From: owner-shindell-list-digest@smoe.org (shindell-list-digest) To: shindell-list-digest@smoe.org Subject: shindell-list-digest V6 #175 Reply-To: shindell-list@smoe.org Sender: owner-shindell-list-digest@smoe.org Errors-To: owner-shindell-list-digest@smoe.org Precedence: bulk shindell-list-digest Friday, August 27 2004 Volume 06 : Number 175 Today's Subjects: ----------------- [RS] Buying "Vuelta" ["ptpowerlists@juno.com" ] [RS] Vuelta Hold-out [B Gallagher ] [RS] behind the times [Jennifer Coia ] Re: [RS] behind the times [adam plunkett ] [RS] My turn! Vuelta reactions [rfoxwell@wso.williams.edu] [RS] Re: Buying "Vuelta" ["ptpowerlists@juno.com" ] [RS] Re: shindell-list-digest V6 #174 [mary mccarthy ] [RS] Thoughts on Vuelta [Elizabeth ] ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Fri, 27 Aug 2004 14:01:37 GMT From: "ptpowerlists@juno.com" Subject: [RS] Buying "Vuelta" Toby wrote: >>I must really be a hopeless cause...as another day went by without my mailperson delivering Vuelta, I happened into Barnes and Noble to pick up a book, and couldn't help but buy a copy there ( full price, no less!).<< The other day, I went to immerse myself in "Vuelta" prior to my radio interview and I couldn't find it! I had purchased a copy at Falcon Ridge so I'd listened to it a number of times, but I didn't feel ready for the interview. So, in a panic, I went to Elderly Instruments (where Richard bought a guitar recently) and bought another copy. Upon returning home from the store, I found the first copy sitting right where I had left it -- on the dining room table! SO, I gave the the second copy to Melissa, the radio host. Pat ________________________________________________________________ The best thing to hit the Internet in years - Juno SpeedBand! Surf the Web up to FIVE TIMES FASTER! Only $14.95/ month - visit www.juno.com to sign up today! ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 27 Aug 2004 10:31:13 -0400 From: B Gallagher Subject: [RS] Vuelta Hold-out Toby wrote: > I must really be a hopeless cause...as another day went by without my > mailperson delivering Vuelta, I happened into Barnes and Noble to pick up a > book, and couldn't help but buy a copy there ( full price, no less!). I've > been blissfully listening to it since early afternoon. Richard, if you are > lurking-Bravo!! Well worth the wait. I guess I'll have 2 copies :) Glad everyone is really enjoying the new Vuelta. I'm trying to wait until ...October 30! to buy the album at the IMAC show. I do like to buy music directly from an artist when I can. I also want to hear the songs 'live and fresh' once more, hopefully with a band this time. In the best superhero comic book voice one could muster - Must Resist. Can't Hold Out Much Looongerrr. Huuuuuughhhhhh... Bart ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 27 Aug 2004 14:05:54 -0400 From: Jennifer Coia Subject: [RS] behind the times OK, I am sure this has already been discussed ad nauseum, but I missed it. When did Richard and what was the impetus behind going from Signature to Koch Records? Feel free to reply to me off the list if you feel like this has been discussed already and don't want to clog list with repeat info. thanks! ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 27 Aug 2004 12:21:21 -0700 (PDT) From: adam plunkett Subject: Re: [RS] behind the times Koch distribution which is connected wit Koch records, distributes both Shananchie(Richard's first label) and Signature Sounds(Richard's second label). Beyond that, I have no clue. ;) Jennifer Coia wrote:OK, I am sure this has already been discussed ad nauseum, but I missed it. When did Richard and what was the impetus behind going from Signature to Koch Records? Feel free to reply to me off the list if you feel like this has been discussed already and don't want to clog list with repeat info. thanks! Yahoo! Mail - 50x more storage than other providers! ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 27 Aug 2004 16:53:34 -0400 From: rfoxwell@wso.williams.edu Subject: [RS] My turn! Vuelta reactions My goodness, this is a fine album. I am very very happy with it. Being one of the lucky fans who has heard most of these songs many times live, I was worried that I would be a tad disappointed by the inevitable transition from the stark intensity of the live performances to the more full "polished" sound of the studio recordings. I am happy to report that my worrying was for nought. The studio versions sound different, yes, but I am already growing to love the more relaxed, "bigger" sound that they possess. Some individual thoughts on a few of the songs (sorry for the length): - --Waist Deep: as has been commented on before, the studio version is much more relaxed and easy-going than the live performances. I found this disappointing at first, because I love the drive and power that Richard gives this song when singing it live, but I'm growing to appreciate this more subtle treatment as well. The story comes through much more, and the supporting instruments are well-balanced. - --The Island: I had never heard this song live, so this was the only "new" song for me. I like it, it's very pretty and pleasant, but I don't think it will make it into my Shindell Canon. I was surprised to find myself reminded of Jimmy Buffett when listening to this. Perhaps it is the subject matter, or the particular way Richard sings the lyrics. - --Che Guevara: wow. This song is darn near perfect. The way the volume swells and ebbs as the verses develop, the way Richard introduces more instruments as the tension rises and the story evolves; I am awestruck. Wow. There is only one tiny thing that sticks out as less-than-perfect (to me): I don't like how the song comes to a complete, abrupt end a few beats after the singing. I prefer the way Richard concludes the song in live performances, with an additional few bars of instrumentation. It gives the listener time to digest the end of the song and formulate more of an emotional response. But, again, this is a very small complaint about an awesome awesome song. - --Cancion: even prettier on the album, if a little less intimate. The instrumentation is gorgeous. I must say, I love the song even more now that I know the lyrics (thanks to those who provided them), despite an unfortunate painful association it has with a girl (already! don't ask). When performing the song live, Richard always prefaced it with a short description, which always concluded with a dismissive, self-deprecating "and then I just finish by conjugating some simple verbs". I had no idea what those verbs were, and so I--like the non-Spanish-speaking members of the audience--was more amused than anything when listening to the end. Now that I can follow along with the yyrics, though, I get a little teary-eyed when the song reaches that point; those "simple conjugations" are so tender and beautiful and heartfelt, while losing none of their cleverness or humor. - --Mavis: except for Waist Deep, this is the song that stands out as most different from the live version. I love the added instrumentalization, but I miss some of the quirkiness of Richard's solo performances. In particular, I loved the way he used his voice to achieve the groovy descend-ascend-descend-descend turn on the last word of each verse, which is now achieved by the instruments, if at all. (I believe he only uses his voice for this on one occasion now, on the second "in" from "quick before the next wave rushes in, rushes in".) That said, I love all the seemingly-random musical interjections. Maybe it's a stretch, but to me it sounds rather like a bunch of children playing with toys in the sand: shovels banging, buckets clacking together, sand falling, rasps and whistles and clinks; an overall whimsical, irreverent, background of noises that complements the song wonderfully. - --Last Fare: my reaction to this is exactly like my reaction to Che Guevara, only moreso, and without the caveat. Beautiful, simply beautiful. Shivers run down my spine when I listen to it. This is a definite Shindell masterpiece. Hell, the whole album is a masterpiece. Bravo Richard, you've got a winner here. Thank you for richening all of our lives yet again. ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 27 Aug 2004 22:15:43 GMT From: "ptpowerlists@juno.com" Subject: [RS] Re: Buying "Vuelta" I wrote: >>The other day, I went to immerse myself in "Vuelta" prior to my radio interview<< Of course, I meant *Velveeta*! Sorry for any confusion! Pat ________________________________________________________________ The best thing to hit the Internet in years - Juno SpeedBand! Surf the Web up to FIVE TIMES FASTER! Only $14.95/ month - visit www.juno.com to sign up today! ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 27 Aug 2004 18:38:55 -0400 From: mary mccarthy Subject: [RS] Re: shindell-list-digest V6 #174 silent &cd-less in in NYC, where is my copy?....hope to see a package from red square soon..... panting.....can't wait mary On Aug 27, 2004, at 4:55 AM, shindell-list-digest wrote: ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 27 Aug 2004 19:46:43 -0400 From: "Jeff Gilson" Subject: Re: [RS] Buying "Vuelta" > I wrote: > > >>The other day, I went to immerse myself in "Vuelta" prior to my radio > interview<< > > Of course, I meant *Velveeta*! > > Sorry for any confusion! Pat, what happens between a man and his processed cheese should stay off the internet and in the bedroom where it belongs. jeff. ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 27 Aug 2004 20:14:50 -0700 (PDT) From: Elizabeth Subject: [RS] Thoughts on Vuelta I've been listening to Vuelta in a loop every evening since Tuesday, and I really do love it. There are a couple of songs I'm not totally nuts about--The Island, for no reason I can pinpoint, and Cancion Sencilla, because I'm a lyrics girl who doesn't understand Spanish (though Richard's voice does sound very nice). But I'm just getting more and more fond of the rest of the songs. I couldn't pick one favorite, but Che Guevara, Mavis, Whipporwill, and Last Fare are right up there. The lyrics and music are both amazing, and they each have a meaning, too, but so gently and subtly that it doesn't knock you over the head. And Big Muddy is wonderful in its own timely way. ;) One thing I haven't seen mentioned in other comments and reviews is the amazing way that the music of Last Fare of the Day is so like being in a cab going quickly and smoothly. Every time I hear it, from the first time I heard it live, I think of one of the relatively few cab rides I took when I lived in NYC. I had to work overtime until 8:30ish, so my employer paid for a private cab to take me home (as was their policy). There was shockingly little traffic once we got across the bridge, and we seemed to just fly down Queens Boulevard, catching green lights all the way... This leads to what I've been realizing about this album, and perhaps Richard's work in general--that it cannot be reduced to soundbites. I was reading through the lyrics looking for something to use for a new sig file, but I can't pick anything out, except for maybe a few lines from Big Muddy. I looked particularly to each of my favorites, but in every case the whole song is required to make the meaning of the song. There are beautiful lines, achingly so in places, such as, "He sings a little to himself/luna, luna, luna llena/while the moon, a word he's yet to learn/reveals him to the cameras," but it wouldn't really explain, to someone unfamiliar with the song, why I like it so much. I don't mean that this is a bad thing--it's a great thing. Of course, in the world as it is, it probably dooms the music to relative obscurity, but, well, more seats at the shows for us! I'm probably making a mess out of trying to describe this, but it felt like some kind of a mini epiphany, so I had to share it. Anyway, sorry for the babbling. Elizabeth ===== ~~~ "If the city was dreaming," he told me, "then the city is asleep. And I do not fear cities sleeping, stretched out unconscious around their rivers and estuaries, like cats in the moonlight. Sleeping cities are tame and harmless things. What I fear," he said, "is that one day the cities will waken. That one day the cities will rise." - --Neil Gaiman ------------------------------ End of shindell-list-digest V6 #175 ***********************************