Please Do Not Steal It!

Please Do Not Steal It! is a promotional compilation by The Residents (with one track by Snakefinger), released by Ralph Records in March 1979 to radio stations across the United States. It was then released commercially in Europe and Australia under the name Nibbles on July 13th 1979. 
Please Do Not Steal It! was later reissued on Record Store Day 2016 by Music On Vinyl, and again in 2017 as a "limited tour edition" of 1000 copies. The 2016 edition replaces Snakefinger's "The Spot" with a 1997 live version of "Eloise".
== History ==
=== Release ===
Following from Bill Reinhardt's series of Residents radio specials, and the release of Duck Stab,"Please Do Not Steal It by oddball group The Residents was a promotional compilation album sent out to various American radio stations to promote The Residents after the release ofDuck Stab.
The full title isThis is a special DJ record of The Residents' alleged music. Please Do Not Steal It! Keep it at your station - we need the radio airplay. Originally, a limited run of 975 copies were pressed.
This limited tour edition of 1.000 numbered copies is pressed on transparent vinyl." - Music On Vinyl
 Ralph Records decided to seek out more airplay for their then only act, The Residents."Chewing Hides The Sound was licensed to Virgin records in the UK, with whom The Cryptic Corporation had built up a relationship which resulted in the 1979 Virgin release of a Residents sampler LP called Nibbles, accompanied by some press release nonsense - “The Residents, those lovable eccentrics from San Francisco, have almost consented to the release of an album through Virgin Records. With characteristic disregard for protocol, Virgin have chosen to interpret silence as agreement and release Nibbles on 13th July”. This LP was, in fact, the same as a Residents radio sampler titled Please Do Not Steal It, which had been compiled and sent out to American radio stations with a press release penned by Cryptic engineer Hardy Fox: “Due to the distinctive qualities of this music, not all stations are prepared to deal with this inventiveness.” According to Bill Reinhardt, The Residents’ decision to target radio stations with these samplers was partially due to him, “I did many specials on the band, and when they did the radio sampler they did that with me in mind to air it first.” - Never Known Questions, 2015 In order to accomplish this, they compiled 15 'more easily digestible'"This record is a promotional album of Residents material from 1974-1978. Included are edited versions of four lengthy songs, (Rest Aria, Never Known Questions, Six Things to a Cycle, and The Making of a Soul), and one selection by Snakeflnger (The Spot). This album was sent out to hundreds of radio stations in the United States and Canada in an effort to gain airplay for some of the more easily digestable Residents songs. PLEASE DO NOT STEAL IT! was not released to the general public, although the same songs can be found in identical order on the NIBBLES album, which was imported from Europe. The title of this record was taken from the phrase, "PLEASE 00 NOT STEAL IT! WE NEED THE AIRPLAY!" which appeared on the front cover; this was a plea to all airwave personnel to leave the record at their radio stations, and not to take it home or sell it. (As is commonly done with promotional albums!) Ralph initially mailed out 850 copies of the 975 that were pressed. In the following months, the remainder of the edition were either given away to radio stations that had been missed, or were sold to other interested parties in the music industry." - The Cryptic Guide to The Residents, 1986 songs from The Residents' output into a 37-minute LP, without informing The Residents. 975 copies were pressed and 850 were sent to radio stations across Northern America, with the first going to Reinhardt, whom the label had in mind during production. 
The remaining 125 copies were saved in case any new radio stations were discovered, or if any industry insiders wanted copies.
Ralph designed the album for easy airplay, with 'radio edits' of certain songs like 'Hitler Was A Vegetarian,' 'Rest Aria,' 'Never Known Questions,' 'The Making of a Soul' & 'Six Things To A Cycle,' included. The liner notes also contain intro lengths, album sources, recording dates, and other pieces of trivia which DJs may choose to mention between songs. The LP was also the first album appearance of 'Santa Dog '78,' and 'The Spot'; a Snakefinger single made in collaboration with The Residents.
The sampler was later repackaged as The Residents' first international release. Despite it's contents, the liner notes refuse to call it a 'best of' and instead refer to it as The Residents' first non-concept album.
According to a press release quoted in the 2015 book Never Known Questions, Virgin Records released the 'Nibbles' on July 13th of 1979, after The Residents 'almost consented,' with the implication being that The Residents' lack of response was interpreted as consent. The Cryptic Guide to The Residents, published in 1986, gives a September release date for Nibbles instead.The Cryptic Guide to The Residents The album was also released in the Netherlands by Ariola and in Australia and New Zealand by RTC/Missing Link.https://www.discogs.com/master/324953-The-Residents-Please-Do-Not-Steal-It
Nibbles was initially unavailable in the US, but Ralph Records sold imports of the Virgin pressings starting in April of 1980."This is an import from the UK which is distributed by Virgin Records. It contains 13 tracks from the first five Residents LPs, Santa Dog ’78, and Snakefinger’s The Spot. Not released in the US.” - Buy or Die 5 (April 1980) Nine thousand copies of Nibbles were pressed initally, with 5,000 in the UK and 2,000 pressed in both Holland and Australia."5000 copies of NIBBLES were pressed in England; 2000 copies were made in each of Holland and Australia. 1000-2500 copies of the English release were imported into the United States, as were a handful of copies from both Holland and Australia." - The Cryptic Guide to The Residents 
===Legacy===
The album helped draw attention to the group, and notably Captain Beefheart sideman Eric Drew Feldman discovered them through the album, leading to now decades of collaborations with the group.Bonus Episode E: Full Interview with Eric Drew Feldman | Home Age Conversations
37 years after its initial pressing, Music on Vinyl re-released 'Please Do Not Steal It!' on Record Store Day 2016; the first official release of the album in the United States. 2,500 copies were pressed, 1,000 on pink vinyl,The Residents – Please Do Not Steal It! (2016, Pink, vinyl) - Discogs and 1,500 on white vinyl.The Residents – Please Do Not Steal It! (2016, white, vinyl) - Discogs This version also replaces 'The Spot' with a 1997 live recording of 'Eloise,' which had been released 13 years earlier on Kettles Of Fish On The Outskirts Of Town.
On November 3rd, 2017, 'Please Do Not Steal It!' was re-pressed as a 'limited tour edition' with 1,000 copies pressed."Limited Tour Edition of 1.000 Copies on Crystal Clear Vinyl. 180 gram audiophile vinyl" - 2017 pressing liner notes
===Ratings===
*Discogs: 4.41 / 5
*Amazon: 4.8 / 5
*RateYourMusic: 3.95 / 5.0
*AllMusic: 4 / 5
==Track listing==
All tracks written and/or arranged by The Residents unless otherwise noted.
=== 1979 releases===
==== Side A ====
#You Yesyesyes (2:59)
#Santa Dog '78 (1:50)
# Gloria (1:05) (Morrison)
#Excerpt From 'Rest Aria' (2:20)
# Semolina (2:52)
#The Spot (2:55) (Snakefinger/Residents)
# Excerpt From 'Never Known Questions' (2:17)
#Constantinople (2:22)
==== Side B ====
#Laughing Song (2:14)
#Excerpt From 'The Making Of A Soul' (2:25)
#Skratz (1:40)
#Good Lovin' (1:41) (Clark/Resnick)
#Blue Rosebuds (3:08)
#Excerpt From 'Six Things To A Cycle' (3:40)
#The Electrocutioner (3:18)
====2016 and 2017 reissues====
#You Yesyesyes (2:59)
#Santa Dog '78 (1:50)
# Gloria (1:05) (Morrison)
#Excerpt From 'Rest Aria' (2:20)
#Semolina (2:52)
#Eloise (1:22)
#Excerpt From 'Never Known Questions' (2:17)
#Constantinople (2:22)
#Laughing Song (2:14)
# Excerpt From 'The Making Of A Soul' (2:25)
#Skratz (1:40)
#Good Lovin' (1:41) (Clark/Resnick)
#Blue Rosebuds (3:08)
#Excerpt From 'Six Things To A Cycle' (3:40)
#The Electrocutioner (3:18)
==Liner notes ==
===Nibbles (1979) ===
Yes, here it is... The Residents' first truly non-concept album. So non-concept, in fact, that no one has even bothered to tell The Residents that this record has been compiled. See, this is actually a collection of various material taken from five different albums.
Then one might say, "Oh, a greatest hits album," but those in the know just snicker at that. For one thing The Residents do not have any hits. Besides, if it were a "greatest hits" collection then it would be a concept album, and as has been previously stated, this is not a concept album.
"But what is it", one might ask, "and what is a Resident"?
Last things first. A "Resident" for our purposes is one of four alleged humans who live in San Francisco and wage cultural war on nostalgia in music (especially pop, and more especially rock). Of course, in the process these Residents end up creating some rather novel pop and rock, sometimes almost nostalgia. And the music that comes closest to nostalgia ends up here on a record that anyone with even average imagination wit, and intelligence can listen to and enjoy... or perhaps despise... this clever collection of musical tidbits.
==Credits==
The Residents:
* Performance
*Synthesizer on 'The Spot'
Snakefinger
* Guitar on 'You YesYesYes', 'The Spot', 'Blue Rosebuds' & 'The Electrocutioner'
*Vocals On 'The Spot'
*Backing Vocals On 'Constantinople' 'Laughing Song', & 'The Electrocutioner'
*Violin On 'Laughing Song'
D. Jackovich
* Percussion On 'The Spot' & 'Six Things To A Cycle'
T. Logan
*Steel Drum On 'Six Things To A Cycle'
Ruby
*Lead Vocals: 'The Electrocutioner'
===Recording dates===
Unlike other Residents albums, Please Do Not Steal It! and Nibbles note specific recording months for each track, they are as follows:
*May 1973: Rest Aria
*June 1973: Skratz
*April 1974: Never Known Questions
*May 1974: The Making Of A Soul
*October 1975: Gloria, Good Lovin'
*October 1976: You Yesyesyes
*August 1976: Six Things To A Cycle
*October 1977: Constantinople, Laughing Song, Blue Rosebuds
*May 1978: The Spot
*August 1978: Semolina
*November 1978: Santa Dog
==Release history==
Year	Label 	Region	Notes
1979	Ralph Records 	US 	Titled 'Please Do Not Steal It!'
1979	Virgin 	UK 	Titled 'Nibbles'
1979	Ariola 	NL 	Titled 'Nibbles'
1979	RTC/Missing Link	AU/NZ 	Titled 'Nibbles'
2016	Music On Vinyl 	US/EU 	Titled 'Please Do Not Steal It!', replaced The Spot with Eloise.
2016	Music On Vinyl 	EU 	Titled 'Please Do Not Steal It!', replaced The Spot with Eloise.
2017	Music On Vinyl 	EU 	Titled 'Please Do Not Steal It!', replaced The Spot with Eloise.
==See also==
*The Residents Radio Special
*Ralph Records 10th Anniversary Radio Special!
==External links and references ==
*Please Do Not Steal It! aka Nibbles at RZWeb
*Please Do Not Steal It!at Discogs
*Nibblesat Discogs
Category:Compilations
Category:Promotional albums
Category:Out Of Print Releases
Category:Please Do Not Steal It!
Category:1978
Category:1979
Category:Ralph Samplers
Category:Record Store Day