Chalkhills Digest Volume 3, Issue 35
Date: Tuesday, 19 November 1996
Chalkhills Digest, Volume 3, Number 35
Tuesday, 19 November 1996
Today's Topics:
Umbilical; and Music Theory
SNL
All You Pretty Ignorant Sluts
I'm glad I bumped into you.
box set
Funk Pop A Roll
10cc/lonely by the lake
SNL, Girlfriends, Work
You took me down down down down a peg...
Martin Newell 'n' Stuff
FIVE KIDS?!?!?!?!
Dear God & Alia
Re: X-T-C
Generals and Majors glitch
I guess my flame is out
Through the Hill heard on NPR
Re: Tangents...
Having finished work
"Thanks for X-Mas" for Full Chorus?
Stung
Alternative Alschmernative
XTC Pronunciation
Administrivia:
Chalkhills Central has just upgraded to an O2, so please be patient.
We're having a few technical difficulties. Nothing serious. Yet.
To UNSUBSCRIBE from the Chalkhills mailing list, send a message to
<chalkhills-request@chalkhills.org> with the following command:
unsubscribe chalkhills
For all other administrative issues, send a message to:
<chalkhills-request@chalkhills.org>
Please remember to send your Chalkhills postings to:
<chalkhills@chalkhills.org>
World Wide Web: <http://chalkhills.org/>
The views expressed herein are those of the individual authors.
I bought myself a new notebook.
---------------------------------------------------------------------- Message-Id: <199611182224.OAA19141@dfw-ix7.ix.netcom.com> From: "Mark G. Cuevas" <litserv@ix.netcom.com> Subject: Umbilical; and Music Theory Date: Mon, 18 Nov 1996 14:22:46 -0800 From: G.M. Quinn <lovechunks@hotmail.com> in Chalkhills Vol. 3, No. 31 >Re: The unorthodox pronunciation of UMBILICAL in 'Season's Cycle' As an >English student, writer and Literature major, Andy most definitely uses a >bit too much poetic license. As Griff Rhys Jones said, "Yes, it's >charming, and completely wrong." When I first read your post, it took me back to the movie Amadeus. In one of the scenes from that movie the King was listening to Mozart's newly created piece. Upon conclusion, the King, though he enjoyed it, opined that it had "too many notes." Incensed, Amadeus asserted "it has neither too many notes nor too few . . . " That is what I feel here. Andy neither uses too much poetic license nor too little. My second reaction to your post was "What is an English *major* (i.e., one who has not yet even graduated) doing criticizing St. Andy's use of poetic license?" But I thought that was a bit too harsh. "Lovechunks" is, after all, entitled to her opinion thought I (however misguided, ill-advised, misinformed, or otherwise wrong). Oops, too harsh -- again. Let me take a different tack. Andy "breaks the established rules" of grammar (if at all) in the way J.S. Bach broke the established rules of musical convention. And we are better off for it. Breaking the rules of convention is distinct from being ignorant of those rules. For example, in music theory, parallel octaves are a no-no, but sometimes no other sound will do. In grammar, split infinitives are a no-no. But of course we have "To boldly go where no one has gone before." Perhaps Churchill said it best: "A split infinitive is something up with which I will no longer put." Aacckkk! Lastly, have *you* ever tried to put poetry to music? It is *much* more difficult than, say, scribbling in iambic pentameter for Literature 101. Da*n! There I go again. Too harsh. I guess this is a passionate point with me. If music were not intricately woven into Andy's poetry, I might agree with you. But it is. And I don't. From: Michael Kearns <mikek@cleveplayhouse.org> in Chalkhills Vol. 3, No. 31 Mikey! I LOVE YA MAN! Thank you for your well-thought-out post. Your knowledge of music theory is impressive indeed. After reading your post I thought "now here is a man who respects XTC and knows exactly why." IMNSHO we need more of that.
------------------------------ Date: Mon, 18 Nov 1996 17:52:05 -0500 (EST) From: Ted Harms <tmharms@library.uwaterloo.ca> Subject: SNL Message-ID: <Pine.OSF.3.91.961118174946.20845A-100000@library.uwaterloo.ca> From Dave G. originally and then a chorus commented: > >>Ted, you ignorant slut, Hey, I knew it from Saturday Night Live and I wasn't offended (guess I'm though I'm showing my age). But thanks to that big lug, JBH for leaping to my defence! > The "You ignorant slut" part is from the old Saturday Night Live, when > Dan Ackroyd and Jane Curtin did the "Weekend Update." Each week, after I thought it was Chevy Chase and one of his better ones was "Jane, you ignorant slut, who'd you sleep with to get this job?" Ah, yes, the creme de la creme of 70's humour... :-P Any time now it'll be popular once again to say 'Cheeseburgie, Cheeseburgie, Hamburgie, Fry!' Ted Harms Library, Univ. of Waterloo tmharms@library.uwaterloo.ca 519.888.4567 x3761 "Cat's yawn because they realize that there's nothing to do." - Jack Kerouac
------------------------------ Message-Id: <1.5.4.16.19961119111604.4197b43e@mindspring.com> Date: Tue, 19 Nov 1996 06:16:04 -0500 From: jes <xtc@mindspring.com> Subject: All You Pretty Ignorant Sluts At 11:57 AM 11/17/96 -0800 McGREGOC <McGREGOC@regents.ac.uk> wrote > The other one is from 'Paper Snow'. The line is" Laundry ticket >that exploded". My version "laundry CHICKEN that exploded". Its >probably a good idea that I checked the lyrics later. Snide reference to William S. burroughs for a book title "The Ticket That Exploded." Someone asked >James: didn't some awful female singer ca. 1991 do a cover of "tomorrow never >knows"? i seem to remember cringing a lot at her nerve. If my memory serves correctly, it was Sinead O'Connor. But there are other versions of that song that one should look up. Brian Eno and Phil Manzanera did a one-off concert as "801 Live" with Bill McCormack, Simon Phillips, and others, with an unbelievably beautiful version of Tomorrow Never Knows." While we're on the non-XTC cycle of Beatle covers, I should also point out that an incredible version of "She Said, She Said" can be found on a somewhat rare B-side to the Feelies "The High Road" which they used to cover in concert quite a bit. I miss the Feelies, personallly. That's another good band for XTC fans to look up. > #> From: shonnie@zeus.anet-chi.com (LaShawn M. Taylor) > > #> Me female. Me like XTC. Me no find male who like XTC. > >Me male. Me like XTC. Me taken. Sowwy. Me male, Me Love XTC, Me not taken. He'p!
------------------------------
From: R-MACDONALD@TANDBCBC.bcbc.gov.bc.ca
Date: 18 Nov 96 15:54:00 -0800
Message-Id: <199611181555.AA825@TANDBCBC.bcbc.gov.bc.ca>
Subject: I'm glad I bumped into you.
This is my first message to this or any mail list... I just signed
on to Chalkhills about a month ago and have kept myself busy
reading ever since. I've been listening to XTC since the first time
I heard Generals & Majors on the radio back in 1980. By 1983 I
owned WM, GO2, D&W's, ES, and Mummer and XTC was now my favourite
group which it has remained to this day. I own all the regular
(Canadian for me) pressings including the 5 Senses ep. I also
have half a dozen Canadian and UK 12" singles and the LOAFBW 7".
I bought Skylarking the day it came out here, so have Dear God
only as a 7" b-side. I have Nonsuch on CD (my first...I am a bit of
a record fan), also R&BB and FF just this month. So you can see what
sort of fan I am...Loyal, but not obsessive. I have tried to get as
much of their music as I could through the regular channels...with
a limited budget. All the talk here is opening up a lot of exciting
avenues for me...suddenly there are like minded people that have
access to songs I havn't heard...or demos of songs I love. Like many
of you I am craving new material...and access to demos would be great.
I have some of the demo's that were b-sides but no others..
I would be most gratefull for any info on others, and where one
could get them.
Enough about me...here are some comments on previous postings, etc.
Sorry if I am repeating or restarting any conversations that have
already been worked to death.
The other day I saw a used copy of a book called Punk Diary 1970-1979
(or something like that) it was supposed to come with a CD but the CD
was missing...anyways (the point) there was supposed to be an XTC track
on the disc (I'm not sure if it was music or an interview?) Has anyone
seen this?
Canadian bands that are worth listening to....Try Sloan, Super Freindz,
and the already mentioned Zumpano...all pop, all deserve more attention.
My favourite song on Nonsuch is Ugly Underneath...I havn't heard it
mentioned since I joined up.
XTC played here in Victoria when I was 14....I didn't know about them
until six months later. Ugh! It makes me feel sick.
Lastly, I arrived home the other day and my wife was listening to
FF...she has been a fan since before I had known her (over 9 years)
and her favourite song is Life Begins at the Hop!!
Thanks for listening. Rob.
------------------------------ Date: Mon, 18 Nov 1996 16:31:43 -0700 (MST) From: Miles or Gigi Coleman <coleman@cougarnet.byu.edu> Subject: box set Message-id: <0E13AOTV60028Z@ACS2.BYU.EDU> Chalksupercalifragilisticexpialidociousters, A question: In the picture disc box set of GO2, D&W and BS all of the bonus tracks are on them, so it appears that there is no difference from the single CDs with the bonus tracks. However, I heard that the picture box doesn't have the same re-mastering as the single CDs. Personally, I don't think there is a difference since the box set came out after some of those single CDs. Can anyone provide any help? Thanks, Miles Miles and Gigi Coleman Provo, Utah http://www.byu.edu/~coleman Family Home Page http://www.byu.edu/~coleman/guatenor Guatemala City North Mission Alumni Page http://www.mission.net Index for Alumni of LDS Missions
------------------------------
Message-ID: <32910878.3AF5@paonline.com>
Date: Mon, 18 Nov 1996 20:08:08 -0500
From: Patrick Adamek <Padamek9@paonline.com>
Subject: Funk Pop A Roll
Wanted to write a few words about my favorite XTC song. The last song
on "Mummer" (a great album in it's own right), Funk Pop A Roll is the
best use of the "3 minute" pop song formula I can think of. It took me
a considerable amount of time to locate Mummer on CD, it being the last
of their studio albums that I acquired (This back when Mayor of
Simpleton was still getting airplay). My older brothers had been
listening to XTC in my house since I can remember (I was 6 when "White
Music" came out), and XTC and the Beatles were the inspiration for a lot
of fun in my youth. I remember making up skits, etc. to "Toys" and
"Love on a Farmboy's Wages" with my younger brother and sister (in
addition, of course, to "Maxwell's Silver Hammer" and "Yellow
Submarine"). Getting back to the point...I'd not heard this album in
what was probably 7-8 years. I found it in a small CD store in the
import section for $18.95, which sounded like a steal to me.
I rushed it home and "plugged in," delighted of course to hear those
old "classics" as well as the other wonderfully crafted songs that form
this album. The experience I had not counted on was "rediscovering" the
last song on the disc. As a kid, I never paid much attention to it
probably because it wasn't sunny and happy like the rest, but as we all
do when we progress in our musical tastes, those qualities were no
longer the priority.
To me, this is Andy's "Radio, Radio" (EC) done better. The balanced
and well-crafted lyrics are the key to this song, but the accompanying
driving beat and the pain-filled calls of "aaaahhhhooooooooooooooo" are
brilliant. The maturity and completeness of the lyrics are amazing.
These are thoughts that I had developed over years of listening to the
muck that filled the top 40 (Casey Casem anyone?), and to find my
thoughts crystalized in this way provided one of those rare moments in
music listening when one is really inspired(?) by a song. The ironic
last stanza tops it off with "but please don't listen to me, I've
already been poisoned by this industry." In my book this far surpasses
Elvis Costello's try at the same concept..."I want to bite the hand that
feeds me..I want to bite that hand so badly."
Anyway, just some thoughts. I'd like to hear if others share a
passion for this song, or any comments at all. Patrick
"The young to them are mistakes who only want bread but they're
force-fed cake"
------------------------------ Date: Tue, 19 Nov 1996 15:29:40 +1300 (NZDT) Message-Id: <v01540b03aeb782506c72@[139.80.228.170]> From: james.dignan@stonebow.otago.ac.nz (James Dignan) Subject: 10cc/lonely by the lake >I was also a big fan of 10cc, who I feel were very much like XTC, great >pop music but never fully recognized or appreciated. which brings me to a question one of you must know the answer to; XTC have made some great videos over the years - were any of them directed by Godley & Creme? >And speaking of Chicago, any Chalkhillers around the Windy City? >Me female. Me like XTC. Me no find male who like XTC. Me no find male >period. Me one unhappy female. Enough said. :( perhaps you in wrong country! James
------------------------------ Message-Id: <v03007800aeb6c91496ff@[207.77.26.93]> Date: Mon, 18 Nov 1996 21:31:35 -0500 From: Ira Lieman <aym@axe.intercall.com> Subject: SNL, Girlfriends, Work Aah. All this talk about Saturday Night Live makes me wish it was still funny. But, truth be told, the show premiered on October 11, 1975 -- my 3rd birthday. And it seems like most of the people here either have XTC-sympathetic significant others or are looking for them. I'm one of the latter. Anyone know a nice Jewish XTC-loving girl in the NY area? And today I'm playing "Fossil Fuels" at my desk at work as a computer tech (about 40 years old I'll guess) is working on my system that suffered a cyber-burp. He hears "Mayor Of Simpleton" and says, "That's XTC, right?" He then picks up the CD cover and says, "Making Plans for Nigel. Wow, that brings back memories." -ira "Sgt. Rock is going to help me..."
------------------------------
Date: Mon, 18 Nov 1996 22:25:22 -0500 (EST)
Message-Id: <199611190325.WAA27137@cyber1.servtech.com>
From: Joshua Hall-Bachner <particle@servtech.com>
Subject: You took me down down down down a peg...
My subject today has nothing to do with this post, other than to indicate
that the song in question is damn good. It should have been on Nonsvch.
Along with all the other songs that were demoed for Nonsvch but which
weren't on it. IMHO, of course.
>- I had a dream last night that a new XTC CD came out, but it was just
> demos, and called "(somebody's name) Demos". Very strange - are we all
> crazy? I mean, this is at least the 3rd XTC dream in this list...
The odder thing is that sounds suspiciously similar to "The Bootleg Album."
Personally, I have only had one dream about a band I like; that was about
TMBG and really only involved getting a very strange promo copy of their new
album (three weeks before it came out).
> #> Another song from Nonsuch that nobody ever mentions is My Bird
> #> Performs. It's one of Colin's most beautiful songs.
>
>Another yes! Although it sounds too much like a fusion of 'Ten
>Feet Tall' and that riff from 'Jump'...
Hm? I must say, the similarity between the "Jump" riff and the MBP one is
pretty obvious...but the similarity stops there. I don't know where you're
pulling Ten Feet Tall out of here -- I don't see any similarity at all.
>And from JHB:
>>>Ted, you ignorant slut,
>
>>Ummm, Dave, was this really neccesary? What did Ted ever do to you?
>
>JHB... you didn't get it. Sarcasm. For more info, see any 70's Saturday
>Night Live.
Wait...what happened to the *funny* part? Don't you usually have to have
something to be sarcastic *about* first?
>That's a Saturday Night Live reference from the 70's ("Jane, you ignorant
>slut") and was not a insult directed at Ted.
*Sigh* Oh well, I better go turn on Comedy Central, then. This is what I get
for being born past the prime of SNL, huh? :(
>I get the impression people don't like the Bumper
>Cars demo either (at least Peter and Josh told me they didn't like it), but I
>think it's one of the best new songs Andy has going for him.
I must admit that it has grown on me since I said that. My one sticking
point is the "Yes sir, no sir, in your straightest jacket" line -- it's just
too damn similar to Braniac's Daughter. But, on the whole, it's a pretty
good song, and perfectly fitting with the "Mummer2"-ish ambience of the
demos. Can't wait to hear "Playground"!
>I thought the "Belgium Chocolate" metaphor that someone wrote about me was
>inspired but misguided. I've love very expensive red wine, but can still
>enjoy a $10.00 bottle of California Cabernet Sauvignon. I like all kinds of
>music, REM and the Kinks included, but the reason that I spend time reading
>and contributing to this newsletter is because I believe that XTC is that
>very expensive bottle of red wine.
Okay -- that's right. That's why we're all here. But, as you say, you can
still gulp down the less expensive stuff and *ENJOY* it. That's my (and
everyone else's) point -- that just because XTC may be a better band than
the others, that doesn't reduce their talent in any way.
>i also really like BOOKS ARE BURNING. LISTEN to those guitar solos, over
>and over, really LOUD. this is 99.999% acheivement of near Be*tl*-ish
>perfection.
>Sigh... you're missing my point. Just because SOME people don't
>like a song doesn't make it bad. I like both of them because
>they're GOOD. They're '*REALLY BAD SONGS*' in YOUR opinion, NOT
>everyone else's. Making sense now?
I'm not saying that. What I'm saying is that it's liked for doing a good job
of being a bad song. That is, the form STST is trying to fit is a musical
and lyrical pastiche of another genre, and in doing that it succeeds. But in
the process, it doesn't really say anything musically or lyrically. So it's
very success is tied up in the fact that it is, indeed, "bad" -- if it
weren't, it wouldn't be able to acomplish such a parody. There is crap that
you can like, either in spite of it's being crap, or *because* it's
crap...hell, I like STST, but not as a serious song.
>(boy, does that make me feel
>old...want to start singing "Whole Lotta Age" to me, Josh? I'm 30).
Yeah! If we get rid of all the "old" people on this list, we can all look
forward to getting 50K of "That song sucks!" in our mailboxes every morning.
>Who was it that mentioned their fondness for The Sugarplastic?!?! I,
>too am a recent.. but no less "rabid" fan. I love this cd!!!! (Bang,
>the Earth is Round)
Just about everybody, about four months ago.
Personally, I've heard two cuts from it (Don't Sleep and Polly Brown) and I
didn't especially care for them. Someone used the word "cloying." I think
that, more or less, sums up my feelings towards the songs. I will give 'em
another spin later, though, and see if my tastes have changed in the past
three months...
Josh, who thinks he's lord of cre-A-A-A-AY-tion :)
/---------------------------Joshua Hall-Bachner---------------------------\
| particle@servtech.com http://www.servtech.com/public/particle/ |
| "I won't die until I'm dead." -- They Might Be Giants, "On The Drag" |
\-------------------------- Eschew Obfuscation ---------------------------/
------------------------------ Date: Tue, 19 Nov 1996 00:05:21 -0600 (CST) Message-Id: <199611190605.AAA17181@insosf1.netins.net> From: JH3 <jh3@netins.net> Subject: Martin Newell 'n' Stuff Chalks: Those of you (hi Ben!) in the US who might be thinking of picking up Martin Newell's "Greatest Living Englishman" as a $24 import might want to wait instead for "Box Of Humbug," a soon-to-be-released 3-CD set which you should be able to get for $34 or so. It's supposed to include "TGLE" plus the "Off White Album" & the "Let's Kiosk EP." It's also supposed to be limited to 1000 sets, though. And as long as I'm posting anyway, let me 1) welcome J. Isaacs to the "Go 2 Is the BEST" club -- glad to have you aboard, J.!; 2) state that I think "Ram" is not only McCartney's best solo LP but the best record any of the Beatles ever did after the big breakup, even beating out "Plastic Ono Band"; and 3) chastise Mr. Ted Harms who dismissed the awesome Catherine Wheel (the band, not the pyrotechnic display) as a mere "shoegazer" act -- they're much more emotional, energetic, and song-oriented than all the Jesus & Mary Chain wanna-be's of the world *put together*. And finally, Brookes McKenzie sez: >James: didn't some awful female singer ca. 1991 do a cover of "tomorrow never >knows"? i seem to remember cringing a lot at her nerve. I'm probably wrong, but wasn't that SexGangChildren? I seem to vaguely remember that cringing feeling as well... --John Hedges
------------------------------ Date: Tue, 19 Nov 1996 08:30:55 -0600 (CST) From: AMANDA OWENS <ACOEA@jazz.ucc.uno.edu> Subject: FIVE KIDS?!?!?!?! Message-id: <01IC0UVVFRY28ZDUTL@jazz.ucc.uno.edu> Okay, I don't think Holly and Harry Partridge are two in a line of five kids. Where did this info cross your table, pray tell? Pronunciation: I always pronounced it ecstasy till a bunch of people around me talked and called them X-T-C, pronouncing each letter distinctly. So I flip between the two pronunciations. I'm sketchy on Marianne and Andy's divorce, but I think she cheated on him or something. Got lonely with him being off all the time, I dunno. (Well that's a nice way to throw 15 years of marriage straight down the toilet. Hell, Colin cheated on Carol way back when and they've been married for.....22 years I do believe....) I'll add my stuff on here.... XTC song of the day: Towers of London (I've been watching too much of my XTC At the Manor tape lately and the song is stuck in my head.) Non-XTC song of the day: My Own Sunrise-guess who sings this...go on, guess... XTC misheard lyrics of the day, compliments of my mother....(From Senses Working Overtime)-Turds and treasure and there's 1 2 3 4 5...... Thank you, and goodnight. Amanda
------------------------------ From: villotta.maurizio@iol.it Message-Id: <199611191554.QAA07791@iol-mail.iol.it> Date: Tue, 19 Nov 96 16:52:17 Subject: Dear God & Alia First of all, Dear God is one of the best song Andy (or anybody else) wrote. It's one of the few songs I've listened to that my sister has found interesting, and that's saying a lot. Every XTC fan I know lists it among his favourites, and the video was really good. Now that this load's off, let's start again. 1) XTC embarassing songs My heart would say "None!!!", but my mind knows better... I really find Life Begins At The Hop too silly, with its catchy but banal refrain, and while I liked Andy's "The lure of salvage", "Go+" is really inconsistent... 2)Countdown to Christmas... Nothing more than a funny Christmas song, perfectly played by the boys but not essential 3) Go2 A good album, but a bit too neurotic and disjointed. Maybe their worst record. 4) Mummer I saw some negative comments on Wonderland... I really find it a good song, yet maybe Steve Nye's production was a bit heavy here (yet definitely no trace of Japan's sound). 5) TMBG I have the impression some chalkhillians really dislike (hate?) They Might Be Giants... I really can't see why, as their love for XTC is evident and the (in)famous song XTC VS. ADAM ANT is clearly an ironic homage to the group. Besides, I don't really think they should be considered as clones or something like that, because XTC are only one of the many influences of these boys. 6) Elvis Elvis Costello is my second fave, so mind your words or I could get really angry...
------------------------------ Message-Id: <2.2.16.19961119160343.30ff9d68@cic-mail.lanl.gov> Date: Tue, 19 Nov 1996 09:03:43 -0700 From: DeWitt Henderson <dewitth@lanl.gov> Subject: Re: X-T-C OK, since it seems to practically be coming to a vote, I say "X-T-C", not the designer drug pronunciation. Now, for the rest of my post, I apologize to all - it's about Macca and EC. But (Mr. Relph) I still think it will be of interest, based on the last gazillion Chalkhills. So if you're not interested, please skip-ola. Well, one other thing first that could be of interest to any serious music fan (which most of you are, right?). The novel "Glimpses", by Lewis Shiner. It won the World Fantasy Award, and it's about a guy who can recreate famous 'lost' recordings in his head. He hooks up w/a bootleg CD maker in LA. Very inventive and wild - it's about the Beatles, Hendrix, Beach Boys, Doors, ??? Hard to explain here - find a copy and read the blurb on the cover. Regarding McCartney/EC - how many of you really like the stuff these guys have written together? I think it's (almost) all good. For those of you that don't know, they've co-written songs on EC's "Spike", "Mighty Like a Rose", "All This Useless Beauty", "Brutal Youth"(not sure here), Macca's "Flowers in the Dirt", "Off the Ground", and... have I left any out here? Finally, I think this is cool: a distant relative of my wife, a pretty old guy who lives in the English Midlands, was at my in-laws a couple of years ago, and we got to talking. Well, he lived in Liverpool for a long time, and when the Fab Four were starting out, this guy hired 'em to play at a "teen club" for like 10 pounds! He said Lennon had a tough upbringing - this guy knew all their families as well, plus Gerry & the Pacemakers and many others. I asked if the 10 pounds was *each*, and he said "oh no, lad, they're weren't worth that much yet, that was for the *band*". Cheers. * ---------------------------------- | DeWitt Henderson | | Los Alamos National Laboratory | | CIC-13 MS P223 | | Los Alamos, NM 87544 | | 505/665-0720 | * ----------------------------------
------------------------------ Date: 19 Nov 96 16:12:00 GMT From: david.mcguinness@bbc.co.uk (David McGuinness) Subject: Generals and Majors glitch Message-Id: <"<7D1F923281821573>7D1F923281821573@GW.BBC"@-SMF-> Hi all. Am I imagining it or, quite apart from a glitch, does the pitch change in Generals and Majors as well? I'm sure there's a bit where it sounds like someone has leant against the reels of the good old-fashioned analogue tape machine and slowed it down momentarily. I don't have the CD to hand so I can't give you a time code reference BUT listen out people. I never noticed it on my old vinyl copy, but on FF it causes momentary mental distraction as I'm shimmying my way around the kitchen. Of course it's all part of a Virgin conspiracy to supply the most discerning people of the world with shoddy goods (see previous posting). oo-oo-oo crunch (Making Plans for Nigel) David McGuinness
------------------------------ From: Monical702@aol.com Date: Tue, 19 Nov 1996 12:11:29 -0500 Message-ID: <961119121128_1649105157@emout11.mail.aol.com> Subject: I guess my flame is out > the Presidents ... do any of you like them?< I was listening to "Candy" as I read this post. Their music strikes me as XTC-ish in that it's about the little things in our life that make living worthwhile. (Before I get flamed, my favorite album is Nonsuch and I love all of the political songs.) Like "Grass" or "My Bird Performs" (although that has greater implications) it makes you appreciate the wonder all around you ... even peaches. I don't think I've ever wanted to eat a peach as badly I did after I heard that song! Also, I bought _Author Unknown_ and let an XTC fan friend of mine listen to it and he said Mr. Falkner sounded like ... Queen. Any comments? Monica Houston, Texas Former Lurker
------------------------------ Message-Id: <199611200004.SAA15858@mamba.arlut.utexas.edu> Subject: Through the Hill heard on NPR Date: Tue, 19 Nov 1996 18:04:07 -0600 (CST) From: "Stuart McDow" <smcdow@arlut.utexas.edu> Hey, Just heard a snippet of "Through the Hill" on NPR's 'All things considered' - in between stories, which is where those snippets generally happen. Pretty cool, because usually, I hardly ever recognize what those snippets are. Boy, do I feel smug. :-) -- Stuart McDow Austin, Texas
------------------------------
Message-Id: <v01540b08aeb7d35e6e5c@[204.254.68.30]>
Date: Tue, 19 Nov 1996 14:50:35 -0700
From: gondola@deltanet.com (E.B.)
Subject: Re: Tangents...
From: h.h.name@mail.utexas.edu (Mike Mills)
>
>I can't think of a specific instance, but I do seem to recall
>that a very familiar Beatles song had changed for me significantly
>when I found something I had never heard before after the 10,000th listen.
Here's one for you folks, which falls nicely in line with the recent
discussion about cutting one channel out of some Skylarking track ("Big
Day?") to hear beat-skewed guitars: Play "Strawberry Fields Forever" on the
left channel only. About a minute into the song (the point where the two
takes were spliced together), suddenly it will turn into a Run DMC track!
If you listen, you'll know what I mean. ;)
From: William Ham <bham@aone.com>
>
>[radio show anecdotes, including]
>
>her: do you play any alternative stuff on your show?
>me: aren't i now?
>her: well...yeah, i guess, but...do you have any nirvana or pearl jam?
>me: (disgruntled sigh)
Wow, that's hilarious. :) And jeez, do some people out there really
consider the Dave Matthews Band more alternative than XTC??? YIKES.
Hit-and-run grumpiness: The Cardigans are dull, samey and melodically weak;
Adrian Belew's Here is OK but probably his worst album ever; Ron Sexsmith
is well-intentioned but way too conservative for me; and Sting has been a
lost cause for years.
EB
------------------------------ From: Bob Thomas <BobT@cait.wustl.edu> Subject: Having finished work Date: Tue, 19 Nov 96 16:18:00 CST Message-ID: <32923277@msgw.cait.wustl.edu> Hi there. Just a note to say that I have completed my work -- reading Chalkhills digests! Yes, I am completely up to date on all your comings and goings. I know you're jealous, but we all can't slack off work and responsibility in exactly the same ways. I mean we're all different, aren't we? Now this "songs I like and am not embarrassed to say so" thing you have going about Shake You Donkey Up. To that I say, doodle lang doodle lang, doodle lang lang doodle lang lang. And I mean that sincerely. But seriously, I am always amazed when I listen to that song and one other, namely Living Through Another Cuba. Maybe I'm amazed that anyone could even imagine the structure of those songs ( and that's one McCartney and one Lennon reference in a single sentence. Please send my prize to the same address to which my T-shirt was sent). To my ears they are incredible renderings. I'm not sure I can explain it, my education lacking what it does. Let's try Cuba. The song is waves crashing on the shore (of, say, an island country in the Caribbean), then receding to form again and hammer home a relentless theme. BA!!! Its also a running snide editorial -- spoken, not sung really -- on big countries that make war on small island countries for grins, threatening the entire world in the process. Machine guns become bongos, or something, then turn back into guns. I'm going to go listen again. Meanwhile, I wonder about your thoughts on the Cuba song; but I warn you, any talk of tertian harmonies or Ionian constructs will be met scrunched up faces. Please put me down as a big intercourse fan. I can't wait to see the results of the survey. Regards, Bob
------------------------------ From: keone@ix.netcom.com Message-ID: <3291AEB4.A34@ix.netcom.com> Date: Tue, 19 Nov 1996 12:57:24 +0000 Subject: "Thanks for X-Mas" for Full Chorus? Is anyone out in XTC land a musician who has experience transcribing for all male or male/female choruses? I think it would be really nifty if "Thanks for X-mas" worked its way into various holiday season concerts around the country. A friend of mine in the local Gay Men's Chorus said that the only way they would consider material is if it were transcribed and ready for rehersal. Not being a musician, I don't have the foggiest about how to do that. But as the holiday season warms up I put on "TFX" and imagine it arranged for chorus, horns, and bells. Although it would lose its Phil Spector wall-o-sound shimmer, it would sound wonderful sandwiched in there between "Winter Wonderland" and "Silent Night." Anyone up to the task for X-MAS 1997? XTC deserves holiday concert immortality! VANYA
------------------------------ Message-Id: <199611192014.MAA29647@sgi.sgi.com> Date: Tue, 19 Nov 1996 15:07:33 EST From: "Todd Bernhardt" <tbernha@columbiaenergy.e-mail.com> Subject: Stung Hi, y'all ... barely able to keep up with the volume, much less respond to any of it (that which is worth responding to, that is), but I couldn't pass this up... Someone's girlfriend said that she thinks "Sting is a pompous overbearing narcissistic pseudo-intellectual that writes aggressively bad self-serving lyrics," to which Mike Mills (THAT Mike Mills? Nah...) replied, "Wow, who's your girlfriend? I hope I never meet her for your sake." Me, too. If I weren't married, I could really go for a woman with such a clear-headed view of the world... ":^) I mean, the Police were okay in their day (hey, Dave G., I was listening to them, too, the other day -- synchonicity!), but I think Sting's most creative daze are behind him. (Speaking of Synchronicity, does "Mother" suck, or what? And is "Miss Gradenko" (sp?) a pop gem, or what?). Oh, and Big Express is a grrrrreat album. One thing, though, Mike M: the *tempo* on "Shake" remains the same throughout the song. The cool thing that Mr. P does is phrase the vocals in the chorus in a different meter than the rest of the song. If I'm not mistaken (and I very well could be), he's singing in 6, while the drums and bass play in 4. BTW, I've really enjoyed the music theory discussions in the last, what is it, 958 Chalkhills that I've received the last several weeks. Perhaps some of you musically knowledgeable chalksters out there could analyze -- I mean really pick apart -- a song every once in a while. I think the list is full of enuf musicians, schooled and otherwise, that this could be a lot of fun. That's all from me ... ByeBye! (I know that's an obvious signoff, but it *is* from Funk Pop A Roll ":^)
------------------------------ Message-Id: <v01550100aeb7bc4a267e@[146.6.72.36]> Date: Tue, 19 Nov 1996 14:14:14 -0600 From: h.h.name@mail.utexas.edu (Mike Mills) Subject: Alternative Alschmernative Hey Chalkhillonians, First off, a sincere and heartfelt thank you to all of you who emailed me privately about the "SNL" thing. It showed you cared even though 800 posts in the next digest mentioned the reference. I guess I just sounded so desperate. Anyway, thanks, I remember it now. A classic period in "SNL"'s history. (And the ONLY period, in my opinion!!!!) > "This World Over" The lyrics are great - The music is > bad Police rip-off. ((shields up)) ) Oh, but the bass is sooooo cool. Once again, Colin shows his stuff beautifully. You wouldn't find Sting doin' nothin' like THAT. And the drumming could have been Terry Chambers...(they missed him already?)... >her: do you play any alternative stuff on your show? >me: aren't i now? >her: well...yeah, i guess, but...do you have any nirvana or pearl jam? >me: (disgruntled sigh) Yikes!! This actually happened?!? Typical. Now that the word "alternative" has no meaning since what was alternative is now mainstream but has kept that annoying label (and the "real" alternative can't be called that lest it be confused w/Nirvana, Pearl Jam, etc.), we've got problems. I actually remember when "alternative" *was* alternative!! They were playing pop stuff like Morrissey and The Sundays and then Nirvana came in and changed everything. Not that I begrudge Nirvana-- I think "Nevermind" is one of the greatest rock albums ever-- but just like The Beatles, they opened the doors for a flood of baaaaaaad music. Now who do we have? Silverchair? > but couldn't they at least slip in a >"senses working overtime" or a "generals and majors" and not just in the >80's flashback portion of the day? No kidding! Why do these people ignore all other music as if it had nothing to say? Most people probably wouldn't even KNOW "Senses" if it came on; it's not like it's been played to death and people are sick of hearing it. By God, if I had my own radio show-- I'd play everything from Buddy Holly to The Beatles to The Smiths and Elvis Costello, XTC, The Sugarplastic, Joe Jackson, Nirvana, ANYTHING with a good pop hook and a good sound, from ANY era. (any takers?...) >(shut up man you're only 21!) So am I!! Power, brother!! >(Hey, this is National Diabetes Month, isn't >it? I should give some money up. While we're on the subject (and if you're going to be so generous) I am a diabetic as well. Dave Gregory, while not exactly my *hero*, is someone I look up to for inspiration, being diabetic in a band and all (the way I see myself someday). P.S. - the shots don't hurt (if you do 'em right) >I wish I could take my name out of all caps, but I don't know how!!!!!!! Do you have a "settings" window you can get at? Through this I've been able to change my name to Mike Mills. Not that I care that your name's in all caps, but you seem to be disturbed by it. Actually, I think it's kind of cute. :) Well, I'm 11 minutes late for class (but I don't care!!!!!) Mike Mills (P.S. - my group RULES!!!!)
------------------------------ Message-Id: <199611191906.LAA18810@inreach.inreach.com> Date: 19 Nov 96 11:10:59 -0800 From: Dan Pinder <pinder@inreach.com> Subject: XTC Pronunciation According to the book, Chalkhills and Children, Andy derived the name from The Man Who Found The Lost Chord with Jimmy Durante, when he mutters during his pivotal transcendant experience (in his own inimitable way), "I'm in ecs-ta-cy!" hence the letters and pronunciation X-T-C. I'd think that would put the "ecstacy" argument to bed. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Dan Pinder "My necktie began to look like everybody pinder@inreach.com else's necktie, and they admired my http://www.onesteprecords.com/ good taste!" -Ken Nordine - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
------------------------------ End of Chalkhills Digest #3-35 ******************************
Go back to Volume 3.
20 November 1996 / Feedback