Chalkhills Digest Volume 5, Issue 173
Date: Tuesday, 13 April 1999
Chalkhills Digest, Volume 5, Number 173
Tuesday, 13 April 1999
Today's Topics:
Things
Forgot to kick someone
Re: Best and Worst
Re: Dave Seddon's List, etc.
Re: Gabriel & Kraftwerk
XTC vs. Snoopy vs. The Red Baron
Waspies?
Tattoo You
What's all the fuss?
Re: Yes, you heard me...
Whales and Rheos
XTC and Spandau Ballet
Mountains of mail
Making love to a vampire with Chalkhills on my knee
W.A.S.P
What's this? It's got a good beat!
Who ran the iron horse?
A few random thoughts
Naughty Harrison!
...and another thing!
Verpe Pipe snippet
Plublicising AV2
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All this squabbling I've hated.
---------------------------------------------------------------------- From: mollyfa@juno.com Date: Mon, 12 Apr 1999 16:21:28 -0400 Subject: Things Message-ID: <19990412.162446.3094.0.MollyFa@juno.com> Ken said, <<I wonder if a better gauge of impact of music on one might be a short list of singles (video or vinyl/cd/cassette) , say , top 5.>> Okay here are my top five singles. 1. Grass - XTC 2. Strawberry Fields Forever - The Beatles 3. Black Coffee in Bed - Squeeze 4. Wuthering Heights - Kate Bush 5. Jump - XTC Also, I love both The Beatles and Beach Boys. Both have done great stuff, but I love The Beach Boys. Sadly, I don't have any of their albums, but my parents have a couple. of their albums. I love how Brian Wilson wrote a lot of the songs, and oh the harmonies are to die for. :) Molly
------------------------------ Date: Mon, 12 Apr 1999 15:42:53 -0500 (CDT) From: Steve Fish <newman@jump.net> Subject: Forgot to kick someone Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.02.9904121538300.14184-100000@serv1.jump.net> I sent in my list of personal musical likes/dislikes, but forgot to mention who I would most like to kick: There are so many good choices, but I think I would settle for any of the members of Hanson. Thanks for giving me the chance to finish venting my spleen. I feel much better now. Steven M. Fish
------------------------------ Date: Mon, 12 Apr 1999 15:35:01 -0500 (CDT) From: Steve Fish <newman@jump.net> Subject: Re: Best and Worst Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.02.9904121434290.2296-100000@serv1.jump.net> > All of this talk about best and worst records has got me thinking. Here's > some fun categories to ponder: Least favourite moment on Apple Venus1: I still feel the body of the song "River of Orchids" is a bit cacophonous. ...but just a bit. Least Fav XTC song: The Somnambulist Artist most people seem to think is pretty naff, but you actually quite enjoy: Conlin Nancarrow (player piano composer) Worst Beatles song: Revolution #9 (Yes, I know it's cool in a strange sort of way, but it's just too irritating and uninspired) Songs that should have been strangled at birth: Everything Zen (Bush) I Got You, Babe (Sonny & Cher) Auld Lang Syne Extremely popular artists that you can't see what all the fuss is about: Almost all popular artists. Oh, I have to pick one? Ok, I'll choose Madonna. Musician you'd like to kick hard: Whackiest Title for a song: (Mainstream Song) Several Species of Small Furry Animals Gathered Together in a Cave and Grooving with a Pict. (Pink Floyd) (Out-there Song) Dead Puppies - The Ogden Edsl Wahalia Blues Ensemble Mondo Bizzario Band Most Unpleasant Musical Experience: Trying to sleep at home and having my neighbor drive up at 1:00 am with rap music blaring, windows down, and a strong desire to sit in his car for 45 minutes until I come outside, beat on his window and remind him it's almost 2:00 and in 4 hours I have to go to work. That and listening to just about any country music. ======================= Steven M. Fish
------------------------------ Message-Id: <s711ff02.030@tcwgroup.com> Date: Mon, 12 Apr 1999 14:10:34 -0700 From: "Dane Pereslete" <peresd@tcwgroup.com> Subject: Re: Dave Seddon's List, etc. Yes, dammit, I have to jump into the ridiculousness as I never have anything intellectually relevant to contribute! ;-) Least favourite moment on Apple Venus1: the quality of Colin's vocal on "Frivolous" as if it was recorded on a boombox condenser mic, is that an intentional effect, or just poor recording quality? Whichever, it spoils the song for me... Least Fav XTC song: Wonderland Artist most people seem to think is pretty naff, but you actually quite enjoy: Stan Ridgway Worst Beatles song: Revolution No. 9 Songs that should have been strangled at birth: "I Write the Songs" "Copacabana" Extremely popular artists that you can't see what all the fuss is about: any of the so-called "Boy Groups" Mariah Carey Offspring Elton John Marilyn Manson Musician you'd like to kick hard: Kenny G (but only if I get to kick him into unconsciousness!) Whackiest Title for a song: "Bubbles in the 21st Century Schizoid Man" by the Roto-Rooter Goodtime Christmas Band (King Crimson as if performed by Lawrence Welk) Most Unpleasant Musical Experience: Jaco Pastorius' own quintet performance at the Playboy Jazz Festival (only a few years before his untimely demise) in which he was so stoned out of his gourd that he not only messed in his pants, but could only stumble around the stage playing feedback through his amp and was booed off of the stage 10 minutes into the set - what a tragic waste of one of the most incredible God-given talents to grace our planet!! (take heed kids...drugs/alcohol can only destroy!) AHEM! (sheepishly realizing he's on a pulpit, steps down) Now, on a lighter note, Cheryl <cxtc@rocketmail.com> wrote: >I really "love" the cracking noise at "My face >would crack in two...". You might consider it a "cracking noise" then! (UK definition) ;-) (sorry, I just couldn't resist...) Ridiculously, Dane *------------------------------------------------------- Logging in from beautiful Glendale, CA USA daneperes@aol.com -or- bramage64@aol.com *-------------------------------------------------------
------------------------------ Message-ID: <19990412212920.33485.qmail@hotmail.com> From: "frederick rains" <f_rains@hotmail.com> Subject: Re: Gabriel & Kraftwerk Date: Mon, 12 Apr 1999 14:29:20 PDT Just writing in to answer a query posed by Iain Fisher back in digest#5-165: in regards to XTC returning after so long and wondering what in the hell was up w/Kraftwerk and Peter Gabriel remaining dormant-I don't know about Kraftwerk (not my cuppa per se), but I am checking up on PG's site over at www.realworld.on.net for updates on the actual release date for his new LP, yes, finally! So far, they have only announced its title, "UP" chosen weirdly enough the day REM released their "up". Sounds interesting, all for now. Fred R "my favorite food? Cherry-flavored pez, no doubt about it"
------------------------------
Message-ID: <3712764B.2B234C5E@zfn.uni-bremen.de>
Date: Tue, 13 Apr 1999 00:40:11 +0200
From: Erich Sellheim <sellheim@zfn.uni-bremen.de>
Subject: XTC vs. Snoopy vs. The Red Baron
Hello everyone,
recently there's been some talk about The Royal Guardsmen's "Snoopy vs.
The Red Baron", and I think I can offer a new and bizarre perspective of
the song. Shortly after it became a hit, there was a German song called
"Der Major" by an obscure singer by the name of Sigi Hoppe, and this song
was a complete rip-off of "Snoopy..." (while claiming its own songwriting
credits). It went about some train robbery in England and had the same kind
of chorus as the original, this one going "10, 20, 30, 40 Mille und mehr"
("10, 20, 30, 40 thousands (of pounds) and more"). The XTC connection? Here
it is: The chorus melody of the German song is slightly altered, resulting
in something exactly like the beginning of the chorus of "Young Cleopatra"
("My oh my, what a sight for sore eyes")! Andy Partridge stealing from
German would-be hitmakers stealing from The Royal Guardsmen? Maybe not...
Another strange thing I stumbled across was an XTC article in a German free
magazine which claimed that every true fan of the band knew that the "XTC
face" on the Drums And Wires cover was indeed a caricature of Barry Andrews
(as the band's way of saying goodbye to him). Anyone ever heard of that? I
was amazed at the mass of songs I considered to be okay or even pretty good
(and not ridiculous at all) to be found in the "embarrassing songs"
section, so I'd like to know if this may be due to the lyrics; as someone
who doesn't speak English as first language, it's pretty easy for me to
ignore lyrics while listening to music. I have to say that I think the
better songs by Gilbert O' Sullivan, Neil Diamond or Barry Manilow (or
Billy Joel and Elton John for that matter) are quite good, strictly
musically speaking, yet they constantly get criticized for being mainstream
or sappy. IMHO, these singers have at least achieved something which most
of the really popular artists of this decade haven't: having written a
couple of memorable melodies. The music which is coming out of radios
nowadays is what I would call embarrassing; embarrassing for pure lack of
composing talent (and not likeable at all). Lightweight songs like "Mandy"
or even "Lady In Red" are, in my opinion, really nice and well-crafted, but
not embarrassing (perhaps a closer listen to the lyrics might change
that). I find it odd that obviously there are XTC fans who love songs like
"I Can't Own Her" or "Bungalow", but probably hate, say "Bright Eyes" by
Art Garfunkel or "If You Leave Me Now" by Chicago. Could this have
something to do with our suspicion that XTC are not very "cool", and that
at least we don't want to be caught listening to something even less
"cool"? It stroke me how many people (including myself) singled out Colin's
bass on "Greenman" as one of their favourite moments on AV 1, as this is
possibly the only moment on the whole album which could be described as
"cool" (not meaning just "good", but in the "baseball cap" sense of the
word). Anyway, as someone (rightly) already mentioned The Pipkins' "Gimme
Dat Ding" as a favourite "ridiculous" song, I might add that I've recently
bought the follow-up single to that on a flea market, which is a cover of
The Coasters "Yakety Yak", and on the B-side there is a cover version of
"Sugar And Spice" (originally by The Searchers?) which has the low and
grunting voice from "Gimme Dat Ding" going "Sugar and spice, everything
nice", sounding exactly like Captain Beefheart in his (different) song of
the same name (released about 3 years earlier on "Trout Mask Replica")!
Coincidence? Answering some even more XTC-irrelevant questions: "Me And
You (And A Dog Named Boo)" is by Lobo, while I think that "I Eat Cannibals"
is by Toto Nuelo (or something similar). The original version of "Chirpy
Chirpy Cheep Cheep" is indeed by Middle Of The Road, creators of such
bubblegum wonders as "Soley Soley", "Samson And Delilah" and the wonderful
"Tweedle Dee Tweedle Dum", while "Son Of My Father" is by Chicory Tip who
also did the even better "What's Your Name" which still doesn't reach its
German version "Wo bist du?" by Peter Maffay (and I get the feeling that if
some of you knew the music Peter Maffay released in the eighties, you would
quickly change your views about really embarrassing songs).
Best wishes,
Erich
------------------------------ Message-ID: <371232FC.3019@bhip.infi.net> Date: Mon, 12 Apr 1999 17:53:04 +0000 From: Brian <mattone@bhip.infi.net> Subject: Waspies? Tschalkgerz! Here's my take: "Waspies" is, I think, merely a droll little English reference to laundry (and "insect-headed worker wife" refers to the curlers in her hair, in case we didn't get that one). -- BRIAN THOMAS MATTHEWS * Digital & traditional illustration/animation * Caricaturist-for-hire * RENDERMAN ~ One-Man Band Ordinaire SAPRINGER CENTRAL ~ http://www.angelfire.com/fl/sapringer
------------------------------
Message-Id: <199904122306.BAA22030@mail.knoware.nl>
From: "Mark Strijbos" <mmello@knoware.nl>
Date: Tue, 13 Apr 1999 01:19:34 +0200
Subject: Tattoo You
Dear Chalkers,
> Has anyone else got an XTC tattoo? Do tell...
Yes, I do!
And what's more, we'd make a lovely pair 'cos you've got the
horsey and i've got the English Settlement XTC logo on my arm.
I do have plans to add the White Horse (in black ink) on my other
arm in the near future but i want to make sure that it's done properly
But while were on the subject of XTC related tattoos:
I once heard a tale about a legendary fan who supposedly had
_lots_ of XTC tattoos all over his body. This bloke could sometimes
get quite violent to people who didn't agree that XTC was the
greatest thing on Earth. Atta boy!
Anyone know anymore about this, perhaps cautionary, tale ?
yours in xtc,
Mark Strijbos at The Little Lighthouse
http://www.knoware.nl/users/mmello/
or http://come.to/xtc
------------------------------ Message-Id: <3.0.5.32.19990412185043.00c34780@pophost.micron.net> Date: Mon, 12 Apr 1999 18:50:43 -0600 From: Phil Corless <philco@micron.net> Subject: What's all the fuss? Artist who is extremely popular but you can't see what all the fuss is about : Bruce Springsteen, Rolling Stones. I don't understand either one of those.... I've tried, even owned an album or two by each.... Absolutely nothing clicked. - Phil
------------------------------ Message-ID: <37129553.6CF5@popd.ix.netcom.com> Date: Mon, 12 Apr 1999 17:52:35 -0700 From: Cheryl & Steve Bunnell <cbunnell@ix4.ix.netcom.com> Subject: Re: Yes, you heard me... >Midnight Oil (yes, you heard me...) Um, what would be so bad about adding Midnight Oil to a list of all-time-great bands? They've certainly done their part--they've been releasing almost nothing but excellent albums with almost nothing but excellent songs on them for years now. "Red Sails In The Sunset" from 1984 is certainly an overlooked gem, filled with tons of keepers. Or maybe it isn't overlooked by fans, but review pages that I've read sure like to bash it. *------------------------------- Rich Bunnell http://members.xoom.com/taoster/ *-------------------------------
------------------------------ Message-ID: <000501be8558$56290e20$fdb694d1@compaq> From: "Drude" <drude@sprint.ca> Subject: Whales and Rheos Date: Mon, 12 Apr 1999 19:50:00 -0700 On the subject of Quarrington's "Whale Music"; I'd like to recommend the film. While the critics didn't take well to it, I still think it's a great movie with some great performances. It's Canadian (yay!), and was filmed here in sunny (sarcasm here) Vancouver, British Columbia. Stars Maury Chaykin as said psychotic rock star based not-too-lightly on Brian Wilson. -AND- If you like the soundtrack, then you'll love the Rheostatics, quite possibly the most original and creative Canadian (and fiercely so - a rare thing) band in existence. For those of you not familiar with the Rheos, check out their "Whale Music" (not the soundtrack, but an album named after the book, before the movie came along),"Introducing Happiness", and "The Blue Hysteria" CD's. In addition, there is a soundtrack to "Whale Music. Check out their Website at www.drog.com/rheostatics/start.html XTC content: The Rheos cite XTC as a major influence, and a couple members of the band actually belong to an XTC cover band! Now go out and buy Rheostatics CD's. Now. Do what you will but harm none. Drude
------------------------------ From: mollyfa@juno.com Date: Mon, 12 Apr 1999 18:07:46 -0400 Subject: XTC and Spandau Ballet Message-ID: <19990412.231948.3166.0.MollyFa@juno.com> I just read this with the interviewer of Lexicon. The person interviewing the editor ask why they ask about why Spandau Ballet is so big. I guess this person asks the celebrities. Well this is what they said about when they asked Andy Partridge. << No one has been upset except for Andy Partridge (XTC). I think I opened a vein with the question. I dunno, maybe Spandau Ballet killed XTC's dog. >> I just thought I would bring this up to you people. Molly
------------------------------
Message-Id: <l03130301b3381279ddf0@[153.37.192.159]>
Date: Tue, 13 Apr 1999 00:36:26 +0100
From: MinerWerks <dminer@gte.net>
Subject: Mountains of mail
Jeepers, what a shock to see all the Chalkhills digests that I *hadn't*
read sitting in my mail. I get busy for a week and look what happens!
Well, I just couldn't let some of the topics go by without throwing in my
views..
I had been intending to post "my" Sgt. Pepper to the list, thinking: "Aha!
Nobody's mentioned this!" but then in digest #5-171, I saw Chris Crouch
singing the praises of They Might Be Giants' "Flood."
Strangely enough, my Sgt. Pepper could never have been Sgt. Pepper, because
I got my Dad's copy of that LP when I was somewhere around four years old.
Yes, at that age, I *asked* my dad for his Beatles records, if you can
believe that.
So with the Beatles as a foundation, rather than a revelation, I trodded
through the musical wasteland of eighties radio, becoming increasingly
distraught by the shift to "commercial" R&B and dance music at the end of
that decade. When some friends played a tape of "Flood" one day, I was
intrigued - but I definitely was changed forever when I bought the CD. I
started looking for new and unusual things in the store and on the radio
after that. After getting hooked on MTV's "120 Minutes" (until it began to
go south about four or five years ago), I found XTC.
In an ironic twist on chronological history, I also would rate Pet Sounds
as a personal Sgt. Pepper, since it really opened my mind again (I was in
college at the time) to what pop music could be. And to be honest, I'm
always looking for a new Sgt. Pepper, some album that will open my ears to
something new, but the tough part of that is meeting that right album at
the right time in my life - the factor which made Sgt. Pepper the Sgt.
Pepper of its time.
Which leads me to some thoughts on the dreaded Brian Wilson vs. the Beatles
issue. As a huge fan of both as artists, and a rabid student of their
history, I just couldn't resist.
Let's begin with an XTC analogy here. I thought this might help people look
at the issue in a different light. I'd venture a guess that the most lauded
XTC albums, overall, would be "English Settlement" and "Skylarking." They
are both by the same band (mostly, Terry Chambers isn't on "Skylarking,"
obviously), but are both quite different in feel. I look at "Pet Sounds" as
a "Skylarking" type of album: lush, introspective, thoughtful, sonically
dense. And I see "Sgt. Pepper" as an "English Settlement" type:
experimental, whimsical, clever, eclectic.
Why do I say this? Because trying to compare the genius of what Brian
Wilson did on "Pet Sounds" to what the Beatles did on "Pepper" is silly,
because they just weren't doing the same thing. I'd even go further to say
that "Smile" wouldn't even be worth comparing to "Sgt. Pepper" for the same
reason.
While the Beatles' work on songs like "Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds,"
"Lovely Rita" and "Getting Better" is very impressive to me, it's because
of an overal musical feel, with some great hooks and clever, tight
musicianship. But I like the songs on "Pet Sounds" because they represent
(for my money) the most impressive mixture of music and lyrics that convey
emotion. "Here Today," "You Still Believe In Me," and "That's Not Me" are
examples of this.
As for a "what if" I read...
IF John Lennon had broken down instead of Brian Wilson, I'd bet the Beatles
would have changed only slightly, as a lot of post "Pepper" projects were
Paul-influenced anyway. They definitely would have lost a lot of their
"soul" that kept some of their later stuff from becoming too silly. And
Brian may have completed "Smile," but I seriously doubt it would have made
as much of an impact as many believe. I do enjoy songs like "Surf's Up" and
"Cabinessence," but I don't think the public was ready for "Heroes and
Villains." And the "Smile" stuff doesn't age as well. A song like "God Only
Knows" is timeless - look at its use in the movie "Boogie Nights" - but
could you imagine listening to "Do You Like Worms?" and feeling any
emotional connection?
Whoever said the Beach Boys were better singers than the Beatles, I think
was right on the mark - and allow me to qualify that in a moment. First,
jeers to Michael Versaci for dismissing that claim with no stronger
substance than a "HA!" But Drude, in digest #5-170 makes a good point:
> If you've ever heard them live, you'd realize how crap they actually were.
> I saw them in concert years ago, and it was most painful and embarrassing.
I disagree with Drude's claim the Beach Boys recorded performances were due
to studio trickery - tell me WHAT trickery they used, hmm? - I do believe,
however, that every Beach Boy, except for Brian Wilson and sometimes Carl
Wilson (before his passing, obviously), was usually a lazy, sloppy bastard.
> I never really understood the attraction to the Beach Boys, while I am
> a lover of great, hooky, well-written pop, I always felt they were
> one-trick-ponys, and that there was a distinct lack of variety on
> their albums.
I believe the Beach Boys are the greatest example of a double-edged musical
sword. Without Brian Wilson, the Beach Boys would have gone away a lot
sooner, and would never have achieved a milestone like "Pet Sounds," but
Brian Wilson has never really been able to achieve something that great
without the rest of the Beach Boys. Brian knew how to get those guys to
sound right when it mattered, but they just didn't pull it off on the
stage, especially after Brian started to stay behind to record backing
tracks. So, there is merit to the idea that they were one-trick-ponys, and
that's because 4/5 of the group were perfectly happy to be that.
Like someone else mentioned, many people, including Mike Love (de facto
"leader" of the Beach Boys in his own mind) and Capitol records were very
tough on Brian Wilson to not "fuck with the formula." The Beatles, however
were a unified force (at the time) that were collectively going forward
into new territories.
In short, the Beach Boys had the talent but not the desire to be better
singers, where the Beatles had (relatively) less talent and more desire.
(key word there - relatively).
Now a side note, one I base on an excllent book, "Revolution In The Head":
The Beatles and Brian Wilson reached their experimental creative peaks at
essentially the same time and promptly crashed hard, due at least in part
to having experimented with too many drugs. There remains a large amount of
studio foolishness from late 1967 that the Beatles have wisely decided not
to release. The focus that had so infused "Sgt. Pepper" with so much
creativity dissolved into aimlessness. From "Strawberry Fields" and "Penny
Lane" to "You Know My Name" and "All Together Now" in one year is a long
way to fall.
In fact, check out this comment about some material the Beatles recorded on
the day "Sgt. Pepper" was released:
"The single-minded channeling of their talent so evident on Sgt. Pepper did
seem, for the moment, to have disappeared."
While many have rightly pointed out that Brian Wilson had mental problems
as well as drug problems, I'd venture that he slipped down a similar path
as the Beatles. This allowed Capitol records and the other Beach Boys to
slip in and take control of the band, so often taking advantage of Brian
because they were nothing without him.
Some XTC content related to this diatribe? Has anyone noticed how the
"Stage Left," "Stage Right" and "Stand up" lines in "Easter Theater" are
incredibly reminiscent of "She's Leaving Home"?? ("Sheeee..." "Is
having...." "Fun...", etc.)
Oh, and "embarrasing" records? How about "Bags of Fun With Buster" and "Too
Many Cooks in the Kitchen"?
But I also own some of the most incredibly insipid things ever committed to
disc, like...
"Golden Throats 4: Celebrities Butcher the Beatles"
"A Toolbox Christmas" ("your favorite Christmas carols played on your
favorite hand and power tools!")
"Christmas In The Stars: The Star Wars Christmas Album"
"Ponderous" by 2Nu
"Collected Works" by Blotto
"Stairways to Heaven" (13 interpretations of "Stairway to Heaven" in
various styles - includes Rolf Harris turning "Tie Me Kangaroo Down Sport"
into "Stairway to Heaven!")
for a while, I actually owned the single of Green Jello's "Three Little Pigs"
plus, I own the entire Monkees catalouge. But I actually do consider some
of those to be good records. The fact I own "Changes" and "Pool It!" does,
however, qualify for the "insipid" list.
and I constantly get ragged because I own a single by Jewel.
- Derek -
minerwerks@tmbg.org
------------------------------
Message-ID: <3712E071.AB40EA2E@mnsi.net>
Date: Tue, 13 Apr 1999 02:14:28 -0400
From: Michael Stone <nedrise@MNSi.Net>
Subject: Making love to a vampire with Chalkhills on my knee
Funk Poppys
>That 'Bertha Butt'song (Trogladites?)- by ??, someone help me out on this one!
It's called Troglodyte(Caveman), by The Jimmy Castor Bunch.
>Indian Reservation (The Lament of the Cherokee Reservation Indian)-
> by Paul Revere and the Raiders
I believe it's called Cherokee Nation, sung by Mark Lindsay, after he left
P.R. and the R.
* ---------------
Mark Strijbos said:
>>> Most Unpleasant Musical Experience:
>The Sound Of Music
Mark, Mark, Mark!
C'mon man, it's not that bad! Besides, I'm the music director for a
production of SoM at the Capital Theatre here in Windsor. It's opening
next week, and I need all the good vibes I can get! : )
* ---------------
>Whackiest Title For A Song
"I Want a Woman That'll Hold My Big Toe Til I Have to Go"
"Making Love to a Vampire with a Monkey on My Knee"
and many others -Captain Beefheart
How about whacky band names?(real bands only)
The Prehistoric Cave Strokers(Windsor)
The Electric Love Muffins(Detroit)
Mike
------------------------------ Message-ID: <4B045DC53446D111A6CD00A0C949AB7323BE48@TOBY> From: Peter Williams <Peter_Williams@portasystems.co.uk> Subject: W.A.S.P Date: Tue, 13 Apr 1999 09:16:54 +0100 "The insect headed worker wife will hang her waspies on the line" "Vhat Vhe Vhant to know is "What are Waspies" ?? We are both english and still have no idea." This is an easy one, W.A.S.P. = World Aquanaut Security Patrol, all fans of Troy Tempest, Phones, Marina and Stingray will know this one. Pete Williams c/o International Rescue Tracy Island Pacific Ocean
------------------------------
Message-ID: <002201be858f$bf2f05a0$1519883e@pbn-computer>
From: "Adrian Ransome" <ade@ruhruh.freeserve.co.uk>
Subject: What's this? It's got a good beat!
Date: Tue, 13 Apr 1999 10:26:09 +0100
Re: Utter Dreck posting from Simon Curtiss:-
I'm forever ashamed to admit that I know it was Chicory Tip
who are responsible for 'Son of My Father' ("..a-mooglin' and a-drooglin'
I was free from drugs...") and it WAS Middle of the Road who excreted
'Chirpy Chirpy Cheep Cheep' upon the lush Axminster of pop music.
Big Dom Lawson once wrote:-
>it's well worth making sure that your parents
>NEVER like the same music as you. Firstly, we owe it to the spirit of
>rock'n'roll and the whole teenager phenomenon to keep as big a generation
>gap as possible between "us" and "them".
Back in the days when Radio One played music (and not today's modem dial-up
tones) and XTC had just released O+L, Mr Partridge did an interview with
Johnnie Walker on his Saturday afternoon slot. I listened intently in my
bedroom as they chatted about the new album, played some tunes and
discussed them. During a news break, I sauntered casually into the kitchen
to make a cup of tea & heard my dad listening to the same broadcast. I
looked in on him to check I wasn't hallucinating.
"Are you going to buy this Ecstasy record?" he asked.
"Why?" I ventured.
"Well, it's got some nice tunes on it, I'd like to borrow it."
Soon after, I left home.
I also recall an XTC interview with never-hip DJ Tommy 'TV' Vance where
he expressed his fondness for their track "Travels in Nylon."
"Sounds a bit kinky to me!" replied Mr P.
------------------------------ Message-Id: <l03110700b338a731f661@[209.112.136.84]> Date: Tue, 13 Apr 1999 02:52:06 -0800 From: Michael Travis <mdt@pobox.alaska.net> Subject: Who ran the iron horse? "Drude" <drude@sprint.ca> wrote: > [someone else wrote:] > > The Beatles were *great* singers, but, frankly, the Beach Boys were > > better. > > Sorry, gotta disagree with you there! The Beach Boys only sounded good on > album due to a whole lot of studio work. If you've ever heard them live, > you'd realize how crap they actually were. I saw them in concert years ago, > and it was most painful and embarrassing. Part of the problem in discussing the Beach Boys is that we're not all thinking of the same band when we hear (or read) that name. For many people, it means Mike Love's lame touring oldies act, a band who had some formulistic surf hits in the first half of the sixties. This is the Beach Boys I grew up knowing about. This band sucks. Those that hold that they are of the same caliber as the Beatles are referring to Brian Wilson's Beach Boys -- an extremely talented young composer who took his band (of mostly family members) from being a teen novelty act to producing some of the best music of the twentieth century. Then, sadly, he stopped functioning. This is the band that Andy Partridge, Paul McCartney, and many others love. Most people aren't familiar with the great things Brian did in 1966. > As for the Beatles, while I don't think they were all great singers, I > still believe that McCartney was pretty damned amazing. Generally, I think > what you heard on tape was less "processed" and nearer their actual > capabilities than any B-Boys recording. I've heard the Boys singing a capella in the studio (there is a lot of this on the Pet Sounds boxed set), and their vocal blend is amazing. They had been singing together since they were children, and it shows. There is no more "processing" than what the Beatles used on their albums. However, with the exception of Brian, they were mediocre musicians. Brian used studio musicians from early on to get what he wanted on tape. Note also that Brian first stopped touring with them in 1964 when he had a nervous breakdown while on tour. He then retired from touring to compose and record, which is all he really wanted to do. (Sound familiar?) They hired Bruce Johnston to replace him on stage, and Mike Love became the de facto leader of the touring group. So, compared to the Beatles (and XTC), the Beach Boys sucked on stage. Add to this the fact that Brian's best compositions were never designed to be played by a four or five piece rock act, but the touring band still existed.
------------------------------ From: CCooli9575@aol.com Message-ID: <369a0316.2444803e@aol.com> Date: Tue, 13 Apr 1999 07:10:54 EDT Subject: A few random thoughts I had my friend Richard, whose musical taste consists mainly of cheesy 60's and 70's top forty pop(he's oblivious of anything released after 1979, apparently), over for dinner yesterday, and I played AV1 during dinner to see if I'd get a reaction. After all, AV1 bears no resemblance whatsoever to Three Dog Night. Most of it played through without any comment from him until the middle of "Harvest Festival, " where he pricked up his ears and commented "who's this? Sounds like Paul McCartney!" "The Last Balloon" probably changed his mind, though. It's just like Andy, after the pastoral "Harvest Festival," to close the album with one of the bleakest songs ever recorded, ranking right up there with Richard Thompson's "The End Of The Rainbow" and practically all of Nick Drake's Pink Moon album. After all, this is the guy who closed Black Sea with "Travels In Nihilon." Andy's still perverse after all these years.(Whoah...) I used to want to ruffle my parents feathers with my choice of music in my teenage years, but they've both surprised me on occasion; my mother was sympathetic to a free-jazz period I went through in college, my Dad shared my taste for Monty Python, and both were intrigued by Captain Beefheart's Trout Mask Replica, though they admitted it wasn't something they'd listen to much; at least he was doing something different. I think they'd say the same thing about AV1 if they heard it. My mother used to dress in black and listen to jazz in her teenage years, so she's not completely unhip, and my Dad's always been a little weird anyway. Chris
------------------------------ Message-Id: <4782AD6ADDBDD2119B570008C75DD5C1022043@MGMTM02> From: Lawson Dominic <LawsonD@parliament.uk> Subject: Naughty Harrison! Date: Tue, 13 Apr 1999 12:11:39 +0100 >>Firstly Harrison- do you have to patronise Chris so for his singularcomment on the music debate? OK, calm down for Ozzy's sake. Before you all start jumping on Harrison's plum collection, just a couple of points.... (i) Chris was writing out of his cock. (ii) If you don't like what you read in Chalkhills, why bother pointing it out to those of us who obviously do? Much as it pains me to stick up for the curmudgeonly old gnat-fucker (and I'm sure that's about the nicest thing I've said about him in the digest), I'm with Mr S on this one. Dom.
------------------------------ Message-Id: <4782AD6ADDBDD2119B570008C75DD5C1022044@MGMTM02> From: Lawson Dominic <LawsonD@parliament.uk> Subject: ...and another thing! Date: Tue, 13 Apr 1999 12:37:13 +0100 >> embarrassing songs much loved: Einstein a Go Go by Landscape The first record I ever bought. Ah, the memories....... ....oh, and "I Eat Cannibal" was by Toto Coelo. Bin-liner chic, oh yes! >> Yes song most reminded of by ROO?: We Have Heaven Now this I must hear. I'd studiously avoided Yes for a long time, for fear of a Jon & Vangelis flashback scenario. I shall reconsider, unless of course Mr Parker is pulling our prog-legs...... Dom "oh yeah? well at my name's not short for donkey" Lawson
------------------------------ From: Chauncy14@aol.com Message-ID: <1a4d54cf.24449aee@aol.com> Date: Tue, 13 Apr 1999 09:04:46 EDT Subject: Verpe Pipe snippet Hello 'TC Fans, Just an FYI bulletin I got from the Music Boulevard weekly: In Rock: <A HREF="http://p0.com/r.d?vi-q9S4hE=/www3.rocktropolis.com/allstar/database/news /9904/02/story4.asp^S&FS=AOL">Verve Pipe's Brian Vander Ark Discusses Film Ventures</A> "I get to be a bit of a prick, which is something I don't mind doing every once in a while," admits Vander Ark about his role in the upcoming feature film Mergers and Acquisitions, of which he's also one of three producers... (Tom Phalen) Isn't this one of the american XTC tribute bands? Have a great day all. John Gardner
------------------------------ From: "Damian Foulger" <damian@imclaser.com> Date: Tue, 13 Apr 1999 08:33:58 -0500 Subject: Plublicising AV2 Message-Id: <19990413083447.f6794894.in@ceo.ceolasers.com> I just had an idea for helping out the boys (That's XtC, not New Kids on the Block!) There are over 1000 people on this list and assuming that they write a conservative 3 emails per week and that AV2 will take (god forbid!) 52 weeks to be released that's over 150,000 emails from Chalkhillians between now and AV2. So, if we all changed our signitures to something like "Waiting for AV2" or similar it is bound to have some impact. Curious people will ask what AV2 is and then we have a free reign to expound upon the subject, without feeling that we are giving our opinion without being asked. A fantastic plan, and easy to acheive if you can set your mailer to use a choice of different signiture files. Dames tWd Waiting for AV2
------------------------------ End of Chalkhills Digest #5-173 *******************************
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