Oingo Boingo is the first official release from the southern California new wave band Oingo Boingo. The song selection includes three original compositions by Danny Elfman, as well as a ska inflected cover of bluesman Willie Dixon's "Violent Love".
The EP was issued on cassette tape, 10", and 12" vinyl formats with a slight difference in the track listing: the 10" version contained the 1979 version of "Ain't This the Life" from their Demo EP, while the 12" version and cassette contained a new recording. Both "Only a Lad" and "I'm So Bad" had also been previously issued on the Demo EP and the versions are identical on all of the formats. Whilst the EP has never been released on CD in its entirety, the 10" format was made available digitally via such services as iTunes Store and Amazon. However, the songs can only be bought as separate tracks rather than as an album.
The song "Only a Lad" was subsequently re-recorded and issued as the title track on their first long playing album, Only a Lad.
The cover includes an illustration of a cat by artist Louis Wain.
Track listing
All songs written by Danny Elfman, except "Violent Love," by Willie Dixon.
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Only a Lad" | 4:18 |
| 2. | "Violent Love" | 2:38 |
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Ain't This the Life" | 3:30 |
| 2. | "I'm So Bad" | 3:56 |
Personnel
- Oingo Boingo
- Danny Elfman - lead vocals
- Steve Bartek - guitars
- David Eagle - drums on 10" version of "Ain't This the Life"
- Kerry Hatch - bass guitar
- Johnny "Vatos" Hernandez - drums
- Leon Schneiderman - baritone and alto saxophones
- Sam "Sluggo" Phipps - tenor and soprano saxophones
- Dale Turner - trumpet, trombone
- Michael Boshears (a1mixer) - recording, mixing, producer
- Jo Julian - producer