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Dead Kennedys: Fresh Fruit for Rotting Vegetables, The Early Years
Dead Kennedys routinely top both critic and fan polls as the greatest punk band of their generation. Their debut full-length, Fresh Fruit for Rotting Vegetables , in particular, is regularly voted among the top albums in the genre. Fresh Fruit offered a perfect hybrid of humor and polemic strapped to a musical chassis that was as tetchy and inventive as Jello Biafra’s withering broadsides. Those lyrics, cruel in their precision, were revelatory. But it wouldn’t have worked if the underlying sonics were not such an uproarious rush, the paraffin to Biafra’s naked flame. Dead Kennedys’ continuing influence is an extraordinary achievement for a band that had practically zero radio play and only released records on independent labels. They not only existed outside of the mainstream but were, as V. Vale of Search and Destroy noted, the first band of their stature to turn on and attack the music industry itself. The DKs set so much in motion. They were integral to the formulation of an alternative network that allowed bands on the first rung of the ladder to tour outside of their own backyard. They were instrumental in supporting the concept of all-ages shows and spurned the advances of corporate rock promoters and industry lapdogs. They legitimized the notion of an American punk band touring internationally while disseminating the true horror of their native country’s foreign policies, effectively serving as anti-ambassadors on their travels. The book uses dozens of first-hand interviews, photos, and original artwork to offer a new perspective on a group who would become mired in controversy almost from the get-go. It applauds the band’s key role in transforming punk rhetoric, both polemical and musical, into something genuinely threatening—and enormously funny. The author offers context in terms of both the global and local trajectory of punk and, while not flinching from the wildly differing takes individual band members have on the evolution of the band, attempts to be celebratory—if not uncritical.
224 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2014
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Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews
July 10, 2019
Not an easy task for an author to wade into the waters of the complicated and litigious relationship between Jello Biafra and East Bay Ray, but Ogg does an excellent job of tiptoeing through that mine field in this overview of DK’s classic release.
March 29, 2021
Fairly interesting book for fans of rock 'n roll and its history. FFfRV is a seminal punk album, and deserving of a book. The narrative gets a little technical at points when it describes the band working in the studio to capture their sound in the songs on the album, but doesn't disappear into that hole entirely. The stories behind the songs are fun to read, and the band's short, tumultuous history is enough of a reason to pick up this little book. It probably won't win over any new fans, but for us old ones, it's a fun treat on a Spring evening while sitting on the balcony, sipping some tea and listening to music while you read it.
October 30, 2025
Kill, kill, kill, kill, kill the poor
June 26, 2024
"Jello's kind of like my weird, retarded uncle. He's part of the family. [We met] twenty-seven years ago in Chicago, I went backstage, and we didn't have sex. I wasn't a groupie. But we talked for a while. I thought he was an idiot. He thought I was an idiot. And we got along ever since."
Al Jourgensen, Ministry.
Al Jourgensen, Ministry.
February 20, 2025
“I can’t believe they’d let them name their band something like that.” This was a common parental reaction the first time kids in the 1980s brought home a Dead Kennedys record. I’m not sure who “they” are supposed to be. Is there some committee that decides what band names should be allowed? If there isn’t, I’m sure someone in the Reagan administration tried to set one up in those days of the Moral Majority and the Religious Right pulling the president’s strings. In any case, that aforementioned Dead Kennedys record would either end up on the turntable or in the trash depending on how cool your parents were. Lucky for me, my copy of Fresh Fruit for Rotting Vegetables went straight to the stereo and found its way back there thousands of times since then although I’m sure it was annoying enough to my parents, and my neighbors, that they must have considered tossing it in the garbage quite a few times. This is one band whose music was meant to tear up the world and as rock journalist Lester Bangs said, and I paraphrase, “If it doesn’t bother people, I don’t want to listen to it.” Alex Ogg’s Dead Kennedys Fresh Fruit for Rotting Vegetables: The Early Years tells the story of how the band got together and what went into their first LP.
It starts off as a band biography. The scheme and layout are predictable. The original band members, Jello Biafra, East Bay Ray, Klaus Flouride, and Ted, the drummer later replaced by D.H. Pelligro in later years, get introduced; they mostly didn’t come directly from a punk rock background, but then again in 1978 there wasn’t too much punk around anyways. It shouldn’t surprise anyone that surf music is a huge influence on the DK sound, but it might be more surprising how influential Buddy Holly was in the beginning.
Most of the book is told through interviews with band members and associates so at least a couple points should be obvious from the start. One is that lead singer Jello Biafra is a guy who likes to talk a lot and the other is that conflicting accounts of their history are inevitable. Due to disputes both personal and legal, the band members aren’t talking to each other anymore although East Bay Ray and Klaus Flouride appear to have buddied up in opposition to Jello. Klaus Flouride, by the way, is a great stage name because the guy really does look like a dentist. By the end of the book, you get the sense that Jello Biafra and East Bay Ray are two guys who would be difficult to work with so we’re lucky they got anything accomplished at all.
Maybe it was the friction of the band members that brought out the genius level of punk rockmanship they created. After all, no other punk band in 1978 was creating anything so abrasive, angry, confrontational, fast, loud, aggressive, and calculated for maximum controversy as the Dead Kennedys with the exception maybe of the Germs and Bad Brains. The creative process is a central theme throughout the whole story. While the band members differ in their accounts, it does sound like they did their best work when each members was bringing their own unique style into whatever songs they were working on. That creative, democratic process extended through all aspects of the band including stage performance, artwork, management, and naming the band. And you might be surprised to know that they were not the first band to use the name Dead Kennedys.
The lyrical and artistic themes of DK get a good examination here too. With songs titles like “Kill the Poor”, “California Uber Alles”, and “Holiday in Cambodia” you will easily conclude that this is no ordinary rock band. Jello Biafra’s lyrics are works of satire that prod at the hypocrisy and psychosis of American politics, the pathological greed of capitalism, the bullshit of religion, and the hollowness of American culture. The band members give explanations and analyses of what each song on Fresh Fruit for Rotting Vegetables is about. This is probably the most useful part of this book for those unfamiliar with the world view and wicked humor of the band.
The anti-commercial stance of the band is looked at also. With the band name, the musical style, and the offensive lyrics, they were almost guaranteed to get no airplay. Dead Kennedys were a calculated attack on the music industry. In the 1970s, DJ’s and record executives were forcing soft rock, over produced riff rock, and disco down the throats of the listening public. Punk rock rose up in defiance of it all, but the record companies couldn’t effectively market it. Even worse, the bands and their audiences were out of control so when Sid Vicious allegedly murdered Nancy Spungen and the Sex Pistols broke up, they gave up and moved on to other genres. This left a huge gap in the music business because the kids wanted something authentic and stimulating. So in starting the music label of Alternative Tentacles, the Dead Kennedys broke ground once again by allowing bands complete artistic freedom, giving them a chance to be heard without being promoted by the commercial music industry. So we got not only the Dead Kennedys and the first two Butthole Surfers releases, but also works of anti-establishment musicianship from bands like The Fartz, Part Time Christians, and The Crucifucks. If you really want something irritating, check out the five song, 12 inch EP by Teddy and The Frat Girls called I Wanna Be a Man. Dead Kennedys would later attack the music industry more in songs like “MTV Get Off the Air”. The suits in the corporate boardrooms have never forgiven Jello Biafra and I’m sure that’s how he wants it.
On a less exciting note, there is a long section of the book that goes into minute details about the recording of DK’s monumental debut album and early singles. The descriptions of studio equipment and techniques is too much to bear. If you don’t know or care about what goes on in the recording studio, this section is a waste of time. A luddite like me can’t understand any of it and in the end, as long as the vinyl sounds good when I play it, I don’t worry about how it was made. But at least you learn the secret of the producer’s identity; he was listed as Norm in the credits of the album. Don’t expect him to produce your album.
Along with the excessive writing about studio techniques, there is a lot of filler in this book. It has a few band photos that vary in quality. There is some collage artwork by Jello Biafra and Winston Smith that also varies in quality. The black and white format and smallish page size detracts from the quality at times. There are also a few too many photos of the sleeves and vinyl pressings of every edition of Fresh Fruit for Rotting Vegetables and other early singles. Again, they are all in black and white so you can’t really get a feel for how they actually look considering some variants only differ in terms of the colors used. In the end, this project is a little short in content. I don’t know why the author didn’t just make this a full band biography following DK until the time they broke up and a little beyond. The full career of the Dead Kennedys, as well as the artistic output of Jello Biafra and the explosion of the hardcore punk movement didn’t end when Fresh Fruit for Rotting Vegetables was released. That was actually the starting point.
A Jungian psychologist might cast the Dead Kennedys as the shadow side of the human psyche. Actually, they fit the trickster archetype a little more closely. The trickster is the mythological figure that brings chaos into the world, only the trickster doesn’t just rip everything up without a purpose. The trickster functions by causing societies to step outside of their conventions in order to re-evaluate their values. The trickster induces a crisis in order to test a society’s ability to sustain itself during times of stress and challenge. Overcoming the trickster’s madness forces a society to progress. In their artistic critique of America, that is exactly what the Dead Kennedys, and other counter culturalists, have done. Look at the legal troubles they had with the PMRC and the inclusion of H.R. Giger’s Penis Landscape poster in their Frankenchrist album. And all of this was set to great music, provocative enough to initiate a turning point and expansion of punk rock as it entered into its second wave, the hardcore years. Fresh Fruit for Rotting Vegetables may not be the best punk album ever made, but it is one of the most unique and influential. Alex Ogg captures the spirit of its production along wth the rise of the Dead Kennedys. It probably won’t appeal to people outside the DK fan base, hardcore punk nostalgia junkies and collectors, or music historians. It’s not a great book either, but it does have value as a document of an important LP coming from an important time and place.
It starts off as a band biography. The scheme and layout are predictable. The original band members, Jello Biafra, East Bay Ray, Klaus Flouride, and Ted, the drummer later replaced by D.H. Pelligro in later years, get introduced; they mostly didn’t come directly from a punk rock background, but then again in 1978 there wasn’t too much punk around anyways. It shouldn’t surprise anyone that surf music is a huge influence on the DK sound, but it might be more surprising how influential Buddy Holly was in the beginning.
Most of the book is told through interviews with band members and associates so at least a couple points should be obvious from the start. One is that lead singer Jello Biafra is a guy who likes to talk a lot and the other is that conflicting accounts of their history are inevitable. Due to disputes both personal and legal, the band members aren’t talking to each other anymore although East Bay Ray and Klaus Flouride appear to have buddied up in opposition to Jello. Klaus Flouride, by the way, is a great stage name because the guy really does look like a dentist. By the end of the book, you get the sense that Jello Biafra and East Bay Ray are two guys who would be difficult to work with so we’re lucky they got anything accomplished at all.
Maybe it was the friction of the band members that brought out the genius level of punk rockmanship they created. After all, no other punk band in 1978 was creating anything so abrasive, angry, confrontational, fast, loud, aggressive, and calculated for maximum controversy as the Dead Kennedys with the exception maybe of the Germs and Bad Brains. The creative process is a central theme throughout the whole story. While the band members differ in their accounts, it does sound like they did their best work when each members was bringing their own unique style into whatever songs they were working on. That creative, democratic process extended through all aspects of the band including stage performance, artwork, management, and naming the band. And you might be surprised to know that they were not the first band to use the name Dead Kennedys.
The lyrical and artistic themes of DK get a good examination here too. With songs titles like “Kill the Poor”, “California Uber Alles”, and “Holiday in Cambodia” you will easily conclude that this is no ordinary rock band. Jello Biafra’s lyrics are works of satire that prod at the hypocrisy and psychosis of American politics, the pathological greed of capitalism, the bullshit of religion, and the hollowness of American culture. The band members give explanations and analyses of what each song on Fresh Fruit for Rotting Vegetables is about. This is probably the most useful part of this book for those unfamiliar with the world view and wicked humor of the band.
The anti-commercial stance of the band is looked at also. With the band name, the musical style, and the offensive lyrics, they were almost guaranteed to get no airplay. Dead Kennedys were a calculated attack on the music industry. In the 1970s, DJ’s and record executives were forcing soft rock, over produced riff rock, and disco down the throats of the listening public. Punk rock rose up in defiance of it all, but the record companies couldn’t effectively market it. Even worse, the bands and their audiences were out of control so when Sid Vicious allegedly murdered Nancy Spungen and the Sex Pistols broke up, they gave up and moved on to other genres. This left a huge gap in the music business because the kids wanted something authentic and stimulating. So in starting the music label of Alternative Tentacles, the Dead Kennedys broke ground once again by allowing bands complete artistic freedom, giving them a chance to be heard without being promoted by the commercial music industry. So we got not only the Dead Kennedys and the first two Butthole Surfers releases, but also works of anti-establishment musicianship from bands like The Fartz, Part Time Christians, and The Crucifucks. If you really want something irritating, check out the five song, 12 inch EP by Teddy and The Frat Girls called I Wanna Be a Man. Dead Kennedys would later attack the music industry more in songs like “MTV Get Off the Air”. The suits in the corporate boardrooms have never forgiven Jello Biafra and I’m sure that’s how he wants it.
On a less exciting note, there is a long section of the book that goes into minute details about the recording of DK’s monumental debut album and early singles. The descriptions of studio equipment and techniques is too much to bear. If you don’t know or care about what goes on in the recording studio, this section is a waste of time. A luddite like me can’t understand any of it and in the end, as long as the vinyl sounds good when I play it, I don’t worry about how it was made. But at least you learn the secret of the producer’s identity; he was listed as Norm in the credits of the album. Don’t expect him to produce your album.
Along with the excessive writing about studio techniques, there is a lot of filler in this book. It has a few band photos that vary in quality. There is some collage artwork by Jello Biafra and Winston Smith that also varies in quality. The black and white format and smallish page size detracts from the quality at times. There are also a few too many photos of the sleeves and vinyl pressings of every edition of Fresh Fruit for Rotting Vegetables and other early singles. Again, they are all in black and white so you can’t really get a feel for how they actually look considering some variants only differ in terms of the colors used. In the end, this project is a little short in content. I don’t know why the author didn’t just make this a full band biography following DK until the time they broke up and a little beyond. The full career of the Dead Kennedys, as well as the artistic output of Jello Biafra and the explosion of the hardcore punk movement didn’t end when Fresh Fruit for Rotting Vegetables was released. That was actually the starting point.
A Jungian psychologist might cast the Dead Kennedys as the shadow side of the human psyche. Actually, they fit the trickster archetype a little more closely. The trickster is the mythological figure that brings chaos into the world, only the trickster doesn’t just rip everything up without a purpose. The trickster functions by causing societies to step outside of their conventions in order to re-evaluate their values. The trickster induces a crisis in order to test a society’s ability to sustain itself during times of stress and challenge. Overcoming the trickster’s madness forces a society to progress. In their artistic critique of America, that is exactly what the Dead Kennedys, and other counter culturalists, have done. Look at the legal troubles they had with the PMRC and the inclusion of H.R. Giger’s Penis Landscape poster in their Frankenchrist album. And all of this was set to great music, provocative enough to initiate a turning point and expansion of punk rock as it entered into its second wave, the hardcore years. Fresh Fruit for Rotting Vegetables may not be the best punk album ever made, but it is one of the most unique and influential. Alex Ogg captures the spirit of its production along wth the rise of the Dead Kennedys. It probably won’t appeal to people outside the DK fan base, hardcore punk nostalgia junkies and collectors, or music historians. It’s not a great book either, but it does have value as a document of an important LP coming from an important time and place.
March 21, 2019
Amazing book about one of the most important bands of all time. Totally worth it just for the disagreements between East Bay Ray and Jello.
June 29, 2022
Jello Biafra popularized the stage dive and also brought it to England. This book has lots of photos of the singer returning to the stage partially or completely naked, having surfed over the tops of hundreds of moshers grabbing at his pants.
You can skim the middle and later parts. But the part that's solid gold is how did the band form, what was their creative process, why that name... Also good: what was the Bay Area crucible that formed the DKs. Great, priceless photographs, including Jello Biafra in the front row of an Avengers show in 1978.
You can skim the middle and later parts. But the part that's solid gold is how did the band form, what was their creative process, why that name... Also good: what was the Bay Area crucible that formed the DKs. Great, priceless photographs, including Jello Biafra in the front row of an Avengers show in 1978.
January 28, 2022
It's not bad.
I think the real draw back is the members themselves. . . there's some petty posturing in there "I introduced punk to the band" and some out and out bullshit (To the point where even the author was doubtful) "I said that the lyrics needed to be more timeless"
Also being that I listened/once owned Biafra's spoken word stuff, there's a little bit of retread here and there. Nothing too crazy in those regards though.
I think the real draw back is the members themselves. . . there's some petty posturing in there "I introduced punk to the band" and some out and out bullshit (To the point where even the author was doubtful) "I said that the lyrics needed to be more timeless"
Also being that I listened/once owned Biafra's spoken word stuff, there's a little bit of retread here and there. Nothing too crazy in those regards though.
November 29, 2020
Good but short. Only about the first album. Not a lot of depth.
October 13, 2025
PUNK ROCK
February 9, 2017
Alex Ogg has done a terrific job documenting the early years of the Dead Kennedys, and many of his insights into early San Francisco punk are strong, and I'm happy to have been turned on to a few sources and records I didn't know about. Unfortunately, Ogg allows the band members to talk a bit too much and although I enjoyed the humorous contradictions, it also highlights the ugliness of the egos involved. Yes, it made me listen to Fresh Fruit for Rotten Vegetables again, and yes, it is a terrific record, but then all I could imagine was Biafra patting himself on the back.
July 4, 2014
With thanks to Alex Ogg for an advance copy of this fine book (not yet released in the UK), I found that I rather enjoyed this tale of how, when and where the Dead Kennedys started and the eventual release of their debut album.
Having already got copies of No More Heroes and Indepedence Days (both of which I highly recommend), I knew that the author would have done his work on the research front and thus it proved. The book will appeal to fans of punk rock both in the USA and worldwide. Read it in one day as I couldn't put it down.
On a final note I would love to hear the unreleased mix of California Über Alles which, apparently, sounds more like Devo and the Dead Kennedys, but the chances of hearing that are even more remote than a slim chance.
Ray Smillie
Having already got copies of No More Heroes and Indepedence Days (both of which I highly recommend), I knew that the author would have done his work on the research front and thus it proved. The book will appeal to fans of punk rock both in the USA and worldwide. Read it in one day as I couldn't put it down.
On a final note I would love to hear the unreleased mix of California Über Alles which, apparently, sounds more like Devo and the Dead Kennedys, but the chances of hearing that are even more remote than a slim chance.
Ray Smillie
January 8, 2015
Lazy, sloppy account of the early DK years up to the release and subsequent tour of the album. There are a few telling comments from Easy Bay Ray and Jello Biafra but these mainly deal with the later fall-out. This does not capture the West Coast punk scene, nor the key relationships but instead is padded out with seemingly unedited quotes of startling irrelevance; it actually feels like Ogg is just trying to hit an agreed word count by any means. It should also be noted that much of this book is poorly represented Winston Smith collages (along with pictures of tickets and record labels) - again it feels thrown in to pad it out to book length.
As a DK fan, I can't recommend this, and Ogg should hang his head in shame at his closing line.
As a DK fan, I can't recommend this, and Ogg should hang his head in shame at his closing line.
October 17, 2016
Credit to the author. He didn't interview the band together. He instead goes back and forth, primarily between Jello and Ray, who continuously argue with each other despite not even being in the same room.
It's hard to pick a side, as it's hard to know who is bullshitting and who isn't. Impressively the author finished this book without murdering the pair of them, as they both come across as bratty gobshites trying to score points.
Some cool info, nothing mind blowing, cool art and flyers too. Was alright.
It's hard to pick a side, as it's hard to know who is bullshitting and who isn't. Impressively the author finished this book without murdering the pair of them, as they both come across as bratty gobshites trying to score points.
Some cool info, nothing mind blowing, cool art and flyers too. Was alright.
January 19, 2015
The Dead Kennedys had a huge influence on my young mind. Both politically and musically I owe Jello and the boys so much. Great sourcing in this book, with plenty (if not a depressing amount)of arguing back and forth, particularly between East Bay Ray and Jello. The inclusion and in depth story behind the artwork of Winston Smith make this book worth reading for any fan of that late 70's early 80's San Francisco Hardcore scene and sound.
January 1, 2016
This quick read is about the events surrounding the Dead Kennedys record of the same name, and not about the history of the band per se. The book was originally intended to be extensive liner notes to be released with the album's reissue, but the dudes in the band are still fighting.
I think I thought the book was going to be more about the band. It's my fault because I clearly did not read the title.
I think I thought the book was going to be more about the band. It's my fault because I clearly did not read the title.
November 2, 2014
Well-written account of the DK's early years and first album. Alex Ogg spent years negotiating through the prickly personalities of the former bandmates--who are not on good terms--and he presents a picture of a band that was hardworking, committed to professionalism, and pretty much knew from the start what it wanted to do. Tales of wild debauchery won't be found here.
July 17, 2014
An interesting overview of the early days of the Dead Kennedys and the San Francisco punk scene in the late 70s and early 80s. Definitely a worthwhile read for those curious about this legendary band. Bonus points for the footnote about one of my sociology professors at DePaul University.
June 3, 2015
I don't know how you could make Dead Kennedy's boring, but now I do. This book takes all of the explosives and excitement out of the music and drowns it out with boring, dull sentences. The only interesting parts are the quotes by the bandmates.
April 24, 2015
It was interesting to get a back story and some perspective on the dispute between Jello and East Bay Ray. A quick read though lacking depth. Only tells a part of a larger story.
December 20, 2015
Decent account of the early years and debut album of the Dead Kennedys, but a band of this stature deserves a book covering their full career.
June 8, 2015
Decent early history of the DKs, but only up to their first album. It feels incomplete at best.
Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews