"Mongoloid" is the first single released by American new wave band Devo in 1977, on the Booji Boy Records label. It was backed with the song "Jocko Homo". "Mongoloid" also had one of the first music videos made using collage. "Mongoloid" was later re-recorded by Devo and appeared on their debut studio album Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo! in 1978. It is also a staple of Devo's live shows.
Composition and lyrics "Mongoloid" has been described as punk rock and avant-rock. Like many of Devo's early songs, it was built on a motorik beat. The song opens with a 4/4 electric bass line, which is then joined by drums, and electric guitar. Over this, a swooping overdubbed synthesizer line featuring frequent pitch bend is played on Minimoog. The synth is not used as a lead instrument during the song, and is used only in the opening and closing. The doubled vocals are sung simultaneously by both Gerald V. Casale and Robert "Bob 1" Mothersbaugh. On the original single, the vocals are deliberately sung in a nasal fashion.
The lyrics describe a man with Down syndrome who leads a normal life in a de-evolved society, hence the lyric "He was a mongoloid, mongoloid / His friends were unaware / Mongoloid, he was a mongoloid / Nobody even cared".
Music video "Mongoloid" was Devo's second music video, after The Truth About De-Evolution. It was not actually made by the band, but by assemblage artist and experimental filmmaker Bruce Conner. Conner combined 1950s television advertisements, science fiction film clips (including a scene from It Came from Outer Space), and scientific documentaries with abstract animation and original film work. Devo marketed the film as "A documentary film exploring the manner in which a determined young man overcame a basic mental defect and became a useful member of society. Insightful editing techniques reveal the dreams, ideals and problems that face a large segment of the American male population. Very educational. Background music written and performed by the DEVO orchestra."
"Mongoloid" appears as a bonus feature on The Complete Truth About De-Evolution DVD.
Discography "Mongoloid" was originally recorded as a single released on the Booji Boy Records label in 1977. The original single was a triple gatefold, held together with stickers. The inside of the gatefold displayed the lyrics of the two songs in either blue or black ink depending on the pressing. The back cover of the single was an image of Booji Boy with the text "We're all Devo! Booji Boy XO."
As Devo gained fame, Stiff Records in the UK agreed to release the single on their label. There were several pressings of the "Mongoloid" single with varying packages, ranging from a full triple gatefold, to a simple picture sleeve, to a generic "Stiff Records" paper sleeve. The Stiff Records releases are marked by the Stiff logo in the lower left hand corner of the front cover.
Both songs featured on the single were re-recorded for the band's debut album Are We Not Men? We Are Devo!. The original single versions can be found on the Pioneers Who Got Scalped anthology.
Tour In order to promote the single, Devo undertook a 'tour' using their limited budget to promote it. +DateVenueNote197612/10/1976The Crypt, Akron, OH12/11/197612/17/1976Opening for Pere Ubu12/18/19761976Bombay Bicycle Club, Akron, OHOpening for King Cobra12/31/1976The Crypt, Akron, OH197701/01/1977The Crypt, Akron, OHOpening for King Cobra01/13/1977Opening for Pere Ubu01/14/197701/20/1977Pirate's Cove, Cleveland, OH01/21/1977The Crypt, Akron, OHRubber City Rebels opened01/22/197701/26/197701/27/1977Pirate's Cove, Cleveland, OHOpening for Pere Ubu02/11/1977The Crypt, Akron, OHRubber City Rebels opened02/12/1977'Mongoloid' release03/12/1977Akron Art Institute, Akron, OHFree show, premiere of 'The Truth About De-Evolution'03/15/1977J.B.'s, Kent, OH15-60-75 opened.03/18/1977The Crypt, Akron, OH03/19/197703/24/1977Pirate's Cove, Cleveland, OHOpening for Pere Ubu03/25/1977The Crypt, Akron, OHTwo shows on this date03/31/1977Pirate's Cove, Cleveland, OHOpening for Pere Ubu04/14/1977Opening for The Bizarros04/16/1977Eagle Street Saloon, Cleveland, OH04/21/1977Pirate's Cove, Cleveland, OHOpening for Pere Ubu04/28/197704/1977Minneapolis, MNExact date or venue unknown. Devo's first show outside of Ohio.05/05/1977Pirate's Cove, Cleveland, OHOrb opened.05/07/1977Eagle Street Saloon, Cleveland, OH05/14/197705/??/1977Johnson Hall, Kent State University, Kent, OH05/19/1977Pirate's Cove, Cleveland, OHOpening for Pere Ubu05/23/1977CBGB, New York, NY05/24/197705/25/1977Max's Kansas City, New York, NYFox & Co opened.05/26/1977Pirate's Cove, Cleveland, OHOpening for The Nerves.05/27/1977Baker University Center Ballroom, Ohio University, Athens, OHDon Young's Production Opened.05/28/1977Eagle Street Saloon, Cleveland, OHLive recording of show released as 'Miracle Witness Hour'06/??/1977J.B.'s, Kent, OHExact date unknown06/19/1977Hideo's Discodrome, Cleveland Heights, OH07/06/1977Hot Club, Philadelphia, PA07/07/1977Max's Kansas City, New York, NYThe Cramps opened.07/08/197707/09/197707/14/1977Pirate's Cove, Cleveland, OHDead Boys opened.07/25/1977Starwood, West Hollywood, CAOpening for Clown. Devo had re-located to California by this point.07/26/197708/02/1977Mabuhay Gardens, San Francisco, CAThe Dix opened.08/03/197708/12/1977Myron's Ballroom, Los Angeles, CAThe Dills opened.08/20/1977Vanguard Gallery, Los Angeles, CA08/22/1977Starwood, West Hollywood, CAThe Pits opened.08/23/197708/24/1977
Other versions For Devo's debut album Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo!, "Mongoloid" was re-recorded. This version contains much more involved synthesizer playing throughout the song rather than during the opening and closing. An "E-Z Listening" version of "Mongoloid" was made for playing before concerts and appears on the 1987 E-Z Listening Disc. In 2002, Devo performed a techno version of "Mongoloid" at a special show for the writers and producers of the cartoon Rugrats (for which Mark Mothersbaugh composed the theme song). In 2007, Gerald Casale played an acoustic version of "Mongoloid" accompanied on the piano by Re/Search co-founder V. Vale at a re-release party for Industrial Culture Handbook. The video is available on the Re/Search Publications website.
Covers "Mongoloid" has been one of the most frequently covered songs in the Devo catalog: A 1979 Rhino Records compilation of Devo covers by various local bands, titled KROQ-FM Devotees Album, features three humorous versions of this song recorded by Jupiter, the Deadliners, and the Sordes. Lost Kids, a Danish punk band, covered the track in the song Asocial with different lyrics, released on the 1978 EP Født Som Nul and the 1979 compilation Pære punk. A bluegrass version, recorded in Cleveland, Ohio, by the Hotfoot Quartet in 1980 and released as a 45 rpm single on the Black Snake label. Australian rock band Custard covers of the song on their 1996 EP Lucky Star. Brazilian heavy metal band Sepultura included the song on their 2003 album Revolusongs, a limited release EP of cover songs. The Washington Dead Cats, a French punkabilly band, covered "Mongoloid" on their album "El Diablo is Back" in 2006. "Loose n Boozy" Vancouver BC band The Cadaver Dogs, referred to as "the Blue Cheer of country" included a bonus hidden track cover of "Mongoloid " on their 2008 release PARIAH SOCIAL. The tune came out of a late night drunken Crazy Horse type jam...ragged, but right!
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