Chalkhills Digest Volume 5, Issue 324
Date: Wednesday, 1 December 1999
Chalkhills Digest, Volume 5, Number 324
Wednesday, 1 December 1999
Today's Topics:
Joe versus Elvis... a tough one...
Garth Brooks is our Oscar Wilde
Just Realized...
I gotta be free
Dick caught in a zip ...
Anagramania! A Man in Agara!
That whole Satanas thang . . . and some best-o'-99 picks
XTC - Swindon's finest !!
99 music
go
Random Things
moving-about the cabin
Bits and Pieces
Twang twang
Best Post of the Month
Flanges! (fnar, fnar!)
Administrivia:
I think I've had about enough meta-discussion. On with the XTC talk.
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The views expressed herein are those of the individual authors.
Chalkhills is compiled with Digest 3.7 (John Relph <relph@sgi.com>).
She's singing something stale and simple now this business has fizzled out.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Message-Id: <199911300146.UAA19764@nantucket.net>
Date: Mon, 29 Nov 1999 19:52:07 -0800
Subject: Joe versus Elvis... a tough one...
From: "Diamond" <arnos@nantucket.net>
I must say, you birng up a great point, one about which I have debated a
lot. Joe Jackson has long been a favorite of mine. I got into him about a
year before I got into Elvis Costello, and, seeing as they were both
grouped into that "genre" of music entitled "the Three Angry Young Men"
(the Third was Garham Parker, whom I Haven't heard enough by to form an
opinion about) I was always hesitant to get into Elvis because I like Joe
so much. When I did eventually by something by Elvis, I really didn't like
it. (It was My Aim Is True, and I still don't really like it that much.)
Luckely, I decided to buy another album by him, and this time, I chose
Armed Forces, which is still one of my favorite albums by him, along with
Trust and This Years Model. Now that I like them both, I have thought a
lot about which one I like better, and am still having a tough time. I
geuss the conclusion I've come to is: why compare them? Just because they
were grouped into the same catagory deosn't mean you have to compare
them. XTC and Devo were both grouped into "New Wave," that doesn't mean we
have to compare them, their styles are much different.
Personally, I think deep down inside, I know that Elvis has a small
edge over joe i the lyrics category, but I think that Joe's Heaven and
Hell and Night and Day blow away Elvis in the music category.
Kevin Diamond
P.S. Does anyone out there like Ween? I just bought "the mollusk" and am
listening to it for the first time. It's not half bad.
"goin' back in the box
back in the box
back in the box again"
-David Byrne
------------------------------
Message-ID: <19991130013342.6526.qmail@web123.yahoomail.com>
Date: Mon, 29 Nov 1999 17:33:42 -0800 (PST)
From: Veronica Kyle Robertson <veronicakr@yahoo.com>
Subject: Garth Brooks is our Oscar Wilde
Jefferson Ogata dared to compare---
' For those not in the know: Garth Brooks is a
big-selling countrysinger who has invented a rock star
persona by the name of Chris Gaines, and
created an entire history for the character,
portraying it in a "documentary" aired on VH-1
entitled "Behind the Life: Chris Gaines",
which disguises the hoax in a manner similar to that
of the famous Orson Welles 1929 (?) radio broadcast of
"War of the Worlds".'
That's rich! I would never think to compare Garth
Brooks to Orson Welles! Or to David Bowie or the
Dukes or even Spinal Tap.
I think Garth's little gimmick has disappointed a
lot of his fans, and well it should. This character
allows him to be the opposite of what people perceive
him to be. "Chris" has had a substance abuse problem.
He's self-destructive. He's a womanizer. He's a rebel,
a bad boy. It's his chance to break free from his good
ol' country boy image. I think it's also a breather
from having to come up with such snappy titles as
"Ain't Goin' Down (Til The Sun Comes Up)", "American
Honky-Tonk Bar Association" and "Two Of A Kind,
Workin' On A Full House". Oh, no, he's not a modern
day Orson Welles, he's our OSCAR WILDE. Same initials,
anyway.
What I don't get is that "Chris" is suppossed to
be from Australia, right? Is R&B, slow jams, and funk
popular there? I know about Aussie pop, rock, and
heavy metal, but are there really any local acts that
sound like a very vanilla Prince or Babyface?
Veronica
------------------------------ From: Hbsherwood@aol.com Message-ID: <0.478a90f1.2574ae48@aol.com> Date: Mon, 29 Nov 1999 23:36:24 EST Subject: Just Realized... ...to continue with that No Thugs notion, Andy rhymes the mother's lament "the one you've picked" with the policeman's "reports of Asians who've been so badly kicked," implying an *equivalency* between the two acts... Harrison "Knowledge is more than equivalent to force" Sherwood
------------------------------ Message-ID: <19991130071647.53290.qmail@hotmail.com> From: "Duncan Kimball" <dunks58@hotmail.com> Subject: I gotta be free Date: Mon, 29 Nov 1999 23:16:47 PST Ahh my darling Chalkers - what bunch of raving loonies we all are. They don't call this the silly season for nothing. First, a quick salvo for Christopher R. Coolidge (Are you any relation to Calvin?) And why is it that libertarianism annoys me SO much? >To bring XTC into it, I don't agree with Andy on everything either, I >dislike "Melt The Guns" as much as "My Weapon," the only two XTC >songs I >dislike(and we can blame Barry for the latter, so we'll leave >it alone for >now). The reason "Melt The Guns" sticks in my craw is >not because I love >guns,(I don't; I've fired one once in my life, >personally, they make me >nervous) but because I love freedom. Groan... Chris I'm sorry that you don't like that song, for whatever reason -I actually find it a very worthy one. But it's a cheap shot to use this list and that song as an excuse for pushing your boring old libertarian barrow - again. Ayn Rand is dead. Get over it. >I feel the same way about guns as I do about Big Macs, Britney Spears, >landlords,(wait a minute, I forgot, technically I am a landlord) Well that explains some of it ;) Still, these aren't really very effective comparisons, are they?. When exactly was the last time someone held up a liquor store with a Big Mac? >and drug dealers, among other crab grass in the lawn of life. >Nonetheless >I have a live and let live attitude about what I don't >like in the world, >because others may feel the same way about >whatever is most important to >me. The only things I consider truly >evil is what people do to other >people for reasons of vicarious harm >or power regardless of what weapon is >used. And the only thing I consider truly evil are the people who hide behind the word "freedom" while tacitly endorsing its continuing denial, allowing society become more and more heavily militarised, under the sick pretext that there is some kind of "right" to carry a gun. >Sometimes the worst weapon we can use on others is our minds. Adolf >Hitler >and his cronies were very good at that. Who needs guns when >you can >subjugate people with mind control? Christ almighty - who needs mind control with so many willing dupes? (Cut to misty dream sequence depicting L.Ron Hubbard smiling and waving to Deepak Chopra). That is SUCH a lame argument, Chris. Why, you ask...? #1 - I honestly don't think most Germans back then needed all that much "mind control" to say yes to Hitler. Frankly, he fulufilled a social need. He told them what they wanted to hear. He offered a solution they liked the sound of, and they were - evidently - pretty damn happy to carry out. And Hitler was *democratically* elected, remember? #2 - the Germans did not invade Poland or blitz London or exterminate 10 million Jews, Gypsies and Slavs using mind control. They used guns, tanks, bombs and gas chambers. We can argue the point ad infinitum, but the bottom line is this - if we were having this argument face to face and I pulled a gun on you - who's gonna win? Oppression does not happen because of mind control or differing world views. It happens because the world is full of psychotic nazis wandering around waving guns at people. And they just love to use their guns to enforce their world view. Ask the East Timorese. Chris, there are two kinds of freedom - freedom FROM and freedom TO. What libertarians *really* endorse (consciously or otherwise) under the spurious guise of "freedom from government" is in fact freedom TO - such as the freedom to carry guns, which underpins the freedom to enforce social control, to intimidate, exploit, rob, oppress and murder. I advocate freedom FROM - from intimidation, murder, disease, poverty, violence, inequality. But we're not gonna get anywhere near it until we find a way to remove guns - and their implicit threat of violence and death - from our society, and render all people a little more equal by making sure no-one has the power to push their world view on others by armed force. I think I'll be waiting a while .... * * * >From: Mark Newberg <mhnewberg@home.com> >Subject: E. Costello vs. J. Jackson >My question (and I know it is an unfair one): Who is the better >performer? >Who is the better singer/songwriter? No offence Mark, but what a stupid question. Well stupidly phrased anyway. How long is a piece of string? When did you stop beating your wife? Next time try asking "who do you prefer?" or something like that. * * * Harrison, I think we have a similar problem - an inability not to rise to the bait :) (See above) >I don't think I'm going to be upsetting anyone's reality too much if >I >assert that the contemporary neo-pagan myth projects on the past a >modern, >ahistorical interpretation that is fundamentally at odds with >what we know >of history as it was actually lived. We seem to NEED the >past to be >populated with a Tragically Lost Magical Time; entire >empires are built on >the premise that a long-ago Golden Era <snip> Why does the word "Freemason" occur to me here? Acutally I really want to go back to the "Good Old Days" and all the great things they had then ... like smallpox, plague, syphilis, typhoid, TB, polio, cholera ... Yeah take me back! >I don't mean this to be an apology for the spread of Christianity - >those >people have a whole lot to answer for as well. I only mention >it to point >out that it seems to be an omnipresent human impulse to >believe that the >past was materially more desirable than the present >- and, less >forgivably, to *shape* that past to conform with the >desires of the >present. Well I'm sure Freud or Joseph Campbell or someone wrote something about how we project our subconscious anxieties and neuroses about the loss of our childhood peace and security onto the social sphere. It's such a strong thread throughout history and mythology. A funda-mental human behaviour I suppose. >Plus, isn't it just the tiniest bit...paranoid (that word keeps >cropping >up!)...to believe that Christianity is the entity >responsible for >*everything* that's wrong today? Err, not really. It's based on interpretations of historical fact. Personally, I think Christianity - and especially fundamentalist protestantism - has a great deal to answer for in seeding the roots of intolerance, the suppression of difference and the denial of pleasure in western society. It also has a massive amount to answer for because of its virulent attempts to subvert and crush non-Christian belief systems and cultures. (Think about that next time you see some Mormons trying to convert someone. Who asked them to come here anyway? I am in favour of religious freedom, but that takes it a little too far if you ask me. I think all forms of "missionary" work should be outlawed.) Yes, we've certainly come up with some red-hot contenders this century (Nazism, Stalinism, Maoism) but in I think Christianity still comes out overall winner as the single most destructive philosphy in history. Sure it's achieved things in some areas, like art and music - but at what social cost? The destruction of native American civilisation funded the Renaissance. The death of Montezuma paid for the life of Michelangelo. >And - here's a question I've been wrestling with for years - don't we >all, >deep down inside, in our secretest of secret mental places, >kinda, sorta, >you know, *enjoy* being paranoid? Isn't the Paranoid >Worldview more >palatable, more digestible, more *sexy*, than the >cluttered, asymmetrical, >messy notion that history is a bunch of >stupid fuckups perpetrated by >blind idiots who were all making it up >as they went along, improvising >incompetently, just as we are today? Well it is "the millenium" - what do you expect? (It begs the question of whose millenium it is; non-Christians must be scratching their heads right about now wondering what all the fuss is about, but that's another story). Actually I couldn't agree more. The nutty Illuminatus crap seems to have gained extrordinary credence, and on what evidence? Now, I'm not saying that there aren't conspiracies at work - after all, a goodly proportion of commercial activity chez vous, Harrison, is conducted by perhaps the most successful criminal conspiracy in history - La Cosa Nostra. But as for the notion that the course of history is directed by a bunch of boffins in some secret bunker in the Catskills, and that they leave hidden clues on dollar bills ... well, if the President of the United States couldn't even keep a quick blow-job secret, what chance do these guys have? >...Or is that simply what THEY want me to think...? Or so the Germans would have us believe, Harrison ... Token XTC content - can anyone give me an update on the Fuzzy Warbles thing please? I'm rather unclear on what's going on there, and how big it will be, etc. (For a supposed 'cult' band with so few supposed fans, they're sure putting out a lot of records. Somebody must be buying them.) BTW how is Apple Venus selling worldwide? Any figures from TVT? What about Homepsun? I am curious (yello). Dunks ***************************************************************** "Philosophy is the graveyard of 'isms'" - Gerald Edelman "Just because you're paranoid doesn't mean they're not after you" - Unknown
------------------------------ Message-ID: <000001bf3b41$c8509320$6d5791d2@p13s574p> From: "John Boudreau" <aso1@mocha.ocn.ne.jp> Subject: Dick caught in a zip ... Date: Tue, 30 Nov 1999 17:48:27 +0900 Dominic Lawson wrote : >If you're just tugging our >todgers then please don't bother to continue because it's quite possibly >the least funny thing I've encountered since getting my dick caught in my <>zip. Geez - and I thought I was the only to do such as asinine thing . I shall never forget it ... I was 16 ( many moons ago ) . A friend and I had decided to check out a dance at the local ELKS club . For some reason - without underwear on - I decided to try on a pair of psychedelic lime green pants I hadn't worn in a couple of years and OUCH ! It seemed like an eternity but was probably more like an hour or so before I rescued my foreskin from the dreaded zipper . Imagine my embarrassment when I called my friend to tell him I was going to be late because my dick was stuck in a zipper ! John The Sushi Man
------------------------------
From: Tomgriffin100276@aol.com
Message-ID: <0.67829b88.2575730e@aol.com>
Date: Tue, 30 Nov 1999 13:35:58 EST
Subject: Anagramania! A Man in Agara!
OK - I didn't start this little anagram thread, but I did make it
much, much worse than it could have been. I'm sorry (not really - this is
better than much of what is going on around here recently).
By the way - I wasn't aware of the anagram program. I wish I was though -
I spent way too much time with pencil & paper figuring those bastards out!
Now I can cheat!
As for the stuff about Garth Brooks I have this to add. I disagree
that he is doing it for money. Hell, the man is making more money than
just about anyone else in the business doing straight-up country music.
If he just wanted money he would just stay with that cash cow. I mean,
why risk alienating your millions of country fans with a pop album? So
perhaps this is actually an example of artistic integrity. I don't know.
What I do know is that he is taking a risk. Either way, I hate country
music - so anyone who leaves that genre (even if only temporarily)
deserves kudos in my book!
Finally, thanks again to John for the greatest site in existence!
-Tom Griffin (grin to miff, fig from tin, fit from gin, or my favorite: in
gift form)
------------------------------ Message-ID: <C1D2BBBA6310D2118B5500805FA7AF3F01DFDC6E@xch-mes-04.msc.az.boeing.com> From: "Johnson, Tom" <Thomas.Johnson@ARZ.Boeing.com> Subject: That whole Satanas thang . . . and some best-o'-99 picks Date: Tue, 30 Nov 1999 12:09:57 -0700 > From: Satanas Diablo <thedevil@minister.com> > Subject: Should I stay or should I go? May I offer my vote that this topic die? As one who doesn't really care either way who is right or wrong (no one and everyone, actually,) I'm just really tired of seeing this on the list. Don't tell me to page down, okay? The messages are there, they take up space, they have nothing whatsoever to do with anything even remotely associate with XTC, and I think most of us are damned tired of seeing it. So, please, everyone involved, don't participate any further. I think all of us will be immensely grateful. And since I can't stay away from a best-o' list, here are my offerings: Tied for numero uno: XTC - Apple Venus Volume One King Crimson - The ProjeKcts The rest are in no apparent order, as I simply can't rank 'em (and showing my apparently eclectic tastes): Bill Frisell - Good Dog Happy Man Steve Vai - The Ultra Zone David Bowie - hours . . . Primus - Antipop Chris Cornell - Euphoria Morning Dream Theater - Metropolis 2: Scenes From A Memory Mr. Bungle - California Tiles - Presents Of Mind Mulmuzzler - Keep It To Yourself NIN - The Fragile Cobra Strike (Buckethead) - 13th Scroll Porcupine Tree - Stupid Dream David Sylvian - Dead Bees On A Cake Jansen/Barbieri/Karn (JBK) - _ism Who else wants to be a weirdo?! C'mon, 'fess up, I know there must be others like me out there! Tom
------------------------------ Message-ID: <001001bf3b6a$838273c0$a111e1d4@oemcomputer> From: "In2home User" <user@netwood.in2home.co.uk> Subject: XTC - Swindon's finest !! Date: Tue, 30 Nov 1999 19:38:43 -0000 Fellow Music Lovers, I have the (mis)fortune to live in Swindon, and also have the pleasure of listening to and following one of the greatest English pop/rock bands still going strong, and producing some of the finest (and beautiful) songs around today. They first grabbed my attention in 1977 (showing my age now !) with Go2, although they did sound a bit too freaky for most MOR people, and were mostly unknown to Swindonians until 'Nigel', when they suddenly became the best thing since sliced bread - only for as long as they were on Top of the Pops !!! I became totally engrossed with 'Black Sea' and 'English Settlement', and thought 'Mummer' was bloody fantastic. 'The Big Express' was another goldie, and it's sleeve was shot in the GWR Museum, where my Dad was working at the time. I have a signed copy of the album for a keepsake. 'Skylarking' again did bugger all in the UK and is a grossly underestimated album. I'm listening to 'Nonsuch' all the time at present and can't get it out of my head - I find myself singing it all day at work. AV1 is peachy - a bloody classic album. My girlfriend thinks they are morbid, dull and - in her words - 'shit'. But then again she does like 'Five' and 'Westlife' - the poor cow ! XTC will never be fashionable, hip or have a hit record - because they (particularly Andy) don't want that. They just want to be left alone and produce quality music - which they do with alarming consistency. They want their privacy and I, for one, respect that. I regularly used to see Andy and Dave in Swindon Town Centre, but would never go up to them like a star-struck adolescent, and make them feel uncomfortable. Nobody used to recognise them - 99% of people wouldn't have a clue - and they like it like that - and why not ?? XTC are a typically English, off-the-wall band who are 100% unique, don't give a fig about the music industry, and like to do things their way. I hope they go on doing that for many years. Cheers, Jon.
------------------------------ Date: Tue, 30 Nov 1999 14:51:08 -0500 (EST) From: Brian Whitman <bwhitman@crudites.org> Subject: 99 music Message-ID: <Pine.LNX.4.10.9911301439480.32312-100000@netspace.org> Dan wrote: >And to give you the chance to return the favor, here are my favorite '99 >releases, in approximate order: >Merrymakers - Bubblegun Not to nitpick, but this record has been around since 97? At least early early 98, when I got it. Did they rerelease it yet? Kind of interesting, I guess they felt the first time it didn't get the marketing it needed (and deserved), so they re-did it! Great idea! I can see the record execs now scrambling: "Let's repackage this Go2 record! No one buys it anymore! We'll put some good lookin' blokes on the cover and retitle the songs, have Brendan O'Brien remaster it, it'll mint!" To save space: Wilco-summerteeth, Squarepusher-Budokhan Mindphone, OTC-Black Foliage, and since Dan could do it, I'll resubmit Richard Davies' Telegraph from last year. :) -brian Brian Whitman bwhitman@crudites.org http://www.netspace.org/users/bwhitman
------------------------------ Message-ID: <38443A8B.11E9@ksbe.edu> Date: Tue, 30 Nov 1999 10:59:29 -1000 From: "Jim Smart" <jismart@ksbe.edu> Organization: ksbe Subject: go Sorry, but I can't agree that The Garden of Earthly Delights can somehow be taken in a pro-gun way. In my mind, and yes I've read the Constitution, guns have nothing to do with freedom. Guns are about blood, bullets, and destruction. XTC is about creativity, cleverness, and fun....with a beat. "Melt the guns" says it all. Freedom? How about freedom from guns? Oh, now I've done it. I know my wish to abolish the 2nd amendment is rather extreme. Just couldn't resist. Satan asks: Should I stay or should I go? You should go. Why? It's not your spelling, Satan. It's your thoughts, such as "a vast majority of you spent your time calling him (Charlie) racist slurs." This is a sentence so false, so pompous, and so prejudiced it cannot go unnoticed. Though it should, because the thousand or so folks (mostly non-racists, I'll wager) on this list know damn well how false it is. You're just yanking our chain, pure and simple. Go. Now I've really done it. Jim
------------------------------
Message-ID: <00da01bf3b83$0f95e6e0$cff8163f@tim63>
From: "Tim Kendrick" <tim63@earthlink.net>
Subject: Random Things
Date: Tue, 30 Nov 1999 17:34:25 -0500
Hi Everyone!
>From: Satanas Diablo <thedevil@minister.com>
>Subject: Should I stay or should I go?
>I guess its best for me to leave the list
Good ridance.
>as I never will be able to have a serious conversation
>about XTC again on this list
I've never seen you try to discuss XTC. All I've seen from you
is arguments, demands for answers to your questions, and more arguments.
>Are there ANY Accapellas (Vocal Only without
>music) from XTC songs or what?
No, there aren't. Even very basic versions of the songs have
always had at least one accoustic guitar.
>From: WillJ4comm@aol.com
>Subject: re: free for all
>I don't think Andy is talking about outlawing guns, he loves freedom
>too ("This is your life and you'll be what you want to be, this is your
>life and you'll try it all"). He's suggesting that if what you're after
>is a safer, more peaceful world, then take a look at getting rid of
>your gun as a means to that end, as guns don't have a useful role in
>such a society (at least, not for using against people), but I look at
>it as an individual decision he's encouraging, not legislation -
I disagree. I think that he is indeed suggesting that guns be outlawed.
("I am speaking to the Justice League of America - the US of A - hey you...")
I think Andy is saying that our USA government is to blame and that
our government should get rid of all the guns. The song isn't being sung
(I think) to the PEOPLE of the USA, but rather to it's government.
I've always loved "Melt the Guns". I also feel the song could be
interpreted in another way - that is the "guns" could be considered nuclear
weapons. Thus "Melt the Guns" could mean get rid of all the nuclear
weapons - melt them down! Going over the lyrics, I can't say a reason why
this interpretation won't work. "Mother's supply them" could be the idea
of the big super powers selling nuclear warheads and secrets to developing
countries. Anyway it's just a thought.
>From: Hbsherwood@aol.com
>Subject: Busy Banging Out a Headache
>The parents' denial of the evidence of Graham's sociopathy is so
>complete that they actually believe the police have *picked* him at
>random to prosecute. In their frantic rationalization, Graham is the
>*victim* of the crime, not the perpetrator.
Wow - very good catch. I hadn't thought of it that way before.
Well it's been 9 months for me now and I'm still enjoying AV1!
Not sick of it yet!! Greenman and Harvest Festival are still
my favorites and rank right up there with my all-time favorite XTC
tunes.
Later!
Tim K.
------------------------------ Message-Id: <199912010332.TAA10192@intergate.sonyinteractive.com> Date: Tue, 30 Nov 1999 19:28:41 -0800 From: Bob Estus <bestus@intergate.sonyinteractive.com> Subject: moving-about the cabin Hey All, Public Notice: The Roundabout Website has been moved. Please use the following detour: http://home.san.rr.com/roundabout/index.htm or come.to/roundabout To celebrate the new location the "AV1 TVT TV Commercial" will be playing. Check it out, it's P-s-y-c-h-e-delicious. (many thanks to the darn good Travis Schultz, who should be getting a surprise in his mailbox today :^) thanks for your continued patronage, -Bob "A great Anagram shows a caricatured attribute of the person it strives to lampoon. Here are 5 great Andygrams: 'Dig Art And Pyre', 'Day Trip Danger', 'Did Try Earn Gap', 'Grade A Dry Pint', and 'Dang Arty Pride' - Unk Nown
------------------------------ From: WTDK@aol.com Message-ID: <0.20bed398.257601c8@aol.com> Date: Tue, 30 Nov 1999 23:44:56 EST Subject: Bits and Pieces Bits and pieces: Love the send up of Dear God. Molly said: If you have a major grudge with a Chalker, don't air it out in here. Molly is 100% on target here. It takes imagination and class to disagree without being nasty. Dan Said: Wow, I get to start the very first "your favorite album sucked!" flame volley! I'm sorry, but that Beth Orton album was lame. Admittedly my expectations were high (Trailer Park was probably my favorite of 1997), but that album did not grow on me; While I personally loved Beth Orton's album, it wasn't my personal #1. I should have clarified and mentioned that it seemed to deserve it based on the critical reaction. That said, she still ranks at #5 for me. I'd suggest Dan give it another spin a couple of months down the line. It took me a little while to appreciate it after her previous album. it fell to earth and stayed there. That people are touting it as the album of the year fills me with dismay. I can relate. I've felt the same about all of Ron Sexsmith's album(s). I've given two of them a spin and just didn't care for him. Also didn't care for the latest Freedy Johnston. Who knows why one clicks and one doesn't. David Oh said: whereas xtc did the dukes as an homage and as a loving joke, methinksgarth is doing it for one, or all, of the following reasons: money.... Or it could be that Garth, like any musician, was looking for new ways to challenge himself and his listeners. 1999 Favs: 1. 69 Love Songs - Magnetic Fields - A strange, but compelling album. Reminds me of the wit of vintage EC/JJ. Cole Porter for the next century. 2. AV1/Homebrew - Hey I know this is cheating. If the songs from AV2 had been released (based on the demos) I would have made that my #1 3. Mock Tudor - Richard Thompson 4. In Reverse- Matthew Sweet 5. Central Reservation - Beth Orton 6. Jonatha Brooke Live 7. Peace - Eurthymics 8. Run Devil Run & Working Classical - Paul McCartney 9. Can You Still Feel? - Jason Faulkner 10. Car Wheels on A Gravel Road - Lucinda Williams Honorable Mentions: Tori Amos for her uneven 2cd set, David Bowie's Hours & Guided by Voices- Do the Collapse Fav reissues: 1. Country Life - Roxy Music (Import) Remastered using HDCD 2. In the Court of the Crimson King - King Crimson -Finally sonic justice. Well, almost. The vocals could have been pushed up a tad. 3. Nick Lowe Box Set - A great overview and, with the exception of a couple of tracks missing from Jesus of Cool, pretty definitive. 4. All the Young Dudes (Box set) and All the Young Dudes (original album)- Mott The Hopple These guys never sounded better. 5. Vertigo - Bernard Herrmann 6. Remixed, remastered Yellow Submarine. Hey, the Beatles didn't particpate in any of their stereo mixing sessions. Sometimes George Martin was absent as well. At least the Fav 3 and George listened to it and gave it the thumbs up. 7. Painted from Memory - Elvis Costello & Burt Bacharach Reissued with a bonus live disc down under and available as an import. 8. Word of Mouth - The Kinks 9. Captain Beefheart box set -The Captain is an acquired taste. 10. Blue - Joni Mitchell - About time this was remastered. XTC content: Almost everyone (well, from my generation) had a favorite Beatle. Who is your favorite member of XTC and why? Andy is my predictable choice although I always root for the underdog as well. Maybe it's his haircut that appeals to me. I'm sure someone will hate something here. Makes life interesting. "Pocketing images one by one/ Of the past, toward your future/ 'A penny for your song'/ Position memories carefully/ You dust them off at holidays"
------------------------------ Message-ID: <19991201060926.27914.qmail@web2103.mail.yahoo.com> Date: Tue, 30 Nov 1999 22:09:26 -0800 (PST) From: Tyler Hewitt <tahewitt@yahoo.com> Subject: Twang twang Some recent comments on Country music: Country music is a pretty narrow field for someone with diverse talent. That's for damn sure! Just ask the Mavericks-Their most recent (and best) album, Trampoline, branches way away from country into Beach Boys/Beatles/Byrds influenced rock, blues, gospel, etc. and sold far fewer than any of their other records. Same with Dwight Yoakam. His two albums that strayed from pure country (one plays with soul, the other is a covers album with rock and bluegrass) cost him a lot of sales and deteriorated his fan base. dan duncan asks: are there any other country music enthusiasts on this list besides me? Dan already knows this (we traded tapes), but I too love Country, at least the good stuff. Country is like rock in that fully 95% of it is pure SHIT. The other 5%, however, is wonderful. Check out the two acts discussed above, Emmylou Harris, Johnny Cash (there's a new 2 cd set out of the entire Sun records recordings-truly ESSENTIAL listening, and the much more recent American Recordings is great), and don't miss the alt country/no depression/insurgent country stuff-a lot of good there, too. A lot of bands have played with Country sounds on at least a song or two, but to my knowledge, XTC never have. What would that sound like? Dunno about that... Squeeze sounded ok, although it sounded like a joke. Elvis Costello's Almost Blue I would deem an inspired misstep. X had the Knitters, and that record is pretty damn good (I love X, they are a GREAT band). Will XTC be next?
------------------------------ Message-ID: <3844AC85.6E4F@gte.net> Date: Tue, 30 Nov 1999 22:05:09 -0700 From: "May O'Mahoney" <may5272@gte.net> Subject: Best Post of the Month I nominate Debie Edmonds for 'Best Post of the Month'. Over and out.
------------------------------ Message-ID: <003201bf3c12$a1915f40$2f987ed4@atidy> From: "Ade Ransome" <ade@instinct.freeuk.com> Subject: Flanges! (fnar, fnar!) Date: Wed, 1 Dec 1999 15:41:26 -0000 Of Jason & the Argonauts Harrison Sherwood wrote: >So I listened with interest to the jet-plane sound created by the >flanger It occurred to me that it sounded *tuned*, as if it was designed >to fit with the G Lydian tonality that surrounds it. <lots of complicated research & intense thought snipped> >All this is by way of saying that the beginning and ending >"notes" of the flanger "swoosh" fit in perfectly with the song's >tonality. Which is, you have to admit, pretty cool for 1982 technology. ...And there's me liking it because it goes "NEOOWRRRRRRAAAIIIIIIINNNNNGNNGNNGNGNNGGNG!!!" ...so anyway, I was listening to The Big Express recently and hadn't realised how incredibly jangly that album is. There's Dave Gregory twinkling away on his Rickenbacker in the most unlikely places. If it weren't for the decidedly 1980's Linn drums I reckon it would be a more highly regarded release. Any thoughts? Adrian
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