PHILEMON ARTHUR AND THE DUNG – Skisser över 1914 års badmössor (Silence, MC 1987; rec. 1967-72) / Får jag spy i ditt paraply? (Silence, 2002; rec. 1967-72)

 

Skisser över 1914 års bandmössor (Silence, MC, 1987; rec. 1967-72)

Får jag spy i ditt paraply?: The Pest Of Philemon Arthur And The Dung (Silence, 2002; rec. 1967-72)

Swedish vocals

International relevance: **

Philemon Arthur And The Dung's 1972 album is a stone cold classic of absurdist, nonsensical, anti-fi craziness that killed the Swedish Grammy Awards for 15 years. Ironically but probably perfectly planned, once they revived the Awards in 1987, the first new Philemon Arthur release appeared as a riposte. ”Skisser över 1914 års badmössor” (= ”sketches of 1914 swimming caps” -- don't ask!) was a cassette-only release that came in a sardine can. To play the tape, you had to open it. A great fuck you to mint condition collectors! (Although some probably bought two, one to play and to keep for posterity. Or they bought one and never played it. You know how collectors are.)

The tape contained 24 previously unreleased nuggets from the secret archives of the equally secret group, recorded around the same time as their LP. (Yes, the true identities of the Philemon Arthur And The Dung members is still unknown to all but a handful people.) It simply was more of the same meaning two brothers (or were they friends?) strumming a guitar sometimes tuned, banging away on pots and pans, and hollering out lyrics about flyswatters, braces, dromedaries and soup bowls. Nothing strange about that.

Thing is, you can never get too much of the same. This world always needs more Philemon Arthur And The Dung. Which is why “Får jag spy i ditt paraply” (=”may I puke in your umbrella?”), subtitled “The Pest Of Philemon Arthur And The Dung” was just as welcome as the archival collection before it. But here the discography a wee bit complicated.

“Får jag spy i ditt paraply?” was actually a complementary CD release to “Musikens historia del 1 & 2” (=”the history of music, parts 1 & 2) released ten years earlier, in 1992. “Musikens historia” in turn was a re-release of the original album with selections from the cassette added as bonus tracks. Due to popular demand, “Får jag spy i ditt paraply?” gathered the remaining tracks from the tape plus 19 more previously unreleased tracks from the original golden days. To uncomplicate things a bit: if you get “Musikens historia del 1 & 2” and “Får jag spy i ditt paraply?” you'll have a complete collection of all Philemon Arthur's released material in two convenient CDs. And believe me, you need it. At least if you're anything like me. It helps understanding the strange lyrics, but the unhinged zaniness of Philemon Arthur's music comes through loud and clear (or unclear) no matter what.

Actually, there is one more Philemon Arthur track out there, found a bonus 12" that came with the 2023 vinyl reissue of the original album. The single has Swedish art punk band Bob Hund doing a Philemon song on one side and Philemon Arthur doing a Bob Hund song on the other. But that is an afterthought, a curious modern day postscript that doesn't count.

Instead of messing about with the tracklists trying to re-create the running order of the original cassette, the links below are the two CD's as they come.

Musikens historia del 1 & 2 full album playlist
Får jag spy i ditt paraply full album playlist