Chalkhills Digest Volume 1, Issue 307
Date: Tuesday, 30 November 1993
Chalkhills, Number 307
Tuesday, 30 November 1993
Today's Topics:
Introducing
Aimee and Davee
The Englishman has landed
Anyone remember "Night Tracks"?
Re: Chalkhills #306
Wanted...
What to buy next
Re: Aimee Mann, man!
Re: Chalkhills #306
chalkhills #306 - brian agnew
Re: Dave Gregory with Aimee Mann
[][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][] From: uswnvg!rfrango@uunet.uu.net (Robert Frangooles) Subject: Introducing Date: Mon, 29 Nov 1993 12:58:04 -0800 (PST) Hello to all you xtcers out there. I have been reading chalkhills for a couple of months now and thought perhaps I should introduce myself and perhaps start contributing on occasion. I live in Seattle, wa and have done so for most of the past 30 years (not quite 30, but soon enough...yipes ). I first tuned into xtc when I heard "senses". English Settlement remains my favorite, perhaps because it was the first, but more likely because it is still absolutely incredible to listen to form me. Yaght Dance is probably the song that I say is my favorite from that album most often, though it is a continually changing topic. I am considering seeing Aimee Mann though I didn't care for 'til tues, and haven't heard any newer stuff. Gregory is definately very cool, but is his role in the band worth the risk. Persuade me (shouldn't be too tough ;->) By the way, since Colin seems to get a fairly regular trashing I'll put in my two cents and say that I think he is a consistently excellent songwriter/singer/bassist. (I can't comment on nonsuch since I have'nt given it a thorough listen. okay enough rambling...thanks for reading. _______________________________________________________________________ Robert Frangooles, Bellevue Washington rfrango@.uswnvg.com -------All opinions expressed are my own, not my employers-------------
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From: analog@mentor.cc.purdue.edu (Mike Monahan)
Subject: Aimee and Davee
Date: Mon, 29 Nov 93 16:06:38 EST
Does anyone have any idea what the date our for the Aimee Mannnnnn
Tourrrr. I didn't even know she was out and about. Now that I know that
Dave's with her I can't miss it. I need to know if she'll be around Chicago
or Indianapolis, Or the Boston area around christmas new years.
Any info will be duly appreciated.
Thanks,
The Analog Person (Michael J. Monahan) analog@mentor.cc.purdue.edu
Suffering is the origin of conciousness-Dostoyevski
Of such is the kingdom of heaven-Alduous Huxley
There's nothing an agnostic can't do if he doesn't know whether he
believes in it or not-Graham Chapman.
[][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][] Date: Mon, 29 Nov 93 18:00:16 EST From: stacy@trc.com (Robert Stacy) Subject: The Englishman has landed I was about to step out the door for work this morning (29 November) when the local college station, WXCI, played the title track from _The Greatest Living Englishman_. Very Dukes/Beatles sounding, with a piano part reminiscent of Genesis' "Trick of the Tail". If promotional copies have hit the radio stations, domestic distribution has to be momentarily imminent. --RSt
[][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][] From: Jeff Preston <preston@msuacad.morehead-st.edu> Subject: Anyone remember "Night Tracks"? Date: Mon, 29 Nov 93 19:57:35 EST Hi folks, Just a short note... I was curious to see if anyone else here got their first glimpse of XTC on the WTBS "Night Tracks" program. This is where I saw videos of "Making Plans for Nigel" and "Life Begins at the Hop," beginning the fascination. Now that I think of it, this may have pre-dated the "Night Tracks" program, but darned if I can recall the name of the program if it isn't that. It was on all night on Friday and/or Saturday night. Anyone? Jeff -- Jeff Preston =*= Moderator of the Allan Holdsworth discussion forum =*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*= atavachron-request@msuacad.morehead-st.edu =*=*=*=
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Date: Mon, 29 Nov 1993 20:29:40 -0500 (EST)
From: Derek C Miner <dm0229@pegasus.cc.ucf.edu>
Subject: Re: Chalkhills #306
> From: brian@wet.sbi.com (Brian Agnew)
>
> OK. I have a question about what to buy next. I've started with
> Oranges and Lemons (A), then Nonsuch (B) and then Skylarking (A+).
> However with the wealth of XTC stuff available I don't know what to
> get next. Should I continue backwards through their catalogue ?
> Advice please !
By all means, keep going. Those were my first three albums,
also. I liked Nonsuch better than Oranges, however...
In order to get a grasp on XTC's catalogue, I would recommend
their "Compact XTC" collection (only an import). That features almost all
the singles up to the album prior to Skylarking. "Rag & Bone Buffet" is
also a good overview of the XTC catalogue, though all tracks are from
singles and are not on the albums proper. Rag&Bone features two
Skylarking sessions tracks ("Mermaid Smiled" and "Extrovert") that are
excellent plus a BBC recording of "Another Satellite" Some other
highlights: (I'mm sure others will disagree) "Respectable Street" "Ten
Feet Tall" "The World Is Full Of Angry Young Men" "Thanks For Christmas"
"Happy Families" and "Take This Town". I would suggest without hesitation
that you look for the Dukes of Stratosphear side project. On CD, you
might find "Chips From The Chocolate Fireball" but the contents of that
CD have recently become "Psonic Psunspot" which was a separate album of
ten tracks (the CD should have sixteen).
Just for kicks (and conversation) here's the order I recommend
the rest of the XTC catalogue:
1. Dukes of Stratosphear- Chips From The Chocolate Fireball
2. Black Sea
3. Drums And Wires
4. Mummer
5. English Settlement
6. Rag & Bone Buffet
7. The Big Express
8. Toss up between "White Music" and "Go 2"
Derek Miner
dm0229@pegasus.cc.ucf.edu
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Date: Mon, 29 Nov 1993 23:14:49 -0500 (EST)
From: Derek C Miner <dm0229@pegasus.cc.ucf.edu>
Subject: Wanted...
Hello, everyone, I'm looking for the unusual XTC stuff that isn't on the
CDs. This includes the Little Express cassettes, the promo Christmas
material, and any single sides (live and demos) that aren't on Rag &
Bone. Also, I'd like to hear the cover of "Strawberry Fields" from
"1967-Through The Looking Glass"
I'm not looking to buy these items for collectability, I just want to
listen. I'd be very happy if someone might like to talk terms for some
tape copies of any of that material. If you have some info, please e-mail
to:
dm0229@pegasus.cc.ucf.edu
| Derek C. Miner | "The World's Address, a place |
| University of Central Florida | that's worn. A sad pun that |
| Orlando, Florida | reflects a sadder mess." |
| home: (407)-382-9752 | - They Might Be Giants |
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From: Andrew Russell Mutchler <andym@owlnet.rice.edu>
Subject: What to buy next
Date: Tue, 30 Nov 1993 09:32:28 -0600 (CST)
#| From: brian@wet.sbi.com (Brian Agnew)
#|
#| OK. I have a question about what to buy next. I've started with
#| Oranges and Lemons (A), then Nonsuch (B) and then Skylarking (A+).
#| However with the wealth of XTC stuff available I don't know what to
#| get next. Should I continue backwards through their catalogue ?
#| Advice please !
Get English Settlement next. You'll be glad you did.
And then Black Sea and Mummer, and then pretty much anything else.
P.S.:
#| From: Dames The Wonder Dog <SPXDLF@cardiff.ac.uk>
#| several years now and I've always been aware of the quiet whispering
#| by two girls just before The Pale And Precious. Recently I bought
#| d(t)ell im
#| yeh - sure
#| yeh
#| what
#| (laugh)
#| posit diffran (?)
^^^^^ ^^^^^^^ ^^^
I haven't figured out the rest of it, but I've always heard
this bit as "positive?".
andym@owlnet.rice.edu+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Andrew + "Some people say it with flowers, some people say it at Lloyd's,
Mutchler + But you don't find many trying to say it with humanoids."
+ -Bonzo Dog Band, "Humanoid Boogie"
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From: jw@beatles.b11.ingr.com (Jeff A. Williams)
Subject: Re: Aimee Mann, man!
Date: Tue, 30 Nov 93 10:53:17 CST
I spoke with a friend of mine who is associated with Aimee (he picked
Dave up at the Boston airport). Here's what he says:
Dave Gregory is touring with Aimee Mann as guitar player as
well as keyboards (no vocals however). Joining Aimee & Dave
on tour are Clayton Scoble (guitar), Milt Sutton (drums),
Brian Stevens (bass & acoustic gtr.
Dave came to the states 9 weeks ago to do rehearsals and then
the Aimee Mann band did 3 weeks of shows in Europe. They are
currently on tour in the US until December 12 or so.
At the First NYC show (there were 2 that night), Andy
Partridge got out of the audience and the group did a couple
of Dukes of Stratosphere tunes. If really interested, there was
a nice piece in the NY Times the day after the show.
Dave & Aimee are also what one might call "an item".
They are playing in San Francisco tonight.
More later if you wish...........
jw
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From: Derf <spmt147@csc.liv.ac.uk>
Subject: Re: Chalkhills #306
Date: Tue, 30 Nov 93 18:15:36 GMT
> Hi,
>
> OK. I have a question about what to buy next. I've started with
> Oranges and Lemons (A), then Nonsuch (B) and then Skylarking (A+).
> However with the wealth of XTC stuff available I don't know what to
> get next. Should I continue backwards through their catalogue ?
> Advice please !
I suggest you get The Dukes stuff. My faves are 1. O&L, 2. Skylarking 3.Chips
>from the ... (counting that as 1 album)
Jon
[][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][] From: OLIVER@slais.ubc.ca Organization: SLAIS, UBC Date: 30 Nov 93 12:49:27 GM+5 Subject: chalkhills #306 - brian agnew Brian, This is a good question. Working back through the catalogue is not necessarily what you want to do; the preceding albums, "Mummer" and "The Big Express," are not the band's best (though naturally are extremely good nonetheless). Do you have a CD player? If so, be sure to get these albums on CD; "Mummer" in particular is vastly improved by the inclusion of extra tracks. I'd say get "English Settlement" next; it introduces you to XTC's older sound but is still accessible to novice listeners. Buying "White Music" or "Go2" would probably freak you out. Again, be sure to get the CD or U.K. double LP version (you'll have to hunt it down in a used record store) of "Settlement" as the cassette and U.S. LP omit key tracks. You should also get the Dukes of Stratosphear albums (I assume you know this is XTC in disguise); "Psonic Psunspot" is just as good as the last three official albums. Happy listening...
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Date: Tue, 30 Nov 93 16:48:57 PST
From: "John Relph" <relph@presto.ig.com>
Subject: Re: Dave Gregory with Aimee Mann
So I went to the Aimee Mann concert at Slim's, Monday 29 November, and
Dave Gregory played guitar in her band. (If you would like a full
review of the concert, just send me e-mail.) Chris and I met Kathy
and Becky and made our way to the stage, hoping to be near Dave, but
we ended up picking the wrong side (my fault!). But when they took
the stage we yelled out "Dave!" anyway, waving wildly. I think he
looked a bit sheepish at our outcry.
Dave obviously was still learning many of the songs, as he had charts
for most of them set up on his keyboard. But some of them he was
clearly very comfortable with. Dave played a sunburst Rickenbacker
6-string, a gold Les Paul Custom, and on the last song, a light blue
3-pickup Fender mini-guitar (very cute), as well as a Yamaha KX 88
keyboard (thanks for the info, Ira!). Most of the band were using
Matchless amps (the name lights up).
So we gradually made our way to the opposite side of the stage, to be
in front of Dave. I had made sure to wear a Skylarking T-shirt. The
show was very good, lots of fun, well performed and good music too!
Ms Mann was an engaging performer, and wasn't watered down at all.
Dave played a fair amount of rhythm guitar, and lots of quiet
keyboards. One song began with just Dave on keyboards and Ms Mann
singing; then the other musicians added bass and tambourine, and an
excellent Casiotone (battery powered) solo. However, Dave did play a
few solos, notably in the song "Hurt You Now". Most of his soloing in
this song was middle-eastern flavoured, heavy soloing that had the
rest of the band smiling. Some of his fills in the other songs also
had the band smiling; I think they were still getting used to his
presence, and were happy to have him along. But Dave was very happy
to be in the backfield, even his solos weren't showy, just good. He
didn't take much time to look at the audience, even when he didn't
have to look at the charts. The perfect foil to a frontman, in this
case Aimee Mann instead of Andy Partridge. Dave did get a chance to
play a nice guitar harmony to Clayton Scoble's lead, making us all
smile. He was introduced by Ms Mann as "Dave Gregory, also in the
band XTC". A loud cheer greeted this statement. Dave's last solo was
performed on the mini-Fender, to the delight and twitters of the
audience ("What is that little thing?").
There were quite a few XTC fans in the audience. Some few had found
out because I called them. Others heard the news from Live 105, the
local "alternative" (REM, U2, Pearl Jam) station, others, who knows?
But they were there. After the show, although we were being asked to
leave, we waited for Dave to come out, and after a bit, he did. He
was very friendly, although fairly quiet because he had come down with
a bit of a flu or cold, and had spent the previous day mostly in bed.
But he was very willing to talk while he could. So we told him how
much we enjoyed the show, and some of us got autographs. I introduced
myself straight away (why wait?) as the person responsible for
Chalkhills, the computer XTC discussion list. After a few
explanations I felt fairly sure that he knew what I was talking about.
So I had Dave autograph my UK Nonsuch booklet, previously signed by
Andy Partridge (now where can I find Colin Moulding?). Becky got Dave
to sign her bass guitar (also previously signed by Andy). John had
all his XTC LPs.
As it turns out, Aimee's lead guitarist, Clayton Scoble, is a big XTC
fan, and he told us that he was responsible for getting Dave in the
band. He also told us that he'd be standing around talking to Dave as
well, but he'd feel a little embarrassed. So he only stood around for
a little while, leaving us talking up a storm. By the way, he's quite
an accomplished guitarist in his own right.
John introduced Dave to Lyle Workman, guitarist with Todd Rundgren,
whom Dave was genuinely glad to meet, enthusing over his album. They
talked about working with Todd, and we talked about Skylarking for a
while. Lyle gave Dave a tape of his new home-recorded instrumental
album. Lyle also talked about the demise of Burgeois Tagg.
What did we learn? Here's what I remember:
Dave doesn't listen to all that much new music, because, after all,
he is over forty years old and can't keep up with all the new music,
not to mention the fact that he's got a huge record collection, which
he doesn't tire of. But he likes P.J. Harvey, and The La's, and
wishes they had a new album. There are no plans for a new XTC record.
Andy and Colin have contributed a track to a new "Where in the World
is Carmen Sandiego?" record in the guise of the Lemon Dukes (XTC's
bubblegum pop alter-egos), "Cherry In Your Tree" or something like
that (don't hold me to it). No good relations with Virgin. They are
still waiting for the results of an audit started two years ago, which
is to say, they're waiting to be paid. They are thinking about
switching labels. It sounds like a very bad time for the band as a
band. Let's hope it doesn't bode the end of XTC.
Andy is getting a divorce. Bad news. He's been spending a lot of
time in New York, with a girlfriend there (gossip pages, look out).
He actually got on stage with Aimee Mann at their New York show and
they performed The Dukes' "Collideascope".
Dave didn't have much to say about Colin.
Dave said that he hadn't heard of Aimee Mann until he attended a
showcase gig in London. For the immediate future, until Christmas,
Dave is playing with Aimee Mann. He likes the Matchless amp, and
would have one if he could afford it, which he can't.
I asked Dave about his own recorded material. He said no chance of it
being released. So I told him how wonderful his cover of "Third Stone
>from the Sun" is, how my friends all thought it was the best thing on
that tribute album, and all of us gathered together around Dave
agreed. He seemed taken aback, because obviously he thinks it was
inferior, but our enthusiasm led him to leave the possibility open.
(I'm not holding my breath.)
Dave doesn't think the Lemon Dukes album will be released.
That's all I can remember at the moment. G'night.
-- John
[][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][] For all administrative issues, such as change of address, withdrawal from the list, fan club addresses, discography requests (last update 12 November), back issues, FAQ list, etc., send a message to the following address: <chalkhills-request@chalkhills.org> The Chalkhills archives are available at "http://chalkhills.org/". All views expressed in Chalkhills are those of the individual contributors only. Human volcano at a zillion degrees.
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