Chalkhills Digest Volume 5, Issue 25
Date: Wednesday, 25 November 1998
Chalkhills Digest, Volume 5, Number 25
Wednesday, 25 November 1998
Today's Topics:
President Kill
re: 0 Language N R Lungs
Pop group or "pop group"
President BRILL !!
Just a bunch of thoughts...............
Children and wives
um, shhh...
Paper And Iron
Nomen Est Omen
It's A Blast
Re:Hand Shandy
Points of view
300 buckeroos
Me again
XTC This & That!
Oh hell! I was wrong... to wank, what Clinton should have done instead
Shrieking Back to Basics
Mark Isham
Pink Thing ?
Mr. Sting
Price of Transistor Blast
First Time Post-Xtc Rules!
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---------------------------------------------------------------------- Message-ID: <000301be181b$8e1b73e0$433d2399@dan> From: "Daniel Fahnestock" <laurafahne@email.msn.com> Subject: President Kill Date: Tue, 24 Nov 1998 20:30:19 -0600 I've never posted before, so here it goes. I love 'President Kill'. There I said it. I am a firm believer in humor in music and this is a prime example. The joke is fully encapsulated in a healthy burrito made of musical inflection and lyrically donkeydom. The drum roll supports the whole song, and the trumpet riff is precious. It is the only way to deal with a serious topic and not sound self absorbed and pretentious like Bono. You also have to put the whole album in context. In the late '80s Reagan/Thatcherism had not yet worn off. In the midst of the daily Warrant and Poison doses I was enduring daily from my peers, I found it a refreshing splash of dayglow sheen and wry wit. Love.
------------------------------ Message-Id: <3.0.2.32.19981124224255.006ac93c@mail.interlog.com> Date: Tue, 24 Nov 1998 22:42:55 -0500 From: David Oh <davidoh@interlog.com> Subject: re: 0 Language N R Lungs >From: David Gershman <dgershmn@ametsoc.org> >Subject: 0 Language N R Lungs >>From: David Oh <davidoh@interlog.com> >>Subject: my dilemma >>[...] >>i'd like 2 get a copy of 'trans-blast', so i went 2 me local hmv... > >Hi, davidoh -- I was just on the phone with The Artist Formerly Known as >Prince, and he was wondering if he could get his dictionary back? Thanks in >advance. > >Dave Gershman hey dave, sorry 2 disappoint, but i did not borrow a dictionary from 'the ego currently known as an unpronouncable symbol!' the reason i type this way is that i have only 2 fingers on each hand, that's only 6 fingers 2 type with... hmmm, wait a 2nd... davidoh
------------------------------ Message-ID: <002d01be17d7$c4cc8da0$1700000a@andy-pii> From: "Andy Miller" <andymiller@4thestate.co.uk> Subject: Pop group or "pop group" Date: Tue, 24 Nov 1998 18:25:09 -0000 Hello all, Todd Bernhardt wrote: >Andy Miller, I can't find a thing to disagree w/you about. That's so nice! and John Irvine wrote: >I also agree wholeheartedly with Andy Miller re the difference >tweenTerry and Post Terry xtc. IMHO bands make their best efforts >when inthe thick of things - touring, recording an album and two >singles ayear, and operating as a functioning group. Which is also nice, because Cheryl said: >Okay, let me get this straight. You mean a band that doesn't tour is >incapable of producing orginal music? No, I'm not saying that. A band that doesn't tour (or do many of the other things that bands do) produces music in a different way to a working band. They can produce _great_ music; but experience shows that, post-touring, the creative dynamic changes from working as a group, to falling back on the wills and whims of individual members - arguably with a greater risk of mixed results. >Now you've mentioned the Beatles. Do you apply this same theory >to them? and >They stopped touring (in 66right Mr. Stormy Monday?) and >continued to make stuidio albums. St. Peppers... and >I really don't understand this leap you've taken from not touring to >sounding like other bands. OK, to recap - I was noting a phenomenon that one finds in many pop lives - XTC, The Beatles, Bob Dylan, Elvis Costello (the break comes in 1986, fact fans) - the drift apart leading to a tendency to play in other styles, or imitate, or pretend to be somebody else. I used the example of Bob Dylan, but since you mention The Beatles... Band becomes successful. String of great living pop records forged in white heat of activity and creativity, which capture their moment (I Want to Hold Your Hand, She Loves You etc.) (For XTC, see Waxworks) Band stops touring, comes off promotional treadmill etc. Members of band have more time to indulge their enthusiasms and experiment. Initial result? Burst of relief and creativity - Revolver, Strawberry Fields Forever (greatest records of all time). (Big Express/Dukes anyone?) Extended result? Lack of time spent together results in lack of direction, too much spare time, band drift apart. Result? Concept albums (Pepper - in which the Beatles pretend to be Pepper's band, Billy Shears etc./Skylarking), double albums (Beatles/O & L), solo projects (count 'em), Octopus's Garden/your-least-favourite-track-from-Nonsuch-here, death of band/departure of key members. XTC too have drifted apart (bye Terry, bye Dave), but Andy and Colin continue to put out records under that name, as is their right. But there _has_ been more straightforward imitation than there was in the 77-82 period, or pretending to be other bands, real or imagined, (eg. pseudonyms), that isn't in question. In these respects, XTC's career breaks down in similar ways to other bands - the modern/post-modern thing I was talking about. BUT NB. I am not saying that there isn't great music produced by such an arrangement - of course there is! But a) that music tends _not_ be the result of a group dynamic, b) it often manifests itself in pastiche, parody and studio trickery and c) it tends to have more mixed results - the freedom to create is also the freedom to stagnate; in the pantheon of post-touring albums, for every Abbey Road, there's a Two Virgins; for every John Wesley Harding, there's a Self-Portrait; for every Big Express, there's a Skylarking (IMHO - please don't flame for this alone). >In my opinion, I think once Mr.P could actually relaxand enjoy the >whole process of making music without the pressure of having to >play it live allowed him to explore his creative side more fully. I agree - the cessation of band activities allowed him to free that up, and to write differently. But it also allowed him to indulge himself more, develop his ideas in isolation and, if you read Song Stories, dictate the direction of "the band". >I guess unfortunately for you, that undertaking led the band into areas >that did not satisfy your wants. No, you're assuming too much there. Would we be having this conversation if that were really true? I woudn't subscribe to the list for a start. >I really like the fact that Mr.P and Colin put a lot of thought into their >music. That they try to findnew avenues to explore and at times that >may harkback to a different era, to another band, >musician,whatever. They have a signature sound and are >veryindividual. I completely agree. That's the way their music has developed outside of the "constraints" of a band - fair enough. But again, it goes back to my original point - the desire to emulate a particular band/style/song becomes an end in itself rather than a starting point. >The first two albums, to me anyway, seem to be an exercise in just >trying to crank out music in between tours and not much thought >going into the music itself. I hardly listen to these two albums >because there isn't much that appeals to me. A song here...asong >there... I don't agree, natch, but live and let live... >You say the members of XTC are just calling themselves XTC, but I >think they didn't discover whoXTC was until they stopped touring. No, I don't think they discovered who _they_ were until XTC stopped touring, and I've no doubt they were happier people as a result (or at least Andy was). All I'm saying is the music that has come out under the XTC banner has, since 1982, increasingly been the product of individual effort rather than group will. But I still like a lot of it, it's just coming from a different place to those first five albums. >What keeps you listening to XTC if you think they are nothing but a >masquerade of a band? Well, a) I don't think that, and b) XTC is the brand name under which I can find the music of Andy Partridge and Colin Moulding - artists whose work I love and who I discovered from their time in a functioning pop group called XTC. NB. There are two people in the "band" now, and one of them plays everything except the bass. You work it out. >What are your thoughts on the demos/new stuff? The first time I heard the 95/96 demos was a very moving experience - I just thought, here's somebody who, for all their shitty luck, illness etc. has stayed true to their vision, while not even knowing if anyone was going to hear these songs. I can't wait to hear fuller, finished versions, whatever the name on the CD. They're (mostly) great Andy Partridge songs and recordings, and they show Andy's muse is in tact - but, sadly, we'll never get to hear them performed by a band. Andy is closer in spirit these days to someone like Jimmy Webb or Burt Bacharach in the 1960s, who at their creative peak, found somebody else to interpret their material (eg. Dionne Warwick, the Fifth Dimension etc. etc. etc.), under their direction. To quote the article in Record Collector (in response to the 'Will you tour?' question): "It doesn't interest me anymore. It has nothing to do with what I do, which is to write songs and make records." And the easiest way for Andy to do that, and to get an audience, is to effectively employ himself as singer and musician, and put it out under the name XTC. And, Cheryl, that's fine, that's the way it's been drifting since 82. But it's not the same as actually being in a group, and it results in a different kind of music. That's all. Best Andy
------------------------------
Message-ID: <365B21BB.6B4B@virgin.net>
Date: Tue, 24 Nov 1998 21:14:35 +0000
From: peter.wright2@virgin.net (peter.wright2@virgin.net)
Subject: President BRILL !!
Dear All,
Yet again , somebody has the almighty ego to think they can
speak for us all !! I quote :
>> We can debate for weeks about what is the best XTC song or what is the
best XTC album, but one thing's for sure - everybody agrees that
"President Kill Again" is a lousy song. Is there anybody out there
who actually likes this song?<
Well , pal.....
1) Everybody does NOT agree . You go ahead and agree with yourself all
you like but don't presume that your opinion is so wonderful that we all
have to bow down to your infinite wisdom.
2) I LOVE this song. Especially the Bacharach horn part. Its simple but
atmospheric at the same time.
Now if you think the song is lousy then thats your loss , but cut out
the "Everybody agrees with me " crap. Pete.
------------------------------ Message-ID: <000801be183e$32dc7420$c06d68cf@ns1.access1> From: "Gerardo Tellez" <gtellez@access1.net> Subject: Just a bunch of thoughts............... Date: Tue, 24 Nov 1998 22:37:40 -0800 Bar From The Sky said, >"Oh, but Go2 has 'My Weapon' and 'Super Tuff'! If you like those songs, >you are totally lame!" you may be thinking. Well, I guess I'm lame! I >really enjoy those 2 songs. They happen to be 2 of my favorites from that >album. I'll have to agree on that. I think that My Weapon is the best song on that album, with the exception of Meccanic Dancing. In my opinion, Go2 is Andy at his worst. Jumping in Gomorrah is probably the worst song he has ever written. Barry and Colin's songs, though, help the album. Can you imagine what Go2 would be like without their songs? I get chills down my spine just thinking about it. While i'm at it, let me say something about Nonsuch and Colin. What happened? His songs are usually so good. Sorry Colin, but the only good song of his on Nonsuch is My Bird Performs. I REALLY love Andys songs on it though. Acutally, I think it's the song with Andy's best songs. Just think, That Wave, Wrapped in Grey, Ugly Underneath, Holly up on Poppy, Crocodile all in one album. Probably the best songs ever written. One other thing.... Leave Oranges & Lemons alone! Sure, it's one of my least favorite XTC albums, but it's still good. And for all the people saying King for a Day is "boring", I think it is a great song. It's better than Mayor of Simpleton! Hell, the B-sides for it are better! Not to say that it's a bad song, but................ Gerardo
------------------------------
From: Holger.Loeschner@mkjff.rlp.de
Message-ID: <048208B9F651D21192EA0000F877AAD604CCC1@ns3.mbk.rpl>
Subject: Children and wives
Date: Wed, 25 Nov 1998 09:45:07 +0100
In #5-24 Steve Sims wrote
>
>Recent great moment in my life: last week my 8-yr-old daughter came to me
>with a list of songs she wanted me to put on a tape. She had included the
>songs we like to scream our lungs out to ("No Thugs", "Rocket From A
>Bottle", "Ball And Chain", "Senses Working Overtime"), and the music that
>causes us full-body spaz attacks ("English Roundabout", "Funk Pop A Roll",
>"Reel By Reel"). This means one of two things: she has exquisite musical
>taste, or, I have brainwashed her by listening to WAY too much XTC. I vote
>for the former. My wife votes for the latter.
Well Steve, that's absolutely normal. One day I caught my wife
whistling songs from Nonsuch: Omnibus and Then she apeeared. Before that day
she always griped "Didn't you have any other music? You're always listening
to these, whatsthename? Oh, XTC!" She told me that she hadn't any chance to
escape my music and assumed also kind of brainwash. But in fact that my wife
tolerates my XTC-disease and she now whistles some songs, I know that deep
in her mind she has a very good musical taste. But seriously: that's the way
it started with me years ago - the songs creep and crawl in your mind and
you'll never forget them. And that's one of their great qualities.
Holger
------------------------------ Message-ID: <01BE1817.2BE07F80@pm3-142.svn.net> From: William Tindall <xf103rep@svn.net> Subject: um, shhh... Date: Wed, 25 Nov 1998 01:58:30 -0800 Hello there, Saw your post on the verb "To Wank", and I am afraid I have news for you... A Wanker is not a penis. It is someone who, erm, plays with it. To Wank is to masturbate. A Wanker is someone who masturbates. In America, there used to be a term "Jack Off", which means the same thing. Why this should be a term of derision I don't know, since virtually everyone does it (males, anyway!), but it is. Generally it means someone who's self-absorbed and not really contributing....Get it? Just trying to be helpful.
------------------------------
Message-Id: <199811251021.LAA20696@mail.knoware.nl>
From: "Mark Strijbos" <mmello@knoware.nl>
Date: Wed, 25 Nov 1998 11:28:12 +0000
Subject: Paper And Iron
Dear Chalkers,
Amanda said:
> "On one more note-A mint condition Window Box tape was recently
> auctioned off on the eBay website for almost 300 DOLLARS!!!!!!
a bit more eventually
Prices for XTC "items" have been rising slowly but steadily...
While this does mean that some of the rarer stuff is firmly out of
reach of most fans it is perhaps also another sign of some regained
respect for our Heroes
And an original Window Box is of course a "must-have" for every
serious XTC collector. there were only 200 copies made so the
law of supply and demand jerks up the price.
And in ten years it'll probably cost you 3000 bucks to buy one - if
you can find one for sale!
> I love XTC, but not THAT much!"
I'm sure that you would turn down a similar offer for your
exclusive Dave G cd so, in a way, you do love them that much
yours in xtc,
Mark Strijbos at The Little Lighthouse
http://www.knoware.nl/users/mmello/
or http://come.to/xtc
------------------------------
Message-Id: <199811251021.LAA20727@mail.knoware.nl>
From: "Mark Strijbos" <mmello@knoware.nl>
Date: Wed, 25 Nov 1998 11:28:12 +0000
Subject: Nomen Est Omen
Dear Chalkers,
Damian Foulger said:
> > get to hear Apple Venus Volume Two
> > (are they really going to use these titles? i sincerely hope not...)
> What does it matter? To badly misquote Shakespere (who is a
> well know authority on album naming) 'That which we call a rose will
> smell as sweet called by any other name.' It will still sound
> great.
Yes, it wil stil be the same album and i will probably buy as many
copies as i can find but i'd also like it to be a bit of a
commercial success. I fear that if it bombs, we'll never get to hear
Volume Two at all...
IMHO the Apple Venus Volume One (or Two) title is not the best choice
for the marketplace and maybe this time they should have gone for the
obvious. "Phoenix" would have been perfect as the concept and word
exists in almost every culture & language. And of course, in a way
XTC are rising from the flames with this new album.
Anyway, i'm glad they did not go for "History Of The Middle Ages";
that would really have been commercial suicide!
yours in xtc,
Mark Strijbos at The Little Lighthouse
http://www.knoware.nl/users/mmello/
or http://come.to/xtc
------------------------------
Message-Id: <199811251021.LAA20736@mail.knoware.nl>
From: "Mark Strijbos" <mmello@knoware.nl>
Date: Wed, 25 Nov 1998 11:28:12 +0000
Subject: It's A Blast
Dear Chalkers,
Another pressing matter:
>>My only gripe is that "they" decided not to include all the songs
>>from the 1978 & 79 live shows at the Hippodrome and Paris Theatre
> So what is missing from the TB set, either live of studio ? As
> to the studio stuff any ideas why ?
The missing studio tracks are _really_ missing - they've disappeared
from the famous BBC archives and are probably lost forever
Both the original BBC transcription service discs feature ten songs
plus a spoken introduction for those concerts but i presume more
were recorded on both occasions.
Transistor Blast features all songs from the 1978 show but
just three tracks from the 1979 show are used.
Here's a tracklisting for the original transcription discs; i've
marked the tracks used on T.B. with an asterix.
at the Hippodrome 1978:
*Introduction
*Radios In Motion
*Cross Wires
*Statue Of Liberty
*Set Myself On Fire
*New Town Animal
*All Along The Watchtower
*This Is Pop?
*Dance Band
*Neon Shuffle
at the Paris Cinema in London on January 7 1979:
Introduction
*Beatown
Meccanik Dancing
*The Rhythm
Battery Brides
This Is Pop?
Crowded Room
Statue Of Liberty
*Science Friction
Set Myself On Fire
Both shows would fit completely on the cd - now it holds just under
40 minutes of music. Bit of a shame IMHO
yours in xtc,
Mark Strijbos at The Little Lighthouse
http://www.knoware.nl/users/mmello/
or http://come.to/xtc
------------------------------ Message-Id: <s65bde19.001@parliament.uk> Date: Wed, 25 Nov 1998 10:37:41 +0000 From: Dominic Lawson <LAWSOND@parliament.uk> Subject: Re:Hand Shandy >>A PENIS very much is a wanker am I right? No, but don't be sad. You're darned close... A wanker is a person who manipulates their "happy love toy" in such way as to derive pleasure of a sexual nature. Now, a WANGER.....that's a penis. Ah, the beautiful English language. What possibilities! What a vast array of words relating to genitalia! >>Now, why do people hate My Weapon? (i) Because it's crap, at least in relation to the rest of Go2. (ii) Because, to me at least, it doesn't really fit with the rest of the material (iii) Because if it wasn't for My Weapon, I wouldn't have an XTC song to slag off, spoiled rotten as we are with impossible riches. >>I even hate the bashing Dom and Harrison are getting. Really? Cool. Personally, I think we both deserve a swift cuff across the nostril every now and then, but a vigorous, Chambers-style twatting does seem slightly unnecessary. ...and just as a matter of interest, how do Chalkhillists rate the "dub experiments"? I'm thinking specifically of "Go+" (which I picked up for a quid a few months ago - hurrah!), but not having heard the whole "shebang" I'd welcome some insight from the locals. Any thoughts? Dom.
------------------------------ Message-ID: <365C0703.A90E2E79@erols.com> Date: Wed, 25 Nov 1998 08:32:51 -0500 From: Todd and Jennifer Bernhardt <toddjenn@erols.com> Subject: Points of view Hi: Laughing with (at? nah...) Chalkhills over morning coffee again. Of Harrison Sherwood, Nicole said: > He IS very nice and can hole his liquor Well! The prospect of _that_ ought to get more people at our next DC-area Chalkhills gathering! Frederic Solans wrote: > I have an XTC > "trophy" = a lunch with Andy and his new wife (+ 2 friends of mine + 2 > Virgin Paris girls) during promotion of Fossil Fuel last year in > Paris. Hmmm ... goes against what I've heard about those Paris girls ... Bob O'Bannon responded to someone fed up with the O&L debate by saying: > It is obviously the opinion of many people on this list that it is > enjoyable to talk about 'best' and 'worst' XTC music. You apparently > have a different opinion. Fair enough. But since your opinion, according > to your own criteria, is also not superior to anyone else's, then we can > all forget you said anything, right? Let the discussion continue! My POV on this is yeah, let's air our assho... er, opinions about albums all we want, but let's back those opinions up with some kind of reasoning beyond "this song/album sucks" or "this song/album is great." Say what you want about Harrison's posts, folks (I personally appreciate the opportunity to expand my vocabulary, but some people seem put off or intimidated by that), but at least he backs up his opinions with some well-thought-out commentary. One of the reasons I switched in college from studying the sciences to studying English was this: In English papers, you didn't have to be coldly objective. There wasn't necessarily one answer to a question. You could be subjective, hold any opinion about a work, forward any theory -- as long as you backed it up with citations, etc., from the source. Without this kind of support, non-empirical arguments degenerate into a "it sucks!" "does not!" scenario, which I think the poster you were responding to, Bob, was right in complaining about. Corry Berry responded to John Irvine by saying... > > Am I the only one on this list who likes to beat up nuns? Er, ah.. . > > did I say that out loud? > > Would that be Franciscan or Dominican? Only amateurs go after the > Franciscans. Dom's got his own cadre of nuns? Holy shite. Watch out for that ruler... Happy Thanksgiving, all. I thank Ozzy (and God, too) for all of you. --Todd
------------------------------ Message-ID: <19981125135527.12769.qmail@hotmail.com> From: "Amanda Owens" <daveizgod@hotmail.com> Subject: 300 buckeroos Date: Wed, 25 Nov 1998 05:55:26 PST Alright, tis time to drag out the response pen: Jon wrote: >How much would you pay to see them live? Call me stupid, but without Dave, I wouldn't. (Flame away!) >So I ask you, Is $300 too much to pay for something that no more than >199 people before you have ever done? Shoot me, but yes. I'd rather have a nice dub (which I do anyways) made for nothing more than possibly shipping costs than to shell out 300 bucks. (Mind you, Steve Levenstein isn't complaining, since it was his auction.) The most I've paid for an XTC item so far is 30 bucks for a Thanks For Christmas 45, I believe. I know some XTC'ers who've given up bidding for items on eBay b/c the prices have gone WAAAY too high. A "Love On a Farmboy's Wages" keychain is going for almost $80.00 right now. Quoth Peter Wright: >Chalks, > All this talk about 'best' and 'worst' XTC albums is frankly >getting tired. We all have our own tastes , therefore opinions. It is a >totally pointless exercise to cram Chalkhills full of this stuff as >everyones opinion is vald and nobody has the right to challenge your >opinion by stating their own as superior. Personally I love O&L and >Nonsuch. So what ? If you don't , turn it off. Simple isn't it ? >Over-produced , under- produced. Who cares ? If you like it fine. If you >don't , fine. End of story !! Can we now give it a rest and talk about >something more challenging ? I quite enjoy the merry banter going on about fave/least fave albums. Hey, it's keeping the volume of Chalkhills up! Tis all for now, Amanda C. Owens "People will always be tempted to wipe their feet on anything with welcome written on it."-Andy Partridge XTC song of the day-No Language In Our Lungs non XTC song-Love Is On the Way-Saigon Kick
------------------------------ Message-ID: <19981125140701.12618.qmail@hotmail.com> From: "Amanda Owens" <daveizgod@hotmail.com> Subject: Me again Date: Wed, 25 Nov 1998 06:07:01 PST Back again, with a few more RRRRRRResponses Molly wrote: >Man, you guys can get a bit cruel sometimes. You have NO idea. :) I think I hold the official Chalkhills record for "Most Likely To Start a Flame-fest With Stupid Comments". The effervescent Bob O' Bannon said: >OK, OK . . . some of you like "Here Comes President Kill Again." I give. >But I'll bet you can't say you like it AND "Big Day." I don't like either of them. So there! Cory Berry wrote: >Last time John Irvine wrote: > >> Am I the only one on this list who likes to beat up nuns? Er, ah.. . >> did I say that out loud? > >Would that be Franciscan or Dominican? Only amateurs go after the >Franciscans. Cabra Dominicans take a bit less time to be pulverized. There's no fun in it! Tis all for now, Amanda C. Owens "People will always be tempted to wipe their feet on anything with welcome written on it."-Andy Partridge
------------------------------ Message-ID: <9008165AB825D1118A1600A024A166198C1129@chowan.ncxix.hcg.eds.com> From: "Martin, Alan" <Alan.Martin@ncxix.hcg.eds.com> Subject: XTC This & That! Date: Wed, 25 Nov 1998 09:26:27 -0500 I have personally found all of the discussions and debating of XTC's albums and songs very interesting. I found it rather Ironic that some chalkers have posted to the effect that this forum isn't for such debates. I, on the contrary, have always thought these kind of discussions the very reason we even have such a newsgroup. Otherwise, we would wind up like alot of other groups where an issue comes out once a month with three people saying... "XTC is cool! TBE rocks!" **End of Chalkhills Post** .... not to exciting huh? I hope that everyone will continue to express themselves freely and openly. Isn't that one of the aspects that drew you to XTC's music in the first place?;The idea that one ought to be able to openly express their feelings in a positive (and sometimes negative) way. Look, I don't always agree with everyones opinions of this song or that album, but I always respect and enjoy reading their thoughts. AND, I'm gonna put myself out for bashing here, BUT... I like BOTH President Kill AND Big Day! No, they're not my favorites, but I feel that both songs deal with subjects in a direct and honest fashion. They both address issues which don't normally receive criticism day to day. In fact, I have a nephew who is 18 and "knows it all" of course, who is about to marry a woman he has known all of two months... Big Day, would be an excellent listen for him don't you agree? ALSO, I'm about halfway through compiling the results of our XTC Music Survey and all these discussions only encourage me to get it done sooner. Then we will all have a gauge by which to measure these discussions. I'm sure it will create all new talks based on what I've compiled so far. You WILL be surprised... Alan J. Martin Electronic Commerce Services EDS (919) 851-8888 x3076 Alan.Martin@ncxix.hcg.eds.com
------------------------------ Message-ID: <19981125144430.22599.rocketmail@web4.rocketmail.com> Date: Wed, 25 Nov 1998 06:44:30 -0800 (PST) From: nross <phoenixyellowrose@rocketmail.com> Subject: Oh hell! I was wrong... to wank, what Clinton should have done instead Dom was right I was wrong it is not the actual object but the action taken upon it by the owner...to cause pleasure. I admit it I was wrong, okay okay okay?! Has anyone out there heard of a penis being referred to as a John Thomas? When I was in 10th grade (too long ago... way too long) people came up to me saying, do you realize your boyfriend is a penis. You know, I thought to myself two things (depending on my mood when the people acousted me with these questions) one was... well, I know he has a penis. The other was, well yes, I know he is. Mostly, I looked blankly into their eyes (I am soooo good at that). Anyway... anyway. They'd always inform me that a penis was referred to as a John Thomas in one of the Monty Python videos that was popular at the time. You'd think, once, a person could have left it at "did you know your boyfriend is a penis". I'd find that more humorous without the explanation. In all the Monty Python I've seen, I've never heard it referred to as a J.T.? Has anyone? and... why? why? and... where did "jack-off" come from? I love XTC. I love the band. That is my XTC content. Actually, they really sound so damned good live it makes me frustrated that they don't tour. Who was it that stated recently that we really are in dire need of their new material. I soooooooo agree. Redundancy, and blah blah blah, have a good day.
------------------------------ Message-ID: <001201be1885$249e1750$f06dcec0@t24806009694.DOA.STATE.LA.US> From: "John Voorhees" <griffon@earthling.net> Subject: Shrieking Back to Basics Date: Wed, 25 Nov 1998 09:06:13 -0600 Steve Sims rote: >KNDD-FM (107.7) in Seattle has an '80's retro show from 9 'til noon >on >Sundays. Twice recently I've heard entertaining songs from >Shriekback. Can >anyone clue me in on this band? I know Barry Andrews was a >member, but is >he still? Are there any CD's worth checking out? I defer to the >experts... Ahhhh, a Shriekback thread. Nice change of pace. Well, as they say, "Let's begin!" Barry Andrews was one of the founders of Shriekback. I have at least a passing familiarity with all their records, and to my ears, the best of the bunch is Oil and Gold. Such a unique classic. There's this incredible sliminess of tone... I just don't know how they pulled it off. It contains their biggest American hit Nemesis, all in a major key, but it sure don't _feel_ like no major key! Other great songs on there, Everything That Rises Must Converge, Fading Flowers, and the haunting instrumental Coelocanth. Next in line is their next record, Big Night Music. Much of the same esthetic as Oil and Gold, tho' not as focused. Still, Pretty Little Things is damn funny, and even Mayor of Simpleton has to fight for being catchier than Gunning for the Buddha. John Voorhees
------------------------------ Message-Id: <v04003a01b2818543facc@[208.240.250.142]> From: Ken Herbst <ken@bamadvertising.com> Subject: Mark Isham Date: Wed, 25 Nov 1998 10:08:27 -0600 >Mark Isham's trumpet is the song's saving grace. For those of you who aren't familiar with Mark Isham, well, he's a god. Absolutely nobody sounds like him -- especially when he plays his trumpet played through a harmonizer. Considering that he comes out of the frequently histrionic world of jazz, Isham's music is marked with introspection, elegance and restraint. "Vapour Drawings" and his "Music for Film" are two of the best electronic/instrumental albums of all time. His soundtracks for "The Moderns","Reversal of Fortune", and "Little Man Tate" are also phenomenal. If you're into early ethno/ambient check out "Tibet" and "The Beast." Well, that's enough gushing for now. And, no, I'm not related to him :) -- Kenny
------------------------------
Message-Id: <199811251610.RAA28208@mail.knoware.nl>
From: "Mark Strijbos" <mmello@knoware.nl>
Date: Wed, 25 Nov 1998 17:16:46 +0000
Subject: Pink Thing ?
Dear Chalkers,
> A PENIS very much is a wanker am I right?
To wank means to masturbate and does not necessarily involve
male genitalia and/or rubber sharks.
Please refer to Wonder Annual for further instructions
Calling someone a wanker does not imply you are accusing
him or her of having solo sex; it's just a common insult.
yours in xtc,
Mark Strijbos at The Little Lighthouse
http://www.knoware.nl/users/mmello/
or http://come.to/xtc
------------------------------ Date: Wed, 25 Nov 1998 11:09:56 -0500 (EST) From: Jason Legacy <jlegacy@orion.ramapo.edu> Subject: Mr. Sting Message-id: <Pine.OSF.4.05.9811251059350.9160-100000@orion.ramapo.edu> I hope no one has mentioned this recently, but there is a new Sting autobiography (I can't remember its name, but it should be widely available) that has some really interesting XTC tidbits in it. Andy Partridge is quoted a few times about his opinion and perception of Sting,noting that he felt Sting was quite a dual personality (puffed-up macho stance/shy, sensitive guy).More interesting was the author's assertion that, with XTC's version of "All Along the Watchtower" on White Music, XTC practically "single handidly" (I'm pretty sure that was the phrase he used) invented the reggae-and-punk dub sound which the Police would go on to exploit. There is also a quote from Sting saying that regularly attended XTC's earliset gigs and stood in the front row in complete awe of XTC. Something about his jaw literally dropped open. Interesting. Just thought I'd share that, it makes me want to go back and hear "AATWT" on WM again (I usually skip right over it!). Skip
------------------------------ From: "Damian Foulger" <damian@imclaser.com> Date: Wed, 25 Nov 1998 10:29:29 -0600 Subject: Price of Transistor Blast Message-Id: <19981125102105.0c3cbe87.in@ceo.ceolasers.com> Has anyone noticed that TB is cheaper in Brtitain than in the US? A friend of mine reported that it is stlg20 (US$40) in Our Price and getting by mail order from IMVS it only cost a little over that including postage. In US one pays at least US$40 from a mail order place including postage. Strange that, because CDs are pretty much always more expensive in Britain. The moral of the story is to exercise one's right to chose and order from British IMVS mail order. I did. Dames tWd * ------------------------------------------------ 'People will always be tempted to wipe their feet on anything with welcome written on it.' - AP
------------------------------ Message-Id: <s65bedd4.019@dineout.org> Date: Wed, 25 Nov 1998 11:45:20 -0500 From: "Jason Hauser" <JHAUSER@dineout.org> Subject: First Time Post-Xtc Rules! This is my first post to this board, I haven't smoked in 72 hours, and I feel like I could fly right through the wall. My shoulders are beyond tense and I have too-much-cough-syrup vision. So I'm totally geeked and have a hankerin' for a hunka XTC. The first one I bought was Skylarking. It was '86, and I also purchased REM's Chronic Town and a Hunters and Gatherer's cassette. I have no idea why I bought Skylarking as I had never heard of them. I was just growing out of my Cars, Doors, and Led Zeppelin phase. Listening to this was really a revelation. "What is this?" , "What's going on?", "Man, this is cool!". I destroyed this tape in about two weeks time, complete melt down. Soon, a local radio station occasionally played "Earn Enough For Us". This is in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, where George Thorogood and .38 Special reign supreme. I was really on the cutting edge! Needless to say, I was hooked. I recommend headphones and ear shaterring volume for this one. In following posts, I'll profer (?, everyone's so damn inteliigent, I'm trying here!) more song stories (snort, get my reference?). My most recent mix tape for the car. Snowman Shiny Cage Scissor Man Everyday Story of Smalltown Liarbird Too Many Cooks in the Kitchen Season Cycle No Thugs in Our House Brainiac's Daughter Wake Up Mermaid Smiled Outside World -side 2 is all Roxy Music, but that's a different forum Jason aka ChuChu McMillimeter (don't ask)
------------------------------ End of Chalkhills Digest #5-25 ******************************
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