Barnes & Barnes

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Barnes & Barnes

Years active	1970–present
Genre	"Novelty Rock"
Labels	Lumania Records Rhino Records Oglio Records
Members	Art Barnes (Bill Mumy) Artie Barnes (Robert Haimer)

Barnes & Barnes, fictional twin brothers Art & Artie Barnes, are a "novelty rock" duo based in Lumania, a fictional mythological civilization (similar to Lemuria or Atlantis). Most of their music is standard Rock or Pop with heavy comedic elements, hence their inclusion in the "novelty rock" genre. Their real-life alter egos, Robert Haimer and Bill Mumy, are based in Los Angeles, California, USA. Mumy is also well known for playing Will Robinson in the TV series Lost in Space and Lennier in "Babylon 5."

1 History
2 Albums
3 Produced work
4 External links

[edit] History

Barnes & Barnes formed in 1970. Robert Haimer and Bill Mumy were childhood friends who occasionally jammed together on their musical instruments. Around 1968, they would shoot short films with a Super 8 motion picture camera, dubbed "Art Films". The two began calling each other "Art", and thus, their alter egos were born. Their surname, "Barnes" was taken from a Bill Cosby comedy routine called "Revenge", in which a character called Junior Barnes throws a snowball at Cosby as a child. Originally, both Haimer and Mumy were named "Art Barnes", but Haimer's alter ego was publicly renamed "Artie" in 1979 to differentiate between them. To each other, however, they both still remain "Art". They first received airplay on The Dr. Demento Show in 1978 with their songs "Boogie Woogie Amputee" and "Fish Heads". The latter tune was released as a single on their own Lumania Records in 1979 and remains their best-known song, as well as the most requested song in the history of The Dr. Demento Show. The song was often misattributed to The Chipmunks for its processed high-pitched chorus:

Fish heads, fish heads

Roly-poly fish heads

Fish heads, fish heads

Eat them up, yum!

In 2005, Barnes & Barnes were inducted into the Comedy Music Hall of Fame.

[edit] Albums

With the exception of Soak It Up and Yeah: The Essential Barnes & Barnes, all of their original albums were released on Rhino Records. All of their rereleases were on CD, with bonus tracks, on Oglio Records.

Voobaha (1980) is their first album, released in August 1980. It remains their best-selling album, mostly due to the fact that it includes Fish Heads. It was recorded entirely in 1979, except for Fish Heads, which was recorded in 1978. The album includes 14 tracks, all of which are novelty songs. This album was re-released in August 1996. Voobaha means both "hello" and "goodbye" in Lumanian, analogous to the Hawaiian "Aloha".
Spazchow (1981). Their second album was a large departure from Voobaha. Although the duo still used the same musical instruments they had a year previous, the album's clear theme was pain in their lives caused by women. This album was re-released in August 1997. Spazchow means "born to suffer at the hands of women and make music" in Lumanian.
Fish Heads: Barnes & Barnes' Greatest Hits (1982). Also referred to as "Fish Heads Picture Disc". This was a 5-song EP shaped like a fish head. It contained 2 songs, one from each of their albums made thus far, one remix of a Voobaha track, and two new songs.
I Had Sex With E.T. (1982). A four-song offering that was part of a trio of EPs that Barnes & Barnes put out between 1982 to 1983. It does not technically have a title, but it is informally referred to as "I Had Sex With E.T.", a song that got the group into legal trouble with Universal Studios for unlicensed use of the "E.T." name. Unwilling to fight a legal battle, Barnes & Barnes stopped manufacturing the record after approximately 200 had been sold, and destroyed all unsold stock. Only one song from this disc has been re-released elsewhere, and the other three remain exclusive to the EP. It is no longer considered a canonical Barnes & Barnes release, likely as a result of Universal's legal action.
Soak It Up (1983) This was a second 5-song EP, this time released on Boulevard Records. By this point in time, Barnes & Barnes had grown tired of the stigma attached to comedy music, which had made them famous, and decided to release a two-part "serious" project: Soak It Up followed by Kodovoner. Unfortunately, this EP sold poorly, and Barnes & Barnes were dropped from the label.
Kodovoner (originally 1983). After Soak It Up was released, this 10-song LP was scheduled to be released immediately after it. Because of Soak It Up's poor sales, and Barnes & Barnes' subsequent removal from Boulevard, the project was abandoned. Between then and 2000, close to half of the album had been released elsewhere on other B&B releases. In July 2005, Kodovoner was finally given a proper release, with the Soak It Up EP and 9 bonus tracks. The album title means "code of honor" in Lumanian.
Amazing Adult Fantasy (1984). After Barnes & Barnes were dropped from Boulevard Records, Rhino Records resigned them for their 5th released album. This album was an evolution of the new wave sound that was present on Soak It Up and Kodovoner, and also saw them moving back toward the novelty genre that made them so famous. Since it had no clear direction, and was largely a mish-mash of "all things Barnes-like", as said by Bill Mumy in the rerelease liner notes, this album was the worst seller of all Barnes & Barnes records. This album was re-released in July, 2005.
Sicks (1986). After the failure of Amazing Adult Fantasy, Rhino Records mandated that Barnes & Barnes make a new novelty album in the style of Voobaha. B&B accepted the challenge and made their first true novelty album since Voobaha. Sicks, therefore, was the best selling album since then. It also contained two tracks from the then-unreleased Kodovoner. This album was re-released in July 2005.
Zabagabee (1987). This was their first true "greatest hits" album. It contained many of their hits, most of which were remixed for this album. It also contained 5 exclusive tracks, all of which were included on the rereleases of Amazing Adult Fantasy and Sicks. Zabagabee means a "celebration" in Lumanian. In the Babylon 5 episode Eyes, Mumy, who starred in that show, used the title of this album as an alien word.
Loozanteen (1991) Their final "official" album made thus far, this was the only B&B album to be originally released on CD. It contained several tracks recorded in 1988 for an unreleased album that Rhino passed on. Loozanteen means "an unattainable object of desire" in Lumanian.
The Dinosaur Album (1993) By 1993, both Haimer and Mumy had become fathers, and this album relects their parenthood-influenced way of life. Not recorded under the "Barnes & Barnes" alias, but rather a variety of dinosaur-themed ones ("The Nervous Nanosauruses", "Pterodactyl Terry", etc.), this album was a children's offering about dinosaurs. It was released only on cassette, and is also notable for being their final release on Rhino.
Yeah: The Essential Barnes & Barnes (2000). Their second greatest hits compilation, released on Oglio Records, included 4 brand new tracks, all of which were made specifically for this album. It also contained two Kodovoner tracks and two tracks from the untitled, unreleased 1988 album.