Presents the United States of America, Vols. 1-2

Artist: Stan Freberg
Label: Rhino / Wea
Category: Music

Average customer rating:

Media: Audio Cassette

UPC: 081227247645
EAN: 0081227247645
ASIN: B0000033TW

Release Date: 1996-07-02

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General

| Jazz | Styles | Music

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Tracks:

Overture
Columbus Discovers America: It's a Round, Round World
Pilgrim's Progress (Take an Indian to Lunch)
Thanksgiving Story (Under the Double Turkey)
Sale of Manhattan: Top Hat, White Feather, and Tails
Boston Tea Party
Declaration of Independence: A Man Can't Be Too Careful What He ...
Midnight Ride of Paul Revere
Betsy Ross and the Flag: Everybody Wants to Be an Art Director
Discovery of Electricity
Washington Crosses the Delaware (Command Decision)
Yankee Doodle Go Home (Spirit of '76)
Battle of Yorktown
Finale: So Long, Friend...

Tracks:

Intro & Overture
Madison, Jefferson, Franklin, & Osbourne: The First Advertising ...
Madison, Jefferson, Franklin, & Osbourne
Madison, Jefferson, Franklin, & Osbourne, Pt. 2
America! America!
Madison, Jefferson, Franklin, & Osbourne, Pt. 3
Rumplemeyer's Horseshoes: The Francis Scott Key Story
Rumplemeyer's Horseshoes
Stephen Foster, Beloved Songwriter
Samuel F.B. Morse Sends the First Telegram
Abe Lincoln in Analysis
Show Folk
Abe Lincoln at Home in the White House
Barbara Frietchie, Martyr of the Year
Shoot if You Must
Lincoln at Shiloh With General Grant
As Long As You're Up/A Sober Life's a Hard Life
Appomattox Courthouse Bar & Grill
There'll Never Be Another War
Custer's Last Stand
Alexander Graham Bell and the First Phone Call
Thomas Edison Invents the Light Bulb! The Phonograph!, Pt. 1
Perseverance
Thomas Edison Invents the Light Bulb! The Phonograph!, Pt. 2
Planned Obsolescence
Wright Brothers at Kitty Hawk
Henry Ford Invents Detroit
Perseverance (Reprise)
Sinking of the Lusitania
Two Tin Pan Alley Songwriters
U-Boat/The Guns of August
Hello, Peace, Hello
There'll Never Be Another War (Reprise)
Finale: America! America! (Reprise)

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Tip Of The Freberg (Includes Video)
My Son, The Greatest: The Best Of Allan Sherman
That Was the Year That Was
An Evening Wasted With Tom Lehrer

Customer Reviews:

They are right.......2006-06-30

The reviewers above who said the first volume is one of the funniest records ever made are right.

I listened to it when it came out and tracks like "A Man Can't Be Too Careful What he Signs these days" (Jefferson and Adams trying to get Franklin to sign the Declaration of Independence) and the one where Betsy Ross presents the new flag to George Washington are still indescribably funny.

But you can still buy the two volume set, pour yourself a nice dry Martini in a damp frosted glass, and use the disk with volume 2 for a coaster.

O;-)

A comedic gem (Vol. 1, that is).......2005-07-05

I have been a BIG fan of this album for well over two decades, since I came across the LP at the local library as a teenager. I was simply in stitches, and searched at used record stores until I found a copy of my own, which I eventually wore out in my repeated listenings.

So I was excited when I heard that after all these years, Vol. 2 was finally coming. But what a disappointment.

Vol. 1 has great songs like "Round Round World", "Take an Indian to Lunch" and "A Man Can't be Too Careful What He Signs These Days" that not only sparkle with satiric wit, but are great tunes I sometimes find myself humming.

The songs in Vol. 2, however, fall flat and just feel, well, forced. And that applies to all of Vol. 2 as well. The sense is that they had a list of punch lines they were set on, and didn't stop to think if it was funny or not. Funny is not a word that can be applied to Vol. 2, sadly.

So buy it for Vol. 1. You can just discard the other disc.

Five stars for Volume 1; one star for Volume 2.......2005-04-19

"Vol. 1, The Early Years" is without a doubt the best comedy recording I have ever heard. I personally discovered it back in the mid-80s, when I came across a copy of the album one Saturday at the radio station where I worked. It was listened to many a time "in cue" or after sign-off. I simply could not get enough of it. I also listened repeatedly to his "Original Cast" greatest hits album and the classic "Freeberg Underground" live recording he did in the mid-60s at the Hollywood Bowl.

Ever since then, I had hoped that a) Vol. 1 would someday come out on CD, and b) that he would eventually make good on his promise in the original album's liner notes to bring out a Vol. 2.

Well, both of my wishes came true. Vol. 1 is out on CD and as good if not better than I remember it. Plus, they added back in some parts that were cut so the original recording could fit on one LP. Vol. 2, on the other hand, is a *major* disappointment.

Vol. 2 simply tries too hard. It tries to tackle a huge amount of American history (from the late 1700s through the end of World War I) in 34 tracks on one CD (a virtually impossible task). It tries to satirize events during the Civil War (a hopeless task). And, its satire lacks the "let's not take ourselves too seriously" light-heartedness of Vol. 1, which is another way of saying it is trying to be Politically Correct.

It's a shame Vol. 2 wasn't written and produced soon after Vol. 1. I honestly believe Stan and Co. would have come up with another classic.

I too wish Rhino still offered Vol. 1 separately. From a marketing/business standpoint, I understand why they don't do it.

Still, if you don't have Vol. 1, it's worth the sacrifice to buy the two-volume set just to get it. Who knows? You may end up liking Vol. 2. If not, it makes a good (albeit expensive) coaster.

Ten Stars for Volume 1.......2005-02-10

My mom turned me on this LP and I listened to it repeatedly. It makes history SO funny! I have not heard this LP in years and years but I can still remember so much of it word for word.

Chris Colomubus and his duet with King Ferdenand is great!

Chris: It's a round, round world, it's a round, round world. I contend its round and its goin' be found, it's a round world now and its always been!

Kind Ferdindad: It's a flat, flat world, it's a flat, flat world, I contend its flat, as a welcoming mat, and you're sailing off the end, it's a flat world now and its always been!

If you are Stan Freberg fan, this is a MUST HAVE! And while you are at it, get yourself a nutcup and a couple of french horns!

A classic (if a bit corny)!!.......2004-12-24

This is a classic bit of Americana.
A must-have for anyone who enjoys good comedy and great production value.

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