Chalkhills Digest Volume 5, Issue 196
Date: Thursday, 6 May 1999
Chalkhills Digest, Volume 5, Number 196
Thursday, 6 May 1999
Today's Topics:
Re: The Greatest as Consensus
RE: R. Stevie Moore
Pete n Randy
You're no fun/XTC crushes
this song left out
XTC on the Road
Death Thread ?
Tangerine XTC Steamroller
Then He Appeared
AP in new AUTOreverse
Further Martin Denny sidetrack, sorry
XTC in Vermont
Journey/XTC
Ab Fab, humor
Good/Bad Music
Re: Humble Daisy
I'd Like That
one mans go2 is another mans nonsvch
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---------------------------------------------------------------------- From: music@telisphere.com Message-ID: <37306D87.1125@telisphere.com> Date: Wed, 05 May 1999 09:10:47 -0700 Subject: Re: The Greatest as Consensus "Here's just a few musicians who I'd say have got all over Lennon for that coveted title: Duke Ellington..George Gershwin... Igor Stravinsky..Charlie Parker - But without a doubt, to me the greatest and most influential musician of the 20th century:Louie Armstrong.." Once again showing the "greatest music/artists" are a matter of personal taste, or by extention a "consensus" of personal tastes. Great music is great music, regarless of whether it is understood. -Rich
------------------------------ Message-Id: <4782AD6ADDBDD2119B570008C75DD5C10A3006@MGMTM02> From: Lawson Dominic <LawsonD@parliament.uk> Subject: RE: R. Stevie Moore Date: Wed, 5 May 1999 17:57:52 +0100 Blimey! Just noticed that Gregsy is working with R. Stevie Moore. Presumably this is the same guy that sang "Holocaust Parade" on the first Chrysanthemums album (Terry?)......I'm intrigued! More info please! Dom.
------------------------------ Date: Wed, 5 May 1999 10:15:43 -0700 (PDT) From: Misty Shock <mccrtny@u.washington.edu> Subject: Pete n Randy Message-ID: <Pine.OSF.4.10.9905050959310.22628-100000@saul1.u.washington.edu> Dunks said: <<(BTW - I thought Randy and Peter's number was beautifully performed, very poignant, and the highlight of the evening - just as was Elvis and Burt's dignified showing at the otherwise excremental American Music Awards.)>> Yes! I love "That'll Do." Ten times better than the Mariah/Whitney crap, and it has actually made me interested in Randy Newman. As for the American Music Awards, it made me ashamed to be an American. See Babe Pig In the City. It's really charming, and I haven't even seen the first Babe yet either. As for "Gangway," I just wanted to mention that I didn't come up with the idea of it starting AV2; it was Jason Brown, a fellow listmember and good 'ol friend of mine. He introduced me to XTC by buying Nonsuch for my birthday a couple of years ago. As for Nonsuch, it does have some great songs. One of the first XTC songs I really noticed was Madum Barnum. The album as a whole, however, just doesn't make a big impression. Makes no statement (for lack of a better word). Even the Big Express, which I've never liked much, makes more of a "statement" than Nonsuch. It's just kind of, well, innocuous. Speaking of Nonsuch, anybody know what a "morgasm" is? :) Misty Shock "No round of drinks can extinguish this feeling of love and engulfing bliss." --Andy Partridge
------------------------------ Message-ID: <19990505173921.27082.rocketmail@web4.rocketmail.com> Date: Wed, 5 May 1999 10:39:21 -0700 (PDT) From: Jennifer Linnea Strom <jlinnea@rocketmail.com> Subject: You're no fun/XTC crushes Time to speak up. John Gardner wrote in Chalkhills Digest #5-192: >Give us some meaningful, thought provoking posts, will you, and stop acting like a >prude, Damit! John, lighten up! Chris started a perfectly harmless thread about people having a crush on Dave, Andy or Colin. Unless you have the good fortune to be born without a sex drive, being attracted to someone is part of the human condition. If you have a problem with that, you might need to go out and have some fun a little more often. This world is not all about time signatures and chord structures and it would be a pretty dull place if it was. Considering this is band that did Pink Thing, Grass, and The Meeting Place, what's to say it is entirely out of place!?! What about Johnny Japes and his Jesticles? I ask you, is this music by people who don't have a sense of humor about sex? And for God's sake, learn the proper usage of the term prude (take a look in the mirror if you need a hint). And you spelled dammit wrong! --Jennifer PS: I have to agree with Chris, that picture of Dave on the Oranges and Lemons sleeve is pretty nice. I've always had a weakness for tall, thin, dark-haired men. === Many men go fishing all of their lives without knowing that it is not fish they are after. -- Henry David Thoreau
------------------------------ Message-ID: <19990505183645.60592.qmail@hotmail.com> From: "Jason Garcia" <hhname@hotmail.com> Subject: this song left out Date: Wed, 05 May 1999 11:36:44 PDT With regards to Nonsuch... I don't understand how people can NOT like "Pumpkinhead". It's probably the best lead-off track they've ever had. Whenever I need to perk up a bit, that song is the first one to go on and the volume goes up. Sure, they recorded it on ADAT or something, but DAMN! It rocks out quite a bit. It's one of the few tracks I still play frequently from that album. Wondering, Jason
------------------------------ Message-Id: <s730613e.023@gwia.nwf.org> Date: Wed, 05 May 1999 14:08:24 -0400 From: "TOM GRIFFIN" <GRIFFIN@nwf.org> Subject: XTC on the Road I recently went on a trip to Washington DC (Side note: to talk to Congresspeople about closing down the School of the Americas. This is a US Army School that trains Latin American military leaders in counter-insurgency techniques ie. murder, torture. Congress has come close to closing it down recently. Hopefully they will this year. Melt the Guns!) Anyway, on that trip our van played a game of musical 20 questions. I chose to make people guess XTC. Needless to say, not a single person among 11 had even heard of the band. And, they were mad at me for bringing up such an "obscure" reference. My pleas regarding Sarah McLaughlin's cover of "Dear God" were of no avail. Sigh. I guess I'm too old now. Also, I'd just like to note that I work right across the street from the aforementioned Schoolkids Records, and I too weep at it's demise. Nevertheless, there are still a few good record stores in Ann Arbor. Now, if I can only find a copy of AV1 for under $14. Urrgh!
------------------------------
Message-Id: <199905051954.VAA10340@mail.knoware.nl>
From: "Mark Strijbos" <mmello@knoware.nl>
Date: Wed, 5 May 1999 22:08:53 +0200
Subject: Death Thread ?
Dear Chalkers,
Jill O. asked us what we'd like to hear on our funerals.
I'd like to go out with Train Running Low On Soul Coal but i insist on
the 'live at the Swindon Bowl' version, with Andy & Dave playing
guitar and Colin doing some percussive thumping right there at my
tombstone. Auction off my XTC collection to the highest bidder and
sell all my other worldly possessions, then make them a offer they
can't refuse!
Now that really would be worth dying for and BTW: you are all invited
Come together, right now, over me...
yours in xtc,
Mark Strijbos at The Little Lighthouse
http://www.knoware.nl/users/mmello/
or http://come.to/xtc
------------------------------ Message-ID: <3730A25A.23FB97FD@ci.conover.nc.us> Date: Wed, 05 May 1999 15:56:10 -0400 From: erik schlichting <eriks@ci.conover.nc.us> Subject: Tangerine XTC Steamroller Chalkers, music@telisphere.com wrote: > I think Beatle/Todd Rundgren fans in general (pun) prefer the > later (Nonsuch, Skylarking, Oranges&Lemons, VH1) BECAUSE of those > influences. To me the earlier XTC sounds more Devo/Oingo-Boingo/New > Age-ish, and I would guess those who prefer that material are also > big fans of those influences. I assume "VH1" was intended as "AV1." I REALLY HOPE that "New Age" was intended as "New Wave." Compare and contrast the following combinations: XTC's "White Music" to anything by Mannheim Steamroller XTC's "Black Sea" to anything by Tangerine Dream etc., etc. But maybe the HomoSafari series might fall under "New Age...." This disturbing proliferation of new track orders is getting out of control. I was thinking too much about AV1 the other day, wondering how I could make it better. This is my bold NEW track order: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11 I know it's unorthodox, but I feel this particular order has some good points. ROO is a bold opening piece, and the Last Balloon is the perfect match as the other bookend, with its keening trumpet & plaintive vocals. Although some may find the remainder of the tracks a bit jumbled in the position I show them, I feel that there may be some precedent for this particular running order. I have it on authority that the band themselves played with this EXACT same order and found it worked quite well. Tongue-in-cheek, Erik
------------------------------ Date: Wed, 5 May 1999 17:53:18 -0400 Message-ID: <19990505.175507.14470.8.BrainiacsDaughter@juno.com> Subject: Then He Appeared From: Elizabeth I Spencer <brainiacsdaughter@juno.com> Duncan Watt wrote: "But enough of this Child-Is-The-Father-Of-The-Man bullshit, I want to see Partridge on this list NOW. Show your face, genius-boy! We know you're out there, I WANT TO SEE SOME TEXT. Set it off! Just a few tinkly words, to make it real... the irony! You're God to this little planet of a list... delicious! Show your face! Make us believe! Sims-r-us! Give us a sign!" Oh Andy, it's probably too much to ask, but I'm with Duncan. If we're reading the wrong things into your songs, tell us. If we go on and on ad nauseum like a a bunch of total doofuses about "the boy in blue", tell us. C'mon. We know you're there. We swear we'll be good, and never say another word about Depeche Mode...
------------------------------ Message-Id: <199905052208.SAA26336@mail.netwalk.com> From: "Ian C Stewart" <ian@AUTOreverse.net> Subject: AP in new AUTOreverse Date: Wed, 5 May 1999 18:05:50 -0400 Hello all I publish a music magazine called AUTOreverse. It's all about home-recordings and self-released CDs, records, tapes, that sort of thing. And this month I've written a feature on the ultimate home-based musician, ANDY PARTRIDGE! The article focuses on Andy's non-XTC, non-commercial recordings. What we call "the demos." To the best of my knowledge, there aren't many magazines that have gone into this kind of detail about the home-recorded stuff. And in AUTO, that's all we do, pretty much. It's not an interview but there are quotes sprinkled throughout from other interviews he's done where the subject of home recording arose. AP is also featured on the cover! Snazzy! This is Issue Eight of AUTOreverse. It also features the soundcritiquing skillz of our own BEN GOTT. Pre-order the issue now: $5usa includes postage anywhere in the world. Got a self-released/microlabel CD, tape or record out? Want it reviewed? Cool! That's what we do! There will be a massive relaunch of the website in the next few days. I'll keep ya posted. cheers, Ian C Stewart, editor PO Box 3488 Dublin OH 43016-0241 USA http://www.AUTOreverse.net/ ps--preview the online content of the AP article! I made a big-ass Real Audio file featuring many of the Partridge demos outlined in the article. You'll need a Real Player and about half an hour to fully dig it! Real Player: http://www.real.com/ AUTOradio AP edition: http://www.autoreverse.net/audio/autoradioap.ram
------------------------------ From: fheaney@erols.com Message-Id: <199905052223.SAA17680@smtp1.erols.com> Subject: Further Martin Denny sidetrack, sorry Date: Wed, 5 May 1999 18:15:13 -0400 John in Japan wrote: > Martin Denny a sub-luminary ? I beg your pardon , sir ! I betcha AP has a > Martin Denny album or two in his collection ( not to mention Les Baxter ) I betcha _I_ have a Martin Denny album or two in my collection. As well as a 2-CD Les Baxter set. I like Martin Denny, but hey, he's cheesy, come on. I think a better argument could be made for Les Baxter. My personal favorite cocktail album is "Stones" by Emil Richards, which I recommend, though it's hard to find (limited re-release)...it's the art-rock cocktail music album, I tell you. Wild and crazy time signatures, and he doesn't even use the traditional Western music scale. Now _there_ was an auteur. > Denny ( and Baxter ) have influenced rockers from Genesis P. Orridge to > Ryuichi Sakamoto and countless others in between including me . I'd argue that influencing people doesn't put automatically put you on a level with those people. For instance, Stereolab's heavily influenced by cocktail music of all kinds (even some I'm sure you'd agree can only be appreciated because it's so lame, like Lucia Pamela, perhaps). And XTC is influenced by the Beatles, but heck, compared to XTC, the Beatles are just a bunch of hacks. (^_^) Anyway, I just don't think one can quite put Martin Denny on an artistic pedestal. And I think you should all take John up on his tape offer. -- Francis Heaney " " -- Les Baxter (instrumental)
------------------------------ From: CCooli9575@aol.com Message-ID: <45b37774.24622b5f@aol.com> Date: Wed, 5 May 1999 19:16:47 EDT Subject: XTC in Vermont In a message dated 5/3/99 11:32:34 PM, <owner-chalkhills@chalkhills.org> writes: << But, alas, I know this forbidden love can never be. Someday I will have to find me a mere mortal, someone who shares my taste for XTC. There sure ain't any around here. Hey, cuz, are there any XTC and granola-loving, single boys in Vermont? >> There was one other Vermonter on the list at one point, I don't remember his name anymore, but I remember he works for Hayes Marketing. I don't know whether he's single or into granola, but I can vouch for the XTC part. You may find that opposites attract, though, Kristen; I married your first cousin, after all, and she hasn't been able to seperate XTC from the many other bands I listen to yet. I've found that more women than men I know are XTC fans. I don't know why that is. Back in the early 80's when I was in college there were about ten people I knew besides myself who were serious XTC fans, and about six of them were women I knew from a neighboring women's college. Of the remainder were two other women I knew on campus, and a couple of guys(one of which was Harrison's brother Bob). So if you're looking to settle down with an XTC fan, who knows, you may get lucky; I never dreamed I'd find someone like Sue, after all. Chris
------------------------------ From: CCooli9575@aol.com Message-ID: <3e6c9772.24622b52@aol.com> Date: Wed, 5 May 1999 19:16:34 EDT Subject: Journey/XTC >As an innocent bystander, I eagerly wait upon the arrival of each issue >of Chalkhills Digest. However, I have finally mustered up enough >courage to contribute to this dialogue. Perhaps my reticence to >participate stems from the truly confessional nature of this posting. >What I wish to divulge is certainly not a shock to my boyfriend or my >close friends, who are accustomed to my idiosyncrasies. Although, the >pedigreed tastes of fellow Chalkhillians and XTC aficionados will surely >be quite alarmed by my admission. All right, I'll just admit it...I >like Journey as well as XTC! You live dangerously. Well, I'm the one who brought up Air Supply(not that I'm a fan, but I'm married to one), so I'm a fine one to talk. We all have our guilty pleasures, and for some of us they're not even guilty. I was standing in line to apply as an extra for a major motion picture being filmed in my area, and I was talking with a nineteen year old young woman who quite unabashedly admitted to enjoying both the hippest local bands and The Cure(she'd never heard of XTC, though)as well as the likes of Air Supply and Backstreet Boys. Everything I mentioned she either wasn't familiar with or she squealed with delight and said, "Oh, I just love them..." When I started saying something about guilty pleasures she said "Why do they have to be guilty? I love what I love and I don't care what anybody thinks!" She had a point; I would have been smitten right there by that girl if I hadn't already married my wife for the same reason. Who needs reasons? Just love what you love, and screw what anybody else thinks. Sometimes you need to bypass the brain and go straight to the heart, or the genitals for that matter. So, hey, Journey is far from my cup of tea,(and I've heard some nasty things about Neil Schon's personal character) but I can't deny that they play their instruments well and are good at what they do, it's all a matter of taste. On the other hand, it's fun to say so-and-so sucks dog droppings, but Dom's so much better at that than I am, so I'll leave that to him. :-) XTC content: dug out The Dukes' Psonic Sunspot the other night. Sounded great. It's weird, my 60's punk/psychedelic fan brother loves the Dukes, but never got XTC; I've been trying to turn him onto them for years and their only song he likes is "Mayor Of Simpleton." He loves the Dukes though. Takes all sorts. Chris
------------------------------ From: CCooli9575@aol.com Message-ID: <e2f4485e.24622b48@aol.com> Date: Wed, 5 May 1999 19:16:24 EDT Subject: Ab Fab, humor In a message dated 5/2/99 10:18:06 PM, <owner-chalkhills@chalkhills.org> writes: << No one has mentioned Absolutely Fabulous yet. It had a fairly strong following in the U.S. for a while a couple of years ago. I could never figure out why, however. It was a horrid piece of shit, IMHO. The mother in that show basically emotionally abuses her daughter time and time again and it's supposed to be funny.I found it incredibally mean-spirited and cruel. Ranks right up there with the Honeymooners-a supposedly classic American sitcom in which the main charecter repeatedly threatens his wife with physical violence. A laugh riot, let me tell you. Who thinks this stuff up? And who thinks that one person's abuse of another is FUNNY? >> It can be, but only if it reminds you of somebody else. :-) For me the best humor walks the line between bad taste and humor and at times(even often)tips over the line into bad taste. Just as often in Ab Fab the joke is on Edwina herself; she's a nasty bitch and so clueless about it(and just about everything else)that she doesn't even recognise how clueless she is. Anybody who's had an alcoholic or addict relative knows Edwina all too well, and every now and then she does show she has a heart in there somewhere. Patsy, on the other hand is just a bitch, though she does have some show-stopping lines.(about whether she went out with Keith Moon, she deadpans "Not really- I woke up under him once.") There are times when Ab Fab is too cruel, though, but it's invetitable when you push the envelope too much. To each their own, I guess, though I'd be hard pressed to think of many modern comics who go out of their way to avoid offending anybody. Bill Cosby is the only one who comes to mind at the moment. Everybody else at some point says "Screw this politically correct garbage. I just want to be funny." I do sometimes lament for the days of the Marx Brothers and Charlie Chaplin, though, when being entertaining was the first goal, and humor was based more on slapstick and wordplay. But that's all been done before, and besides good humor is good humor regardless of whether it offends anybody or not. Eddie Murphy, Howard Stern, Beavis and Butthead and South Park are sometimes funny, sometimes offensive to somebody, and most often both. Chris
------------------------------ From: CCooli9575@aol.com Message-ID: <6f98e474.24622b4d@aol.com> Date: Wed, 5 May 1999 19:16:29 EDT Subject: Good/Bad Music In a message dated 5/2/99 10:18:06 PM, <owner-chalkhills@chalkhills.org> writes: << That's why Harrison's line that "no music is any "better" or "worse" than any other music" sticks in my craw. That's a simplistic reduction of a complex thought. I prefer to think of it as a bell curve. Some music sucked when it came out, sucked decades later, and will continue to suck for all eternity. Some music does not. The majority will shift along the continuum, battered about by the growth and dying of our cultural assumption, with the usual good and bad luck that plagues everything that's set on a material that will degrade with time. -- Bill Peschel Book page editor, Rock Hill (S.C.) Herald >> That makes sense. Objectively, Harrison's right, but we all have our subjective points of view as well, it's all in how you look at it, whether you leave your biased point of view out or not. When I was twelve years old hearing Minnie Ripperton's "Loving You" on the radio, I hated that song so much I made pre-teen retching noises throughout the song whenever I heard it. I thoroughly enjoyed hating it. Nowadays on the rare occasion when I tune into an oldies station and hear it, it's still not my favorite song in the world but I don't hate it anymore. On the other hand, I loved Paper Lace's "The Night Chicago Died" so much I'd crank the radio up every time it came on, now I can barely stand to hear the damn song. So things do change, though some things don't; I'm in the process of replacing on CD all the Elton John albums I owned on vinyl, for example.(my interest in him pretty much stopped with Rock Of The Westies, he became at best dependable in the 80's) Chris
------------------------------ From: CCooli9575@aol.com Message-ID: <336af6f6.24622b57@aol.com> Date: Wed, 5 May 1999 19:16:39 EDT Subject: Re: Humble Daisy In a message dated 5/2/99 10:18:06 PM, <owner-chalkhills@chalkhills.org> writes: << I just wanted to say thank you, Paul. I don't really like all the people bashing me. Do I have a bullseye target on my head or something? Nobody else gets picked on more thatn I do. I'm getting sick of it. I love this list, but I just don't like getting picked on for my comments. I know somebody will say, "Well you must be really thinned skinned", I have to admit it that I am. I don't take personal attacks to well. That's I'm going to say on this subject. Well, I'm off to Boston. So watch out you Boston area XTC Fans. =o) Molly >> Feel free to take a side trip to Vermont, it's beautiful here this time of year, and the bugs aren't out yet, to my knowledge. It also hasn't rained in three weeks, so try not to light a match until it does. :-) Chris
------------------------------ Message-Id: <3730DBF5.D8334B19@tmbg.org> Date: Wed, 05 May 1999 20:02:23 -0400 From: Ben Gott/Loquacious Music <gott@tmbg.org> Organization: http://listen.to/loquacious Subject: I'd Like That Chalkers, Has anyone else noticed how eerily complicated "I'd Like That" gets? I was trying to teach myself to play it, and it took me a looooong time to figure out some of those chords. Then, I went to Chalkhills, and it took me a looooooong time to figure out how to move my fingies around and make the chord shapes. Eek. How is it possible that we've left Coltrane off our list of top musicians of the world? I mean, based on "A Love Supreme" alone...! Pure magic. Sonia Sanchez, A.B. Spellman, and Jayne Cortez can't all be wrong, now, can they? -Ben
------------------------------ From: dan@gge.com Message-ID: <3730DCAE.4912C26A@gge.com> Date: Wed, 05 May 1999 17:05:53 -0700 Subject: one mans go2 is another mans nonsvch jh3 wrote: >Despite what certain polls might indicate, several of us Chalkies consider >Go 2 to be XTC's best album; we just don't make a lot of noise about it. I, >for one, consider it to be the greatest album of all time, by anyone, >anywhere, ever. i happen to be one of those who never liked go2. in fact i'm the one who initially made the comparison to nonvch being hated as much as go2, assuming (most) everyone disliked it. but i applaud your standing up for it, just as i felt the need to stand up for nonsvch <---official pedantic spelling. hell, i might just go buy a copy with a big orange 'nice price' sticker slapped on the front and give it a good listening (i have the vinyl, but no turntable). top 5 kings for the day: 1. season cycle 2. the "mmm"s in river of orchids 3. scissor man 4. ten feet tall 5. the japanese import of av1 that i should've bought but somehow couldn't justify the expense. someone please talk me into it. oranges & lemons say the bells of st. clements, dan
------------------------------ End of Chalkhills Digest #5-196 *******************************
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