Chalkhills Digest Volume 2, Issue 153
Date: Friday, 6 September 1996
Chalkhills Digest, Volume 2, Number 153
Friday, 6 September 1996
Today's Topics:
Parts' walk-on parts
Chalkhills and Fossils
Eastern Europe has no room for our lads
Analyzing XTC
Two Kinds of Songs
Epona necklace etc.
Re: Beck
The circle is getting smaller.
Mr. Ditko, Mr. A
Various matters and anti-matters
demos + other stuff
Thought + Question + Reply
Sam Phillips/Omnipop
Re: Song Interpretations
No more Dukes
Loud Family / XTC Manager
bootlegs/Rarities
Get Taken to the Cleaners
You And The Clouds Will Still Be Beautiful song lyrics corrections
Re: Chalkhills Digest #2-149
cloud lyrics
I'm The Man Who Murdered Love lyrics
Wake up
Fossil Fuel Vinyl and Limited Edition CD
Promo version of Skylarking
Admission; Fossil Fuel
Fossil Fuel - release delayed!
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---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Mon, 2 Sep 1996 09:06:59 +0100 Message-Id: <v01510100ae5052043ff4@DialupEudora> From: fisher@easynet.co.uk (Mark Fisher) Subject: Parts' walk-on parts According to the last issue of Q, Peter Blegvad's Just Woke Up LP (RER PB2) is now (or about to be) available in the UK (it got a four-star review). According to the new issue of Q, Cathy Dennis's Am I the Kind of Girl LP (Polydor 5331512) is about to be released (it gets a three-star review and a name-cheack for Andy Partridge for co-writing one of the songs). Mark Fisher (fisher@easynet.co,uk)
------------------------------ Message-Id: <v02110112ae505195bbb7@[134.32.48.166]> Date: Mon, 2 Sep 1996 12:03:12 +0100 From: varga@ferndown.ate.slb.com (Stephen Varga) Subject: Chalkhills and Fossils FOSSILS _______ Whilst on a day trip to Kingston-Upon-Thames, I popped into the Virgin Megastore to enquire about the release of Fossil Fuel. The info came up on the computer with the release date of 16th September - a further week's delay! "Do you have a price for the limited edition CD?" I asked. "19 pounds and 99 pence (30 dollars!)" they replied OK I know this is a limited edition and I didn't ask for the price for the regular edition, but I assume the price will be the same. However, considering that this is a compilation of previously released tracks, Virgin EMI could have priced this CD a little more keenly. Had this been released on Columbia (one of the labels keen to sign up XTC) this singles collection would have cost aound 15 or 16 pounds as demonstrated by Neil Diamond's (I don't own this, my wife does, honest!) recently released ultimate collection. My advice is shop around now. All the chains and many of the independents should have the Fossil info on their systems by now so why not find out the price? It would be a nice idea to pool our resources for everyone's benefit to find the lowest prices in each other's countries. For the UK Chalkies for example, if you live near a Music and Video Club store and you're not already a member, join up now. It was free to join when I became a member and still might be so now. Even if it isn't, it shouldn't cost you more than a deep sea diver (fiver) which would pay for itself after two or three purchases. CDs and Videos always arrive on the release date and anything not in stock can be ordered and you will still get the club member's price. In the case of Fossil Fuel, expect to pay around 17 pounds (26 dollars). This is of course, subject to confirmation. Makro is another alternative for discounted CDs although they can be slow on the new releases and may not stock Fossil Fuel at all if it fails to make an impact in the UK album charts. CHALKHILLS __________ Chris Twomey, are you out there? 10 out of 10 for your well written biography on XTC which I hope gave you the financial rewards you truly deserved! Would you like some more? Good! Next year it will be five years since the Chalkhills and Children Biography was published. Any chance of a revised edition or a second biography? Not only could we get the info on the last five years, but also the story behind the Nonsuch saga which appeared to be summarised in the original book. A good point to end the story is XTC finding a new label and the release of the new album (due in early 97 according to Q) And what about Ian Reid? Are any more details allowed to be revealed? Sorry Chris, I'm only giving suggestions, not telling you what to do. I hope you don't think I'm not being too cheeky. What to other Chalkies think? BACK TO FOSSILS _______________ The other day I listened to all the Fossil Fuel tracks using my existing CD's in the correct running order. (What I sad person I am!) During those two and a half hours, it really made me aware of the progression of the band over the 15 year period. Listening to Science Friction and then Wrapped in Grey, you could hardly believe that this is the same band! These are my observations of Fossil Fuel: THE BARRY ANDREWS PHASE Simple but fun 3 minute pop songs with pretty meaningless lyrics and all pretty similar in style characterised by Barry's organ sound. Listening to these tracks, I got the impression of a band that wouldn't last 5 minutes, let alone 20 years. THE STEVE LILLYWHITE PHASE Heavy drums and more creative compositions took XTC up to the next level. Vocal style is still Zany but the musical styles are light years ahead of the first two albums. ENGLISH SETTLEMENT By 1982,the XTC sound had really matured both musically and vocally. The zany vocals have been replaced by a much more serious style. Higher fidelity sound than anything previously with rich complex compositions and, for the first time, the extensive use of synthesizers. MUMMER A temporary loss of the big drum sound. Rural and rustic music but experimenting with new styles BIG EXPRESS A return of the big drum sound with some top heavy over production. SKYLARKING Grass - sounds more like the Worzels than XTC with Colin's vocal style and the Meeting Place reminds me of Camberwick Green! Todd's production added a new musical direction to the XTC sound. Soft sounding but bright with a far more eighties feel than the previous two albums. ORANGES AND LEMONS XTC reach new heights of complexity and sophistication. The big drum sound is back again too. The first fully digital album and therefore new heights of fidelity. A really chromy album. Well constructed, down to earth lyrics with bright, accessible sounds. NONSUCH The use of orchestral arrangements put XTC on an even higher level above that of all it's contemporaries. This is not just music but pure art! Can XTC go any higher? Well I'd never have known The Good Things was produced in a cheap studio but I thought the production was still amazing! When you lend out your copy of Fossil Fuel to your friends, these are some of the observations they should notice as they drown themselves in soundgasm. There aren't many bands that keep getting better and better. Look at the Rolling Stones, for example. In my opinion, they haven't produced a classic record since 1971!
------------------------------ From: "James Isaacs" <JISAACS@urz-mail.urz.uni-heidelberg.de> Date: Mon, 2 Sep 1996 21:22:41 CET-1CST Subject: Eastern Europe has no room for our lads Message-ID: <83EC2BA61CF@urz-mail.urz.uni-heidelberg.de> I must again join the fray and be heard. I have just returned from a weeklong tour of Prague and Budapest, two emerging metropolises (?) in east/central Europe. I have to say that Prague is emerging much more nicely. Anyone want a cheap vacation? Go to Prague, it doesn't disappoint. Unless, you are looking to increase your XTC collection. While I went to several fine record stores (One had the entire Beefheart library), I could not amnage to find even a single XTC disc. This was disheartening, to say the least, because Prague is an XTC kind of town, IMHO. I mean, come on, Frank Zappa is a national hero there. Budapest smelled a bit, because of all the Polski Fiats and Wartburgs. It is more of a Leonard Cohen type of town. Misheard lyric of the month: "I felt just like a potato...", from No Language in Our Lungs. James
------------------------------ From: Combray2@aol.com Date: Mon, 2 Sep 1996 16:34:25 -0400 Message-ID: <960902163425_275311019@emout14.mail.aol.com> Subject: Analyzing XTC I wonder why people haven't been sending in interpretations of XTC songs, as Joshua Hall-Bacher reported in Chalkhills #151. Is it because we prefer the latest band news to "ancient history"? Is it because we mistrust textual analysis? Or is it because we feel XTC songs don't need to be interpreted? To answer this last question, I reviewed Nonsuch to determine which songs there are the most likely candidates for "interpretation". I separated them into three categories according to whether their "subject" was Clear, In Doubt, or Obscure. Here goes.... Clear: Ballad of Peter Pumpkinhead, My Bird Performs, Dear Madam Barnum, The Smartest Monkeys, Crocodile, The Disappointed, Omnibus, Then She Appeared, War Dance, Wrapped In Grey, Books Are Burning In Doubt: Holly Up on Poppy, That Wave, The Ugly Underneath, Bungalow Obscure: Humble Daisy, Rook Comment #1: This does not necessarily mean that most XTC songs are self-evident. Even if the subject of a song is clear, that doesn't mean it lacks images or metaphors which may be puzzling in their own right. For example (allow me to change albums), I would say that "Season Cycle" is fairly certainly about THE CONTINUITY OF LIFE (major theme, hence all caps) though I was always intrigued by the line about winter being closed down to repaint summer. This line seems to refer to the song's secondary theme, which is capitalism's treatment of the environment -- witness the line about the building up of the yonder hills, and the question about who's pedaling the cycle (evidently not a supreme deity, according to the lyrics in the bridge). The reason winter's being closed down is that it's not a tourist attraction, and thus big business is intent upon varnishing it with gaudy colors. The subsidiary cycle in the song, the economic cycle of capitalism, is in fact the motive force driving the world today. Unlike the season cycle, it is not likely to be subjugated, though businessmen will always be looking for ways to promote eternal expansion; i.e., summer. Comment #2: The transparency of a song's lyrics depends, of course, on the listener's experience - it is this medium through which all music passes, after all. If I hadn't read somewhere that "Holly Up on Poppy" was specifically about Andy's daughter, I know I would find it much more puzzling. Comment #3: Andy is much more prone to open-ended lyrics than Colin. This trend apparently spans XTC's entire career. Comment #4: From what I've heard about the new XTC songs (and I haven't heard the demos) it seems that Andy is writing increasingly imagistic lyrics, which should give us a whole bunch of new songs to analyze when they arrive!
------------------------------
Date: Mon, 2 Sep 1996 17:50:34 -0900 (PDT)
From: Chris Coolidge <ccoolidg@moose.uvm.edu>
Subject: Two Kinds of Songs
Message-ID: <Pine.PCW.3.91.960902173824.7671C-100000@[0.0.0.0]>
For me, there's only two kinds of XTC songs: varying degrees of good to
sublime depending on my mood, and those I don't understand yet.(the one
exception to this is the cover of "All Along The Watchtower" which to my
ears is one of the worst Dylan covers I've ever heard.)Most of the songs
I don't understand yet are from B-sides, 12 inches, EP's and demos, so
that could be because I haven't yet dug through the chaff to find the
wheat. Of their album material, their only album I've refused to get is
White Music. I borrowed it from a friend in college, listened to it
twice, and the only songs that stood out for me were "This Is Pop" and
"Statue Of Liberty." The rest just didn't quite jell somehow. Go2, on the
other hand, stuck to me more; it starts off a lot stronger("Meccanik
Dancing" was the first XTC song I ever heard; it was in early '79, and I
rushed out to try to find the Joe Jackson album I was sure it was on.
Unfortunately, I couldn't find any song called "Can't Wait Until The
Weekend Comes."), and while it's mostly as jarring and jumpy in places as
I found White Music, it sustained my interest a lot more.
------------------------------ Message-Id: <199609030224.TAA05418@sgi.sgi.com> Date: Mon, 02 Sep 96 21:00:25 EDT From: Melissa Reaves <MREAVES@KENTVM.KENT.EDU> Subject: Epona necklace etc. Hi all! Hope everyone's had a lovely summer. I know I have. I found something at a Renaissance Fayre (which uses the term very loosely) that I think will be of interest to some of you out there. It is a metal (silvertone as they say in the Avon catalogs) pendant of the Uffington Chalk Horse on a cheap metal chain. I plan to string mine onto a more fashionable leather thong. It's about 2 inches (or 5 cm if you like) long and quite nice. I paid US$15.00 for it, which may have been too much but my delight in finding it was too obvious for me to haggle convincingly with the shopkeeper. She didn't have any more but could get some, so I got her card. If any of you are interested in such a thing (could be sufficiently unisex if transferred to above-mentioned leather thong-- but must be a thin one) email me directly at mreaves@kentvm.kent.edu. I will wait seven days after publication of this digest. If one or two of you are interested, I'll put you in touch with the person I bought it from. If I am deluged with responses, I will see if I can get them cheaper by consolidating. Serious inquiries only, please. The Epona of my subject line is apparently the name of the Celtic horse goddess or some such. Looking for another chain I showed it to another vendor and he exclaimed, "Ah, the Epona." I had to do some digging to find out what he was talking about. Now for the etc. I feel bad for our Joshua Hall-Bachner not receiving any song inter- pretations, but to my mind, XTC songs are simply too straghtforward to need any interpretation. A while back, we were treated to some divergent interpretations of "Dear Madam Barnum" among others as I recall, but I thought they were complete balderdash (not to reopen a dead horse). While there are many references in XTC songs that may need explicating, (and this applies to Colin as much as to Andy), there is generally a right answer. (What is a tea cozy? A knitted hat to keep the teapot warm.) I know there are many out there who will disagree, but then why haven't you sent in your interpretations to this poor fellow? The songs may have different associations and meanings _to us_, but I think it's usually pretty clear what Andy and Colin are referring to. There's nothing wrong with letting our imaginations run wild and making up wild allegories from the songs, but...I just don't think they hold up when the "real" answers are so obvious. They don't tend to write straight off the top of their heads with opaque, im- penetrable stuff like, as I've mentioned before, I find Neil Finn and our Dave Yazbek to write (and even there it's possible that liner explanations exist and I just haven't looked hard enough). The main exeception is a couple of the New Demos, but only because I can't understand the lyrics or in the case of Prince of Orange, simply haven't figured out yet what he's talking about. But I expect a simple answer should exist. But enough of all that. Dead horse. Something I've been turning over in my head lately is the idea of a Chalkhills Yearbook. You know, like your high school yearbook? What started it all was, indirectly, the demographic survey. It got me thinking about all you out there as individuals and wondering what you're like. What do you all look like? Who are you? Wouldn't it be fun to put together a special book with all our pictures and a little bit about us? And then to take it further and have things like the Year in Review -- all the major threads, the little flame-wars and spats, important events in the XTC world etc. And even those stupid Most Likely To... elections. At first I was thinking in terms of a paper publication, but that seemed stupid and outdated. This should be an electronic thang, posted to the website. Is there any interest out there in working on such a thing? I could do a lot of the writing, but I couldn't do any graphic work or web-type work. It would require lots of audience participation and someone(s) to coordinate layout and other stuff. I can't even scan. I could actually do a paper version and would enjoy it, but that seems so hopelessly old-fashioned. We're a virtual group, we should put together virtual publications. What do the rest of you think? Could we get enough of us to even send in a current photo and brief bio to make it worthwhile? Do we have people who want to work on it? I'd like to see some discussion here. One last thing. What do you lucky possessors of the New Demos think that Easter Parade (as it reads on my copy) aka Easter Theatre is about? I can't shake the impression it's a paean to puberty. Tell me if I'm mishearing the line "hairs will kick and leap". Hares possibly? But then how do you explain "like the ground your breasts swell"??? What an icky song!! Why does everyone like it so much??? I admit I can't understand past the first verse. Could someone (Joshua?) post their hearing of the lyrics? Yours in XTC, Melissa *** Semper Ubi Sub Ubi ***
------------------------------ Message-Id: <v01540b04ae518fb3a22e@[204.254.68.30]> Date: Tue, 3 Sep 1996 00:50:59 -0700 From: gondola@deltanet.com (E.B.) Subject: Re: Beck >From: Michael Faulkner <Michael.Faulkner@mci.com> > >>Suggestions - who would be your favourite producer for the band? > >Might I suggest Beck! I'm not referring to Jeff... Beck's not really a producer, silly. Maybe you mean the Butcher Brothers, who are responsible for the sound of Beck's excellent new album Odelay? (In fact, it's my favorite record of 1996 so far....) EB
------------------------------ From: "James Isaacs" <JISAACS@urz-mail.urz.uni-heidelberg.de> Date: Tue, 3 Sep 1996 11:52:27 CET-1CST Subject: The circle is getting smaller. Message-ID: <84D424E3B3C@urz-mail.urz.uni-heidelberg.de> Anyway, so last week I was in Prague. I was in a dance place called the Bunker, which is a converted old bomb shelter. Played really good music, plus some I would not have expected to hear in a club (Mew Model Army, Bob Mould). So later in the evening, I hear a song that was almost an exact cover of "Crowded Room", from "Go 2", a superior album to "White Music". Is this a cover that anyone has ever heard? The group sounded Scottish. And also, the last issue's inclusion of "The Rotary" once again prompts me to mention that everybody should go out and buy "Trout Mask Replica" by Captain Beefheart and the Magic band, so they can hear "The Blimp"- and "Ella Guru", which would be on my XTC desert island tape. James der-soon to be-Deutscher
------------------------------ Date: Tue, 3 Sep 1996 11:12:47 -0400 (EDT) From: "Craig E. Canevit" <canevit@utkux.utcc.utk.edu> Subject: Mr. Ditko, Mr. A Message-Id: <Pine.SOL.3.94.960903104401.14976B-100000@UTKUX1.UTK.EDU> Hey, gang! In the last Chalkhills, Erich Sellheim posted lyrics to some Explode Together songs, which I admit I know next to nothing about. But I did catch the following snippet from the song "New Broom": Mr Ditko was right Mr A so near Well, for those of you who aren't comics fans, this might be sort of cryptic. Mr. Ditko is Steve Ditko, a comic book writer-artist probably best known for his art on the early issues of Spider-Man. He's worked for Marvel Comics (doing mostly horror and Spidey), for DC (where he created a bunch of characters like the Creeper and Hawk and Dove), and for Charlton Comics (where he did Captain Atom, Blue Beetle, and the Question). I'm not sure what company--Charlton or some smaller independent--he was working for in the mid-to-late 1960s when he created Mr. A, a trenchcoat-wearing, objectivism- spouting hero. I can't say I've read or even seen any Mr. A appearances, but the character is currently best known in the comics world for being (amalgamated with the Question) the source for Rorshach, from _The Watchmen_, which is perhaps the single most respected comics story. Anyway, Mr. A was known for being the very over-the- top mouthpiece for Ditko's beliefs in objectivism, and this has me wondering if Andy Partridge has elsewhere made references to Ayn Rand? I can't say that I know enough about either Rand or objectivism to see overt or oblique references in Andy's lyrics. Would someone care to elaborate? Finally, the lyric is also peculiar in that it's the only comics allusion (that I know of) in their corpus that is *not* referring to a DC comic. How well-distributed were non-DC/ Marvel comics in 1960s England, anyway? worrying about the potential for a great floating objectivism flame war (a la the philosophy newsgroups), Craig
------------------------------ Message-ID: <3A37D72F01291300@ametsoc.org> Date: Tue, 3 Sep 96 11:43:00 -0500 From: dgershmn <dgershmn@ametsoc.org> Organization: AMS Subject: Various matters and anti-matters Hi Chalkhillbillies all, A few items... myke <jerk@earth.execpc.com> proclaimed: >John Coltrane and Charlie Mingus are the only jazz that matters. Miles Davis' "Kind of Blue" is one of the greatest albums of all time. Period. You should all own a copy. And buy one for someone else. And Paul Gelpi said: >My first exposure to XTC was in late 1982 or early 1983 through a sunday >night show on WBCN in Boston (by 1985 the show was called Oedipus' >Nocturnal Emissions but I cannot recall its name in 1982/83) which was >generally an AOR station playing the hard rock hits of the day except for >this show. Just a small correction: Back in the early '80s, WBCN was NOT the hard-rock haven you claim...it actually was the only commercial station really playing "new wave"/punk music in the Boston area at the time. It filled the niche that WFNX does now, but without the complete overkill that characterizes that station. It wasn't until the mid to late '80s that the station reverted to playing the hair bands (Ratt, anyone?) and other such crap. Of course now that alternative is what sells, they've switched back. And from the omnipresent Joshua Hall-Bachner: >>In Joshua-hills, oops, I mean Chalkhills #150 (but didn't it seem like every >>post in that last one was from Mr. Hall-Bachner?) > >That isn't a flame, is it? Sorry, when I get a notion I dash off a note. Can >you blame me? :) Not at all...merely an observation, not a judgment. Keep 'em coming! NAOYUKI ISOGAI reported: >...the last two weeks have been quite big days to me. This is >because I traveled in the U.S. and had a really enjoyable time with >a few American Chalkies there. I had a nice conversation with D.G. >by phone in Boston (not Dave Gregory, of course)... Nope, not Dave Gregory, but me, rather. It was a very pleasant surprise to get a call from Naoyuki...wish I could have met him in person and showed him around Boston a bit, but any personal contact with a Chalkhillian is pretty cool! On that note, I recently met Andrew Bissaro after a gig by his band, ian faith (all lowercase is how they spell it...). ;) And if it isn't our friend, Joshua Hall-Bachner, once again, wondering: >Anybody out there notice the odd way that demo outtakes (like Down A Peg) >sound less "demo-ish" than the demos of released songs? Is there any >particular reason for this, is it just my mind reacting strangely? Well, I can't speak for how your mind is reacting, but I do believe the reason for this is that with demos of unreleased songs, you have nothing that you're used to hearing to compare them to. They sound as fully produced as you've ever heard them and hence just sound like overly dubbed versions of a finished studio recording. The other demos sound more "demo-ish" because you have a clean, fully produced studio version already in mind, and it can only sound rough in comparison. And finally, things are going along smoothly with the Desert Island XTC Survey, but there's still a bit of ground to cover before reaching the desired minimum of 100 responses. If I said that certain songs are receiving surprisingly few votes (it's true...I kid you not), and maybe your favorite song is among them, would that get those of you who haven't responded yet to respond any sooner? No, I can't say which songs I have in mind, as that might swing the responses in a certain direction, but I can safely say that YOU should respond ASAP (to me at "dgershmn@ametsoc.org") with your personal list of the Top 5 XTC songs you'd want to have with you on a desert island. The deadline remains at Sept. 20 . . . offer your opinions now and let your voice be heard! Rock the XTC Vote! Dave Gershman P.S. I'm still not convinced that this "Paul Bailey" character is for real...I'd be happy to know that he was, though. Can anyone report on the veracity of his claim that he is "management" for XTC?
------------------------------ From: shaefner@falcon.cc.ukans.edu Date: Tue, 03 Sep 1996 12:13:00 -0500 (UTC -05:00) Subject: demos + other stuff Message-id: <01I91IF6DWO290KHM4@KUHUB.CC.UKANS.EDU> Joshua Hall-Bachner <particle@servtech.com> ponders: >Anybody out there notice the odd way that demo outtakes (like Down A Peg) >sound less "demo-ish" than the demos of released songs? -snip- >the Nonsvch and post-Nonsvch demos are all good enough quality (not sound >quality, I mean the quality of the actual performance and arrangement) that >they could concievably be merely remastered and released I have definitely noticed this. Even the Nonsvch demos (like Books are Burning, Wrapped in Grey, etc.) sound like demos compared to the album versions, whereas Goodbye Humanosaurus, Man who Murdered Love, etc. don't. And the new demos sound like they could be improved only in sound quality and released just as they are. Incidentally, it was the demo version of Books are Burning that really turned me onto that song. I didn't appreciate what a great song it is before hearing the demo version. And thanks to this list, I now really like ES. It didn't appeal to me, but after seeing what seemed like everyone plugging the album, I decided to give it another listen. I agree that starting w/ Senses and up to AOAS is wonderful. Also, at the end of last semester, someone approached me on campus (University of Kansas) and asked about my Chalkhills T-shirt, being an XTC fan. I referred him to the Chalkhills website and this mailing list. Are you out there lurking?? Just curious. -Scott P.S. Is Dave Gershman (Maker of "English Settle-Mints" that leave your senses working overtime - HaHaHa, very funny!) the only other Chalkie who doubts the validity of the post in #151 from XTC's manager? I'm not saying I don't believe it, just that I have my doubts. Most of the insight he has could have come from being on this mailing list. And it seems to good to be true...Hmm?
------------------------------
Message-Id: <199609031947.MAA14811@sgi.sgi.com>
Date: Tue, 3 Sep 1996 12:44:42 -0700
From: hbmus047@email.csun.edu (Ian Dahlberg)
Subject: Thought + Question + Reply
Hello,
Is it just me or does anyone else recognize the Smurf's song that
Andy partially quotes in "Wonder Annual"? If not, I'm jealous! <Sigh> Oh,
it's not that bad.
What is that "This Is Not The New Album" picture in the archives
all about? Just curious.
LaShawn M. Taylor quoted & wrote:
>: An internet conference will be set up very soon so that you will all be
>: able to speak to Andy directly.
>Wait a minute. Andy? Our Andy? Our
>I-won't-go-near-a-computer-except-for-music Andy? This I simply have to
>see!
I believe what usually happens at these type of things is that the
artist will sit near the computer answering questions while a fast typist
dictates. I've seen it done with Steely Dan and others.
Bye!
Ian
------------------------------ Message-Id: <v01510101ae527f94ffc1@[169.132.96.36]> Date: Tue, 3 Sep 1996 20:58:41 -0400 From: mnaran@village.ios.com (Matt Naranjo) Subject: Sam Phillips/Omnipop Greetings, Chalkophiles, With all the buzz about the nearly upcoming Fossil Fuel release, I have nothing to offer except some unrelated words about another interest to some of us: Sam Phillips. Postings from about a month ago told us about the now alive,and breathing new release "Omnipop". I'm curious about what anyone thinks about this record. While it has some great moments that work as a natural succession to "M's & B's", some of the tracks seem pretty wacko! The album's subtitle, "It's only a fleshwound, lambchop" will certainly provide a huge chuckle for anyone who knows the movie reference it came from. ..."Love's not a product you can hoard, or pack a suitcase with"... Matt Naranjo
------------------------------ Date: Tue, 3 Sep 1996 23:01:24 -0400 (EDT) Message-Id: <199609040301.XAA09075@cyber1.servtech.com> From: Joshua Hall-Bachner <particle@servtech.com> Subject: Re: Song Interpretations >Re. Joshua "Mr. Prolific" Hall-Bachner's call for song interpretations, I >thought of taking you up on that but I had no idea what you meant by >"interpretations." Analysis of the lyrics? Personal significance? >Reviews? Please explain further. Thanks. Any of the above. Plus any little tidbits of information that may be of use in understanding the song. Basically, anything you can write that has to do with the meaning of the song is fair game. /---------------------------Joshua Hall-Bachner---------------------------\ | particle@servtech.com http://www.servtech.com/public/particle/ | | "Life is like a jigsaw. You get the straight bits, but there's something| \-----missing in the middle."--XTC, "All Of A Sudden (It's Too Late)"-----/
------------------------------ From: Martin_Monkman@fincc04.fin.gov.bc.ca Date: Tue, 03 Sep 1996 14:23:17 -0700 (PDT) Subject: No more Dukes Message-id: <9608038418.AA841807659@FINSMTP1.FIN.GOV.BC.CA> Pete Philips asks: >Will there ever be another Dukes album? Andy says the Dukes died in a horrible kitchen accident. >Which XTC album is most similar in style to the Dukes material? Revolver. Oh, you asked which <I>XTC album</I>. Well that's different, isn't it? The answere: there isn't one. The Dukes are a unique, free-standing entity that sounds more like The Beatles (or The Hollies or The Beach Boys or Pink Floyd or The Move or The Byrds or Paul McCartney) than anything XTC ever recorded. Oh alright, I'll give you the answer (but with plenty of hedging): The XTC album with the greatest quantity of psychedelic influence (and even that's remote and only heard in passing) is Oranges and Lemons. I hope this doesn't sound too flippant. Martin
------------------------------ Message-Id: <m0uyAcK-000CjnC@mail.airmail.net> Subject: Loud Family / XTC Manager Date: Wed, 4 Sep 96 00:40:42 -0500 From: Della & Steve Schiavo <schiavo@airmail.net> >I second the idea of Game Theory/Loud Family as something like an American >XTC...Scott Miller is a brilliant and very inventive songwriter, though >possibly a little less consistent than Andy. I suspect a lot of you would >like them a lot, if you haven't already discovered them (pick up "The Big >Shot Chronicles" for a taste of Game Theory at their best). It might be easier to find the new Loud Family album "Interbabe Concern." It may well be the best album of the year. After a few listens you will find that it burns in quite nicely. "Plants and Birds and Rocks and Things" and "The Tape of Only Linda" are also highly worthwhile. >YEAH, RIGHT!! After all we've been through "choosing" producers!?? They're >taking suggestions? Ha! Nice try! Like we're going to believe that you >didn't know about that whole thread all along and aren't just trying to play >some sort of horrible practical joke on us?! What do you take us for, >fools?! So let's everybody email him with our choice. I've already done so and I'm sure they will take *my* advice. - Steve
------------------------------ Date: Wed, 4 Sep 1996 11:04:19 -0500 (CDT) From: Mike Chytracek <mikechy@xnet.com> Subject: bootlegs/Rarities Message-ID: <Pine.3.89.9609041015.A18105-0100000@cyclone> Greets to all Chalkies! I've been lurking around this list for about two years now but this is onlly the second time I've ever posted. I have just about everything that has been 'released' from XtC. There probably hasn't been a day in at least a year that I haven't listened to something from the group. And lately, I've gotten a bit bored, I need some un-released material! Does anyone have anything they would be willing to dupe for me!? I'd send the tape and a few bucks to cover the trouble of course! Any and all High-Gen stuff wanted! The quality is important since most of it will most likely be transfered to CD so I could listen in my car. Thanks! Mike Chytracek
------------------------------ Subject: Get Taken to the Cleaners From: wwilson@mail07.mitre.org (Wesley H. Wilson) Message-Id: <960904132712.18989@mail07.mitre.org.0> Date: Wed, 4 Sep 96 13:27:13 -0400 Newbury Comics (at least the one in Burlington, MA) is now carrying "Golden Cleaners" by The Cleaners from Venus, featuring Martin Newell. The price is $17.99 (UK import), but the store is having a $3 off sale, so you can get it for a more reasonable price. Is Golden Cleaners available on vinyl? So, does anyone want my like-new CD of "Bang, the Earth Is Round" by The Sugarplastic...? Wes (wwilson@mitre.org)
------------------------------ From: Jumpthecup@aol.com Date: Wed, 4 Sep 1996 23:33:32 -0400 Message-ID: <960904224345_301701646@emout12.mail.aol.com> Subject: You And The Clouds Will Still Be Beautiful song lyrics corrections Hi! My modem's been down for a week and in the meantime Joshua Hall-Bachner beat me to the punch with his transcription of the lyrics for You And The Clouds Will Still Be Beautiful (which I had transcribed the week before). Curse you, Josh!! Anyway, here's my stab at some of the lyrics Josh was unsure about: line 3: "For I see people who will scratch and spit and kick and fight" line 5: "And I don't scrounge inside your head, could amplify the blight" line 8: "And every Troy with wooden horse I take to peaceful waters but can't make 'em drown" line 9: "And every Bastille that gets stormtroopered, hail to the chief comes raining raining raining down" Line 10 is the trickiest line in the song. I'm fairly confident the above lyrics are right, however, this one I had a lot of trouble with. After about a dozen listens I came up with: "I see people gummed up like they melt to a summer day". Line 12: "And I don't rain inside your head, could seriously put a stop to play" Actually, I had to listen to these lyrics about a dozen times to come up with coherent guesses for the words to this song. I've also had a hell of a time trying to figure out three or four key lines in Colin's "Where Did The Ordinary People Go?" (which is why I haven't sent it in yet). I'll put the lyrics up to that song in my next post, complete with absurd guesses at seemingly incoherent lines and let Natalie Jacobs correct me on those. She'll get a kick out of the multiple theories I have about the exact wording of the last line in verse two. I do have one correction to make on my transcription of "It Didn't Hurt A Bit". After the lines "It's my word against hers/ Who are you going to believe?", Colin starts repeating the lines he's sung earlier. It's the second stanza after this transition that I messed up. I transposed the third and fourth lines in that stanza (one of the transposed lines is "that's an end to it"). It's a minor detail, but I figure I ought to correct it since I'm correcting other's people lyrics as well. Dave O'Connell York PA jumpthecup@aol.com
------------------------------ Message-ID: <322F4F80.5F79@jde.com.au> Date: Thu, 05 Sep 1996 15:09:04 -0700 From: Paul Haines <hainesp@jde.com.au> Organization: PST Software Subject: Re: Chalkhills Digest #2-149 Looking at some older Chalkhills (now that I'm on a new mail server I can actually see them all) I saw the following from > Now, if I may... I am *dying* to find CD single versions of Mayor of > Simpleton (with the songs Living In A Haunted Heart and The Good Things) > and King For A Day (with My Paint Heros and Skeletons). Yeah, I know, > these are probably awefully rare, but... Any one for a trade...or willing > to sell..?? > Mike (dallin@cs.colostate.edu) It may annoy Mike to know that I found the King For A Day cdep in a sale bin for $10 in Wellington NZ when I was living there a couple of years back. It's a nice little cardboard cut out in the shape of a crown. My heart froze, my palms began to sweat and it now mine. Unfortunately, I'm also a big collector of XTC stuff and I could never part with this treasure.
------------------------------
From: Saints3Den@aol.com
Date: Thu, 5 Sep 1996 11:01:36 -0400
Message-ID: <960905110136_277923458@emout18.mail.aol.com>
Subject: cloud lyrics
I'm back in a posting mode on the chalkboard. Thanks Joshua H-B for taking
a shot on the "clouds " lyrics... it's quite a job,isn't it...? I think I
can smooth out a few rough spots--- And every morning , people , I'm awake
try--- And every morning BEFORE I'm awake
For I see people who will scratch and still and kick and FIGHT
and all these stones inside your head can ever(? the ?)
And I know storms inside your head can amplify the plight
and every (toy with ) wooden horse like take to people will just but can't
make 'em drown
and every (chore ?) with wooden horse I take to peaceful waters but can't
make 'em drown
And every BASTILLE that gets stormtroopered...
I see people conduct lightning down to a summers day
and I know thunder in your head ... there , maybe that makes a bit more
sense , now reinsert these phrases into the other lurics and we are much
closer, though still not quite there ...
About the fossil fuels hoax??? in issue 151 (I call it a hoax - for
these reasons)
1) Entitled Fossil Fuels- the STC singles 1977-1992---- STC? stc?
estacy? If "management" can't get it right , what hope is there for us?
2) "contains remixed versions... digitally remastered"... (couple
paragraphs later) "as originally released" . Can something be remixed and
remastered as originally released? How?
And in one of my first postings ever , I mentioned an article ( Cover
Story) in Diabetes Forecast magazine on Dave Gregory - about being in a Band
while being a diabetic... A nice article ,as well as a nice cover photo of
Dave.
I have tracked it down, if anyone is interested :
Diabetes Forecast
1660 Duke St
Alexandria VA 22314
December 1994 issue $4 plus $ 1.50 postage & Handling check or money order
add $3.50 if outside US , Canada , Mexico This is a public service
announcement...no affiliation with said organisation.
so much for now , sorry if its too long
eddie
------------------------------
From: Jumpthecup@aol.com
Date: Fri, 6 Sep 1996 02:38:35 -0400
Message-ID: <960906023832_195519788@emout17.mail.aol.com>
Subject: I'm The Man Who Murdered Love lyrics
Hi! This isn't Joshua Hall-Bachner posting. Yet this is a transcription of
one of the unreleased XTC demos (and it's a gem), namely...
I'm The Man Who Murdered Love
(written by Andy Partridge)
[transcribed by Dave O'Connell <jumpthecup@aol.com>]
Chorus:
I'm the man who murdered love
Yeah! What do you think to that?
I'm the man who murdered love
Yeah! What do you think to that?
He was begging on his bended knee
For me to put him from his misery
He hadn't worked at all this century
Said 'I do a service for humanity'
(repeat chorus)
Put a bullet in his sugar head
He thanked me kindly, then he lay down dead
Thorny roses blossomed where he bled
And all the cheering angels shook my hand and said...
(repeat chorus)
Oh! Yeah!
Oh! Yeah!
Oh! Yeah!
Oh! Yeah!
What do you think?
There'll be no more painful broken hearts
No more lovers to be torn apart
So don't throw me in your dungeon dark
You're unappealing, putting statues up in every park
(repeat chorus)
So dear public, I'm here to confess
I'm the one who freed us from this mess
Love won't be calling at your address
But what you've never had you'll never miss, I guess
(repeat chorus)
What do you think to that? Yeah! Yeah! Yeah!
What do you think to that? Yeah! Yeah! Yeah!
What do you think to that? Yeah! Yeah! Yeah!
[song begins to fade out at this point, however, an undeterred Andy continues
to yell on...]
What do you think to that? Yeah! Yeah!
What do you think to that? Yeah! Yeah!
What do you think to that? Yeah, I'm the man...
{The End}
What do you think, fellow Chalkhillians, of this lyric? I, for one, think
it's a great song.
Dave O'Connell
York PA
<jumpthecup@aol.com>
------------------------------ Date: Fri, 6 Sep 1996 09:04:04 +0100 Message-Id: <v01510100ae55996f4767@[194.128.83.69]> From: fisher@easynet.co.uk (Mark Fisher) Subject: Wake up Just in case no one's mantioned this before, there's a track on Peter Blegvad's Just Woke Up CD (which I bought yesterday in Glasgow) which has a track co-written with Andy Partridge called Hell's Despite. Mark Fisher (fisher@easynet.co,uk)
------------------------------ From: 101377.2113@compuserve.com Date: Fri, 6 Sep 1996 05:58:13 -0400 Message-Id: <199609060958.FAA28465@dub-mail-svc-1.compuserve.com> Subject: Fossil Fuel Vinyl and Limited Edition CD Dear All I am sad to report that rumours concerning a very limited vinyl release of Fossil Fuel seem to be untrue. I spoke to buyers at both HMV and Tower in London, who were alleged to have snaffled all 500 available copies, and they both told me Fossil Fuel will definitely NOT be released on vinyl format. This was confirmed by Virgin themselves who say they are not manufacturing any vinyl versions. Shame. By the way, the limited edition CD of Fossil Fuel does not appear to be all that limited. My local, usually XTC hostile, record store is getting a zillion copies in. Please feel free to send me a private e-mail if you have trouble reserving your copy, I should be able to help. Yours Gary Minns <101377.2113@compuserve.com> or <gbbglgim@ibmmail.com>
------------------------------ From: jde@abingdon.geoquest.slb.com (Jon Eva) Message-Id: <9609061453.ZM16012@rs560.abingdon.geoquest.slb.com> Date: Fri, 6 Sep 1996 14:53:45 +0000 Subject: Promo version of Skylarking Dear All, I've just received some cds I ordered from a British mail order company called Esprite (their web page is http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/esprit if you want to check it out, they delivered most of my order in two days flat, and the imported stuff a week later). They enclosed a list of all the XTC vinyl and cds they had in stock, and there was one item which I've never heard of, and which I couldn't find in the discography, namely a promo LP containing "Songs from Skylarking and an interview with Andy Partridge". Has anyone got a copy of this, and if so is it worth shelling out 35 pounds for? I'd definitely get it if the songs are new versions rather than just lifted from the 'normal' album. Please email me privately if you can help, thanks, Jon Eva
------------------------------ Message-Id: <199609061927.MAA15727@dfw-ix1.ix.netcom.com> From: "Mark G. Cuevas" <litserv@ix.netcom.com> Subject: Admission; Fossil Fuel Date: Fri, 6 Sep 1996 12:22:48 -0700 Hello Chalkies. My name is Mark and I'm an XTC-aholic. This is my first posting. <"Hello Mark"> It seems I've come to the right place. <Silent nods> It all started with Nigel in or about 1979. I was just a wee lad of 17, but I knew music. As soon as I heard D&W, I knew that I had heard the future of Pop (or as we called it at the time, "quasi-phase techno-pop"). It was an exciting time to be in L.A. The Whisky and Roxy were rockin' and the Starwood was in its pre-drug infested infancy. I recall desperately wanting to see the "1st Urgh - A Music War" at the Santa Monica Civic, but (at the time) I was intimidated by the mob scenes. I also knew that the Santa Monica Civic had "live walls" and cement floors (i.e., lousy acoustics and hard landings from pit activity). In retrospect, I regret that decision not to attend. Now I may never be able to see "the boys." I could have been there. I should have been there. I could have seen them. They were right there. Right there. Right there . . . <Oh, he's got it bad> I'm O.K. Just give me a second. I'm better now. Let me just say however that I'm practically wetting myself after hearing from Mr. Bailey [Chalkhills Digest #2-151 - "GOOD NEWS FOR ALL. HOORAH!]. New material from the boys of Swindon in '97? A possible double-CD!? I feel woozy. May I sit down? <Silent nods> As long suffering followers of XTC, surely you can empathize with my withdrawals. Years of neglect. Hopes dashed. Surely you have experienced the taunting from the unenlightened masses reciting "XTC? Oh, are they a band?" Fools. Imbeciles! All of them. A band is to XTC as a bucket of water is to the Atlantic. I need more material. Please. You don't understand. "Fossil Fuel" on import only? O.K. I'll pay it. Anything. I'll pay it. I'll pay it. Anythinggggggg. <Sob> <"Mark. Thank you ever so much for sharing. Why don't we adjourn for tonight.".> <Sob>
------------------------------ From: Darren A Peace <dpeace@flat7.demon.co.uk> Subject: Fossil Fuel - release delayed! Date: Fri, 06 Sep 1996 17:51:10 GMT Organization: Grey Velvet Consulting Message-ID: <3230555a.263369@post.demon.co.uk> Argh! I was in the Cheltenham Badlands shop this afternoon, awaiting delivery of the stocks of the "Fossil Fuel" limited editions (although they can't be sold until Monday, I wanted to see the packaging!). At five o'clock, the consignment still hadn't been received - when we rang EMI, they said that delay had been postponed for a week! This means that the set won't be available for sale until Monday 16th October. Just thought you all might like to know. Grr. Darren dpeace@flat7.demon.co.uk
------------------------------ End of Chalkhills Digest #2-153 *******************************
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