Chalkhills Digest Volume 10, Issue 46
Date: Tuesday, 12 October 2004
Chalkhills Digest, Volume 10, Number 46
Tuesday, 12 October 2004
Topics:
An XTC/Beatles cross-group tribute
Excuse me, but...
Spiny Norman, etc.
do be do be do waaa
Be Nice to Me, For I'm in the Clique!
RE: Drummed and Wire's "Black Sea" Performance
Fuzzy Gem
King For A Day Tribute
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Burning scars soon disappear / Like heat that hangs like water on the road.
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Date: Thu, 07 Oct 2004 00:22:11 -0400
From: Jef Leeson <jef.leeson@sympatico.ca>
Subject: An XTC/Beatles cross-group tribute
Message-ID: <6.0.0.22.0.20041006234236.02802070@pop6.sympatico.ca>
In the 1980's Martin Fuchs accepted a VERY average 4 track cassette
recording of "Knuckle Down" from me for his "Another Set-A-Lite" cassette.
Never very pleased with the aural results, but flattered nonetheless for
the inclusion in the set, I've often wondered when I might do something of
the sort again. It seems Bullseye Records of Canada has given me the chance
... in a manner of speaking. Bullseye has released a 2 CD set of Beatles
covers ('IT WAS 40 YEARS AGO TODAY') to honour the Fab Four's 40th
anniversary here in Canada. Much to my surprise they included my submission
of the Sgt. Pepper tune "Fixing A Hole", performed as if the late '70's
lineup of XTC may have tried it. To acknowledge the true inspiration I
credited the final result as done by 'The Helium Kids' (intentionally
spelled with an 's'... never imagining for a second I could assume a 'z'...).
Please forward all berating and sarcastic messages to.....
"'S.H.I.T.' is that how you spell 'FAN' in your dictionary..."
--
LDD (Leeson Digital Design)
www.lddonline.com
------------------------------ Date: Wed, 6 Oct 2004 22:20:30 -0500 From: Chris Vreeland <CVREELAND@austin.rr.com> Subject: Excuse me, but... Message-ID: <D758D866-180F-11D9-AD5A-000A95AE7A42@austin.rr.com> let me tell you what I'm doing right now. I am sitting here with my headphones on, currently having the head between them utterly ripped from my shoulders by Smile. This is at last a really fine day. Thanks, Brian, I'm smiling. EOT
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 6 Oct 2004 22:57:01 -0700 (PDT)
From: Tyler Hewitt <tahewitt@yahoo.com>
Subject: Spiny Norman, etc.
Message-ID: <20041007055701.61607.qmail@web51708.mail.yahoo.com>
Loved Jeff's discussion of Todd Rundgren in the last
Chalkhills. But he did forget to mention the giant
hedgehog that only Todd could see (just what was in
those funny little cigarettes he was always smoking?).
_______
Jim Smart has been into Wilco, and writes..."I know
that way back in the heart of darkness is Uncle
Tupelo..."
Uncle Tupelo were a realy great band. Forget the
tributaries and head back there straightaway. All
their cd's were remastered and rereleased a year or so
ago. All four are good, I especially reccomend No
Depression (great scorching country/punk) and Anodyne
(kind of a barbituate-drenched country sound, like the
Eagles could have been if they were the least bit
interesting and not a bunch of boring old hippies).
And while you're at it, head over to Bloodshot records
http://www.bloodshotrecords.com/index.html and order
Robbie Fulks' Couples in Trouble. While there's no
relation to Jeff Tweedy and company (except that they
are both from Chicago), it's a great record that
should appeal to anyone who likes Wilco/Uncle Tupelo.
_______
I have to add my voice to the growing list of raves
for Fuzzys 5 & 6. Both great, especially 6, except for
The Laugh Track, which goes on for too long. Prince of
Orange makes up for that, though. It's by far my
favorite of the Apple Venus era demos.
The latest Fuzzys are the first discs to pry the new
Bjork cd, Medulla, out of my player. That one is just
amazing. Easily my favorite record of the year. I'm
surprised how someone can make such a non-commercial
record for a major label. Not for all tastes, to be
sure, but if you like to be challenged even a bit when
listening to music, do yourself a favor and pick this
one up. It's a work of near-genius, absolutely
breathtaking and brilliant.
ok i love you bye bye,
Tyler
------------------------------ Date: Thu, 7 Oct 2004 06:37:53 -0700 (PDT) From: Jackson <jydson@yahoo.com> Subject: do be do be do waaa Message-ID: <20041007133753.79108.qmail@web10801.mail.yahoo.com> Chalkhillsters, You really have to check out Brian Wilson's Smile... infectious!, IMO moreso than Holland or even Pet Sounds. As for FW 5&6...both are taking me longer to appreciate than 1-4.... As always anxious for what's next, Jack
------------------------------ Date: Thu, 7 Oct 2004 11:33:45 -0400 From: KEVIN.WOLLENWEBER@jpmorgan.com Subject: Be Nice to Me, For I'm in the Clique! Message-ID: <OF57CD4D4E.9BF86651-ON85256F26.00522920@JPMORGANCHASE.COM> Hello, again. Let me begin by saying that, first of all, I somehow missed CHALKHILLS #44, so I didn't catch part of this thread, but apparently and perhaps, my talk about Todd Rundgren got some conversations started about rumored clashes between The Wizard and Andy Partridge. In fact, in #45, jeffrey.thomas@bayercropscience.com wrote: "No: it was just Todd. Everybody was terrified of Todd. I've seen grown men pull their own heads off rather than see Todd. He used...sarcasm. He knew all the tricks: dramatic irony, metaphor, bathos, puns, parody, litotes, satire. It drove Andy crazy, he was convinced that Todd was a monster." Well, assuming, as I shouldn't, that your words are accurate, this is an attitude inherent in the music business by artists of that generation. Al Kooper is said to have the same attitude about talent that he's taken under his wing as a producer, almost this kind of surly sense of one's self as if he or she is actually the head of the record company instead of merely talent helping talent. I can't really go on about whether or not any of this is true, but when I do hear the song "I'm in the Clique", I have to imagine that Todd had seen part of that kind of unfriendly rivalry and, perhaps, honkered down into it instead of avoiding it like the plague! Let me just say that I, too, respect Rundgren's talent and that's as far as I will go. I did get a rather odd reaction from Jill Sobule, upon meeting and greeting her at an in-store she'd done for her album, PINK PEARL, when mentioning her one link to Rundgren, the song, "Too Cool to Fall in Love". Let me just say that, in hindsight, I felt bad for having dredged up what might have been a bad memory when, actually, I meant it as a complement to her song that singer/songwriter and producer had this fabulous meeting of the minds and this great song came out. Hey, Jill's done fine on her own now, and I like her new album quite a lot! Yet, like Andy, I can't deny that Todd Rundgren is a talented guy. Musically, I would have thought that this was the ideal match--both Todd Rundgren and Andy Partridge are somehow steeped in somewhat different ways, in psych and pre-Black Sabbath "heavy metal", and, let's face it, both have shown in their lyrics, that sense of irony and much-needed biting sarcasm when it comes to politics and society in general! Whew, look, all I can say is that, at one point, partially inspired by Rundgren's talents, I wanted to either become a producer or, at the very least, one of those much despised music critics (a most human and genuinely diverse one, I assure you), but I do know that, if I were assigned to review and/or interview artists and met with the kind of surly and ingenuine nature that had been discussed here, well, let me put it this way, I'd feel like that John Lennon lyric, "even hate my rock 'n' roll!!" If I had to work my way up that ladder only to find that I hate the top as much as I typically daily hate my current day job, what's the point? I'd rather just buy albums and either enjoy or reject 'em as I please. After reading in these pages about musicians' experiences, I really no longer envy them, save for their talent. I still have an interest in the modern studio and how it works (see Todd's "Sounds of the Studio" from SOMETHING/ANYTHING), but my knowledge of electronics frustrates me as do the electronics themselves. We all know that musicians get into the world of popular music and music-making for different reasons. I'm in it for the sheer enjoyment. If I were to have taken it as my career, I think I'd be disillusioned quite fast, as Andy partridge nearly was at his darkest moments and having to deal with Todd Rundgren or whoever, coming from a different place entirely! Oh, and lastly, I learned I was so wrong about Todd producing Jill's latest album. Someone had given me false info in an E-mail that day and I made the foolish mistake of spreading that wrong statement around. Oops! Kevin
------------------------------ Date: Thu, 7 Oct 2004 10:00:31 -0700 From: "Kerry Chicoine" <kchicoine@whitehat.com> Subject: RE: Drummed and Wire's "Black Sea" Performance Message-ID: <200410071700.i97H0YfN026158@web3.sinewave.com> Cough. Am I the only Chalkhiller who attended the recent LA-area Drummed and Wired "Black Sea" performance? All I can say is IT WAS INCREDIBLE! Sure, the ace performance made me long to have seen XTC "back in the day", but, alas, that will never come to pass. However, Drummed and Wired's performance was nothing short of AMAZING. These boys NAILED the album, the vibe, the music, the vocals, just EVERYTHING, everything, everything. I believe Drummed and Wired keyboard/guitar/vocalis Ian is on this list: Ian, you guys were fantastic. THANK YOU for giving this jangle-jaded old pop fan a taste of the glory, the power, the majesty of LIVE XTC. How about you guys recreate "Skylarking" next? Okay, how about "Nonsuch"? Oh, all right, how about "Oranges and Lemons"? Hold me my daddy, kErrY kOMpOsT www.abelincolnstory.com (swing-punk-soul project) www.kompost.blogspot.com (weekly blog) www.soundclick.com/kompost (solo demos 'n' stuff) www.tribecamusic.net (pop-fusion project) http://tinyurl.com/5fdde (MySpace page)
------------------------------ Date: Sun, 10 Oct 2004 12:09:59 +0100 From: "David Edwards" <davidedwards1@onetel.com> Subject: Fuzzy Gem Message-ID: <005601c4aeb9$aeea7400$cc864ed5@oemcomputer> Dear All If you've got any doubts about gathering up Fuzzy Warbles 6, forget them. This is a fantastic collection - the best so far, I think. It's no good proposing that Andy is just one of the best British songwriters - who else do you know that is this endlessly creative, uncompromisingly honest, compassionate, playful, smart, and totally in love with music and songwriting? On The Laugh Track he's taped laughing till you can hear the ribs creak. On Prince of Orange he's crying his eyes out into the mike. In between, he declares all kinds of truths - about selling out, losing out, blissing out - that are virtually banned in our oh-so 'cool', corporate-owned culture. Andy's merely a man, but that counts for an awful lot in a world of compromised corporate clones. We all know the rumblings about Andy being difficult to work with - that he's demanding, a control freak, and so on. But what comes across from this album is the true extent of the +sacrifice+ he made on Nonsuch. It's amazing to me that songs like Wonder Annual and, here, The Tiny Circus of Life and End of the Pier - brilliant, moving songs - didn't make it onto the album. Ideally, the whole band would have come together and listened to +all+ the songs available and chosen them on merit rather than authorship. If they had, Nonsuch could have been, not just great, but out of this world, and things could have turned out very differently. You can't cast out musical pearls from one of the great creative talents of our time just because he's already had his allotted share of songs! Who gains from that? Best wishes David Edwards
------------------------------ Date: Tue, 12 Oct 2004 10:59:22 -0500 From: "Richard" <rjpa1@comcast.net> Subject: King For A Day Tribute Message-ID: <008201c4b074$70f4c1c0$02081fac@verisity.com> For you folks that don't have a copy of King For A Day, the XTC tribute, I still have some left. (yes, the website with the downloads is gone - sorry, it took time and money that I didn't have) The new website is CERTIFIABLY LAME looking and might not get better before I sell the rest of the CDs. In any event, if you seek to own one of these CDs of gem-like quality containing 134 MP3 covers of XTC songs, go to: http://home.comcast.net/~rjpa1/KFAD.html Cheers, Richard
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