From: les@jmdl.com (JMDL Digest) To: joni-digest@smoe.org Subject: JMDL Digest V2005 #195 Reply-To: joni@smoe.org Sender: les@jmdl.com Errors-To: les@jmdl.com Precedence: bulk Unsubscribe: mailto:joni-digest-request@smoe.org?body=unsubscribe Archives: http://www.smoe.org/lists/joni Websites: http://www.jmdl.com http://www.jonimitchell.com JMDL Digest Tuesday, May 10 2005 Volume 2005 : Number 195 ========== TOPICS and authors in this Digest: -------- Re: (NJC) Road Rules for DC ["Sherelle Smith" ] Re: JMDL "Tape" Trading 2.0 ["Ric Robinson" ] RE: JMDL "Tape" Trading 2.0 ["Richard Flynn" ] interesting link on Social Security (njc) ["Anne Sandstrom" ] Re: new Joni cover [Joseph Palis ] Covers 64 - I'm a flingin'! [Bob Muller ] Re: new Joni cover ["Gerald A. Notaro" ] Re: new Joni cover [Bob Muller ] Best U.S. High Schools (NJC) ["Kakki" ] Paprika Plains - the remix (long) [Randy Remote ] Re: Paprika Plains - the remix (long) ["Kakki" ] ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Mon, 09 May 2005 13:35:05 +0000 From: "Sherelle Smith" Subject: Re: (NJC) Road Rules for DC Lori!!!! I needed something to make me laugh this morning!!!! As a person who spends most of my work day in D.C. and trying to come and go from it, this has to be the funniest, truest statement about this area I have ever read!!!!!!Ha! Ha! Ha! Sherelle Lori wrote (and Imust quote in it in entirety for the full effect): For those of you who live in or near DC, and for those of you who may visit our area, this handy (and very non-PC) primer: * First, you must learn to call it by its rightful name. It is D.C., or "the District". Only tourists call it Washington. Next, if your road map of Montgomery County is more than a few weeks old, throw it out and buy a new one. It's obsolete. If in Loudoun or Fairfax County and your map is one day old, it's already obsolete. There is no such thing as a dangerous high-speed chase in D.C. It's just another chase, usually on the BW Parkway. All directions start with "The Beltway"...which has no beginning and no end, just one continuous loop that locals believe is somehow clarified by an "inner" and "outer loop" designation. This makes no sense to ANYONE out side the Beltway. The morning rush hour is from 5 to 11 AM. The evening rush hour is from 1 to 8 PM. Friday's rush hour starts Thursday morning, especially during the summer on Route 50 eastbound. If there is a ball game at the Redskins stadium, there is no point in driving anywhere near PG County. Tip: Never say PG County to anyone from Mitchellville, Upper Marlboro or Fort Washington. They'll blow a vessel in their neck and go into a seizure. If you actually stop at a yellow light, you will be rear-ended and shot at. If you run the red light, be sure to smile for the $100 picture you will receive courtesy of DMV. (However, if you don't go as soon as the light turns green, you will get cussed out in 382 languages, none of them English.) Rain causes an immediate 50 point drop of IQ in drivers. Snow causes an immediate 100 point drop in IQ and a rush to the Giant for toilet paper and milk. Construction on I-270 is a way of life and a permanent source of scorn and cynical entertainment. It's ironic that it's called an "Interstate" but runs only from Bethesda to Frederick. (Unless you consider Montgomery County another state, which some do). Opening in the 60's, it has been torn up and under reconstruction ever since. Also, it has a "Spur" section which is even more confusing. All unexplained sights are explained by the phrase, "Oh, we're in Takoma Park". If someone actually has their turn signal on, they are by definition, a tourist. Car horns are actually "Road Rage" indicators. Heed the warning. All old ladies in Buicks have the right of way in the area of Leisure World. Many roads mysteriously change their names as you cross intersections. Don't ask why, no one knows. If asking directions in Arlington, Langley Park, Wheaton or Adams Morgan, you must know how to speak Spanish. If in PG County, ebonics will be your best bet. In Annandale, a Cambodian or Vietnamese dialect will come in handy. If on Dupont Circle, Capital Hill or U Street, a gay dialect helps. If you stop to ask directions in Southeast... well, just don't. A taxi ride across town will cost you $12.50. A taxi ride two blocks will cost you $16.75. (It's a zone thing, you wouldn't understand). Traveling south out of DC on Interstate 395/95 is the most dangerous, scariest thing you will ever do. There is nothing more comforting then seven lanes of traffic cruising along at 85 mph, BUMPER TO BUMPER!!! The minimum acceptable speed on the Beltway is 85. Anything less is considered downright sissy. The Beltway is our daily version of a NASCAR reality show. Strap up and collect points as you go. The open lane for passing on all Maryland interstates is the far right lane because no self-respecting Marylander would ever be caught driving in the "slow" lane. Unofficially, both shoulders are fair game also. The far left lanes on all Maryland interstates are official "chat" lanes reserved for drivers who wish to talk on their cell phones. Note: All mini-vans have priority clearance to use the far left at whatever speed the driver feels most comfortable multi-tasking in. If it's 10 degrees, it's Orioles' opening day. If it's 110 degrees, it's the Skins opening day. If the humidity is 90+ and the temperature is 90+, then it's May, June, July, August and sometimes September. ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 9 May 2005 17:50:42 +0100 From: "Ric Robinson" Subject: Re: JMDL "Tape" Trading 2.0 I can't seem to get the file to play properly, what should I do? What is the MD5 file? Is it possible to burn to DVD? So many questions! Ric NPIMH - Help Me - ----- Original Message ----- From: "Richard Flynn" To: "Joni List" Sent: Friday, May 06, 2005 10:32 PM Subject: JMDL "Tape" Trading 2.0 > It's been a long time since the JMDL has done any organized trading, and > things have changed considerably in that time. > > > > If you... > > > > - have a broadband connection to the Internet > > - are able to install and work with new (free) software > > - can burn your own CDs > > > > ...have we got a deal for you! > > > > The JMDL has gone high-tech and is offering a couple of ways to do > file-sharing via your computer. No more blanks and mailers and addresses > and stamps, the Joni tunes come right to your hard drive. > > > > We'll spare all the details here. But if you are interested and able and > meet the above qualifications, then head to the JMDL site and register > (if > not already registered): http://jmdl.com/gallery > > > > If you are interested but unable, we'll be encouraging our members to make > the many Joni shows available for snailmail B&P (blank CDRs and postage) > trades. Some enterprising electronic file-sharing member may even offer a > vine or two here from time to time. > > > > Once you register and log in, you'll see a "trading" link appear on the > left > panel of any page. Click that for all the details. > > > > As always, the JMDL offers this music for free. Participants will agree > to > 1) continue in the spirit of sharing and 2) never profit from any of the > music they receive via the JMDL. > > > > The trading site and information is open only to registered JMDL members. > > > > This is a major benefit to registered members-and while you're there, why > not add a gallery profile? > > > > Kick off those sandflies . . .the lines are open. ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 9 May 2005 13:14:48 -0400 From: "Richard Flynn" Subject: RE: JMDL "Tape" Trading 2.0 Dear present and future members of the file trading group: If you have questions about technical assistance regarding file trading, please address them to moderators@jmdl.com instead of to the whole joni list. Thanks, Richard ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 09 May 2005 12:54:36 -0500 From: "Anne Sandstrom" Subject: interesting link on Social Security (njc) My apologies to everyone outside the U.S. I just think this animation succinctly sums up the Social Security issue nicely. And it happens to propose the solution I've been suggesting for years! http://www.bushin30years.org/winner.html?id=5498-1809547-tsQFpjrql15ju9MR.y5RUg&t=2 lots of love, Anne ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 09 May 2005 14:07:45 -0700 From: Randy Remote Subject: Re: Virused, and the Airless Plains... littlebreen@comcast.net wrote: > (a) In Paprika Plains -- I **love** the new remix, so clear, sounds to me almost as if they used an alternate vocal track -- but was anyone else surprised by the elision of the line "I've got to get some air"? It's seamless, the song just jumps from "It's stifling in here" to "I'm going outside to get some air" -- but I can't help but wonder why the line was edited out -- Did Joni not like her reading of the line, were there other problems? Curious... > > (b) In the short edit of "Cold", did I get a funky pressing (or is my aging cd player getting weird), or are there some odd jumps towards the end, at the fade-out? Anyone else get this? Hi Walt- I agree with you that the remix of PP is outstanding-I've been comparing it side by side with the old one and I'll be posting a too-long report very soon. As to the missing line-it's a puzzle. For me that line is part of the narrative and a link to the next line. Possible explanations-Joni asked to leave it out for whatever reason/the line was lost or accidentally erased/the engineer made a mistake and no one noticed (these things happen, believe it or not!). This is not a new or alternate vocal track, however. It just sounds different in the new mix. Not quite as out front, and not as dry (reverb space added), also compressed. "Cold"- I'll check it out, haven't listened to that one all the way through. Sorry to hear about your health and computer problems, but glad both are on the mend. RR ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 9 May 2005 23:07:41 +0200 (CEST) From: Joseph Palis Subject: new Joni cover This one's for Cover King Bob M, Jazz singer Kate McGarry just released her latest album called Mercy Streets and her opening song is Joni's Chelsea Morning. McGarry hails from Boston and an alumna of UMass-Amherst. This is her fourth release. Her third album was produced by singer-songwriter Steven Kowalczyk (who is now known as Steven Santoro) whose own now-deleted Mood and Grooves is one the underrated jazz vocal albums of the mid-90s. Joseph in Chapel Hill np: Dishwalla "Its Going To Take Some Time" - IF I Were A Carpenter - --------------------------------- Dicouvrez le nouveau Yahoo! Mail : 250 Mo d'espace de stockage pour vos mails ! Criez votre Yahoo! Mail ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 10 May 2005 02:14:22 +0200 (CEST) From: Joseph Palis Subject: Re: new Joni cover if this was already mentioned, I apologize for the double post but Renee Fleming's new cross-over jazz album contains Joni's "River." Second track. I like renee Fleming even if a lot of detractors consider her expressive as too mannered. She locates the heart of the song easily. Joseph in Chapel Hill np: Sumi Jo - "In His Eyes" off her "pop" album "Only Love" - --- Joseph Palis a icrit: > This one's for Cover King Bob M, > > Jazz singer Kate McGarry just released her latest > album called Mercy Streets and her opening song is > Joni's Chelsea Morning. McGarry hails from Boston > and an alumna of UMass-Amherst. This is her fourth > release. Her third album was produced by > singer-songwriter Steven Kowalczyk (who is now known > as Steven Santoro) whose own now-deleted Mood and > Grooves is one the underrated jazz vocal albums of > the mid-90s. > > > Joseph in Chapel Hill > np: Dishwalla "Its Going To Take Some Time" - IF I > Were A Carpenter > > > --------------------------------- > Dicouvrez le nouveau Yahoo! Mail : 250 Mo d'espace > de stockage pour vos mails ! > Criez votre Yahoo! Mail __________________________________________________________________ Dicouvrez le nouveau Yahoo! Mail : 250 Mo d'espace de stockage pour vos mails ! Criez votre Yahoo! Mail sur http://fr.mail.yahoo.com/ ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 9 May 2005 17:29:35 -0700 (PDT) From: Bob Muller Subject: Covers 64 - I'm a flingin'! Proving once again that you don't have to be a member of the inner circle (whatever that is) to be a winner, I'm proud to announce the champ of this month's Covers giveaway - congratulations to: ***Kelly Loughran*** whose Mother Day-inspired guess of "The Tea-Leaf Prophecy (Lay Down Your Arms)" was the closest on Les' alphabetical list to my pick which was "Turbulent Indigo". Thanks to all who gave it a shot and congrats once again to Kelly - I guess the rest of you can just be a "Little Green" with envy. Kelly, let me know where to send it and it's on the way. Bob NP: James Brown & His Famous Flames, "Bewildered" - --------------------------------- Yahoo! Mail Stay connected, organized, and protected. Take the tour ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 9 May 2005 20:29:44 -0400 (EDT) From: "Gerald A. Notaro" Subject: Re: new Joni cover Renee is a huge Joni fan. Joni was a surprise guest at Renee's recent 50th birthday party. I saw Renee perform in concert last year in Tampa. And there is nothing mannered about her gorgeous singing. Jerry Joseph Palis said: > if this was already mentioned, I apologize for the > double post but Renee Fleming's new cross-over jazz > album contains Joni's "River." Second track. > > I like renee Fleming even if a lot of detractors > consider her expressive as too mannered. She locates > the heart of the song easily. > > Joseph in Chapel Hill > > np: Sumi Jo - "In His Eyes" off her "pop" album "Only > Love" > > > --- Joseph Palis a icrit: >> This one's for Cover King Bob M, >> >> Jazz singer Kate McGarry just released her latest >> album called Mercy Streets and her opening song is >> Joni's Chelsea Morning. McGarry hails from Boston >> and an alumna of UMass-Amherst. This is her fourth >> release. Her third album was produced by >> singer-songwriter Steven Kowalczyk (who is now known >> as Steven Santoro) whose own now-deleted Mood and >> Grooves is one the underrated jazz vocal albums of >> the mid-90s. >> >> >> Joseph in Chapel Hill >> np: Dishwalla "Its Going To Take Some Time" - IF I >> Were A Carpenter >> >> >> --------------------------------- >> Dicouvrez le nouveau Yahoo! Mail : 250 Mo d'espace >> de stockage pour vos mails ! >> Criez votre Yahoo! Mail > > > > > > > __________________________________________________________________ > Dicouvrez le nouveau Yahoo! Mail : 250 Mo d'espace de stockage pour vos > mails ! > Criez votre Yahoo! Mail sur http://fr.mail.yahoo.com/ ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 9 May 2005 17:40:07 -0700 (PDT) From: Bob Muller Subject: Re: new Joni cover And a GREAT version it is, Joseph...came out about a month ago and I pounced on it and it's currently happily residing on Volume 72. The whole CD is nice and highly recommended. You can hear a clip of it on her website: http://www.katemcgarry.com/download.html In other news, popular singer Renee Fleming releases her CD "Haunted Heart" tomorrow with a cover of River on it - sure to be another winner. Bob NP: Maddy Prior, "The Great Valerio" (from the Richard Thompson tribute "Beat The Retreat") - --------------------------------- Discover Yahoo! Get on-the-go sports scores, stock quotes, news & more. Check it out! ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 9 May 2005 21:08:30 -0700 From: "Kakki" Subject: Best U.S. High Schools (NJC) listSome of you may have seen this article already. It lists the top 1- 100 and 1- 1,000 public high schools in the U.S. (out of a total of 27,000+ USA public high schools). The Floridians should be happy to see that with all the ribbing and focus they get sometimes, a large portion of the top 100 are in their state. Overall, the states with the best rankings are in California, New York, Texas and Florida (see, we Californians aren't such lala airheads, either! ;-) My old high school is in the top 200. I was also quite happy and surprised to see that many of the high schools in less than properous neighborhoods in L.A. are very highly ranked, oftentimes higher than the schools in the wealthier areas. I found this a very positive and encouraging read. It kind of disproves some of the assumptions about having to spend a zillion dollars sending kids to private schools in order for them to be well educated and to reach their potential. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/7761678/site/newsweek/ Kakki ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 09 May 2005 22:30:38 -0700 From: Randy Remote Subject: Paprika Plains - the remix (long) I've had the opportunity to do some careful listening to the new mix of Paprika Plains on SoaPG, and to compare it to the first pressing CD (not the HDCD version). This is only the second time an original catalog Joni song has been remixed (I think), the first being the Big Yellow Taxi version without the doo-wop vocals from the Big Yellow Taxi Remix EP (I'm not counting the espresso/taxi remixes since those were essentially new recordings). I consider Paprika Plains to be a religious experience. It is Joni's longest composition, and unique in it's conception. It started with 4 half hour piano improvisations recorded in LA at a time when Joni was feeling very 'in the groove' musically. These were edited to form one seven minute piece, then seven months after starting the project, she wrote a song inspired in part from a conversation with Bob Dylan, and inserted the original improv piece into the middle of this. Jaco Pastorius, Wayne Shorter and John Guerin were added to the last section, recorded in London. It was orchestrated by English composer Michael Gibbs who also conducted the sessions in New York. So what's a remix? The instruments and voices were originally recorded to separate tracks of a multi-track recorder. Probably 2" 24 track. Big fat expensive analog tape. The mixing engineer then reduced these many tracks to a stereo mix, probably on 1/2" analog tape, one song at a time. These tapes of each song were taken to the mastering engineer, who assembled them into an album and gave them a final tweaking. Remastering involves re-tweaking the existing stereo mixes (either because digital audio technology has improved, or because the record company was too lazy to do it right the first time, in this case both). Remixing involves going back to the multi-track recordings, and reducing them down to a new stereo mix. Every engineer will do this slightly differently. [A little background on PP is in order. When Joni met Charles Mingus, he commented that the strings on PP went in and out of tune. Joni had been saying this all along, but no one else involved in the project could hear it. The reason given for the pitch variation is that the beginning and end piano parts were recorded seven months after the center section, and the piano had been retuned. Joni specifically refers to the edit points where the new and old pianos start and stop, where the orchestra plays over the edits, as being out of tune. I can't really hear this. See if you can-the center section "January piano" starts at 5:14, the "August piano" comes back in at 11:13 on the original PP (11:11 in the new version). I don't know if anything was digitally retuned for this new mix, or if it's even possible, given that the orchestra players would probably automatically adjust their intonation as they played to the tape.] What I did for my listening tests was to record the new mix and the original side by side on 4 tracks of a digital recorder. That way I could easily switch between them, and be in the same spot. Sort of. Because I found that even though I started them together, they drifted apart, and the new mix ends 2 seconds before the old one did. I imagine the reason for this is that the machine they played the tapes back on was running a little faster than the original. Whether they were aware of this, or it was intentional, I don't know. Presumably, they dumped the original analog tracks into ProTools (digital) and mixed from there. Another thing to mention is the "pop" that appears at 9:56. It sounds just like an LP pop, but does not appear on the original mix, only on the new one. How and why this occured, ?? It sounds like part of the track, rather than a data error. Jim has mentioned the different dynamics on the new mix as compared to the old one. The problem (if it is one) is that, in the old mix, if you turn up the song in order to clearly hear the first part, then when the band comes in at the end, it's REALLY loud. So the new mix makes the volume on both parts more consistant. The old mix was fairly dry, with the vocal right up front. The new mix has more ambient space, and sounds very 3D, and the vocal is not as loud. The orchestra has dimension, and feels more unified with Joni's parts. The piano has a nice stereo spread. Joni's voice is clear and detailed, and has a reverb ambience around it. Maybe a little too much compression, robbing her voice of power during a few louder refrains. The orchestra sounds excellent, much better than the original. Strings have texture, percussion is deep and natural. Also, different orchestra mikes are emphasized, resulting in different sounds at times. My one complaint about the orchestra is where Joni sings "I dream Paprika Plains" and the orchestra hits a big crash (twice). On the original mix, especially the second hit, there is a luscious, wicked, thunderous roll looming ominously. This effect is tamer on the new mix. (Rolling Thunder may have been a literal inclusion-PP is based on a dream Joni had while on the Dylan tour of the same name. The poem written inside DJRD and reprinted in SoaPG is that dream.) Another thing about the new mix is that it has much more low frequency information. This was not audible without a subwoofer, but it is there. You can hear the orchestra room breathing. Jaco's bass at the end is the voice of god, you can see the notes slither through the air. On the original, Guerin's drums are a bit more in your face, especially the snare. On the new one, they are more refined. The cymbals are pristine, the toms rich, and a good stereo panorama. Shorter's soprano sax is more detailed and nuanced; you can hear him squeezing and stretching the notes out of his horn. Joni's piano sound on the first and end parts is very present and crisp, a beautiful piano sound. The piano in the center part has a darker sound, perhaps, as Jim suggested, because the lid is down. This section sounds better and has a better stereo spread than the original, but still sounds markedly different than the "August" piano. You can hear the change in sound at the edit points mentioned above. On the new mix, check out around 4:45, the recording is so clear you can hear Joni's nails clicking on the ivories. All in all, very well done, and a great way to spend 17 plus minutes. I don't know how much difference you would hear on a boombox, but through headphones or on a good stereo, you will. Concerning the package, it's a digi-pak (boo). But the layout is very nice, mainly due to the B&W photos of Joni on skates, in her black crow dress, and, contrary to the seriousness of Hejira, looking playful. Thankfully no Joni self portrait this time. The sticker on the cover says "A new collection curated by Joni Mitchell. Musical Tales of Long, Cold Winters. With a Hint of Short but Glorious Summers." Art direction and design are credited to Joni Mitchell and Masaki Koike. The photos are great, and would make a good print series. I want to add how wonderful the jmdl searchable library archive is- I was able to quickly refresh my memory on the details of PP. If you are further interested in the story, type in the song's title. RR, vast and bleak and god-forsaken Gear used: Carver CD player/Alesis HD24 dig rec/Tannoy spkrs & powered subwoofer/Hot House amp/AKG M240 headphones. ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 9 May 2005 23:06:03 -0700 From: "Kakki" Subject: Re: Paprika Plains - the remix (long) Wow, Randy - what a great post! Fascinating to me. When it was first released PP was the most indecipherable song on her most indecipherable album to me. The one I beat my head against the wall the most trying to figure out. I truly couldn't decide if it was an embarrassing disaster or simply written in a new language from a newly discovered universe/dimension. Learning in more detail of some of the original goofs and tuning issues is so interesting. Always giving her the supreme benefit of the doubt, I originally thought that whatever it was, Joni had deliberately laid every bit down that way. PP is now, of course, right up there in my top 5 of Joni's most brilliant and beautiful pieces of music. Now, (sheesh) I guess I am going to have to go get SOAP Girl just so I can experience the new mix! ;-) Kakki ------------------------------ End of JMDL Digest V2005 #195 ***************************** ------- Post messages to the list by clicking here: mailto:joni@smoe.org Unsubscribe by clicking here: mailto:joni-digest-request@smoe.org?body=unsubscribe ------- Siquomb, isn't she? (http://www.siquomb.com/siquomb.cfm)