Big Mess

Song Name: Big Mess

Artist:  DEVO  (partial cover)

Appears On:

• oh, no! it's DEVO,
  Greatest Hits,  this is the DEVO box,  Pioneers Who Got Scalped: The Anthology,  50 Years of De-Evolution (1973-2023) (album version)

• Recombo DNA (demo version)

Run Time:  2:42 (album version)

Year Released:  1982

Years Performed:   1982

Writing Credits:   Mark Mothersbaugh and Gerald V. Casale

Sung By:   Gerald V. Casale

Demo Versions: 

Big Mess (demo) (2:48)  [Mark lead vox, Jerry additional vox]

Big Mess (demo) (2:52)  [unreleased, Jerry vocals]

Trivia / Info:

• Sequenced as the 7th track on the album.

• DEVO performed this song in their oh,no it’s DEVO concerts.

• The lyrics were inspired by the writings of an uncredited, real-life, "Cowboy Kim".

Onstage Behavior:

• DEVO play in close lockstep precision - except at the 3-DEVO performance.

Lyrics:

i am cowboy kim

cowboy kim i am

i am a lucky cowboy

let me tell you why:

i'm a man with a mission

a boy with a gun

i got a picture in my pocket of the lucky one

i'll announce the winner

on the radio

with my microphone,

i do a super show

i wear a cowboy hat

it is my business hat

i'm on till 1:00 am,

i must tell you that:

i'm a man with a mission,

a boy with a gun

i got a picture in my pocket of the lucky one –

who doesn't know

i'm a big mess

i mean a really big mess

(a big, big mess, he was all mixed up and a big mess)

(big mess, he was a)

(he was really mixed up, he was a big mess)

(big mess, he was a)

(he was really mixed up)

(instrumental break)

cowboy kim i am

mr. reality

the most important thing

i put away my toys

with my microphone

i do a super show

i'll announce the winner

on the radio

i'm a man with a mission

a boy with a gun

i got a picture in my pocket of the lucky one

who doesn't know

i'm a big mess,

i mean a really big mess

(a big, big mess, he was all mixed up in a big mess)

(big mess, he was a)

(he was really mixed up, he was a big mess)

(big mess, he was a)

(he was really mixed up)

i'm a man with a mission

a boy with a gun

i got a picture in my pocket of the lucky one –

who doesn't know

i'm a big mess,

i mean a really big mess

a big, big mess, he was all mixed up in a-

Video:

Short Film/ Music Video

None.  [However, the "live video" was seen during the oh, no! it's DEVO tour.]

Jerry directed the DEVO 2.0 version [1], with set design by John Zabrucky and Cowboy Kim animation by Davy Force.

Live Video

It was a part of the 3-DEVO simulcast, but technical errors interrupted the song. [2]

The rest of the tour featured a full performance of this song.

Imagery in this live video shows what's on the mind of Cowboy Kim.

Fan Videos and covers can be found online.

Additional Info

The instrumental intro lasts about 00:26” until the lyrics are sung.

Mark sang lead in a demo recording. Sang “on my radio”, instead of “on the radio”.

More info about “Cowboy Kim”, AKA “Mr. Reality”, is on the DEVO-Obsesso website [3], and in the books DEVO: The Brand / DEVO: Unmasked.

Futurismo Inc’s expanded reissue of Recombo DNA was available in a 2024 “Big Mess Vinyl” version, with a mini 3-inch CD and 2 marble and 2 colour 12” disks, now sold out.

https://www.futurismoinc.com/product/h4-devo-h4-h5-recombo-dna-4xlp-3-cd-h5-h6-fun-vinyl-h6

Unreleased live, demo, and fan versions available from BBB.

References:

Links:

External Links

Big Mess (work) – MusicBrainz

DEVO and “Big Mess” (master) Discogs

Big Mess (overview) -- AllMusic

Internal Links

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