From: owner-ecto-digest@smoe.org (ecto-digest) To: ecto-digest@smoe.org Subject: ecto-digest V6 #379 Reply-To: ecto@smoe.org Sender: owner-ecto-digest@smoe.org Errors-To: owner-ecto-digest@smoe.org Precedence: bulk ecto-digest Sunday, December 17 2000 Volume 06 : Number 379 Today's Subjects: ----------------- Saddest love songs ["Mitchell A. Pravatiner" ] Today's your birthday, friend... [Mike Matthews ] my top 10 [Andrew Fries ] Saddest Love Songs ["Adam K." ] Re: Saddest Love Songs [Marla Tiara ] Court & Spark ["Adam K." ] Manilow ["Adam K." ] Musical mystery [Paul Blair ] Re: saddest love songs [Paul Kim ] Sarah Harmer makes Time's year-end list! [Michael Curry ] Veda and Tara performing for Rock for Choice [Paul Kim ] Re: Sad love songs The Antidote [Neile Graham ] Re: saddest love songs [Joseph Zitt ] Re: Manilow [Joseph Zitt ] Re: Musical mystery [Joseph Zitt ] Re: saddest love songs ["Suzanna Otting" ] Re: saddest love songs [Damon ] Jingle (sans bell) rock ["Mitchell A. Pravatiner" ] RE: saddest love songs [Carolyn Andre ] Joni Mitchell, Christian Music [tenthvictim@mindspring.com] ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Sat, 16 Dec 2000 01:07:18 -0600 (CST) From: "Mitchell A. Pravatiner" Subject: Saddest love songs My contributions to the cause: "Having Been Touched (Tender Lady)" by Cris Williamson "When I Loved Her" by Kris Kristofferson Mitch ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 16 Dec 2000 03:00:08 -0500 (EST) From: Mike Matthews Subject: Today's your birthday, friend... i*i*i*i*i*i i*i*i*i*i*i *************** *****HAPPY********* **************BIRTHDAY********* *************************************************** *************************************************************************** ********************* Damon Harper (damon@pobox.com) ********************** *************************************************************************** -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- - -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- Damon Harper Tue December 16 1975 COOL BANANAS Laura Clifford Tue December 17 1957 Sagittarius Dirk Kastens Tue December 17 1963 Sagittarius Milla Wed December 17 1975 Sagittarius Chris Schernwetter Tue December 17 1974 Sagittarius Sherry Haddock Sat December 17 1960 Sagittarius Tracy Benbrook Tue December 18 1973 Sagittarius Mark Lowry Mon December 22 1969 Capricarius Kay Cleaves Wed December 22 1976 Prancing Pony Uli Grepel Wed December 25 1968 Steinbock Joseph Wasicek Sat December 25 1976 Brown Eagle Stuart Castergine Mon December 30 1963 You Are Here Marvin Camras Sat January 01 1916 Tapehead Jeanne Schreiter Tue January 03 1967 Capricorn John Sandoval Wed January 04 1967 Capricorn Paul Cohen Tue January 05 1954 Capricorn Tony Garrity Mon January 08 1962 Pool of Life Greg Bossert Tue January 09 1962 OfTheTimes Troy J. Shadbolt Thu January 14 1971 Capricorn Chris Sampson Wed January 15 1964 Void where prohibited - -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 16 Dec 2000 18:55:20 +1100 From: Andrew Fries Subject: my top 10 This year my top-10 appears heavily biased towards local artists. It's partially by accident, and perhaps partially a reflection of my buying fewer disks, because locals are always my priority... For me at least, after a rush of discoveries and great excitement of last year, this one was kind of lacklustre in comparison... perhaps most worrying is that this year I did not discover a single new local act I could get truly excited about. I don't think that ever happened before! Anyhow, while the field was pretty narrow, there were still some excellent pickings in the bunch: 1. Azeruz - self titled. Local project of extremely high quality and undoubtedly huge Ecto appeal. Yet I've been pretty quiet about them. It's not that I decided to keep them all to myself, but sadly I have very little to work with - they have no website, no entry on mp3.com, they don't play live, and due to non-existent distribution channels the CD itself was practically impossible to get even when it was just released. All of which is a great pity, because the music is truly sublime... 2. Naked Raven - Harm's way Also Australian (though usually based in Europe). I was so happy to discover they were still around, after assuming for many years they must've disappeared long time ago... though this one came out early in the year, my excitement continues even as I become more familiar with it. Lovely, individual music, very clear, very focused. 3. Wendy Rule - World Between Worlds It makes me very happy some interest in her is finally brewing in Ecto land. She deserves it, and as for this CD, while more subdued than her previous efforts it is just as strong both in terms of songwriting and execution. Her voice still shines, though still coming nowhere near the effect of her live performance. 4. Leonardo's Bride - Open Sesame This one is on the approachable end of Ecto range; in fact they did achieve pretty huge commercial success here in Australia. But I forgive them, because having followed them almost from the beginning I know perfectly well they didn't compromise in any way to become radio friendly and accessible - they were always that way, and the songs that finally topped the charts were the same ones they flogged for years to the audiences of fifty. In style and vibe they are very similar to Cowboy Junkies, and perhaps also something like Grey Eye Glances. Understated, gentle and polished, but no less real for that. Actually Leonardo's Bride just announced they are breaking up and in truth that might've bumped this record up a couple of places on my list, because they are on my mind a lot at the moment. They, and my fast-disappearing youth! 5. PJ Harvey - Stories from the city... She continues to impress. I haven't lived with this one long enough, but I'm pretty sure it'll be a keeper. Strangely, I don't really see it as a hugely different from "Is this desire". Perhaps that's because her personality is just so strong, style and production pale into insignificance? 6. Basque - Basque/Radiance Never accessible, but always brilliant. Sometimes I find them exhausting, but I keep coming back for more... 7. Iliad - The butterfly effect One of my more exciting local discoveries of last year finally came up with their first EP. It doesn't disappoint, capturing the energy, or it might be more appropriate to say, "glow" of their performances. Because while they can get loud at times, they are at their best in more intimate moments. Katy's sad and lovely voice is the centerpiece around which everything else revolves... This Ep is also notable for a very slick production and packaging for what is a completely independent release! 8. Michelle Cross - My name is not Cinderella (plus the live tracks on her website) Chick with a piano! :) 9. Plastic Mary - self titled from mp3.com Including this one in my top 10 is my guilty little pleasure, because while I realise it might not actually be THAT special, or original, I just really enjoy it. So there. 10. Jorane - Vent Fou I was massively impressed at first, but I must admit it hasn't survived repeated exposure all that well. Originally I expected it to place much higher than 10... Things that might well place in my top 10, if only I'd get to hear them in time: Elysian Fields - the chances are good I'm going to love it. Terami Hirsh - samples on her website sounded so promising, I have very high hopes for this one. Notable for their absence in my top 10: Dar Williams - whose CD I downloaded from Napster, played a few times, realised my reaction was best described as "yeah, I see... OK... next!", and deleted. I don't know, it just didn't do anything for me... I don't think there was anything wrong with it though, it just wasn't what I wanted to listen to at the time. Kinetic - my local favourites, who hoped for full-length release, then talked about an EP, and finally ended up with a single - containing just 4 remixes of one track! Worse still, I don't really like the way they seem to be heading. While always balancing more edgy material with more dance/pop numbers, they seem to be drifting towards less edge and more commercial appeal... Swirl - who have an excellent CD wrapped up and ready to go (heck, it's been ready for close to a year!) but remain tangled up in some weird contractual limbo. So frustrating! - ------------------------------------------------------ "The Optimist proclaims we live in the best of all possible worlds. The Pessimist fears this is true" - James Branch Cabell - ------ http://www.zip.com.au/~afries/spot.php3 ------- ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 16 Dec 2000 12:57:31 -0000 From: "Adam K." Subject: Saddest Love Songs Here are my suggestions -- I think I've filled up my share of "mix" tapes with these in my time! Again, I'm afraid, I've put some male artists in there. Indigo Girls -- "Ghost", "Blood and Fire" "You and Me and the 10,000 Wars" Crowded House -- "Fall at Your Feet" "Don't Dream It's Over" "Private Universe" "Whispers and Moans" Jonatha Brooke -- "Because I Told You So" Peter Hammill -- "Been Alone So Long" "Again" "Too Many of My Yesterdays" "Afterwards" "Phosphorescence" "Don't Tell Me Anything" "Just Good Friends" Veda Hille --"Clumbsy" (there's something very haunting about this, I find) Mary Margaret O'Hara -- "You Will Be Love Again" Kristin Hersh -- "Your Ghost" Jill Sobule "Now That I Don't Have You" REM - "You Are the Everything" (I'm not sure this is romantic love, but it's love nonetheless) and the untitled song (#11) at the end of "Green" (still their best lp, I feel) Also, "Half a World Away" and "Country Feedback" Matthew Sweet -- "Don't Go" "I Almost Forgot" Nicola Hitchcock -- "My Mistake" Helen Watson - "Some Mistake" Van der Graaf Generator -- "Lost" (okay, it's ten minutes long, and not for the faint-hearted, but worth it for the moment Hammill sings "At some point I lost you, I don't quite know when it was") Divine Comedy -- "Queen of the South" (I have a live recording of this which is miles away from the epic, tongue in cheek material he seems to be famous for) Cat Stevens -- "Sweet Scarlet" Robyn Hitchcock -- "She Doesn't Exist" ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 16 Dec 2000 06:02:34 -0800 (PST) From: Marla Tiara Subject: Re: Saddest Love Songs > Indigo Girls -- "Ghost", "Blood and Fire" "You and > Me and the 10,000 Wars" Oh, I also nominate "Left Me a Fool". I notice nobody commented on my nomination of the Softies. Surely I'm not the only ectophile who loves them? marla tiara ===== ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* Famous people wearing my tiara: http://www.marlatiara.com (*updated 9/21/00 - All pictures active!) "I will always love you like a milkshake." - Wesley Willis Yahoo! Shopping - Thousands of Stores. Millions of Products. http://shopping.yahoo.com/ ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 16 Dec 2000 15:45:56 -0000 From: "Adam K." Subject: Court & Spark Yep, I'm with you on that. My 22 year-old stepdaughter asked for a couple of Joni cd's this Xmas -- Blue and Ladies of the Canyon. Fine albums, yes, fine albums, and I bought them for her with pride. But I slipped Court and Spark in there, anyway. ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 16 Dec 2000 15:30:48 -0000 From: "Adam K." Subject: Manilow Interesting trivia: Manilow didn't actually write "Mandy". When I was a wee lad, we had one of those Ronco compilation records from 1970, that had things like Blue Mink, Mott the Hoople, Greyhound, etc on it --- all hot acts at the time. Also on the disc was a song sung by a man called (I believe) Scott England -- "Brandy". Same tune, same lyrics, different name (just). Maybe Manilow DID write it, but during his Tin Pan Alley Days when he was writing ad jingles. ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 16 Dec 2000 11:57:46 -0500 From: Paul Blair Subject: Musical mystery Oh great and all-knowing ecto-oracle, come to my aid... When I was growing up in the 1970s, I'd sometimes hear something on the radio that I liked and note it down; my music lists often got lost or put aside and never seen again. Just the other day I remembered something I had put on one of those lists. It was a fairly catchy tune in the "Classical Gas" vein; I couldn't get the spelling from what the dj said, but I wrote down "Jean Reverberie, Moonie's Mude." After some net research, I'm pretty sure that the person I'm looking for is Gian-Piero Reverberi, who did a lot of soundtracks for spaghetti westerns, TV shows, etc. But I can't find anything remotely resembling the name of the piece. It was pronounced something like "Moo-neez Myood," but I can't scan that in any English or Italian that I know. Anyone have any idea? ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 16 Dec 2000 12:35:14 -0500 From: Paul Kim Subject: Re: saddest love songs At 10:57 AM 12/15/00 -0800, Bill wrote: >I suppose Bonnie Raitt's "I can't make you love me" is sad enough for me; >despite the great music, the lyrics are turly sad, with resignation. This was actually a cowrite between two Nashville songwriters (not Bonnie). I was lucky enough to see one of them, Mike Reid (incidentally, he was an All American Football player and Pro-Bowler for the Pittsburgh Steelers before he dropped into songwriting) when I went down to Nashville on a school trip earlier this year. He performed this song and it was very moving, except for the MIDI piano he was playing. like doug, I think songs that move me are generally ones related to situational impact. but here's a list. Holly Cole's version of "Cry if you Want to" Blue Rodeo w/Sarah McLachlan "Dark Angel" "I Will" both the Beatles version and the Alison Krauss version Maria McKee "Breathe" Bic Runga "Bursting Through" The Beatles "Here There and Everywhere" The Beautiful South "Prettiest Eyes" Love Lost Songs : Susan Werner - "St Mary's of Regret" and "Much at All" *sigh* K's Choice "My Heart" unrequited love songs : Chris Isaak "Forever Blue" Les Miserables "On My Own" and "A Little Fall of Rain" *double sigh* and I third the Emmylou Harris version of "Goodbye" Cheeze : "My Heart Will Go On" James Horner et al. If only someone who wasn't annoying like Celine had sung this...imagine, Sarah McLachlan.... "When She Loved Me" Randy Newman from Toy Story 2 (but not when he sings it, god no) there. enjoy. and have some happy holidays and solstices and such. Paul Kim ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 16 Dec 2000 12:36:35 -0500 From: Michael Curry Subject: Sarah Harmer makes Time's year-end list! Spotted this over on navy-soup, and though some here might find it of interest. I know Sarah's CD is going to probably be at the top of my ten best list this year... >From: "Tab Siddiqui" >To: headline-girl@smoe.org, navy-soup@smoe.org >Subject: OAC: Sarah H. makes Time's year-end list! >Date: Fri, 15 Dec 2000 04:09:32 > >Hey, all.. > >At the risk of sounding like a paid operative for Sarah Harmer (heh ;)), >just wanted to mention that "You Were Here" was named 'best debut' >of the year (with Nelly Furtado getting an honourable mention - well done, >Canucks! :)) and ranks as #7 on Time Magazine's Top Ten in Music for 2000. > >http://www.time.com/time/sampler/article/0,8599,91092,00.html > >http://www.chartattack.com/damn/2000/12/1305.cfm > >- Tab :) ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 16 Dec 2000 12:52:22 -0500 From: Paul Kim Subject: Veda and Tara performing for Rock for Choice this is a forward from the Tara MacLean mailing list Paul Kim >Tara MacLean will be performing at "Rock For Choice" in Vancouver, Canada! > >The following is from the weekly Vancouver entertainment paper, The Georgia Straight: > >ROCK FOR CHOICE > >Fundraiser for the Everywoman's Health Centre and the Elizabeth Bagshaw Clinic features performances by Bif Naked, Veda Hille, Tara MacLean, Liveonrelease, and Lily Frost (Fri.); and Propagandhi, che:Chapter 127, Sook-Yin Lee, the Need, Rae Spoon, and Trixie's Undersea Adventure (Sat.). Jan. 12-13, Vancouver East Cultural Centre (1895 Venables). Tix at Ticketmaster, (604) 280-444. > >According to: http://www.ticketmaster.ca "Rock For Choice" is scheduled for Jan. 11-13, 2001 not just the 12 & 13. Tickets are listed as costing $10 each. > >I will try to confirm which day Tara will be there. > >- Acquizeta ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 15 Dec 2000 16:39:08 -0800 From: Neile Graham Subject: Re: Sad love songs The Antidote I just can't bear to get into the sad love songs things, but the best antidote for the blues that I've ever heard is Veda Hille's "I Dance Alone" off her first tape _songs about people and buildings_. I can't listen to it without cheering up and feeling like dancing. A great song. I hope she releases it on cd sometime. - --Neile - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Neile Graham ...... http://www.sff.net/people/neile ....... neile@sff.net Les Semaines: A Weekly Journal . http://www.sff.net/people/neile/semaines The Ectophiles' Guide to Good Music ....... http://www.smoe.org/ectoguide ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 16 Dec 2000 14:12:09 -0500 From: Joseph Zitt Subject: Re: saddest love songs On Fri, Dec 15, 2000 at 08:43:48PM -0800, Michael Pearce wrote: > At 7:07 PM -0500 12/15/00, jjhanson@att.net wrote: > > >Gilbert O'Sullivan's "Alone Again Naturally". > > That reminds me. Vonda Shepard sang this on an Ally episode. It hit > me like a ton of rocks. I include a lot of her music in the > "guaranteed tear yanker" category. I haven't heard her outside of the show, but the way that they use her music in it is usually dead-on emotionally. - -- |> ~The only thing that is not art is inattention~ --- Marcel Duchamp <| | jzitt@metatronpress.com http://www.metatronpress.com/jzitt | | Latest CD: Jerusaklyn http://www.mp3.com/josephzitt | | Comma: Voices of New Music Silence: the John Cage Discussion List | ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 16 Dec 2000 14:33:28 -0500 From: Joseph Zitt Subject: Re: Manilow On Sat, Dec 16, 2000 at 03:30:48PM -0000, Adam K. wrote: > Interesting trivia: Manilow didn't actually write "Mandy". When I was a wee lad, we had one of those Ronco compilation records from 1970, that had things like Blue Mink, Mott the Hoople, Greyhound, etc on it --- all hot acts at the time. Also on the disc was a song sung by a man called (I believe) Scott England -- "Brandy". Same tune, same lyrics, different name (just). Maybe Manilow DID write it, but during his Tin Pan Alley Days when he was writing ad jingles. You're right, Scott English, not Manilow, did actually write the original "Brandy" -- but I was unaware that he had recorded it. I'd be interested in hearing it -- I recall (from Manilow's autobiography? Yes, he wrote one, and yes, I've read it, and no, it's not bad) that the original version that Manilow heard was somewhat peppier and he slowed it down and changed the name. I useta have several of the Ronco compilations, which often had unexpectedly cool stuff on them. n.p. Barry Manilow Live - -- |> ~The only thing that is not art is inattention~ --- Marcel Duchamp <| | jzitt@metatronpress.com http://www.metatronpress.com/jzitt | | Latest CD: Jerusaklyn http://www.mp3.com/josephzitt | | Comma: Voices of New Music Silence: the John Cage Discussion List | ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 16 Dec 2000 15:13:46 -0500 From: Joseph Zitt Subject: Re: Musical mystery A long shot: there's a jazz standard, "Moody's Mood (for Love)". But I haven't found any references in a quick Web search to a version by Reverberi. On Sat, Dec 16, 2000 at 11:57:46AM -0500, Paul Blair wrote: > When I was growing up in the 1970s, I'd sometimes hear something on > the radio that I liked and note it down; my music lists often got > lost or put aside and never seen again. Just the other day I > remembered something I had put on one of those lists. It was a > fairly catchy tune in the "Classical Gas" vein; I couldn't get the > spelling from what the dj said, but I wrote down "Jean Reverberie, > Moonie's Mude." > > After some net research, I'm pretty sure that the person I'm looking > for is Gian-Piero Reverberi, who did a lot of soundtracks for > spaghetti westerns, TV shows, etc. But I can't find anything > remotely resembling the name of the piece. It was pronounced > something like "Moo-neez Myood," but I can't scan that in any English > or Italian that I know. Anyone have any idea? - -- |> ~The only thing that is not art is inattention~ --- Marcel Duchamp <| | jzitt@metatronpress.com http://www.metatronpress.com/jzitt | | Latest CD: Jerusaklyn http://www.mp3.com/josephzitt | | Comma: Voices of New Music Silence: the John Cage Discussion List | ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 16 Dec 2000 15:49:00 -0800 From: "Suzanna Otting" Subject: Re: saddest love songs My favorite sad love songs are: And So is Love - Kate Bush A Case Of You - Joni Mitchell Sweet Incarnadine - Jane Siberry I'm not sure if this one is meant to be a sad love song-- in fact, when you look at the lyrics, it seems like a very celebratory song-- but it always seems sad to me, as if something has been lost. Suzanna np: Silent Night, Sarah McLachlan (fan club CD) Angelfire for your free web-based e-mail. http://www.angelfire.com ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 16 Dec 2000 17:41:06 -0800 From: Damon Subject: Re: saddest love songs ok, i must cast my vote here for the reprise of `i'll cover you' from _rent_. that's all - -damon Damon Harper _/\_ "The whole point of an damon@usrbin.ca __\ /__ irrational fear is that it \ / doesn't make any sense." http://www.usrbin.ca/damon/ |/||\| - Jeff Howell ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 16 Dec 2000 20:25:48 -0600 (CST) From: "Mitchell A. Pravatiner" Subject: Jingle (sans bell) rock The survey I am currently involved with at work includes questions about a prescription drug called Actos. Yesterday as I was doing an interview, it occurred to me that should Happy ever want to follow the example set by Carly Simon when she sold "Anticipation" to Heinz ketchup, this product would be perfect to adapt "Ecto" for use as a jingle :-). Think what you will about the esthetics, she could make a significant rate of return on the intellectual property (and maybe gain some indirect name recognition in the process) if the airwaves were clogged with commercials with the tagline "I'll be here, I'll be Actos." :-) (The brand name actually reminds me of a certain roll candy whose commercials, I hear, have something of a cult following as well as a lot of detractors, but that's neither here nor there :-). ) Mitch ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 16 Dec 2000 21:37:05 -0500 From: "Bill Adler" Subject: RE: saddest love songs Let me add one more: Lisa Moscatiello's "Second Avenue." Here are some lyrics: Oh, I would take years off my life Give all I own, I'd sacrifice For just a fleeting moment with you Back on Second Avenue. And what a voice Lisa Moscatiello has -- rich and lush. - --Bill n.p. Renaissance, Ashes are Burning - -----Original Message----- From: owner-ecto@smoe.org [mailto:owner-ecto@smoe.org]On Behalf Of Damon Sent: Saturday, December 16, 2000 8:41 PM To: ecto Subject: Re: saddest love songs ok, i must cast my vote here for the reprise of `i'll cover you' from _rent_. that's all - -damon ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 16 Dec 2000 22:46:16 -0600 From: Carolyn Andre Subject: RE: saddest love songs At 08:37 PM 12/16/00, Bill Adler wrote: >Let me add one more: Lisa Moscatiello's "Second Avenue." Here are some >lyrics: > >Oh, I would take years off my life >Give all I own, I'd sacrifice >For just a fleeting moment with you >Back on Second Avenue. > > >And what a voice Lisa Moscatiello has -- rich and lush. > >--Bill chiming in here in paid & unpaid commercials - IMHO Second Avenue is another of those songs that, like the previously mentioned Susan Werner's "St Mary's of Regret", conveys those beautiful yet exquisitely painful memories. From the time I heard a rough cut of the song, I couldn't *not* play it, but would then ask myself why I was listening to those emotions. For the paid commercial part - for more about Lisa, including some of those soundly (by ecto folks) disparaged RealAudio type clips (including the verse Bill quotes above) from her 2 albums, visit her web site at http://lisamoscatiello.com/ She explores material ranging from Janis Ian and John Hiatt to original compositions like the above Second Avenue and traditional pieces (including an intriguing interpretation of "House Carpenter" thats rather far from the Joan Baez version I heard as a teenager) Regards, Carolyn Andre - ------------------------- candre@house-of-music.com Support Independent Music! Use the Internet ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 17 Dec 2000 00:05:22 -0600 From: tenthvictim@mindspring.com Subject: Joni Mitchell, Christian Music Good evening, Chuck lamented that he never heard Joni Mitchell being played on his campus. If only it were 1971 again, you'd probably hear her voice issuing out of every dorm room you passed. When I was a freshman at college, the guy in the room next to mine wanted to be Joni Mitchell. Jimmy Boerslter was a 250 lb linebacker who sang Joni Mitchell songs in a wistful little voice as he sat in his room, in the hall, or in the bathroom and accompanied himself on the guitar. I even have a photo commemorating that activity, and he was probably singing "The Circle Song." Anytime I got fed up with the world, I would go next door and put Jimmy's copy of _Blue_ on his stereo. I don't know how such a sad set of songs can make you feel better, but somehow they do. Must have something to do with someone feeling as miserable as you. I hope Jimmy is well. Neile said she was familiar with Larry Norman. Can I assume there is someone else on this list who is as massively over-churched as I am? I have spent enough hours at church to redeem 2 or 3 people. If we could sell salvation the way the EPA intends to sell pollution credits, I could ease several mafiosi into heaven. I am going thru my teenage rebellion now that I have hit middle age, so I am being silent and sullen over the church and its ways in this world. So far, the most appealing scenario for an afterlife I've found comes from a physicist who thinks at some point the universe will be networked with computers powerful enough to program every person who has ever lived into existence. I like to think some day I may wake up as a subroutine in a very large computer program. Don't ask me how this is going to work; I've been hunting for information on the guy, Bryce DeWitt, with little luck. He is mentioned in _Parallel Universes_ by Fred Alan Wolf. Oh, and that whole parallel universe thing is somewhat comforting. Surely somewhere out there is a parallel me who is having a better time of it. But there are many good things a church upbringing gives you. The knowledge of hundreds of hymns; the ability to pray publically in ornate language (if you're raised in the right church) with only small twinges of stage fright; and a thorough knowledge of one of the cornerstones of western civilization-- the Bible. Plus, there are some good gospel singers out there, Larry Norman being one of them. Good music is good music, even if the singer is proselytizing as much as entertaining. You don't have to believe in the antichrist to be spooked by "Six Sixty Six"--"In the midst of the war, he offered us peace. He came like a lover from out of the east. With the face on an angel and the heart of a beast, his intentions were six sixty six. We served at his table and slept on the floor but he starved us and beat us and nailed us to the door...He told us he loved us but that was a lie, there was blood in his pockets and death in his eye. Well my number is up and I'm willing to die, if the band will play six sixty six." And the ghostly banjo fades in, presumably playing that great future hit, 666. Paul Clark is a guy out of Kansas who has been doing the Happy thing for a long time. Making records on his own and distributing them himself. He has a charming pedestrian voice and writes pretty lyrics. But mostly he has Phil Keaggy play on a lot of his songs. Phil Keaggy is a great guitarist. And that's great as in will-be-remembered-after-he-is-dead. Michael Omartian is another good Christian artist. Sam Phillips is a lapsed or converted or something Christian artist (I don't need the political church). T-Bone Burnett has those leanings, as does Bruce Cockburn. Anyway, I ramble on. One of the saddest songs I know is a Richard Thompson song called "The Great Vallerio." Martyn Carthy and Maddy Prior (I think it is Maddy) sing it on that Thompson tribute album. Can't remember the name of the album. The song is probably sad simply because of the minor chords used, but boy are those minor chords gut-wrenching. Carthy does a great job playing that song. There is an English ballad named "The Two Sisters" that is heart-rending. Lorenna McKennitt does a version of it on one of her first albums. It's about a girl who drowns and a fiddler who uses her bones to make a fiddle. "And the only tune that fiddle would play is crying the dreadful wind and rain." To hear the definitive version you'll have to come to Denton and get me to sing it for you. I have the plaintive, nasal wailing down cold. Bye, Lyle ------------------------------ End of ecto-digest V6 #379 **************************