Monty Python’s Final Rip-off
Monty Python’s Final Rip-off (1988)
The Final Rip Off is a compilation double album (4 vinyl sides). It was the team’s first release on Virgin Records, after the label acquired the rights to their back catalogue previously released on Charisma.
The set contains material from those six albums, but not from the Life of Brian or Meaning of Life soundtracks, which were released on other labels. Michael Palin added some new linking material while all the songs were remixed by producer Andre Jacquemin including one, “Henry Kissinger“, which featured a previously unreleased section.
The bulk of the Final Rip Off has been derived from Another Monty Python Record and Monty Python’s Previous Record which consist primarily of sketches from the four series of their groundbreaking BBC-TV program, Monty Python’s Flying Circus.
Likewise, there are copious inclusions from their post-telly recordings Matching Tie and Handkerchief and Monty Python’s Contractual Obligation Album. As this (or really any Python platter) demonstrates, the collective and respective talents of writer/actors Michael Palin, Graham Chapman, John Cleese, Eric Idle, Terry Jones, and Terry Gilliam are as aurally unequaled as they are visually incomparable. Even as personalities and egos clashed behind the scenes, the results were uniformly inspired; this remains true of Palin’s newly recorded “Introduction” and a few other brief links as well.
Weirdly, the selections from Another Monty Python Record and Live at Drury Lane were mixed from stereo into mono. The cover art, with its graphic image of guts spilling through slits in a sheet, was illustrated by Les Edwards.
[one_fourth]
SIDE ONE
- 01 Introduction :48 Intro
- 02 Constitutional Peasants 2:51 Peasant
- 03 Fish Licence 2:49 Fish
- 04 Eric the Half-a-Bee Song 2:06 Eric
- 05 Finland Song 2:20 Finland
- 06 Travel Agent 3:46 Travel Agent
- 07 Are You Embarrassed Easily? 2:25 Embarrass
- 08 Austrailian Table Wines 1:38 Wine
- 09 Argument 3:39 Argument
- 10 Henry Kissinger Song 1:36 Henry
- 11 Parrot (Oh, Not Again!) 5:40 Parrot
[/one_fourth]
[one_fourth]
SIDE TWO
- 12 Sit on My Face :44 Sit
- 13 Undertaker 1:34 Undertaker
- 14 Novel Writing (Live from Wessex) 2:34 Novel
- 15 String 2:19 String
- 16 Bells 2:23 Bells
- 17 Traffic Lights 1:56 Traffic
- 18 Cocktail Bar 3:45 Cocktail
- 19 Four Yorkshiremen 3:20 Four
- 20 Election Special 6:53 Election
- 21 Lumberjack Song 2:28 Lumberjack
[/one_fourth]
[one_fourth]
SIDE THREE
- 22 I Like Chinese 3:15 Chinese
- 23 Spanish Inquisition Part 1 2:01 Spanish 1
- 24 Cheese Shop 4:09 Cheese
- 25 Cherry Orchard 2:02 Cherry
- 26 Architects’ Sketch 2:48 Architect
- 27 Spanish Inquisition Part 2 1:08 Spanish 2
- 28 Spam 2:27 Spam
- 29 Spanish Inquisition Part 3 1:08 Spanish 3
- 30 Comfy Chair :15 Comfy
- 31 Famous Person Quiz 1:22 Famous
- 32 You Be the Actor 3:01 Actor
- 33 Nudge Nudge 2:09 Nudge
- 34 Cannibalism 3:15 Cannibalism
- 35 Spanish Inquisition Revisited :20 Spanish Rev
[/one_fourth]
[one_fourth_last]
SIDE FOUR
- 36 I Bet You They Won’t Play This Song :55 Radio
- 37 Bruces 3:02 Bruces
- 38 Bookshop 4:27 Bookshop
- 39 Do Wot John :30 Do Wot
- 40 Rock Notes 2:12 Rock
- 41 I’m So Worried 3:17 Worried
- 42 Crocodile 2:48 Crocodile
- 43 French Taunter 2:34 French 1
- 44 Marilyn Monroe 2:07 Marilyn
- 45 Swamp Castle 4:04 Swamp
- 46 French Taunter Part 2 2:30 French 2
- 47 Last Word :16 Last
[/one_fourth_last]
[one_half]
SIDE ONE
Narrator Michael Palin
Studioman Terry Jones
Narrator The place is England. The year is 787.
Studioman A.D.?
Narrator Of course it’s A.D. You don’t have to say it’s A.D. I mean, they didn’t have A.D. written on Letts Schoolboy’s Diary, I mean no one is going to say on new years eve “Welcome to 1988 A.D.” It’s 787.
Studioman An aeroplane?
Narrator No, it’s not an aeroplane, it’s 787, the year!
Studioman B.C. then?
Narrator No, it’s not likely to be B.C. anyway. Nothing happened in 787 B.C. Well, not in England. Ah, all right, in Egypt…
Studioman In Sumeria, then?
Narrator …in Sumeria, yes absolutely, but I didn’t say “The place is Sumeria. The year is..”
(Holy Grail “Arthur’s Theme” starts)
Hang on, hang on, wait, look, we gotta sort this out. This is background, it’s important material, and it’s new, it’s a totally new link, they won’t understand a word of it, you know, if you fade me out now.
(fade)
From Monty Python and the Holy Grail soundtrack
Originally from Monty Python & the Holy Grail scene 03
From Monty Python’s Previous Record
Originally from Monty Python’s Flying Circus season 2 episode 10 sketch 4
From Monty Python’s Previous Record
Originally from Monty Python’s Flying Circus season 2 episode 10 sketch 4
From Monty Python’s Contractual Obligation Album
From Monty Python’s Previous Record
Originally from Monty Python’s Flying Circus season 3 episode 5 sketch 6
From Monty Python’s Previous Record
From Monty Python’s Previous Record
From Monty Python’s Previous Record
Originally from Monty Python’s Flying Circus season 3 episode 3 sketch 8
From Monty Python’s Contractual Obligation Album
(Worst of) Monty Python’s Flying Circus
Originally from Monty Python’s Flying Circus season 1 episode 10 sketch 5
SIDE TWO
From Monty Python’s Contractual Obligation Album
From Another Monty Python Record
Originally from Monty Python’s Flying Circus season 2 episode 13 sketch 14
From Monty Python Matching Tie and Handkerchief
From Monty Python’s Contractual Obligation Album
From Monty Python’s Contractual Obligation Album
From Monty Python’s Contractual Obligation Album
From Monty Python Live at Drury Lane
From Monty Python Live at Drury Lane
From Monty Python Live at Drury Lane
Originally from Monty Python’s Flying Circus season 2 episode 6 sketch 10
From Monty Python Live at Drury Lane
Originally from Monty Python’s Flying Circus season 1 episode 9 sketch 5
[/one_half]
[one_half_last]
SIDE THREE
From Monty Python’s Contractual Obligation Album
From Another Monty Python Record
Originally from Monty Python’s Flying Circus season 2 episode 2 sketch 2
From Monty Python Matching Tie and Handkerchief
Originally from Monty Python’s Flying Circus season 3 episode 7 sketch 6
From Another Monty Python Record
From Another Monty Python Record
Originally from Monty Python’s Flying Circus season 2 episode 4 sketch 1
From Another Monty Python Record
Originally from Monty Python’s Flying Circus season 2 episode 2 sketch 2
From Another Monty Python Record
Originally from Monty Python’s Flying Circus season 2 episode 12 sketch 9
From Another Monty Python Record
From Another Monty Python Record
Originally from Monty Python’s Flying Circus season 2 episode 2 sketch 5
From Another Monty Python Record
From Another Monty Python Record
(Worst of) Monty Python’s Flying Circus
Originally from Monty Python’s Flying Circus season 1 episode 3 sketch 9
From Another Monty Python Record
Originally from Monty Python’s Flying Circus season 2 episode 13 sketch 13
From Another Monty Python Record
SIDE FOUR
From Monty Python’s Contractual Obligation Album
From Monty Python Matching Tie and Handkerchief
Originally from Monty Python’s Flying Circus season 2 episode 9 sketch 2
From Monty Python’s Contractual Obligation Album
From Monty Python’s Contractual Obligation Album
From Monty Python’s Contractual Obligation Album
From Monty Python’s Contractual Obligation Album
From Monty Python’s Contractual Obligation Album
From Monty Python and the Holy Grail soundtrack
Originally from Monty Python & the Holy Grail scene 08
From Monty Python and the Holy Grail soundtrack
From Monty Python and the Holy Grail soundtrack
Originally from Monty Python & the Holy Grail scene 14
From Monty Python and the Holy Grail soundtrack
Originally from Monty Python & the Holy Grail scene 24
From Monty Python and the Holy Grail soundtrack
Terry Jones Well, that’s about it, really. The film ends mainly visually.
[/one_half_last]