From: owner-fegmaniax-digest@ecto.org To: fegmaniax-digest@ecto.org Reply-To: fegmaniax@ecto.org Errors-To: owner-fegmaniax-digest@ecto.org Subject: Feg Digest V4 #177 Fegmaniax Digest Volume 4 Number 177 Send posts to fegmaniax@ecto.org Send subscribe/unsubscribe commands to majordomo@ecto.org Send comments, etc. to the listowner at owner-fegmaniax@ecto.org FegMANIAX! Web Page: http://remus.rutgers.edu/~woj/fegmaniax/ Archives are available at http://archive.uwp.edu/pub/music/lists/fegmaniax/ ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Today's Topics: ------- ------- Re: some food for the barbecue Re: CreA&M Re: The Political Explosion and some RH (but just a little) Re: Linda Ryan Re: Some discography questions. Re: CreA&M Another ME review 1) QE 2) ME 3) Birdshead 4) Me & ME 5) REM Re: 1) QE 2) ME 3) Birdshead 4) Me & ME 5) REM Re: Robyn vs. Julian? The Rain Parade stories Moss Elixir and Queen Elvis Syd Barrett covers The Children We Were Have Turned Into Us Re: Odds & Sods Re: CreA&M categories, 60s quiz, ------------------------------ From: Hedblade@aol.com Date: Sat, 14 Sep 1996 17:51:54 -0400 Subject: Re: some food for the barbecue >i sit in my classes all day and discuss poetry much of the time. i >constantly come across lines and ideas i hear in robyn's songs. today's >was regarding heliotrope. the poem is from emily dickinson After all of the flack that's been flying around this list as of late, it was nice to have my faith fully restored. If nothing else, it's nice to be on a list of "rock" fans that *know* Emily Dickinson, let alone *read* her! Praise all you Fegs!!!! Jay ------------------------------ From: Putney Swope Subject: Re: CreA&M Date: Sat, 14 Sep 1996 15:00:14 -0700 At 22:11 12.09.96 -0700, E.B. wrote: >>From: ! >> >>> >Anyone for tennis? >>> Wouldn't that be nice? ;) That's the third reference to that song I've heard >>> in as many days. Think I'll have to go by a copy of the album (_Fresh Cream_ >>> or _Disraeli Gears_?). > >If I'm not mistaken, it was originally a B-side and now is a bonus track on >the Goodbye CD. I remember it from the Clapton box set called _Crossroads_. It's been about four years since I've heard it. > >>From: Basil The Rat >> >>I thought about that myself, but reasoned that there are more artists that >>A&M neglected than stood behind. The Police are the exception rather than >>the rule. > >No kidding! It seems like every A&M act I've liked in recent years has >either been dropped or has left the label (except for Soundgarden and >Suzanne Vega, and I'm pretty lukewarm on Soundgarden). Think about all the >acts that have passed through A&M lately: Hitchcock, Soul Asylum, Mekons, >Feelies, Blue Nile, Kitchens Of Distinction, Squeeze, Swervedriver...yikes! A&M began as a vehicle for Herb Alpert and The Tijuana Brass. That should be an indication that they were never intending to gear the label to a rock audience and therefore didn't know how to promote rock acts, concentrating instead on pop and easy listening acts (Alpert, Hugh Masakela, Carpenters, Rick Wakeman, et al). It seems that Alpert started the label in order to derive more revenue from his homophonic albums. You own one, you own them all. > >On a more historical note, A&M also took The Best Of The Move out of print, >never reissued the ultraneato Merry-Go-Round and Emitt Rhodes albums and >sold off rights to a couple of Fairport Convention records. Phooey on A & >M! Their CD reissues are lousy. Most of them include no liner notes at all and appear to have cost about $1.50 to put together. Phooey on A&M indeed--if only for the fact that the dropped Robyn. That's all for now, Glen, whose brother's band is close to signing with MCA (Musician's Cemetary Association)--which is only slightly better than A&M. (*)=(*)=(*)=(*)=(*)=(*)=(*)=(*)=(*)=(*) "When you're out there trying to heal ( Glen E. Uber glen@metro.net ) the sick, you must always first forgive ( http://metro.net/glen/ ) them." --Bob Dylan (*)=(*)=(*)=(*)=(*)=(*)=(*)=(*)=(*)=(*) ------------------------------ From: Hedblade@aol.com Date: Sat, 14 Sep 1996 19:01:59 -0400 Subject: Re: The Political Explosion and some RH (but just a little) Not sure if this got posted last time, so I'm sending it again. Sorry if it has! Jay Dear Hamish and all our other cross Atlantic relations, > After hearing Mr Bragg mentioned so often I wondered how popular he is > in the US. I know he is a clever tunesmith and all that (I've seen > him myself a few times) but his subject matter is mainly political and > quite left wing. (Farther left wing in fact than our own Labour > party.) How does this sit in the US. Aren't you chaps further right > than us. (Sweeping generalisation, I know.) I would have thought > that Billy Bragg would be branded a damn commie. You admit these comments are "Sweeping generalisations," but you are for the most part correct in your assumptions. I'd venture to say that most U.S. residents WOULD consider Mr. Bragg a "damn commie" (or, to school you in good ol' Ah-mer-eh-can, "A goddamn, sombitchin' commie!") However, remember, you are talking to those of us in the "Land Of The Free, Home Of The Brave" (gag) that have more than a passing fancy for ROBYN FREAKIN' HITCHCOCK!!!! (and some of *us* are commies, too ;)- my political two pence) Now, I'm not suggesting that in order to be into Hitchcock you must be a bleeding heart liberal, I'm only suggesting that I think we can all agree that we aren't the type of folk that simply swallow what we're given without question (let's say Hootie, for example). Let's face it, in order to be into Robyn at this level, you are at the very least open minded, and more than likely a "searcher." With that in mind, I wouldn't be surprised if a lot of us at least kinda like Billy Bragg, and if we don't totally agree with his politics, we at least see SOME value or truth in SOME of what he says. In other words, I think most of us wouldn't be so base that we would write him off for saying things that aren't universally popular. I, for one, couldn't live without my copy of "Don't Try This At Home" (granted, his LEAST political album, but far more political than, let's say, Hootie). I couldn't be more excited by this double bill of Robyn and Billy! Sincerely, Jay Hedblade@aol.com "War...what is it good for? It's good for business!!!" Billy Bragg- "North Sea Bubble" ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 14 Sep 1996 17:03:35 -0700 From: gondola@deltanet.com (E.B.) Subject: Re: Linda Ryan >Victor Triola wrote: >> Have you fine folks ever discussed if the >> deliriously-twisted images Mr. H concocts are inspired by any sort of >> hallucinogen? (Linda Ryan in the sky w/diamonds....) Hey, Linda Ryan is a real person, not a hallucination. I've met her a couple of times. She used to work at the record-industry trade The Gavin Report in San Francisco. Obviously, she's also a buddy of Robyn's. Now she lives in L.A., and works for another trade, Next. I saw her a couple of months ago at a ghastly rave out in Snow Valley, CA. Just thought you might like to know.... Eb ------------------------------ From: Terrence M Marks Date: Sat, 14 Sep 1996 21:15:58 -0400 (EDT) Subject: Re: Some discography questions. On Sat, 14 Sep 1996, Christopher Donnell wrote: > Okay, hard-core fans! Here's a few questions about Robyn's catalogue > that I can't answer myself (but what to know!) > > Is the version of Surgery on the BOB flexi-disc the same as the You & > Oblivion version? Nope. SLightly different. > Is the version of Birdshead on Pave The Earth (A&M sampler) the same > as the one on You & Oblivion. Different versions again > (And a somewhat more complicated question) > > The only songs that were changed between the original CD and the Rhino > reissues are the two off BSDR (TMWIH and BIS). I *believe* so. > > I'm sorta working on a 'functional discography' of Robyn's stuff > including every version of every song properly availiable, and since > my record player is gone now I'm having some difficulty (coupled with > the fact that I don't yet own Pave The Earth or any PT stuff - Not too > mention that pesky Oceaside 12"... I don't own Live Death either, but > ummm.. I've got a tape of it!) Cool. Go for it Terrence "THM" Marks ------------------------------ From: Terrence M Marks Date: Sat, 14 Sep 1996 21:19:06 -0400 (EDT) Subject: Re: CreA&M Written by: Terry "The Human Mellotron" Marks normal@grove.ufl.edu > That's all for now, > Glen, whose brother's band is close to signing with MCA (Musician's Cemetary > Association)--which is only slightly better than A&M. Q: Are there any labels out there that you guys *like*? ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 14 Sep 1996 18:20:00 -0700 From: Ryan Godfrey Subject: Another ME review Here's a review of Moss Elixir from this week's Phoenix New Times, a pseudo-alternative free weekly tabloid.=20 The reviewer is Serene Dominic. Comments can be sent to feedback@phoenixnewtimes.com. Robyn Hitchcock=20 Moss Elixir (Warner Bros.) Somewhere on the way to courting a mass audience, Robyn Hitchcock alienated the loyal fans that kept his idiosyncratic career afloat since he fronted the Soft Boys. Big deal, you say. That rap's doled out to every artist who bolts the indies for a major label. But if Hitchcock didn't start making more overtly commercial music overnight--you could hardly call songs about fish scales and flesh commercial--lackluster releases like Queen Elvis and Respect led one to suspect that he was only trotting out eccentricities because he was expected to.=20 In the past, Hitchcock=92s effrontery would lead him to rhyme "Brenda's Iron Sledge" with a ridiculous non sequitur like "Please don't call me Reg," then follow that with a cryptic tag like "It's not my name--at least not yet." There was a brilliant madness in Robyn=92s throwaway lines, worthy of his idol Syd Barrett.=20 Hitchcock, along with his band the Egyptians, signed to A&M in 1987. And while his biggest near-hit, "Balloon Man," still had flashes of great imagery, he=92d follow "It rained like a slow divorce" with time-wasters like "And I wish I could ride a horse," which suggested nothing beyond writer's block. But sending the Egyptians walking seems to have galvanized Hitchcock's muse. Considering the nonband, pro-violinist approach Hitchcock favors on most of the cuts, Moss Elixir sounds like the most complete album he's made yet. Observe "I Am Not Me." Even without a bassist and drummer, it's easily the hardest-hitting track Robyn's done since "I Wanna Destroy You." This album also carries a balance between Hitchcock's poppy, Dr. Seussish tendencies and the somber majesty he usually reserves for acoustic albums like I Often Dream of Trains. In particular, the stark and beautiful "Filthy Bird" and "Heliotrope" suggest what Nick Drake might've sounded like on hallucinogens instead of depressants. Hitchcock lets humor and mystery co-exist in the same way he once did on the shadowy sing-along "Man With a Woman's Shadow."=20 While commercial FM may not take to a radio-friendly alternahit like "Alright Yeah," every song on this album will remind deserters what made them rally 'round Robyn in the first place. Moss Elixir is a fast and effective career cure-all--just what the spin doctor ordered.=20 --Serene Dominic=20 The idea that Robyn has sold out most of his real fans is probably news to most people on this list. Still, Dominic says nice things about ME. --Ryan ------------------------------ From: RxBroome@aol.com Date: Sat, 14 Sep 1996 21:31:29 -0400 Subject: 1) QE 2) ME 3) Birdshead 4) Me & ME 5) REM 1) Q: How readily available is "Queen Elvis"? A: Depends entirely on where you live. From previous posts, I gather it's completely out of print in Canada. US residents outside major metropli seem to have trouble finding it, too, so it might be out of print here, but nary a week goes by in LA when I don't see at least one in a used bin about town. I think that may be because LA is industry-driven like NOWHERE else. "QE" was part of what I refer to as the first failed attempted mainstreaming of "alternativity"... it, and "Perspex", along with a slew of other (sorta) like-minded records were vastly overprinted by A&M and other labels, hoping to break some "college" acts on the coattails of REM and U2. Two years later, all of these records showed up in mass quantities as cut-outs... cf. (if you were in college at the time, you'll know exactly what I mean) "Spike", "Oranges and Lemons", "Gold Afternoon Fix", anything by World Party or the Smithereens or the Godfathers, "Key Lime Pie", whatever the Furs and Jesus and Mary Chain put out in the late '80's... the list goes on... anyhow, "QE" was readily available for really cheap in the US at that time. If you're desperate for a copy, I can probably find one, but, if "QE" has, as it seems, attained semi-lengendary status as a "lost jewel", be warned: it's so lightweight that it put me off Robyn for a few years... 2) Greg Landry slams back at a slam Robyn review. Is this (outright dismissal) the common UK reaction to Robyn these days? From what I can tell, the new album has gotten scant notice stateside, but EVERY review I've read, small though they be, has been positive and mentioned Robyn as woefully underappreciated and currently in top form-- this includes a few national mags as well as the "LA Times" and the new "New Times LA"... my instinct is that the only critics who could be bothered to review him in the first place are already confirmed fans. How has this played out in other places? 3) Christopher Donnell asks: "Is the version of Birdshead on Pave The Earth (A&M sampler) the same as the one on You & Oblivion." NO NO NO NO! It isn't. The "Pave" version is otherwise unavailable-- it's live from McCabe's and is infinitely superior the the "Y&O" version. No Peter Buck starpower, and a warts-and-all reading (he gets REALLY lost in the solo) but an enormously affecting delivery and essential, IMHO. 4) Objects continue to move about through space. Sometimes they meet and interact, but, more often than not, they miss each other entirely. Currently, from my own point of view, they're colliding in truly spectacular, fascinating combinations, and, more often than not, when they're doing so, the music that's playing in the background is "Moss Elixir". All of which means that I'm becoming emotionally attached to this record in a way that may defy any critical distance. This is kind of how I became so attached to "Eye" as well. Some of you know why. Rex PS: Kevin says: "P.S. REM are such bastards - multimillionaires with their artistic integrity still intact. How DO they do it - "Leave" - simply gorgeous !" Here's why that new REM record rules over all: they've retained all the depth and weirdness of their last two great records, and put all the hooks back in!!! By which I mean, Mike Mills singing really high on the choruses, I guess. Highly recommended. ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 14 Sep 1996 23:33:21 -0600 From: sdodge@inforel.com (Susan Dodge) Subject: Re: 1) QE 2) ME 3) Birdshead 4) Me & ME 5) REM That devilishly charming, throughly addictive personality who goes by the name of RxBroome has this to say: >Q: How readily available is "Queen Elvis"? > >A: Depends entirely on where you live. From previous posts, I gather it's >completely out of print in Canada. US residents outside major metropli seem >to have trouble finding it, too, so it might be out of print here, but nary a >week goes by in LA when I don't see at least one in a used bin about town. Yep. Same here in Chicago. I see it fairly often. (perceptive comments about 80s attempts at "mainstreaming" deleted) >If you're desperate for a copy, I can probably find one, but, if "QE" has, as >it seems, attained semi-lengendary status as a "lost jewel", be warned: it's >so lightweight that it put me off Robyn for a few years... Uh huh. Agreed. But then I always agree with Rx :). Still, "Devil's Coachman" does rock the world. It's the only song I really like on that record. >2) >Greg Landry slams back at a slam Robyn review. > >Is this (outright dismissal) the common UK reaction to Robyn these days? > From what I can tell, the new album has gotten scant notice stateside, but >EVERY review I've read, small though they be, has been positive and mentioned >Robyn as woefully underappreciated and currently in top form-- this includes >a few national mags as well as the "LA Times" and the new "New Times LA"... > my instinct is that the only critics who could be bothered to review him in >the first place are already confirmed fans. How has this played out in other >places? Yes, the professional Englishman bullshit. Makes me crazy. Ray Davies gets this criticism a lot too. I have seen very few reviews, but all were positive. I don't really read the Chicago papers, so I don't know if ME was reviewed by any of them or not, but I suspect it was, as I know Greg Kot (one of the critics for the Chicago Tribune) is a something of a Feg. Any Chicagoans seen an ME review floating about? If so, when, and was it positive? I'm curious. (stuff about the lovely Birdshead deleted) >4) Objects continue to move about through space. Sometimes they meet and >interact, but, more often than not, they miss each other entirely. > Currently, from my own point of view, they're colliding in truly >spectacular, fascinating combinations, Ain't they, though? :) and, more often than not, when they're >doing so, the music that's playing in the background is "Moss Elixir". I've noticed this :). I seem to be bonding with it too. 'Specially "I Am Not Me". To quote Rx, "some of you will know why". Susan Tim Veenstra Home: 312.235.6538 Work: 312.567.7775 x1209 Pager: 312.657.4946 ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 14 Sep 1996 23:10:58 -0700 (PDT) From: "Trixie, Bunny and Peaches" Subject: Re: Robyn vs. Julian? On Sat, 14 Sep 1996, Bayard wrote: > is it true that Cynthia is pictured on the cover of said >album? and if > so, which is she? (refering to '20 mothers', of course) i can only offer this... in the november 1995 issue of 'select', there is a listing and short blurb of who is on the cover. each blurb is a quote from cope. i was also under the impression that a cynthia was on the cover. but, according to this bit, she is not. in the front row on the far right is cope's mother. second from left is his wife, dorian. is this cynthia double-named :) ? over, .chris ------------------------------ From: Terrence M Marks Date: Sun, 15 Sep 1996 03:20:59 -0400 (EDT) Subject: The Rain Parade 1) Woohoo! I picked up Emergency Third Rail Power Trip by the Rain Parade today. (it was in the really cheap bin at a record sale. $2 for it. $1 for Surf's Up by the Beach Boys (the cool version on Robyn's fave list, not the icky one). And I liked it. THanks to (I believe) James Dignan, who reccomended them. My faith in fegmania is restored. 2) Do any of you knwo anything about a band called "The Phantom Tollboth"? Picked up some vinyl by them also.. Anyone heard of them? 3) Moss Elixer is a GREAT story. I think that it's his second best. I rate them: Moose Mark and the Prince of Cones, Moss Elixer, Globe of Frogs speech, The Can Opener, Devil You Know, Glass Hotel, That Thing in Invisible Hits, THe Proffessor and the Fegmania Explanation, in that order... Anyone care to do a story poll? Terry "The Human Mellotron" Marks normal@grove.ufl.edu ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 15 Sep 1996 13:19:20 -0400 (EDT) From: Carl Abraham Zimring Subject: stories Sample loop from the human Mellotron: >3) Moss Elixer is a GREAT story. I think that it's his second best. I >rate them: Moose Mark and the Prince of Cones, Moss Elixer, Globe of Frogs >speech, The Can Opener, Devil You Know, Glass Hotel, That Thing in Invisible >Hits, THe Proffessor and the Fegmania Explanation, in that order... >Anyone care to do a story poll? Glass Hotel is my favorite. Don't have rankings of the rest, but I've always been fond of the peom "Meatfinger" as issued in a 1987 Fegmaniax! mailer. -Carl who also likes the Can Opener ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 10 Sep 1996 20:32:17 +0100 (BST) From: "Stewart C. Russell" Subject: Moss Elixir and Queen Elvis Anyone else feel that Queen Elvis and Moss Elixir have much in common? To me, "Wax Doll" sounds like it's off M.E. It could be that this is the first chance I've had to listen to Queen Elvis for any length of time, and it comes after buying Moss. I really like QE, and am disappointed it never got released here. The song I couldn't remember from Robyn's Irvine event was "Freezing", incidentally. 'Siberia...? Topping place!' -- Stewart C. Russell, Glasgow, Scotland - scruss@enterprise.net ------------------------------ From: dsaunder@islandNet.com (Daniel Saunders) Subject: Syd Barrett covers Date: Sun, 15 Sep 1996 17:03:08 -0800 Is there a list of Syd Barrett songs Robyn Hitchcock has covered? The only two I know about are Vegetable Man and Dominoes. I'd love to hear RH sing some other stuff off the solo albums. Daniel Saunders "They say that I'm weird, and disinfectant is the only thing I drink Well, cleanliness of the soul is more important, don't you think?" - Robyn Hitchcock, Underwater Moonlight ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 15 Sep 1996 19:38:25 -0500 From: Miles Goosens Subject: The Children We Were Have Turned Into Us Normally I wouldn't send a posting to an entire list to tell folks that I've just gotten back from vacation, but I want to allay any fears that my Lady Mitchell "parents" and "children" might have that I've gone missing. Was at Panama City, FL, for a glorious week of sunshine from Sept. 6 through this very evening, hence my tardy responses. I'll update my tape list tonight and contact everybody I'm supposed to on the morrow (Monday evening). To give this some RH content, I've kept from commenting out loud on the list about a couple of things, but shall take this opportunity to do so now: 1) GENERAL LIST-NASTINESS: the recent controversies have taken me by surprise, since up until about six months ago, this was one of the most pleasant vales in the vast Internet. Since I value the quasi-anarchy, however endangered, that is the Internet, I don't really have a solution. But if I were your mommie, I'd tell you that you had been very, very naughty again, and send you to bed without your sticky things. I encourage healthy disagreements, not corrosive ones -- let's realize what a nice thing we have here and work to preserve it, 'k? 2) MOSS ELIXIR: I refuse to comment about an album until it's well-digested, and even then some things (Wire, the Cure's _The Head on the Door_, Fetchin' Bones) take even longer to captivate me. But I've had ME/ML long enough now to say that I like them both very well. Methinks (as someone has said previously) that some of the disappointment with the album comes from listmembers being familiar with the songs already thanks to goodies like _NetSurfer Ghost_ -- much of ME/ML lacks that open-the-wrapper surprise. But I think all in all Robyn has made good choices on which versions of which songs to use, and the evolution of most songs from initial live performances two years ago through now has been beneficial, and I for one have been glad that this list has given me the opportunity to watch the process from beginning to finished studio version. I'll say more about the songs themselves when I complete my round of dubbing. Later, Miles ===================================================================== My Album of the Year, 1980-1985 1980: Clash, London Calling 1981: Clash, Sandinista! 1982: Bruce Springsteen, Nebraska 1983: Talking Heads, Speaking in Tongues 1984: Robyn Hitchcock, I Often Dream of Trains 1985: Jason and the Scorchers, Lost & Found Miles Goosens goosenmk@ctrvax.vanderbilt.edu ===================================================================== ------------------------------ From: Putney Swope Subject: Re: Odds & Sods Date: Sun, 15 Sep 1996 18:24:52 -0700 At 10:12 14.09.96 +0800, Kevin M Mathews wrote: >P.S. REM are such bastards - multimillionaires with their artistic integrity >still intact. How DO they do it - "Leave" - simply gorgeous ! Am I the only feglister who isn't gaga over REM? I mean, I own _Life's Rich Pageant_, _Murmur_ and _Document_, but don't really consider myself a true fan. That may smack of blasphemy on this list -- I know there's a close musical kinship between RH and REM -- but I just don't dig them the way I do Robyn. Sometimes I feel as though I'm failing the musicl prerequisites of this list by not even caring about what REM does. Any thoughts? Anyone else share my feelings? LET THE FLAMES BEGIN!!! Glen, who is certainly glad the Raiders won today -- it means my protest is over and I can finally shave. ########################################################## # Glen E. Uber glen@metro.net http://metro.net/glen/ # ########################################################## ***Great misheard lyrics*** "That would be ecstacy, you and me and Leslie" 'Groovin', The Rascals "You do the funky jime in your prime, didn't you?" 'Like A Rolling Stone', Bob Dylan "Baby you're a rich fag Jew" 'Baby You're A Rich Man', The Beatles ########################################################## ------------------------------ From: Putney Swope Subject: Re: CreA&M Date: Sun, 15 Sep 1996 18:24:54 -0700 At 21:19 14.09.96 -0400, Terrence M Marks asked: >Q: Are there any labels out there that you guys *like*? As a matter of fact, there are several: Guinness, Bass, Red Seal, Downtown Brown, et al. ;) ;) ;) Glen, who, without a beard, is a dead ringer for Julian Schnabel... ########################################################## # Glen E. Uber glen@metro.net http://metro.net/glen/ # ########################################################## ***Great misheard lyrics*** "That would be ecstacy, you and me and Leslie" 'Groovin', The Rascals "You do the funky jime in your prime, didn't you?" 'Like A Rolling Stone', Bob Dylan "Baby you're a rich fag Jew" 'Baby You're A Rich Man', The Beatles ########################################################## ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 16 Sep 1996 14:54:20 +1200 From: james.dignan@stonebow.otago.ac.nz (James Dignan) Subject: categories, 60s quiz, "jeffery j vaska" sez: >>But IMHO the three categories should be by sound, not subject - > >>Wistful - Raymond Chandler Evening >>Bouncy - Balloon Man >>Angry/Bitter - Cynthia Mask > >james, would have to disagree on the basis that the words are too, too >important. oh and I agree with you 100%. Perhaps the word "sound" was the wrong one to use. I was referring to the words as much, if not more than the music. The music of Cynthia mask isn't particularly bitter, for instance, but the lyrics sure are... >6. Terence Stamp >7. Julie Christie >8 & 9. Yipes. Don't know. if this is right, then it's "Far from the Madding Crowd", based on Thomas Hardy's novel. >>Anyone for tennis? > >Wouldn't that be nice? ;) That's the third reference to that song I've heard >in as many days. Think I'll have to go by a copy of the album (_Fresh Cream_ >or _Disraeli Gears_?). Fresh Cream, IIRC (or possibly "Goodbye"? IIRC it was a bonus CD only track on one or the other of them). Certainly not Disraeli Gears. >The Other Christine >RH fan since 1984/Reference librarian/Wallace & Gromit fan... right on! :) James (an ex-librarian who sometimes worries people by saying "cracking cheese, Gromit!", or "Have you seen this chicken?") applauds your fine taste in claymation! ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- The End of this Fegmaniax Digest. *sob* .