ECLECTICA #11: RASPBERRY PARTICLE RAINBOW POLKA
compiled June 1999 by Paul Estin
http://home.intranet.org/~estin/cd/

Another collection of eclectic cover songs from various sources.  The title of 
this mix comes simply from combining words taken from the titles of four of 
the tracks: Raspberry Beret, Particle Man, Somewhere Over The Rainbow, 
and Bohemian Polka.  Some particular notes:

Weird Al’s “Bohemian Polka” is an ingenious re-composition of Queen’s 
Bohemian Rhapsody.

The Benzedrine Monks, here covering Queen’s “We Will Rock You,” include 
many members who were in Big Daddy, I’m told.

Hindu Love Gods consist of ¾ of R.E.M. (no Michael Stipe) plus Warren 
Zevon singing.  They put out an album of all cover songs in 1990, primarily of 
blues tunes, but also including a delightful rendition of Prince’s “Raspberry 
Beret..”

“Open Up Your Heart And Let The Sun Shine In” by Frente! (originally from 
“The Flintstones”) and “Eep Opp Ork Ah-Ah!” by Violent Femmes 
(originally from “The Jetsons”) are both taken from the compilation “Saturday 
Morning Cartoon’s Greatest Hits.”  The Violent Femmes insist that this song 
deals with a topic they believe will be critical in the next century: alien-human 
relationships.

“Return To Forbidden Planet” was a musical I saw in London in 1991, which 
attempted to combine oldies rock ‘n’ roll with the plot of ‘50s sci-fi classic 
“Forbidden Planet” (itself a re-writing of Shakespeare’s “The Tempest”), in 
which the characters spout pseudo-Shakespearean dialogue and play various 
instruments on the spaceship.  It tries rather too hard to be a camp classic à la 
“Rocky Horror,” and ultimately fails, but fortunately it fails in interesting 
ways.  The series of songs here are taken from the finale and the encore to the 
show.

About the cover:  More fun with digital collages.  The four images composing 
the cover picture were all gathered from the World Wide Web.  At one point I 
knew who the accordion player was, but I’ve since forgotten. :-)