Brief Sidetrack: Not to purposely rain on anyone’s parade, burst anyone’s proverbial bubble or propound any other related overused idioms but, much to my personal dismay, Zooey Deschanel is one of the most dislikeable people with whom I’ve ever had the displeasure of working. Difficult to believe based on the image her handlers rather successfully project, huh? I bought the first two She and Him albums and found them slight, yet enjoyable enough. And then I worked with her. Ugh. Acquaintances on New Girl described similar unhappy experiences. I’ve done a few projects with the DP who shot Elf and asked him how she was on that project. He had nothing good to say. Kind of breaks one’s heart, doesn’t it? End of Divagation
I actually bought the "Well Respected Men" double album in real time, as soon as it was released. This was at a time when I was still buying Record Collector magazine every month, and I still have all those issues - I guess even those are collectable now! It saved me from having to trawl round record fairs looking through racks of 7" singles to find the few remaining non-album tracks that I was lacking, though in another way it takes away the thrill of the chase. I've enjoyed "She's Got Everything" more over the years having found it on a 7" than I have "Act Nice And Gentle", which I heard first on this album. The only real disappointment is the omission of "This Is Where I Belong", which I had still never heard, although I note that I added it to my digital copy of this album somewhere along the way. There is also a section of the notes that is pasted up in the wrong order. My copy of the album is still in immaculate condition and sounds good, and now apparently worth a median value of £26.12 according to Discogs. This was part of a more general reissue of Pye material by PRT - they also reissued all the Searchers and Status Quo albums, amongst others.
Oh well, that’s Hollywood for you. I do know that she did let Geoff Edgers interview her about her Kinks fandom in his movie Do It Again. I think they actually did a Kinks song together.
Awwwww.... So nice of you and @DISKOJOE to say. I feel such guilt for not being on here. i miss you guys! We got back yesterday and I've been in recovery mode from jetlag (Traveling kicks my ass more than it should). I will try to start the catch-up tomorrow. I DID get to see the Davies Bros childhood home as well as eat (and drink) at the Clissold Arms. (I also hung out in the Highgate area of London which is where the brothers currently live.) I'll post some photos, even though you can find similar photos online. Hope everyone is well.
Don’t feel guilty at all, Avid Wondergirl. You got to see your daughter and you had a great time in the UK. How did you like Oxford?
Ouch. The June issue has only just gone on sale in newsagents in Australia. It couldn't be any slower if they shipped them by camel train.
Sadly not really anything to tell. Waited out the back of the Ent. Cent. Got a fleeting autograph and an EC was here guitar pick... Not really anything to tell... skinny little teenager gets autograph lol
Damn, some good stories this Sunday. Lou Reed performed as expected in the @Fortuleo situation, but @Fortuleo got a great story out of it. Yes, I loved listening to Jonesy's Jukebox -- he was incredibly funny and even kind of sweet without having lost his punk working class edge. Hope he made a few bucks off the Pistols series. Clearly a good guy who really knows his music; he'd be great on this thread. I took a trip to NY with a friend around '87 & went to Tunnel as well. Met an Isley brother. Got very, very drunk. Great club, wild evening. * Re Yoko in the museum bookstore... When it comes to Fabs-related sightings I've met a couple of the kids (Dhani, Sean) and managed to remain calm and professional. But one day I was driving by the Henson Studios lot and my friend who had an office there said "see that Mustang, that's Paul McCartney's." Totally unexpectedly and without warning, I started to scream like the woman in Top of the Pops. I mean I started to SCREAM. I shocked the hell out of myself. It was just Paul's CAR, it wasn't even Paul. I mean I stepped on Mick Jagger's foot at a club and very calmly apologized and moved on. But Paul's ****ing car, that made me scream. So glad free-form Sundays allow a little bit of this kind of talk. Fabs fabs fabs. Although at this point I have more Kinks on my various playlists.
Avid Brian X, you didn’t state what kind of Mustang did Sir Paul have. If it was like this, then I too would squeal like a little girl. Otherwise, meh: Speaking of cars, I just saw Le Mans w/Steve McQueen tonight. Nice footage of the 1970 LeMans race, w/plenty of Ferraris and especially the Porsche 917. Also, the beginning where Steve McQueen is going through the village in a vintage Porsche 911 is also pretty cool.
Wonderful stories today. I loved reading the Lou Reed story from @Fortuleo. Lou Reed is famous for those type of stories and you got to witness it first hand! I have no random meetings of musicians, but once when I was visiting NYC, I went to get a bagel and lox at the fantastic Russ and Daughters. Anthony Bourdain was filming an episode when we walked in. He was very nice. I'm not an autograph fiend, but we got a picture with him. The picture was snapped mid bagel chew! I looked very short standing next to him! I'm still shocked that he is no longer with us. I always feel awkward asking for an autograph. I can only recall asking two people for an autograph. It was Arthur lee and Donovan. I'm more interested in just saying hello and talking to them for a few minutes. One time I waited to speak to Steve Kilbey after a Church show. He looked at me and was waiting for me to hand him something to sign. I just wanted to say I loved the music. I thought I guess I have the ticket stub from the concert, so I pulled it out of my pocket and it had warm sticky gum all over it. I handed it to him and he said "EEWWW". I said don't worry, this is a fresh piece of gum that I didn't already chew! I still have that ticket stub with the gum and his signature on it. I have met him many times since then, and he was kind enough to put me on his guest list to a Church show that was sold out. I don't think he remembered the gum incident. Sorry about Covid @Zeki! It seems like more and more people I know are getting it recently. It will eventually catch up with me, but I have still somehow remained Covid free. Welcome back @Wondergirl! Down with Zooey! It figures that the people who want to be perceived as sweet and kind are generally the complete opposite! I never quite understood She & Him. I think they should now do a Lou Reed album.
What's next on the itinerary? I thought I'd better start investigating 80 Days, so I had a quick listen to the opening track this morning. Now I want to hear the rest of it!
It gets better and better. Next three days is Dave songs, Then we launch into The Road, and then we have 80 Days
No More Mysteries. Standing here in the cold, cold rain Waiting on for hours But my love for you still remains I see you as more than a friend I know I still got a lot to learn But I'm glad I found you In your eyes there is something real I see you as more than a man For history was born in Egypt Suffered by man's vanity The mysteries, the rock of ages Made a fool out of you and me No more mystery, no more fear or sorrow All their lies won't satisfy me No more mysteries, no more fear or sorrow Only love gonna set us free Many times you've come and gone To lend us a helping hand Every light[?] upon your face Reminds me you're more than a man Give me strength to carry on From a path that lingers dark Break the sword and give us light The future is out of command For history was born in Egypt Suffered by man's power and greed The mysteries, the rock of ages Made a fool out of you and me No more mystery, no more fear and sorrow All the lies won't satisfy me No more mystery, no more fear or sorrow Only love gonna set us free Is this all we ever wanted? A planet of fear Is this all we got to live for? Look on a clear night Far to the north star Open your heart Mystery, no more sorrow All their lies won't satisfy me No more mystery, the rock of ages Made a fool out of you and me No more mystery, no more fear and sorrow All the lies won't satisfy me No more mystery, the rock of ages Made a fool out of you and me No more mysteries No more mysteries No more mysteries Written by: Dave Davies Published by: Dabe Music This is an interesting one. It has a really interesting sound that could well be the fact that it is obviously a demo, but the sound kind of reminds me of some nineties alt. rock kind of releases, but the song itself has a sort of country folk kind of feel. This is a really interesting lyric, with it opening up like a love song to a girl that left him standing in the rain, Misunderstanding again lol But what we actually have is Dave on a path of spiritual discovery, singing to some higher power that comes and helps us every now and again through the course of time, in his version of events. It seems like the angle Dave is coming from is that for all of what we regard as our modern intelligence, the reality has made a fool out of us. Of course the Rock of Ages is one of the many names of God, and Dave suggests that the world started in Egypt.... and even if that isn't the exact locations most scholars would subscribe to the idea that our origins are from the Middle East. Anyway, without getting into territory that will get us shut down, I think this is a very interesting lyric, and Dave seems to get more coherent in his lyrics as we move along on the thread. Musically it is bright and somewhat reverby/echoey, but in spite of the low quality of the sound, I like what seems to be the aim of the sound, and the slide guitar is really effective. We open with studio sounds, and then this bass and drums backing comes in, and we get this dense layering of guitars that for me work really well. It is the first time I have heard this, but it works for me pretty much straight away, and it has a sort of familiar comfortable feel as a song, even though it sounds quite different to most of Dave's stuff. I like this.
Wait. Looking out at the starry night Think of the times we spent together I was the one who knew it all But I guess you'll find out in this letter I'll wait, wait in case she calls Wait here by the phone I made a big mistake I know all the pain I've caused I am so alone, will you come on home? If I saw a shooting star I wish that time would rearrange You'd be here in front of me Hold each other, face the world together But I guess it's not to be I'll wait, wait in case she calls Wait here by the phone I made a big mistake But I'll wait, wait in case she calls I am so alone, will you come on home? I'll wait Oh, time and time again I miss you so Ooh, where did you go? Won't you please come on home? I'll wait, wait until you call Wait here by the phone I made a big mistake I know all that I did wrong I am so alone, will you come on home? Written by: Dave Davies Published by: Dabe Music At this stage, I feel like this is an album I'll want to get to be honest. So far, this being the third song, this stuff sounds like some of the best stuff Dave has done over the years. Again we have a demo sound here, but it comes in very strongly. It is a drum machine sounding intro, with a bass synth pad and some other synth parts coming in intermittently. Lyrically this is definitely a love song to a lady, and a longing for things to have turned out differently. Wait is a literal thing here. Something happens that causes a split up, and Dave is going to wait by the phone in case she calls. Most of the vocals are really very good, and in that comfy Dave vocal zone for most folks. We get a bridge that moves into the higher register, but Dave sings with a fragility that, from my perspective, makes this quite engaging. This is essentially layers of synth musically, and I'm fine with that, I think it works as a song, and it sounds whole in what it is trying to share. Another one I like.