Chalkhills Digest Volume 3, Issue 49
Date: Friday, 6 December 1996
Chalkhills Digest, Volume 3, Number 49
Friday, 6 December 1996
Today's Topics:
careers and a popular XTC
I often dream of blegvads
Oy Vey!!
No need to look back to pictures of lost
There is a doll's arm floating in the scum
Re: All Edward Lear-ed
censorship and stuff
You're My Drug
XTC influenced music
Beautiful South
I promised myself I'd drop politics, but....
LET ME SING IT FOR YOU!
xtc fandom (prerequisites?)
favorite little touches...
favourite little touches
Oh, it's a big one...
Re: fast speed on demos?
Responses, repsonses, responses....
PS-----
Re: Rush A Move
US Nigel 45 for Trade!
My favorite XTC nuances can beat up your favorite XTC nuances
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---------------------------------------------------------------------- Message-Id: <v01540b01aecbdc836aa0@[207.15.170.85]> Date: Wed, 4 Dec 1996 20:35:22 -0600 From: kmarkman@netwestonline.com (Miss Piggy) Subject: careers and a popular XTC Greetings from West Texas! Just a few things to respond to, hopefully they are somewhat connected. And please forgive in advance any typos - my typing is atrocious, but oh, well... I forget who this is from, sorry: >My training in music theory is part of my livelihood, and part of my art. If >I fail to impress, it's because I'm not trying to. I do feel the urge to >step in when I see "my" language (rather, terminology) bastardized, though I >always cut plenty of slack (to the point of remaining silent) when people >who are not trying to be authoritative naively misuse musical terminology >for poetic effect. Mighty magnanimous of me eh? :-) Actually, I completely understand. I feel the same way about what I do; I work in radio and teach Mass Communications and I always have the urge to speak when I hear people complaining about how "radio sucks." I have found that very often that these comments reflect a general lack of understanding about how commercial media in the US works. And I too try to be silent, but occasionally I feel like I have to comment. I think that comes in part from feeling very passionate about what I do. And while I will admit that a great deal of the music theory discussions have been way over my head, some of it I still found iunteresting, and what I didn't I simply skipped over, no harm done. I certainly wasn't offended, and I think it's obvious that there are enough people on this list who do care to warrant inclusion. >I don't know what it's like in other countries, but in the U.S. concern for >music education could be a lot better IMNSHO. Maybe then more XTC fans? :) >Actually, I think so. Well, I will definitely agree that music education in this country is severely lacking. However, I'm not sure if you can make a direct correlation between better music education and the rise in XTC fans, it might be an intersting experiment. :) Actually, in that better music education might lead to a greater appreciation of different music styles and an interest in expanding one's musical horizons, you might extrapolate out that a potential result could be an increased XTC fan base. Hey, any sociologists out there, this might be the subject of a great research paper! >From: cminer@cougarnet.byu.edu (Chris Miner) >Subject: XTC and Success >albums, I really wouldn't at all begrudge him writing some throw away pop >songs. In fact, if he wants to write the next top 40 REM-type hit, more <snip> > Any other opinions out there? I assume there are plenty of the "the >older stuff is always better" crowd and the "keep the music pure" types out >there. What do you think? Well, several things come to mind about this discussion. First, I'm not at all sure that it matters to me one way or another whether XTC acceives conventioanl popularity or not. I have always like their music, and will continue to do so regardless of their mainstream success. That said, I certainly would not begrudge Andy and the boys the money and other tangible rewards that popularity normally brings. I do think it's possible that with good promotion and a clever video they may be able to reach modest radio penetration in the US, especially in the larger markets. I don't know what it was like in other cities, but when Nonsuch came out I lived in St.Louis, and Peter Pumpkin got fairly regular airplay for a while, as did Testimonial Dinner. However, where I live now in West TExas I'd be surprised that anybody at our "modern rock" radio station had even heard of XTC, much less any of the listeners. Very often in the US smaller market ariplay is acheived only after heavy rotation in the key markets - NY, LA, Chicago, Seattle. these cities generally act as trend-setters for the rest of the country, who take a few weeks or months sometimes to jump on the bandwagon. I personally would like to know what kind of airplay XTC has received over the years in various US markets, as well as overseas. Maybe we can spot a trend? This doesn't have to be a discussion for the list, though it can be, and I will welcome any private replies. Anyway, lets all just hope that we get a new album(s) soon, and cross our fingers for the rest. Enjoy the rest of the digest, forgive me if I've been long-winded! Vaya con queso, Kris *********************************************** "Save the Texas Prairie Chicken"--Mike Nesmith
------------------------------ Date: Wed, 4 Dec 1996 22:39:00 -0500 (EST) From: Natalie Jane Jacobs <gnat@umich.edu> Subject: I often dream of blegvads Message-ID: <Pine.SOL.3.95.961204221908.15322A-100000@galaga.rs.itd.umich.edu> To the person who wanted to know where to find a copy of Peter Blegvad and John Greaves' album "Unearthed" - my copy appeared randomly at a local record shop (must have been an interdimensional warp) - the label is Sub Rosa, and their address is P.O. Box 808-CM1000, Brussels, Belgium. It's an all spoken-word album, with words by Blegvad and music by Greaves, except for one song, called "The Only Song," whose lyrics are as follows: Imagine a world where this was the only song And against your will You had to sit and listen to it all day long Until it made you ill. That said, if anyone knows where I can find a copy of Blegvad's promotional CD "Peter Who?" (the one that Andy helped with), I would be very, very, very grateful. Someone else mentioned "Train Running Low on Soul Coal," which was going through my head all Thanksgiving weekend. It seems to me that only Andy could write a song about the fear of losing creativity and growing old using an elaborate metaphor which encompasses not only the lyrics but the music as well. Whatta guy. she's just a nut and she's cracking, Natalie Jacobs Visit the Land of Do-As-You-Please! http://www-personal.umich.edu/~gnat
------------------------------ Date: Wed, 04 Dec 1996 16:44:24 -0700 (MST) From: Eric Muller <EMULLER@UWYO.EDU> Subject: Oy Vey!! Message-id: <01ICM9BW5QGI001ZZY@PLAINS.UWYO.EDU> That would be "Hebrew," Amanda. Not "Jewish." And Ben (Gott), I know that lots of people on this list love "The Greates Living Englishman." I bought it because of raving about it on this here list. When I listened to it, I found it embarrassing. I had to keep reminding myself that I was not listening to The Rutles. It is truly hard for me to believe that Newell and AP undertook this as a serious project, rather than what it actually sounds like, which is to say a spoof of the Beatles. Eric Muller emuller@uwyo.edu
------------------------------ Date: Wed, 4 Dec 1996 23:53:00 -0500 (EST) Message-Id: <199612050453.XAA27067@cyber1.servtech.com> From: Joshua Hall-Bachner <particle@servtech.com> Subject: No need to look back to pictures of lost I'm quite a bit late, but a song to crank up really loud: Yacht Dance! I can listen to this song over and over at a damn high volume. >P.P.S. - Where can I get a copy of all the lyrics to "Heaven is Paved with >Broken Glass"? Ummmm, on Chalkhills? Or do you mean to include the annoying slowed-down vocals at the beginning of the (far inferior) not-mixed-by-the-band version? > Instead of a song of the week, perhaps we could pick a theme, and try > and find a song or 2 that fits? Okay: first, we have to "knock off" all the ones we've done before. Fire, fireworks, boats (and other nautical), animals... My suggestions for this issue: Dances (Yacht Dance, War Dance, and the line from Knuckle Down) and things in the form "This and That" (Oranges and Lemons, Drums and Wires, Paper and Iron [Notes and Coins]) > If you don't like that band, I don't want to know why you > don't like it. A simple "eh, it's not for me." would suffice. Or > better yet, NO reponse at all. Pettiness is saying "that band sucks > and this is why!" That's no way to be human. Somehow I managed to miss this originally...so I'd just like to throw in my own comments that people should not be making *any* statement on this list if they're not willing to give some sort of reason behind it. Saying "This sucks!" and refusing to give a reason why is just saying to the world that you are unable to form an opinion based on some sort of reason. If you back your opinion up with some sort of reasoning...you may be wrong but you'll at least be respected for having taken the time to have thought it through a little. >Native American philosophies and spirituality intrigue >me, but it's not the way of life I was raised in so I can't follow it. Not to heap more abuse on AMANDA, but this statement makes me curious -- is it because it doesn't fit well with the way you're living your life right now, based on how you were raised (which I don't agree with, but I can understand) or are you just saying that you can't follow it because it's not how you were raised, with no other reason? Finally, here's the little bit of nothing I worked out tonight that, I think, describes our little group very well. Hope y'all enjoy it! Do What You Do in our Pale and Precious little Wonderland in the Black Sea that is the Internet. It's like a Garden of Earthly Delights where anyone can be King For A Day -- even if they don't have Gold. You can be a Fly On The Wall if you like -- and when you decide to break your silence, we shall proclaim that Then (S)he Appeared. We've got Senses Working Overtime, Day In Day Out to spread The Loving and to keep our group from being like Travels in Nihilon, and it's members from being the Disappointed. We never want to be Wrapped In Grey. 0ur little Bungalow is like a Meeting Place for the Millions, where we can discuss how Our Bird Performs. There are No Thugs In Our House -- until All of a Sudden (It's Too Late) to Deliver Us From The Elements. So I say Wake Up and Washaway the Reign of Blows Over Rusty Water, or just Blame The Weather. We must throw down our weapons for dancing a Yacht Dance, not a War Dance. Don't Lose Your Temper and Everything Will Be Alright. When it's all over, you'll say "It Didn't Hurt A Bit!" rather than "Where Did The Ordinary People Go?" We may be distant from the Outside World, involved in such a Complicated Game, and we may be like a Crowded Room at times, but Life Is Good In The Greenhouse, and so we'll Hang Onto The Night with our Radios in Motion and stand Ten Feet Tall like Jason and the Argonauts. If we Work, our Happy Family will Glow -- I'd Like That. Don't You Ever Dare Call Me Chickenhead and, When We Get To England, we'll Rocket over the Motorcycle Landscape to the beat of a Broomstick Rhythm and land in a Moonlit Drive -- metaphorically, of course. This is the End. Goodbye, Sucker. :) Josh When all was rust... /---------------------------Joshua Hall-Bachner---------------------------\ | particle@servtech.com http://www.servtech.com/public/particle/ | | "We all have our idiosyncracies -- maybe thinning hair, or gum disease."| \---- Kowanko, "Will You Come To?" ------ Thank You, And Goodnight. ------/
------------------------------ Date: Wed, 4 Dec 1996 23:54:03 -0500 (EST) Message-Id: <199612050454.XAA27111@cyber1.servtech.com> From: Joshua Hall-Bachner <particle@servtech.com> Subject: There is a doll's arm floating in the scum >Actually, that might work. I friend of mine's father got some post >from India addressed to "Doctor Whitbread, England". Okay, it took >three months but it got there. The Post Office have people whose job >it is is to find the correct address for things that have got lost. >Give it a go. In general, if there's only one way a letter can be delivered, the Post Office will do so. For example, to get a letter to R.E.M.'s organization, just write "R.E.M., Athens, GA" on the envelope. Does XTC have an organization? Is there "XTC Ltd." or some other business set up to handle XTC's affairs? If not, you might try sending it to just Colin or possibly "Colin Moulding c/o Andy Partridge" -- since it's possible that Andy is more "famous" or whatever and that a letter is more likely to get to him. >I'm really surprised it didn't make the cut onto Nonsuch. >No, come to think of it, it does make sense, since it's much better >than 16/17 of the songs on Nonsuch. I dunno about that. I'd say MBP, TSA, and a few others are all better...but anyway. There are about 12 or 13 songs which were demoed for Nonsvch but which weren't on the album...and every single one of them is better than at least two or three songs on the album. Stupidity. >I really wouldn't at all begrudge him writing some throw away pop >songs. Didn't he try that already? What do you think "The Disappointed" was? I mean, maybe not "throwaway," but it's exactly what *should* have been a huge hit -- an insanely catchy, fun pop song with slightly tongue-in-cheek lyrics about relationship breakups. And it barely dented. What is wrong with our music buying public? Josh I don't dream of buried treasure /---------------------------Joshua Hall-Bachner---------------------------\ | particle@servtech.com http://www.servtech.com/public/particle/ | | "We all have our idiosyncracies -- maybe thinning hair, or gum disease."| \---- Kowanko, "Will You Come To?" ------ Thank You, And Goodnight. ------/
------------------------------ Message-Id: <m0vVX4g-000Rc5E@mail.airmail.net> Subject: Re: All Edward Lear-ed Date: Thu, 5 Dec 96 00:15:33 -0000 From: Della & Steve Schiavo <schiavo@airmail.net> >Anyone interested in Edward Lear, I direct you right now to the >Complete Book Of Nonsense. >Lear isn't as well >known as Carroll by comparison, but personally I prefer him. Lear mostly >writes whimsical poetry and verse, and practically invented the limerick. >Look for such longish poems as "The Owl And The Pussycat,"(yes, he wrote >that one) "The Jumblies" and "The Yongi Bongi Bo." "How plesant to know Mr. Lear!" Who has written such volumes of stuff! Some think him ill tempered and queer, But a few think him pleasant enough. - Mr. Lear about himself. To celebrate the 150th anniversary of the first Book of Nonsense, there is a new edition with a CD-ROM (Mac & PC) and Lear's original illustrations. It's published by Maxima New Media, ISBN 1-888297-01-8.
------------------------------ Date: 05 Dec 96 10:07:00 GMT From: mcguid%general.gw.bbc@nr-comms.radio.bbc.co.uk (David McGuinness) Subject: censorship and stuff Message-Id: <"<04E7A63281821573>04E7A63281821573@GW.BBC"@-SMF-> Hi everyone. According to my local record store, XTC Live in Concert is just about to be deleted so if you haven't got one, buy it now. In my corner shop the other night, Radio 1 was playing and Science Friction came on - the guy behind the counter couldn't work out why I was grinning so much - which leads me to ... Someone wrote a while back about the 'cleaned-up' single version of Respectable Street, and whether this was really necessary for broadcast. Well, the new 'Taste and Decency' Guidelines have just come out at the BBC and I have them in front of me. Thought some of you might like to see some extracts from the Radio 1 bits: "Daring and lively music and speech are part of the mix, but songs which feature strong language or explicit content dealing with drugs, violence and sex will normally be inappropriate. If a radio version exists we will play it but make clear it is a radio version. We will also edit." [A couple of years ago, the BBC made its own radio version of Prince's 'Sexy MF' - it's very easy to do with digital editing tools] "At night and in specialist music programmes, an audience can be assumed to be capable of making informed choices about its listening, supported by adequate signposting. Here the full versions of records may find their place if they pass the quality test and are a genuine expression of popular culture. Even so, the most offensive language will not normally be acceptable." Well, no surprises there really. Presumably back in 1980 Virgin realised that R.S. wouldn't get any daytime plays unless Andy went back in and redid the vocal with different lyrics. To be honest, I don't remember it getting any daytime plays anyway! Bye for now David 'I leaned right over to kiss your stony book'
------------------------------ Message-Id: <199612051403.PAA21165@utrecht.knoware.nl> From: "Mark Strijbos" <mmello@knoware.nl> Date: Thu, 5 Dec 1996 15:04:20 +0000 Subject: You're My Drug Dear Chalkies, This week one of our national newspapers De Volkskrant carried a very tiny review of the Fossil Fuel collection. They liked it, but added that a real Best Of XTC must include lots of album tracks on 3 or 4 cd's...Hear hear! And last Digest Jeff Smelser made this comment: > Does anybody else think there's a hidden meaning w/Holly Up On Poppy > as Holly, high on heroin? No, I don't think so. Don't you think it might mean just what it says? It's about Andy's daughter Holly up on Poppy the (red?) rockinghorse. But isn't "Dying" really about Colin himself? Maybe that's why his songs are more sad and melancholic now... Yes, he must be dead! ;) > It's not very usual for XTC to write about incideous drug use, is it? Yes it is IMHO. They have always made it very clear they did not take any drugs and They are not really happy with the use of XTC as the popular "street" name for the drug MDMA (really popular in Europe). AFAIK Barry was the only one of Them that did some serious "experimenting" with controlled substances. The Dukes Of Stratosphear maybe did write one or two lines about pot and acid but hey, those were the Sixties, man! And i'm sure They never inhaled ;) bye, Mark Strijbos at The Little Lighthouse http://utopia.knoware.nl/~mmello/ ===> Mark's Random XTC Quote <== I can take humiliation and hurtful comments from the boss
------------------------------ Date: Thu, 05 Dec 1996 07:20:56 -0700 (MST) From: Nick Mitchell <musnick@erinet.com> Subject: XTC influenced music Message-id: <01ICN5B7ADUKB8KLZF@yvax.byu.edu> Hello fellow Chalkhillian. I thought you might be interested in this, but I didn't want to post it out of context on Chalkhills. The group Skeptical Cats has been attracting the attention of fans of XTC, the Beatles (and others), you may want to give them a try: (exerpt) Free 1997 90 MINUTE VARIETY SAMPLER TAPE when you order the new album from SKEPTICAL CATS, "Re'cord Record". "If you're looking for variety, Skeptical Cats offer a wide musical buffet." -Dayton Daily News "One of Dayton's most original bands." -WTUE Radio Lovers of Beatles, XTC, Steely Dan, Zappa, They Might Be Giants, The Replacements, blues and jazz may want to check out the group Skeptical Cats. This group from Dayton, Ohio may be a little too diverse and eclectic for the masses, but lovers of the 'White Album ethic' should identify with this mind-tickling music. The new cd, "Re'cord Record" is just $7, as are all cd's found at the Skeptical Cat Recordings website. If you're a writer and would like a copy for review, let us know. The FREE sampler you'll receive with your order is a wildly varied look into the diverse Dayton/Cincinnati scene. Styles found on this sampler span classical guitar, punk, alternative rock, psychedelia, folk, new age and more. That's 2 1/2 hours of music for $7 +$1.50 shipping! Please respond via email for ordering information, or stop by the website listed below for more info, links and music samples from the Dayton/Cincinnati scene. SKEPTICAL CAT RECORDINGS Dayton/Cincinnati's VARIETY Label www.erinet.com/musnick/cat.html
------------------------------ Subject: Beautiful South Date: Thu, 5 Dec 1996 14:27:34 +0000 (GMT) Message-Id: <E0vVely-0001Tt-00@sun-cc203.lboro.ac.uk> From: C Browning <C.Browning-95@student.lboro.ac.uk> In this months FHM magazine, Paul Heaton of the Beautiful South is interviewed. He is asked at one point what music he thinks is best for starting a fight in a pub with. Rather bizarrey he claims the best fight he ever had in a pub was with a bunch of drunk football fans and the music was XTC's Love on a Farmboys Wages. Now there's a bizarre image if ever there was one.... chris
------------------------------ Date: Thu, 05 Dec 1996 08:38:27 -0600 (CST) From: AMANDA OWENS <ACOEA@jazz.ucc.uno.edu> Subject: I promised myself I'd drop politics, but.... Message-id: <01ICN7R79O5U8WY7GU@jazz.ucc.uno.edu> I already stated that in most cases, I separate a band's politics from their music. (Reign of Blows not being the case mainly because I was in a dicey mood and felt like attacking something.) If I were to take a band's views on the subjects of politics and religion to hearty, then I would have to stop listening to roughly 3/4 of my favorite bands, namely the lads, CTD, and the many heavy metal bands I still listen to today. Some people have questioned me as to how I can listen to certain politically overt XTC songs, like This World Over. I don't know about the rest of you all, but I hear the music before I hear the lyrics. If I like the music, I'll like the song, regardless of the lyrics. This World Over is especially the case, as it is my favorite XTC song to date. I like Dear God well enough, I like here Comes President Kill Again, and so forth ans so on. XTc may, to a certain degree, be politicall ymotivated when they write (or at least Andy is), but they don't let it overrun their music like some bands do. Those bands that, when you buy, say, a 12 tracks album, have about five or more songs with a political message in them, I avoid. At least XTC mixes a nice meaty political song (or a not so obivous one) with something lighter on the next track. That's how I feel. I also feel like Mark S., that we should try sticking to music from now on!!!!!!!!!!!!!11 Later, Amanda PS-Last digest, my comments got posted in the wrong order, so it seemed that after my lil' nephew Griffin got out of the hospital he was back in. Not the case, he's home, he's fine, I'm fine, we're all fine!
------------------------------ From: McGREGOC <McGREGOC@regents.ac.uk> Date: Thu, 5 Dec 1996 14:58:30 +00 Subject: LET ME SING IT FOR YOU! Message-ID: <19E8E9122A4@asdf011.regents.ac.uk> Hey this is Cheryl again! I just wanted to correct myself. Its Johnette Napolitano who sings lead on "Damage I've Done" I just hate it when I can't get someones name or the title right! So I just give you the whole line! Again refering back to the concert,( meaning the Heads) I'm kinda glad they didn't attempt to do PaperSnow, don't know how that would have gone over with Johnette singing it. It could have been interesting but No One sounds like Mr. P. and that would ruin the song for me ( Laundry Chickens and all). Although I do enjoy TD (mostly). They could have left Space Hog off and it would have been even better. Okay thats enuff rambling. Signing off.... Cheryl P.S. Really if there are Chalkies coming to the UK and you're in London, Theres a couple(2) fans here( me and Gary) and maybe we all could have some fun! e-mail me if you are interested.
------------------------------ From: shaefner@falcon.cc.ukans.edu Date: Thu, 05 Dec 1996 11:28:57 -0600 (UTC -06:00) Subject: xtc fandom (prerequisites?) Message-id: <01ICNDYOWWKY0173KI@KUHUB.CC.UKANS.EDU> gondola@deltanet.com (E.B.) proclaims: >Any XTC fan who isn't a Beatles fan t'ain't a XTC fan at all, if you ask me Are you serious? How can you claim that you must like one band in order to be a fan of another? Although I like the music of the Beatles, I would hardly classify myself as a "fan." Does that mean, therefore, that I am not a fan of XTC? I don't think so. From: Paul Haines <Hainesp@melbourne.jde.com.au> >dunno if I posted this already or not, but Camper Van Beethoven can be >found disguised as Cracker (main man anyway). Yes, it is true that David Lowry now leads Cracker, *but* Cracker does not equal CVB. One of the main differences is that the voilin which is so prevelant in Camper's music is lacking in Cracker. Camper is one of my favorite bands, whereas Cracker does not do much for me. -Scott http://falcon.cc.ukans.edu/~shaefner
------------------------------ Message-Id: <1.5.4.32.19961205173254.0074a5bc@pppl.gov> Date: Thu, 05 Dec 1996 12:32:54 -0500 From: Tobin Munsat <tmunsat@pppl.gov> Subject: favorite little touches... >From: james.dignan@stonebow.otago.ac.nz (James Dignan) >_dammit. I can't remember which song it is. One of the very early songs >sounds as though it's starting at the wrong speed and slowly speeding up. Battery Brid(g)es. Bjorn Borg, Bjorn Borg, .... Nice list. -Tobin
------------------------------ Message-Id: <199612051751.LAA12221@mamba.arlut.utexas.edu> Subject: favourite little touches Date: Thu, 5 Dec 1996 11:51:00 -0600 (CST) From: "Stuart McDow" <smcdow@arlut.utexas.edu> From james.dignan@stonebow.otago.ac.nz (James Dignan) > > and many more... - the guitar solo from "Love at First Sight" (without a doubt _the_ best guitar solo in the history of rock and roll). -- Stuart McDow Applied Research Laboratories smcdow@arlut.utexas.edu The University of Texas at Austin
------------------------------ Message-Id: <2.2.32.19961205173302.006bf89c@popmail.dircon.co.uk> Date: Thu, 05 Dec 1996 17:33:02 +0000 From: Simon <nonsuch@dircon.co.uk> Subject: Oh, it's a big one... Sorry if this is a belated grab at some departing threads, but hardware implosion and the subsequent trawling of the Chalky backlog has left me a bit out of sync. Reign of Blows is one of my favourite songs on one of my favourite albums. I always felt it was pretty even handed in it's condemnation of malevolent powers - remember that line just before the stuff about Joe Stalin and Uncle Sam? "Iron maidens will slam"? The Iron Maiden was just one of many derogatory names applied to the then Prime Minister of the UK, Margaret Thatcher. To any fans who didn't get the reference it does indeed look like Andy is setting out the US and the (then) USSR as the sole progenitors of evil in this world, but that's not the case. If we can place the germination of the song around a year before the recording, I can't see how it couldn't refer in some way to the Falklands conflict, and the UK's show of force in protecting four sheep and a couple of acres of grassy rubble where we had no right to be in the first place. The tragic thing is that the Falklands conflict actually *boosted* the popularity of the Prime Minister who got us into it. As for the "muso ramblings", I admit, for me at least, that at first I felt it was the intellectual equivalent of a crash helmet - most of it went over my head, and the rest just got in the way of listening. I was surprised, though, that considering the relatively non-muso feel of the band - Andy claims he has to pencil numbers on his keyboards and makes up chords he doesn't know the names of - there was such a "scholarly" interest. Of course the benefit of a musical education is the same as any other education, you can converse with others of a similar standing and be able to communicate exactly what you want to say. All I could say to someone who had never heard "Wrapped In Grey" is that the change from verse to chorus makes the hairs go up on the back of my neck. I could then make some freakish approximation of the chord change with some da-de-da-de-das. Two bright music students, using the words that make up the vocabulary of their art, could probably build up a song in each other's imagination pretty accurately. While I initally found the post on musical structure a little irksome - (these things don't really upset me though, I have a "Page Down" key) - Jeffrey J. Norman's post put it all in perspective for me. For those of you that missed it :- "I know enough that when I hear an Fmaj7, I *know* in a "gut level instinct" that it's a maj7 chord. It's rather like once you know how to read, it's impossible to see a word (like "word") and *not* read it. So it's not really a choice, you see." Extremely well put. As one who still labours with the "untutored oaf" school of guitar playing (I too make up my own chords, but mine do have names - a single four-lettered name to be precise) and who has tried without success to communicate my musical ideas to people in various abortive bands, have looked at many ways to circumvent the difficulties - composing on sequencers, playing all the instruments myself, but they have all been unsatisfying. It seems I'll just have to accept the fact that to communicate musical ideas successfully I'll need to get a grounding in the theory. That, after all, is what it's there for. Oh and yes, Jeffrey, "How sweet to be an idiot?" A song by Neil Innes (or, if you're a litigation fan, Noel Gallagher), ex- of the Bonzos and longtime "companion" of one Ron Nasty, Rutle. The "alternative" music thing is a tricky one. I used to be a Compuserve member, and in the chat groups I'd meet a lot of US kids who claimed to be fans of "alternative" music. This, on the whole, seemed to mean Oasis who, for better or worse, bestride the UK charts like some badly-postured Colossus. Over here they are mainstream, over there alternative. It's all a matter of perspective - in a world where the Prodidgy can take their, frankly terrifying, music to the UK number one spot who can possibly say where the lines are drawn? The following "alternative" bands all get good coverage on UK national radio - Cast, Oasis, Blur, Pulp, Cardigans, Sleeper, Elastica, Echobelly, Shed Seven, Dodgy, Ash, Supergrass, Tricky, and Polly Harvey. If you avoid the "drivetime" slots, you can get a broad selection of music, from Jon Spencer Blue Explosion, to General Levy. If "alternative" means "that which is not played on mainstream radio", then the UK has very little in the way of an alternative music scene. Unless you count Status Quo, that is. JHB wanted to know about our favourite XTC "touches":- Andy's "aaaaaaaaaoooooooooooo" on Funk Pop A Roll The "dombdoombadoombadoomba" backing vocals of the wonderful Humble Daisy The choral effect on All You Pretty Girls The verse/chorus change on Wrapped In Grey (you know, it goes "da-de-da-de-da") The intro to Radios On Motion (gets me moving every time) The "sproingy" guitar sound just before "She's found a way..." on Rocket From A Bottle kathryn lynne burda <klburda@umich.edu> wrote a whole heap of top notch stuff up to and including:- >Next week: The Difappointed. Nostradamus does the OJ trial! I giggled into my pepsi all the way through that. Thank you. From: Christie <cbyun@cep.yale.edu> >I would like to bring to your attention a very lovely little tune which >is not often mentioned in this here space: Always Winter, Never >Christmas. I always though this tune was quite a cracker, but it stands out for me in one great respect. It could almost be a distillation of Andy's songwriting career. We have the clattery percussion, wiry guitars, goofy backing vocals, punning lyrics, Andy's laugh and muttering over the instrumental break. Well, it's a theory. Bagsie this, the lion's share, Simon XTC Play It LOUD track - All You Pretty Girls Non-XTC Play It LOUD track - "Breathe", The Prodigy (best bloody record of the year!) Can't get the bloody thing out of my head track - "Saints Sojourn", The Icicle Works +--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+-- http://www.users.dircon.co.uk/~nonsuch/bungalow.htm +--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+-- XTC - This Is Pop?
------------------------------
Date: Thu, 5 Dec 1996 10:36:17 -0800
Message-Id: <199612051836.KAA16681@mando.engr.sgi.com>
From: John Relph <relph>
Subject: Re: fast speed on demos?
dale <hifitoastr@aol.com> asks:
>On the same subject, I just picked up the first XTC demo CD I've ever seen
>(Be Brought Up In The Lap Of Luxury 1977-89). There's an 8 after the word
>demos, is this part of a series? Does anyone know how many there are and
>where I can find them?
Yes, it is part of a series. Here's the list for the series:
_XTC Demos 1 -- Demos_
_XTC Demos 2 -- Nonsuch Sessions_
_XTC Demos 3 -- Oranges & Lemons Sessions_
_XTC Demos 4 -- Helium Kids Tracks And Covers_
_XTC Demos 5 -- The Big Express Demos_
_XTC Live_
_XTC Demos 6 -- Skylarking Demos and Others_
_Jules Verne's Sketchbook and Early Sessions_
_XTC Demos 8 - Be Brought Up In The Lap Of Luxury_
There are nine. And no, I don't know where you can find them. Good luck.
-- John
------------------------------ Date: Thu, 05 Dec 1996 12:33:49 -0600 (CST) From: AMANDA OWENS <ACOEA@jazz.ucc.uno.edu> Subject: Responses, repsonses, responses.... Message-id: <01ICNG5KNYLU8WY0SE@jazz.ucc.uno.edu> Let's see, where to start: Well first of all, Rush rocks! They're coming to the UNO Lakefront Arena soon, and unfortunately for me since my mother can't stand my friends, I can't go with them, which sucks. Umm...Herne...I actually left that concert partly because I was dead tired, and partly because I had final exams the next day. Besides, I don't think I was even born when the Attractions came out. And I have one friend who listens to XTC...my English professor, and I don't know if I'd call him so much of a friend as an aquaintance. The only XTC song that all of my friend sknow is Nigel, b/c we have a friend named Nigel who we always sing it to. Well, lunchtime for moi. Later everyone. AMANDA
------------------------------ Date: Thu, 05 Dec 1996 12:35:02 -0600 (CST) From: AMANDA OWENS <ACOEA@jazz.ucc.uno.edu> Subject: PS----- Message-id: <01ICNG9IPZJS8WY0SE@jazz.ucc.uno.edu> EB: So I cry a lot. It's an Owens family trait, passed down through many generations of Owens women. We all cry at the drop of a hat. Sorry for the non-XTC content.
------------------------------ Message-Id: <v01540b04aecce18e3b74@[199.171.191.69]> Date: Thu, 5 Dec 1996 13:54:33 -0700 From: gondola@deltanet.com (E.B.) Subject: Re: Rush A Move >From: Stormy Monday <stormymonday@sprintmail.com> > >A rock critic once pointed out how many of his peers loved to bash Rush >while lauding the virtues of bands like Living Color and King's X, even >though those bands and many others often mention them as key influences. Well, I was a minor Rush fan for about two months during high school, but that's about it. And sure, I can see critics liking Living Colour and King's X but not Rush. King's X have an interesting way of adding Beatlesque harmonies/progressions to a standard hard-rock sound, and Living Colour had some really superb stuff going on musically (at times). And of course, Rush has THAT singer (shudder), has music that has gotten more and more bloodless/eggheady through the years and has never met a lyric that wasn't too pretentious. I wouldn't personally defend King's X too strongly, but I thought LC's Time's Up was a damn good disc...sort of like an Electric Ladyland for the '90s. Anyway, the above argument is always really weak. I mean, I worship the Beatles, but that doesn't mean I think Kula Shaker are worth a nickel. And on and on and on. Any of you Led Zeppelin fans out there also huge fans of Whitesnake? I thought not.... ;) Re Roy Wood: Yes, yes! When I joined my college radio station back in 1985 or so, one of my first big "discoveries" in the record archives was a well-worn copy of Best Of The Move. Been a fan ever since. Bought the CD reissue a few years later, later found a sealed cutout of Shazam, and a couple of years ago, I managed to find Looking On and Message From The Country records in great shape for $2 apiece, and boy was I thrilled. I don't have that other one (um...Split Enz? that doesn't sound quite right), but I heard it once and it seemed too Lynne-dominated beyond "California Man" and "Tonight." Maybe I heard wrong. Additional note: Somewhere around the time of discovering Best Of The Move, I also discovered Wood's Boulders. DAMN, that album is adorable! I generally buy that album whenever I see it, and force it upon someone as a gift. ;) Eb PS Anyone else get a kick out of Gorky's Zygotic Mynci?
------------------------------ Message-Id: <199612052053.NAA02433@access.tucson.org> From: "Jeff Smelser" <jsmelser@access.tucson.org> Organization: Access Tucson Date: Thu, 5 Dec 1996 14:00:13 -0700 Subject: US Nigel 45 for Trade! To whomever it was that asked for the US single of Making Plans for Nigel w/This is Pop on the B-side: (I can't find the request in my old Chalkhills archives) E-mail me privately for trade information. No $ will change hands. "Let's review what we've learned so far, shall we. The 50s Whooooab." Jeff Smelser Video Engineer Access Tucson jsmelser@access.tucson.org
------------------------------
From: Floopyglop@aol.com
Date: Thu, 5 Dec 1996 15:03:16 -0500
Message-ID: <961205150315_1152776791@emout13.mail.aol.com>
Subject: My favorite XTC nuances can beat up your favorite XTC nuances
Hi!
My favorite XTC nuances:
The drum flourish right before the chorus of "That's Really Super, Supergirl"
The church bells in the background during the "England can never repay you"
line of "In Loving Memory of a Name"
The glockenspiel (?) two measures before the last verse of "Season Cycle"
The studio noise at the end of "Mantis on Parole"
The running water at the end of "Travels in Nihilon"
The dropping of the drumsticks at the end of "Poor Skeleton Steps Out"
The beautiful wind chimes interlude that leads up to the closing verse of
"Chalkhills and Children"
Those recurring high-pitched "ooh-wee-ooh's" of Colin's ("Limelight", "Cheap
Perfume" and "Reel by Real")
The "spineless wobbly jellyfish" sound effect in "When You're Near Me I Have
Difficulty"
The last piano chord of the 'scratched up vinyl record' intro to "Respectable
Street"
Andy's Marv Albert-esque "Yes!" at the beginning of "This Is Pop"
Dave O'Connell
York PA
------------------------------ End of Chalkhills Digest #3-49 ******************************
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