Loss of Innocence

Still from the 2004 Music Video

**"Loss of Innocence"** is the nineteenth track on The Residents' *Commercial Album*, released by Ralph Records on October 29th 1980.

## History

Out of all of the songs on the Commercial Album, Loss of Innocence is the most narrative-based, whilst others create a mysterious atmosphere or simply an idea, Loss focuses on the story of a young person at a carnival, as he follows a barker into a tent, and sees something that takes away his innocence.

The song introduces what would become a common theme in The Residents' material, carnival freak shows. The idea of a freak show has interested The Residents since childhood and appears in a vast quantity of their work, such as *Freak Show*, and *Bad Day On The Midway*.

It also features another Residents 'cliche', Siamese Twins. Siamese Twins had previously appeared in the then-unreleased film '*Vileness Fats*', and then later in '*God In Three Persons*', in another Freak-Show-esc situation.

### Later versions

The song was re-recorded in 1992 as part of the album '*Our Finest Flowers*'. This version uses instrumental elements from *Nobody Laughs When They Leave* & *The Walrus Hunt.*

Loss Of Innocence was performed live for the first time in May of 1997, as part of the *Adobe Disfigured Night* show. Later that year, during this same string of shows, the song was performed as the introduction to the 'Freaks' portion of the performance, based on Freak Show & Bad Day On The Midway.

The most recent live performance of the song would come in the Shadowland tour, from 2014 to 2016. A recording of this track from L'estrange Festival in 2015 appeared on the Commercial Ephemera, CD included with The Commercial Album pREServed set in 2019.

#### Cover versions

* Plastic Eye Miracle - The Residents Unmasked! (1995)
* SD Berlin - Eye Am A Resident (2017)
* Dell and the Smoothies - Eye Am A Resident (2017)
* 180 Gs - Commercial Album (2019)

## Music video

   An animated "one minute movie" for the song was produced for the *Commercial DVD* in 2004. Jim Ludtke is credited as the creator for the video, as he created the 3D models used in it; however, he had died before the video was animated. The Residents produced the video as a tribute to him, with an end card in his memorial.

## Lyrics

```
Amusement parks are caked with sounds
A solid hunk of meat
A barker's sweat flings from his tongue
His tattoo shines with heat

```

```
A wary stranger stands and sways
Enraptured by his stance
Two-headed goats come stumbling by
And give a troubled glance

```

```
The barker looks into the eyes
The stranger tries to bend
The barker swears to more delights
For all who seek within

```

```
The stranger enters canvas doors
And smells the fresh cut hay
The barker points to Siamese twins
The stranger looks away

```

```
The eyes of horse faced women
Watch the few who wander through
They sense the tension in the air
And smell the sweet taboo

```

```
A heart beats fast against a chest
The stranger leaves the tent
The waves of people drown the sounds
Of loss of innocence

```

## List of releases

* Commercial Album (1980)
* Hell! (1986)
* Our Finest Flowers (1992)
* In Memoriam Torso (1994)
* Twenty-Five Years Of Eyeball Excellence (1998)
* Live At The Fillmore (1998)
* One Night Stands (Rare & Unreleased) (2003)
* The Commercial DVD (2004)
* Adobe Disfigured Night (2009)
* Disfigured Night (2016)
* Commercial Album pREServed edition (2019)

### List of versions

1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1980 Studio Version (1:00)
2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 1992 'Gone Again' Version (3:59)
3. ↑ 1997, October, Live Version (4:02)
4. ↑ 1997, October, Live Version Edit (3:35)
5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 1997, May, Live Version (3:13)
6. ↑ 2015 Live Version (2:18)

## External links and references

* *Commercial Album* at The Residents Historical
* *Commercial Album* at RZWeb (archived via archive.org
* *Commercial Album* on Discogs

1. ↑ Ima Buddy, *Ima Buddy's Totally Impartial Companion to Uncle Willie's Highly Opinionated BIG MAMAS*, 1992

**Side A:**
"Easter Woman" · "Perfect Love" · "Picnic Boy" · "End of Home" · "Amber" · "Japanese Watercolor" · "Secrets""Die in Terror" · "Red Rider" · "My Second Wife" · "Floyd " · "Suburban Bathers" · "Dimples and Toes" · "The Nameless Souls""Love Leaks Out" · "Act of Being Polite" · "Medicine Man" · "Tragic Bells" · "**Loss of Innocence**" · "The Simple Song"
**Side B:**
"Ups and Downs" · "Possessions" · "Give It to Someone Else" · "Phantom" · "Less Not More" · "My Work Is So Behind" · "Birds in the Trees""Handful of Desire" · "Moisture" · "Love Is..." · "Troubled Man" · "La La" · "Loneliness" · "Nice Old Man""The Talk of Creatures" · "Fingertips" · "In Between Dreams" · "Margaret Freeman" · "The Coming of the Crow" · "When We Were Young"
**Personnel**
The Residents · Fred Frith · Snakefinger · Don Jackovich · Chris CutlerSandy Sandwich · Mud's Sis · Nessie Lessons · Lene Lovich · David Byrne · Brian Eno
**Related works**
"Electronic Elaborate Waste" · "Kraftwerk" · "Cosmetics For Reality" · "Rosco's Righteous Rodent" · "Pretty Baby" · "Tuxedos""No Longer Unused" · "Instant Hostility" · "Elevator Lady" · "One Minute Movies" · *Commercial Single* ("Shut Up Shut Up" / "And I Was Alone") · "Boy In Love" · *Minatures* ("We're A Happy Family") · "Talkin' in the Town" · "Womb To Worm" · *Greener Postures* · "Theme For An American TV Show" · *Ralph Radio Special* · "Commercial Suite" · *Commercial DVD* · *Commercial Album* by The 180 Gs · *The Commercial Single Commercials (In Mono)*
**Related articles**
Ralph Records · The Cryptic Corporation · Grove St. studio · Poor No Graphics · Buy Or Die 1980½ · *Diskomo/Goosebump*‏‏‎