Chalkhills Digest Volume 7, Issue 6
Date: Sunday, 28 January 2001
Chalkhills Digest, Volume 7, Number 6
Sunday, 28 January 2001
Topics:
a sincere thanks to you...
Business models in rock
BARRY ANDREWS
Nicole's lament
Pugilistic Pears
Capital Concentrates Upward, Says Pinko Commie Malcontent!
Quick Karma-No XTC
cut out somnabulist?
An O & L promo item and assorted junk
It's great to be back
President Kill Again...Again
Re: Definitive XTC albums campaign & other recent bits
Look there is a CD available that you might like.
Must I have the *School Guide*?
XTC FANS COVER THE BAND
Mark Manson
Re: Kozmo
Re: Dear God
More on the definitive album set
Re: Horsing Around
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And all the world is football shaped.
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Date: Fri, 26 Jan 2001 06:19:50 -0500
From: "Danny Phipps" <phipps@schoollink.net>
Subject: a sincere thanks to you...
Message-ID: <web-5918230@schoollink.net>
thanks so much to everyone who was kind enough to
send ginger and me all the wonderful and compassionate
e-mails we received regarding the loss of our oldest
cat kozmo.
each individual post we read lifted our hearts and
spirits in a most positive way and we simply wanted
to say, "thank you, friends." :-)
long live the spirit of kozmo!!
take care --
/dan phipps
-------------------------------------------
"All of the answers you seek can be
found in the dreams that you dream..."
-- Dan Fogelberg
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------------------------------ Date: Fri, 26 Jan 2001 09:10:10 -0400 From: Andrew Boyle <uscolor@uscolor.com> Subject: Business models in rock Message-ID: <v04210102b6972392db23@[192.168.0.3]> In Digest #7-5, Jon Rosenberger wrote (great post, BTW): >The Police\Sting are probably one of the most successfully run >business's in entertainment. They had a ruthless manager that didn't >cheat them, and they didn't take big advances. The manager was also >very inventive with the merchandising and supplied a ton of items to >the collectors. If you need a guy to model your rock and roll >business after, Sting is definitely your guy. I propose two words: Gene Simmons. And to a lesser extent Paul Stanley. Gene has no problem telling you it is all about the money and always has been. And a few women. Definitely a show and merchandising pro. How un-fun does it have to be, though, for Ace and Peter to have to be WORKING for those two than actually just performing with them and seeing a better cut? And, yes, they got some more of my money on April 11th, 2000. But, no, I will not go again if they decide this isn't the farewell tour for real. Andrew "Where DID I put that Love Gun CD? Ah, under Skylarking!" Boyle Orlando
------------------------------ Date: Fri, 26 Jan 2001 12:05:51 -0000 From: "Belinda" <b.blanchard@btinternet.com> Subject: BARRY ANDREWS Message-ID: <001d01c08790$53d544e0$e9797bd5@btopenworld.com> Hi The incredibly annoying and ignorant Robert Elms was doing his radio show on Greater London Radio this morning (26th January) and someone gave him Rossmore Road to play. So Robert asked who this singer songwriter was, and it was Barry Andrews! Well BA's ex girlfriend rang up and told Robert who Barry was and so on, and a couple of hours later Barry Andrews himself came on and enlightened us all as to his work. He told Robert Elms about what he is up to, I have forgotten all of it, but you can contact him (Barry Andrews) to find out what he is up to, on: boron21@hotmail.com Don't tell me I don't tell you anything. Not that I told you much, I was half asleep at the time. If I took the email address down wrong, sorry about that too. The B side to Rossmore Road was called "Win a night out with a well known paranoic". Anyway, back to sleep. Love BELINDA
------------------------------ Date: Fri, 26 Jan 2001 09:50:11 -0400 From: Andrew Boyle <uscolor@uscolor.com> Subject: Nicole's lament Message-ID: <v04210103b6972df04b93@[192.168.0.3]> 2 Posts in one day. A 1st for me. In digest #7-5, Nicole courageously posted a lot and ended: >So, Andy sings against certain themes, and I agree with the right to do >so, and with most of the sentiment. However, to say "President Kill >Again" suggests mal intent and extremism. This is why I go "ugh, >shaddap". My initial post that set you off was just me pointing out that within hours of each other we found that Texas set a record for executions in a year and that Dubya was all ours. If the lines: "Taking lives with a smoking pen, President Kill wants killing again." don't pop right out at ya... Especially if you are in this select group of XTC fans. >I think its funny... I once wrote on the digest, as a joke, that >political talk on chalkhills should be avoided. It was an old argument, >and one I disagreed with, so my statment was a joke, really. Someone >then wrote me and told me that these issues are brought up by the band >and therefore are relevant to the digest. Of course, since I was joking >with my original statement, I quite agree with that point. So... at >now, 12:07, I finish my statement. You can all tell me to go to hell... >and I'll think it funny. I'm already there. Its called 7 years into >grad school. Ironinc, more like. ;-) I, for one, wouldn't tell you to go anywhere. We love you here. Variety and the key to life and all that. Now we, as Americans, just need to keep the faith and stand behind our Constitution and ideals, maybe even the man, and forge ahead with (in synch with my previous post today) business. Andrew Boyle Orlando, FL
------------------------------ Date: Fri, 26 Jan 2001 10:06:16 -0700 From: Angie Kelson-Packer/Shaun Packer <nick@aros.net> Subject: Pugilistic Pears Message-ID: <3A71AE88.88512A45@aros.net> Let's get RRrrready to Rrrrruumble.....Everyone got their boxing gloves on? Adrian's Boxing Match: Can we watch on PBS, or Pay per View? And will it replace WWF Smackdown? Afterward, can we get the pugilistic pear, Andy & Colin, to record a cover of "The Boxer?" Or, can we get the whole orchard together, Terry, Barry, Dave too? The Bullfinch conundrum: Everybody knows the definitive source for myth is Walt Disney. Hello, did anyone else see "Hercules?" ; ) News Flash: Madonna and Brittney to record a duet. What fresh hell is this?! Unless Colin and Andy write it, then maybe the lads can earn more $$$. What would _that_ song sound like? Ooooh, back in 1999, when Britney was hitting it big time, playing arenas, etc, she got stuck playing at the Utah State Fair. She tried wriggling her cute little tushy out of performing amidst the cow pies and apples pies, but it was an ironclad contract. So, if you want to indulge in a little schadenfreude, picture this: Britney singing her little heart out above the baa's and moo's of the livestock (or, maybe the boo's of the crowd and the maa's of crying children). The perfume of manure, boiled hotdogs, and axle grease filling the air. Loudspeakers blaring announcements about lost children, pie eating contests, and winners in the home sewing competition, while occasionally, another chunk of adobe falls off one of the crumbling, old buildings, nearly hitting another fair patron. All while that darling lil' Miss Spears could have been singing at some nice, respectable, pleasant-smelling arena for lots more dough. (For fans of state fairs, I apologize. My experiences at the Utah Fair tend to be, um, less than perfect. And my grandfather used to breed and show Arabian horses, so I'm not an animal or ranch hater. For fans of Britney Spears, well, I don't really hate her, she's just an easy target.) Odin mounts the tree/Bleeds for you and me/Daddy's severed genitals/Fall into the sea...okay, now I cannot get "Easter Theatre" out of my addled head. Thank you very much Harrison and Andy. ; ) Seriously, thanks for Music Econ. 101, with the sordid information about the music biz. Isn't the situation in publishing similar? I've also heard stories, somewhat alike, from friends in the computer/gaming design industry. Seems areas of creativity/intellectual property lend themselves to exploitation. Wow! I love the Chalkhills! Funny, thoughtful, insightful, informative, good-natured and courteous folk.. Oops, forgot loyal, thrifty and brave...er, I guess that would make us the Boy Scouts. Angie I know, I know, there's a special place in Hell just for me.
------------------------------ Date: Fri, 26 Jan 2001 12:51:39 EST From: Hbsherwood@aol.com Subject: Capital Concentrates Upward, Says Pinko Commie Malcontent! Message-ID: <6e.736ed93.27a3132b@aol.com> >From: MinerWerks <dminer@gte.net> >Subject: Let my people go... >America Online: minus 725. To give the appearances of not playing >favorites, AOL's cuts will include 300 at its former headquarters in >Dulles, Virginia. "To give the appearance of not playing favorites".... Oh, so *that's* what it was! The axe missed me by a hair, and hit my friend and colleague Brett Goltz, a very talented and experienced designer, directly in the neck. He's now at home contemplating his navel, his head full of irreplaceable institutional memory. In 10 minutes I'm going to a staff meeting to divvy up his workload among those of us who remain. Morale just *couldn't* be higher. (Also, to clarify, the headquarters of the online service and ISP America Online remain in Dulles. The headquarters of AOL Time Warner (the media megalith) are in New York. This is actually a sensitive point locally, where pride of ownership is at stake.) >New Line Cinema/Fine Line Features: minus 120. Production President >Michael De Luca is already gone. Senior Executive Vice President >Richard Saperstein just got the ax. More will follow. Two words: "Little Nicky." New Line was doomed long before any mergers were consummated. It's an extremely volatile business, and the fortunes of a film-production company stand or fall on one hit or stinker. Part of the complaints about the merger from stockholders is that AOL Time Warner stock will depend on the success or failure of individual movies--a very dicey investment in the best of times. (Anyway, are you really asking us to grieve for senior executive vice presidents of movie companies? These guys have been failing upward since they got out of Wharton, for crying out loud! They're already measuring the carpet in their corner offices at DreamWorks! Resume: "Ran promising film company into the ground with obscene budget overruns and howlingly incompetent script choices..." Great! When can you start?) >From: Jon Rosenberger <wile1coyote@yahoo.com> >Subject: The Life and Times of Judge Roy Bean >So I wondered if anyone knew where Todd Rundgren originally planned to >place Dear God when he planned out the album before XTC came over to >the states to record it. In Chalkhills Children, Twomey relates that >Todd had the whole thing planned and they started recording the songs >"in the order that Todd, had laid them out" Anyone know what the >original order was? This is a really interesting question! I've searched high & low, and not found the answer. Certainly Rundgren had a very clear conception for Side Two at the beginning of the sessions (hence that bizarre "booking the tape" practice), and Andy's insistence after the mixing was done that Dear God had to go and be replaced by Another Satellite would have changed that original intention subtly. What we *do* know is that there was never a version of Skylarking that was as Todd Rundgren originally intended. >From a radio interview with Rundgren, 1986: When we first started the XTC album they sent me a lot of songs, they sent me probably at least 30-35 songs between Colin and Andy. Maybe a month or two before the band even came to America to start the record, I developed an overall concept, with a running order and everything, for the whole record. And when we started the record we set about to kind of fill in the concept. And with very few changes, that's the way the record is now. One of the changes was that Andy came up with a song that I didn't feel fit necessarily into the concept but that Andy wanted to have on the record, and that song was called "Another Satellite." And to get it onto the record we had to remove a song. And the song that got removed was "Dear God." Not by my choice but by, er, other powers decided that Dear God would be removed from the album. But alternatively they used it as a B-side to a single, and the single appeared here as an import, and suddenly everybody started playing the B-side of the single, which was Dear God. Now this would appear to imply that Another Satellite *replaced* Dear God in the running order, but that's not necessarily so--they could have shifted other songs around as well. And it doesn't make sense thematically to have Another Satellite follow Mermaid Smiled. I'm guessing, here, based on my interpretation of Rundgren's "Day Passes" concept, that the original running order was: Earn Enough for Us Big Day Mermaid Smiled Dear God The Man Who Sailed Around His Soul Dying Sacrificial Bonfire But that's just a guess. Anybody else have anything more reliable? Harrison "Can *this* be what they mean by "trainspotting'?" Sherwood
------------------------------ Date: Fri, 26 Jan 2001 11:18:27 -0700 From: Angie Kelson-Packer/Shaun Packer <nick@aros.net> Subject: Quick Karma-No XTC Message-ID: <3A71BF73.DB74800A@aros.net> Wow! The universe works fast. I posted my most disrespectful story about Ms. Spears, and about 15 minutes later the 2-year old attempted flushing a McDonald's Buzz Lightyear toy down the toilet. The key word is "attempted" as I went fishing and plunging (eewwww gross!) God: He,She,It; a benign presence in the universe; Thor, Jupiter, Zeus; or plain old synchronicity rose up and bit me on that one! Hmmm...does this mean Fate/the Universe, God, whoever or whatever is a Britney Spears fan? Food for thought ; ) Me leaving. Take Two: Angie
------------------------------ Date: Fri, 26 Jan 2001 13:35:53 EST From: Carrieroks@aol.com Subject: cut out somnabulist? Message-ID: <b4.10805e04.27a31d89@aol.com> In a message dated 1/25/01 11:12:48 PM Pacific Standard Time, Sylvan writes: > Black Sea: Cut out Somnambulist and and Smokeless Zone. let me tell you why this hurts me... this was the first song which caused me to actually look up the title in a dictionary cuz i had NO idea what the heck it meant, and then i decided that it was musically a perfect description of the word, which i think is great. sure you can't rock out to it and might not even be entertained by it, but i think it has merits as well, for which i am so glad i heard it. the merits being a really big word as the subject and a "somnabulistic" musical background. :) JOHN- i'm so jealous you're moving to hollywood.. that was my old stomping ground. i was born and raised quite near it, and went to hollywood high. we used to hang out at the chinese and laugh at tourists on our breaks after school and before rehearsals. i've often wondered if it's changed much since i left... MOLE- your post rocked the house. the things you said about working musicians are soooo true. the music industry is totally a business and the people that are in power run it like a business. to play the *artiste* card is like cutting off your own legs... you've got to either deal with business or pay to have someone who can do it do it... i've come across so many great bands that are totally inept cuz they can't get their heads out of their bottoms long enough to figure out their goals, strategy, etc. ps- dubya's reneging of clinton's final things scares the poop outta me. in a way, i'm glad. it's been a long time since americans have gotten REALLY ticked. i mean, the whole sex scandal last term was just a sign that things were too good, everyone got their panties in a bunch about whoppee, when now we'll really have something to be upset about! NICOLE- so you've found andy's face... :) i'm there with ya. :) when i first saw his bespectacled introverted eyes, i was like, wow, he looks like me but a guy! and with less hair. and older. well so he looks nothing like me, but he has a look to him that i really relate to and that makes me feel much better about the music for some reason. if he wore leather pants with skulls and daggers, i might not be quite as embracing. on the other hand, i've been known to listen to guns n' roses on the occasional night out. ok, i'm done... :) -carrie "the crusher" (certain i'd be the victor of any xtc related fistfight) ;)
------------------------------ Date: Fri, 26 Jan 2001 12:33:11 -0600 (CST) From: Brown <i.sundog@verizon.net> Subject: An O & L promo item and assorted junk Message-ID: <200101261833.MAA95976908@smtppop3pub.verizon.net> Hey there, sugarplums! A couple of months ago I read a short article on XTC. I believe I found the article while perusing the fab Chalkhills website, but I could be mistaken. I cannot for the life of me recall who/where/when this article was written.. I do remember that the writer recounted his own fond memories of discovering XTC as a geeky teen, etc.. Anyway, in the phantom article this fellow mentioned an Oranges & Lemons book cover that was distributed through record stores in conjunction with the album's release(?).. This sort of promotional cheese sounds very American, so I'll assume it was..(32 individually-wrapped slices, as a matter of fact).. Have any of you actually seen one of these book covers? Any info. would be appreciated.. Thanks! >From Sir John Keel- <<Deb Brown almost seems to be challenging me to make good on my resolution to get the L.A. fans together... I got this temp gig at Fox Sports which is mostly boring data entry except I get to listen to music all day long and have been running through the entire XTC catalog (Well, except "Mummer" and "Big Express", which I still have to take in small doses).>> ..John, I'll give you time to settle into your new digs, then we can discuss the upcoming Chalk festivities, ja? Perhaps some sort of Easter Theatre-themed/? gathering would be appropriate.. ..at which time, Mr. Keel, you will have plenty of explaining to do.. You see, NOBODY speaks ill of MY Mummer and gets away with it..not on *this* planet! I really shouldn't continue to poke at this wasp's (star)nest, but.. In a previous digest, Christopher Coolidge mentioned the infamous Pat Boone metal album.. Well Chris, I see your bet and I raise you 20! ..Here is a sonic faux pas extraordinaire that is every bit as contemptible as Pat 'The Ironman' Boone's offering (hold your noses, everyone!): "Coinciding with the 30th anniversary of "The Brady Bunch," Barry Williams released the CD "The Return of Johnny Bravo" September 28, 1999. The twelve song CD is mostly cover songs, plus the new song "Johnny's Back," and the Brady hit "It's a Sunshine Day." Johnny Bravo is the stage name that Greg was given in the episode "Adios, Johnny Bravo." ...Would you like fries with that stinkburger? TschuB! Debora Brown
------------------------------ Date: Fri, 26 Jan 2001 13:47:30 -0500 From: "Garret Harkawik" <funktaisia@hotmail.com> Subject: It's great to be back Message-ID: <F37wvn0jxzLkfgvfUqD0000233a@hotmail.com> Well, after not having the internet for four months, i finnally have a reliable connection. For anyone considering getting Verizon's internet service, forget it . They're probably the worst provider i've ever seen. it took them four moinths to relize that the reason their service wasn't working on our computer was because we weren't within the range of their nearest provider. Anyway, i now live in Buffalo and attend a snoody private school. >I headed over to our latest Barnes & Noble >super/mega/multi-store to cash >in some gift certificates and >decided to look into the latest CDs and what >not. Sitting in plain >view were White Music AND Go 2, both for 13 bucks. >This even >though White Music is not on their web site inventory. Maybe > >you will get lucky. Or wait. the same thing happened to me. I was amazed because I had been looking for White Music everywhere, but could never find it. GH when my printer prints out something, it mimics the drum beat to "Another Satelite"
------------------------------ Date: Fri, 26 Jan 2001 23:22:39 -0000 From: "Rory Wilsher" <rory.wilsher@lineone.net> Subject: President Kill Again...Again Message-ID: <006001c087ee$f2d22b40$0150063e@oemcomputer> Chalkers Maybe I'm missing the point here (won't be the first time), but this song has always evoked a South America junta-type government, or African dictatorship, with hints of Eastern European concepts pre-glasnost and perestroika, rather than US elections. The idea being that the voters don't even know who they're voting for... (pauses for ironic effect)... in these types of government, or have no choice (in Eastern European countries under the Warsaw Pact in the 80's, there was allegedly only one candidate - so he (yeah, it always was a "he" - Warsaw Pact countries never really embraced feminism, equal opportunities or any of that malarkey) would be "elected" no matter how few people turned out. It was never tested to destruction to my knowledge - (what happens if nobody votes?). To my mind, there's more to this than just US presidents Ray-gun and Bush senior - the "taking lives with a smoking pen" line has a lot to do with "The Disappeared", which was the original title, and theme, of "The Disappointed". Which is a South American thing - Argentina, Chile etc. On Will's new running order (7-5), and also Sylvan's thoughts on finishing tracks: TWATM is an "end" track - it simply has to come at the end, and also be preceded by COW. My difficulty has always been with the positioning of YATC. Also, messing with Boarded Up and ITMWML doesn't work for me. I agree with the concept, but each and every one of us will probably come up with a different arrangement to suit our own personal tastes. I'm off out now to buy a new CD writer. Rory "My Teeth Hurt" Wilsher
------------------------------ Date: Fri, 26 Jan 2001 18:53:27 -0800 From: Ed Kedzierski <ed.kedzierski@chromaticsoftware.com> Subject: Re: Definitive XTC albums campaign & other recent bits Message-ID: <08B5DDC2BABCD311BFC6005004A884B013B93A@mgcservices.com> Well, I'm sure someone will say this, but it's been a while since I've posted so I'll weigh in... In 7-5, Sylvan said: "And I don't think tracks should be tacked on the end of albums." Ooh, sorry, couldn't disagree more. Sure, the last song of an album might be there for a reason, but just adding a little silence between the end of the original running order and the bonus tracks (like the Ryko Elvis stuff) would be good enough for me. And it seems to me that your suggestions to actually insert songs into the Skylarking running order (which would most likely cause nothing but howls of protest around here) is much more damaging. A whack of extra tracks added to the end, with a suitable gap in between, is basically like adding a virtual bonus disc, without the wastage of an actual second disc. It's no more damaging to the "Album closer" experience than, say, having a multi-disc changer move on to the next disc. Much less disruptive than the "cram 'em in the middle" approach, IMO. Though I do like the idea of an expanded Rag & Bone for stuff that won't fit as bonus tracks (especially if they move all the Homo Safari stuff there, in order, in one place...). I especially would like to see all the b-side stuff from "Skylarking" to "Nonsuch" show up on the new issues, the CD's of which weren't so much a matter of re-releasing stuff that had been on vinyl for some time, and didn't have the same "round up" incentive to pack on the b-sides as the earlier stuff. And I never understood why they didn't just add the single version of "This is Pop" to WM the first time that came out on CD; tons of CD's of albums have had the single version of a song found elsewhere on the album added as a bonus track. Also, somehow I always imagined "Wait Till Your Boat Goes Down" as being more appropriate as a bonus track for Black Sea, but maybe it's just the obvious fit between the words and the cover photo warping my thinking. I wonder about some of the liner notes, too. Both for these and the Virgin box set, how are they going to hedge around some of the uglier historical facts about the band's history with the label? I can see it now: "The band's first chance at true widespread mainstream success in some time, 'Wrapped in Grey' was, of course, the brilliant, haunting single which we stupidly recalled and destroyed..." Not, of course, that I actually think for a moment that we're really determining what we'll end up getting here, but you've got to admit it's fun anyway. And in the same digest, the Mole (good to see you're around, by the way) said: "So I wondered if anyone knew where Todd Rundgren originally planned to place Dear God when he planned out the album before XTC came over to the states to record it. In Chalkhills Children, Twomey relates that Todd had the whole thing planned and they started recording the songs "in the order that Todd, had laid them out" Anyone know what the original order was?" Good question! I remember wondering the same thing when I read the Twomey book, but forgot about it until you brought it up. Especially in light of some of the changes like swapping "Another Satelite" in. And didn't Todd also not plan on including "2000 Umbrellas" until presented with Dave's string arrangement? Didn't I read that somewhere as well? Not trying to start a fight or anything, but I always (or at least as long as I've read this list) thought that people who have a real problem with "President Kill" were taking it too literally and too seriously. Seems akin to insisting that "Peter Pumpkinhead" has to be directly allegorical to a particular figure (JFK, Jesus, whoever), when Andy's always insisted that it's much more general. Then again, I don't have my copy of Song Stories handy & can't remember what he said about it (besides "the entire White Album in one song" quote), so I could be mistaken. I always interpreted it not so much as "high-level Yankee politicians are all murderous thugs" as "modern 20th century faceless suit politicians in the western world in general are so emotionally disconnected from the world and so blanded down by lowest-common-denominator political necessity that they're quite capable of ordering mass death as a coldly manipulative way of affecting their approval ratings." Besides, I've always just loved the way it sounded, almost a blend of "Sexy Sadie" and "Cry Baby Cry", regardless of the subject matter. I switched the TV on this morning while waking up for work (I take ages to get up: it's like the tubes warming up in an old TV), and that kids animal show with the lemur puppet character (I forget what it's called) comes on, the mere thought of the word "lemur" gets "Wrapped in Grey" stuck in my head, and for the rest of the day I feel like I'm asleep at my desk... I had another odd little idea about one of the reissues & its packaging, but I don't have time to go into it right now. Next time... More soon... Ed K.
------------------------------ Date: Sat, 27 Jan 2001 06:14:41 -0800 (PST) From: "www.martinnewell.co.uk" <cleanersvenus@yahoo.com> Subject: Look there is a CD available that you might like. Message-ID: <20010127141441.95178.qmail@web10703.mail.yahoo.com> Hello fellow Chalkers. Last year I made a Cd of songs by Martin Newell recorded by fans and friends of Martin Newell. Like all tribute albums it's a varied selection, an interesting mix of straight covers, inspired twists and way out, what the hell are they playing at, type efforts. It's only 10 pounds or 15 dollars and every penny of the profit goes to the homeless charity SHELTER in the UK. Martin's chosen charity and an excellent choice it is. The CD features such diverse artists as Dave Gregory who you may recall used to play with XTC, R. Stevie Moore who is a musical genius who belongs in all of your collections, Stuart Moxham of the Legendary minimalists Young Marble Giants, John Cooper Clarke the bard of Salford, our very own Mitch Friedman, rising US musicians, David Zues Henderson, Miki Huber and Christian Cassan, Kerry Getz and of course the unforgettably named Scottish band Tommy's Magic Arse amongst many more. The CD is available until October 2001, you will soon be able to get it from JarMusic, but it can always be ordered from www.renewell.net Dave Gregory described it as the best compilation of its type he had ever heard, by a long shot. I'm talking it up here for the second or third time, but I really want it to sell because I believe in it greatly. For all it's strengths and weaknesses it's your album, made with tons of love and care by XTC, and Newell fans around the planet. Go on buy it, and tell your friends to buy it too. www.renewell.net Paul Wilkinson
------------------------------ Date: Sat, 27 Jan 2001 09:33:26 -0800 (PST) From: Ryan Anthony <hamsterranch@yahoo.com> Subject: Must I have the *School Guide*? Message-ID: <20010127173327.77978.qmail@web10103.mail.yahoo.com> One of Andre de Konig's comments in Digest #7-5: - can 'Heaven Is Paved With Broken Glass' please be the Ball&Chain 12" version, not the version as on R&BB? Amen, Chalkbrother! A question for you people. I was in Zia Records (a small Arizona-owned chain which sells used discs alongside new and supports obscure musicmakers) the other day, and I gravitated toward the "X" section, as I seem to do every time. There was something in the rack titled *The (or A) School Guide to XTC*. What is it, and must I have it? I was actually in Zia looking for Afro Celt Sound System and Art Tatum. No luck there. However, while in the Jazz "T" section, I did find approximately twenty used copies of five or six albums by John Tesh. This tells me people are far more inclined to unload their Teshes than their Tatums. Shocking. What did I walk out of Zia with, you ask? How embarrassing. Two more albums by men associated with Genesis. *A Joyful Noise* by drummer Chester Thompson (also a Zappa alum), and *Feedback 86* by guitarist Steve Hackett. Yes, I'm in a rut. But it's a good rut. Ryan Anthony An independent Internet content provider
------------------------------ Date: Sat, 27 Jan 2001 16:53:22 -0800 From: "Long's" <wlong2@carolina.rr.com> Subject: XTC FANS COVER THE BAND Message-ID: <001f01c088c4$b6d8c140$31941a42@q6s2h0.carolina.rr.com> If you've done any XTC covers in the past....or are interested in doing one now. Drop me a line @ weslong@usa.net or wlong2@carolina.rr.com Thanks, wes
------------------------------ Date: Sat, 27 Jan 2001 19:47:40 -0800 From: "Long's" <wlong2@carolina.rr.com> Subject: Mark Manson Message-ID: <000701c088dd$1049dd00$31941a42@q6s2h0.carolina.rr.com> Dr. Strijbos chucked out: (Then the inevitable Wes Long quipped: > At least Manson is a peg that the music business has a bit of > trouble hammering into one of its holes. Really? It wouldn't be the first time this industry markets rebellion in nice colourful packaging. Or men in drag...) Okay Markus, I agree. If the band were truly as evil as they'd have us believe then there is no way in hell that they'd be allowed on stage at such a fluffy awards show. Point well made. Still. Rebellion? Men in drag? A FREAKIN' WELCOME CHANGE FROM PURTY TEEN GROUPS THROWN TOGETHER BY A MARKETING DEPARTMENT. Hell, even if you hate Manson you've got to admit that at the very least they are a band, playing and singing and writing their own songs. This has become somewhat of a damn novelty these days. When I heard the tune they pumped out on the show I came up off my couch and lunged into some sort of primal oink dance. That's just cool. wes "I'm not, not that there's anything wrong with it" LONG
------------------------------ Date: Sun, 28 Jan 2001 10:12:44 -0500 From: "Christopher R. Coolidge" <cauldron@together.net> Subject: Re: Kozmo Message-ID: <l03130300b699e617bbb8@[206.231.24.122]> >our oldest cat kozmo was put to sleep yesterday afternoon >around 5:00 after suffering from (chronic) kidney failure. >the sad part of this situation, let alone now dealing >with this big empty void in our lives, is the fact that >we were both unaware of his condition until just 5 days >ago. so needless to say, my wife and i are both stunned >and shocked by what has taken place re: this amazing >13-year-old animal. > >he was special and he will be missed...plain and simple. > >/dan Nothing wrong with missing a loved one, my mother lost her cat, Charles, to kidney failure at the tender age of five(the cat, not my mother, was five). It seems he had this condition all his short life and was constantly in pain, no wonder he was bad tempered. The poor thing didn't feel quite right his whole life and we never knew. Thank God our cats are young and healthy still. I'd miss them if they were gone, Spike and Coco are family. Christopher R. Coolidge "The bad news is, there is no key to the universe. The good news is, it has been left unlocked." -Swami Beyondananda
------------------------------ Date: Sun, 28 Jan 2001 10:29:39 -0500 From: "Christopher R. Coolidge" <cauldron@together.net> Subject: Re: Dear God Message-ID: <l03130301b699eab5d162@[206.231.24.215]> >So I wondered if anyone knew where Todd Rundgren originally planned to >place Dear God when he planned out the album before XTC came over to >the states to record it. In Chalkhills Children, Twomey relates that >Todd had the whole thing planned and they started recording the songs >"in the order that Todd, had laid them out" Anyone know what the >original order was? >Mole My understanding is Todd had no plans to put "Dear God" on the album at all, the record company pushed both Todd and Andy to add it when it became an unexpected hit as a single B-side. Andy didn't consider the song finished or successful in what he was trying to express, so he didn't want it on the album anyway and Todd may have not considered it as part of the flow of the album. Christopher R. Coolidge "The bad news is, there is no key to the universe. The good news is, it has been left unlocked." -Swami Beyondananda
------------------------------ Date: Sun, 28 Jan 2001 10:35:08 -0500 From: MinerWerks <dminer@gte.net> Subject: More on the definitive album set Message-ID: <a05001900b699cd334335@[63.11.104.6]> Howdy, Chalkfolks, Thought I'd follow up on some of the comments I got back on my post: Jim (Groove Disques) wrote: >Count me in for a copy of the expanded English Settlement, but rather than >all the B-sides listed, many of which I already own over two formats, I >would LOVE to hear a set that focuses on all that went into what I believe >should have been a turning point in pop music. In my opinion, English >Settlement pointed toward a way that the rest of us - and the band itself - >failed to follow through on. The combination of influences, dynamics, >textures, production, lyrics are as distinctive as any breakthrough Beatles >or Led Zeppelin albums, to use examples of two bands that specialized in >sonically groundbreaking albums. I'm not an agressive collector of bootleg >demos, but I'd love to hear how those songs went from demo form through >early attempts at proper recordings to the final product. I can imagine >the genesis of most songs by most bands I hear: musician picks up guitar or >piano and starts bashing out a chord progression while humming a melody, >lyrics ensue...In the case of English Settlement, the songs and >arrangements are seamless. I can't tell where they started and how the >band arranged them. Everything they'd done until that album lead up to it. Your idea sounds great as well. I'd love to hear just about any of XTC's albums followed from early demo through studio work on to the final product. I own - and frequently listen to - lots of Beatles bootlegs of studio sessions, as well as the Beach Boys' Pet Sounds Sessions set. I also love to listen to XTC demos and compare to the final product. But I'm assuming, for the time being, Virgin won't be interested in any "making of the album" anthologies, and that any outtakes or demos will be slated for their box set and NOT the remastered albums. Sylvan wrote: >It would be nice to have all those weird rarites, but I don't think they >shouldbe added unless they make the album better in some way. Songs that >screw with the mood/whatever of the album should be tossed. And I don't >think tracks should be tacked on the end of albums. Most of them have >songs that were meant to be album closers (Funk Pop A Roll, Sacrificial >Bonfire, Travels in Nihilon, Complicated Game, etc.). And I am shocked >and disturbed, by the way, to hear that you think Thatnks For Christmas >belongs on The Big Express. But "Thanks For Christmas" was recorded many months after finishing Mummer, but only a couple months before starting Big Express. Plus, it was with David Lord, the same producer as Big Express. Thus, most logically it fits with that album. On one hand, I can sympathize with your point about ruining the mood of the album. Remastered XTC CDs might be considered "definitive" to the point that they should be as close to the original album as possible with little distraction. However, I look at this as more of a retrospective of their career, as well as a new product they're trying to sell to people who already own the same material. If they're going to a lot of effort to make good looking and good sounding discs, then why stick with the rather haphazard distribution of bonus tracks? They put everything they could find on Mummer and White Music, but they left off a few things they could have filled out Drums and Wires or Go2 with, for example >-Rag and Bone Buffet: Make into a 2 (maybe 3?) CD set to cover all the >remaining out of print material, such as the dub sessions stuff and the >Homo Safari tracks, plus the cut bonus tracks. Now, this is something I could live with. If they decide that loading up individual albums with bonus tracks is unwise, then an expanded collection of b-sides and rarities would be a nice touch. Kind of like how "The Compact XTC" was expanded to become "Fossil Fuel" p@ul wrote: >Derek Miner's suggestions about how best to compile the remastered >back-catalogue was interesting, and for the most part plausible. But what >about "Nonsuch" and the Dukes? D'oh! Once I uploaded my message, I realized I left out Nonsuch. That album runs about 65 minutes as it stands now. There were far more than two or three extra tracks to be put on that disc, but I don't know if they would A) consider the album in need of remastering or B) consider it worth making an second disc of b-sides in there. It seems there would be about one album's worth of demos available, though... Let's see: The Ballad of Peter Pumpkinhead, My Bird Performs, Dear Madam Barnum, Humble Daisy, The Smartest Monkeys, Bungalow, Rocket, Always Winter Never Christmas, Down A Peg, Rip Van Rueben, maybe even Cherry In Your Tree, which came out about two or three years later... anything else out at that time as a B-side, discounting the stuff that came out on Windowbox or The Bull With The Golden Guts? As for the Dukes, sadly there are no bonus tracks. There have never been any widely released Dukes demos, and no non-album B-sides. I'd just like to see the artwork for both 25 O'Clock AND Psonic Psunspot represented in a reissue. Maybe some bonus liner notes on the whole experience? Maybe some demos or sessions from the vaults in this one case? Like I keep saying though, they'll probably save those for the box set. Andre wrote: >Derek made a great list of what would be nice to see in the Virgin box-set. >I have a few comments: Not the box set, though... I was thinking of individual album reissues. I might put together a list of tracks I would like to see on a box set, though! >- can 'Heaven Is Paved With Broken Glass' please be the Ball&Chain 12" >version, not the version as on R&BB? I'd second that. Let them put the "band's own version" on the box set or Fuzzy Warbles, thank you! >- I seem to miss the 'Take Away / The Lure of Salvage' tracks. You have >found a place for Go+ on Go2 and 'Take Away' should be on D&W but obviously >won't fit. Maybe another double-disk would do? This way the need for >'Explode Together' is gone and the 2nd ES disk could concentrate on the >later stuff. I thought about this a lot, and I wondered how they consider the material. Go+ obviously was branded as XTC. Explode Together was branded as an XTC release, but Take Away/The Lure of Salvage was not originally. >- O&L could do with a version of 'Blue Beret'. Ah yes... that's true. There was an appearance of the song on the Adventure Club Sessions CD from KDGE in Texas... but there's no room on the disc after the other demos! >This still leaves the 'fan club' tapes and all unreleased demo's. If Virgin >still claims those, we need more 2-disk sets, but I really hope they can be >used for Fuzzy Warbles (if that ever sees the light of day). That's what I figured would happen. Any demos that we haven't seen released or the fan club tape material will probably show up on the box set or Fuzzy Warbles. Jon wrote: >Derek I totally agree with you. That would be great, as long as they >tack em on the end this time. ;) Whoever leaked the idea said the bonus tracks would be moved to the end, and I'm glad for that as well! >But it will never happen. Many of those tunes have never been >remastered and I doubt Virgin would spend the money to do so and then >just toss em on as freebies. You might get one extra track per cd as a >bonus incentive towards buying it. The other reason is because it would >cut in to the material for the Virgin Box set. Also Virgin cannot >release BBC tracks since they have been leased by Idea records and I >doubt AP and CM are going to give their old friends the luxury of doing >so. Also I doubt AP has any sway over what will and will not be >included on the reissues. They were consulted on the box set because >they are contractually required to be (including Dave I believe). I >doubt they would be there for any other reason. Hmmm... You have a good point. But I'm saying that Virgin should add tracks to any remastered CDs precisely because they need to offer incentive for us to buy them! Who are they going to get to buy these except those of us who already own all (or nearly all) of XTC's albums? As for the BBC material, I only included tracks Virgin already released as B-sides. Admittedly, "Scissor Man" and "Another Satellite" are now on Transistor Blast, but they WERE b-sides on official singles, and thus suggested as bonus tracks. And who says Virgin can't license them, as well? Rag and Bone Buffet has those two cuts, and it didn't go out of print when Transistor Blast came out. And on an off topic note: >I was very pleased that Prz Clinton set aside >those lands as Federal Monuments before he left office and I am going >to be very PO'd if that wet behind the ears Dubya, stops those orders >so his money grubbing friends can go drill holes in the artic. This guy >is the very epitome of shortsighted. Without getting too involved in this, I'd just like to add something as devil's advocate: I once heard from someone who had been to Alaska many times that A) the animals up there have been around oil equipment and pipelines for quite a while already, B) there are safe ways to go about drilling in the area, and C) the people who live there support oil drilling as it boosts their local economy. Just some food for thought. = Derek =
------------------------------
Date: Sun, 28 Jan 2001 22:45:15 +0100
From: "Mark Strijbos" <mmello@knoware.nl>
Subject: Re: Horsing Around
Message-ID: <20010128213623.E452C3918F@mail.knoware.nl>
Dear Chalkers,
> > It's the one & only surviving pre-historic hillside carving in
> > Wiltshire <
>
> Sorry to disappoint you Mark, but I believe that the Uffington Horse
> is actually in Oxfordshire, not Wiltshire,
i stand corrected
But perhaps one of our Swindon locals could explain whether
Dobbin really belongs in Oxfordshire or has moved there due to the
arbitrary reshuffling of county borders over the many years.
yours in xtc,
Mark Strijbos at The Little Lighthouse
http://www.knoware.nl/users/mmello/
or http://come.to/xtc
------------------------------ End of Chalkhills Digest #7-6 *****************************
Go back to Volume 7.
28 January 2001 / Feedback