Chalkhills Digest Volume 15, Issue 21
Date: Saturday, 19 September 2009
Chalkhills Digest, Volume 15, Number 21
Saturday, 19 September 2009
Topics:
Thomas 'n' Andy
[fingertipsmusic] This Week's Finds: September 9
Vote for XTC in blog's 'Tournament of Rock'
"King for a Day" is the MySpace song of the week
Watchin' All The Girls Go By!
Duking it out with The Beatles
Beatles Redux
Mother Mother
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---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Tue, 8 Sep 2009 14:42:08 -0400 From: Ben Gott <ben@loquaciousmusic.com> Subject: Thomas 'n' Andy Message-ID: <003795D9-65C2-4734-8EB9-9CC24E1753B7@loquaciousmusic.com> Hi gang, I finally ordered the delightful reissue of "The Golden Age of Wireless." I'm very happy with itthe mastering is perfect, thank God and was especially chuffed to find two bonus tracks: "Urges" and "Leipzig," both co-produced by Andy Partridge. I'd recommend shelling out the cash for a new copy of this great album, as it comes with several bonus tracks (including a kickin' guitar version of "Radio Silence") and a region-free DVD. And did I mention the remastering job? -Ben
------------------------------ Date: Wed, 9 Sep 2009 19:12:03 -0500 From: "James Lowe" <jamielowe@msn.com> Subject: [fingertipsmusic] This Week's Finds: September 9 Message-ID: <SNT124-DS7835E42BCB9C019EA85FABEE80@phx.gbl> Dear Chalkholders, I have touted the talents of Jeremy Schlosberg and his site Fingertips before. But the 09/09/09 edition is of particular interest to our ilk. Just take a look at song number three's description it is right on. The link should be good if you want to download the songs. If not try here: http://www.fingertipsmusic.com/this_weeks_finds.htm And if you have not treated yourself to the new Pugwash/ Tom Walsh record aka the S/T "Duckworth Lewis Method" it kind of sort of fills the XTC gap if that is even possible? Faithfully Listening to XTC since 1979, Jamie Lowe http://xtcstickers.jamielowe.net/ The pessimist complains about the wind; the optimist expects it to change; the realist adjusts the sails. - William Arthur Ward
------------------------------ Date: Thu, 10 Sep 2009 15:20:07 -0600 From: "L. Nar" <loc-nar@comcast.net> Subject: Vote for XTC in blog's 'Tournament of Rock' Message-ID: <013201ca325c$79f77140$6401a8c0@deckard> Hey guys, XTC is up against The Byrds, Velvet Underground, Fleetwood Mac and others in the Scholars & Rogues "Tournament of Rock." Vote (free, quick, no reg. req'd) for em soon cuz the poll closes in a day. I hope to see that XTC gets into the next round! This is not a spam, I've been a Chalkhills lurker on and off for years. Thanks! Link: http://j.mp/3CyAUk
------------------------------ Date: Sun, 13 Sep 2009 17:04:28 -0700 (PDT) From: Todd Bernhardt <beat_town@yahoo.com> Subject: "King for a Day" is the MySpace song of the week Message-ID: <781334.64345.qm@web32003.mail.mud.yahoo.com> Hi: Over at the XTCfans MySpace site (http://www.myspace.com/xtcfans), the song of the week is "King for a Day." If you want to know how the band met Elvis Costello and T-Bone Burnett during the O&L sessions, or how Chris Squire intimidated Colin during a take, check out the XTCfans blog site at http://blog.myspace.com/xtcfans. Everyone's creeping up to the money god Putting tongues where they didn't ought to be... -Todd
------------------------------ Date: Mon, 14 Sep 2009 00:25:38 -0400 From: Kevin wollenweber <dancingweed@optonline.net> Subject: Watchin' All The Girls Go By! Message-ID: <0KPY002S21L1TC30@mta5.srv.hcvlny.cv.net> Hello, fellow Chalkers: Oh yes, all those stunning Beatles records. I did indeed buy the boxes, both of them! I'm delighted that I got a second chance to do this kind of collecting and, this time, do it right! Oddly enough, the early Beatles, for me, was soundtrack to watching the young girls dancing and working up a sweat on shows like "AMERICAN BANDSTAND", so my mind was not entirely on the music or exactly what music was playing. This doesn't mean that the music was insignificant. I thoroughly enjoyed the "ED SULLIVAN SHOW" appearances, but the lads were playing to those screaming girls and, well, I was busy watching and drooling over those girls and how they were dressing, even though I was only 11 years old in 1964. My musical awakening was in high school, around 1969. I had been out of touch with the Beatles for a while, until I had this chance to look through my former brother-in-law's record collection and spot albums like REVOLVER, SGT. PEPPER'S LONELY HEARTS CLUB BAND and MAGICAL MYSTERY TOUR and learn where the guys had gone to and grown from. I also became aware of progressive radio of that period and cherished it like a dear friend. From that point on, along with so many other great bands of that period, I followed the music until the unfortunate breakup of the group. I was disappointed at their breakup, just as they were, to me, getting really creative and special and interesting with each new album. Little did I know that the group was disintegrating by the release of that packed "white" album with the group's name engraved in its cover. Of course, I had a similar experience with XTC. I'd been listening to them since BLACK SEA and really hoped that they'd stick around as they aged and grew as musicians and songwriters. I guess that we cannot expect our icons to always be there-the old unfortunate adage that "nothing lasts forever", especially something good. But at least now, the music is being treated well, and the wait was all worth it! Any further reviewing for me will just sound as if I'm a shill for the record company, but here is an example where the record company did incredible work here in making sure we got the absolute finest masters compiled in these boxes. No matter how you all buy these albums, you'd be getting some incredible music, and it is worthwhile to buy all the albums just to reacquaint yourself with some of those early songs that you might have forgotten either while screaming (if you were female) or feeling major carnal urges watching the girls wriggling wildly around to the tunes (if you were male)! Whatever the stuff does to you, now, it all sounds as fresh and new again as it did when you heard it on your transistor radio all those years ago! Here's to hoping that XTC will be given such royalty one day. And all these guys from our favorite band are still with us. Andy is still creating, and we hope there are many, many more generous years for that, but only if Andy and Colin themselves desire it! for the money alone is no way to make music in its purest form! Kevin Wollenweber
------------------------------ Date: Mon, 14 Sep 2009 07:34:28 -0700 From: Wayne Klein <wtdk123@msn.com> Subject: Duking it out with The Beatles Message-ID: <BAY108-W26AA6AC0988AE369FE8CD3F9E40@phx.gbl> > Word on the wire has it the improvement is stunning -- you can hear > Ringo's fag ash hitting the studio floor! you can hear Yoko's body > hair growing! -- but I want to read some reviews first, and I'd rather > get the good word from Chalkfolk than from anyone else. So, if your > first spin on Sept. 9 transports you to Abbey Road Studios and plants > you onto an engineer's stool at the left hand of George Martin, please > talk about it here. > > If Andy himself writes such a review in the *Swindon Chipwrapper*, > would someone post the link? > > Ryan Anthony Well Ryan here's my review of the mono boxed set which if you want remasters that haven't been futzed with is the way to go. Of the stereo remasters all I can say is that all of them have some compression and that Allan Rouse mentioned that he used "transparent peak limiting" which essentially means that it doesn't leave as many noticeable artifacts although it does rob the music of some of it's dynamics. The good news is that even with these issues most of the stereo sound pretty good with the earliest titles benefiting the most. "Beatles for Sale" and "A Hard Day's Night" sound pretty good overall. Amazing how much The Beatles stole from our heroes the Dukes... Oops. For some reason the review page isn't up yet. It should be at http://www.dvdivas.net/INDEX- PROGRESSIVELAND.html I'd check back later in the week. > "Australian filmmaker John Safran is so fed up with mormons ringing his > doorbell early in the morning that he flies to Salt Lake City Utah and > tries to convert Mormons to atheism. Needless to say, the locals were > not pleased." > > at 4:10 into the video: "May I offer you a reading from 1980's concept > band XTC?" and there's a brief shot of Andy and Colin. Well this sounds like a chuckle. It could only have been improved if Andy went door to door with Safran. I'm a bit tired of door-to-door for everyone so when I answer it I say something along the lines of "sorry I worship the devil" or some such nonsense. It turns them away in an instant although my daughter says I'll pay for it IF there is an afterlife... > Tyler pointed out that: > > "I just found this online: >http://www.avclub.com/articles/warner-archives-releases-urgh-bad-ronald-mikes-mur,31885/ > > Warner Archives, the dvd on demand service that reissues old movies, > will be releasing Urgh! A Music War. Don't know the date, but > hopefully soon." I found the image quality on this so-so. They probably should have gone for a dual layer DVD-R for this since it would have prevented compression artifacts. I doubt though that we'll see this reissued on regular DVD anytime soon since Warner Archive releases focuses on "specialty" titles and they choose to reissue these on DVD-R vs. license it out.
------------------------------ Date: Tue, 15 Sep 2009 20:20:38 +0200 From: don device <dondevice@noos.fr> Subject: Beatles Redux Message-ID: <A5464D9A-6DA0-43DF-9F7C-F5AB6F231FA4@noos.fr> OK, I've only got to Revolver.. And I keep playing the two versions of 'Taxman' over and over. I'd never really been able to distinguish the percussion in the right channel... Wow! And the 'th' on 'Taxman.. My Heathhhh!' is hissingly great! I'll write more later, but for now, I'm just knocked out and swimming in the pleasure of rediscovering this disc (I've got this, Rubber Soul (OK, so I'm not following chronological order, but personal preference!), Sgt Pepper's and Abbey Road...) I'd love the dosh to buy the Mono Bos Set, but I just don't.. but Tomorrow Never Knows;. Hey, let me hear that one! Best, d2
------------------------------ Date: Wed, 16 Sep 2009 21:23:58 -0700 From: idahlberg@verizon.net Subject: Mother Mother Message-ID: <F4741AD8-65FD-43EF-95A8-9BD437C67B44@verizon.net> I have to second dm's recommendation for "O My Heart" from Mother Mother. It's not often a great pop song grabs me like that. Great vocal arrangements, form, phrasing, lyrics. It'll lodge in your head - very catchy. A great jolt from any pop dry spell you may be in. You can, of course, hear the whole thing on YouTube somewhere (official video is out). Equally catchy is "Wrecking Ball." Great stuff. Yummy even! XTC content - Buy my Omnibook! :) http://www.xtcvademecum.org/
------------------------------ End of Chalkhills Digest #15-21 *******************************
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