From: owner-oppositeview-digest@smoe.org (oppositeview-digest) To: oppositeview-digest@smoe.org Subject: oppositeview-digest V4 #136 Reply-To: oppositeview@smoe.org Sender: owner-oppositeview-digest@smoe.org Errors-To: owner-oppositeview-digest@smoe.org Precedence: bulk oppositeview-digest Saturday, May 25 2002 Volume 04 : Number 136 Today's Subjects: ----------------- OV: ronan & justin [Jo Wedgbury ] OV: Staus Quo ["Jane Armstrong" ] OV: Album Reviews ["Jane Armstrong" ] OV: The Times 'Bush' review ["Tina Maidman" ] OV: RE: PIPE DREAMS [Caroline Gallagher ] OV: RE: The Times 'Bush' review [hilary_gray@sandwich.pfizer.com] Re: OV: Album Reviews [doug brown ] Re: OV: RE: PIPE DREAMS [doug brown ] Re: OV: RE: PIPE DREAMS [Alison Bellach ] OV: bowie cover [Alison Bellach ] ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Fri, 24 May 2002 10:45:12 +0100 From: Jo Wedgbury Subject: OV: ronan & justin Don't know if this topic has been resolved yet but just bought Ronan's new album and Justin doesn't seem to be involved in any of the songs! Most of the songs are written by Gregg Alexander, sometimes with help from Ronan or a couple of others. I agree with whoever said it though "As much as I can give you girl" is the closest to something Justin might write.....just a coincidence I suppose. Did he definitely work with Ronan on a song then? I'm fans of both obviously so it'd be good to hear it. Anyone know if Ronan went to any of the Dels gigs? Jo p/s if anyone remembers me from my last post the new albums sort of grown on me now!;) ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 24 May 2002 10:12:17 +0100 From: "Jane Armstrong" Subject: OV: Staus Quo Whilst the band played Status Quo's Rocking All Over the World for Iain's birthday, it's nice to see that the Quo are also Dels fans. There's a BBC interview with Francis Rossi at http://www.bbc.co.uk/southampton/music/status_quo_int.shtml where he says: What music have you go in your car? I've got the ELO album, Squeeze's greatest hits. I like bands like Feeder, Stereophonics, I quite liked Supergrass for a while I like Del Amitri, Britney Spears but I don't want to marry her or join the fan club, Christina Aguilera, Jennifer Lopez although I'm not keen on her bum like everyone else seems to be. Jane ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 24 May 2002 11:26:30 +0100 From: "Jane Armstrong" Subject: OV: Album Reviews For anyone interested in reviews, I've just found this at http://www.reviewed4u.com/music/DelAmitri.htm Editor Reviewed4u Can You Do Me Good is not Del Amitri's first studio album since 1997 and is a solid and accomplished set of songs. What strikes you is that if you like anyone of the tracks then you'll love the album as it is consistent all the way through with very little filler material. The other noticeable feature of the album is the clarity and incisiveness of Justin Currie's lyrics. They'll have you pondering life and love from beginning to end, although deep don't worry it's not depressing. When you listen to album you wonder why the band aren't as popular as say 'Travis' or 'Oasis', as their material is certainly as good. Perhaps their mellow but gritty style is slightly lacking that commercial edge, but Fair play to them they've stuck to a sound they like and do it well. There are lots of good songs on here each with there own merits and style, pitched somewhere between Squeeze and Crowded House. Tracks such as the single "Just before You leave" are a bit brooding and but there are lots of more up tempo tracks such as "Baby it's Me". A couple of tracks are a bit reflective such as "drunk in a band" which nevertheless is a pretty good song. Strong melodies and great lyrics make this an album not to be underestimated. and at http://uk.music.yahoo.com/020403/242/cvqcg.html DEL AMITRI 'CAN YOU DO ME GOOD?' - -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Typical, isn't it? Now, with the Western guitar scene seemingly preoccupied with earnest rock, these sideboarded Scots, who kept it real throughout the late-80's and 90's, have decided on a change of direction. With their conspicuously out-of-step, jangly material, Justin Currie and co. have always come across as an average pub band done good. Well, the first few bluesy bars of Just Before You Leave might just make you think twice about them, as it comes on with an unexpected Isley Brothers-ish R&B feel. The punchy groove and reversing guitar licks of Cash & Prizes continue to surprise and the rugged Currie sounds more like Bono with every passing note. The problem is that there's a little too much aural diversity for comfort - one minute Del Amitri are embracing the New York rock of Lou Reed, as on Drunk In A Band, and the next they're borrowing from Simon & Garfunkel's acoustic palette. Still, despite the occasionally difficult pastiche, Can You Do Me Good? is a solidly enjoyable, if not exactly Earth-shattering, listening experience. ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 24 May 2002 11:51:47 +0100 From: "Tina Maidman" Subject: OV: The Times 'Bush' review The Times newspaper (page 23) has a 4 star review from the Shepherd's Bush show. ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 24 May 2002 12:06:16 +0100 From: Caroline Gallagher Subject: OV: RE: PIPE DREAMS I know I am late, but They Might Be Giants are a fab band, who I managed to see twice in small concerts. - -----Original Message----- From: Paul Naylor [mailto:mrjuggles@ntlworld.com] Sent: 22 May 2002 18:05 To: Del posting Subject: OV: PIPE DREAMS Here's one I heard ages ago. Has anyone heard of They Might Be Giants? A quirky and OK band from America. Well I heard they toured America for 6months on the strength of the fans. The fans organised the venue's, the tickets, the equipment, the transport and even put them up. And the band just spent the whole six months on the road sleeping over at fans houses. Wouldn't that be cool here? Would it be possible? I really wouldn't know the logistics involved at all and I'm sure lots could go wrong. But Imagine arranging a gig at your local pub and selling enough tickets to justify the band coming, then putting the band up. I would love to do that, print all the leaflets and literature explaining who they are, why they're liked so much and why they are doing a grass roots tour.. But as the title suggests, pipe dreams. We all can hope. ********************************************************************** This email and any files transmitted with it are confidential and intended solely for the use of the individual or entity to whom they are addressed. If you have received this email in error please notify the system manager. In accordance with Inmarsat Information Security Policy and Guidelines on Computer use, emails sent or received may be monitored. Inmarsat Limited 99 City Road London EC1Y 1AX. Registered in England and Wales No. 3675885 ********************************************************************** ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 24 May 2002 12:55:04 +0100 From: hilary_gray@sandwich.pfizer.com Subject: OV: RE: The Times 'Bush' review From the website: May 24, 2002 Del Amitri by Paul Sexton Pop: Shepherd's Bush Empire IT WAS never cool to like Del Amitri, not even at their chart zenith of the mid-1990s. An armoury of catchy tunes isn't hip unless it's hitched to a badass attitude or a fashionable habit, and somehow neither their cheery pub-band-made-good demeanour, nor frontman Justin Currie's ever-evolving hairstyles, quite fitted the bill. The Glasgow outfit's rise to popularity was a snail's-pace simmer, as they formed at one end of the 1980s and didn't chart until the other, but they made up for it with an array of likeable singles, none of them mega-hits, but perfectly turned pop nuggets. However, an undeniable feeling of decline has lately formed over Del Amitri like a coating of dust, hardly helped by a four-year hiatus that was recently ended by the album Can You Do Me Good? The record met with mixed reviews, even among Del diehards, and spent a mere week in the Top 30, doing little to shore up the fortunes of the group, but a 15-date tour during May has been an entirely different proposition. There are few more dependably entertaining jukeboxes on the UK stage, and when the show reached London it sparked a gleeful sing-song. Opening with Always the Last to Know and When You Were Young, they emanated a calm authority earned during hundreds of shows over 20 years. If some followers have been unsure of a certain uncharacteristically opaque character to the new record, they integrated well here, notably Buttons on My Clothes, the rocking Drunk in a Band and the single Just Before You Leave. Guitarists Kris Dollimore and Currie's fellow founder member Iain Harvie provided solid backup with hands and lungs, and Andy Alston added an occasional accordion illustration. From the catalogue, Be My Downfall and Driving With The Brakes On were among the strongest features, with the loudest cheers, inevitably, for Nothing Ever Happens and Kiss This Thing Goodbye before they closed with the fetching ballad that also ends the album, Just Getting By. Titles such as One More Last Hurrah and Last Cheap Shot at the Dream may be closer to autobiography than Currie would like, but one can only admire a band that builds up such a cache of imperishable melodies. - ---------------------------------------------------------------- This message and any attachment has been virus checked by Pfizer Corporate Information Technology, Sandwich. - ---------------------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 24 May 2002 07:12:51 -0700 (PDT) From: doug brown Subject: Re: OV: Album Reviews "there are lots of more up tempo tracks such as "Baby it's Me"." "A couple of tracks are a bit reflective such as "drunk in a band"" Hahaha! All music critics are idiots. Thanks though Jane. :) LAUNCH - Your Yahoo! Music Experience http://launch.yahoo.com ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 24 May 2002 07:20:04 -0700 (PDT) From: doug brown Subject: Re: OV: RE: PIPE DREAMS Well most bands go grass roots because they have to. Let's face it with songs like Particle Man (admittedly the best lyrics ever written) they're going to be mostly playing to freaks, oh and of course a few normal people like Caroline. Hopefully the Dels could have a broader appeal than that if they could pick their singles better and actually get a video made that didn't suck. Oh what the heck for your Friday reading pleasure (sing along if you like!), They Might Be Giants ... Particle Man Particle man, particle man Doing the things a particle can What's he like? It's not important Particle man Is he a dot, or is he a speck When he's underwater does he get wet Or does the water get him instead Nobody knows, Particle man Triangle man, Triangle man Triangle man hates particle man They have a fight, Triangle wins Triangle man Universe man, Universe man Size of the entire universe man Usually kind to smaller man Universe man He's got a watch with a minute hand Millenium hand and an eon hand When they meet it's a happy land Powerful man, universe man Person man, person man Hit on the head with a frying pan Lives his life in a garbage can Person man Is he depressed or is he a mess Does he feel totally worthless Who came up with person man Degraded man, person man Triangle man, triangle man Triangle man hates person man They have a fight, triangle wins Triangle man LAUNCH - Your Yahoo! Music Experience http://launch.yahoo.com ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 24 May 2002 07:23:27 -0700 (PDT) From: Alison Bellach Subject: Re: OV: RE: PIPE DREAMS > Well most bands go grass roots because they have to. > Let's face it with songs like Particle Man (admittedly > the best lyrics ever written) they're going to be > mostly playing to freaks, oh and of course a few > normal people like Caroline. Hopefully the Dels could > have a broader appeal than that if they could pick > their singles better and actually get a video made > that didn't suck. Just for the record, my sister does not like They Might Be Giants. Wait, I guess it's not smack if I have two TMBG albums and saw them live at Bumbershoot once. Oops. ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 24 May 2002 13:14:10 -0700 (PDT) From: Alison Bellach Subject: OV: bowie cover Does anyone have a copy of the Dels doing any Bowie covers (pretty things, etc)? Danke. And now back to your regularily scheduled emails about Justin's pants. - ------------------------------------------------------------------- Alison Bellach: alibee@delamitri.com http://alibee.linex.com http://www.delamitri.com "If you want peace, work for justice." ------------------------------ End of oppositeview-digest V4 #136 **********************************