From the FReeper who brought you test pattern nostalgia, another musical question!

Self | 6/13/'08 | Zionist Conspirator

[Zionist Conspirator]

Many years ago (I won't give the exact number) I was a college student, and for a while worked in the college radio station which at that time concentrated on jazz and instrumental music (it was a religious college and many contemporary song lyrics were problematic). Each weekday morning there was an hour of what is conventionally called "new age" music.

One of the new age albums was entitled New Age Songs and was by a duo named the Frugivores ("fruit eaters"). It appeared to be a man and a woman (though the pic on the front of the album was a bit androgynous) and, by their thick accents, Brits of some variety.

You've heard of "so bad it's good?" Well, this stuff was so bad it was fascinating. Weird, jangling drones hummed in the background as the twosome warbled "This is a tale for a neclear age" or celebrated "the optimist." The final song on the album was actually quite pretty ("So close to the edge of my heart / Where no one comes near / You got so close to the edge of my heart / Then walked away out of fear"). But the one track that was most often played on the air was the "train crash" song ("You died inside a train crash / A fate of twisted rail / Now people call you dead / But your engine doesn't fail").

Despite, or perhaps because of, my own anti-new age prejudices, I found them fascinating. I'd love to borrow the album from the station again and listen to it . . . except the album long ago mysteriously disappeared, and no one knows what became of it.

I have done web searches galore for "The Frugivores" and "New Age Songs." As you know, it isn't easy to do a web search for something and come up totally empty. But any time I do this search I always do.

There is one exception. A few years ago I found a copy of the album online in a European record store. I believe they had one copy left. I actually bought it . . . gave them my credit card number and every thing . . . and for a while I was happy as a lark. Then they contacted me to say that their only copy had disappeared and I would not be receiving it. That is the last evidence I have ever had that the Frugivores and their album ever even existed. They seem to have conveniently dropped off the face of the earth, as if they had never existed.

What is going on here? Were these two loopy people beamed up to the mother ship? Did The Man send out his "Men In Black" to destroy all evidence they had ever existed because otherwise their weird jangling would have ushered in a nirvana of peace and justice and made the "military/industrial complex" obsolete? Just what is going on here?

I'm serious: has anybody out there heard of the Frugivores or this album?

[Zionist Conspirator]

Old pal, you're an expert on the music business, but if even you can help me with this I will be very surprised!

[bcsco]

Many years ago (I won't give the exact number) I was a college student, and for a while worked in the college radio station which at that time concentrated on jazz and instrumental music (it was a religious college and many contemporary song lyrics were problematic)

Me too. I had my own radio show Friday evenings. A roommate also had a show in the hour before mine.

[mnehring]

Was this the one with Tyman Dog(sp?) and Helen Cherry?

[mnehring]

http://www.tymondogg.net/

http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendID=96211075

http://www.strummernews.com/tymondoggbio.html

[blam]

Tymon Dogg

Solo recordings

Year Album
1976 Tymon Dogg
1982 Battle of Wills
1987 Frugivores - New Age Songs
1989 Relentless

[mnehring]

FYI, Tymon Dogg played a lot with the Clash (and later Joe Strummer) which is probably why this album was buried, it was just overshadowed.

[Zionist Conspirator]

Was this the one with Tyman Dog(sp?) and Helen Cherry?

You know, "Tyman" and "Helen Cherry" actually sound familiar.

You know about the Frugivores??? Quick, before Jesse Ventura and Alex Trebek erase your memory . . . where can I find that album???

[Eepsy]

http://www.tymondogg.net/Download.html

[KarlInOhio]

http://www.esnips.com/_t_/frugivores?q=frugivores even seems to have links to audio samples.

[Eepsy]

http://www.musicstack.com/listings.cgi?find=frugivores&t=new_age_songs&media=All

[politicalwit]

Try right here...you can do a download. http://www.tymondogg.net/Download.html

[Rebelbase]

“Many years ago (I won’t give the exact number) I was a college student, and for a while worked in the college radio station “

I did the news part-time at the college station for a summer. There was a glass divider between the DJ’s and the news booth. The DJ’s sole existence when folks were reading the news was to make them laugh by performing the most gross antics on the other side of the glass.

[jdietz]

http://www.tymondogg.net/Download.html is a download site for MP3s.

[Zionist Conspirator]

Thankyouthankyouthankyou! My Frugivore fix can now be indulged and a running joke between my sister and myself is now ended.

[mnehring]

Finding an actual album may be tough. You may put in a request with something like Music Stack, Last Vestage or Gemm. Considering that Clash fans may be hording these, you may also want to post on Craig's List or some Clash fan sites.

[mnehring]

Gemm has a bunch of copies for sale.
http://www1.gemm.com/c/search.pl?picklang=%2Fc%2Fsearch.pl%3Flang%3DEN%26clickflag%3D1%26picklang%3D%252Findex.cgi%253Flang%253DEN%2526clickflag%253D1%2526%26field%3DARTIST%2BOR%2BTITLE%26wild%3DTymon%26Go%2521.x%3D22%26Go%2521.y%3D4&field=ARTIST+OR+TITLE&wild=Frugivores&Go%21.x=0&Go%21.y=0

[politicalwit]

http://www.audiophileusa.com/display.cfm?days=9999&mode=Artist&text=Frugivores Used vinyl

[Billthedrill]

You guys are scarin’ me here... ;-)

[exnavy]

I am amazed that you are embarrassed by the time period of that music. I saw the Beatles on “The really big shoe”.