From: owner-mad-mission-digest@smoe.org (mad-mission-digest) To: mad-mission-digest@smoe.org Subject: mad-mission-digest V2 #371 Reply-To: mad-mission@smoe.org Sender: owner-mad-mission-digest@smoe.org Errors-To: owner-mad-mission-digest@smoe.org Precedence: bulk * If you ever wish to unsubscribe, send an email to * mad-mission-digest-request@smoe.org * with ONLY the word unsubscribe in the body of the email * . * For the latest information on Patty's tour dates, go to: * http://www.spectra.net/~ducksoup/pattyg/patttyg.htm * OR * go to http://www.amrecords.com * then click "tour" and fill in the blanks :) * . * PLEASE :) when you reply to this digest to send a post TO the list, * change the subject to reflect what your post is about. A subject * of Re: mad-mission-digest V2 #xxx or the like gives readers no clue * as to what your message is about. mad-mission-digest Saturday, December 5 1998 Volume 02 : Number 371 Today's Subjects: ----------------- MM: BIG DADDY REVISITED ["J. Pruitt / C. Minter" ] Re: MM: pimento cheese gives me gas [JohnRN24@aol.com] MM: Melissa Ferrick [Eeternal@aol.com] MM: Address change for a Patty G web site [Mike Connell ] MM: Flaming Red/Flaming Review [Rongrittz@aol.com] MM: CC-no JB, PG, CW,Fwd: Respond Benefit CD Release Party 12/4] Boston] [Dana ] ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Sat, 5 Dec 1998 00:42:23 -0800 From: "J. Pruitt / C. Minter" Subject: MM: BIG DADDY REVISITED ACTUALLY, I NEVER SAID "BIG DADDY" WAS THE BEST, I SAID IT WAS ONE OF THE BEST ON THE ALBUM. IT BEING "WEIRD" AND "OUT OF PLACE" IS JUST WHAT I LIKE ABOUT IT. I THINK SHE SAYS A LOT IN THAT SONG EVEN THOUGH IT IS VERY SHORT. IN MY OPINION, THE BEST ON THE ALBUM WOULD BE A TOSS UP BETWEEN "MARY" AND "TONY." "MARY" IS ANOTHER ONE THAT PUTS ME IN A REFLECTIVE MOOD. THE WHOLE CONCEPT OF THE SONG IS JUST BRILLIANT. CRISTINA ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 5 Dec 1998 03:36:05 EST From: JohnRN24@aol.com Subject: Re: MM: pimento cheese gives me gas In a message dated 98-12-04 23:41:08 EST, iceburrrg@hotmail.com writes: > someone named Jay Joyce co-wrote it. (Big Daddy) Jay Joyce is the lead singer of Iodine, and the producer of the album FR. Factoid... :-) John ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 5 Dec 1998 06:50:46 EST From: Eeternal@aol.com Subject: MM: Melissa Ferrick The post I received about Melissa Ferrick seemed cutup. The 1995 Melissa Ferrick album "Willing to Wait" is a step up from her previous album. I believe the songs flow together as a whole, rather than in bits and pieces. Back to PG. Now that she lives in Austin, I'm hoping (crossing fingers and knocking on wood) that she does some tours in the West. If she would come back to Vegas, I would be especially grateful. that's my .02 - -pete "So look both ways before you cross your heart and hope to die for your sins go to hell and never come back again I've gotta go now..." Melissa Ferrick ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 05 Dec 1998 11:22:12 -0500 From: Mike Connell Subject: MM: Address change for a Patty G web site Just a quick note....... While the old site is still up there, Jerry Zigmont just informed me that he's moved his web site for Patty to http://members.tripod.com/PattyGriffin/ I'm not sure if there's been any updates....he hadn't touched it much since June, but I just wanted you all to know it has moved. Mike :-) - - * The Patty Griffin/Mad-Mission@smoe List Homepage is at: * http://www.spectra.net/~ducksoup/pattyg/pattyg.htm * * Rachel Martin's Patty Griffin Lyrics Archive is at * http://www.geocities.com/Wellesley/3079/patty.html * * Jerry Zigmont's Flaming Red - A Patty Griffin Website is at * http://members.tripod.com/PattyGriffin * * Katie Peterson's Patty Griffin Guitar Tabs Archive is at * http://members.tripod.com/~Lifey/patty.html * * DuckOfPrey or WhyADuck55 on AOL or AOL Instant Messenger ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 5 Dec 1998 08:32:12 -0800 (PST) From: Pretty Silver Grrrl Subject: MM: NPC: Sarah McLachlan Fans? Hey ya'll..sorry for the non-Patty post. I've got a sarah mclachlan surfacing tour promo poster, brand new, it's never even been unrolled. I bought it right before I lost interest in having Sarah stuff all over my room. I've been trying to auction it off at ebay and through private email but out of the *4* times I have done that each time the person has never sent their money! So I'm tired of trying to auction it off, check it out, and if anyone wants it it's yours for $20. I really want to get rid of it because I'm moving in January and I know it will get damaged if I try to move it with me! It would make a great gift.. http://www.angelfire.com/ms/Jgarrisonstarr/surfacing.html You can check out my ebay feedback to see that I'm reliable: http://cgi2.ebay.com/aw-cgi/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewFeedback&userid=lamia If you think $20 is steep, make me an offer. I really just want to find it a good home before I move! Thanks for reading!! *HUGS* Lamia == "How can I help it if I think you're Amy Ray when you're bitter..??" - --Jilly in her barenaked ladies parody Phil: "I didn't know she could fly!" Lil: "It's because she's a witch!" - --Phil & Lil on Angelica~~The Rugrats Movie _________________________________________________________ DO YOU YAHOO!? Get your free @yahoo.com address at http://mail.yahoo.com ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 5 Dec 1998 10:37:35 -0800 From: "J. Pruitt / C. Minter" Subject: MM: interview? Hey all, Before I type it out, I just wanted to know if there is any interest in reading an article that appeared in one of our alternative weeklies a while back. This probably sounds like a silly question :) Cristina ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 5 Dec 1998 11:54:20 EST From: Rongrittz@aol.com Subject: MM: Flaming Red/Flaming Review Regarding the (on the surface) less-than-glowing Patty review, Candice writes: >> Ok who ever wrote this doesn't know squat about music. << So sue me, but I've never understood this whole "If the reviewer does not agree with me, he obviously knows nothing about music" sentimentality. That review is concise, well-written, and in a lot of respects, right on. But just because it doesn't reflect your opinion doesn't mean that the reviewer knows any less about music than you do. Don't get me wrong. I love "Flaming Red." Along with "Living With Ghosts," it's one of my top ten favorite CDs of all time. But let's look at what the reviewer wrote: >> The fact of the matter is that there is little that was left to chance on this disc; there is no hint of improvisation or spontaneity anywhere. Every song was clearly built with radio in mind. << That's true. Patty took a HUGE chance with "LWG" -- when's the last time you heard such powerful lyrics backed with nothing but an acoustic guitar? "Flaming Red," as much as I love it, took a very shotgun approach, as in "OK, let's do some punk, some country, some pop, something jazzy, a soothing ballad, a power ballad, some straight ahead rock-and-roll, some . . . " As if they were looking for something that could fit into every conceivable radio format. As much as I love the CD, it's incredibly unfocused. Hey, that's not a bad thing - I'm just pointing out that the reviewer has a point. >> If you're lookin for something for a fan of those women artists and already own most of their catalogs, Patty Griffin's CD will be a nice surprise for them. << All the reviewer is doing here is putting the CD in context of other current artists, and in fact, says that the CD will be "a nice surprise." Ain't nothing flaming about that. After all, when you're trying to turn a friend on to Patty (or any artist), for example, one of the first questions the friend always asks you is: "Who's Patty like?", right? And in the case of "Flaming Red," the Merchant, Crow, Apple, McLachlan, etc. comparison is as valid as any other, I suppose. Or at least it is in the opinion of the reviewer. >> But the truth be told, this record is over-produced, too calculated, and not particularly original sounding. << Well, yeah, it is. I have said before (and I'll say it again) that if Patty had released "Flaming Red" BEFORE "Living With Ghosts," it wouldn't have received half the attention it has received. The original approach she took on her first CD is what allowed her to then jump back into the mainstream with her second release. This reminds me of a review I read shortly after "FR" came out: >> This is a fine record, serviceable in the way that a hundred pulsing, routine albums have been since Jagged Little Pill, and all of us who don't detest the form on principle can probably pick a dozen of them we like and leave the rest for somebody else. If Patty Griffin were a soap actress, that might well be enough. But she's not, and this isn't a hesitant media-crossover debut, it's the follow-up to what I consider one of the rawest, most arresting, most human albums of the decade. The irony could hardly be any more overpowering: Living With Ghosts practically came packaged, like a bonus EP taped to the box, with the story about how A&M signed Patty after hearing her demos, and put her in a studio and made a standard major-label rock record, and then listened to it and realized that the demos were a million times better, and so released them instead; but what on earth is Flaming Red if not exactly the mediocre studio rock album everybody was congratulating themselves about not releasing the first time around? << I'll argue with the "mediocre" comment, but the guy's not off-base. "Flaming Red," from a production value standpoint, sound like dozens of CDs I've heard before, and it's for that very reason that they decided to go stripped-down with her debut CD. Patty herself is an original, but on "Flaming Red," she let her originality get wrapped up in very familiar and ordinary packaging . . . like wrapping a brilliant, hand-made gift in dime-store wrapping paper. >> If Griffin sat down and played these tracks alone with an acoustic guitar, however, I bet they would smoke. She can sing and she can write. But all those electric guitars and synthesizers cover up what could be. << Amen. Hey, I've heard "Tony" solo acoustic, and it smashes you in the gut. I've heard "Goodbye" solo acoustic, and it rips your heart out. I've heard "Change" solo acoustic, and it's twice as haunting as it is on the CD. No, Patty should not and can not have been expected to spend the rest of her career trapped behind an acoustic guitar. But the noise factor on "Flaming Red" DID cover up some of the brilliance we all saw on "LWG." And I dare say that if "LWG" had been produced with the production value (and I use that word loosely) of "Flaming Red," we wouldn't even be talking about Patty Griffin right now. Of course, this is all just my opinion. I obviously know squat about music. ;-) Ron ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 05 Dec 1998 12:50:38 -0600 From: Dana Subject: MM: CC-no JB, PG, CW,Fwd: Respond Benefit CD Release Party 12/4] Boston] Dana wrote: > > LEA228@aol.com wrote: > > > > how does a person get a cd if they'll be nowhere near the concert?? i'm very > > interested in buying one--can you fill me in on how to get one? thanks--ronni Hi Ronni- The concert was really good.- I especially love Catie Curtis and had never heard the other four singers before. I thought Merry Amsterberg was wonderful and Melissa Ferrick was incredible- lots of personality onstage. I am amazed at how many really good female singersongwriters are out there- this Cd is a 100% benefit for the Battered Women's Shelter. I am forwarding this to my other lists in case anyone else is interested in this 2 CD compilation of 27 Boston women. The CD can be ordered from: 1-800-694-5354- Cheers, Dana ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 5 Dec 1998 18:17:40 -0800 From: "J. Pruitt / C. Minter" Subject: MM: patty interview Here's an interview that was published November 10th in one of our alternative weeklies called, "INREVIEW" Enjoy: "Red-flamed Wonder: New Patty Griffin album is exquisite." by Charles Earle For the last few months, I've been telling anyone who will listen that Patty Griffin's album "Flaming Red" is the best records released this year by any artist in any genre of music. You know how you sometimes come across a song that is so good that for a couple of weeks you have to listen to it every time you turn on your CD player? I've had five different songs on "Flaming Red" affect me that way since I bought it in August. When Griffin released her debut album "Living With Ghosts" in 1996, I was impressed with her voice and lyrics, but it didn't hit me nearly so hard because Griffin was accompanied only by her acoustic guitar. In contrast, Flaming Red is a full-blown pop/rock album featuring great players and wonderful songs. I think it is about as close to perfect as music gets these days. Griffin visited Nashville last week for a gig at Exit/In. I got a chance to speak with her about the album, her first tour with a band and her life outside of music. INREVIEW: I'm curious about what it was like to make a band record as compared with the acoustic debut album. Was it more fun? GRIFFIN: For the first record, I actually made a band record too, but that was rejected by my label. THis time out, I made sure that I was really focused going into the project so that I could make the record that I really wanted to make. So I set out to make sure that I had a really good experience making the record and that I worked with a producer I related to musically really well, and that [producer] was Jay Joyce. I think because of the experiences I've had on the road for two years performing I was able to be a lot more comfortable performing in a studio. When you're on the road for two years, you have to perform in all sorts of different circumstances. In the process, you sort of lose that studio fear. It becomes just another place to have a gig. INREVIEW: I had seen you in years past playing solo, but you're touring with a band now. What's that like? GRIFFIN: It's taken me a little while to get used to. The band actually premiered in Nashville, but we've since changed that band around a lot. The arrangements have gotten a little smaller and more performance-friendly. I think that's the big thing I'm learning right now. How to work with them and use them well. I'm so used to carrying the show by myself, and this has a little different energy. And there is a lot that can be done that I just haven't gotten to yet, but I'm learning. It's kind of like going to school in front of everybody right now. INREVIEW: "Flaming Red" is a pretty intricate record production-wise. How much of that are you able to pull off on the road? GRIFFIN: I think the basic outlines are adhered to for the most part. But trying to layer and recreate just isn't going to work out. It is intricate, and the beauty of some of that stuff is just for the record. INREVIEW: I am especially interested in the song "Christina." Writing a song about the troubled love life of Christina Onassis doesn't seem like the usual fare for a pop song. GRIFFIN: That one is actually one of the strangest songwriting experiences I've ever had. I woke up in the middle of the night and had a very clear picture of her face in my head. So I just got up and started writing the song. THe melody started coming to me and I really wanted to work on it. So the song came out, and it was really weird because I had never spent a lot of time thinking about her. So it was kind of a mystery, but every now and then that's just how a song happens. INREVIEW: "Flaming Red" starts with the title track, which is a loud rock song. Did you pick that intentionally to contrast with the first record? GRIFFIN: A bunch of peple got together and picked the lineup for the record. I couldn't do it myself because I was just so close to everything. INREVIEW: I know that at one point you were living in Nashville. Do you still live here? GRIFFIN: I moved to Austin, Texas. I fell in love with someone there and was afaid I'd never get to see him at all unless I lived in the same town with him. So I just moved down there to be close to him. INREVIEW: What was the experience of living in Nashville like for you? GRIFFIN: I really enjoyed it. It was interesting to live in the South since I'm from the Northeast. It was also just great to be around so many hardworking musicians. If there is anything negative, I would have to say that it was having the record business around in such force. Personally, I have a hard time keeping my nose out of it and maintaining the path that I'm supposed to be on. So that was my downfall with Nashville. Separating myself from all of the business going on around me. INREVIEW: There is a style of songwriting that goes on here where people are sort of collaborating in a business sense instead of writing from the heart. You are much more personal than that in your lyrics. Was it odd to be around that kind of writing? GRIFFIN: Yeah, I've actually tried to write with some of those songwriters, and I wrote a few things I was fairly happy with. But I'm not very much at home writing in that formula. INREVIEW: Let me ask you about your home state of Maine. I'm a fan of a band from up there called Rustic Overtones. But other than those guys and you, I haven't heard much music that's come out of Maine. GRIFFIN: Yeah. There is not a lot. There are a lot of people in Maine that play really well, but nobody ever seems to leave Maine (laughs). You'll see cover bands in Maine that are the best you've ever seen. But there isn't much of an original music scene going on up there. There's not a lot of support. People in Maine, its like they're from another country (laughs). I think there is a general feeling that if you're from Maine, nothing like that will ever happen to you, so don't bother trying. Hope ya'll enjoyed this! :) Cristina ------------------------------ End of mad-mission-digest V2 #371 *********************************