Shadowy Men On A Shadowy Planet

Unreleased Material

This section covers Shadowy Men On A Shadowy Planet music that has never been released on record, tape, or compact disc. Unless I hear otherwise (and I will keep my ears open), I'm assuming we may never see a release of this material. What a shame.

Background music from The Kids In The Hall

Apart from "Having An Average Weekend", I remember hearing "We'll Be Right Back!" as part of the filler music on the show. However, the versions were definitely different than the LP versions. I assume the Shadowy Men recorded 'em specifically for the show. That material has never come out on record, tape or CD (at least that I'm aware of). In addition, only one of the songs where they back Bruce McCulloch has shown up ("Daves I Know" on Shame-Based Man). The version of "Having An Average Weekend" used on the show is available on Television's Greatest Hits Volume 7: Cable Ready. Details are on the Compilations page.

"16 Encores"

I heard this one when the Shadowy Men played live at Stache's in Columbus, Ohio on June 18, 1992. Their last song of the night was a medley of (mainly) classic rock standards. I wrote the band and asked about it. They wrote back saying that the medley was called "16 Encores" and that they had recorded a studio version. It was too long for a single, so they hadn't put it out yet. I suppose it might have gone on a fourth Shadowy Men album, had one appeared. Full details on the pieces of the medley is on the Medleys page.

"Autobahn"

In an interview with Don Pyle in Live Wire, Don mentions that SMen had recorded a cover of Kraftwerk's "Autobahn" (OK, a cover of the single-edit, not the full twenty-two minute version) for a potential single. He also alludes to another "six-and-a-half minute song", which was probably "16 Encores".

NOTE: You can download MP3s of "16 Encores" and "Autobahn" from this entry on the "Thoughts, etc." blog or from this entry on Chunklet. Thanks to Alex Hoffman and Buddy Mercury for the heads up!

The Truth About J.F.K.

Shadowy Men did one of their theme shows (probably in 1987) that they called "The Truth About J.F.K." They shot a Super-8 movie with a reconstructed set of Dealey Plaza and Kennedy motorcade, and showed it before they played. Reid narrates the story over the silent film and presents an alternate theory on the events of the day that involve spilled ketchup and a practical joke gone awry.

CBC Radio appearances

The Shadowy Men did a number of interviews and live sessions broadcast on CBC Radio (the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation), notably on the "Brave New Waves" show. There's been no official release of any of these sessions, or as always, none that I know about.

1993 Peel Session

The Shadowy Men did a "Peel Session" which was broadcast on the BBC on June 26, 1993. The Peel Sessions involve the band recording "live in the studio" performances for exclusive broadcast on the show.

Accorinding to a John Peel Sessions web site, the first broadcast of the show broadcast "Telepathetic", "They Used To Pay Him To Watch The Trains", "The Jehrney", and "16 Encores". When the show was rerun on November 6, 1993, one more song was added: "The Last Of My Hiccups".

NOTE: "Telepathetic" is one of three titles for the same song. The Ramblin' Ambassadors titled it "Twenty Original Fembots" on their album Avanti, and Atomic 7 titled it "Daddy's Little World" on their second album ... en Hillbilly Caliente.


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