Chalkhills Digest Volume 1, Issue 441
Date: Monday, 29 May 1995

              Chalkhills Digest, Number 441

                   Monday, 29 May 1995

Today's Topics:

                Another "Happy Families"?
                The 70's- The Untold Story
                    Producer Overload
                        video help
                      Too many kooks
                        Beatles...
                Re: Chalkhills Digest #440
               Madness/"Too Many Cooks..."
                        Gary Usher
             Re: #1(2) Chalkhills Digest #440
               Re:  Holly and Poppies, etc.
                         Hold it!
                       No problem!
                    Re: Barry Andrews

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The views expressed herein are those of the individual authors.

Am I asleep / Or am I fast / You every race / You first, you last.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Date: 26 May 1995 09:25:56 -0500
From: "Wesley Wilson" <Wesley_Wilson@iegate.mitre.org>
Subject: Another "Happy Families"?

I was checking out the song listing of a CD by a British band called The
Television Personalities, sort of a "best of" affair, and in addition to an
intriguing track called "I Know Where Syd Barrett Lives," there was also a
track called "Happy Families." Wonder if its a cover?

RE: The Little Express - be patient. If you like XTC, they are your good
friends. Working in publishing myself, I know how long it can take to write,
lay out, print and distribute a product. TLE is worth the wait.

Wes

------------------------------

Date: 26 May 1995 11:13:48 -0400
From: "Russell Shaddox" <Russell.Shaddox@quickmail.cis.yale.edu>
Subject: The 70's- The Untold Story

In Chalkhills 439, the slightly moist but still fresh "Sherwood, Harrison"
<hsherwood@btg.com> wrote:

> No, no, NO! You're thinking of Harry Dean Lagerstructure, who before his
> MacGyver tenure played lead theramin and cowbell for Grand Funk.

NO NO NO NO NO! No! Harry Dean Lagerstructure is a character actor who
played opposite Emilio Estevez in "Repo Man." He was NEVER IN "MacGyver,"
and though he did make the funny space noises that you hear if you play
"Closer to Home" backwards on your turntable, he did it USING HIS MOUTH --
and the cowbell on all 1,203 Grand Funk albums was played by none other
than a teenaged THOMAS DOLBY.

> Roger Dean Alehouse was a Sixties pop artist who designed many
> influential album covers, including Zager & Evans' "In the Year 2525
> (Exordium and Terminus)" and "Joey Bishop Sings Country and Western." He
> died in a horrible gardening accident in 1971, and Dave Gregory's band,
> great admirers of his, named themselves after him.

Well, of course, you're right about that. What can I say? Although I will
point out that R.D. Alehouse's rendition of the cover for the Amboy Dukes'
"Journey to the Center of Your Mind" was later stolen as the genesis of
XTC's "Oranges and Lemons" cover, especially the part where Andy and Colin
look like someone broke their fingers and they have to play their
instruments really tentatively. And NO, I did NOT break the band's fingers.
I did break Gilbert O'Sullivan's collarbone after "Alone Again, Naturally,"
but you can hardly blame me for that.

>  You're giving all us Foghat fans a _bad name_!!!

Uh, if you're already called "Foghat fans," I don't need to give you a "bad
name." But I have to point out that, of course, Chris Squire didn't play
bass for Foghat. That was none other than U.S. Sen. Phill Gramm (R-Texas),
who produced "Derek Does Devonshire," a little known porn film starring
Derek Smalls, who of course was in fact the bass player for Foghat, Emerson
Lake & Smalls, Hatfield & The North, Blue Cheer, and several other art-rock
bands before dying in unexplained circumstances shortly before a concert,
although it is believed that a prank involving his foil-covered cucumber
and a handy microwave oven was to blame.

Also in CH439, "DaKril@aol.com" wrote about "Roads Girdle the Globe":

> But, at the beginning, what does Andy mean when he sings, "Am I
> asleep/Or am I fat?/Forever race/You first to fast" ?

If you go back and read the lyric sheet, you'll find out that you are
misinterpreting the words to this excellent song. The actual lyrics are:
"Am I a sheep / Oh, am I flat? / Your every face / You furnace blast." I
think this is some reference to Andy's delusion as a youth that he was in
fact a sheep, a problem which later came back to haunt him in the form of
"hives," "stage fright" and "really good guitar playing."

> To the Russel Shadoxx poster: If you are in fact the person responsible
> for the theft of XTC's gear back when they were touring -- what you did
> was wrong and I am making a couple of phone calls to check on British
> statutes of limitation. I mean, I appreciate your candor, but really!
> Intensely uncool, man.

As the heading of my post shows, my name is in fact "Rusell Sahdcox." And I
hate to burst your bubble, but I didn't STEAL any statues when I was in
England. Just the band's gear. And I'm sorry, OK, I know it was wrong. I'm
willing to "own" my guilt.

Also, I want to say with some embarrassment that I now realize that Michael
Faulkner did NOT write "As I Lay Dying." That was Mervyn Peake. Michael
Faulkner in fact is the author of several children's stories, including the
classic tale of a sea captain's obsessive pursuit of a great white whale --
"Murder in the Cathedral," later turned into the classic film starring
Marlon Brando as the cathedral. Sorry, Michael. It won't happen again.

Russell Shaddox
Sorry for the long post, but ... well, sorry. SORRY, all right?

------------------------------

Date: Fri, 26 May 1995 10:05:46 -0700
From: mgooch@scn.org (Marshall Gooch)
Subject: Producer Overload

I wanted to comment that this talk about future producers for
XTC has been going for months. Every time a lot of newbies get
on the list, someone rekindles the thread (mixed metaphor #1)
and we have to go through it All over again.
   **BUT** someone mentioned Butch Vig, so I gotta throw in my
vote for him. Sure, people know him as the guy who produced Nir-
vana and Sonic Youth, but has it been pointed out that he did a
tremendous job with Freedy Johnston's "This Perfect World"? Vig
was able to get a clean, unmurky sound and still let Freedy's
music stay true. Can we say that of Todd Rundgren, Paul Fox or
Gus Dudgeon? George Martin is totally washed up--he produced so
many hacks in the late 70s and 80s, forget it. Let him stick with
Beatles reiussues. They'll never stop, so he's got a job until
he feeds the tree. Mitchell Froom, okay. Shit, why don't we
just let Dave Gregory do it. He'd be involved enough to know
what wouldn't work, and objective enough (being a non-songwriter)
to do whatever was good for the song.
   So, I vote: Butch Vig, Dave Gregory.
*And no, I'm not a newbie, I've just been silent for a few mos.**

--
>> Marshall Gooch > P.O. Box 23217 > Seattle, WA 98102-0517 >>
>> mgooch@scn.org >> all previous addresses are voidoid >>>>>>

------------------------------

Date: Fri, 26 May 1995 10:21:03 -0700
From: Christie Byun <cbyun@ocf.Berkeley.EDU>
Subject: video help

Hey, I'm glad that someone is trying to set up a video trading forum
here.  Thank you very much!  I have a video tape to contribute, once I
get hold of another VCR.  I know it's rather difficult to get visuals
on the boys, so I'll do my best to get my tape out to all you XTCers
out there.

(sidenote: Daniel, with whom I traded my dubs for your vinyl copy of
"Towers"--please write to me!  I lost your address and I do still owe
you a videotape.  Thanks!)

On an unrelated topic--after I heard discussion of the Kinks Village
Green Preservation Society, I went out and bought the disc and I'm
loving it, especially the title track.  But can anyone out there
explain all the references in the song to me?  Being vastly uneducated
in regards to mentions of Desperate Dans and Mrs. Mopps, I need
help!  I would appreciate any comments, please mail to cbyun@ocf.berkeley.edu.
Thanks all, and sorry for the non-XTC related topic.

Christie

------------------------------

From: richard.pedrettiallen@octel.com
Date: Fri, 26 May 1995 11:08:38 -0700
Subject: Too many kooks

  Dear Chuckholes and Chilled Wren,

  I think the Beatles comparison is inevitable.  George Martin and the
  Beatles brought eclectic production to pop.  Think about the other stuff
  that was being put out during that period!  They changed the way that
  many people produced records after that.  You don't have to like what
  they did and George may not be viable anymore but their contribution and
  influence has been sited by too many respected (however breifly)
  musicians to deny.  For most of their stuff, I feel like I've heard it
  enough for one lifetime.

  As for a Kinks influence... jeez.  I find Kinks unidimensional.  Hundreds
  of three chord songs (not all), many (not all) with trite lyrics.
  Uninspired production.  I followed them for longer than I want to admit.
  Luckily I immersed myself into the punk energy of the late 70's/early
  80's and found Elvis, The Jam, Buzzcocks and XTC!  Some of that may have
  been the same three chords but it didn't sound the same.

  Around that time there were many Punk/Reggae/Ska/Dub bands coming and
  going.  I think that Mr. Moulding was just having some fun with they
  style rather than poking fun at Madness.  There were many other bands
  doing that pumping-ska stuff.  If memory serves, The Untouchables,
  Selector, etc?  And there were plenty of bands that fed of off that style
  like English Beat and The Police.

  Colin Moulding release Too Many Cooks under the moniker of "The Colonel"
  or something like that. I don't think it was meant as a parody... but
  what was on the other side of the single?  If anyone has the single, does
  it list a line-up of musicians?  Now there is some XTC trivia...

  K-bye,

  Richard Pedretti-Allen
  "What do ya call that noise that you put on?"

------------------------------

Date: Fri, 26 May 95 13:22 EST
From: Jeffrey Langr <0005392548@mcimail.com>
Subject: Beatles...

From: "Paul P. Krempasky" <krempask@eden.rutgers.edu>

PPK>> The Beatles are one of the most overhyped bands of ALL time.

Hate or love 'em, the importance of the Beatles can hardly be
understated. Up until the Beatles, white popular rock & roll music was
mostly covers of blues standards or compositions written by other
songwriters (like Elvis had).  Look at the Kinks' first album for
example.  I think the Beatles had a lot to do with the ability of
bands to play their own originals.

You are correct, XTC had little similarities to the Beatles in 1977
other than the fact that they were four white guys playing pop music.
Later influences are from quite a few spots on the map; it's really
annoying to see uninformed reviews where XTC is compared to the
Beatles.

My list of the most important acts includes: Velvet Underground, Roxy
Music, and the Ramones.

------------------------------

Date: Fri, 26 May 1995 14:01:23 +0059 (EDT)
From: joe turner <cutter@world.std.com>
Subject: Re: Chalkhills Digest #440

I'm too lazy to keep the attributions.  Y'all know who you are, anyway.  :-)

>    HELP topic: Lots of my friends point to "Roads Girdle the Globe" as a
> masterpiece of music and lyrics, a forlorn testament to modern
> transportation -- but I just don't get it. Not only 'WHAT is he SAYING,'
> but also, 'WHAT is he MEANING'? Some sections are clear, like in the
> middle, where he says, "Hail, another motor/Hail, piston, motor/Hail
> wheel."

I thought it was a paean to industrialization and the perceived shrinking
of the world?

> But, at the beginning, what does Andy mean when he sings, "Am I
> asleep/Or am I fat?/Forever race/You first to fast" ? I mean, huh? Seems
> more like a fad diet jingle... where's the transportation?  Anyway, any
> help/discussion is greatly appreciated.

Well, even in gems of songs, not *every* line is a winner.  Sometimes I
think that songs are more fun when the composer gets MOST but not ALL of
what s/he meant to say out, anyway.

>                  Beatles STEREO mixes were only an experiment, apart from
> Abbey Road (1969) and were done days or weeks after the MONO mixes, by
> George M. and his engineers! It wasn't until the early 1970s that stereo,
> for pop mixes was really understood! The MONO mixes are far better, and
> were generally co-produced by The Beatles. If you get the chance,
> check out the BIG differences between the two mixes, track durations etc.

Indeed.  In *the Book* (a/k/a "The Beatles Recording Sessions" by Mark
Lewisohn, which I would highly reccomend to any fan - or especially
non-fan - of the Beatles, just to see what kind of work schedule they had,
and how quickly they developed in terms of studio technique and song
content/structure), the mono mix sessions were always done first, and in
some cases ("I Am the Walrus" and most of Sgt Pepper, for example) there
are *huge* mix differences.

Martin is quoted as saying that the trademark "huge stereo separation"
that started on the Beatles records (but eventually became endemic on all
pop records over the following few years) was not planned -- the tracks
were separated like that for ease of mono mixing, and when they panned the
four tracks out for stereo, that's just how it ended up sounding.  They
didn't really take notice of stereo mixing until they went to eight-track
for most of "The Beatles" -- and even then, they still stuck to that kind
of separation!

> come up with a bunch if given half a minute).  I do in fact like that
> Earl mentions the influence of the Kinks, the Who, and the Small Faces
> as influences on the work of XTC.  This is something that many people
> may not look for or see.

Keep in mind that two of Andy Partridge's main influences - the Beatles
and the Beach Boys - were *constantly* playing can-you-top-this with each
other, especially around '65-'67.  The Beatles did "Rubber Soul" - the
Beach Boys do "Pet Sounds" - McCartney hears "Pet Sounds" and thinks "Oh
hell!  How am I going to top that?!?" (that's a quote, btw).  Around the
same time, the Kinks and the Who (who also admit to being very competitive
with the Beatles in terms of popularity and quality; would there have been
Tommy without Sgt Pepper?) are all doing vaguely similar stuff.  I think
the material was coming fast and furious and *everyone* was being
incestuous and copping from everyone else.  Would there have been an
"Itchycoo Park" without a "Penny Lane"?

> Remember the Beatles started as a band that was
> predominantly gimmick (the hair, the suits) and good pop songs that were
> blatantly pushed down the throats of the public (remember, anything will
> sell if it's played or pushed enough e.g., Green Day).

The biggest gimmick the Beatles had at the start was that they wrote the
majority of their own music; something that most pop bands did NOT do in
'61/'62.  The songs were only 'pushed down the throats' of the public
because the public was, you know, buying the records in droves and
stuff...

(By the way, I think Green Day writes some pretty catchy melodies.  I
think "Long View", "Welcome to Paradise", and "When I Come Around" are
pretty nifty tunes. :-)

> I will not deny as
> the Beatles progressed they did become more inventive in there music, but
> were they alone?  Late 60's early 70's acts such as King Crimson, Roxy
> Music, BeBop Deluxe, Bowie, et.al. were also inventive.

I contend that the Beatles were bringing 'art' to the masses, just as I
contend that XTC is doing the same.  You didn't see teenagers all across
America humming "Starless and Bible Black", did you?  Everyone could sing
"Strawberry Fields Forever", though.

> I know the
> argument then goes that the Beatles made ALL of that possible.  If this is
> indeed the case then the Beatles are responsible for the creation and
> eventual promotion of the Dinosaur rock that runs rampant to this day.

The Beatles created music.  The record industry did the rest.  The Beatles
were not deeply involved with the business of selling records (hence,
among other reasons, the eventual no-touring status) and in fact remained
(possibly intentionally) oblivious to some aspects of the business (cf.
their completely failed attempts at various Apple-related projects, not to
mention Apple itself).

> fan is a Beatle fan.  Caomparisons are nice and they may in fact fill some
> purpose, I subscribed to this list to talk about one of my favourite pop
> bands, XTC.  I did not subscribe to discuss the Beatles.

Know thy roots.

> Yeah, and less gloss overall.  I think much of this is XTC's fault as
> well.  They're used to going for polish and they've forgotten the
> spit.  There's no spontaneity, rough edges (except for the planned
> intro to "Peter Pumpkinhead"), no mistakes, no interesting bits.
> They've all been sanded smooth.

I don't beleive this has ever been the case with XTC.  From start to
finish, they have worked with the best of the best in terms of engineers
and producers.  Show me an XTC album with spontaneity.  I don't think this
is a bad thing, though!  The reason I *like* XTC is that their albums (no
matter how good or bad the songwriting) are coherent, well-produced, and
are clearly meant as finished, packaged presentations.

> I want to see the ugly underneath!  Is that too much to ask?

Buy more live bootlegs?  :-)

> Or maybe Butch Vig!  Someone who produces noise bands but can be
> melodic.  Someone who doesn't try to clean off all the rough edges.
> Like Brendan O'Brien, the producer of the latest Matthew Sweet rekkid.

I'll say it again, STEVE ALBINI.  :-)

Ditto everything what Harrison Sherwood said.

> ("Mr. Martin? Hey, loved your work with the Beatles, guy! Just Fab, heh, heh!
> Oh, and by the way, that Sgt. Pepper movie? With the Bee Gees and Peter
> Frampton? [vicious knee in the testicles--WHAM!] There, go tell that to Barry
> Gibb, OK? Bye!)

Oh come on.  Steve Martin doing "Mean Mr Mustard" was a hoot!

> As it would have it, I opened right up to an XTC selection.  "Dear God," in
> fact.  The line "Still believing that junk is true" often gets misquoted as
> something like "Still believing that chunk is true."

When the "Grass" 12" first came out, and I was playing "Dear God" for all
my friends, I could have sworn he was saying:

        And all the people that you made in your image
        Still beleive in that junky soup
        ...
        And if you're up there, you must see
        That my heart feels repulsive (as in "ree-pu-ul-seeve")

I knew it was wrong, but there weren't any printed lyrics, and hey, I was
a brash young confused lad of only 19 or 20...

Tales are legion of people mishearing Peter Gabriel's "Games Without
Frontiers" Kate-Bush-sung refrain of "jeux sans frontiers" as "She's so
popular" or my own version, "she's so fucking-a" (it was seventh grade,
and saying something was fucking-a was The Cool Phrase To Use).

> As a new subscriber to "Chalkhills" (and a novice at the computer, I must
> admit), I was delighted to find this service.  My question is brief.  What
> happened to Barry Andrews?  I have one friend who informed me that he died,

Physically, no.  Musically, yes.  :-)

> And Elvis may have done some real crap, become a circus freak in his later
> years, an still be walking the planet - but when he was young, he was a
> GOD, or a SATAN.  Killer voice, great looks, and he scared the hell out of
> parents worldwide.  If he could've done some better material, he WOULD be
> truly the KING.

Indeed.  There would be no XTC without the Beatles, and no Beatles without
Elvis; and, in a very direct way, no Elvis without Sinatra!

Of course, there'd be no (icon from one generation) if there were no (icon
 from previous generation), and so on and so on, and indeed, the argument
becomes pointless after a while.

"Rock and roll is, for the most part, written, played, and sung by a
bunch of cretinous thugs."
                - Sinatra

"We like this kind of music.  Jazz is strictly for the stay-at-homes."
                - (can't remember)

Indeed, we're all sitting here arguing over the influence of the Beatles
on XTC, and we're overlooking the band's complete jazz influence.  Would
we have had the sax solo from "Leisure" (or "Red") without Captain
Beefheart, whom AP claims as an influence..?  And what of Mr van Vliet's
influences?

It's all connected, and while you don't have to LIKE particular bands, you
should at least understand their place in the chain.  I'm not a Madonna
fan, but I know that her early 80's records set the tone for production
and marketing standards for the rest of the decade (and certainly had an
impact on XTC in terms of sound recording).  I might not like Ozzy
Osbourne, but I can respect Black Sabbath for their coherence and
longevity, not to mention their influence on others. I don't really like
much Gene Vincent, but whoo boy, what a landmark.

/joe

   Joe Turner | Sys Admin | Software Tool & Die | Brookline MA | 617/739-0202
 GCS/MU/>AT  d H++ s:+ g? p? au a27 w+ v*(++) C++ UBUVHS++++$ P++ L>+ 3 E++>+++
  N++ K+++ W M+>++ V-- +po- Y+>++ t+(-) 5(+) j R-- G?(') tv(-) b++>+++ !D B---
                   e+ v*$ h(++) f+(++) r++>+++ nt(----) y++**

------------------------------

From: JMons@aol.com
Date: Fri, 26 May 1995 16:29:55 -0400
Subject: Madness/"Too Many Cooks..."

Greetings all-

I have been moved to post for the first time in quite some time but Eric
Miller's observation:

>To be sure, the Madness crew were not musical giants, but
  they deserve better...I simply can't listen to "Too Many Cooks"
  without thinking that Colin was having a...laugh at their expense.

I think it is a rather intriguing and insightful observation to tie "Too Many
Cooks..." to Madness, but I must ask what you mean about Madness not being
"musical giants."

I am certainly no expert on the UK music scene, but I believe that Madness
enjoyed considerable popularity and even a fair amount of chart success in
their homeland. Perhaps you are using different standards in assessing
"giant-ness."

Anyway, assuming that CM WAS poking fun at Madness with "Too Many
Cooks...,"it is hard to imagine that he did so out of anything other than
playfulness. More likely than not, however, he wasn't even THINKING about the
erstwhile Nutty Boys. But it's a fun thought.

Jon S.

------------------------------

Date: Fri, 26 May 1995 20:41:57 -0400 (EDT)
From: glancaster@mecn.mass.edu
Subject: Gary Usher

Gary Usher,  whose name came up as an ideal producer for XTC, unfortunately
is no longer alive.  An intriguing suggestion... has anybody mentioned
that XTC maniacs might really like one of Usher's stranger projects,
the 60's band, Saggitarius (esp. the album, "Present Tense," which features
the single, "My World Fell Down")?  Me, I think maybe Martin Newell oughta
produce the guyz now!

------------------------------

From: BBenoit@aol.com
Date: Fri, 26 May 1995 22:21:15 -0400
Subject: Re: #1(2) Chalkhills Digest #440

XTC had the title of the Raver's Beatles a long,long time ago. I'm surprised
that most people don't mention that, yes, XTC were influenced by the Beatles
but they were just as much influenced by Captain Beefheart,Eno,Pete
Townshend,Brian Wilson,even Burt Bacharach and fifties music or even further
back, the blues and classical music. Pop music is idea,spirit and form plus
execution=no language in our lungs to express what's been created. Just
admire and enjoy our humanity.

------------------------------

Date: Fri, 26 May 1995 23:58:24 -0400 (EDT)
From: "Jennifer L. Geese" <jlg@tardis.svsu.edu>
Subject: Re:  Holly and Poppies, etc.

 kathryn lynne burda <klburda@umich.edu> wrote:

 > The first time I heard "Holly Up On Poppy" I wasn't paying much
 > attention to the song or the lyrics and thus figured it was about a girl
 > on drugs.  Anyone else have the same experience?

        I thought the same thing at first.  Actually, as you listen to
the first few lines of the -song, there is nothing to make you think any
different.  "She has escaped from the world / Where they bake beautiful
girls".   You really can't tell what Andy is talking about for sure until
the last half of the song.

*********************
 FINB@aol.com wrote:

 > BTW - does anyone else think that the cover of this song by the
 > CrashTestDummies should be stricken from history?  Such an easy song to
 > do well, such a LAME performance.

        I agree.  When I first heard it on the radio, I was excited (we
don't hear much (ok, any) XTC on radio in Saginaw), but it's just
not XTC, and it doesn't do anything different with the song to make it
worth listening to, IMHO.

                        I feel like I'm walking 'round ten feet tall,
                        Jen

------------------------------

Date: Fri, 26 May 1995 23:52:11 -0600 (MDT)
From: Big Earl Sellar <splitred@freenet.edmonton.ab.ca>
Subject: Hold it!

Howdy! (Sorry, it comes with the territory...)

Firstly, I am sad to admit that I've received 10 letters so far
supporting my Beatles slogging. None against. I was hoping for more....

Sherwood, Harrison <hsherwood@btg.com> tapped out...

> in Hamburg '61 black leather and quiffs looking like they'd enjoy
> nothing better than to shove the neck of a Gretsch Country Gentleman
> straight up the Queen's Bungalow; or heard the Cavern boot I heard the

Um, sorry. Back in the Hamburg days, George was playing a solidbody
Gretsch - not a Country Gentlemen. Just prior, he was playing some
Czech(?) axe called a Futurama. Both would hurt more. (Told you I once
liked them :)

> Hey, I caught Donkey's Left Nipple at my local bistro t'other night!
> Tight band, but _way_ too many Small Faces covers! Get with it, guy!

Hey, told you I was desperate! We had this big tour of bistros across the
states and had to have a name! And c'mon, we only did RENE; the rest were
Banana Splits covers.

Also, to clarify a point: I wasn't dissing Cheap Trick, just the fact
George Martin worked with them. "It's the way, of the world....."

Later...

------------------------------

From: "J.A.Harkness" <J.A.Harkness@sheffield.ac.uk>
Date:          Sat, 27 May 1995 09:40:58 +0100
Subject:       No problem!

> "J.A.Harkness" <J.A.Harkness@sheffield.ac.uk> writes:
> >
> >James Dignan!
> >
> >You're Moonlighting on Love-hounds!   Shocking!
>
> Yeah?  What of it?  You gotta problem with that?

None what so ever!  How on Earth do you think I found him there?

Will Yum!

------------------------------

From: 7IHd <ee92pmh@brunel.ac.uk>
Subject: Re: Barry Andrews
Date: Sat, 27 May 1995 16:33:55 +0100 (BST)

Matt Hiner <R2MCH1@VM1.CC.UAKRON.EDU> asked...

> As a new subscriber to "Chalkhills" (and a novice at the computer, I must
> admit), I was delighted to find this service.  My question is brief.  What
> happened to Barry Andrews?  I have one friend who informed me that he died,
> and another who insists that he started his own band.  What's the deal?
> Please drop a line if you have said info.

In a nutshell, after leaving XTC he did the following:
  (a) Three solo 7" releases in 1979, 1980 & 1981.
  (b) Was a member of Robert Fripp's "League Of Gentlemen"
      (1 LP, 2 singles, 1 later compilation LP/CD).
  (c) Formed "Restaurant For Dogs" (who were, IMO, awful).
  (d) Formed Shriekback.

Shriekback are still going, now with a much-altered lineup from the
original, but still with Barry at the helm. He certainly didn't die,
I know this because I saw them last tuesday! Over the years they've
released 7 albums and have more or less written the next one but they
currently don't have a record deal. They've had their ups and downs
album-wise but check out the most recent one "Sacred City" and also
"Big Night Music" from 1986 for starters, or pick up one of the
comiplation CDs currently available.

For further details check the (still very rough-and-ready) discography
at: http://http2.brunel.ac.uk:8080/~ee92pmh/shriek.html

Hopefully in the not too distant future I'm going to go through the
discography with Barry in an attempt to clear up all of the uncertainties,
then I'll revamp the Web page and make it a bit more user-friendly. Until
then, just email it to yourself & print it out.

For anyone in or around London who cares, Shriekback are playing Upstairs
At The Garage on 16 June.

Cheers,
Phil

PS: How about Ian Caple to produce the next XTC album? As well as working
with Shriekback ("Sacred City" and others) he's done some fine work with
Tindersticks recently (especially the 2nd album which, incidently,
everyone must rush out and buy immediately)...
  _
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 |  | )||   http://http2.brunel.ac.uk:8080/~ee92pmh
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End of Chalkhills Digest #441
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29 May 1995 / Feedback