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 V5 #55 Fegmaniax Digest Volume 5 Number 55 Thursday March 20 1997 To post, send mail to fegmaniax@ecto.org To unsubscribe, send mail to majordomo@ecto.org with the words "unsubscribe fegmaniax-digest" in the message body. Send comments, etc. to the listowner at owner-fegmaniax@ecto.org FegMANIAX! Web Page: http://remus.rutgers.edu/~woj/fegmaniax/index.html Archives are available at ftp://www.ecto.org/pub/lists/fegmaniax/ ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Today's Topics: ------- ------- New RH Trees? Re: Sales Cat's Cradle & obligatory non RH Iron Horse hello! the whole lot Boston meetings... Re: Sales shameless plug Re: Cat's Cradle & obligatory non RH Cat's Cradle tree, Unhatched Crablings? Re: Sales Re: Gravy, Yawn Re: Feg Digest V5 #52 Emotion outweights logic (in defense of GD) OT: battle of the planets Re: Feg Digest V5 #52 Re: Feg Digest V5 #52 - "Statue .." availability ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 19 Mar 1997 23:17:52 -0800 From: Ferris Subject: New RH Trees? Aside from the tree, are there any others going on? I'm especially interested in the Knitting Factory shows, but would settle on anything. Just got a tape of RH's Pittsburgh show from April of 88 today. Very nice. -ferris. -- "Ferryboat Bill, won't you please come home? You know your wife has married a midget's son And that's the shott and long of it." -Lou Reed ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 19 Mar 1997 23:33:11 -0800 From: Eb Subject: Re: Sales >From: Hedblade@aol.com > >Our fellow Feg Ken supports my theory. This is exactly why I guessed, or was >willing to bet, that Gravy Deco was second after You & Oblivion. Groovy >Decay was, up until the re-issue, one of the harder (or at least more >expensive) Robyn collectibles. Putting it on the disc with Groovy Decoy PLUS >the addition of the Disco Mixes, made it near essential. Sure, except for the fact that it's a second-rate record, even with the extra tracks. ;) Yep, I rank it at the very bottom, myself. Heck, you guys all seem to email Jim Neill...ASK him the sales numbers for the reissues! SO ready to hear that Robyn has finally stopped playing "The Wind Cries Mary," Eb ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 20 Mar 1997 12:55:55 +0000 (GMT) From: Gary Sedgwick Subject: Cat's Cradle & obligatory non RH My e-mail's been off-line for a few weeks, and it's taken the best part of another week to get through all the feg digests waiting for me! So I missed out on the deadline for the Cat's Cradle tree - can anyone do me a DAT copy? (and if anyone wants audio from DAT, I'd be happy to do copies). A lot of kid's TV has been discussed over the last month (sorry to start this one up again)... does anyone remember 'Battle Of The Planets' (AKA G-Force)? Did you have it in the States? My favourite cartoon as a young(er) lad. For a trip down memory lane, check out: http://www.openworld.co.uk/staff/ant/bop.html And as for Wombles.. I've spent most of my life living just down the road from Wimbledon Common - FIRST came the Wombles, THEN came the TV series and album. And yes, when I was very young, I did see Orinoco... Gary P.S. Any 'Black Hole' fans out there? ------------------------------ From: tanter@econs.umass.edu Date: Thu, 20 Mar 1997 08:28:05 -0500 Subject: Iron Horse Well, it actually happened. We got the Iron Horse, met Mitch and briefly someone named John, and you'll never guess what happened next....the Dear Janes came on and played a set and then.......Robyn Hitchcock! He looked good, sounded great, we talked to him for a few minutes after. It was a nice time. The cones are being numbered anymore and I couldn't describe ours if I had to. On a negative note, the crowd was probably the worst I have ever seen at any concert. The Iron Horse is a restaurant, too, so we were all at tables eating and drinking, but the people were dull, dull dull. Very few even nodding to the music. They just sat there, like soggy Weetabix, staring at Robyn. The woman next to me is new to RH and she had a good time, especially like his banter. I've only just realized that his banter isn't as spontaneous as I thought. I heard some things I'd heard before. But that's OK, he's still funny. I think it would be really nice to have a chance to sit down with Robyn and talk to him like a person, not for a few minutes in front of a dressing room where you feel like a fan addressing someone you admire, but to sit down like fellow human beings and talk. The only real conversation I've ever had with him was at a party and so it wasn't more than about 15 minutes long and was on the same topic. He took UK fans to the Isle of Wight, about taking US fans somewhere?? Marcy ------------------------------ From: RIELWJ@sbu.edu Date: Thu, 20 Mar 1997 09:45:29 EDT Subject: hello! Hello! I'm, almost entirely brand new to the list so please be kind. I've been peruseing the postings for about two weeks and finally decided it was time for me get on with it. My name is Bill and I'm a 26 year old student at Saint. Bonaventure University in Allegany, NY. Been a RH fan since 1986 which is, unfortunately, the equivlent to isolating myself from most others in the known universe (a topic that seems well thought out by many of you). At risk of sounding squishy I must say that I'm thrilled to be a part of this... I have tons to say on what I've read but I'll save it for a bit. However, this whole thing remindes me of what the great poet and new father William Bragg once told me over hamburgers with Thomas Paine. "If no one out there understands then start your own revolution and cut out the middle-man," he says. PEACE, RIEL ------------------------------ From: RIELWJ@sbu.edu Date: Thu, 20 Mar 1997 11:16:35 EDT Subject: the whole lot This will be my first post to the list and may ramble a bit but I have a lot of thoughts on current topics being bandered about. The UCPT Hits Package: I don't give much thought to it. If I don't like the idea I don't have to buy it. Now, I realize there are more aesthetic reasons for many of you to be against it. It's crass and relatively pointless on Rhino's part. They seem to be flogging the idea that if they reissue enough stuff then it will eventually hit, that RH will become the next Oasis minus the bickering brother act. My theory is this: if he hasn't sold big numbers by now, it isn't going to happen (no fault of RH, mind you!). We all know there is only one way to sell records these days and it's called MTV. They rotate crap like The Verve Pipe ad nauseum until it sells a million copies by sheer force of will. Aside from his string of appearances a few years ago, they've never done much for him. It's cynical to blame the lack of sales on MTV and I don't necessarily "blame" them. He's not mass appeal, plain and simple, and there is nothing wrong with that. I don't care about sales and I don't worry about it. I see the reissues and rarities collections as oppurtunities to find some lost gems ("Birdshead"on Y&O) and to see parts of an artists development I wouldn't normally see. When I'll start worrying is when RH quits recording or puts out a half-baked collection of mostly crap songs like the last Paul Westerberg CD and dares to call it an album. MOSS ELIXER: I thought it was just fine. It made my top ten list of '96 (although it was a dreary year for new music on the whole. The best CD I bought was Julian Cope's "20 Mothers" and that was technically a 1995 record). It is certainly one of his best sounding records and reminds me most of that rush of autumn feel I get when listening to IODOT. I don't see it much in terms of individual songs as I do as a whole piece. I can't say I'll ever spin it as much as GOF but time tends to glisten his music more than others for me.Perhaps it's just the slime. Sadly, I have never had the opprtunity to see a live show. The closest I came was during the EYE tour, he played at the Tralfamador in Buffalo and I couldn't get away. There are occassional shows here at school--I saw a sub-par Matthew Sweet show a few years ago--but Im afraid it may be some time before RH and I cross paths. Currently liking recent cd's by Redd Kross, Pavement, Freedy Johnston, Sublime, "Hollywood Town Hall" by the Jayhawks,... Perhaps there is hope. If we can't convert seasoned music listeners we should turn our attention to the children. You see, my 3 1/2 year old son loves "the song about the Balloon Man." riel ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 20 Mar 1997 12:07:56 -0500 (EST) From: Eugene Subject: Boston meetings... I haven't been paying attention enough...I'm wondering if people are meeting somewhere in Boston before the shows? -Eugene ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- Tipper Gore said to Lou Reed, "Lou Reed, how can we communicate better with our children?" Lou Reed responded, "We would probably have to sit down and talk about it over a bottle of scotch, and maybe, some crack." It's back! My lovely Humor Home page: http://hamp.hampshire.edu/~ebmF92 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 20 Mar 1997 12:29:44 -0500 (EST) From: Bayard Subject: Re: Sales On Wed, 19 Mar 1997, Eb wrote: > >expensive) Robyn collectibles. Putting it on the disc with Groovy Decoy PLUS > >the addition of the Disco Mixes, made it near essential. > > Sure, except for the fact that it's a second-rate record, even with the > extra tracks. ;) Yep, I rank it at the very bottom, myself. Just have to speak up in defence of Gdecay as I always do. I really like Invisible Hitchcock too. In fact I place them second only to EYE, TRAINS and MOONLIGHT. That's right, I like 'em more than feg! and EOL. In the _Grid_ interview, RH calls TRAINS "atmospheric"-- guess I'm a fan of the Atmospheric Robyn. No accounting for tastes! (Or maybe just no taste, or a really strange after taste) =b ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 20 Mar 1997 18:31:31 +0100 (CET) From: James Isaacs Subject: shameless plug I am trying to create the weirdest page on the web. Please go there and tell me if I have succeeded. www.geocities.com/Athens/Acropolis/3499 Thanks James ------------------------------ From: Terrence M Marks Date: Thu, 20 Mar 1997 12:47:51 -0500 (EST) Subject: Re: Cat's Cradle & obligatory non RH > A lot of kid's TV has been discussed over the last month (sorry to start > this one up again)... does anyone remember 'Battle Of The Planets' (AKA > G-Force)? Did you have it in the States? My favourite cartoon as a > young(er) lad. For a trip down memory lane, check out: > http://www.openworld.co.uk/staff/ant/bop.html G-Force (the version of Battle of the Planets/Gatchaman with all the interesting stuff edited out so it's just a bunch of people in bird costumes beating up uniformed bad guys) was on the Cartoon Network...may still be (they now have Thundercats and Voltron. I used to love Thudnercats when I was younger..) Btw...anyone ever see any of the Unico movies? Highly reccomended Terry ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 20 Mar 1997 13:04:29 -0500 (EST) From: Eric Loehr Subject: Cat's Cradle tree, Unhatched Crablings? Hi all, Let me say first that the show at the Iron Horse last night (my first Robyn show) was great -- old favorites, new songs (Don't Talk to me about Gene Hackman, Daisy Bomb, Adoration of the City), I loved it all, including the Dear Janes (great encore of the Beatles "You Won't See Me" with the Janes, introduced as "a song written by Sir Paul McCartney.) Anybody tape the show? I've also just been catching up on some recent Feg digests and saw the announcement, deadline, and structure for the Cat's Cradle tree. Is there any chance one of you kind branch leaders can add me as a leaf? While I'm at it, I may as well grovel for a copy of the Unhatched Crablings tree -- that one I *did* sign up for, but my branch has never replied to the last message I sent to set up a trade. Anybody out there willing to help me out? Thanks -- Eric ------------------------------ From: Hedblade@aol.com Date: Thu, 20 Mar 1997 13:13:06 -0500 (EST) Subject: Re: Sales Eb commented on Gravy Deco: << Sure, except for the fact that it's a second-rate record, even with the extra tracks. ;) Yep, I rank it at the very bottom, myself. >> Touche! You can't argue facts, now can you?! :) Sincerely, Jay ------------------------------ Subject: Re: Gravy, Yawn From: guambat@juno.com (The Guambat) Date: Thu, 20 Mar 1997 13:14:57 EST On Wed, 19 Mar 1997 21:26:30 -0500 (EST) Hedblade@aol.com writes: >Our fellow Feg Ken supports my theory. This is exactly why I guessed, >or was >willing to bet, that Gravy Deco was second after You & Oblivion. >Groovy >Decay was, up until the re-issue, one of the harder (or at least more >expensive) Robyn collectibles. Putting it on the disc with Groovy >Decoy PLUS >the addition of the Disco Mixes, made it near essential. At the very >least, >it made it appealing even to those who already owned an import copy of >Groovy >Decoy on CD. I hate to do this, because Jay is such a great guy, but my own Rhino purchases seem to run contrary to his theory. Of the Rhino thingies, I have: You & Oblivion, Fegmania!, Element of Light and Black Snake Diamond Role. Y&O was an easy buy--a whole CD worth of new tunes! The others were more difficult purchases. I already owned the Midnight Music Element of Light--which has some of the bonus tracks like "The Black Crow", etc. But I wanted the alternate takes and the live "Airscape", so I bought the Rhino one and gave the other to a friend of mine as a gift. I used to have the Fegmania and BSDR CDs, but I sold them both about 5 years ago I because I wasn't particularly fond of either one. But I saw the good number of bonus tracks, live cuts and interesting alternate takes of songs--add that to the very attractive $12.00 price tag at Best Buy--and it wasn't too hard to justify. This brings me to Gravy Deco. I want it because I want to have a complete collection --it's the only other RH (not incl. Soft Boys) released CD that I don't own... But besides "St. Petersburg" -- I don't much like it. I like the "It Was the Night" take from the Rhino BSDR, and I like the "52 Stations" from Kershaw--but the Gravy/Groovy takes don't do much for me. I do like "How Do You Work This Thing?" and "Midnight Fish", but they are more novelty songs that don't do much for me anymore. Funny thing is, I recently decided to fork out the $$$ and buy the Deco thing--just to have it, but Best Buy cleaned out their shelves. All they carry now is ME and the Greatest Hits! I'll have to order it. They also got rid of the Soft Boys CDs--those Rykodisc things... Even funnier, our neighborhood Barnes & Noble does carry RH, but all they have is stuff that's out of print! They have new copies (complete with the little stickers on the front that say things like, "Robyn voted #1 alternative music artist") of Perspex Island, Globe of Frogs and Queen Elvis. Actually, Queen Elvis might be gone now--but the other two are there. Isn't that strange? They must have had a backlog. Has anyone else noticed that the RH CD that one is MOST LIKELY to find at any given used CD store is.... the Twintone EYE? I think it is... Anyway, just rambling about Rhino, reissues, and Jay's theory--which might indeed be true despite my own case which doesn't support it. Love to all, bloody cone-owners and all (lucky stiffs!) THe GuaMBat ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 21 Mar 1997 13:46:49 -0500 From: Greg Harris CC: anfield95@aol.com Subject: Re: Feg Digest V5 #52 I apologize in advance for beating a dead horse (the Rhino compilation), but I've only today been able to catch up on some (not all) of the last couple of issues of the Feg Digest. As far as this "Uncorrected Personality Traits" controversy is concerned, everybody's missing the point. Rhino is affiliated with one of the major labels (WEA, specifically). Robyn's pre-A&M albums were generally only available as imports or on verrry small indie labels. Thus, anyone who enjoyed the A&M material had their work cut out for them in trying to track down the imports. I know I had a heckuva time tracking down "Black Snake Diamond Role"! This upcoming collection WILL broaden his audience since Rhino has better distribution than Midnight Music. As far as the box set suggestion is concerned, box sets are usually prohibitively expensive and only die hard fans like ourselves are likely to buy one devoted to Robyn. Thus, a box set won't expose Robyn to any new ears. That isn't to say one shouldn't be put together; RH (along with the Kinks & Iggy Pop) more than deserve one. If you didn't know the music, would you plunk down fifty dollars & take a chance? Anyway, that's this week's rant. E-mail me direct if you wish to take the debate further. Thanks. ------------------------------ From: "The Rooneys" Date: Thu, 20 Mar 1997 14:15:43 +0000 Subject: Emotion outweights logic (in defense of GD) > << Sure, except for the fact that it's a second-rate record, even with the > extra tracks. ;) Yep, I rank it at the very bottom, myself. >> > > Touche! You can't argue facts, now can you?! :) Except that the Soft Boysian fans (or maybe just myself) probably think it's more _fun_ than Fegmania!. Redeeming tracks: _It was the Night_ makes it to my top RH 10 songs almost every time; _Nightride to Trinidad_ is good enough to be on BSDR, as a birthday ceremony I think everyone should play _Young People Scream_ and reflect on the brilliance; "St. Petersburg" is purty darn good, too. judge ye not... - Bill ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 20 Mar 97 14:18:51 EST From: kenster@MIT.EDU (Ken Ostrander) Subject: OT: battle of the planets > A lot of kid's TV has been discussed over the last month (sorry to start > this one up again)... does anyone remember 'Battle Of The Planets' (AKA > G-Force)? Did you have it in the States? My favourite cartoon as a > young(er) lad. For a trip down memory lane, check out: > http://www.openworld.co.uk/staff/ant/bop.html yes! that's up there with johnny quest, sigmond the sea monster, scooby doo, and all those warner brothers cartoons. i think they were either the product of genetic engineering or brought up in the circus. the big guy was tiny and keop (sp?) had that wild studder: "bbbroot. doot-doot." princess was pretty cute. they all had these cool transformer-type vehicles each one different from the next. what was the name of the guy they always had to fight from the crab nebulae? i guess i'll check the website. KEN ------------------------------ Subject: Re: Feg Digest V5 #52 From: guambat@juno.com (The Guambat) Date: Thu, 20 Mar 1997 14:58:59 EST On Fri, 21 Mar 1997 13:46:49 -0500 Greg Harris writes: As far as this "Uncorrected >Personality Traits" controversy is concerned, everybody's missing the >point. Rhino is affiliated with one of the major labels (WEA, >specifically). Robyn's pre-A&M albums were generally only available >as >imports or on verrry small indie labels. Thus, anyone who enjoyed the >A&M material had their work cut out for them in trying to track down >the >imports. I know I had a heckuva time tracking down "Black Snake >Diamond >Role"! This upcoming collection WILL broaden his audience since Rhino >has better distribution than Midnight Music. I liked your "rant"--but I still think your answer fails to solve the problem. The problem is, in my mind, the fact that: 1) Rhino has already released all the old CD's--it's been 2 years since the started doing so. 2) They also put out two "greatest hits" type compliations from these same reissues--and even though they weren't necessarily commercial releases, they made enough of them for people to get their hands on them if they want them. I, for example, have the Virgin sampler, as many Fegs do (it has the only CD version of "Statue" available) 3) As sales indicated from the A&M Greatest HIts CD, the public is just not yearning for Robyn's back catalog. I'm sure it didn't sell any better than Moss Elixir did--or Respect, for that matter. The truth is, as so many have put it more eloquently than me--the people who buy Robyn's CD's are for the most part his diehard fans. And that especially goes for the folks who buy these reissues. Add these factors up and it seems strange that Rhino is putting together a CD of a bunch of songs that come straight off the reissues. The only people who would buy this would be -- well, us. We might buy a copy to give as a gift to a friend--true--but how many copies are they going to sell in this manner? Again, I love Rhino and I have no beef against them. It just seems more prudent for them both financially and in giving the consumers of RH (us!) what they want -- it seems more prudent to put together some kind of box set, as Bayard suggested--or perhaps a live CD or some other rarities, outtakes or demos. We'd buy those. But how many of us are honestly going to buy this "Uncorrected Personality Traits"? I'd love to see the liner notes--and I'm sure the packaging will be beautiful... but I don't want to pay $12 for 20 songs that I already have. Like some have said--well--then don't. That's true, but why not give us something that we don't already have 2 or three of! It's sad but true--I could have the song "I Got A Message For You" -- the same version-- on 5 different records/CDs: Midnight Music CD, Glass Fish LP and Rhino versions of "Invisible Hitchcock", then the Virgin Sampler and now on the Uncorrected Personality Traits compilation. 5 copies of the same song! Guambat's morning rant sponsored by Rhino! The Guambat ------------------------------ From: Ross Overbury Date: Thu, 20 Mar 97 16:03:08 EST Subject: Re: Feg Digest V5 #52 - "Statue .." availability The Guambat said: [ point 1 snipped ] > > 2) They also put out two "greatest hits" type compliations from these > same reissues--and even though they weren't necessarily commercial > releases, they made enough of them for people to get their hands on > them if they want them. I, for example, have the Virgin sampler, as many > Fegs do (it has the only CD version of "Statue" available) [ point 3 + snipped ] I've got this on a compilation from England. The only cut on it that I didn't have already was "Statue with a Walkman". I paid $7 Can ($5 US) to hear this song. Pathetic maybe, but not as pathetic as spending your Hawaiian vacation in an internet cafe when you should be eyeing up a humuhumunukunukuapua'a! The cover of this compilation has a black and white waist-up shot of Robyn in a polka-dot shirt (if I remember correctly). This label has other Robyn releases. I picked it up in the bargain annex of HMV records. If anyone needs to know more, let me know. -- Ross Overbury Montreal, Quebec, Canada email: rosso@cn.ca ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- The End of this Fegmaniax Digest. *sob* .