Chalkhills Digest Volume 6, Issue 262
Date: Thursday, 7 September 2000
Chalkhills Digest, Volume 6, Number 262
Thursday, 7 September 2000
Topics:
Misery loves....
Ex tee
bring on the rain (long post alert)
GWAR
Grand Union Radio
ELO memories
Re: Luther's Assistant
Stop your sobbing
Laranja mecanica e a igreja da musica
More sad songs...
Recommendation for everybody
Re: Will Power
Sad Sack
Round About The Same Time Today...
Travels in Nihilon
Will Powers & the Wurzles?
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---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Tue, 5 Sep 2000 15:05:48 +0100 From: "Chris" <bonyking@sniffout.com> Subject: Misery loves.... Message-ID: <001001c01742$8e1b2d40$29a0a8c0@sigta> Sad songs : 'There is no if' - the Cure (sadness defined IMHO. I've said before and I'll say it again..Robert Smith's songwriting talent seems to be increasing in proportion to the amount he thinks its decreasing...if that made sense) 'Song to the Siren' - This Mortal Coil (only version I've heard) 'Octopussy' - the Wedding Present (not a sad subject, just sounds it) 'fitterhappier' - Radiohead (or 'No Surprises') 'These Days' - Joy Division (just because...) I was going to add 'Goodbye to Love' but that's not really sad, more melancholy, so I'll go now Chris Clarke
------------------------------ Date: Wed, 6 Sep 2000 00:25:58 +0800 From: "Simon Deane/Gina Chong" <ginsim@netvigator.com> Subject: Ex tee Message-ID: <003001c01755$f949db80$b8c2fea9@ginsim.netvigator.com> Sorry to be the boring parent, but I had to report progress in my 23 month old daughter's XTC education. A few weeks ago I was bemoaning the fact that she preferred "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" to "Travels in Nihilon" and "Complicated Game". She may now, however, be counted as a real convert, at least to "Wasp Star". I have spent the last few Saturday mornings bouncing around the living room to basically the whole album with her - I don't know where these 2 year olds get all their energy from - but she won't let me sit down for the duration (better than any Jane Fonda workout, I can tell you). Best of all, she's always requesting that I put on some "ex tee" (_and_ she knows where the "ex tee" comes from in the CD cabinet). Sad songs: "This World Over" deserves a mention here at least for the line about "...what London was like...". Never fails to get my lower lip wobbling a bit. Great unsung bass heroes: Agree about Col. Another one who deserves a mention is Norman Watt-Roy of the Blockheads. Excellent recorded work generally with Ian Dury but that bass line in "Rhythm Stick" before the chorus - jolly good, in my view. Concerts: Not a great concert goer unlike the likes of the Mole, but I enjoyed concerts by XTC and Ian Dury at Exeter University whilst a student 79/80, Bowie at Earl's Court around 78, I think (the performance of "Art Decade" from the "Low" album was astounding), The Only Ones at Bournemouth Town Hall; Miles Davis a fair old few times in both London and Hong Kong; Richard Clayderman ...err... I don't often admit to that one but it was all in a good cause, viz. wooing of the Missis who unfortunately didn't mind old Dickie. On that note, I'm off to bed. Love Simon Deane
------------------------------ Date: Tue, 5 Sep 2000 10:49:54 -0700 (PDT) From: Brown <mb2@deltanet.com> Subject: bring on the rain (long post alert) Message-ID: <200009051749.KAA22999@mail2.deltanet.com> Hey, Chalk pals- While we are discussing sad songs, has anyone mentioned The Eels? Vee's Eels mp3's reminded me of just how freaky-great a band they were/are (thanks, Vee!) So I went back and got even more acquainted with their work. The 1998 album, Electro-Shock Blues is one long walk across broken glass.. Here is a quote from the band about this album, "Electro-shock Blues" is the phone call in the middle of the night that the world does not want to answer." Singer-songwriter, Mark Everett-aka-E, has lost family (mother, sister) and friends, and he spews out his pain like napalm.. What keeps this album from being completely unbearable in its immense grief, is the weird sonic landscape that lies underneath the brutal lyrics.. In ELIZABETH ON THE BATHROOM FLOOR, E writes of his sister's suicide: laying on the bathroom floor kitty licks my cheek once more and I could try but waking up is harder when you wanna die walter's on the telephone tell him I am not at home cos I think that I am going to a place where I am always high My name's Elizabeth My life is shit and piss -- Or LAST STOP: THIS TOWN: you're dead but the world keeps spinning take a spin through the world you left it's getting dark a little too early are you missing the dearly bereft? -- Facing the sobering finality of death in GOING TO YOUR FUNERAL (Part 1): Everything goes away Driving down the highway through the perfect sunny dream A perfect day for perfect pain Look at all the people with the flowers in their hands They put the flower on the box that's holding all the sand that was... that was once... that was once you Honolulu Hurricane I knew that you were not insane Living in the insane world Smiling like it's no big deal Scabby wounds that never heal the woman was only a girl Look at all the people with their heads down in their hands When everything I'm feeling makes it hard to understand that, uh, what I need to miss... It's what I need to miss... Is you -- ..Electro-Shock Blues is suffused, not only with grief, but with anger, bitterness, guilt and self-loathing.. every emotion that comes with losing a loved one.. In CANCER FOR THE CURE, E lashes out: The kids are diggin' up a brand new hole Where to put the deadbeat mom Grandpa's happy watching video porn with the closed-caption on and father knows best about suicide and smack well, hee hee hee cancer for the cure cancer for the cure buckle up and endure now baby cancer for the cure -- E's mother's suffering is palpable in DEAD OF WINTER: standing in the dark outside the house breathing the cold and sterile air well I was thinking how it must feel to see that little light and watch it as it disappears and fades into and fades into the night so I know you're going pretty soon radiation sore throat got your tongue magic markers tattoo you and show it whare to aim and strangers break their promises you won't feel any you won't feel any pain -- After this relentless onslaught of anguish, P.S. YOU ROCK MY WORLD comes as somewhat of a relief, a welcome epilogue.. a promise that maybe, just maybe, Mr. Everett will survive... laying in bed tonight I was thinking and listening to all the dogs and the sirens and the shots and how the careful man tries to dodge the bullets while a happy man takes a walk and maybe it is time to live -- Jesus, I don't know how you guys feel, but I am spent.. I think I'll take my lunch outside today.. you're all welcome to join me!.. a little bit of sun will do you good, don'tchya know. xox Debora Brown --Stephanie Takeshita's rumination on Seagulls was JUST right.. rave on, sistah!.. Oh, and amen to Frank Black, May!--
------------------------------ Date: Tue, 5 Sep 2000 06:42:59 -0500 From: "Christopher R. Coolidge" <cauldron@together.net> Subject: GWAR Message-ID: <l03130302b5da8b3c147b@[208.13.202.160]> >Too bad you didn't take her to see Kevin Gilbert - >perhaps she would have said: > >"You sound like Air Supply meets Gwar >In a good way!" > >Al Thanks, but my wife's never heard of GWAR; I've only heard a couple of their songs myself, especially their "Slaughterama" opus, whichever album it's from I'd pick up used just for that one. They remind me of Frank Zappa's kids doing joke/sleaze/hardocore metal, good for a laugh, but essential only for knowing they exist. Frankly Mojo Nixon has more staying power, and he's both ruder and funnier. About Kevin Gilbert, she'd probably say "Well...he's interesting...and I think he's kinda cute!" Christopher R. Coolidge Homepage at http://homepages.together.net/~cauldron/homepage.html
------------------------------ Date: Tue, 5 Sep 2000 06:16:50 -0500 From: "Christopher R. Coolidge" <cauldron@together.net> Subject: Grand Union Radio Message-ID: <l03130300b5da8573b878@[206.231.24.244]> >I'm sorry--I don't want "Mayor of Simpleton" blasting out of the tin >speakers on Aunt Sally's Dodge Dart. I don't want to see XTC posters >handed out by toothless county fair carnies when you pop the last balloon >with a greasy dart. I don't want giant Andy and Colin mug-shot posters >pasted up at Sam Goody's. I don't want them on Saturday Night Live or Leno >or Letterman or exposed to Matt Lauer. I don't want them on the beach, >wafting out of ghetto blasters hefted by insects in their brand new sun >specs. What's wrong with relative anonymity? Too late, "Mayor Of Simpleton" has already made the Grand Union radio playlist; somebody in the Grand Union administration staff has hip taste in music. Used to be muzak, in which version I heard MOS once, and a couple of years ago they switched to the actual original recording itself, so I get to hear hip music from my album collection as I shop. It's often mainstream stuff like Dire Straits, Paul McCartney and James Taylor, but I've heard relative hit material from Tim Finn and Elvis Costello too. Christopher R. Coolidge
------------------------------ Date: Tue, 5 Sep 2000 13:38:49 +0100 From: "Smith, David" <David.Smith@tfeurope.com> Subject: ELO memories Message-ID: <4BBE67B71C1DD411A23600508B65F71E686198@tfsecmsg04.tfseur.co.uk> Hi Chalksters Jeff Eason talks about seeing ELO in New Orleans in 1976, when they were promoting Face The Music. I'm slightly confused about that as they released Face The Music in 1975 and released A New World Record in 1976. Even if the concert was pre the relase of ANWR, surely they'd have played tracks to promote sales? Then again, the release dates may have been different in the US. Whatever the pedantics, and although the show was obviously bad, I'm dead jealous Jeff! The only ELO show I ever saw was "Live" on TV. In 1977 the BBC actually screened a chunk of their OutOf The Blue tour show (don't know from where) live. How often does that happen? Cue an excited 13-year old, sitting a foot from the TV with a little hand held tape recorder and microphone, telling sundry family to "pleeeeeeeeeeeease shut up" while I tried to record the show. I still have the cassette somewhere. If you like, I'll transcribe the sound, ready: SCccchhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhweee "Do ya do ya want my" eeeeeee eeeooooooooooooooooooooooooopgppphhhhhhh *Thud thud* "Muuuum, shuuut uuuuppppp!" Scheeothhhhhhhhhh "Mr Blue Sk"reeeeeeeeeeee eeoooossscchhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhppphweeeeeeeeeeeeeoooooo oooooooooo "Thank you, goodnight" *Click* . . . You get the drift . . . Smudge "Pigs all sitting watching picture slides" Boy E-Mail: david.smith@tfeurope.com
------------------------------ Date: Tue, 5 Sep 2000 06:59:55 -0500 From: "Christopher R. Coolidge" <cauldron@together.net> Subject: Re: Luther's Assistant Message-ID: <l03130303b5da8d72995d@[208.13.202.160]> >Did Luther AKA Ariel Bender still stick around after that? I remember the >truncated band added a couple of members, incl. Ray Major, a guitarist whom >the band had wanted to have join before but could not acc. to contractual >obligations. The later band, now dubbed "Mott", went on to make a couple of >albums, have more people leave, subsequently retitile themselves "The >British Lions", achieve a minor hit with Garland Jeffreys' "Wild in the >Streets", then off to break-up land. No, he only played on the The Hoople album(the one with "Roll Away The Stone"), after which he was replaced by Mick Ronson. Six months later after recording a couple of singles and some live material with Ronson in the band(he can be heard on "Saturday's Gigs" and a few other non-LP songs on the various Mott best-of collections) Hunter and Ronson left together. The British Lions are mostly the The Hoople lineup: Original Mott members Overend and Buffin and keyboardist Morgan Fisher, plus Mott guitarist Ray Major and ex-Medicine Head singer John Fiddler. I agree Mick Ralphs was the best guitarist Mott ever had, as far as fitting into the band. His occasional songwriting and singing, though uneven, gave the band more variety. I mostly hated Bad Company, though, aside from a few uncharacteristically reflective ballads. Never owned any of their albums, but they were hard to escape if you were a teenager in the mid to late 70's. as for Mick with Mott, though, I still like to crank "Thunderbuck Ram" from Mad Shadows on occasion. Christopher R. Coolidge
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 5 Sep 2000 01:34:38 EDT
From: KINGSTUNES@aol.com
Subject: Stop your sobbing
Message-ID: <65.95513a1.26e5dfee@aol.com>
Heeees baack!
(Ah! NO! Run away! Run away!)
While we're in this concert rememberance thingy (heavy on the 'g', like
George 'Segovia' Harrison), here's two -
When I went to the Monterey Pop Festival '71, it was a birthday gift from my
mother. I was 15, so naturally I couldn't go on my own. So what do my
parents do but chaparone me! This was especially bizarre as my old man was a
lifer in the Army. (We were stationed at Ft. Ord at the time.) I guess he
was drug along as security. Anyway, as we're waiting outside to get into the
concert, some lame-ass DJ from the local underground FM station is on the
foyer roof giving the FISH cheer (correctly, I might add). Dad was not
impressed. Inside, during the show, a particularly dedicated counterculture
dude in front of us was in all his freakdom glory, with an American flag sewn
to the ass of his pants. At one point he turns around and offers a doobie to
Sarge. Dad very stoically held up the palm of his hand and shook his head.
Good soldier! I guess he knew when he was surrounded! I also remember some
happy freak dancing along the aisle with a gallon can of raisins, offering
them to the crowd. When he got near me, I naively grabbed a handful, said
thanks, and started to raise them to my mouth when my mother yelled, "Don't
eat those! You don't know what's in them!" Drat! Anyway, we made it home
unscathed. Dad said nothing, and that was that. I remember having fantasies
about a scantily clad Linda Ronstadt (it's hard to believe now, but she was a
fox back then! Remember Silver Threads and Golden Needles?) and being
knocked out over the Beach Boy's use of a Moog contact strip controller to
recreate the theremin sound on Good Vibrations. But the memory of the image
of me and my parents in this sea of raging hippies is priceless!
The other is that I just returned last Monday from the Philly Folk Fest. The
greatest ongoing Woodstock in the country! To report some favorite moments-
John Hartford filling in for the ailing Utah Phillips. John himself has been
battling cancer for sometime, and was under a nurses care. Nonetheless, he
put on the most wonderful and touching show! The greatest thing was that
the group he had with him, all acoustic country / bluegrass, were gathered
around one mic. As they did their solos, each moved in to the mic, then
backed out for the next. So reminiscent of the early Grand Ol' Opry shows.
And it sounded great! God bless John, I wish him well. He is one of the
great underrated American musicians!!!!!
Natalie McMaster, her first return to Philly since she took the place by
storm back in '95. The show is much slicker and a great deal of crossover,
but she was on fire and played like no tomorrow! Just incredible. See her
if you get the chance!!
Nanci Griffith - great, great show all around! But what shone for me was
this absolutley heart rending version of Boots of Spanish Leather by Dylan.
Defintiely a fest high point!
Oscar Lopez, the unbelievable latin guitarist, and his trio. BRRRRRR!
Great!
Nickle Creek - a bluegrass group of three teenage siblings. Fantastic! The
mandolin player sat in with John Hartford on his set.
Missed Sunday night due to rain! F**K!
And of course, some guy at Havoc Central in the campground, playing an
uncanny mix of singalongs. Tom Kingston, I think his name was.....
(BTW, I introduced, acoustically, ITMWML and When You Give Your Love To Me,
by Kevin Gilbert. Went over pretty good!)
What were THEY thinking moment - The Bacon Bros., closing out the Saturday
night concert. Cut me a break! Half the crowd walked on them. (Take that,
programming!)
****************************
Sad Songs (great thread!):
Old Friends - S & G
Rook - XTC (not enough is said about this masterpiece! One of the greatest
things Andy ever wrote, dammit!!!!!!)
This World Over - XTC (The greatest nuclear war song ever written, IMHO)
Whispering Pines - The Band
Hejira - Joni Mitchell
Job's Sad Song - Joni Mitchell (Why give me light, and then this dark without
a dawn?)
Old Man - Randy Newman
Boxing - Ben Folds Five
Mess - Ben Folds Five
A Long Day's Night - Kevin Gilbert
I Come And Stand At Every Door - The Byrds (Kudos to whoever brought that one
up!)
The Good Times We Had - Peter, Paul & Mary
Bob Dylan's Dream - Bob Dylan
All Is Fair In Love - Stevie Wonder
Gracelands - an instrumental by Irish / Scottish supergroup Relativity.
Guaranteed
to have you crying in your beer!
I Can't Make You Love Me - Bonnie Raitt
Song For Adam - Jackson Browne
Watching and Waiting - The Moody Blues
In My Life - The Beatles (This is a personal coice for me. The day after
Lennon
was shot, I came home from work and this was being played on a newscast
memorial. I fell completely to pieces. I can't hear that song the same
way
ever since.)
The Garden of Gethsemane - Jesus Christ Superstar. (What the fuck happened
to Webber!!!)
The middle movement of the 1st Brandenburg Concerto, Bach. Moves me to
tears.
There's a profound sadness captured there, without words.
Pavanne for a dead infant; Maruice Ravel. Unreal. There's no describing
what
that piece does to me.
I'm sure there's more, but I gotta stop as I can't see the monitor, I'm so
misty-eyed! Why is there such great beauty in sadness?
*********************
Tom (sniffle) Kingston
"We turn the sound down on her and say rude thingz." - George Harrison
------------------------------ Date: Tue, 05 Sep 2000 01:21:52 -0400 From: Jefferson Ogata <ogata@antibozo.net> Subject: Laranja mecanica e a igreja da musica Message-ID: <39B482F0.DF7B307D@antibozo.net> Organization: The Antibozo WTDK@aol.com wrote: > You would be right about it not being a common term. Don't have the novel in > front of me but Burgess used Russian along with a couple of sources to create > slang for "the future" (which, by the way, folks has arrived. Just look > around you. It isn't quite as extreme as Burgess imagined it but his > cautionary tale, sadly, has merged with reality). Not to put too fine a point on it, but the novel and the film are really much more about the past than the future. Brush up on your Genesis chapters 1 through 3. Yes, the window-dressing is futuristic, and I agree that we see that scenery on the TV news more or less daily now. The core concepts, though, are as old as dirt, and by dirt I mean mankind. The best concert I ever saw was Marisa Monte at the Birchmere in 1997. It was her birthday. Brazilians love to sing at concerts and they do it very well, each to his or her own ability, and it always sounds great. Every Brazilian show I've been to has at various times seemed more like a church service than a concert, and the group singing is done with a harmony of spirit that I for one have never perceived in a church. The Brazilian version of Happy Birthday goes to the same tune as the English one, but you clap with the beat and build to applause. So imagine, if you will, a thousand or so Brazilians singing Happy Birthday, clearly and in good tune, with a crescendo of rhythmic applause, to an angel, and you've got an idea of about 30 seconds of the event. The rest was just as good. -- Jefferson Ogata : Internetworker, Antibozo <ogata@antibozo.net> http://www.antibozo.net/ogata/ whois: jo317@whois.networksolutions.com
------------------------------ Date: Mon, 04 Sep 2000 23:47:09 -0700 From: Robin Holden <rhoblidnen@connectfree.co.uk> Subject: More sad songs... Message-ID: <39B496ED.82C5448@connectfree.co.uk> Lots of sad and poignant songs around. Here are a few that I can think of: Eddie Walker - Ben Folds Five Indoor Fireworks - Elvis Costello Treasure - The Cure (this one had me and my ex in tears for ever) Peace 'n' shit. R
------------------------------ Date: Tue, 5 Sep 2000 09:18:45 +0200 From: jeffrey.thomas.jt@bayer-ag.de Subject: Recommendation for everybody Message-ID: <0006800030386998000002L082*@MHS> Hi "Kreideberger", Usually, I love to see Chalkhills in my morning e-mail. But, as of this morning, I am now 34 digests behind and counting, and I still don't know when I'll be able to catch up. I have no idea what's being discussed at the moment, but I'm so busy (moving house, work, etc.) that I just can't find the time to find out. Nevertheless, I'm not entirely out of the picture. The first two weeks of this phase were spent in the accompaniment of "Wasp Star: AV2". What a wonderful record! As for the past two, I would like to second, "third", "fourth", and "umteenth" a recommendation I often read here on the 'Hills: I have been listening, *constantly*, to Kevin Gilbert's "The Shaming of the True". I say this here as someone who has, in the past one and a half years, been helped by Chalkhills to get to know groups and artists as interesting and diverse as Richard Thompson, Joni Mitchell, Duncan Sheik, Jason Falkner, Yazbek, Mitch Friedman, Adrian Belew, The Negro Problem, Fountains of Wayne, Yo La Tengo, and more: BUY KEVIN GILBERT'S "TSOTT"! And I do mean run, do not walk! This is an amazing, fabulous, simply wonderful record. Wow. Wow!! WOW!!!! (words cannot express...or do I really mean "I cannot express in words..."?) Alles Gute aus Deutschland - - Jeff - - - - - PS - Go buy "The Shaming of the True". Now.
------------------------------ Date: Tue, 5 Sep 2000 06:35:40 -0500 From: "Christopher R. Coolidge" <cauldron@together.net> Subject: Re: Will Power Message-ID: <l03130301b5da8898759d@[208.13.202.160]> >Queen Jayne pleaded : > >>While we're digging up the corpses of song that had been decently laid >>to rest can I add If I Said You Had a Beautiful Body- Also at the >>moment something called Kissing With Confidence has somehow >>overpowered the guards in my brain cell and is wandering around doing >>it's worse. The brain cell keeps insisting that's it Laurie Anderson, >>which I think is very very wrong, so if any of you knowlegable folks >>can put me out of this horror, please I'm begging here. > >Wasn't the artist something like Will to Powers ? I seem to remember this >hanging around the UK charts briefly sometime like 1982. That's Will Power; actually noted Rolling Stone photographer Lynn Goldsmith writing the material and singing through a vocoder, thus the sounding like Laurie Anderson who did the same thing(the vocoder, though she wrote her own material too)in her early career. On the song in question the sung lead vocal is done by none other than Carly Simon; the lines "Will our nose bump in the moonlight?/Will I spoil it with my overbite?/If we meet will we meet just right?" refers to Carly, who has quite the overbite. The only reason I know the album was it was in the new records pile when I did my college radio show in the mid 80's pile and I gave it a couple of spins out of curiosity. It's an interesting album, I'd pick it up if I saw it used for a dollar. Will to Power, incidentally, is the mid-80's boy/girl duo who did that awful paint by number medley of "Baby I Love Your Way" and "Free Bird." Nice that Peter Frampton got some royalties to help dig himself out of debt(he lost big on the stock market in the late 80's, in addition to the debt the lack of success of his late 70s early 80's albums put him into), but it's still one of the worst hit singles I've ever heard, at least from the 80's. Christopher R. Coolidge "A Great law protects me from the government. The Bill of rights has 10 GREAT laws. A Good law protects me from you. Laws against murder, theft, assault and the like are good laws. A Poor law attempts to protect me from myself." - Unknown
------------------------------ Date: Tue, 5 Sep 2000 13:49:16 -0600 From: KirK.Gill@equifax.com Subject: Sad Sack Message-ID: <85256951.006D1DA1.00@noteswetc15.fin.equifax.com> Saddest Songs? Or how's about Saddest Albums? Well, there's albums that suck so bad that they make me sad when I listen to 'em, but that's not what I'm talking about. What I AM talking about is Marianne Faithful's album "Blazing Away." When I'm feeling good and listen to it, it darkens me, taking me down trails of pain and loss. When I'm already sad, it uplifts me, adding nobility and intelligence and maybe even hope to my grim outlook. It's one of the best live albums ever, IMHO. And a song that always gets a tear out of me is "Love Is Stronger Than Death" by The The. A true nugget of tenderness from the harsh world of Matt Johnson. As for saddest XTC tune, that's hard, 'cause I've always seen the boyz as a bit distant, lyrically. I don't sense heart-wrenching loss in a lot of their songs, and if it's there, it's diluted with wit or something that tempers the depression. Like 10,000 Umbrellas, for example. A sad song, if you read the lyrics as written, but listening to the song doesn't make me sad at all. It's as if someone THAT depressed couldn't possibly come up with lyrics THAT clever, plus there's a hope implicit in the music and the arrangements that seems to negate the sadness. And then later on the disc there's "Dying," that is maybe XTC's saddest song, but when "Sacrificial Bonfire" follows, it's as if the inevitability of death has been erased by the inevitability of new growth, life, even resurrection. And then, of course, there's "Big Day," which I think is a very sad song, but for personal reasons. No, I'm not bitter........ k "That's how you spell 'Me' in Your Dictionary..."
------------------------------ Date: Tue, 5 Sep 2000 21:13:21 +0200 From: "Mark Strijbos" <mmello@knoware.nl> Subject: Round About The Same Time Today... Message-ID: <20000905190652.15222A6CFB@mail.knoware.nl> Dear Chalkers, Yet another interesting post from witty Miss Takeshita but she appears to be a bit misinformed about "English Roundabout"... > Believe it or not, there's another songwriter out there inspired by > Swindon's "Magic Roundabout"! Many (most?) people think the roundabout "inspired" Colin to write the song in question but (a) where's the connection? and (b) he has always vehemently denied it. IMHO it's not really the roundabout that's magic but rather the fact that it is actually quite safe to traverse. But i strongly suggest you take Edmonds's Guided Tour of Swindon Stardom and don't try to navigate it by yourself to avoid any permanent brain damage. yours in xtc, Mark S. @ the Little Lighthouse www.come.to/xtc
------------------------------ Date: Wed, 06 Sep 2000 07:47:47 EST From: "Iain Murray" <halfmanhalflager@hotmail.com> Subject: Travels in Nihilon Message-ID: <F244al1hw30BOymGn3R00003754@hotmail.com> Many thanks to those of you who e-mailed me off-list with your opinions and suggestions about "Travels in Nihilon" - special thanks to Greg Marrs, who put me on to abebooks.com after Amazon tried to stiff me for $US50 (about 12,000 Australian dollars). The book arrived in the mail on Monday, and I'm finding it veeerrrrry interesting..... Iain "Heeresnachrichtendienst ist ein Widerspruch in den Bezeichnungen." - Karl Marx
------------------------------ Date: Wed, 06 Sep 2000 01:32:22 +0000 From: The Worrier Queen <myrone@tesco.net> Subject: Will Powers & the Wurzles? Message-ID: <39B59E94.99B642E9@tesco.net> Thank you Chris (Clarke), Simon (check out the translation), & Dunks for helping me over the Will Powers song and you too Darlin' Deb for all that info - be *very* grateful you haven't heard these abominations unto the Lord. > Lady Jayne-aka-Worrier Queen confesses to being haunted by her very own > audible walking dead.. namely in the form of two songs.. well, my dear, as > long as schizophrenia has been ruled out <G>, The doctors say that the medication will kick in soon and said not to listen to the voices. They didn't say anything about songs though- So how do you kill zombies? or should I hope all the important bits drop off before they get me? I've only been to 4 concerts so far. (Ain't agoraphobia a bitch?) The first was when I was in my teens - can't remember the date but I went with my parents to see the Wurzles. Look I was very young and they got me into the car. Eventually. I'm fairly sure that they never made it in the US or the Antipodes, so I'll try & explain. Imagine if you will country yokels from South West England. Go to Swindon, turn left then go done to the County of Somerset - that kind of yokel. All "OhhArr" & "Zumerzet". They were best known for taking Brand New Key & turning it into I've got a Brand New Combine Harvester. If anyone else can explain this better - go on please. I don't remember any more than that - repression can be useful. Next concert was Vladamir Ashkenazi and one of the Scottish orchestras in 1985. (Forgive the spelling. It's late.) It was a very polite evening of piano works and all I could see from the really cheap seats was Ashkenazi's hands. What I remember most about that is a piece of music by a Finnish composer whose name sounded like Harminioni. It was very discordant, painfully discordant. At one point it sounded as if the orchestra were throwing their instruments downstairs. Best concert so far? David Sylvian on the last night of the Beehive tour in 1989. Utterly beautiful & spellbinding. Nosiest: this is a toss up between Marillion playing at Fife Aid; you could stand in the back garden, about a mile away, & listen for free or The Waterboys Fisherman's Blues Tour 1989, which was held in the Students Union here. The acoustics were (& still are) crap and I think I was the only one who was yelling no when they decided to crank up the noise. Apart from deafness for a few weeks, it was fun. OK hot, sweaty & fun and as they mention Fife in Bang on the Ear they got a huge cheer which drowned them out for the next bit. Which brings me to my XTC content. I had a dream last week that they were playing the Union mentioned above. Karl Wallinger was playing a mandolin and it seemed to go on for hours (I wasn't complaining) & you know what all the time I was dreaming I kept thinking "they'll never believe this on Chalkhills." Don't ask me what was being played cos it didn't sound like anything I've heard. The acoustics were still crap though. Skylarking all day & some of the night Jayne the Worrier Queen He Toi Whakairo He Mana Tangata Where there is artistic excellence, there is human dignity. Maori saying
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