Fresh Fruit For Rotting Vegetables

Dead Kennedys | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (April 13, 2010)
• Original Release Date: 2005
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Manifesto Records
• ASIN: B000A2H2QI
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #28,518 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. Kill the Poor

2. Forward to Death

3. When Ya Get Drafted

4. Let's Lynch the Landlord

5. Drug Me

6. Your Emotions

7. Chemical Warfare

8. California Über Alles

9. I Kill Children

10. Stealing People's Mail

11. Funland at the Beach

12. Ill in the Head

13. Holiday in Cambodia

14. Viva Las Vegas

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Punk Masterpiece That Simply Can't Be Imitated, Let Alone Duplicated, November 2, 2006

By 

L. Brown (Los Angeles) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Fresh Fruit For Rotting Vegetables (Audio CD)

When this album was first released it got massive airplay on Los Angeles (Pasadena) radio station KROQ - and the world was never quite the same again. California Uber Alles, Holiday In Cambodia, and Viva Las Vegas filled the airwaves, making mincemeat of AOR (Album Oriented Rock) radio stations. I studied the poster, gleaning the words to the songs, committing them to memory, and wondering when and where I could see this band!

The songs are incredibly fast, the lyrics show intelligence and political insight, and over a quarter century later still hold up well. Other bands were at the forefront of punk before the DKs, but none did it better. Listen to today's punk, then listen to this. Nothing comes close and nothing packs the whallop of these tunes. It's socially acceptable to be 50 and have a gray ponytail. The hippies of the 60's and 70's turned out to be the same greedy execs that they rallied against. But 50 year old punks are still cool and are NOT sellouts.

I love turning people on to this CD. The looks on their face are either Love It or Hate It. I don't care what age you are, music is supposed to move you, one way or the other. Most of today's music can't, even the indie stuff and all the self produced stuff. But this, my friends, is the elixir of angry punk music at it's finest. Try it - you'll LOVE it. Woooooooooo-Hoooooooooooooooo!!!!!!!!!!!!

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Timeless....still sounds....BITCHIN!!!, December 18, 2007

By 

Dr. I.C.Brown "Proctologist" (H.B., O.C., CA and the World) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Fresh Fruit For Rotting Vegetables (Audio CD)

They have been called "hardcore" for years and I never understood why. Yes they are fast (and slow)loud and hard but not what I think of when I think of hardcore or thrash. Anyway the lyrics are timeless and conjure images of the late 50's and early 60's men in grey flannel suits, cocktail parties and men using phrases like "that's swell"! I envision Jacky O, Pol Pot, and the Bay area. The music is fast and catchy with great sing along lyrics. Great for school camp trips, retreats, and mormons.

Plastic Surgery Disasters from DK is equally as good.

Dr. Brown certifies this CD as A #1.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A punk classic, February 27, 2008

By 

Andreas C G "Andreas Carl Georgi" (Huntington Beach, CA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Fresh Fruit For Rotting Vegetables (Audio CD)

The second wave of punk, which started around 1978, degenerated into mediocrity, dreary sameness and self-parody within a couple of years, but Dead Kennedys, along with Flipper, Bad Brains, Black Flag, and a handful of others, stand out as the best, most intelligent, and most distinctive.

Jelly Biafra's warbling quasi-yodel and East Bay Ray's reverb-drenched guitar, which borrows heavily from surf music, are are immediately identifiable. All of their albums have great stuff on them, but I think most people agree that the first one is the best.

The album contains two classics, "Holiday in Cambodia", which deals with middle class complacency, and "California Ueber Alles", a mockery of then-governor Jerry Brown (later updated to a "lounge" version when Reagan became president). "Holiday in Cambodia" is the clear highlight of the album. These guys do not take the subtle approach to anything. Each song is a high-speed rant dealing with one political or social issue or another, but always with a very sharp sense of humor and irony ("Kill the Poor"). Jello Biafra's distinctive talent is his ability to deliver often wordy lyrics at lightning speed with perfect timing and delivery. The politics are decidedly left-wing, but you don't have to agree with them to enjoy it, because throughout the attitude is very much tounge-in-cheek and humorous, so it never gets ponderous, and most of it is just really funny. The little "Somewhere My Love" bit towards the end of "Chemical Warfare" still cracks me up. The album ends with an absurdly funny rendition of "Viva Las Vegas". The shock value has long-since worn off, of course, but this album, unlike the vast majority of hardcore punk, still stands the test of time.