From: owner-ecto-digest@smoe.org (ecto-digest) To: ecto-digest@smoe.org Subject: ecto-digest V13 #426 Reply-To: ecto@smoe.org Sender: owner-ecto-digest@smoe.org Errors-To: owner-ecto-digest@smoe.org Precedence: bulk ecto-digest Sunday, March 16 2008 Volume 13 : Number 426 To unsubscribe: e-mail ecto-digest-request@smoe.org and put the word unsubscribe in the message body. Today's Subjects: ----------------- Today's your birthday, friend... [Mike Matthews ] Susan McKeown on the brain ["Paul Blair" ] From the goose's mouth ["Paul Blair" ] Re: From the goose's mouth ["Richard Messum" ] Re: From the goose's mouth [morayati@email.unc.edu] Re: From the goose's mouth [birdie ] Re: From the goose's mouth ["Sue Trowbridge" ] ---------------------------------------------------------------------- ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Sat, 15 Mar 2008 03:00:04 -0400 (EDT) From: Mike Matthews Subject: Today's your birthday, friend... i*i*i*i*i*i i*i*i*i*i*i *************** *****HAPPY********* **************BIRTHDAY********* *************************************************** *************************************************************************** ******************* Randall K. Smith (no Email address) ******************* *************************************************************************** -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- - -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- Randall K. Smith Sat March 15 1969 Pisces Jessica Skolnik March 16 Pisces Patrick M. Kingsley Sat March 17 1962 Yin/Yang Alan Sodoma Thu March 18 1965 LuckyLurker Richard Konrad Sat March 18 1944 Pisces Daniel Wed March 18 1959 Wednesday's Child Kim Justice March 18 Pisces Barry Wong Thu March 19 1970 Merlin Graham Dombkins Fri March 19 1965 Pisces Ian Young Wed March 19 1969 Squiggol Jeff Wasilko Wed March 19 1969 Pisces Geoff Carre Sat March 20 1954 Pisces John Stewart Sat March 21 1970 Aries Bob Brown Thu March 22 1951 Ham Valerie Nozick Thu March 25 1971 Aries Tom Proven Sat March 27 1971 Eat at Joe's Jennifer Albert Wed March 30 1966 Aries (w/Cancer rising!:) Warpaint Mon April 01 1991 Brilliant! Michael Pearce Wed April 03 1946 Pegasus Michael E. Bravo Mon April 05 1971 Dandelion Wine Brion McIntosh Sun April 06 1958 Aries Marcel Kshensky Thu April 06 1950 Aries Bill Mazur Mon April 06 1953 Aries Sun/Cancer Rising David Dixon Tue April 07 1970 Aries Heidi Heller Mon April 08 1974 Aries Jill Hughes Sat April 09 1955 Aries Klaus Kluge Sun April 10 1960 Unicorn Steve VanDevender Sun April 10 1966 Racer Art Liestman Fri April 10 1953 Repeat Stephen Golden Sat April 10 1971 Jokey Michael Bowman Wed April 11 1962 Aries Wolfgang Ullwer Fri April 11 1969 Widder Janet Kirsch Thu April 11 1974 Aries Kristen Scallion Fri April 12 1974 Aries Jerry Tue April 13 1971 Aries Stuart Myerburg Mon April 14 1969 Aries T-Bone Wed April 15 1992 happy cat - -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 15 Mar 2008 13:01:48 -0400 From: "Paul Blair" Subject: Susan McKeown on the brain I was going to call this message "Susan McKeown unplugged," until... well, more on that later. This was a big ecto week for me--Sarah Slean on Tuesday, Karan Casey and Lunasa Thursday, and Susan last night. Thursday night, when Karan Casey started out with "Johnny I Hardly Knew Ye"--which Susan has performed--and "Black is the Color," I started to wonder if all the songs were going to be ones Susan has done. (None of the rest of them were, as far as I know.) Karan's version of "Black is the Color" was very different, though--meditative and meandering, almost loungy. She mentioned that to celebrate turning forty she has a new album of "miserable songs," of which she performed "Dunlavin Green" and one whose lyrics contained the words "Ships in the Forest." (That's the album's name but not the title of any of the songs on it; I think the song was probably a new one called "Town of Athlone.") At several points she left the stage to her musicians--Niall Vallely (concertina), CaoimhC-n Vallely (piano) and Ross Martin (guitar)--for some instrumental bits. Niall Vallely is amazing on the concertina. Highline Ballroom isn't the sort of place you can get up and start hopping around, and I don't know anything about Irish dancing anyway, but the music was almost enough to get me to throw caution to the winds. After Karan Casey, Lunasa went on for a very enjoyable set. Kevin Crawford as usual had the house in stitches. A notable moment was Trevor Hutchinson's effects-filled introduction to one of the songs on his double bass--very similar to what Lyris Hung used to do at the beginning of Mila Drumke's "Blue Light." At the encore all the Niall and CaoimhC-n Vallely joined their brother Cillian and the rest of Lunasa on stage for a very energetic and special finale. Last night Susan McKeown played at the Rubin Museum of Art, a museum dedicated to art of the Himalayas. The room was fairly large, elegant and modern, with candlelit tables; drinks could be brought in from the museum bar outside. Susan, Lindsey and Aidan were playing without amplification but were quite audible. A slide of some Himalayan art was projected above them while they played. I arrived a bit late and got in while Susan was singing "Be Brave Love, Be Strong" whose high notes require some bravery to sing without a mike, particularly early in the set. But her voice soon warmed up and carried the evening. The set from that point on was: Be Brave Love, Be Strong Fortune Gonna Get Through This World (Woody Guthrie) She's Leaving Home (Beatles - only Lindsey on this one) Fallen Angel Eggs in Her Basket Our Texas City of Roses Wheels of the World Things in Your Heart Seven Cold Glories an Irish funeral song whose name I don't know South River Encore: Irish song about a fellow who meets a girl at a wake The Hare's Lament (Now if I were one of Susan's "1000 True Fans," I'd know the names of those other songs.) Susan had the chance to give a bit of an introduction to each of the songs, where we learned interesting tidbits such as that "Our Texas" was actually about a trip to Virginia. The thing that struck me about the set was how broad Susan's musical repertoire is. You never know what's coming next. At the end of the show Susan, Aidan and Lindsey were presented with shiny white silk scarves by someone associated with the museum, who related the Tibetan symbolism of giving these scarves to distinguished guests. So that's all I had planned to say about that, except that I was walking down the street this morning, miles away from anything associated with Susan, when she crossed my path on the street. She was at the rental car agency down the street from my place, getting set to drive upstate to today's gig. We both did a double-take and I'm still incredulous. ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 15 Mar 2008 13:14:05 -0400 From: "Paul Blair" Subject: From the goose's mouth I don't know if using the word "geese" for people who talk at concerts goes beyond Cowboy Junkies fans, but I find it apt. During the Karan Casey/Lunasa show I had a unique glimpse into goose psychology. I was seated next to three young women who started off Karan Casey's set with a fit of giggles. They soon piped down, but during the break between sets I heard one of them complaining about "how quiet everyone is. They're all just sitting there listening! I mean, when I'm at a concert I expect to be able to talk. It's one thing if it were the Met, or the ballet, or something like that. But this is a concert!" That said, they were all polite enough not to talk during the show, except for a giggle or two. The one who was chafing spent most of the show doodling and writing messages to the others on a napkin, and she was all set to leave before Lunasa had even left the stage. I wonder what leads to the expectation of talking during a show. There are certain situations where you're expected to talk over the music--e.g., a jazz band or pianist playing in a restaurant, a musician playing in a busy cafe--but that didn't seem to be their milieu. The only other thing I can think of is the clubs where the music is so overamplified it doesn't matter whether or not you talk--but what kind of a conversation can you carry on then? ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 15 Mar 2008 16:21:24 -0400 From: "Richard Messum" Subject: Re: From the goose's mouth I hesitate to suggest that people, in general, are stupid, but i do think that people (again, in general) don't know how to *use* their brains, or how to behave in public. They attend a concert, or go to the cinema, and yammer away, thinking perhaps that they are at home watching TV, where their logorrhoea doesn't disturb innocent bystanders. I actually got into a spot of trouble over this at a Peter Hammill show a few years ago. One table away from me were people who insisted on yakking constantly. I leaned over and politely suggested that they "put a sock in it" and they threatened to take me outside. One of the rarest commodities on this planet is common sense. Richard - ----- Original Message ----- From: Paul Blair To: Ecto Sent: Saturday, March 15, 2008 1:14 PM Subject: From the goose's mouth I don't know if using the word "geese" for people who talk at concerts goes beyond Cowboy Junkies fans, but I find it apt. During the Karan Casey/Lunasa show I had a unique glimpse into goose psychology. I was seated next to three young women who started off Karan Casey's set with a fit of giggles. They soon piped down, but during the break between sets I heard one of them complaining about "how quiet everyone is. They're all just sitting there listening! I mean, when I'm at a concert I expect to be able to talk. It's one thing if it were the Met, or the ballet, or something like that. But this is a concert!" That said, they were all polite enough not to talk during the show, except for a giggle or two. The one who was chafing spent most of the show doodling and writing messages to the others on a napkin, and she was all set to leave before Lunasa had even left the stage. I wonder what leads to the expectation of talking during a show. There are certain situations where you're expected to talk over the music--e.g., a jazz band or pianist playing in a restaurant, a musician playing in a busy cafe--but that didn't seem to be their milieu. The only other thing I can think of is the clubs where the music is so overamplified it doesn't matter whether or not you talk--but what kind of a conversation can you carry on then? - -- No virus found in this incoming message. Checked by AVG. Version: 7.5.518 / Virus Database: 269.21.7/1329 - Release Date: 3/14/2008 12:33 PM ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 15 Mar 2008 16:26:12 -0400 From: morayati@email.unc.edu Subject: Re: From the goose's mouth There are two possibilities, possibly more: 1) The desire for running commentary. The artist performs; people talk about it, state their thoughts. 2) The desire to use the concert, or event, or whatever it is, as not an end but a means towards social interaction. This, I think, is the worse of the two, because it's missing the point. After all, if you're commenting on the concert, you're at least listening to a degree. From: Paul Blair > To: Ecto > Sent: Saturday, March 15, 2008 1:14 PM > Subject: From the goose's mouth > > > I don't know if using the word "geese" for people who talk at concerts goes > beyond Cowboy Junkies fans, but I find it apt. During the Karan Casey/Lunasa > show I had a unique glimpse into goose psychology. > > I was seated next to three young women who started off Karan Casey's set > with a fit of giggles. They soon piped down, but during the break between > sets I heard one of them complaining about "how quiet everyone is. They're > all just sitting there listening! I mean, when I'm at a concert I expect to > be able to talk. It's one thing if it were the Met, or the ballet, or > something like that. But this is a concert!" > > That said, they were all polite enough not to talk during the show, except > for a giggle or two. The one who was chafing spent most of the show doodling > and writing messages to the others on a napkin, and she was all set to leave > before Lunasa had even left the stage. > > I wonder what leads to the expectation of talking during a show. There are > certain situations where you're expected to talk over the music--e.g., a > jazz band or pianist playing in a restaurant, a musician playing in a busy > cafe--but that didn't seem to be their milieu. The only other thing I can > think of is the clubs where the music is so overamplified it doesn't matter > whether or not you talk--but what kind of a conversation can you carry on > then? ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 15 Mar 2008 14:12:38 -0700 From: birdie Subject: Re: From the goose's mouth i agree and also people who are accoustomed to being in bars and clubs where recorded music is played loud for dancing and background music (jukebox or otherwise) do it and i suspect some don't switch gears when at live shows..... birdie morayati@email.unc.edu wrote: > There are two possibilities, possibly more: > > 1) The desire for running commentary. The artist performs; people talk > about it, state their thoughts. > > 2) The desire to use the concert, or event, or whatever it is, as not > an end but a means towards social interaction. This, I think, is the > worse of the two, because it's missing the point. After all, if you're > commenting on the concert, you're at least listening to a degree. > > From: Paul Blair > >> To: Ecto >> Sent: Saturday, March 15, 2008 1:14 PM >> Subject: From the goose's mouth >> >> >> I don't know if using the word "geese" for people who talk at >> concerts goes >> beyond Cowboy Junkies fans, but I find it apt. During the Karan >> Casey/Lunasa >> show I had a unique glimpse into goose psychology. >> >> I was seated next to three young women who started off Karan Casey's set >> with a fit of giggles. They soon piped down, but during the break >> between >> sets I heard one of them complaining about "how quiet everyone is. >> They're >> all just sitting there listening! I mean, when I'm at a concert I >> expect to >> be able to talk. It's one thing if it were the Met, or the ballet, or >> something like that. But this is a concert!" >> >> That said, they were all polite enough not to talk during the show, >> except >> for a giggle or two. The one who was chafing spent most of the show >> doodling >> and writing messages to the others on a napkin, and she was all set >> to leave >> before Lunasa had even left the stage. >> >> I wonder what leads to the expectation of talking during a show. >> There are >> certain situations where you're expected to talk over the music--e.g., a >> jazz band or pianist playing in a restaurant, a musician playing in a >> busy >> cafe--but that didn't seem to be their milieu. The only other thing I >> can >> think of is the clubs where the music is so overamplified it doesn't >> matter >> whether or not you talk--but what kind of a conversation can you >> carry on >> then? ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 15 Mar 2008 14:22:02 -0700 From: "Sue Trowbridge" Subject: Re: From the goose's mouth On 3/15/08, Paul Blair wrote: > I was seated next to three young women who started off Karan Casey's set > with a fit of giggles. They soon piped down, but during the break between > sets I heard one of them complaining about "how quiet everyone is. They're > all just sitting there listening! I mean, when I'm at a concert I expect to > be able to talk. It's one thing if it were the Met, or the ballet, or > something like that. But this is a concert!" I would love to know what those girls were doing there. Surely they weren't fans of the artists...? Did they win free tickets from a radio station or something? - --Sue ------------------------------ End of ecto-digest V13 #426 ***************************