From: owner-shindell-list-digest@smoe.org (shindell-list-digest) To: shindell-list-digest@smoe.org Subject: shindell-list-digest V12 #297 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 Monday, February 4 2013 Volume 12 : Number 297 Today's Subjects: ----------------- [RS] XBox does the same thing [Pete Jameson ] Re: [RS] Much Madness, Round One [Cathy Bell ] ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Mon, 4 Feb 2013 16:32:56 -0500 From: Pete Jameson Subject: [RS] XBox does the same thing On Feb 4, 2013, at 3:46 PM, Carol Love wrote: > Pete, > > Does this do anything for you that an X-Box doesn't?? > > If so, I will have my daughter's "techie" boyfriend set it up for me. > > *Ciao!* > > ....Carol > > On Mon, Feb 4, 2013 at 12:15 PM, Pete Jameson wrote: > >> Vanessa, >> >> I purchased a male-to-male cable so I could watch Internet programming on >> our tv. I think it was maybe $30, but it has allowed us to break the >> shackles of cable drudgery and watch youtube videos, hulu, netflix, even a >> new series that netflix produced with Kevin Spacey that's reminiscent of >> The West Wing -- but not quite has hyper-conversant. >> >> It's an easy connection to a port on your computer and tv, if you have a >> laptop. Try Radio Shack for a consultation. >> >> Cheers, >> >> Pete ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 4 Feb 2013 13:43:48 -0800 (PST) From: Cathy Bell Subject: Re: [RS] Much Madness, Round One All right, I've been talked out of lurkdom! Here are my picks for the first round. Hope I'm not too late to weigh in. 1. You Stay Here No question on this one. You Stay Here is a haunting classic. I always hear the song in the context of a conversation I once had with my brother, who interpreted the tigers coming at night to refer to the Tiger tank of Nazi Germany. Most people discussing this song seem to see it as set in contemporary times, but I vividly imagine it set in early 1940s Europe, and it breaks my heart every time. In contrast, Mariana's Table is one of my least favorite Richard songs. I skip it when I listen to the album. The alternate version doesn't do anything more for me. 2. A Tune For Nowhere Hmm. I love Waiting for the Storm for its message about our persistent hubris in the face of the might of nature, and I like its haunting fatalism, and Richard's guitar work is always a delight. There are times, though, when I really like the gentle fantasy of Tune for Nowhere ("no one can decide how far it may extend"). These two songs are so different ... and I feel as though I ought to pick Waiting, but just to be a little contrarian, I'm going with Tune for Nowhere. "Just because [I] always wanted to." (Actually, I just looked at my iTunes ratings for each of these songs, and I see I gave Nowhere five stars and Waiting three. So I guess that says something about how I really feel.) 3. Abuelita These are both strong songs, but neither's a favorite for me. Wisteria's sweet and appropriately wistful, but Abuelita has always had more meaning for me. 4. Get Up Clara The toughest matchup in the round! These are both great songs. I'm going with Clara because I find it refreshing, charming, and a change of pace from the earnest sincerity of Last Fare. I love the softness of Richard's voice on this--the tenderness he conveys for the damn stubborn mule--and I also appreciate how differently he has interpreted the song's sound in different recordings and performances. 5. Ascent Ascent is one of Richard's most powerful songs, I think, and one of the handful I've never heard him perform live. It gives me the shivers. I too have always seen it as sung from the perspective of a death row prisoner, who isn't really remorseful at all though he accepts responsibility for what he's done. 6. Balloon Man Easy Street is a nice, sweet song, but Balloon Man is poignant and full of such vivid imagery. It's a strong slice-of-quirky-life piece, and in that way emblematic of what Richard does best. 7. Fenario Another difficult decision. I'm going with Fenario because it's just such a beautiful song. Richard's voice is at its best on this one, and I love his intricate, repetitive (in a good way) guitar work and the effortless incorporation of the John Donne. But I love the intro to Confession, and it's a really strong interpretation of its moment in time. It doesn't seem right to kick it out in the first round, but them's the breaks. 8. By Now This is one of the kind-of-unfair comparisons. Howling at the Trouble's a great song, but By Now is so creepy and haunting and memorable that there's no question it takes this matchup. 9. I Saw My Youth Today / You Again I'm declaring a tie. These two songs went up against each other in several rounds of overtime (seriously, I listened to them back-to-back several times in a row!) and I refuse to pick a winner. 10. Parasol Ants Oooh, this is a good pairing. Both these songs have an element of whimsy that I love in Richard's songwriting. I've been surprised at how many listers have been dismissive of his lighter songs--I hear them as joyful appreciations of some of the little weird things that happen in life. I had a hard time deciding which of these two I'd vote to eliminate. It came down to the bounciness of the melody on Parasol Ants. But I want to mention how surprised I was, the first time I heard Mavis (on a live radio interview right before the release of Vuelta, if I remember right), how surprised I was to learn Mavis's identity. From the title, I had imagined There Goes Mavis way going to be a *completely* different song, and I still remember the surprise and delight I felt on hearing it for the first time. 11. State of the Union No contest. One Man's Arkansas is another of the few songs I skip on a regular basis, whereas the way State of the Union builds on itself makes it one of the strongest pieces of songwriting in the repertoire of my favorite songwriter. 12. On A Sea Of Fleur-De-Lis Oh, this is a hard one! I'm going with Fleur-de-Lis over Hazel, though I feel a little guilty about doing so because I like Hazel and her house. The thing is, I really love Fleur-de-Lis, and I love that it was once a song I completely overlooked. I love its slightly cryptic quality and the depth of interpretation that it's open to as a result. But mostly, it's just really, really pretty. 13. So Says The Whipporwill Mary Magdalene's a great song, but ... well, I'm tired of it. Whipporwill has, on occasions, made me cry. So it wins. ... Okay, that was lots of fun. It's funny, looking at the pairings at first, it seemed like there were some real no-brainer choices. But once I started really thinking about it, those decisions were tough! Thanks, Ron, for starting this! Cathy in South Dakota (where I never, ever get to see Richard live anymore--I miss living in San Francisco!) ------------------------------ End of shindell-list-digest V12 #297 ************************************