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The Masked Marauders

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Musicians

The Resume

    Born in Berkeley, California
    Recorded the album 'The Masked Marauders' (1969)
    Alleged members:
    John Lennon, guitar and vocals
    Paul McCartney, bass guitar, keyboards and vocals
    George Harrison, guitar
    Mick Jagger, vocals
    Bob Dylan, vocals, harmonica and guitar
    Actually recorded by members of the Cleanliness and Goodness Skiffle Band

Why they might be annoying:

    It started off with a mock review by Greil Marcus in 'Rolling Stone.'
    So many people expressed interest in the record that Marcus and 'Rolling Stone' editor Langdon Winner hired a group of musicians to record an album and meet the demand.
    Robert Christgau declared that the record featured the worst drum solo and worst guitar solo in the world.
    Although the Jagger and Dylan imitators were pretty convincing, the fake Lennon and McCartney did not sound much like the originals.
    Disappointingly, some of the more outrageous tracks mentioned in Marcus' article -- such as McCartney's version of Al Jolson's 'Mammy' -- were not recorded for the album.
    Although the last track on the record was a spoken monologue by a record buyer complaining about being ripped off, some people who bought the album still insisted it was the real deal.

Why they might not be annoying:

    Marcus' original 'review' was intended as a parody of the supergroup trend in rock.
    The article included plenty of clues to indicate it was a joke. (Such as 'The album was recorded with impeccable secrecy in a small town near the site of the original Hudson Bay Colony in Canada.')
    Their album parted 100,000 fools from their money.
    Some of the tracks were convincing enough to show up later on bootlegs, labeled as Stones, Dylan or Beatles outtakes.
    As the album's liner notes observed, 'In a world of sham, the Masked Marauders, bless their hearts, are the genuine article.'

Credit: C. Fishel


Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

Year In Review:

    In 2023, Out of 4 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2022, Out of 9 Votes: 22.22% Annoying
    In 2021, Out of 14 Votes: 85.71% Annoying
    In 2020, Out of 6 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2019, Out of 104 Votes: 52.88% Annoying
    In 2018, Out of 2 Votes: 100% Annoying
    In 2017, Out of 6 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2016, Out of 1 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2015, Out of 16 Votes: 43.75% Annoying
    In 2014, Out of 20 Votes: 60.0% Annoying
    In 2013, Out of 13 Votes: 61.54% Annoying