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Shamisenology: The Anthology, Vol. 2

by The Mike Penny Orchestra

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1.
Hometown Gig 03:08
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A spotlight Not God, right?? Am I still on stage Or am I done at last? Chest tightens The knees bend Help me please It's 3-D bullies from my past! Gang way Here's my A game! Guy I must impress -- You weren't on the list! Now tough even the safe stuff Hope the MC says my name wrong after this Thank you Please - one more of these That's show biz for ya Bombs away Just call a car and Live to fight another day Hey man - interesting act Hey man - thought of moving back? Hey man - good for you I gotta pack Good evening Good evening! Nice to see so few familiar faces here My pained words for strangers Just the way L.A. intended it to be! Don't come, Klaus It's FINE, Klaus! No, I can't get you and all them in for free But feel free to review me And volunteer that I am "not your cup of tea"
2.
Skyler's Hellicopter Oddyssey 01:18
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Took a trip to Maui Plane took off without me Guess I'll have to hitch on the strip Picked up by a 'copter My red pumps must've stopped 'er Only once on board did it hit The pilot looked mighty familiar indeed Everyone on board was deceased How could Huell Howser be here?? Peter Falk's been dead for years! Judy liked my hairpiece Freddie said he'd wear me! Was it all a dream? Was I dead? Suddenly Serling and Sterling appeared Asked if we could "swap" for a year "We live on Earth, you remain here" Love you all, but life's too dear!
3.
Benjo Bachi (便所バチ) 00:30
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4.
Transient Figures 02:15
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Doug mugs store Can't stand it anymore All around him Upward-bound friends leaving town They've all found their sound Poor Doug's down Notes aplenty float up when he dreams Morning comes not one can he retrieve Music feeling more like chore In inverse proportion grow his age and fortune All those days and nights Spent attempting to write what might Gain respect from intellectuals And pull in that full wage Now we've set the stage A drunken rage in which he tries to gauge If gruff old shopkeep's packin' heat And how much green he keeps in the cash machine Scene portending crimson ending Nobody dies, but Doug winds up in prison The lesson here for all you younger kids listening: Only fools choose music Get a real job!
5.
Knee-Slappin' Brothers (Opening) 00:21
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Bustin' kneecaps up in here! Oh YEAH Knee-slappin' Brothers
6.
Borrowed Time (Opening) 00:26
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Took my lumps and made a dime Living was my only crime Now I'm here trying To fix some things on borrowed time
7.
Stir Crazy (Opening) 00:54
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It used to be we'd always see family Ever since the move it's been so lonely Just us three And lots of bad TV Count your blessings we could retire Wish you would've picked a place that's drier Dear Diary: We're going stir crazy! Now's the time We're in our second prime We can be young again But all our friends are gone You've got me, the doggie... All we need's a hobby 'Cause I think we're going stir crazy!
8.
Come to the South Now (Promotional Advertisement) 00:35
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Come to the South now So we can show you cake We make it well down here So come for goodness sake
9.
Green Bird 01:48
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10.
It's a Good Day! 03:05
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11.
Pure Poppycock Fugue 02:21
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12.
Song of the Summer 2020 01:03
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Feels like Tuesday Who's to say it's not? Summer is hot and it's long Let's break for this cheery new song Routine repeated Juices depleted "Hold on just a little bit longer" In May I Tweeted May the virus soon turn has-been And may we all stop covering "Imagine" I'll just be over here in the fetal 'Til the day we can get that sweet sweet...needle! Brace well for the fall Wear a mask, vote, give your friends a call!
13.
Hamilfugue 01:17
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14.
Not Yours 02:19
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No self-casting in my play! Or do I not have a say? You've hooked in, my friend What you want I won't give Sorry But you're quick And you're slick And you pick up on some kindness in me Then you spin me 'round Control is the goal But I'm not your project So slow your roll I'm not yours
15.
Prelude (F. Chopin, Op. 28 No. 7) 00:42
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16.
Fireworks & Shooting Stars 02:41
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17.
Kuroda Bushi (黒田節) 02:37
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18.
MPO Show Audio Flyer (10.5.12) 00:48
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MPO fears you won't Come to see the show We sure hope you'll Try to make it Hire a babysitter Say it's your bladder acting up again Tell your boss you're suffering I can guarantee ya The artistry will free ya There's others on the bill that'll kill You gotta see 'em! Come to the Bootleg at 2220 Beverly Boulevard!
19.
Speaker Seeker (Promotional Advertisement) 00:27
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With your confidence, poise, and command of the material You win the trust of audiences worldwide But for some Between the lectern and love lies a lonely journey Take up with Speaker Seeker The exclusive dating service for amorous orators 229-113-6000
20.
*Bonus Track: “Fugue for Ripley” by Nostromo (Live from the Transplanted Budokan on LV-426, 1/6/2086) 10:39
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about

Even releasing 35 MPO tracks on Shamisentimental: The Anthology, Vol. 1 less than two months ago wasn’t enough to slake my publication fixation, so I decided to keep purging!
With the release of Shamisenology: The Anthology, Vol. 2, I’ve finally accomplished what I set out to do with MPO more than twelve years ago: make an album (or two) of songs which feature the stylistic versatility of the shamisen as well as my strange, multi-layered musical identity!
Whereas a large percentage of the tracks on Vol. 1 are my “better-known” songs for which I made videos, Vol. 2 contains more of my ambitious acoustic arrangements. On Vol. 2, you can hear a couple of three-shamisen fugues, a wild arrangement of “It’s a Good Day” in which individual notes played by historic musicians were painstakingly spliced and strung together to play my arrangement, my theme songs for TV shows that never existed, and of course many more classic MPO songs that contain that silly fire you’ve come to be vaguely familiar with over the years.
With Vol. 2 now out, I think it’s time for MPO to rest. For the foreseeable future, anyway.
Actually, I should just fess up – I was voted out of the band by a majority of the members.
My hope is that these songs and their companion videos will find forever homes in the minds of cool people like you, and I hope they will inspire some shamisen players to always be true to who they are.

「人マネをしないで、自分のやり方で三味線を弾け！」

Thanks for listening!

-MP

credits

released July 1, 2022

Special thanks:
Jean SpinoSa (Le Boo), The Kitties: Oreo, Adrian, and Sylvester, Adam Stacey (the other member of MPO), Aiko Fukushima, Mark Thornton (Honorary MPO Member), Doug Bierend (Honorary MPO Member), Aaron Seeman, The Gregory Brothers, Japan Foundation Los Angeles (JFLA), Kevin Kmetz, Kyle Abbott, Masahiro Nitta, Toyoaki Fukushi, Kinji Katoh, Rev. Tom Kurai, my parents, and YOU!

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