Chalkhills Digest Volume 1, Issue 6
Date: Wednesday, 26 April 1989
Chalkhills, Number 6
Wednesday, 26 April 1989
Today's Topics:
fretless bass
This Is Pop Lyrics
NEED HELP WITH LYRICS
what is all this anti-"President Kill" stuff?
deceptively complex music
XTC hits
One of the Millions
Speaking of the Residents
[][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][] Date: Tue, 25 Apr 89 22:29:10 CDT From: GJJ5315@star.tamu.edu Subject: fretless bass Say, did you ever wonder why Moulding stopped using the fretless bass that made such songs as "Helicoptor" a joy to listen to. From what I read in the May '89 issue of Musician, the only track on which he uses one is "Pink Thing" (I THINK that's a fretless). Gary Jedlicka GJJ5315@TAMSTAR.Bitnet
[][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][] Date: Wed, 26 Apr 89 12:06:52 PDT From: batman@ebay.sun.com (Karl MacRae - The Surreal World of Customer Service) Subject: This Is Pop Lyrics 'This is Pop' from White Music (Andy Partridge) In a milk-bar, and feeling lost Drinking sodas, as cold as frost Someone leans, in my direction Quizzing on my, juke-box selection What do you call this noise That you put on? This Is Pop- Yeah, Yeah (etc) This is..... On a walkway, and moving fast All I get is transistor blast Someone leans, in my direction Quizzing on my, station selection What do you call this noise That you put on? This Is Pop- Yeah, Yeah (etc) This is..... We- Come the wrong way We- Come the long way We- Play the songs, much to loud.... This Is Pop- Yeah, Yeah (etc)
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Date: Wed, 26 Apr 1989 12:36:40 PDT
From: John M. Relph <relph@presto.ig.com>
Subject: NEED HELP WITH LYRICS
Folks,
Well, the list of untranscribed lyrics is shrinking, but we still
don't have a clue about the following:
Pulsing Pulsing
Wait Till Your Boat Goes Down
Strange Tales, Strange Tails
Take This Town
Looking for Footprints
Terrorism
Let's Make a Den
Find the Fox
The Troubles
We have clues for the following, but there are still bits and pieces
that we haven't been able to figure out. If you want to help, we'll
send all the lyrics we've got for them. Just send a message to
chalkhills-request and we'll send these lyrics to you. Remember, no
need for a SASE.
Officer Blue
Blame the Weather
Tissue Tigers (The Arguers)
The corrected lyrics for _White Music_ have been posted back to the
Lyrics Server, so you should be able to get the lyrics for "This is
Pop" soon. Almost all other B-sides have lyrics currently, and they
will be posted to the Lyrics Server when we have them all compiled.
-- John
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Date: Wed, 26 Apr 89 13:30:34 EDT
From: JDTURN@umass.bitnet
Subject: what is all this anti-"President Kill" stuff?
I really love that song... especially the "ain't democracy wonderful?"
refrain...
my first time for XTC was hearing "Making Plans for Nigel" on WBCN in '79.
Didn't know who it was, though. Then MTV started showing "Senses" a lot.
It was, as they say, downhill from there....
Liz's roomie Kathy (?) mentions XTC has been "unconscionably mismanaged".
We've been saying that around these parts for YEARS... I mean, aside from
the singles that made it, think of some of the STUPID single releases...
Black Sea: "Respectable Street"
English Settlement: "Ball and Chain"
Mummer: "Love on a Farmboy's Wages", "Wonderland"
The Big Express: "All You Pretty Girls", "Wake Up"
Skylarking: "Grass", "The Meeting Place"
Oranges 'n Lemmings: "Mayor of Simpleton", "King for a Day" (soon)
Now, you're probably asking, what would MY choices have been? (not that it
makes a diff at this point...)
Black Sea: "Rocket From a Bottle" instead of "Respectable St."
English Settlement: "Fly On the Wall" instead of "Ball & Chain"
Mummer: "Funk Pop a Roll" and "Deliver Us from the Elements"
The Big Express: "The Everyday Story of Smalltown" and "Reign of
Blows"
Skylarking: "That's Really Super, Supergirl" and "Earn Enough for
Us"
Oranges 'n Lemmings: "Merely a Man", "Hold Me My Daddy"
IMHO, of course.
The way Andy P's been talking about penises in interviews recently,
I'm kinda glad they're not touring. He might be tempted to pull a
Jim Morrison during "Pink Thing"..... :-)
Andy and the Residents: He was VERY DEFINATELY a Resident, you swots!
He showed up on the "Commercial Album", along with a coupla other folks.
Lene Lovich, I think?
I'm in the limelight,
/joe
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Date: Wed, 26 Apr 89 14:47:58 CDT
From: GJJ5315@star.tamu.edu
Subject: deceptively complex music
Personally, I am fed up with all these simple "blues"-minded critics
reviewing XTC's music. I did read in Stereo Rreview that XTC is too clever
for its own good. Bull! Somebody tell me that Patridge was being merely
clever in the middle 24 of "Scarecrow People", a marvel of innovative
INTUITIVE songwriting. There is absolutely no formula there. There are
more examples, but my main point is that Partridge is really a complex
songwriter. The key to his success is that his melodies draw away from the
the fact that any diametric modulation is taking place. A great ploy that
should be mastered by other songwriters (then we wouldn't have to listen to
such cliche ridden drivel as Bon Jovi).
An example of this that caught my attention is "Merely A Man". Simple
song? HA! Maybe...but not as simple as you think. There are three stable
keys in that song (E,G# and B) something that you are not aware of until you
start listening. Add to that lyrics about the greatest love coming from
within, not a bunch of warmongering fanatics and you have a nice,
catchy number.
I do admit problems with "The Loving". At first I thought it was
a Queen cover ("was that Brian May guitar sound I just heard?") Now I merely
consider it an "All you need is Love" parody to keep up the album's theme.
Taken on this level, it is a success.
I would have to say (as would my roommate) that I listen to the album
constantly. I guess my faves are:
1. Scarecrow People
2. Across this Antheap
3. Garden of Earthly Delights
4. Mayor of Simpleton (I think that should have been
no. 2)
Songs I can't quite get ahold of:
1. The Loving
2. One of the Millions
Gary Jedlicka
GJJ5315@TAMSTAR.Bitnet
[][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][] From: mmlai!barash@uunet.uu.net Date: Wed, 26 Apr 89 16:35:58 edt To: chalkhills Subject: XTC hits Does anyone know which XTC singles have been hits in the U.S. (or elsewhere for that matter) ? All this talk here about XTC's lack of commercial success surprizes me; I had thought they've had a fair number of hits (like "Ten Feet Tall", "Great Fire", "Earn Enough for US", "Grass", "Dear God", "Mayor of Simpleton", "King for a Day"...). I could be wrong; I don't get away from the left side of the dial very often. Steve Barash ARPA: barash@mmlai.uu.net UUCP: uunet!mmlai!barash "It's in the order of their hedgerows..."
[][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][] Date: Wed, 26 Apr 1989 14:45:58 PDT From: John M. Relph <relph@presto.ig.com> Subject: One of the Millions Try listening to the 45RPM single of "One of the Millions" at 33RPM. It's a pretty good song, though the vocals are a little low. -- John
[][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][] Date: Wed, 26 Apr 1989 15:58:47 PDT From: John M. Relph <relph@presto.ig.com> Subject: Speaking of the Residents Since the Residents have been coming up in conversation lately, I thought I'd include this item: Two new Compact Devices from the Residents have surfaced: _Mark of the Mole_ and _The Tunes of Two Cities_. The _Mark of the Mole_ CD also includes five songs of Intermission (including prelude and recessional) music, and instructions on how to program the additional tracks to provide "a sense of more integration between these two independent recordings." Not much in the way of liner notes, but that's no surprise. The _Tunes_ disc also includes two non-LP tracks. -- John
[][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][] For all administrative issues, such as change of address, withdrawal from the list, discography requests, etc., send a message to the following address: <chalkhills-request@chalkhills.org> The views expressed in Chalkhills are those of the individual authors only.
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