1977

1977 for The Residents included the release of Fingerprince; the TV broadcast of a short film based on The Third Reich 'n Roll; and their appearance on a label other than Ralph Records.

1977
The Residents photographed, May 1977.
Notable releases	Fingerprince LP "The Beatles Play The Residents and The Residents Play The Beatles" single
Chronology
previous	1976
next	1978

Timeline

January

• KBOO-FM host a Residents festival Radio Show, in which they broadcast The Warner Bros. Album and Baby Sex in their entirety. These broadcasts were bootlegged heavily.

February

• 15th: The Residents' "fourth" album, Fingerprince, is released.
• All subscribers to the Ralph Records' mailing list receive the first issue of the Ralph Records Catalogue. The label would continue to use catalogs as a way to communicate with their fans for the rest of their operations.
• In this first issue, plans are announced for a theater facility intended for sci-fi / horror film screenings and live performances.
• In this same catalog, extremely limited Collector's Edition box sets of The Third Reich 'n' Roll and Fingerprince are advertised. These sets would come in wooden boxes and include novel extras, including art prints created by various artists.
• Future Magazine #1 is published, featuring the first of two of the only interviews The Residents' ever granted.

May

• The Residents record "Beyond the Valley of a Day in the Life" and a cover of The Beatles' "Flying".

June

• 17th: The John Boorman film Exorcist II: The Heretic is released. Snakefinger would later record Ennio Morricone's theme from the film, "Magic and Ecstasy" (which would also inspire the Residents song "The Sleeper").
• The Residents finish a stereo remix of Meet The Residents.

August

• 16th: The Residents release The Beatles Play The Residents and The Residents Play The Beatles.
• Blorp Esette is released by the Los Angeles Free Music Society. The album features original music from various California-based artists, including The Residents with "Whoopy Snorp".
• The Meet the Residents stereo remix is issued with brand-new cover art, allegedly for legal reasons.
• The Residents start production on The Third Reich 'n Roll Collector's Edition box set.
• In order to promote the then-unfinished Eskimo, The Residents produce a radio special featuring an interview between fictional radio host Sid Powell and Jay Clem, discussing and playing The Residents' music. It is sent out to 300 different radio stations.
• The Cryptic Corporation purchases a run-down theatre, and intends to renovate and rename it to "The Ugly Gray Theatre"; however, due to the locals believing the theatre would show gay porn, it was petitioned against and abandoned.

October

The Residents photographed in October

• The Residents, wanting a break from production on Eskimo, begin work on tracks that would be later compiled into Duck Stab!, an EP which would go on to be one of the group's most popular release.

November

• 4th: The Ramones release their second album, Rocket to Russia, including the song "We’re a Happy Family", which The Residents would later cover in 1980.
• 26th: Jon Savage reviews "Beyond the Valley of a Day in the Life" for British magazine Sounds.
• The Residents finish work on Duck Stab.

December

• 1st: The Residents' short film The Third Reich 'n' Roll is broadcast on Australian TV program Flashez.

• 31st: Jon Savage reviews The Residents' first three albums for Sounds magazine. These reviews draw the attention of the British music scene towards The Residents, and represents the start of the group's worldwide popularity.
• The Third Reich 'N Roll is repressed.

Releases

• Fingerprince (LP, Ralph Records, RR1276, 11,000 copies pressed)
  • First pressing 1,000 copies. Second pressing 10,000 copies.
• The Beatles Play The Residents and The Residents Play The Beatles (7'' single, Ralph Records, RR0577, 500 copies pressed)

Promotional records

• The Residents' Radio Special (Cassette, Ralph Records, 300 copies issued)
  • Sent exclusively to radio stations on cassette and reel-to-reel-tape

Re-releases

• Meet The Residents (LP, Ralph Records, RR0677, 12,000 copies pressed)
  • Stereo mix. Different cover art
• Third Reich 'N Roll (LP, Ralph Records, RR1075, 5,000 - 10,000 copies pressed)
  • Slightly different cover art

Compilation appearances

• Blorp Esette (LP, Los Angeles Free Music Society, LAFMS#05, 500 copies pressed)
  • The Residents contributed the track "Whoopy Snorp".

Filmography

• The Third Reich' n Roll (Dir. The Residents)
  • Written by and starring The Residents