or money green
It's puke green or pus green
And it's the kind of green I feel like when I'm there
Like a bug about to be squished
I just know Earline would love to see that Eiffel Tower
Over there in France
I think maybe she even has a poster about it in her room
The Residents's song The Dying Oilman explores the mindset of an oilman who is at his wits' end. The opening lines suggest that the singer is struggling to contain their inner demons, and is not content with being a "good" person. He is aware that his actions may cause harm to others, but he cannot help but succumb to his "bad" instincts. As the song progresses, the oilman is shown to be dissatisfied with his life. He dreamed of wealth and fame, but in reality, he is weak and depleted. He hoped to take his children to see the world, but he has been unable to do so. Instead, he is preoccupied with the fire flooding in his field, caused by an incompetent employee. The oilman is conscious of his declining health, and the green landscape around him seems to reflect his own sickness. Despite all this, he still longs to fulfill his family's wishes, and take them to see the sights of Europe.
The Dying Oilman is a poignant commentary on the harsh realities of the oil industry, and the toll it takes on its workers. The singer's despair and frustration are palpable, and the song is a searing indictment of a system that chews up and spits out its labor force. The lyrics are evocative and vivid, painting a picture of a man who is at the end of his rope.
Line by Line Meaning
I couldn't be good
I am not capable of being good
Maybe I'm crazy
Perhaps I am insane
I couldn't be good
I am not capable of being good
Maybe I'm mad
Perhaps I am crazy
I couldn't be good
I am not capable of being good
Don't get in my way because
Do not obstruct me because
I couldn't be good
I am not capable of being good
But I'm bad
But I am immoral or wicked
I never thought it be like this
I never imagined it would turn out this way
I just figured it'd be a brand new El Dorado every year from now on
I assumed there would always be abundant wealth from the oil fields
Aw, who is this guy in the mirror
Oh, who is this person I see reflected in the mirror
He looks so weak and pasty
He appears feeble and sickly
I always wanted to take little Sam
I always desired to take my child, Sam
To see that Sphinx statue over there in Egypt
To view the Sphinx monument in Egypt
I still don't like the idea of that guy over in Denver
I still do not approve of that individual in Denver
Firefloodin' on my field
My oil field is experiencing a severe fire hazard
Asshole's so dumb he wouldn't know a pisspot from a kumquat
The jerk is so unintelligent that he cannot distinguish between items
God, he could cost me a thousand barrels a day out of that field
He could potentially cause me to lose a significant amount of oil production
Always wanted to see all that stuff they got over there in Europe
I always aspired to see the various things present in Europe
And take little Sam and Earline both
And take both my children, Sam and Earline
God, I need a smoke
Oh God, I need to smoke a cigarette
Don't seem like one little smoke would matter that much now
It does not appear that having just one cigarette would be detrimental at this point
I gotta go back for more of them treatments tomorrow
I need to return for more medical treatments tomorrow
Green
Everything is green
The whole goddamn place is green
The entire location is green
But it ain't grass green or money green
However, it is not the color of grass or currency
It's puke green or pus green
It is the color of vomit or infection discharge
And it's the kind of green I feel like when I'm there
And it is the sort of green I perceive when I am there
Like a bug about to be squished
Like an insect that is about to be crushed
I just know Earline would love to see that Eiffel Tower
I am certain Earline would be thrilled to see the Eiffel Tower
Over there in France
In France
I think maybe she even has a poster about it in her room
I suspect she may have a poster of it in her bedroom
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Andrew Scott
I CUDNT B GOOOOOOD, MAYBE IN CRAZY, I CUDNT BE GOOOOOD, MAYBEE IM MAYD