Chalkhills Digest Volume 2, Issue 79
Date: Sunday, 3 March 1996
Chalkhills Digest, Volume 2, Number 79
Sunday, 3 March 1996
Today's Topics:
numies and pooting
Re: Steve Nye and "Mummer"
Double yer pleasure....
AP and Gentle Giant
John Clare & XTC
Reference List Entry #14,238
Myriad Divers
The Grammys
Harold Budd CD
Re: Chalkhills Digest #2-77
The absolutely weirdest time/place I found Swindon product.
XTC and art music
Stealing a Cue form Piraro
Rook
(none)
Some Lovely Chords, Don't You Think?
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I'm such a lucky guy, such a lucky guy.
---------------------------------------------------------------------- From: David Ferguson <David_Ferguson@mgdmug.org> Date: Thu, 29 Feb 96 21:00:52 GMT Subject: numies and pooting Organization: MacGroup-Detroit USA, Detroit area's largest Mac users group ~One other thing - can anyone who has Frank Zappa's 'We're Only In It For ~The Money' explain to me what 'pooting' means? Or 'numies' for that ~matter. I assume this is US scatological slang. How right you are, William. But htere is so much to discuss: Pooting is a (local?) west coast neighborhood slang for farting, usually just for the pleasure of it, as in the lighting of the methane gas it consists of. Numies, however, are the snots, boogers (sp?) and of the nose dirty Frank sings about that has been collected on the window of Kenny and his brother in the "Let's Make the Water Turn Black" song, based on a neighbor he was knew. Read more about this fasinating topic in his autobiography. Glad to be of service. David_Ferguson@mgdmug.org Boil that dust speck!
------------------------------
Date: Thu, 29 Feb 1996 22:23:44 -0800
From: relph (John Relph)
Subject: Re: Steve Nye and "Mummer"
"will heyniger" <WHEYNIGER@cqalert.com> asks:
>
>p.s. anybody want to enlighten me a bit about what happened with
>Steve Nye on "Mummer"? I know they didn't get on well with him
>and Nye was dumped midstream for another producer. what was the
>problem?
This is a quote from _XTC: Chalkhills and Children_ by Chris Twomey
(pp. 132-33):
Both Jeremy Lascelles and Simon Draper [of Virgin
Records UK] felt that the first batch of recordings for
`Mummer' weren't up to standard, and Lascelles turned
them down. "No one heard a hit single," he complained.
"We were still at a point where we were desperately
trying to get XTC to write and record hit singles. We
thought `Mummer' was a little lacking and felt the need
for them to do more work."
Demoralised by having the album rejected, XTC
returned to Swindon. But within a few days Andy had come
up with a couple of new songs, `Great Fire' and `Gold'.
When Virgin heard the demos they called Andy to tell him
that `Great Fire' was the single they'd been waiting for.
By then Steve Nye had gone off to work with another
band in Canada, so Virgin hunted around for an
alternative producer.
But even after Bob Sergeant and Phil Thornalley had recorded the new
songs, Virgin didn't like the album. They brought in Alex Sadkin to
re-mix some tracks. The 1983 issue #9 of _Aware_, a "rock music
research journal", has this to say (p. 18):
The following finished songs have been recorded with
Steve Nye as engineer. All the songs, except "Jump (Love
And Swimming Pools)", are to be included on the next XTC
LP. Some of the working titles were to be FALLEN FROM
THE GARDEN, later FRUIT. Andy's hopes were that the band
would be able to package the album in four different
sleeves that smell of different fruits. The latest LP
title is MUMMER, and it was supposed to be released in
the US 5-26-83 on Virgin/Epic BFE 38516, adding the UK 45
A-side, "Great Fire" to its roster. As that date has
already passed, one would have to assume that something
has gone awry. The (*) tracks have already been remixed
by Alex Sadkin and Phil Thornalley with XTC. One of
these, "Wonderland", gets a July release (VS 606) backed
with "Jump" (dropping the subtitle once again), the
remaining song of the session. Whether the LP gets
released as originally planned or becomes another GET
BACK LP is anyone's guess, but you can be sure you'll
find out about it here.
Sorry I've omitted the song list, but they're all the other songs on
_Mummer_.
-- John
--
Chance favors the prepared mind.
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 1 Mar 1996 01:30:11 -0500
From: aosterma@students.wisc.edu (Adam J. Ostermann)
Subject: Double yer pleasure....
>From: "Kendrick, Tim" <tken@dictaphone.com>
>Subject: Latest from Little Express
>
> The latest info (from THE LITTLE EXPRESS) is:
>
> - Andy wants to release a double CD, with the 2 CD's
> each having a very different sound;
> one orchestral, the other electric guitar based.
^Dave and Colin and the Infinite Andy^????? Sorry, bad joke.
> - Colin says that their next release will sound
> "like a new XTC"; very different sounding
> (he says he's worried they might become "parodies"
> of themselves if they don't go for a new sound).
I actually wouldn't mind another Dukes album, hee hee.
> - COLUMBIA RECORDS has offered the group a firm
> record deal, but XTC has not yet decided whether
> or not to accept it.
They'll be OK with Columbia if A) the powers-that-be realize the Swindon
three won't sell Mariah-like numbers, and B) the current powers that be
that show interest stick around. Shifts in structures can be a real bitch
to up-and-coming bands (ask Walt Mink about the wonders of Columbia). Since
XTC are an eestablished 'cult' band, you have to wonder how they'd approach
the albums in terms of promotions. They're too 'wascally' for straight top
40 and the fact they are in their late 30s/early 40s doesn't help them with
the college crowd. Maybe get Brad Pitt to join the band to increase XTC's
sex appeal. Or for the guys...hmmm....good female actress/model to be a
superflous member of XTC? I need help here.....
RECOMMENDED: ^Murder Ballads^ by Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds
(no, it DOESN'T sound like XTC, but I like it anyhow)
Adam J. Ostermann
****************************************************************
Adam J. Ostermann (aosterma@students.wisc.edu)
UW-Madison Journalism major
Entertainment Co-Editor of ^The Badger Herald^,
which you can witness by contacting //www.badgerherald.com
****************************************************************
------------------------------
From: RCroz75755@aol.com
Date: Fri, 1 Mar 1996 07:36:05 -0500
Subject: AP and Gentle Giant
Today it's XTC, for no reason at all. Another band of excellence
with fine humour, which never gets the acclaim it deserves. I
seem to remember a music press interview with Andy Partridge
where he was talking about his reputation for being fussy in the
studio. He agreed but admitted that XTC "was no Gentle Giant".
I think that was a compliment to GG's excellent and complex
arrangements. Hmmm, thinks - Andy Partridge and Kerry together
in the studio - they'd never see the light of day again!
The above paragraph was posted on the Gentle Giant mailing list (any GG fans
out there?). I was curious if anyone knows where this interview came from?
Thanks in advance!
Rob Crozier
rcroz75755@aol.com
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 1 Mar 1996 08:55:31 -0500 (EST)
From: James Poulakos <engjcp@gsusgi2.gsu.edu>
Subject: John Clare & XTC
Natalie Jacobs: Enjoyed your enthusiastic post on XTC lyrics and Brit
Romantics. Since you mentioned John Clare (and since the Romantics
represent a hole in my knowledge of poetry), I browsed the web for him and
hit these two sites right away. Perhaps they might be more interesting to
other Chalkhillians who, like me, had never heard of Clare or who'd like
to compare Partridge and Clare themselves.
http://library.utoronto.ca/www/utel/rp/authors/clare.html
gopher://dept.english.upenn.edu/00/Courses/Curran50/Clare/clare
*-------------------------------------------------------------------
Dass etwas schiefgegangen ist weiss man immer nur dann,
wenn man gerade eine ungerade Anzahl von Fehlern gemacht hat.
My home page is now at http://www.gsu.edu/~engjcp/zero.html
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
James Poulakos
------------------------------ From: "Burgess, Christopher (msx)" <BURGESSC@linelnt1.light.ge.com> Subject: Reference List Entry #14,238 Date: Fri, 1 Mar 1996 10:08:41 -0500 If any of you aging punks and New Wavers (like me) want to relive your adolescence, try picking up a copy of Hagfish's "Rocks your Lame Ass" CD. A cross between the Ramones, The Attractions and bands like The Jags, these guys seem to have a real love for the music they're ape-ing. Not every song works, but those that do are loud, fast and tight. I think they're on London records, so it shouldn't be too hard to find. Worth a listen.
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 1 Mar 1996 09:09:54 -0800
From: relph (John Relph)
Subject: Myriad Divers
Yo.
I have been remiss, and I have not taken the time to reply to any
issues of Chalkhills since late January. Here is my attempt to catch
up with the future.
But first I'll take this opportunity to say that I have done some work
on the Chalkhills website, you may want to pay a visit if you have not
done so in the recent past. See the top of the digest for the URL.
I got some information from WAR? records regarding David Yazbek's
forthcoming (though already released) CD. Matthew at WAR? tells me
that they have completely redone the artwork for the American release.
The CD will be available in a few cities and for mail-order in March,
but will not be widely released until May. WAR? are also preparing a
Web site for release in the near future.
Oh, I went to the Aimee Mann concert in San Francisco. Immensely
enjoyable. Aimee is a great performer who truly enjoys performing.
We all had fun. She sang two songs she had not rehearsed, one that
band had learned without telling her, and another that the band didn't
know (kudos to the band for following along). Jon Brion did not play
guitar (anybody know what he's up to?). I must say, that Jon's track
"Sorry Suzanne", from the Hollies tribute album _Sing Hollies in
Reverse_, is one of the best pieces of ear candy to hit my headphones
in a long time (since Captain Sensible's "Getting To Me" from his
album _The Universe of Geoffrey Brown_). Check it out! And the rest
of that album is damn good.
produce@magicnet.net (Arthur James Virgin) says:
>
> he sings, plays all
>instruments and produces....(A great version of the song if you ask me!)
Actually, there are a couple of other people credited on that track,
including someone called "E". Anybody know if the "E" on "Sorry
Suzanne" is the same "E" of _A Man Called (E)_?
Erik Anderson <aa393@sfn.saskatoon.sk.ca> asks:
>
>Does anyone have a copy of xTc's "Acoustical O&L"? I would love a copy
>and have a lot to trade for it. Please reply via personal e-mail.
Most of the music and loads of interview which does NOT appear on
_Acoustical Oranges & Lemons_ appears on the Chalkhills XTC Acoustic
Radio Tour Tape. Send a message to <owner-chalkhills@chalkhills.org>
for details about this tape.
Scott Taylor <staylor@sky.net> writes:
>
>Well, if you want a better image than the CD cover to check for yourself,
>check my homepage at http://www.sky.net/~staylor. Two pictures of the
>Uffington horse are there, snapped from a program I happened to catch on
>the Discovery channel.
I have added these two pictures to the Chalkhills Archives.
Doug Downing <GROOVE25@SIUCVMB.SIU.EDU> asks:
>Subject: lyrics to The Meeting Place
>
>Hi. Can someone out there tell me what the back-up singers are singing after
>Colin sings the line "Strolling under grimey skies..."?
To which steve@expersoft.com (Steve-O Lutz) replies:
>
>I always thought it was "Don't let smoke get in your eyes".
A nod of the hat to the old classic, "Smoke Gets in Your Eyes".
On an unrelated note, what are the backing vocalists singing during the
second chorus of "The Loving"? ("Strange Trip"?)
for248@abdn.ac.uk writes:
>
>Apparently the Wrapped in Grey cd is v rare (50 copies), I was wondering if
>anyone knew this for sure as yesterday i brought one for 2UKPs which isn't
>very much I guess. The dealer at the record fair said that it was common
>and so I was wondering if anybody knows if the story about only 50 existing
>is true????
Shigemasa Fujimoto writes, in his XTC discography _Wonderland_ I
believe, ``I've been told by a reliable source that Virgin made 500
copies of _Wrapped In Grey_ on CD and destroyed 450 copies and that no
copies made it to shops or radio stations. Dave [Gregory] says he has
no idea exactly why it was cancelled.''
>From: "will heyniger" <WHEYNIGER@cqalert.com>
>
>(and tangentially, speaking of Sam Phillips, do you believe this
>former Christian-rocker and spouse of T-Bone Burnett played that
>Nazi-girl moll of Jeremy Irons' in the latest "Die Hard" movie?
>wow.. you've come a long way, baby. --Will)
Was she excellent or what? Very scary.
Simon Sleightholm <101477.1611@compuserve.com> asks:
>
>Question for Chalkhillers. Does anyone know why the Senses Working
>Overtime single version had the line "And buses might skid on black ice..."
>removed?
I believe it was merely to bring the length of the song down to that
undefinable "radio airplay" level. Cut here, cut there, remove any
sense of dynamics and structure, et voila! Hit single!
NOT.
The Unnamed One <Garbarek@aol.com> writes:
>
>Another cool disc to check out is a fairly low-fi tribute album to Todd
>Rundgren by a bunch of North Carolina Bands. It's really fun stuff.
For The Love Of Todd . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . compilation 1992?
A Tribute To Todd Rundgren.
CD: 1992? US Third Lock TLRCD004 (ltd. collectors ed. of 10,000)
Almost impossible to find (anybody got one to give me?). Includes a
cut by Parthenon Huxley (who played tambourine on _O&L_).
"Tom X. Chao" <tqc8542@is.nyu.edu> says:
>
>This month's Tower Pulse magazine (given away free at Tower Records)
>features Ms. Mann on the cover
>(The photographer must have worked overtime to make her look so
>incredibly bad on the cover--sheesh.)
Actually, I thought the picture was a very fair representation of
Ms. Mann. She has straight, thin and bleached hair, a big nose, and
piercing eyes. Just like the photo.
wwilson@mail07.mitre.org (Wesley H. Wilson), John Hedges <jh3@cencom.net>,
Bob Wayne <DCOBobW@aol.com>, "John Christensen" <christej@vrinet.com>, and
Dean Zemel <dbzemel@execpc.com> each contributed part of this discussion:
>
>I had heard that Andy was in an issue of Justice League of
>America, but I never found out which issue number
>
>>ANDY: "I was in a Justice Society -- was it Justice Society or Justice
>>League?"
>
>I believe he is referring to "WildStar", by Image Comics. Issue #1 is dated
>March 1993. The person responsible for Andy's cartoon cameo is Al Gordon
>
>Wildstar is the creation of Al Gordon and Jerry Ordway. Al is a big XTC fan.
>
>I believe that the DC comic book in which Andy made a brief guest appearance
>was the Legion Of Superheros, not Justice League of America.
According to the Winter 1990-91 issue of _The Little Express_:
We were very please to hear from artist Al Gordon who
informed us that Andy Partridge makes a guest
appearance piloting a space ship in a "D.C." comic
book. Andy appears on page 18 of The Legion of
Superheroes, issue #8 (June 1990) drawn by Al Gordon
and Chris Sprouse.
The Winter 1991-92 issue of _The Little Express_ includes the actual
frame from the above comic, and also has a quotation from Al Gordon
in which he discusses the proposal for _Wildstar_ (which he
tentatively had called _Timberwolf_).
Al Gordon, myself, and others met Andy at an autograph signing in San
Francisco in June of '92. Al had brought a few copies of the issue
of _The Legion of Superheroes_ in question, and gave them to Andy as
a token of his appreciation. In return, of course, he got to meet
Andy and get his autograph...
HFTC@grove.iup.edu writes:
>
>It's always been my contention that XTC fans
>enjoy eclectic tastes and tend to gravitate towards music that,
>like XTC in spirit, tends to challenge standard preconceptions of
>just what consititutes rock-n-roll.
Excellent observation, and one that I know I agree with. What did I
listen to today? Adrian Legg, an English acoustic guitarist who plays a
multitude of different instrumental styles; Morphine, a three-piece
featuring drums, vocals, slide electric bass, and baritone sax; our own
David Yazbek; Philip Glass. Yesterday? Some Shostakovich piano Preludes
and Fugues; Mike Keneally, guitarist extraordinaire (played on an
unreleased take of XTC's "This Train is Coming", so I have been told);
The Bevis Frond, neo-psychedelic electric rock with folky overtones.
What's the connection? (I don't know.)
becki diGregorio <ziglain@cruzio.com> writes:
>
>however, i came across what looks to be either an album or cd cover,
>entitled "the tiny circus of life." can someone out there please let me
>know what this is?? i don't seem to have it in my collection.
_The Tiny Circus of Life_ was a compilation CD released in France in
January of 1992. Apparently only 3,000 were pressed. Here's the entry
>from the XTC Discography:
The Tiny Circus of Life
History of Rock'n'Roll (0'22); The Mayor of Simpleton (3'57);
Scarecrow People (4'12); Dear God (3'35); Season Cycle (3'21);
Grass (3'05); Seagulls Screaming Kiss Her Kiss Her (3'50);
Great Fire (3'47); Runaways (4'51); Senses Working Overtime
(4'45); Knuckle Down (4'26); Fly On The Wall (3'11); Blame the
Weather (3'38); Respectable Street (3'37); Making Plan for
Nigel [sic] (4'13); This is Pop? (2'39).
+ CD, Virgin France, 30953, January 1992. limited edition of
3,000.
7IHd <ee92pmh@brunel.ac.uk> writes:
>
>I'm sure someone knows far more about this than I do, but I'm also sure
>he didn't "pass out". As I understand it he came on, launched into the
>intro of whatever song it was, and then when he was meant to start
>singing, just freaked and ran off stage; the rest of the band found him
>flat out and a quivering wreck backstage.
Fairly accurate, according to all accounts I've heard.
JH3 <jh3@cencom.net> writes:
>
>of things but what I'm mainly after are the two songs from the Geffen
>Holiday Promo
Well, two songs is stretching it a bit. One is a simple Xmas song with
acoustic guitar accompaniment, the other is just a spoken Xmas wish from
Mr. Partridge. But I do have the CD.
rimshot3@ix.netcom.com (ERIC ROSEN) writes:
>
>Millions always sounds fresh to these ears.
Quite. I can never quite get my rhythmic head around it. It still
surprises me, even after hundreds of listens.
Glenn Siegel <wine@shell.wco.com> whines (just kidding):
>
>On another note, someone wrote recently about how beautiful the song,
>"Living in a Haunted Heart" is. I couldn't agree more.
Beautiful, truly haunting, and right on the mark. I like the eerily sung
"train whistle" which sounds more like the sound ghosts always make
(whoo-oo).
>You know, this bands outtakes are better than so many bands best work.
No shit. I often tell people that other bands wish they could write songs
as good as the ones XTC throw away.
Rich_Pearson@rld.bofa.com wrote:-
>
>Anyone else ever have dreams about XTC?
Yes. Multiple times.
Anthony Ciarochi <ciarochi@pe.net> wrote a story called "Guernica". And I
laughed my a** off. Very funny! And right on the mark.
Benjamin Woll <bwoll@abacus.bates.edu> predicts:
>
>Oh, and by the way, I hope to write in the next issue of Chalkhills the
>rationalization behind my belief that Life Begins at the Hop is about the
>common ground Jesus, Buddha, and Moses all share.
Actually, I believe you meant "Jesus, Buddha, and the Wizard of Oz".
-- John
Coming up next: The Best of 1995.
--
I have no message and the message was.
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 1 Mar 1996 10:02:59 -0800 (PST)
From: Anthony Ciarochi <ciarochi@pe.net>
Subject: The Grammys
Did anyone happen to catch the opening number of the Grammys the other
night? I came running out of the back room, thinking the neighbor's cats
were mating in my parlour.
What a God-awful racket! Listening to Maria Carie and Boys2Men sing a
duet is like watching a bunch of fur traders clubbing a baby seal.
This, of course, was followed by one of Eddie Vedder's most embarrassing
moments. I don't know how someone can pull of something as cool as his
cameo appearance on Letterman Tuesday night, and then something as
uninspired and dull as his Grammy appearance on Wednesday night.
For those who missed it, it went something like this:
"I, uh, would like to start things of with a bang by saying something
that it would be just like me to say (?). This thing is really
meaningless; it means nothing to me. <pause> that's just how I feel. I
don't care about this at all. I don't know who would care about... er,
my dad would care. He died when I was really young and I never got to
know him <pause> He would care, though.."
At this point, he would have continued, but the audience had started
flipping through the program booklets, asking "When is the chick with the
pointy brassierre coming on?"
Moral: A refusal to accept an award should be as carefully worded as an
acceptance.
GLAD THEY WON:
Joni Mitchell; Alannis Morrissette; Seal; Whatshername from the
Eurythmics (somebody remind me of her name before I shoot myself)
GLAD THEY LOST:
Maria Carie; Boys2Men
COULDN'T CARE LESS IF THEY BURST INTO FLAMES:
Hootie and the Blowfish
*------------------------------------------------------------------------
Anthony F. Ciarochi On-line Administrator -- PE.net
ciarochi@pe.net CS Major, Univ. of CA, Riverside
http://pe.net/~ciarochi
'Spend at least 15 minutes every day
listening to something you hate...'
*------------------------------------------------------------------------
------------------------------ Date: Fri, 1 Mar 1996 13:07:16 -0800 From: Christie Byun <cbyun@ocf.Berkeley.EDU> Subject: Harold Budd CD If anyone is interested, I have the Andy Partridge/Harold Budd CD-- "Through the Hill" for sale. Please email me at cbyun@ocf.berkeley.edu if you'd like to buy it. And if anyone's really interested, I also have the Andy P. produced album by the Lilac Time, called "And Love for All" for sale also. Christie P.S. If you email me and I don't write back right away, sorry! The system is notoriously slow and obstinate sometimes. I'll write you back as soon as possible. Thanks!
------------------------------ Date: Fri, 1 Mar 1996 14:53:18 -0500 (EST) From: "Christopher R. Coolidge" <ccoolidg@moose.uvm.edu> Subject: Re: Chalkhills Digest #2-77 Reserve me "All Of A Sudden(It's Too Late)." I have a string-synth patch and vocal run-through of it on four-track somewhere. Not recommended for depressives; my version is guaranteed to send anyone of fragile temperament over the edge.
------------------------------
From: Garbarek@aol.com
Date: Sat, 2 Mar 1996 13:59:13 -0500
Subject: The absolutely weirdest time/place I found Swindon product.
It all started in 1990 during an unsuccessful attempt to kill myself by
hiking, alone, across India. I had been roughing it for almost 2 months when
I arrived in Varanasi (Benares) - the holy city where Hindus immerse
themselves in the Ganges.
Up until this time, my immune system had broken all world records by keeping
me alive. But upon this fateful day, all of my white blood cells stood up at
once and yelled,
"Aaaaaaaaaaaah!
Oooh! Oooh! Oooh!
Aaaaaaaaaaaah!"
Not willing to accept that I might be getting sick, and defying police-issued
curfews, I ventured forth into the city during one of the worst riots in the
city's history. Amidst burning, overturned cars, and police shooting over my
head, I began to grow delirious.
I grew more and more disoriented, and soon lost the travel bag that held my
clothes.
Shortly later, a friendly rickshaw driver came up and offered me a ride. I
asked him to take me someplace where I could bed down safely, but first,
could he take me to get some replacement clothes.
A few minutes later, in a virus-induced stupor, I'm thumbing through some
t-shirts in grimy little shop, when I see the familiar Cubist lettering of
"White Music." on a long-sleeved wine-colored t-shirt. I laughed out loud,
bought the shirt, and a few minutes later I woke up in a hospital (after
passing out in the rickshaw.)
For the next 10 days I slipped in and out of consciousness in a tiny room,
with screenless windows, and an open sewer just outside. I did notice,
however, that some kind soul had slipped my new XTC shirt onto me, and this
gave me some comfort (particularly in the frequent moments when I thought I
might be closing my eyes for the last time!)
So, my fellow Chalkhillians, I offer this anecdote as a testament to the
restorative powers of long-sleeved wine-colored XTC-shirts, and as a record
of the longest time I've ever worn their product.
MY CURRENT PERSONAL BEST: 10 DAYS.
------------------------------ Date: Sat, 2 Mar 1996 21:21:52 -0500 From: pebrantl@mailbox.syr.edu (Paul Brantley) Subject: XTC and art music In "Mayor of Simpleton" and "My Bird Performs", Andy and Colin respectively feign a kind of ignorance/disdain of "the examined life" while their art reveals a virtual celebration of it. Not only does Andy pay homage to an old rock and roll classic, but he surpasses it with his humor and verbal virtuosity . While claiming that Shakespeare sonnets leave him cold, Colin is singing over a "ground bass" right out of Purcell (way before Feelin' Groovy) that eventually supports some pretty wonderful polyphony at the end. For artists of such talent, mundane issues such as self-taught vs. formal education or consciousness vs. unconsiousness seem to be moot points. What do you think? In this light I would hope (and assume) that if the "orchestral" xtc comes to pass, they continue to follow their own genius -- as oppossed to hooking up with the usual Hollywood hacks who created the "symphonic" Yes and Pink Floyd embarrassments. Similarly, wasn't Paul McCartney responsible for some of the most inventive and avant garde music of almost thirty years ago -- which makes his recent "classical" ventures hopelessly anachronistic -- and boring? While I don't personally find it very satisfying, Frank Zappa's involvement in "concert music" was at least born out of a genuine love of the whole western art music tradition as represented by the contemporary composers he discovered in his youth: Varese and Harry Partch most notably. I've heard Andy speak of his general love of "early music" (pre-Baroque music), a treasure just waiting to be dug up in the field of his soul. I hope he buys the whole field. Is anyone else interested in these sort of things? Paul
------------------------------ Date: Sat, 2 Mar 1996 22:46:08 -0800 From: rimshot3@ix.netcom.com (ERIC ROSEN) Subject: Stealing a Cue form Piraro Chalkhills brothers & sisters... When a really daft yet inspiring idea that is XTC related hits one one of us, we are morally obligated to post it so, here goes... Rumours that Swindon's Finest are considering a tour (upon switching to a new label) compel me to relate what I read about comic artist/writer Piraro, author of Bizarro. Piraro wrote a new book of Bizarro comics and wanted to do a national book tour to support it. He suggested this to his publishing company but they rejected it because the book was only a $6-$7 item and therefore not financially worthy of the expenses involved (lodging, travel, promotion, etc.). Piraro being an avid Internet surfer, started communicating with his legions of fans about how he might effect a tour without the publisher's assistance. Fan response was brisk and soon, people all over the country were offering Piraro a place to stay should he visit their area. With the help of people close to him, Piraro was able to start dialogues with the volunteers (to make sure he wouln't be putting himself in harm's way) and worked out his lodging arrangements accordingly. Word of the makeshift tour reached the ears of the publishing weasels who then did a remarkable about face and agreed to cover the travel expenses (so as not to look ever so Scrooge-like). So, should an XTC tour (in some form) materialize, perhaps, the anxieties that AP underwent in dingy motel rooms in various middle-of-nowheres need not be revisited. ;-) Maybe, this would appeal to the record company as a cost cutting measure that has positive PR value. I can see it now, various names for the tour... The Intimate Tour, The I Am the Audience Tour, The Bizarro Tour, ... In earnest for us, ELR PS The idea of a double album split between orchestral and electric guitar bases sounds great. I think we're going to see a return to form i.e., innovation, self reinvention. What was slightly disturbing for me about Nonsuch was that it didn't seem like a whole new group (as was the case for all of their prior recordings). That CM recognizes the danger of self parody is a relief!! BTW, for all my railing about jettisoning the pop song structure, I still think their pop songs are groundbreaking. Not that they do things that have never been attempted (everyone's influenced by someone else) but that they habitually do the unexpected, the unconventional, the more challenging alternative, etc. The often mix two disparate things together to intriguing effect (takes guts to mix gregorian chants with reggae on a song about slavery -- Human Alchemy). Also, I think their influence is far and wide. It, like themselves, is not high profile but that does not take anything away from it. Amongst musicians, they are a commodity akin to platinum. You don't hear much talk about it day to day but, if it were suddenly gone, you'd hear about it.
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From: relph (John Relph)
Date: Sun, 3 Mar 1996 10:44:30 -0800
Subject: Rook
Ben Gott <BENG@hotchkiss.pvt.k12.ct.us> has been industrious and kind
enough to transcribe the chords to "Rook". You can find these chords
in the Chalkhills Archives (URL at the top of the digest).
Many thanks to Ben!
-- John
------------------------------
From: Saints3Den@aol.com
Date: Sun, 3 Mar 1996 18:17:57 -0500
to start
Hi! dear folks, often, while daydreaming at work,I try to think of some sort
of thread to start on Chalkhills. Quite often, I think of one , which turns
out to be kind of off the wall.
I recently recalled something that I read a long time ago in The Little
Express. Perhaps one of you actually wrote the letter it was in. I can't find
my old issues of T.L.E., but I remember it was something thusly: XTC song
titles have little if anything to do with the songs. For the life of me, I
don't see how someone can make a statement like that. I am pretty sure it was
that the writer was an XTC fan , and one of his friends told him that.
Does anyone else out there feel a statement like that has any
merit?
eddie
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Date: Sun, 3 Mar 1996 23:29:55 -0600
From: JH3 <jh3@cencom.net>
Subject: Some Lovely Chords, Don't You Think?
Note: The following tab is just a convenient excuse for me to make one more
plea for anyone in possession of Andy P.'s "Psychedelic Christmas" and
"Merry Christmas Song" from the 1992 Geffen Christmas Promo (doesn't have to
be the actual promo itself, y'know, a dub would do) to please e-mail me
privately at some point, at which point you will be offered all sorts of
interesting rare stuff. I've even got a poster or two and some badges if
you're into those.
Please!
--John H.
-----------------------------
SOME LOVELY (MY BROWN GUITAR)
Andy Partridge
D F
In my heart... in my heart...
A Amaj7 (4X222X)
You want some lovely, I got some lovely
D G
In my head... In my head
Where the lions wear the right tie, where the gems roar
G#7
There be lovely...
A Amaj7
You want some lovely, I got some lovely
D G
In my bed... in my bed
Where the ocean wears the shore down, where's the on-switch?
G#7 G#
There be lovely (laying waiting naked for you)
(Chorus:)
C# F# C# F# C#
...We can play every day, we can play at being lovers
F# C#
We can play every day
Bm-B (1 meas.) G# (1 meas.)
We can play on my brown guitar...
C# F# C# F# C#
...We can play every day, we can play at being lovers
F# C#
We can play every day
Bm-B (1 meas.) E (1 meas.)
We can play on my brown guitar
You want some lovely, I got some lovely
In my yard... in my yard
There be inchworms, there be footlong, there be yardsticks
Stir some lovely (laying waiting naked for you)
You want some lovely, I got some lovely (you got some, I got some etc.)
In my field... in my field
There be green grass, there be big sky, there be bluebirds
Come and nest there
(Chorus)
A Ab?
You want some lovely, I got some lovely
D F
In my heart... in my heart...
F
for you...
------------------------------ End of Chalkhills Digest #2-79 ******************************
Go back to Volume 2.
4 March 1996 / Feedback