Chalkhills Digest Volume 6, Issue 18
Date: Thursday, 27 January 2000
Chalkhills Digest, Volume 6, Number 18
Thursday, 27 January 2000
Today's Topics:
Erica vs. Marianne
Diamond On The Sole Of My Shoe
White Horse Hill
Gotcha
re: those Drunken Jam Sessions
This is Pop?
Please Release Me
Re: Sgt Pepper
AOL not Andy On Line!
Re: Orange and Lemon
It's 1929 again and we are jumping out of windows
Re: Apple Venus Computer
a stereolaboratory in your ear
Nonsuch Book
XTC/Sgt. Pepper Suggestion for topics
The Fab Two ride..again?
bitten or beaten
Stuff
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----------------------------------------------------------------------
Message-Id: <200001260148.UAA21777@nantucket.net>
Date: Tue, 25 Jan 2000 20:46:30 -0800
Subject: Erica vs. Marianne
From: "Diamond" <arnos@nantucket.net>
>Furthermore, it's no secret that Erica Wexler
>appeared, dressed in tricouleur and Phrygian cap,
I think I remember him saying in Song Stories that Then SHe Appeared was
actually about Marianne.
____________________________________________________________________________
"She thinks she's Edith Head,
But you might know she's not
the accent in her speach
she didn't have growing up."
-John Flansburgh/They Might be Giants
------------------------------ Message-ID: <4782AD6ADDBDD2119B570008C75DD5C1BD4785@mgmtm02.parliament.uk> From: Lawson Dominic <LawsonD@parliament.uk> Subject: Diamond On The Sole Of My Shoe Date: Wed, 26 Jan 2000 12:58:47 -0000 >>Dom, methinks you need to spend less time in front of the computer typing these messages. Egad, that was the longest post I've ever seen! How many cups of coffee did you have to slug down to finish that sucker up? Coffee? What am I, some kind of pussy? I was injecting crack into my eyeball for a good two hours before I even considered writing that one..... (Oh yeah, and here's my suggestion for the post-AV2 album title...."Cooling Keg"....no? Well bloody sod you then.) Dom.
------------------------------ Message-ID: <003b01bf681f$2b40b8c0$4810bed4@cd09> From: "Alan Welby" <Alan.Welby@village.uunet.be> Subject: White Horse Hill Date: Wed, 26 Jan 2000 18:02:08 +0100 >As a local, could you perhaps fill me in on its significance?(the Uffington Horse, BTW, for those who didn't >know, is the symbol on the cover of English Settlement; it's etched in a >hillside near Swindon) Christopher R. Coolidge asked about the White Horse Hill. Having grown up in the Vale of White Horse and spent two years taking groups of twinners and dignitaries up to the top (not so much fun in mid winter!) when I was European Officer for the Vale District Council, I was constantly asked of its significance. In short, nobody knows. There have been many theories banded about, among them: Ancient pagan symbol to celebrate a "horse" god. A massive road sign - the White horse lies near the venerable Ridgeway path - the Horse was to guide travellers to the ridgeway from miles around. Cut by King Alfred the Great after defeating the Vikings at the near-by battlefield of Ashbury (Alfred being a local lad - born in Wantage). The horse is not actually a horse - more a Dragon. Uffington is another supposed location where St George slew the Dragon. Just below the chalk carving is the strange, flat topped "Dragon Hill" which has chalk markings on the top and running down the side. According to legend, this is where the blood of the dragon spilt and no grass has been able to grow since. The Dragon was carved to commemorate the slaying. An ancient work of art. Take your pick to which theory you fancy. There are number of other White Horses (especially over the county border in Wiltshire) - but the Uffington White Horse is regarded as the oldest and most mysterious. If travelling to Swindon, I would advise a quick sortie out to Uffington (taking in the excellent pub and octagonal church spire) where nestling alongside the carving is the remains of an Ancient British hillfort and Waylands Smithy (a burial chamber). Go in Summer tho', even on a calm day the wind is bracing. As to it's significance? - well, personally, it is the symbol of who I am and where I come from, rather like the Eiffel Tower for Parisians. I always felt that the Horse watched over me as I grew up and still does even though I have now left the Vale. Alan Welby
------------------------------ From: Hbsherwood@aol.com Message-ID: <4e.ed0f30.25c084c7@aol.com> Date: Wed, 26 Jan 2000 12:11:35 EST Subject: Gotcha Folks: Rented the not-particularly-prepossessing flick, "Still Crazy," to watch in cozy flannel cocoon with Sniffy Kathy while the Storm of the Millennium raged its way up the Yeast Coast last night. "Ho hum" was the general reaction among the assembled audience: the fillum was a messy collection of unresolved subplots and barefaced manipulativeness. A bit of disappointing coasting coming from the pen of Ian La Frenais, who gave us the infinitely more appealing (though still manipulative) "The Commitments" some years ago. But the reason I even bring it up is that as we were yawning our way through the closing credits, a name popped up that rang a bell: Listed as Co-Associate Producer was former XTC manager Tarquin Gotch. This is not the guy Not Discussed in the Song Story of "I Bought Myself a Liarbird"; that's Ian Reid. Gotch managed XTC during the Oranges & Lemons period. Besides guiding them through their legal dealings with Reid, his most notable contribution to XTC history is in nearly persuading Andy Partridge to play gigs again during the Oranges and Lemons promotional effort. From "Chalkhills and Children": Tarquin...came up with a plan that had to be admired for its underhandedness. Since Andy was unwilling to play live, but Colin and Dave were, he cooked up a story whereby he persuaded Colin and Dave to say they had agreed to team up with Thomas Dolby and tour America as XTC. With Thomas Dolby fronting they would play an assortment of "Oranges and Lemons" material, Colin's songs and Dolby's songs. Tarquin phoned Andy ostensibly to get his blessing for the tour. When Andy heard that Thomas Dolby would effectively be taking his place for the duration of this mythical tour, he seemed genuinely upset. "Couldn't I just play on a couple of songs?" he asked. "Of course you can, you fool," said Tarquin. "You can play on the whole bloody tour if you like!" While Andy was seriously considering taking part, he discovered that the Thomas Dolby collaboration was a complete fabrication and changed his mind--none too amused that he had been so easily tricked. Since we know now that Andy does indeed surf the Web, perhaps someone with The Ear might like to point out to him--perhaps in an artfully worded e-mail--that the word "gullible" does not appear in the MSIE spell-check dictionary...? Harrison "And it suggests "Doubly" for "Dolby" Sherwood
------------------------------ Message-ID: <20000126182141.99298.qmail@hotmail.com> From: "Hank Tomczak" <htomczak@hotmail.com> Subject: re: those Drunken Jam Sessions Date: Wed, 26 Jan 2000 10:21:41 PST These are excellent -thanks You're a good man Demon Brown! Hank > Out of the goodness of my heart, I've put > up a page where XTC zealots can grab hold > of those lengendary "Drunken Jam Sessions." > Ya know... supposedly during the Black Sea > sessions they got a little tipsy and started > doing some major wanking. Well.. here it is! > > Sir Demon Brown
------------------------------ Message-ID: <007401bf6841$3e891f40$1d13893e@atidy> From: "Adrian Ransome" <ade@ruhruh.freeserve.co.uk> Subject: This is Pop? Date: Wed, 26 Jan 2000 21:06:03 -0000 Nice argument about the state of today's pop music charts. Can I add my tuppence ha'penny worth? Do you care? The overwhelming impression I get from today's pop is how safe & bland it is. I mean, even the Beatles were deemed 'dangerous' because the length of their hair was past their shirt collars. We've had punk (shock your parents with a safety pin through your nose), new romanticism (shock your parents by looking like a girl, unless you _are_ a girl then you shock 'em by singing like the girls from the Human League), grunge (shock your parents by blowing your head off with a shotgun in a drugged-out manic depressive fit), goth (shock your parents by looking like a total twat, sorry, Marilyn "grr! I'm scary, me" Manson). What do we have now? Shock your parents by looking like Steps? Come On Kids, (TM) Where's the teenage rebellion of yesteryear? Ou est le rebellion teenage d'antan? A message to the incredibly talented Mr Harrison Sherwood; can you type your next essay a bit slower so I can keep up? Oh and thanks to the lovely Mr David Oh, whose epiphany the other day caused Mambo No.5 to rattle around my head all f*cking day at work! Adrian "Oi! TEENAGE GIRLIES!! RIOT!! NOW!!!" Ransome
------------------------------
From: "Mark Strijbos" <mmello@knoware.nl>
Date: Wed, 26 Jan 2000 23:34:53 +0100
Subject: Please Release Me
Message-Id: <20000126223233.518C3A6CE2@mail.knoware.nl>
Dear Chalkers,
You know, it's a funny thing... life, i mean.
As the oldies like me know life's a bitch and then you die, but on the
other hand there's always XTC.
Sorry about that ramble... more pressing matters at hand!
> > This item [AV2] will be released on 3 April, 2000
More info: Esprit Int. now takes pre-orders for Apple Venus Vol.2,
Japanese ltd. edition with a "de-luxe booklet" (???).
They say the japanese release date is "late March"
So the April 3 date suddenly looks more likely.
If i remember correctly, Pony Canyon agreed to pay a nice advance
to cover the cost of recording sesions etc. in return for the right to
release everything a week before Europe (to cut out "gray" imports)
_and_ the rights to do something "special" with every cd, like the
2-cd Homespun version or the extra booklet with AV1.
April 3? That's just over 2 months from now.. bloody hell!
A related but more interesting question was asked by "newbie"
Digitalmaster (welcome btw)
> What I want to know is this: Are the recordings going to contain
> anything from Dave?
Well, he did record quite a lot of material... here's a complete list,
taken from the "Still To Surface" section of the DG Discography
at http://www.guitargonauts.com
In Another Life - piano
Some Lovely(My Brown Guitar) - 3 guitars
Playground - 3 guitars, 6-string bass
Stupidly Happy - guitar
The Wheel And The Maypole - guitar
Wounded Horse - 6-string bass
You And The Clouds Will Still Be Beautiful - guitar, synths
But ( a very big but in this case...), like DG himself says:
"in all likelihood these tracks will be erased prior to release..."
In my humble and honest opinion and for what it's worth this would
be an extremely petty and silly thing to do, and only add a little
insult to injuries already sustained.
But i fear the worst.. please prove me wrong Andy!
yours in xtc,
Mark Strijbos at The Little Lighthouse
http://www.knoware.nl/users/mmello/
or http://come.to/xtc
------------------------------ Date: Wed, 26 Jan 2000 15:30:44 -0800 (PST) From: Stephen Mahoney <stephenm@nethost.multnomah.lib.or.us> Subject: Re: Sgt Pepper Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.10.10001261523350.7303-100000@nethost.multnomah.lib.or.us> sgt peppers is to the beatles as skylarking is to xtc. very easy question. the way I see it its a matter of an entire album with a continuity and almost overproduced and no album fits that discription for me as does skylarking of course I think of the kinks when I think of xtc more than the fab four. how about a comparison between a kinks album and xtc? ****************************************************************************** computers are useless they can only give you answers. -picasso #####################################%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%########################## stephen mahoney Multnomah County Library at Rockwood branch clerk
------------------------------ From: WESnLES@aol.com Message-ID: <6a.5af221.25c0db8c@aol.com> Date: Wed, 26 Jan 2000 18:21:48 EST Subject: AOL not Andy On Line! Fellow Chalkgeeks, Jon Rosenberger's dream: (Jon Dreams) That, Jon, was a helluva dream. Still, although it's amazing that you recalled it in such vivid detail, the most amazing thing was this: "Andy says hardly a word." The rest of it is completely believable. Regarding (the song) Playground: I wrote: I told Andy last year that I thought it was one of the best songs he's written. Later I realized that this wasn't the song, it was The Wheel & The Maypole. (I've argued with everyone else on the list, may as well argue with myself) Brian Matthews scribbled: Explaining, or TRYING to explain to anyone else why you like something may end up being futile, as it can never get past the subjectiveness of it all. Well said, but I still contend that what I like is good and the rest of you have bad taste. Oh, and the Beach Boys were a better band than Oingo Boingo. But how were you to know these things Brian, your Only A Lad. Kevin Diamond typed (regarding singing along w/XTC): every now and then, I hit the perfect note, and It feels like I'm singing WITH andy partidge. Man, I need a life. Hey, Diamond K, I do it too. We all need a life. (there's strength in numbers) Patrick M Adamek blurted out: we in Alaska call the lower 48 the "outside" Yeah, yeah, yeah. Newbie. Steven Paul sayeth: I would have to say that Chips from the Chocolate Fireball is XTC's Sgt. Peppers because of the change from the standard fare. The Dukes of Stratosphere were alter egos of the band members and the music was a whole "something completely different." Well, it was a compilation of two different Dukes releases, both of which were tongue in cheek stabs at recreating the music the lads grew up on (read Beatles, to a large extent) Still, I like the thought and must say: DUKE ON BABY!!!! As for those of you intent on thinking Andy is jumpin' online, here's an excerpt from an interview I did with him last year: NERVOUS (but not vomiting) ME: "I guess you're familiar with the Chalkhills website?" ANDY: "Well, I know of it. I don't ever log on to any of those things, well A; I'm not on the Internet, and B; it gives me the willies, all those sort of things. ME: (laughing, not vomiting) "Why is that?" (damn I've got a way with words!) SIR P: "Well you get people there praising you to the skies, which I personally don't need. Or you get people saying goofy things, like I was the one who shot John Lennon, it wasn't Mark Chapman it was me. That freaked me right out. Or they get on there (the Internet) and they set themselves up as judge and jury and they proceed to hack your life about, and your works about. Talk about the misinformation highway, they get everything wrong. They say, this album's pathetic, or that album's great. Really, we're talking about their lives not ours, that's what it's about. It's the worlds most electric cocktail party. It's pretty pointless." Uhhhhh...that about sum it up? Strange though, that the same man that made the statement above once sang: I believe the printed word is more than sacred. wesLONG @ Optimsim's Flames: http://members.tripod.com/~The_Last_Balloon/index.html (shload of XTCrap)
------------------------------ Message-Id: <s88f251b.071@groupwise1.duc.auburn.edu> Date: Wed, 26 Jan 2000 16:46:55 -0600 From: "Robert Kulick" <kulicro@auburn.edu> Subject: Re: Orange and Lemon So I have a question or rather an observation...since the last few albums, from Skylarking forward, have all had a song lyric which foretold the title of the next album, why have the Swindon boys broken from that pattern with Apple Venus Volume 2? I mean Chocolate Nipple Brown would be a perfectly acceptable album title, don't you think? Just a comment...guess I need to get a life. Rob
------------------------------ From: JStrole@aol.com Message-ID: <c4.ccb3da.25c113c8@aol.com> Date: Wed, 26 Jan 2000 22:21:44 EST Subject: It's 1929 again and we are jumping out of windows <<Yes, it's official: Time-Warner has proven yet again that the pirate spirit of good Old Father Monopoly hisself, John D. Rockefeller, is alive and kicking (heads).>> Dunks, thanks for pointing this out. "Why is this important?" You may ask as XTC fans. Well, XTC have the distinction of being on an independent record label. You will begin to notice at your local record store, that independent labels will be harder to find. You have already noticed that there are fewer independent record store (i.e. Mom & Pop stores). After all HMV & Tower have everything, right? Already, the company I work for is now absorbing an 80% return rate-80%. It will only get worse as these four major labels decide how you will buy your recordings over the internet. Which is precisely why they throw fodder like these boy & girl bands at us. Simple, disposable, who needs a record cover, just down load it on to you MP3 player and when you're sick of it, put someone else on. You see this is leading somewhere isn't it. I'm sorry if this sounds paranoid, "but I've already been poisoned by this industry." Harry
------------------------------ Message-Id: <v0422080db4b4a2c039a6@[130.34.66.10]> Date: Wed, 26 Jan 2000 07:48:25 -0600 From: Olof Hellman <hellman@ksan.ms.nwu.edu> Subject: Re: Apple Venus Computer Dunks, in a major loss of mental capacity, wrote: >Steve Jobs, head of the once-proud Apple Corporation (now a subsidiary of >Microsoft Global Domination Inc.) has just been given his own private Gulf >Stream jet by the grateful Apple board of directors, in recognition of his >services (to competition, no doubt). In accepting this obscene gratuity, >Jobs proves yet again that standing up and being counted is nowhere near as >rewarding as bending over and taking it up the bum - especially when Bill >Gates is standing behind you. Apple bashing was fashionable two or three years ago when the stock was cheap. Since Apple stock has appreciated ninefold, Apple-bashers are just considered Rod Stewarts (last year's trash). Microsoft owns about 5 percent of Apple, and has made a pretax paper profit of $US 900 million since purchasing a small piece of the company 2 1/2 years ago. Meanwhile Apple's market cap is up by about 18 Billion. If you think that's "taking it up the bum", then yours must be a fairly green posterior. Steve Jobs has headed Apple's turnaround but hasn't accepted a penny of compensation until the 100 million Gulf Stream and some stock options: from the Apple investor's point of view, this is a bargain. I'd like to nominate someone else for the major arsehole hat, but I won't name names. Meanwhile, after listening to Homespun for the first time, I'm finding more and more to like about Apple Venus I . Andy's explanation of Easter Theatre and multiuse of words like "earthy" to describe the buildup don't really make sense to me listening to only the fully-produced version. But hearing the raw demo version really helps me hear what he's talking about. I'd love to see more demos released like this. I also love the artwork on Homespun. Reminds me of the art for the 12 inch Mayor of Simpleton EP: both reflect the concept of the artwork of the original, but with a different execution. Very nice packaging, folks. - Olof Olof Hellman Northwestern University, Dept. Materials Science & Engineering 2225 N. Campus Drive, Evanston, IL 60208 Tel: (847) 491-5883, Fax: (847) 467-2269
------------------------------ Message-ID: <20000127112133.17566.qmail@web1106.mail.yahoo.com> Date: Thu, 27 Jan 2000 03:21:33 -0800 (PST) From: hans strmberg <hojs64@yahoo.com> Subject: a stereolaboratory in your ear In #6-15 Lemon writes about The High Lamas: >>I love them. Anyone here who likes Brian Wilson and AV1 should go and listen. Their latest, "Snowbug" is a masterpiece, as are "Hawaii", "Gideon Gaye" and "Cold and Bouncy". Then you'll love them and while you're there, just go and buy every Stereolab album you can get (they're friends of the Llamas)<< Unfortunately I haven't heard the Lamas. But, I would like to recommend Stereolabs latest cd, "Cobra and phases group play voltage in the milky night". I've been listening to it for a couple of weeks and it's a magnificent piece of music. And it beats the other lab-ulms, though most of them are also well worth listening to. Very melodic, jazzy, modern, space-like, moog-ish and with lots of that harmonic vocals from Laetitia and Mary. Wonderful! And if you give the disc a chance - give it some extra time before you make a judgement (some may at this cobra phase label Stereolab as a rather difficult band); but it takes some to get some. Sorry, no xtc content. Lurk-mode: on. Peace and love, Hans
------------------------------ Message-ID: <000501bf68e6$b37acec0$2c4d883e@pbncomputer> From: "chris browning" <chris@boodle.fsnet.co.uk> Subject: Nonsuch Book Date: Thu, 27 Jan 2000 16:20:11 -0000 hello people i don't know if anyone is interested, but in my unemployed perambulatiosn aroudn nottingham i stumbled across a book called "a history of nonsuch" with the familiar picture of the palace adorning a rather battered hard back book. i thought it was a bit too vague a conection to spend a fiver i haven't got on, but if anyoen out there really wants to be ludicrously completist i can go and get more info on it for you. hate to think it will end up in the second hand book shop gathering dust rather than going to a good home. get in touch if anyone's interested chris
------------------------------ Message-ID: <000701bf68e6$83394ac0$336e0718@galatn1.tn.home.com> From: "Fricon Entertainment" <fricon@home.com> Subject: XTC/Sgt. Pepper Suggestion for topics Date: Thu, 27 Jan 2000 10:49:43 -0600 ******No direct e-mail responses please I am writing from work!!!***** Dear Chalk-o-lites, Yes we have all talked on and on about which "album" is XTC's Sgt. Pepper, but here is a twist. Instead of taking a whole album, i.e. "Black Sea" or "English Settlement" why not take individual songs from their entire catalog and match them in the same running order as Sgt.P. in order to most closely match that album. 01. Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band 02. With A Little Help From My Friends 03. Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds 04. Getting Better 05. Fixing A Hole 06. She's Leaving Home 07. Being For The Benefit Of Mr. Kite! 08. Within You Without You 09. When I'm Sixty-Four 10. Lovely Rita 11. Good Morning Good Morning 12. Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band 13. A Day In The Life Which XTC songs match most closely, be it musically or lyrically, tempo, mood, whatever to the above songs? Please keep a bare minimum of Dukes songs. I don't mean it should sound like it just came from the sixties. I am sure you catch my drift. This is a thinker. Try to think of the whole flow at the same time. If tracks segue into eachother on Sgt. Pepper, try to select songs that would sound good segued as well for their XTC counterparts. I would like to make a mix tape of XTC in the style of Sgt. Pepper and I am going to try this as well. I would love to hear everyones take her on the list. ******No direct e-mail responses please I am writing from work!!!***** Love to all Sky Larker ******No direct e-mail responses please I am writing from work!!!*****
------------------------------ Date: Thu, 27 Jan 2000 11:40:02 -0800 (PST) Message-Id: <200001271940.LAA00166@mail2.deltanet.com> From: Brown <mb2@deltanet.com> Subject: The Fab Two ride..again? ...You guys smell that? Turns out that peculiar odor is the 'fictional reunion' of John and Paul coming to VH1 on February 1...and here I was thinking that phoney beatlemania had beaten the dust...but not quite.... This film promises to be a hoot so set your VCR's to stun, Chalkers! On an XTC note...a while back I read an interview with Andy where he mentioned somehting about a screenplay titled, '25 O'Clock'(?) I believe Andy said it was penned by a friend of his and it was to be a sort of 'Yellow Sub' flavored romp. I would just love to get a hold of a copy, provided one exists. Does anyone out there know about this screenplay? Please share any info...thanks! Back to the shadows, Debora Brown
------------------------------ Date: Thu, 27 Jan 2000 12:01:22 -0800 (PST) Message-Id: <200001272001.MAA08689@mail2.deltanet.com> From: Brown <mb2@deltanet.com> Subject: bitten or beaten ... my last post included this error, "and here I was thinking that phoney beatlemania had BEATEN the dust" Well dear friends, my sweet son who was standing behind me said, "mom, didn't you want to say bitten?"...To which I replied, "yes my pet, but your mother is obviously senile and can't be trusted to do the simplest of tasks..." ...Then my darling offered to push me in my wheelchair out on to the porch so I could get some sun...such a devoted boy! Here I go, red face and all, Debora 'mad cow' Brown
------------------------------ Message-ID: <20000127211752.54243.qmail@hotmail.com> From: "Andrew Gowans" <ratwhacker@hotmail.com> Subject: Stuff Date: Fri, 28 Jan 2000 08:17:52 EST Greetings, Various bits of XTC stuff this morning. Yesterday I received Homespun in the mail...at last ! It's been the longest 4 weeks since I ordered it. So there I was, ensconced in my sconce - wash-up sponge in hand, listening away. Truthfully, after reading some of the conflicting reports on this CD I was in two minds on what I would think. My first time through is favourable and I shall digest this work over the next few days. It has not has as immediate an effect as AV1, but this probably more because I am familiar with the AV1 versions. As with most reports from fellow Chalkhilliers, I dig the CD "liner notes" on the birth of the songs. I am currently ripping the CD to MP3 on my work PC, to add to the growing database of XTC stuff, including the giftings from the kind, considerate and all-round-good-guy Sir Demon Brown. Ta ! I admit to being a little doubtful of the reports of XTC-related dreams. Well, my dreams are never lucid, sort of like my conversation, so for me to experience a virtual reality in a dream is as rare as a very rare thing that has been, sorrowfully, misplaced. I had an XTC-realted dream lastnight, perhaps we should refer to these as X.R.D. Phenomena, but not lucid...no. I was in Sydney and for some reason so were Andy and Colin, I believe they were doing a promo visit for the release of AV2. I was wandering the streets trying to find the record store where they were to appear, but I couldn't find any record stores. The city was a strange amalgam of Sydney as it is, as it was at various times in my youth, other places I have lived or worked and a bit of London too. I was lost (what's new !). **The CD rip has finished, now shall I listen to it in isolation or put into the XTC random selection ?** Seeing as I couldn't find the record stores, any of them, I set out to find a guitar store on the basis that no guitar player can resist finding one and browsing. I managed to find one in Sussex St, where Guitar City used to be, but it wasn't, it was this litle store that was in Manly for about 2 years and disappeared sometime in the early 80's. Also Sussex St looked more like the Rocks. I was surprised to notice that there was another one next door, it was the one in London where I bought my Ricky 12 more than a decade ago. I was further surprised to see that the whole street was full of guitar stores. Paydirt ! The store windows were full of some the strangest-looking guitars I have ever seen, all of them some odd Disastercaster. I walked into the first, but it was no longer a guitar store, it was now a badly under-stocked ladies' frock shop that was being run by a girl I worked with almost 20 years ago. Making small-talk, none of which I remember (just like in real life), I glanced out the rear window to see the top of Colin's head bob past. Excuse-me's made I exited to be swallowed-up by the crowd outside, most of whom seemed to be old acquaintences in various states of intoxication. The city had changed whilst I was in the shop, it now stopped on the side of the road where the guitar stores were and beyond were green fields, rolling hills, parklands, cricket pitches, and behind them Central Station. The crowd was rolling towards the nearest cricket pitch, where I found the Manager of my work's Computer Operations running a firefighter training course, pushing people down an emergency evacuation tube, like you find in film of aircraft accidents. I didn't want to go and, fortunately, my alarm intervened. Yawn ! That's all folks, I need another coffee. Andrew Gowans
------------------------------ End of Chalkhills Digest #6-18 ******************************
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