From: owner-shindell-list-digest@smoe.org (shindell-list-digest) To: shindell-list-digest@smoe.org Subject: shindell-list-digest V2 #227 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 Wednesday, August 30 2000 Volume 02 : Number 227 Today's Subjects: ----------------- [RS] From California to the New York Islands..... [Pfleary@aol.com] Re: [RS] I am happy now that this list is as cool as it is. ["Norman A. J] [RS] Norman's post, and relating to RS's music ["Sally Green" ] Re: [RS] Mondegreens near Paterson? [Vanessa Wills > My wife has been warned. Luckily sharong does not know what she looks like and I've got a fairly good idea of what sharon looks like from all the frff photo web sites. I will spend most of my time at the Dar show we're planning on attending in October, scanning the audience looking for Dar's #1 fan (think of Kathy Bates in Misery: "I'm your #1 fan"), ready to intervene should she be there. It could get ugly. I hear she's often packing a cheesecake. PETER ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 29 Aug 2000 22:37:33 -0400 (EDT) From: "Norman A. Johnson" Subject: Re: [RS] I am happy now that this list is as cool as it is. Thanks for setting me straight about "seas". Re: the lists. I'm also on Nields Nook and often think about unsubscribing. They're so much name calling and flames (some in fun and just general back and forth talk that has little do to with The Nields. Norman [Editorial note from Sally: remember when you use the words "subscribe" or "unsubscribe" in a post that it's best to disguise them somehow, as in "$ub$cribe", because otherwise your post will bounce to me and there will be a delay until I check my email. FYI.] _________________________________________________________________________ Get Your Private, Free E-mail from MSN Hotmail at http://www.hotmail.com. Share information about yourself, create your own public profile at http://profiles.msn.com. ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 29 Aug 2000 23:09:38 EDT From: "Sally Green" Subject: [RS] Norman's post, and relating to RS's music Norman wrote: >PS- My "apology" post was about a post that never did show up on the > list >because I had written the dreaded "uns" word-- no, I was not threatening to >leave this list nor Dar-list but another. The identity > of that other list >will remain another mystery. It will NOT remain a mystery because I forwarded your post, using my secret skills as co-moderator of the list to force it through despite the "uns" word before I read this digest, so I have to say WHOOPS! Sorry, Norman! I've been thinking about relating to songwriters. I'm not any of the varied things that RS's narrators are, either, like RonG is not (and I'm not RonG, either), but I still identify very much with his (RS's) music. I don't think that one has to BE the same thing as a narrator in order to identify with the music or to feel strongly about the song. Lots of RS's songs seem to me to have an undercurrent of irony, wistfulness, bitterness in some cases, outright darkness, quiet regret, stoic determination, or nostalgia. His happiest song that comes to mind right now is probably "The Kenworth Of My Dreams", because the narrator in that song gets to buy the truck he's always wanted and haul stuff around in it. I think that lots of people have their dark sides, and I am no exception. At times in my life things have been pretty dark. At other times they were merely sad, or I was insecure, or whatever. But I think the common bond of those feelings makes the songs resonate, even though the cause in songs like "Fishing" or "Reunion Hill" are quite different from the situations in my life that I've been bitter or nostalgic about. Resonating is one thing, but when you add in what a master RS is with words and meter, and how lovely his guitar playing is, and have I mentioned how beautiful his voice is and how it nails me to my seat every time? The workshop stage at FRFF this year, I was just in awe, and HELLO, TOPIC, one of the ones that TOTALLY blew me away on that workshop stage was "Wisteria." He really takes me on a journey when I listen to him, especially live. His voice is sort of, not hypnotic, but something - it really grabs me and makes me not just listen to the song, but it's like I *live* the song while he's singing it. I *see* the house, or the fountain where Abuelita waits, or the bridge where two people meet at night during the summer. - --Sally sallyagreen@hotmail.com _________________________________________________________________________ Get Your Private, Free E-mail from MSN Hotmail at http://www.hotmail.com. Share information about yourself, create your own public profile at http://profiles.msn.com. ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 30 Aug 2000 00:22:52 -0400 From: Vanessa Wills Subject: Re: [RS] Wisteria "L. Davis" wrote: > for shame, mother Yale!! Ain't that the truth. (I'm sorry, Lisa, I had to! It was *there*!) Peace, Love, and Mischief, Vanessa ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 30 Aug 2000 00:38:18 -0400 From: Vanessa Wills Subject: Re: [RS] Mondegreens near Paterson? Well, I posted this one a little while ago, but it's worth repeating. . . My roomie and I were on the tail-end of an all-nighter, writing papers for, um, I think it was a philosophy class that we were both taking. "Transit" is playing, and here is the exchange between Cindy and I: Cindy: "Lobsters and burgers?" Me: Mobsters and murderers. Cindy: Oh, sorry. I'm hungry. I never will let her live that one down! ;-) Peace, Love, and Mischief, Vanessa Rongrittz@aol.com wrote: > << But outside of Richard's son's "Hey Duck" on "Confession", I can't think > of any good mondegreens for SNP. Anyone have any? >> > > The only lines I misheard until I read the lyrics were: > > "Maybe we'll be certain" instead of "Maybe will be certain" (Spring), and > "They all knew a station was thanking" instead of "The all-news station was > thanking" (Transit). > > I think the fact that Richard e-nun-ci-ates as well as he does -- plus the > fact that his voice is rarely buried under layers of, oh, digeridoo -- keeps > us from having too many classic RS mondegreens. ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 30 Aug 2000 10:19:14 +0200 From: Katrin.Uhl@t-online.de (Katrin Uhl) Subject: RE: [RS] Was Calling the Moon - Dar's Music This is an interesting discussion. Let me start with what Jeff asked back on Monday: > But since when is relating to the lyrics an important > element in appreciating and enjoying music? It can be. For me there are different reasons I really like a song: - - I can relate to the lyrics - - it has some amazing instrumental work in it - - it makes me get up and dance - - it's the best thing to listen to when I'm really angry, happy, sad, hurt, surprised about the wonders life throws at me out of the blue... - - there isn't necessarily something in the lyrics that I relate to, but the song is tied to a certain time in my life or a certain situation I enjoy a lot of music that has no strong lyrical qualities, Jamiroquai or Massive Attack make great music, but that has hardly anything at all to do with the lyrics or me relating to them. But those songs that belong to the first kind, those songs that make me go, yeah, I so know what this person means and wow, how could he/she know this is happening in my life as well (of course he/she didn't), they are songs that have traveled with me through my life and one of these days I need to put them all on one compilation. The Blessings, As Cool As I Am, Ellis Paul's Take me Down, are songs that fall into that category. So yes, for me, relating to the lyrics is a very strong element in appreciating music, but not the only one. I don't relate to "play the greed", but it's a catchy tune and it makes me tip my feet on the ground just as "another mystery" makes me get up and dance. As others have said, Richard's songs hardly ever fall into the "strictly relate to-category". They have a different quality, they take you on a journey and I have more than once wondered how some of those stories end. And some of them are so soothing, that is one of the things where Richard wins out over most other artists for me, award for most soothing male voice ever. Howling at the trouble can do wonders for me. > Is a desire to learn to play and sing a song any > measure of its quality or of your appreciation and enjoyment of it? not of its quality but it can very much be a measure of my appreciation and enjoyment of it. However, there are many songs I really appreciate and enjoy but will most likely never play cuz I'm just not nearly good enough of a guitar player to even try - e.g. lots of Ani-songs or any Peter Mulvey songs. > Is it possible that we are holding Dar and Richard to different/higher > standards for some reason? I don't see anything wrong with that, if that is the case. They aim at different "target groups" (gosh I hate that word). I won't start a "Dar is going Jewel"-thing because I don't think she is, but she is definitely going towards a broader market, there is nothing wrong with that at all, more power to her. But yeah, I think in terms of that different standards have to be applied to her and Richard. Well, just to pretend I don't write really long posts and ramble on forever I will now move on over to a second mail for the rest of my two cents on that subject. :-) Katrin - ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ~ I'm so sick of forgetting myself to remember who I am ~ Dar Williams ------------------------------ End of shindell-list-digest V2 #227 ***********************************