Chalkhills Digest Volume 4, Issue 121
Date: Tuesday, 4 August 1998

         Chalkhills Digest, Volume 4, Number 121

                  Tuesday, 4 August 1998

Today's Topics:

                  Pop Tarts, I mean Arts
                   Re: Box Set Payola!
                       Monkees, BNL
Dictionary of Modern Marriage on Heavy Rotation at the Fun 91!
       Delphi Forum for Devout XTC (the band) Fans
       Trimming my sails: Come about to Wonderland
               Updates and memorable dates
             Another Satellite/Cooking Vinyl
                    Newspaper Article
                          Dragon
                     Avengers Thingy
                    I am the audience
                       #Skylarking
         Re: This astrology thread thingy we had
                  Black Sea Tour Program
                 Another Satellite guitar
                 Musical Recommendations
                 XTC article/AP interview
      Yet another mad genius loner...re: Bob Pollard
                  Question about my chat
                         haiku 2
                        WELCOME...
                      New PB album??

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

Message-ID: <19980728155415.12643.qmail@hotmail.com>
From: "Steve Stearns" <xteve@hotmail.com>
Subject: Pop Tarts, I mean Arts
Date: Tue, 28 Jul 1998 08:54:15 PDT

In the last digest, the inestimable Harrison Sherwood posed a challenge
to name the pop art piece with the likenesses of both Marilyn Monroe and
Diana Dors. . . .drum roll please. . .the answer is the cover of none
other than Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band.
I'll take the virtual dozen roses by e-mail, Harrison.

Hoping you enjoy the show,

Steve

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

Message-ID: <35BE0FD2.4617@staff.prodigy.com>
Date: Tue, 28 Jul 1998 13:52:18 -0400
From: Jim Samuelian <james@staff.prodigy.com>
Subject: Re: Box Set Payola!

> From: dapardue@statestreet.com
> Date: Fri, 24 Jul 1998 12:47:30 -0400
>
>      In regards to Peter Fitzpatrick's post a few issues back about trying
>      to buy our copies of the BBC Box Set at Soundscan (or the UK version
>      thereof) retailers in the UK -- I'm all for it.
>
>      I think if there is enough interest from us over 'ere in the States,
>      and from willing proxies in the UK, that this would be a greatly
>      effective way of supporting the band.

I live in the US, and recently purchased UK-only CD's over the net from
a UK-based company called cdzone (http://www.cdzone.co.uk).  They were
fairly quick (1 week) and seem reliable (though I only used them once).
I wonder if their sales are figured into UK's Soundscan.  If so, this
would be a nice way for US XTC fans to get the box while not bothering
UK members and still figure into this Soundscan business.
-Jim

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

Message-Id: <v01540b01b1e43e8363c9@[139.80.101.16]>
Date: Wed, 29 Jul 1998 15:40:26 +1200
From: james.dignan@stonebow.otago.ac.nz (James Dignan)
Subject: Monkees, BNL

>Actually(I'll assume this is a serious question, though I suspect it's
>not), Mike Nesmith was quite a good songwriter; at least 90% of the band's
>originals were written by him. None of them were hits, I don't think, but
>the Stone Poneys (fronted by a very young and pretty Linda Ronstadt) had a
>top 20 hit with his song "Different Drum,"

Oh, but wasn't she though... Nesmith wrote a moderate proportion of the
Monkees songs; certainly nowhere near 90% though - I'd have put it nearer
25% (unless of course you mean 90% of the originals written by band
members, in which case you're probably about right). His songs sit
comfortably among those of 'recognised' writers like Neil Diamond ('I'm a
believer'), Harry Nillson ("Cuddly toy"), John Stewart ('Daydream
believer'), Boyce and Hart ('Stepping stone') and Goffin & King ('Pleasant
Valley Sunday'). Nesmith's best known songs with the Monkees did make it
into the charts, BTW - "Listen to the band", "The girl I knew somewhere",
"Tapioca tundra" and "Mary Mary" are all examples of his work. The other
Monkees did write occasionally, but with the exception of Micky Dolenz's
"Randy scouse git" and Pete Tork's "For Pete's sake", much of it was
forgettable. (I'm a little concerned that I know all this)

BTW, any Barenaked Ladies fans might be interested to try to find work by
New Zealander Dave Dobbyn. The "Maybe you should drive" album is very
similar at times to DD's album "Lament for the numb".

James

 James Dignan___________________________________               You talk to me
 Deptmt of Psychology, Otago University               As if from a distance
 ya zhivu v' 50 Norfolk Street               And I reply. . . . . . . . . .
 Dunedin, New Zealand               with impressions chosen from another time
 steam megaphone (03) 455-7807               (Brian Eno - "By this River")

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

Message-ID: <35BEC122.26DC269A@sirius.com>
Date: Tue, 28 Jul 1998 23:28:50 -0700
From: Eric Rosen <elr@sirius.com>
Subject: Dictionary of Modern Marriage on Heavy Rotation at the Fun 91!

http://www.wfmu.org/Playlists/Fxo/fxo.980717.html
http://www.wfmu.org/Playlists/Fxo/fxo.980724.html

the urls above are to DJ playlists at WFMU in Jersey City, NJ in which
DoMM can be found near the end of both lists on consecutive weeks.

If nothing else, these lists are a darn good read about what it's like
when radio is not kissing Korporate.

irie, eric

Got RealPlayer (http://www.real.com)?  Tune in
http://www.wfmu.org/wfmu.ram

Now playing: The Who: The Naked Eye (live)

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

From: piriyav3@aol.com
Date: Jul, 29 July 1998 03:17:50 -0400 (EDT)
Subject: Delphi Forum for Devout XTC (the band) Fans
Message-id: <01IZYHY9LNSY9046C8@delphi.com>

Dear Chalkhillians:

Okay kids...I'm not going to change the automatically generated message that
Delphi gave me to send to you.  It's just too precious! (LOL)

So, here it is:

<<I've created a web community called
The Forum for Devout XTC (the band) Fans.

It's part of a leading web service called Delphi
that specializes in helping people create their
own discussion groups, chat rooms, and personal
homepages.

To join our discussion, simply go to
http://forums.delphi.com/m/main.asp?sigdir=xtc&isp=if&pic=in-PIRIYAV0260

If you've never used Delphi before you'll need to
go through a quick registration (so you can post
messages). It only takes a minute and it's free!

Hope to see you there,

Piriya Vongkasemsiri
piriyav3@aol.com>>

Cute, huh?  Okay...please visit.  I just created it 7/28, so presently
there's not much to look at. That will be remedied shortly...

Thank you!
Piriya, Minister of Propaganda
http://www.lfc.edu/~vongkpp

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

Message-ID: <B82F8C4D16A0D1119FDC0001FA6A4BC90159E9DA@hfd-exch003.hartford.aetna.com>
From: "Witter, Karl F" <WitterKF@aetna.com>
Subject: Trimming my sails: Come about to Wonderland
Date: Thu, 30 Jul 1998 11:59:01 -0400

I recently posted an admittedly ineloquent defense of "Wonderland".
After checking my compass and scanning the horizon, I've now found
my tongue with this tack:

Given the current state of romantic balladry, listening to "love
songs" is no easy task. I come away with one of two feelings: Utter
boredom or queasiness. The latter is felt when in a bar while some
skeevy guy (or gal) hits on you, void of weapons such as a
discernable personality or charm. Unwanted attention approaches
disgust, and at some point these two feelings meet in a painful
tedium. You scream in your head, "Wow, it's like I woke up in
'It Happened One Night'! You're related to Ernst Lubitsch,
aren't you?"

(And no, this isn't first-hand information delivered to me by the
affronted members of the desired gender. It's mostly eavesdropping,
confidences and astute observation.)

Well, to this writer, "Wonderland" is the exact opposite. That's
why I love it. The appeal is rooted in the emotional, not physical,
turns on the long-observed and highly-regarded, and hints at so
much more than the surface (common for XTC). Damn! It just feels
like there's some real cherishing going on here, electronic
birdie effects notwithstanding.

Plus, the single cover (and reverse for "Jump") is cool.

I also miss Jerome Robbins,
Karl

PS Award to Dave Goody who got "The Hammers" quiz (and recognized
the source), unlike Karl Marx, the original contestant.

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

Message-Id: <2.2.32.19980730181707.006fcc08@popmail.dircon.co.uk>
Date: Thu, 30 Jul 1998 19:17:07 +0100
From: Simon Sleightholm <nonsuch@dircon.co.uk>
Subject: Updates and memorable dates

From: "Gineen" <natalia@javanet.com>

>I was wondering, with the pages such as Bungalow,how often is that page
>updated? I had not seen anything new in a while.

Hi Gineen (still no luck getting results with what you asked, sorry!)

Bungalow is updated when new stuff comes along - XTC articles and interviews
are pretty thin on the ground at the moment - and I try not to duplicate
what is already availiable on other sites, hence the lack of any kind of
discography (Chalkhills provides an _excellent_ one).  I've recently been
given an extra 15 megabytes of web space so I intend revamping the site when
I get time, adding some stuff that I previously had to hold back on for
space reasons.  Time is the current great issue, what with college work,
spare-time programming projects and utter domestic disaster all eating away
at my ability/will.  Simply put, though, I can't update the site with new
material when there is no new material, and any artistic redesign, which
Bungalow is crying out for, is stymied from the outset because my layout
skills stink like milky pus.  Thanks to Mick Casey though (your magazine and
tapes are on their way I assure you, I've just been immersed in that awful
substance known as 'real life' for a few weeks) for the excellent "Swindon
Recorder" piece her sent me recently.

Finally caught up - albeit at a bit of skim - with the last few weeks
digests on my return from Open University summer school in Stirling,
Scotland.  What a wonderful week.  I averaged about three hours sleep a
night for six nights and had my life changed utterly and irrevocably.  Not
bad going, I think you'll agree.  The course I'm doing is a foundation
course in the humanities - stuff I would have done at college if I hadn't
run screaming from school and into the traditional pall of teenage angst at
16.  Part of the course is a look at the culture and counter-culture of the
Sixties.  We had a 'Sixties Day' at the summer school; we watched the hugely
funny and painfully moving "Billy Liar" in the morning and in the afternoon
we discussed the art and the music.  Our tutor for the week - the wonderful
Sarah who exuded a beatific love of her subject - had brought in Sgt. Pepper
and, quite coincidentally (of course I have the authority to sell you this
bridge, sir) I had 'Chips From The Chocolate Fireball' in my bag.  As part
of a discussion about the trend for Sixties nostalgia I whipped out the CD
and forced everyone to listen to 'You're My Drug' (a particular favourite
and very apt in the cirumstances).  It was much appreciated and I spotted
Sarah examining the CD sleeve - by the way isn't marvellous the way that CD
is packaged and designed to look like a really cheap CD imprint of a Sixties
album?  It's perfect, just like those really shoddy Small Faces, Them and
Kinks compilation CDs you can pick up for a fiver - and jotting stuff down.
After the song was over we talked about what made it _feel_ like a Sixties
record and - having already spent a previous afternoon discussing the value
of art (does a perfect forgery have any less artistic worth than the
original) - we discussed whether, in fact, the Dukes music should actually
be classed as Sixties music, regardless of composition date, as it was such
a high-quality forgery.

Sarah's husband, it turns out, is a lecturer in music theory of some
description and she was so impressed by the precision of the forgery that
she wanted the CD details so she could buy him a copy.  She thought it would
be very useful to him in his studies and lectures.  Isn't it nice to think
that the Dukes could well crop up in some future music courses?

I'm going to have to tell Andy about this, I wonder what he'll make of it.

I don't want to be here...
(Where d'ya want to be, who d'ya wanna be with, where d'ya wanna be?)

Simon

-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-
http://www.nonsuch.dircon.co.uk/bungalow.htm  (http://come.to/bungalow)
-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-
An XTC resource - "Saving it all up for you..."

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

From: JStrole@aol.com
Message-ID: <8c303b02.35c0ef0b@aol.com>
Date: Thu, 30 Jul 1998 18:09:14 EDT
Subject: Another Satellite/Cooking Vinyl

One of the few bits of songs from XTC I could come close to playing is the
intro to "Another Satellite."  Using a guitar with humbucking pickups I would
play through a flanger and digital delay pedals going through a Roland Jazz
Chorus amplifier with the chorus and distortion (yes, that cheesy distortion)
on.  My guess is that this is the way it was done on the record.  Dave Gregory
toured with Aimee Mann playing through a Roland JC-120 if I'm not mistaken.
Also, one of the complaints Andy had about Todd Rundgren's studio was how it
was about a decade behind the times.  I would highly doubt any sequecers or
samplers were available to XTC (remember the album was made in 1986).

I thought Idea was going to be put out by Cooking Vinyl in the US.  For any
fans who think it would be difficult to get Cooking Vinyl product in the US,
I'm afraid you are mistaken.  Cooking Vinyl has national distribution through
Koch International.  The same company that distributed "Testimonial Dinner"
which, when I walk into a record shop, is one of the few CDs I see in the XTC
section.  Koch International's office is located in Port Washington, New York.
They have their own website and a nationwide sales force.  Oh they also
distribute Ani DeFranco's Righteous Babe records that just put out a Gold
record [(500,000 CDs)or was it Platinum?].  Something XTC has never had in the
States.  So they should be able to handle all of us Chalkies.

Harry

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

Message-Id: <v04011701b1e6e2b6491f@[204.74.8.136]>
Date: Thu, 30 Jul 1998 23:03:21 -0400
From: Harold Grey <hgrey@pop.interport.net>
Subject: Newspaper Article

I was flipping through the local newspaper here in nj when I see a big
picture of xtc (circa oranges and lemons) and a blurb about them signing to
TVT. It mentioned both projects being released in 1999, and that they were
supposedly close to signing to V2, before choosing TVT. made my day. got me
thinking about the first time I saw them in concert--when they played
madison square garden in nyc, opening for the cars in '81 (or '80?). I also
saw them headline the old ny palladium. joan jett and jools holland opened
for them. anyone else on the list at those shows? sorry I missed the
hurrah's show captured on the rhythm bootleg.

harold
englewood, nj

Regards,
Harold Grey
ITC
www.itcfonts.com

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

Message-ID: <35C219A5.20B1@realtime.com>
Date: Fri, 31 Jul 1998 12:23:18 -0700
From: chris vreeland <vreecave@realtime.com>
Organization: Vreeland Graphics
Subject: Dragon

In or around 1983, a band called Dragon recieved som airplay in the
Austin area on KLBJ f.m. I don't know the truth of this, but I heard
from an aquaaintence at tat time, that they were from Australia, and
that Terry Chambers was playing drums for them. I don't recall anything
else, except tat I liked the song, and that the drumming did seem
similar to our esteemed Mr. Chamber's style. Any info as to the truth of
this rumor would be appreciated.

chris  vreecave@realtime.com

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

Date: Fri, 31 Jul 1998 21:16:50 -0400
Subject: Avengers Thingy
Message-ID: <19980731.211651.12622.0.skybar80@juno.com>
From: skybar80@juno.com (Formerly Known as Smileypants)

Hey Chalkies

This might not mean much to you but the Philly Daily News, in the new
releases ection, mention a name they prolly haven't mentioned since like
1992.

"if you think cat-suited Uma Thurman looks hot in preview stills from
from "The Avengers," wait'll you hear the film's equally hot soundtrack,
boasting new material from femme fatales PJ Harvey, Annie Lennox, and
Sinead O' Connor, plus the Verve Pipe with Andy Partidge.." <GASP!> WOW!
I was really expecting them to leave AP's name out, since it isn't
associated wih big mainstream extravaganzas like MTV. The MTV-loving
15-year olds who actually read the news are loking at that article
saying, :
"Yes! Verve Pipe! I hope they make another 'The Freshmen'!! Who's Andy
Partridge? There was a guy in the Partridge Family named Andy?? Wow! I AM
an idiot, huh??"

Enuff from me.

Ken

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

Date: Sat, 1 Aug 1998 07:38:40 -0700 (PDT)
Message-Id: <v01510101b1e8da962e60@[194.128.83.69]>
From: fisher@easynet.co.uk (Mark Fisher)
Subject: I am the audience

Q magazine has a regular feature in which members of the public (and one
monthly celeb) are quizzed about the tape currently playing on their
personal stereo.

This month's pop star is Sophie Ellis Bextor, singer of a band called
theaudience. Coming over her headphones is XTC's Nonsuch - and her only 19
years old and all. (Surely she was in nappies when Nonsuch was released all
those years ago).

PS She says her "favourite sexy song" is Mickey by Toni Basil - can she be
telling the truth?

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

From: MFa2707621@aol.com
Message-ID: <5eba6001.35c3ce81@aol.com>
Date: Sat, 1 Aug 1998 22:27:12 EDT
Subject: #Skylarking

Chalkers,

On Saturday, August 8, at 10pm EST there will be an IRC chat.  The name of
the chat will be #Skylarking, but that doesn't mean that we have to just
talk about that album.  The server is DALnet.  Talk to you later.

Molly

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

From: btm@ns1.mindmagic.com
Message-ID: <35C56794.2246@ns1.mindmagic.com>
Date: Mon, 03 Aug 1998 08:32:37 +0100
Subject: Re: This astrology thread thingy we had

Tschalkgerz!

I promised I'd do this, and apologies for taking up bandwidth, but I
just can't help myself. I deplore scientific illiteracy.

I wonder what Andy's position on this matter is...?

*************************************************

Here are 10 questions to ask supporters of astrology:

1) What is the likelihood that one-twelfth of the world's population is
having the same kind of day?

        Proponents of newspaper astrology columns claim you can learn
something about your day by reading one of twelve paragraphs in the
morning newspaper. Simple division shows that 400 million people around
the world will all have the same kind of day, every single day.

        Given the need to fill so many bills at once, it is clear why
astrological predictions are couched in the vaguest and most general
language possible.

2) Why is the moment of birth, not conception, crucial for astrology?

        Astrology seems scientific to some people because the horoscope is
based on an exact datum: the subject's time of birth. When astrology was
set up long ago, the moment of birth was considered the magic creation
point of life. But today we understand birth as the culmination of nine
months of steady development inside the womb. Indeed, scientists now
believe that many aspects of a child's personality are set long before
birth.

        The suspicion is the reason astrologers still adhere to themoment of
birth has little to do with astrological "theory". Almost every client knows
when he or she is born, but it is difficult (and perhaps embarrassing) to
identify one's moment of conception.

3) If the mother's womb can keep out the astrological influences until
birth, can we do the same with a cubicle of steak?

        If such powerful forces emanate from the heavens, why are they
inhibited before birth by a thin shield of muscle, flesh, and skin? If a
baby's potential horoscope is unsatisfactory, could we delay the action
of the astrological influences by immediately surrounding the newborn
with a cubicle of steak until the celestial signs are more auspicious?

4) If astrologers are as good as they claim, why aren't they richer?

        Some astrologers answer that they cannot predict specific events,
only broad trends. Others claim to have the power to foresee large events,
but not small ones. But either way astrologers could amass billions by
forecasting general stock market behavior or commodity futures, and thus not
have to charge their clients high fees. In October, 1987, how many
astrologers foresaw "Black Monday" in the stock market and warned their
clients about it?

5) Are all horoscopes done before the discovery of the three outermost
planets incorrect?

        Some astrologers claim that the Sun sign (the location of the Sun in
the zodiac at the moment of birth), which most newspaper horoscopes use
almost exclusively, is an inadequate guide to the effects of the cosmos.
These `serious' practitioners insist that the influence of ALL major bodies
in the solar system must be taken into account - including Uranus, Neptune
and Pluto, which were not discovered until 1781, 1846 and 1930,
respectively.

        In that case, what happens to the claim some astrologers make that
their art has led to accurate predictions for many centuries? Weren't all
horoscopes cast before 1930 wrong? And why didn't the inaccuracies in early
horoscopes lead astrologers to deduce the presence of Uranus, Neptune and
Pluto long before astronomers discovered them?

        What if astronomers find a tenth planet? What about asteroids and
planet-sized moons of the outer solar system?

6) Shouldn't we condemn astrology as a form of bigotry?

        In a civilized society we deplore all systems that judge individuals
merely by sex, skin color, religion, national origin, or other accidents of
birth. Yet astrologers boast that they can evaluate people based on another
accident of birth - the positions of celestial objects. Isn't refusing to
date a Leo or hire a Virgo as bad as refusing to date a Catholic or hire a
black person?

7) Why do different schools of astrology disagree so strongly with each
other?

        Astrologers seem to disagree on the most fundamental issues of their
craft: whether to account for the precession of the Earth's axis, how many
planets and other celestial objects should be included, and - most
importantly - which personality traits go with which cosmic phenomena.  Read
10 different astrology columns, or have a reading done by 10 different
astrologers, and you will probably get 10 different interpretations.

        If astrology is a science, as its proponents claim, why are its
practitioners not converging on a consensus theory after thousands of years
of gathering data and refining its interpretation? Scientific ideas
generally converge over time as they are tested against laboratory or other
evidence. In contrast, systems based on superstition or personal belief tend
to diverge as their practitioners carve out separate niches while jockeying
for power, income, or prestige.

8) If the astrological influence is carried by any known force, why do
the planets dominate?

        If the effects of astrology can be attributed to gravity, tidal
forces, or magnetism (each invoked by a different school), even a beginning
physics students can make the calculations necessary to see what really
affects a newborn baby. These are worked for many different cases in Roger
Culver and Phillip Ianna's `Astrology: True or False'. For example, the
obstetrician who delivers the child turns out to have about six times the
gravitational pull of Mars and about two thousand billion times its tidal
force. The doctor may have a lot less mass than the Red Planet, but he or
she is a lot closer to the baby!

9) If astrological influence is carried by an UNKNOWN force, why is it
independent of distance?

        All the long-range forces we know in the Universe get weaker as
objects get farther apart. But as you might expect in an Earth-centered
system made thousands of years ago, astrological influences do not depend on
distance at all. the importance of Mars in your horoscope is identical
whether the planet is on the same side of the Sun as the Earth or seven
times farther away on the other side. A force not dependent on distance
would be a revolutionary discovery.

10) If astrological influences don't depend on distance, why is there no
astrology of stars, galaxies and quasars?

        French astronomer Jean-Claude Pecker (!) has pointed out that it
seems very small-minded of astrologers to limit their craft to our solar
system. Billions of stupendous bodies all over the Universe should add
their influence to that of our tiny little Sun, Moon, and planets. Has a
client whose horoscope omits the influence of Rigel, the Crab pulsar,
and the Andromeda Galaxy REALLY had a complete reading?

****

        There was a major solar eclipse on July 11th, 1991, and Los Angeles
astronomer Ben Mayer offered a bounty: produce an unaltered photograph of
the eclipsing Moon/Sun combo against the backdrop of the stars of Cancer
(stars would have become visible in the dark of the Moon's shadow,
especially with time exposures) and a $10,000 prize would be yours.

        Astrology tells us anyone born between June 21 and July 22 has
Cancer as their Sun sign. Therefore, the Sun should have been in Cancer
during this event.

BZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZT!!!!!!!!!

Any (unaltered) photograph would have shown the eclipsed Sun against the
backdrop of the stars of Gemini, the next constellation over to the
west. No one COULD have won this contest. Maybe thousands of years ago
the Sun would have been in Cancer, but not today... ooh, that nasty
little precession thingy! Mr. Mayer merely wanted people to start
looking up at the sky and see for themselves that they have had their
craniums up their bums for far too long.

***************************************************

I heard "Peter Pumpkinhead" on the radio the other day.

-Brian

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

Message-Id: <199808031732.TAA25920@mail.knoware.nl>
From: "Mark Strijbos" <mmello@knoware.nl>
Date: Mon, 3 Aug 1998 19:34:22 +0000
Subject: Black Sea Tour Program

Dear Chalkers,

It's good to be back!

I have just published an online version of the Black Sea souvenir
tour program; as originally published in 1980. All the pages are
included, with lots of pictures some of them unique to this
publication. A very special word of thanks must go to our
friend Imanol Ugarte who kindly donated me this program.

Surf to http://www.knoware.nl/users/mmello/xtc.html and follow the
link if you want to check it out.

yours in xtc,

Mark Strijbos at The Little Lighthouse
 http://www.knoware.nl/users/mmello/
     or http://come.to/xtc

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

Date: Tue, 28 Jul 1998 10:46:17 -0500
From: Christopher Moll <Christopher.Moll@marshmc.com>
Subject: Another Satellite guitar
Message-Id: <0446F35BDF2491D1*/c=US/admd=mci/prmd=marshmc/o=email/ou=ccUS/s=Moll/g=Christopher/@MHS>

Chalkhills Children,

As a connoisseur of weird guitar sounds I would say that at the very least
the guitars were run through an octave pedal turned down an octave. In the
studio there may be other effects placed on top but if you listen to the
live version this is what it sounds like...an octave pedal.

Christopher Moll.

"The Mole from the Ministry"

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

Message-Id: <v03007800b1eb900e491f@[208.240.250.142]>
From: Ken Herbst <ken@bamadvertising.com>
Date: Mon, 3 Aug 1998 16:02:57 -0600
Subject: Musical Recommendations

Hi Folks,

Since I didn't get a definitive answer about the possibility of a
"recommended-if-you-like" section to Chalkhills, let me approach the
issue in a different way.

First, let me say that I trust the musical recommendations of
Chalkhillians much more than, say, fans of Air Supply. And since I
trust your opinions, I'd like to hear about the other terrific music in
your lives that (perhaps) may have some connection with the spirit,
quirkiness, etc. of XTC.

Certainly, there will never ever be another XTC. But, where will we
hear about the next incredibly original band that comes in their wake?
MTV? Rolling Stone? HA!!

This leads to my second point: I don't know about you, but I'm just
floored by how much new music is being produced right now. Some of it
absolutely amazing.

It seems a shame that most of these new bands will slip into obscurity
simply due to lack of exposure.

Or, because they can't afford (or are afraid) to tour. Or, they because
they aren't pretty (or ugly) enough for MTV.

Perhaps I'm terribly naive and idealistic, but it seems we have quite a
bit of power sitting right in front of our noses: Our ability to
organize through electronic means, to share information and opinions,
and to inform and educate others about the things we've learned through
our own experience.

What do you folks think?

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

From: "Lemoncurry" <dieling@hrz1.uni-oldenburg.de>
Organization: University Of Oldenburg Comp.Center
Date: Mon, 27 Jul 1998 16:46:46 MET-1METDST
Subject: XTC article/AP interview
Message-ID: <2F17FB74D39@hrz1.uni-oldenburg.de>

Dear John!

Some weeks ago I announced a translation of a XTC article/interview I
found in the German Spex magazine from 1987 for the Chalkhills
archives. It is sent as an attachment to this mail, but that
sometimes doesn't work correctly, so I also put it into this mail.
Sometimes I added information on specific german phrases and stuff,
marked with (-ed.trans.). Here it is:

	[ The article is available on Chalkhills at
	  http://reality.sgi.com/chalkhills/articles/Spex1987.html
	  -- John ]

Bye, Volker
Lemoncurry
residing in The Lemon Lounge
at www.geocities.com/SouthBeach/9259
lemoncurry@geocities.com

XTC Song of the Day:
Love on a farmboy's wages

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

Date: Mon, 3 Aug 1998 17:31:26 -0500 (CDT)
From: Marshall Joseph Armintor <mojo@owlnet.rice.edu>
Subject: Yet another mad genius loner...re: Bob Pollard
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.3.95q.980803171555.1427A-100000@long-eared.owlnet.rice.edu>

   I was a little taken aback by the Guardian's reviewer
namechecking _White Music_, too: given that Bob's favorite
record is variously reported as being either _Who's Next_ or
Wire's _154_, he's both an unrepentant Anglophile and a hardcore
DIY art-punk to boot, with a serious Peter Gabriel fixation.
   That said, I think with Guided By Voices, as with XTC, people
refer to the Beatles waaay too much as a reference point.  Anything
that's catchy and has vocal harmonies automatically invokes the
Liverpudlian B-Boys, but Bob's closer in spirit to Ray Davies or Paul
Westerberg or Gabriel.  I'm a fairly mental GBV fanatic, so I
wouldn't recommend _Waved Out_ as an introduction to Pollard's
songwriting: start either with _Alien Lanes_ (1995) or _Under the
Bushes, Under the Stars_ (1996)...the latter is their most accessible
(and hi-fi friendly), the former their most polished masterpiece,
even though it sounds as if it was recorded on a My First Sony and
you may shriek "I can't believe I paid 13 bucks for this piece of
crap!", the songs carry the day.  XTC and GBV might have fans in
common, but there's not a great deal of similiarity between them,
except a knack for great hooks and criminal commercial neglect.

   marshall

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

From: MFa2707621@aol.com
Message-ID: <46afe264.35c63aab@aol.com>
Date: Mon, 3 Aug 1998 18:33:13 EDT
Subject: Question about my chat

Chalkers,

I would like to ask you guys and gals out there a simple question.  What
would be a good time to hold a chat on IRC?  I've been having it on
Saturdays at 10pm EST, but I'm thinking of changing, but I don't know what
would be a good time for you guys and gals out there.  I know a few of you
live in Europe, and 10pm EST might not be a good time for you, but I don't
want to hold it too early, because I want to include the American fans out
there.

I had an interesting experience a couple of weeks ago when I did my chat.  I
stupidly called it #XTC (the band), but it got stolen from me by these
druggies.  I told them that they stole it from me, and they banned it from
me.

So this last weekend I held another one, and I called it #Skylarking.  Only
one person came.  But I can understand why, because it wasn't advertised
that well.

So to remind people that I will have a chat on IRC this coming Saturday at
10pm EST on the server DALnet.  I hope to see you there.

Bye for now.

Molly

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

Message-ID: <304D2C3DF164D111827200600837841F2EE054@einstein.moneystar.com>
From: Jill Oleson <oleson@moneystar.com>
Subject: haiku 2
Date: Mon, 3 Aug 1998 18:01:18 -0500

problem with haiku
five-seven-five is you
just get started then

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

Message-ID: <35C66D8E.6F52@schoollink.net>
Date: Mon, 03 Aug 1998 19:10:22 -0700
From: Dan Phipps <phipps@schoollink.net>
Organization: Champion International
Subject: WELCOME...

...BACK, John!!

Hope your week off was a pleasurable one!

Nice to have you back, Mr. Monitor!!

Now, on with the XTC stuff, people.  :-)

Sound as ever --

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
/Dan Phipps <phipps@schoollink.net>

"In the mountains of truth
 you never climb in vain."
(Friedrich Nietzsche)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

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

Message-ID: <35C66F53.477A@schoollink.net>
Date: Mon, 03 Aug 1998 19:17:55 -0700
From: Dan Phipps <phipps@schoollink.net>
Organization: Champion International
Subject: New PB album??

Has anyone heard about the possibility
of the Peter Blegvad Trio (Blegvad / Greaves /
Cutler) releasing a new album entitled
"Plata" next month that's only gonna be
released in the damned UK???

Why won't his US record label (ESD) release
his stuff over here, fer crissakes??  The
man's a fuggin' songwriting genius!!!  Right
up there with Partridge and Moulding!  That's
why they've worked with him the past, right?
THE MAN'S GOOD!!

Anyone with a SERIOUS answer to this query,
please let me know something as I'm itchin'
to hear this new Blegvad album as much as the
next one(s) by "The Swindon Two!!"

Is there anybody out there?  Are you receiving
me?

(Trying to remain) Sound as ever --

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
/Dan Phipps <phipps@schoollink.net>
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

PS --  BTW Chalk-people, the new Duffy album,
"I Love My Friends" is absolutely fuckin' brilliant!!
Do yourselves and Duffy a favor:  BUY IT!!  The man,
like Partridge and Colin, needs to eat!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
(My $0.02)

XTC song of the day:  ALL OF 'EM!!!
Non-XTC song of the day:  ANYTHING FROM DUFFY'S "ILMF"!!!
I LIKE EXCLAMATION MARKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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

End of Chalkhills Digest #4-121
*******************************

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