Big Lizard in My Backyard

Big Lizard in My Backyard is the debut album by the Dead Milkmen, released by Restless Records in 1985.[5][6]

Big Lizard in My Backyard
Studio album by
the Dead Milkmen
Released1985
Recorded1985
Genre
Length42:14
LabelRestless
ProducerThe Dead Milkmen, John Wicks
The Dead Milkmen chronology
Big Lizard in My Backyard
(1985)		 Eat Your Paisley!
(1986)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
Robert ChristgauA−[2]
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music[3]
MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide[4]

Although the album yielded no singles, it achieved enough notoriety to create a fan base for the band. Five of the album's tracks appear on the 1997 compilation Death Rides a Pale Cow: The Ultimate Collection; four tracks appear on the 1998 compilation Cream of the Crop.

Production

Big Lizard in My Backyard was produced by John Wicks and the band.[4] The introduction to "Bitchin' Camaro" was improvised.[7]

Cover artwork

The album's cover artwork was designed by the band's drummer, Dean Clean.[8]

Critical reception

Big Lizard in My Backyard received strong reviews, with critics singling out "Bitchin' Camaro", calling it "hilarious" and "career-making."[6][9] Maximum Rocknroll wrote that "these 20 satire-laced songs are real crack-ups, and backed up by tight playing that incorporates funk, country, and lots of other styles into their punk approach."[10] Spin called the album "frenetic goof pop," writing that it's "full of the kind of scruff-and-tumble guitar and funtime lyrics that made 1977 punk such a refreshing blast."[11]

Track listing

All tracks written by the Dead Milkmen

  1. "Tiny Town" - 1:45
  2. "Beach Song" - 2:00
  3. "Plum Dumb" - 1:56
  4. "Swordfish" - 1:31
  5. "V.F.W. (Veterans of a Fucked Up World)" - 1:48
  6. "Rastabilly" - 1:07
  7. "Serrated Edge" - 1:59
  8. "Lucky" - 2:10
  9. "Big Lizard in My Backyard" - 1:59
  10. "Gorilla Girl" - 1:33
  11. "Bitchin' Camaro" - 3:01
  12. "Filet of Sole" - 1:57
  13. "Spit Sink" - 2:01 (Produced By Mike Ace & Jonny Earthshoe)
  14. "Violent School" - 1:58
  15. "Takin’ Retards to the Zoo" - 0:48 (Produced By Mike Ace & Jonny Earthshoe)
  16. "Junkie" - 0:52
  17. "Right Wing Pigeons" - 2:21
  18. "Dean’s Dream" - 1:49
  19. "Laundromat Song" - 1:47
  20. "Nutrition" - 2:17
  21. "Tugena" - 5:27 (instrumental)

"Gorilla Girl" was not included on the original U.S. Enigma/Fever LP release. "Tugena" was present on the original release (as the last track) but was unidentified and not labeled until later pressings.

Personnel
The Dead Milkmen

References
  1. AllMusic
  2. Christgau, Robert. "Album: The Dead Milkmen: Big Lizard in My Backyard". robertchristgau.com. Retrieved 2017-09-18.
  3. Larkin, Colin (2006). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Vol. 2. MUZE. p. 803.
  4. MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide. Visible Ink Press. 1999. p. 319.
  5. "Dead Milkmen | Biography & History". AllMusic.
  6. "CMJ Silver Salute". CMJ New Music Report. CMJ Network, Inc. November 10, 2003 – via Google Books.
  7. Weidman, Rich (2022). Punk: The Definitive Guide to the Blank Generation and Beyond. Backbeat Books. p. 149.
  8. "Portfolio | Music Industry". DeanSabatino.com. Archived from the original on April 19, 2004. Retrieved August 25, 2022.
  9. "TrouserPress.com :: Dead Milkmen". www.trouserpress.com.
  10. "Big Lizard in My Backyard LP".
  11. "Underground". Spin. 1 (6): 37. Oct 1985.
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