TV or Not TV

TV or Not TV
Studio album by Proctor and Bergman
Released	1973
Recorded	February 1973
Genre	Comedy
Length	40:33
Label	Columbia
Producer	Steve Gillmor
Proctor and Bergman chronology
TV or not TV (1973) What This Country Needs (1975)

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
The Goldmine Comedy Record Price Guide
The New Rolling Stone Record Guide

TV or Not TV is the first album by the comedy duo Proctor and Bergman. It was originally released in 1973 by Columbia Records.

Unlike most Firesign Theatre albums, it included songs ("Communist Love Song" sung by Proctor at the end of side A and "Nasi Goring" sung by Bergman in the middle of side B) as well as a TV-related plotline comparable to Don't Crush That Dwarf, Hand Me the Pliers.

Track listing

Side one — act one

1. "Insert Here"
2. "Channel 85 Sign-On"
3. "Escaping From The Declining Fall Of The Roaming Umpire, Chapter XIII"
4. "Police Lineup"
5. "Salute My Boots"
6. "The Channel 85 Story"
7. "Cirque Internationale"
8. "Communist Love Song"

Side two — act two

1. "Channel 85 Reply"
2. "Tobor Radar Robot"
3. "The Pills Brothers On Drugs"
4. "The Mz Information Society"
5. "Bring Us Together"
6. "Nasi Goring"
7. "Our Lady Of The Torch"
8. "Emergency Alert"
9. "Emerging Fall Of The Roaming Umpire, Program VII"
10. "Give Up This Day"
11. "Channel 85 Sign-Off"
12. "Insert Here"

Critical reception

Critically this album received the best notices out of all of The Firesign Theatre's side projects. The New Rolling Stone Record Guide gives the album 4 out of 5 stars and says that Proctor and Bergman "melds [their] characteristic Joycean wit with some hilarious slapstick routines" (404), while The Goldmine Comedy Record Price Guide says that Proctor and Bergman "seem like Wayne and Shuster on acid" (272). While The Goldmine Guide only gives this particular album 2 stars, this is still a higher notice than any other album by one of The Firesign Theatre's side projects .

Issues and reissues

This album was originally released simultaneously on LP, 8 Track, and Cassette:

• LP — KC-32199
• Cassette — CT-32199
• 8 track — CA-32199

It has been re-released on CD at least once:

• 2001 - Laugh.com LGH1152

References

• ^ "FIREZINE: Linques!." Firesign Theatre FAQ. 20 January 2006 <http://firezine.net/faq/>.
• ^ "Proctor & Bergman — TV or not TV — AUDIO ONLY." Laugh.com. Laugh.com. 10 February 2006 <http://store.yahoo.com/laughstore/prbetvornott.html>.
• ^ Smith, Ronald L. The Goldmine Comedy Record Price Guide. Iola: Krause, 1996. 272.
• ^ Swenson, John. "Proctor and Bergman." The New Rolling Stone Record Guide. Ed. Dave Marsh and John Swenson. New York: Random House, 1983. 404.
• Smith, Ronald L. The Goldmine Comedy Record Price Guide. Iola: Krause, 1996. 272.
• Swenson, John. "Proctor and Bergman." The New Rolling Stone Record Guide. Ed. Dave Marsh and John Swenson. New York: Random House, 1983. 404.
• Proctor and Bergman. TV or not TV. Columbia Records, 1973.

External links

• Proctor & Bergman - TV or not TV – Laugh.com (10 February 2006)
• Firesign Theatre – Official website (19 January 2006)
• FIREZINE: Linques! – Firesign Theatre FAQ (20 January 2006)