Chalkhills Digest Volume 6, Issue 95
Date: Monday, 1 May 2000
Chalkhills Digest, Volume 6, Number 95
Monday, 1 May 2000
Topics:
record store question
Mummer a Bummer ?
Don't you just *hate* that?
Re: Vonnegut vs. Heller on Pay Per View
Bluetones
Society For The Defense of GO2
My one wish
What is rush?
The ugly on this list
Questions & Observations
Re: Nap Gap Yap Yap etc. and Pay Attention class
Once apon a time...
Children, Children...
Ow! Dunks! My wrist!
The Meaning of Life...
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---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Sat, 29 Apr 2000 17:19:18 -0700 From: Herne <herne@earthlink.net> Subject: record store question Message-ID: <390B7C05.EC137470@earthlink.net> Anybody out there in Chalkhills-land that know any cool record stores in the Tampa Bay area? I'm going to be nearby next week and would like to know if there's any places to check out. Please email me off-list by Tuesday morning. Thanks, KL aka Herne
------------------------------ Date: Sun, 30 Apr 2000 11:49:32 +0900 From: "John Boudreau" <aso1@mocha.ocn.ne.jp> Subject: Mummer a Bummer ? Message-ID: <005901bfb256$d28c39c0$655791d2@johnboud> Greetings from The Sushiman , Vinyl Mummer spinning as I write ... Coming after two of the best XTC albums - Black Sea and English Settlement - a disappointment . I still love the singles " Wonderland " and " Great Fire " ; both of which I purchased before buying the LP . The rest of SIDE 1 also just about as good as XTC gets . For me , the problem with Mummer is SIDE 2 ; my least favorite SIDE of any XTC album bar none . If I never heard it again I wouldn't miss it , sorry to say . Sushiman
------------------------------ Date: Sun, 30 Apr 2000 08:34:23 -0400 From: "Todd and Jennifer Bernhardt" <toddjenn@erols.com> Subject: Don't you just *hate* that? Message-ID: <NABBKDAOLCDJBNEFDNLLMEHKCCAA.toddjenn@erols.com> Hi: Radiosinmotion said: > To me, what I consider heavy metal (you know some people consider XTC punk > still?) is Poison, Def Leopard and all the other played out groups of the > 80's. Hair bands. *Not* Metal bands. > I hate > Disco, I hate Country, I hate Opera, I hate Gospel and I hate > Church type > music (non gospel). Big deal! I am sure you hate some of the > music I listen too. It just does not matter that much does it? "The more you love music, the more music you love." -Todd
------------------------------ Date: Sun, 30 Apr 2000 08:15:38 -0500 From: "Christopher R. Coolidge" <cauldron@together.net> Subject: Re: Vonnegut vs. Heller on Pay Per View Message-ID: <l03130301b531dd26d009@[208.13.202.76]> >>Catch-22 was the book that opened my eyes to how weak crap like Vonnegut >>really was (now there's annoying for you). > >Weak? Crap? Them's fightin' words, pal! "Slaughterhouse 5" is easily the >equal of "Catch 22" - and I'll remind you, Ed, that Kurt actually went >through the experiences on which the book is based. (Was Heller in the Air >Force? I really don't know - I'm not knocking him - I just can't remember) > >Dunks As someone who enjoys both authors, I can't resist jumping into this debate. Joseph Heller wrote one great book in his lifetime, and that was Catch 22. One of the great classics of 20th century American literature and howlingly funny to boot. The movie didn't do it justice. I did enjoy Something Happened, though I'm probably the only person in the whole world who read it before Catch 22(I read both in high school in the late 70's, but I happened to get to Something Happened first). When you accept that it's a very different book than Catch 22 you can enjoy it on a different level. It's not as funny, but the characters are very well drawn, and it's more a snapshot of a tortured and dysfunctional family unit in the 70's. I even enjoyed it when I reread it last year. Heller even put out a sequel to Catch 22 a couple of years ago, which I've read; it's not the masterpiece Catch 22 was and wasn't intended to be, but it does pick up on a few of the characters in the mid-90's when they're all old men looking back on their lives. Yosarrian is again one of the central characters, and Milo Minderbinder has gone from chocolate covered cotton to being one of the most successful businessmen in the country by scamming people the same way he always has. The chaplain pops up towards the end in a subplot that turns out very important to the story. The plot is a bit hard to follow, and it's not the great piece of work its predecessor was, but it is worth reading. Vonnegut is one of those few novelists I'll read anything by. Not all of his work is great- I found Player Piano boring, and his most recent novel Timepiece was his dodgiest effort in quite a while. Far better was another of his more recent novels Hocus Pocus. Anyone who thinks Vonnegut is crap, pick that one up, you may change your mind, it's a quite absorbing piece of storytelling with very little of the pseudo-avant-garde digressions of, say, Breakfast Of Champions(which I enjoy despite its tendency to wander from the story; Timepiece returns to that annoying tendency, except it doesn't have much plot to wander from). Also check Slapstick, which is another more straightforward piece of storytelling, though a rather unusual story it is. It was even made into a movie sometime in the 80's, with Jerry Lewis in the starring role. It was under a different title, though, I forget what. I remember him promoting it on Letterman, and when it came out it went straight to video, just like all other movies of Vonnegut's books, except Slaughterhouse Five. Christopher R. Coolidge Homepage at http://homepages.together.net/~cauldron/homepage.html "A Great law protects me from the government. The Bill of rights has 10 GREAT laws. A Good law protects me from you. Laws against murder, theft, assault and the like are good laws. A Poor law attempts to protect me from myself." - Unknown
------------------------------ Date: Sun, 30 Apr 2000 02:38:35 -0700 From: "Drew MacDonald" <drewmacdonald@mediaone.net> Subject: Bluetones Message-ID: <001201bfb287$db0489a0$ac841818@we.mediaone.net> Chris Browning mentioned: > also the new bluetones album is likened to "mummer" of all things. have > heard the first single off this, "keep the home fires burning" and very > nice it is with it's hovis horn section - but anything like mummer? not > really...still might be worth investigating... Does anybody know if this Bluetones record will have a US release? What's the title? And what is a "hovis horn section?" Drew, who loves Mummer AND Nonsuch
------------------------------ Date: Sun, 30 Apr 2000 07:49:53 -0500 From: "Christopher R. Coolidge" <cauldron@together.net> Subject: Society For The Defense of GO2 Message-ID: <l03130300b531d8c4c881@[208.13.202.118]> >and >> Well, I'll be the (maybe lone) dissenting voice on this one then. >> I've said >> it before, and I'll say it again, IMO there is something to >> 'love' in every >> XTC album and these two are no exceptions. Add the rose-tinted nostalgic >> hue of distance, and the fact that punk was 'my generation', and I see no >> reason to dislike anything much on either album (and yes, I even like 'My >> Weapon') > >Don't worry, you're not alone. White Music is what hooked me to this band, >and the Society for the Defense of Go2 is lurking out there somewhere. (Show >yourselves!) Probably the same woman I saw walking into KSV Communications with an LP copy of GO2 under her arm a couple of years ago.(probably to show her boss the ALBUM COVER.) Personally I enjoy it more than White Music, I'll probably get White Music in some form one of these days(it's the only XTC album I don't actually own)but when I heard it on a friend's stereo sometime in the early 80's it didn't set me on fire(so to speak), though "This Is Pop" and "Statue Of Liberty" sounded like good jumpy late 70's post-punk songs. The cover of "All Along The Watchtower" I found grating, and may have been the deciding factor in my giving the album a miss. I may give it another chance though. I actually enjoyed the 3D EP a lot more(which I do have). As for GO2, I don't listen to it much, but when I make an XTC mix tape, I make sure to include "Mechanik Dancing" or "Battery Brides" which a friend of mine in college even used as the soundtrack for a dance performance she was in. Works real well for experimental modern dance. There's no such thing as a bad XTC album, it's just some are more flawed than others. Like most great songwriters, Andy has put out his share of dodgy stuff; just what it is is a matter of opinion. As for Colin, he has the misfortune of being a good songwriter in a band with a great one, like John Entwhistle and Dave Davies. Christopher R. Coolidge Homepage at http://homepages.together.net/~cauldron/homepage.html "A Great law protects me from the government. The Bill of rights has 10 GREAT laws. A Good law protects me from you. Laws against murder, theft, assault and the like are good laws. A Poor law attempts to protect me from myself." - Unknown
------------------------------
Date: Sun, 30 Apr 2000 09:36:53 EDT
From: OMBEAN1@aol.com
Subject: My one wish
Message-ID: <92.432ca29.263d90f5@aol.com>
Hatfields & McCoys,
My one wish in life is to see XTC play one more show. Then everyone from
Chalkhills can show up and while Andy is singing "Stupidly Happy" ,there
would be an all out brawl on the floor. Watch where you swing that
crutch,Molly!
Making a fist.........
XTC?.... Yeah! That head-boppin' band!!... I admit to occasionally
bopping to XTC, but there's more to their music than the tempo!!! If that
was true, I would have quit on them after Terry C. left!! BOLLOCKS!!!
Bollocks? You better be in England because theres nothing worse than someone
in the U.S. using english phrases, you stupid git. HA HA! And besides ,I
could make a box set of XTC songs where the tempo dominates. I also put on
the headphones and listen to the same song over & over just to disect it
instrument by instrument but I'm just a simple folk from out here in the
sticks and if makes me want to move & groove, I'm movin & groovin. Squeel
louder.
I be done. Roger
p.s . "TROUT! OUT!" is my all time favorite sign off.
------------------------------ Date: Sun, 30 Apr 2000 12:12:29 EDT From: StucoHomes@aol.com Subject: What is rush? Message-ID: <a5.53523ac.263db56d@aol.com> In a message dated 4/30/00 2:49:54 AM US Eastern Standard Time, <owner-chalkhills@chalkhills.org> writes: > <<Whats Rush?>> > > You don't want to know, believe me. Rush is a progressive-rock band that was very popular in the late-70s, early-80s. They had hits like "Tom Sawyer" "New World Man" and "Spirit of Radio" and they're a DAMN GOOD BAND, no matter what anyone says. - - - Reverend Jody L. Barnes "May the baby Jesus shut your mouth and open your mind." - Don Vliet "Being disabled has never really interested me very much. It's very serious, like plumbing is serious, but I'm also not interested in plumbing." - Robert Wyatt (paraplegic)
------------------------------ Date: Sun, 30 Apr 2000 13:12:54 -0400 From: "Cheryl" <mcgregoc@mindspring.com> Subject: The ugly on this list Message-ID: <000f01bfb2c7$80913820$f202f7a5@mcgregocmindspring.com> Hello! >Am I the only person who loves Mummer around here? Certainly not. :) It took me awhile to really like this album. The delicate nature just didn't appeal at first, but on subsequent listens I found a lot to love about this album. What really brought me around were the soaring vocals on "Love On A Farmboy's Wages". It made my heart flutter and it was all down hill from there. :) Jane Spencer-Davis thus wrote: >Might I speak for let's say the majority of the 'Chalkhills Chicks' (and we >are a lusty lot) that the preference would be for a Mr. Partridge tripping >and falling into the featherbed rather than a Mr. Sumner... I second that emotion! I mean notion! : ) From: "vee tube" : (Snipped for space) > Anybody want to guess how long these newbies will hang > out here? How many will never know about the 'Dukes" > Why? > Because all they'll see is a bunch of Stupid!Monkey! FUCKS! >Pissing all over each other! What a great way to find XTC fans! > I think all I'm trying to say is... > "Can't we all just,get along? little doggies?" I think your point is a good one...I just think it strange how you put it. Personally, and of course this is just my opinion, calling people foul names doesn't quite embody the spirit of peace. I'm not trying to judge you. I liked your point, it has made me think. I just think using the same tactics you are trying to call an end for is destructive to your point. That's what seems to be lacking in these pages of late, civility and respect for humanity. When I first joined the list back in '96, I was impressed with the amount of thoughtful, intelligent posts and the spirit of community that seemed to reside here. I'm not trying to glorify the "good ole days" because there were mean and ugly posts flying about but it didn't seem as much nor as much name calling. Everyone is very passionate about XTC in this digest and arguments seem to be unavoidable but is it necessary to be down right mean and ugly to our fellow listers? Sometimes I have had that....horrible, fascinated feeling like when I catch a glimpse of The Jerry Springer Show. I read these comments and laugh, but then feel saddened and sick by the slimy-ness of it all. It's the only way I can describe it. I've always thought the type of people who like XTC were rather intelligent and friendly folks but you would never see that with the posts that fly through here. Sorry to get on my soapbox here. Just wanted to express my thoughts of late. It's been bothering me and I just wanted to add my two cents in. >> Point Three - XTC are a heavy metal band and one day I will prove >>it. Seriously. Why? Why label them? XTC transcends labels in my opinion. They are too good for that. Take care everyone, Cheryl
------------------------------ Date: Sun, 30 Apr 2000 08:56:17 -0700 From: "John Keel" <jbkev1@ev1.net> Subject: Questions & Observations Message-ID: <002a01bfb2bc$9febf4e0$5d525d3f@sony.com> Hi kids! First, I want to know - especially from you fans in the UK - if there is anything XTC related that is readily available over the pond that we can't here in the States? I have a friend who's heading over to London on Wednesday and will bring me anything I want back, but I don't know if there's anything for her to bring. Please e-mail me off list if you have any suggestions. Thanks! I love that the L.A. area fans are responding positively to my idea of a gathering. Let's stay on this and see what we can work up. Maybe someone with a website can post photos that we can give the rest of the world a link to in order for them to see our soiree'. My suggestion to Molly on having fans send in their own mixes for listening parties showed my total ignorance of the process being a relative newbie of Chalkhills and never having actually participated in a listening party before. Sorry for the confusion. One note to an older post from Deborah Brown re: if my initial response to "Wasp Star" had changed since I posted my review. Like I said, it basically hasn't but I find myself almost wishing I hadn't given my review - or at least such a lengthy (sorry about that) one. In some ways I agree with the observation that for some people it's like hearing all about how great a movie is and then getting your expectations up and being let down by the actual experience. I think most true fans will be delighted, but I can understand why some people don't want to hear too much about it. Plus, by the time the album actually does come out, I miss some of the excitement of the true release of buying and hearing it the first time along with the majority of people. Please know that I'm NOT complaining since I realize how incredibly lucky I was to receive my advance copy, it's just an observation. Oh, and to finally wrap this up, I have to put in my agreement regarding the book "A Confederacy of Dunces" - one of the top five favorite books I have ever read. A true masterpiece. Thanks for listening!! John ********************************************* "Your heart is the big box of paints and others, the canvas we're dealt." Andy Partridge "Wrapped in Grey"
------------------------------ Date: Sun, 30 Apr 2000 12:49:31 -0700 From: Herne <herne@earthlink.net> Subject: Re: Nap Gap Yap Yap etc. and Pay Attention class Message-ID: <390C8E4B.474918A4@earthlink.net> Regarding Dunks and Mr. Sherwood's responses to my Napster post... Please note that I am fully aware of the negatives of Napster. I chose not to dwell on them in my post as I felt they had been covered here already. I did mention the legit concern regarding Napster being for profit vs. non-profit. I do believe that Napster being "for profit" is questionable because it is cashing in and not paying for it. If that was not clear, apologies from me. Basically I agree with what both of you said. You're both right. Upon further reflection, I must agree there are lots of things wrong with Napster that probably outweigh the cool things about it. My real point was I have a hard time swallowing the concept that the trading or borrowing of music is inheritly evil. And when a group of people like Chalkhills protest such a concept I've just got to express some disbelief. So while I agree with most criticisms of Napster I must protest this one nugget from Mr. Harrison... "Justifying theft of intellectual property because the originator of the property is beholden to a record company is hideously selfish: You dislike the business practices of the entertainment industry, so....Fuck Andy Partridge? TVT demands 15 bucks for Wasp Star, so....Fuck Andy Partridge? Tower Records is a bricks-and-mortar behemoth, so...Fuck Andy Partridge? Something so inconvenient as property rights stands between me and immediate free gratification, so...". Come on! Everyone here, including you unless I'm mistaken, have been listening to the freaking demos for years. I've waited until three weeks before the album comes out so now I'm condemned? Did I not say I was going to delete anything I downloaded? I've heard them. I have now deleted them. Napster's not getting anything from me. Now perhaps I can achieve moral perfection in the black and white world that everyone here seems to live in. Where everyone is a moral pillar who wouldn't DREAM of hearing an unreleased track. HA! (Shall I bother to put the smiley face here to indicate I'm kidding? No ground breaking sarcasm or irony here). And I refuse to be accused of stealing from Andy Partridge. Hell I'm BEGGING to give Andy and TVT my money. Where are the cd's, the hats, the t-shirts, the videos, the CONCERTS??? It can't all be Virgin's fault. Bring on the stuff! Here's all my credit cards. Sell me XTC stuff!!! How much begging and pleading do I have to do? I don't want to look in the shadows for XTC stuff. Sell stuff to me for f*** sake! If collecting non-commercially available items aka "collectibles" is theft then why does the industry tacitly support and encourage it? Making limited edition items that are supposedly not for public consumption. Someone's writing those press releases where industry officials express phony shock and dismay over the fact that movie posters are stolen from bus stops or that their recording artist's promos are worth money on the net. They want to have it both ways and so they try unsuccessfully to walk a fine line in a grey area. Then they have the audacity to blame fans for the demand they create. Dr. Dre even wants to sue college students who use Napster It's ridiculous. At any rate, I stand by my opinion that trading or making tapes or mp3s of music is not inheritly wrong if you're not selling them. Trading's not going to destroy the music business especially since the same companies make all the hardware that makes it possible anyway. If it hasn't by now, it never will. I don't care if you can create perfect digital copies. The quality of the copies is not the issue. They are still intangible until they are put on to a disc or some other sale-able medium. People aren't going to fill up their house with main frames to hold music. I know I'm not. I, like most people, want something to hold and own. Something official and real. Something which must be manufactured. And eventually those places which manufacture and distribute/sell pirated copies are discovered and stopped, no matter what third world rock they hide under. Real piracy, as practiced by many in that arena, is the true problem. More money should be spent going after the people who sell 25 cent Mariah Carey bootlegs in Thailand as opposed to college students who think it might be fun to have "The Chronic" on their computer. In general, why the entertainment industry is so obsessed with the internet is beyond me. At best the net is a marketing tool. Net profits are all virtually non-existent. CDNOW is supposedly headed toward ruin. And Amazon is still in the red. A recent survey someone in the industry quoted to me said people list shopping as 53rd on the list of what people use the net for. 53rd! Frankly I'd rather go to Tower, a place I like by the way, cause it's in the real world. I'm a fan of the bricks and morter. I believe the true enemy of the artists is not imaginary lost sales from hardcore collectors or bored netsurfers with nothing better to do than kill time downloading music they likely already own. It is, of course, the record companies that are the number one "Screw artists patrol". Where execs regularly charge personal mail and expenses against projects. Where they loan money to themselves to pay for videos and charge imaginary interest that leaves hundreds of millions of dollars in profit looking like a loss on paper. And was it not the RIAA that snuck the "work for hire" thing into the copyright law...essentially screwing all artists out of their rights to regain control of their work. That's an issue that makes the Napster thing look like what it really is....a tempest in a teapot. Hey, maybe I'm wrong about all this. I may think my intellectual observations are valid but maybe I'm all wrong. Frankly I don't know why I'm thinking about this stuff. I think I need to get out of the house more! Let's move on shall we? I'm getting a headache. Perhaps I'll leave the final words on the subject to Rapper Chuck D who recently said in Billboard Magazine that Napster is "a catlayst to bringing the era of lazy artists to an end. In the future an artist is going to have to look at the whole picture of the music business and pursue other avenues of making money from their music. Whether it be things like touring, selling merchandise... and not just hoping that the labels and publishing companies will take care of them.(sic)The domination they(the labels) have over artists is over." Cheers, KL aka Herne p.s.: A paraphrased quote from an anonymous Interscope rep... "Napster is no big deal. It's a minor nuisance. We all laugh at the artists who jump out of their Cadillacs with their gold chains whining about being robbed by Napster. It's a joke. It's not hurting us. CD unit costs are like 67 cents each so we make tons on the mark-up."
------------------------------ Date: Sun, 30 Apr 2000 18:27:21 -0400 From: "Cheryl" <mcgregoc@mindspring.com> Subject: Once apon a time... Message-ID: <000901bfb2f3$416e2dc0$af0bf7a5@mcgregocmindspring.com> Hello yet again, I was watching a snippet of VH1 while waiting for my laundry to launder and they were having a story tellers marathon and I wishfully thought, "Oh wouldn't it be Brilliant if XTC were to do a story tellers stint!" If you could pick the set list of songs what would you pick? I would love to hear and hear about: I'd Like That Mermaid Smile Harvest Festival Frivolous Tonight Miniature Sun Anything off of Wasp Star! I do have Song Stories, but reading about it is never quite as good as hearing it from the horses mouth. Take care, Cheryl
------------------------------
Date: Sun, 30 Apr 2000 19:00:09 -0400
From: "Diamond" <arnos@nantucket.net>
Subject: Children, Children...
Message-ID: <200004302302.TAA10573@nantucket.net>
>I don't know if anyone's mentioned this, but don't you think that, based on
>the James & the Giant Peach stuff, that Andy could put out a killer kid's
>record? (Don't laugh! It's big biz!) Those of you who are family
>oriented ought to try those songs on their toddlers and see!
It is a big biz, as is evident that THey Might Be Giants are making a
Childrens CD. I've heard a bunch of the songs, and, actually, they really
just sound like normal TMBG songs... songs like Robot Parade and Clown Town
are actually quite scary, and I would probably freak if I heard these when I
was little, but they're trying to get their foot in another door, and I
think it should turn out well... This way, they'll get all of their fans to
buy it, AND can start brain-washing the little ones, so that once they're
in their teens, they'll be avid Giantheads. Good thinkin, I think.
Oh, the album is called "NO!" and it will be out next fall (Probably)
Kevin Diamond
http://artists.mp3s.com/artists/79/the_french_electric_all-st.html
http://artists.mp3s.com/artists/84/bass-cleff.html
http://artists.mp3s.com/artists/85/starving_artists.html
--
"No one in the world ever get's what they want, and that is beautiful.
Everybody dies frustrated and sad, and that is beautiful"
-John Linnell (of They Might Be Giants) / "Don't Let's Start"
------------------------------
Date: Sun, 30 Apr 2000 19:48:50 -0700
From: Ed Kedzierski <ed.kedzierski@blvdmedia.com>
Subject: Ow! Dunks! My wrist!
Message-ID: <08B5DDC2BABCD311BFC6005004A884B013B615@mgcservices.com>
Well, back in 6-93, Dunks took me to task for belittling Vonnegut and, while
a good part of this post consists of me backing down, there's just one
thing:
Dunks said:
>So ... Ed fancies himself a literary critic, huh?
No, of course not. You had a lot of valid points, but that opening remark...
Really. I was just speaking as a lifelong voracious reader, who happens to
have an opinion or two. Those were obviously just flip remarks, more "cheeky
typing" than anything, and weren't meant as any kind of in-depth analysis.
You might say that that's no excuse, but I clearly wasn't submitting a
thesis here. It was the "unreadable" crack that got me going in the first
place, and as Catch-22 was something I read and enjoyed while in high school
(and didn't consider unreadable, at an age when I would supposedly have more
difficulty getting into something), I just spat out the first name whose
work bored me at the same age. That's where the Steinbeck crack came from.
You also said:
Weak? Crap? Them's fightin' words, pal! "Slaughterhouse 5"
is easily the equal of "Catch 22" - and I'll remind you, Ed, that Kurt
actually went through the experiences on which the book is based. (Was
Heller in the Air Force? I really don't know - I'm not knocking him - I just
can't remember)
(Groan) What, a real fight? But... I've got this bad leg...
But seriously, how much can you really use the degree to which a book is
based on true experiences to determine whether it's "better" than another?
True, you may find it interesting, it may illuminate aspects of the novel to
learn their origin and inspiration, but in terms of "better" or "worse"...
it's just a biographical trivia tidbit. (Which doesn't stop me from going on
about the origins of "Empire of the Sun" when trying to sell people on
Ballard, but still...)
Anyway...
Vonnegut was also a high school thing for me, and I went through a period of
liking his stuff quite a lot. Early books like "God Bless You, Mr.
Rosewater", "Cat's Cradle" "Sirens of Titan", and yes, "Slaughterhouse 5"
are ones which I still remember fondly. However... I have to draw the line
at "Breakfast of Champions" (and a slightly blurrier line at "Slapstick").
There's that whole late 70s period of his that just becomes too coy and
cute, with the little catchphrases ("So it goes" "Hi ho") and magic marker
drawings of assholes, etc. I basically just OD'ed on his stuff at an early
age, and maybe it's unfair for me to dismiss him outright because of that.
Actually, this is all stuff that I haven't read in about twenty years. For
all I know, Catch-22 could very well suffer in comparison with my memory of
it, but it's a pretty strong memory, so probably not. Unreadable it
definitely isn't. And you're absolutely right about Hellers' other novels; I
made a few attempts, which usually resulted in sleep.
And yes, citing the catchphrase value of the title was cheap, and I probably
shouldn't have used it. I do still feel that very few very famous books
(ones that non-readers can name) are particularly funny, which is really all
I meant. I just have this bee in my bonnet about the way that the so-called
"serious" (as opposed to the humourous, not as opposed to the frivolous or
thoughtless) has held a stranglehold on legitimacy.
Anyways, this may have come out less apologetic than I intended (what seems
less sincere than an apology riddled with defensive clarifications?), but,
well I do acknowledge that I was speaking (typing) without really thinking
very carefully.
I noticed that you didn't lift a finger to defend Tom Robbins, though.
You may well be right about the whole "Andy & fiction" thing, but I'd still
like to hear his answer.
And I do have a copy of "Confederacy of Dunces" in my "to read" pile -
perhaps I should move it closer to the top.
And then some,
Ed K.
------------------------------ Date: Mon, 01 May 2000 00:16:33 -0500 From: JH3 <jh3@winco.net> Subject: The Meaning of Life... Message-ID: <010901bfb32c$6bb01ce0$43de90cf@JH3.alternatech.net> >>...the song that I ABSOLUTELY refuse to listen to (no matter how >>much time I've got on my hands!) is 'Life Is Good In the Greenhouse'. >>Give that one a spin tonight and tell me it's the worst song XTC has >>EVER released. >NOT - I love this song. I don't know what it means but it's catchy as >hell. Indeed, it *is* catchy as hell; it would have to be, seeing as how it's on the World's Greatest Album Ever. But what does "Life Is Good In the Greenhouse" actually *mean*, you ask? On a fairly basic level, it *could* be interpreted as a conventional anti- love song - the "you" being referred to would be the singer's girlfriend or whatever, and he's now far better off having left her and retreated into a vegetative state, a state that men often retreat into after a painful breakup. Yeah, sure, whatever. You forget that these are XTC lyrics... So let's look a little deeper than that. The key thing is that if you're a plant, a greenhouse is a place where you're *insulated* from the Outside World. (You can't hear what's going on in it, for instance.) Andy has always been a guy who values privacy and seclusion, despite leading a public existence and having a fanatical following, right? I think he's actually saying that he *envies* the plant, sitting in a nice warm greenhouse, insulated fom all the goings-on outside; he sees those goings-on as nothing more than a stress factor, an impingement on his freedom to "grow" - whereas most of us would see the plant as being anything *but* free, trapped there in a clay pot it's entire life. In my opinion, this song is a cry for help, the expression of a deeply- felt pain over being forced to exist outside of the warm and safe confines of a greenhouse-like existence. I see it as the first indication of what was later to become Andy's crippling anxiety about public performance and interaction. It's especially telling that the greenhouse/ plant analogy is used as opposed to, say, the bed/sleeper analogy or the ever-present ministry/mole analogy. Andy knows even at this early stage in his career that he has a public persona, and that due to his immense musical talents people are going to be paying attention to almost everything he does; so a greenhouse would seem like an ideal place for him, where he wouldn't necessarily have to do anything, but people could easily observe him and see what and how he was doing, and yet always be physically (and by extension, emotionally and psychologically) separated from him by that ever-present layer of insulating glass. Then again, maybe it's all a big joke. Who cares? Just buy the album and get on with it, I always say. From: K D <hentoe_xtc@yahoo.com>: >So, can I call, once again, on the Go 2 Society (or >whatever the secret closet Go 2 fan club was called) >to come forth and stand up for early XTC!? AFAIK, the lack of an official name (or official-anything-else) is one of the defining aspects of the so-called "society". The album can defend itself; after all, it *is* IMO the finest album ever recorded, by anyone. And the fact that the album is underrated, not only by other XTC fans but even by Andy Partridge himself, is just another reason to like it, as far as I'm concerned. After all, if we only liked things that *weren't* underrated, at least by the general public, then XTC probably wouldn't be our favorite band, would they? I know, I know, I should speak only for myself. Whatever. John "470% more postings than usual" Hedges XTCWare: http://www.alternatech.net/jh3/xtc (Thanks for the plug, vee tube!)
------------------------------ End of Chalkhills Digest #6-95 ******************************
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