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Jamie LePage (1953-2002)
http://www.spectropop.com/Jamie.htm
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There are 25 messages in this issue.
Topics in this digest:
1. Re: AMERICA AND THE BRITISH INVASION.... a more serious view...
From: Neil Hever
2. Re: AMERICA AND THE BRITISH INVASION.... a more serious view...
From: Shawn Baldwin
3. Re: AMERICA AND THE BRITISH INVASION.... a more serious view...
From: Louise Posnick
4. AMERICA AND THE BRITISH INVASION.... thread closed
From: Spectropop
5. Phil Spector
From: Eddy Smit
6. Re: made to be bad B sides
From: Barry Green
7. Re: Cryin'
From: Lynn
8. Re: made to be bad B sides
From: Mick Patrick
9. Re: Lounge Legends, Lee Hazlewood, Revola
From: Guy Lawrence
10. CD players
From: Keith Beach
11. Re: Mystery instrumental
From: Lynn
12. Shaggs
From: Stephen M.H. Braitman
13. why we like what we like
From: Don Lonie
14. Vari-CD players
From: Phil Chapman
15. Re: Joyce Webb/Dean Christopher/Jeff Barry
From: Stuffed Animal
16. Re: Dave Clark Five's Greatest Hits
From: Billy G. Spradlin
17. Re: Bob Lind etc
From: Leonardo Flores
18. The Ballad Of Lucy Jordan
From: Dan Hughes
19. Re: the Shaggs
From: James Botticelli
20. Re: Bob Lind
From: Dan Hughes
21. Re: the Shaggs
From: Phil Milstein
22. Re: Velvet Underground . . . No, not that one!
From: Javed Jafri
23. Shaggadelick!
From: Steve Harvey
24. Re: Cutie Pop and beyond... Suggestions?
From: Kent
25. Re: so bad it's good...
From: Xavier
________________________________________________________________________
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Message: 1
Date: Fri, 01 Nov 2002 18:03:22 -0000
From: Neil Hever
Subject: Re: AMERICA AND THE BRITISH INVASION.... a more serious view...
Richard Tearle wrote:
> But knowing that many bluesmen came over here and couldn't
> understand why they had adulation here and nothing in their
> own country rings true. Also, one of my favourite artists,
> Bonnie Raitt, has often championed the cause of (mainly)
> blues artists who have been denied royalties; again, this
> lends a little credence (no pun intended) to what Louise
> has said.
Richard et al, In the US there was a well documented revival
of interest in American roots music including blues artists
sparked no doubt by the British invasion and by great American
bands like CCR. Indeed, many people took the time to re-trace
the roots of the current rock offerings and found artists like
Muddy Waters and Howlin' Wolf again. Regarding royalty payments
for black blues men and proto-rockers, the history of it is
truly shameful. However, I still do not see any kind of
conspiracy there - just poor business acumen on the part of many
musicians, who through no fault of their own, were fleeced by
unscrupulous managers and handlers. Even Jimi Hendrix fell prey
to this kind of outrage. A conspiracy? No. Unfortunate and
very wrong? Yes. Even Willie Dixon, one of Chicago's most savvy
blues men, took over 20 years to bring Led Zeppelin to task for
royalties!!
Best wishes,
Neil Hever
-------------------[ archived by Spectropop ]-------------------
Message: 2
Date: Fri, 01 Nov 2002 17:56:01 -0600
From: Shawn Baldwin
Subject: Re: AMERICA AND THE BRITISH INVASION.... a more serious view...
Louise:
> the British invasion, as it was called then, did an outrageous
> amount of damage to the, finally, recognized black artists of
> the times like Marvin Gaye.....
Marvin Gaye was one of the few artist that prospered during the
British Invasion, most of the major Motown artists were not affected
by the British Invasion; Martha Reeves and The Vandellas, Diana
Ross and The Supremes, The Temptations, Marvin Gaye, The Four Tops
had most of their biggest hits during the British Invasion. You know,
very little is said about The Soul Music Invasion of Britain. Yes,
some blacks acts suffered, but so did some non-black acts.
Steve H:
> Motown got a boost as well when groups like the Beatles
> started covering their tunes.
> It was also during this era that a lot of blues artists
> found their main income coming from white audiences as
> well. As Muddy Waters once said, "The only black faces
> I see at my gigs are mine and the band's".
Motown didn't need any help from the Beatles in bolstering their
records. Most of those artists ran neck and neck with the Beatles.
Another thing about black support for their artists in the 60s,
the majority of blacks didn't have money for concerts and such
as did their white counterparts. It wasn't because blacks didn't
want to support their artists - they certainly do now.
Shawn
-------------------[ archived by Spectropop ]-------------------
Message: 3
Date: Thu, 31 Oct 2002 19:54:59 -0800
From: Louise Posnick
Subject: Re: AMERICA AND THE BRITISH INVASION.... a more serious view...
Steve Harvey:
> Regarding the idea that the British Invasion was some
> conspiracy to keep black music off the air: The first
> record label to release a Beatles album wasn't Capitol
> Records, but Veejay, a black-owned label out of Chicago.
If you listen to what happened to Marvin, Chuck Berry, the
Temptations, and so many others, the real story would be
revealed to you... the only way a black-owned label was going
to be mainstream was to get on the gravy train and record a
white group... Americans were so prejudiced in those days,
that those with MONEY... not the white audiences you mentioned
(those were the kids)... were influencing music ... this is
historical and documented...black artists suffered long before
they made any money... like I said, the Brit rockers saw these
folks as their role models and you agree...it has not changed
much in some ways... the difference is now people of color have
some money too and can be influential... but in America, rarely
allowed to be powerful... it includes the music business... right
now, EMINEM is earning more money than any of the original rap
groups... this has always been the way... and always will, I am
embarrassed to say.
Richard:
> knowing that many bluesmen came over here and couldn't
> understand why they had adulation here and nothing in
> their own country rings true.
You said it... the artists couldn't believe their adulation in
Europe... that was because mostly the young would publicly applaud
their accomplishments.. I am not, at all, talking about Europe..
only America... and what I am saying is true... I wish I could
remember the name of the documentaries I saw on Public Television,
last year... but they were long and disheartening... our music
history revealed... why do you think so many jazz musicians moved
to Europe... respect and acceptance.
Neil Hever:
> .. One might say with little reference to any scientific study
> that popular black music in America experienced its greatest
> growth both artistically and economically during the 1960s.
Not according to the black artists... they were still there, but
they were struggling... I did not say they were not recording, I
am saying that just as they were making money... here came the
Beatles... we would love to believe it was all artistic, but
being in the music business for 30 years of my life in one form
or another, I can assure you, there was a lot to bringing those
guys over here... not just about them... a lot about the American
right...Americans know, more now than ever before, how our
government hurt black folks moving up... Malcolm X, Martin Luther
King, the... remember the song Night Train... listen carefully...
it was meant to have us never forget the different reasons why our
heroes were killed... some for passion, some for politics... sorry
but true... so don't be puzzled... we always kept black folks down,
even in the music business...remember, I am talking about money here,
not the faithful.
Those of you who have commented on my remarks about the British
Invasion are making valid points... and I keep reading, in your
comments, over and over again, how the white artists made sure to
bill the black artists on their tours and how the interest in black
artists was REGAINED through the British invasion... The original
artists of blues and then rock had to be INVITED to tour with the
groups that admired them... should it not have been the other way
around? Well, it wasn't... the white groups, especially the British
groups, did indeed, pay homage to the originators and the reason
they did that was because the originators were left out in the cold
by the record companies... the artists had compassion and demanded
black groups be represented... and because of their strength at the
time, they could call the shots... few black artists ever got to call
the shots when it came to their music... Berry Gordy pioneered that
ability for black artists, but even he suffered losses during the
British invasion... this discussion started because of the ongoing
discussion about who was better than whom in British rock... I just
wanted to say... to many of us it did not matter...we did not listen
or purchase or go to concerts... not that we had anything against the
artists... we just knew what the deal was and we did our best to
continue to support the American artists, both black and white, but
mostly the black artists, as they were the foundation... Elvis was
not the king of rock... there were kings of rock... Chuck Berry,
Little Richard, Fats Domino... even Elvis knew that... maybe that is
why he had such a hard time... he knew he didn't deserve all he got...
but what could he do but live the life and feel guilty... as many rich
white artists do... this is a tough discussion to have... as you are
all such cool folks, loving all the music.. but really, whether you
believe me or not, you can see by who made the bucks and got outrageous
fame... compared to the Beatles, the real heroes of Rock and Roll were
barely heard... we listen NOW, 'cause we are more aware... thanks guys...
I don't think I can say much more on this subject.
Best Regards.
Louise
-------------------[ archived by Spectropop ]-------------------
Message: 4
Date: Sat, 02 Nov 2002 11:26:10 -0000
From: Spectropop
Subject: AMERICA AND THE BRITISH INVASION.... thread closed
Admin. Note
Once in a while, Spectropop declares closed a particular
discussion thread. The recent "America & the British Invasion"
debate has been very stimulating. Indeed, your moderators have
talked about little else between themselves these last few days.
However, we feel the topic is just too deep and political to
remain within the Spectropop ambit. Our declared area of interest
is, after all, pop music, not politics, ingrained racism or blues
musicians. The discussion is extremely valid and important, and
should continue, but in a more appropriate place.
So, dear members, please sustain the discourse elsewhere, or among
yourselves, but as far as the Spectropop Forum is concerned, the
"America & the British Invasion" discussion thread is now closed.
The Spectropop Team
-------------------[ archived by Spectropop ]-------------------
Message: 5
Date: Sat, 02 Nov 2002 10:06:36 -0000
From: Eddy Smit
Subject: Phil Spector
Apparently Phil Spector is back in business. Not only does he seem
to be producing the new Starsailor album, The Vines seem to have him
lined up for their next album as well.
Eddy
-------------------[ archived by Spectropop ]-------------------
Message: 6
Date: Sat, 02 Nov 2002 07:16:41 EST
From: Barry Green
Subject: Re: made to be bad B sides
I thought i'd throw in some examples from the 'Immediate' label,
the sixties brainchild of Andrew Loog Oldham and Tony Calder.
Andrew being a big fan of Phil Spector took a leaf out of his
book by placing instrumental tracks on many of the early single
'B' sides. Most of these were also credited to Oldham as the
writer. They sound in fact like backing tracks and the 'A' side
artist clearly did not feature on these tracks. Some examples
of the artists with the relevant 'B' sides are below
IM004 Gregory Philips - That's The One
IM009 Factotums - Run In The Green & Tangerine Flaked Forest
IM010 Golden Apples of the Sun - Chocolate Rolls Tea & Monopoly
IM025 Charles Dickens - Our Soul Brother Th
Then the was the spoken 'B' side with Rick Derringer introducing
the members of the McCoys and only lasted 1 min 37 secs
IM076 The McCoys - This Is Where We Came In
There was also a 'reversed' backing track used as the 'B' side
to the Marquis of Kensington single
IM052 Marquis of Kensington's Minstrels - Reverse Thrust
1 min 56 secs
Then there was the 'B' side of Fleetwood Mac's 'Man of the World'
which gave Jeremy Spencer the chance to 'shine' in his finest
Rock and Roll parody. Which in fact is so bad that it's good.
IM080 Earl Vince and the Valiants - Somebody's Gonna Get Their
Head Kicked In Tonite
And finally the USA only single release by 'The Hill' which must
have one of the strangest names for a 'B' side instrumental
ZS7 5016 The Hill - The Fourth Annual Convention Of The Battery
Hen Farmers Association Part II..(not sure what happened to Part 1?)
All in all Immediate seem to have covered most bases during their
4 years in business from 1965 to 1969.
All the best
Barry
-------------------[ archived by Spectropop ]-------------------
Message: 7
Date: Fri, 01 Nov 2002 21:00:10 EST
From: Lynn
Subject: Re: Cryin'
I continue to be in awe of some of the discussions here.
Just when you think you must be the only person in the world
who likes a certain little-known song or has some inane/
profound thought about life or music or whatever, you find
another person who shares the same taste or has had the same
thought. And amazingly, it is not just ONE person here that
I seem to have things in common with, but SEVERAL! Hmm...
I have spent a good deal of time in recent years trying to
pinpoint WHAT it is about the songs I am especially fond of
that makes me so fond of them. I even made a list of no less
than 10 things that have appealed to me about one song or
another - things like harmony or lyrics or even the "underdog
factor". I guess at one time I had hoped to use this list to
determine what my very favorite song of all-time is. I guess
it's not surprising that I never found one song that had all
10 things on my list, but there are many that had 8 out of the
10. In retrospect, I don't think one can really quantify
something like this. I decided to say that I have lots of
"favorite songs", many of which have moved me to tears. I
hesitate to mention any by name, since they are sort of personal
and I doubt that many other people would feel the same about
my choices. However, I have so many kindred spirits here, I
doubt anyone would respond with an "Eeeeew! You like THAT song???"
So, here are a few in my "Beautiful/Move Me To Tears" category:
"A Friend of Mine Is Going Blind" by John Dawson Read, "Dust
in the Wind" by Kansas, "Vincent" by Don McLean, "If I Fell"
by the Beatles, "Brooklyn Roads" by Neil Diamond.
::sticking my fingers in my ears to avoid any stifled guffaws
that may be escaping someone's well-meaning lips::
Of course, I have other categories, such as the "Rockin'/Kick
Ass Numbers", "Silly/Demented", and the "So Bad That I Actually
Like It" topic discussed earlier this week. Like a few others
who have posted here, I have the DC5's Greatest Hits ("Because"
is one of my all-time faves)and the Royal Guardsmen's Greates
Hits ("Baby, Let's Wait"). And I always liked "Leaning on the
Lamp" and "Just A Little Bit Better" by Herman's Hermits.
Okay, Spectropoppers, I have another "Name That Tune" sort of
question for you. This is difficlut because it is an instrumental,
either 50's or 60's. It is basically a piano piece, although
there is a part with strings in the middle. The overall effect
is of raindrops, with the melody moving down the scale. It must
have been used in a movie at some time, but I have no idea which
one. The best I can do to explain it is to give you the first
line using piano notes, for the Key of C, in 2/4 time:
1 and 2 and 1 and 2 and 1 and 2 and
A G G F F E
1 and 2 and 1 and 2 and 1 and 2 and
E B C E D D
I hope this isn't as idiotic as it looks!
Lynn
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Message: 8
Date: Sat, 02 Nov 2002 12:17:55 -0000
From: Mick Patrick
Subject: Re: made to be bad B sides
Phil Milstein:
> A call for title submissions: ...B-sides made to prompt programmers'
> to air only the A's...bent creativity...deliberately bad songs, off-
> key singing and playing, studio noises, idiotic titles, offensive
> lyrics, etc.
Jeff Lemlich:
> Allow me to add "(Love Me) Now" by the Angels to the list. The flip
> side of "My Boyfriend's Back" supposedly features the lovely sounds
> of trash cans being flipped over among other creative bits of percussion.
A perfect example. An unbastardized version of "(Love Me) Now" was
contained on the Angels' "My Boyfriend's Back" long-player, proving
that the 45 release was deliberately spoiled to prevent broadcast.
The un-wrecked version is featured on the group's great "Best Of" CD
released by Mercury/Chronicles a few years back. The UK issue of that
CD, on Universal's budget Spectrum logo, is a great bargain at about
5 or 6 quid. But you all knew that, right? The rendition with added
bangs and crashes is to be obtained only on the original single, not
a tough one to find.
Peggy Santiglia, what a goddess! I very clearly spotted her singing
on a track by the Toys just recently.
MICK PATRICK
-------------------[ archived by Spectropop ]-------------------
Message: 9
Date: Fri, 18 Oct 2002 05:05:38 -0700
From: Guy Lawrence
Subject: Re: Lounge Legends, Lee Hazlewood, Revola
Vincent Degiorgio wrote:
> Any idea where a complete list of the Lounge Legends
> series can be found ?
Hi Vincent, try http://www.loungelegends.de
I've checked with the UK distributor and Ace's Lee Hazlewood
CD should definitely be in the shops on Monday. The Ace
website has yet to be updated at the time of writing.
As well as the Blades Of Grass (out now) and the Moon CD
(due in two weeks) there are four more exciting releases due
from Revola on November 25th.
Details should be at http://www.cherryred.co.uk
Joe has been busy!
Regards,
Guy Lawrence.
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Message: 10
Date: Sat, 02 Nov 2002 14:58:58 -0000
From: Keith Beach
Subject: CD players
I've looked through recent postings but I can't find the one
where Phil Chapman suggested 2 CDplayers that would adjust
the speed of a CD without changing the pitch etc....I'm not
going mad am I?
Anyway. Today I found this bit of software which would seem
to fit the bill cheaply. It's called 'Amazing Slow Downer'
and can be found at http://www.ronimusic.com/
keith beach
-------------------[ archived by Spectropop ]-------------------
Message: 11
Date: Sat, 02 Nov 2002 11:11:49 EST
From: Lynn
Subject: Re: Mystery instrumental
Oops!
I just read my post about the "raindrop" instrumental and my
lame attempt to write the notes beneath the measure didn't work.
I'll try again:
1 and 2 and 1 and 2 and 1 and 2 and
A_______G___G_______F___F_______E
1 and 2 and 1 and 2 and 1 and 2 and
E_____B_C___E_______D___D
Maybe someone can decipher it and help me.
Lynn
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Message: 12
Date: Sat, 02 Nov 2002 10:00:21 -0800
From: Stephen M.H. Braitman
Subject: Shaggs
Oh man, The Shaggs. Found a copy of the original LP for $2
some years ago at an SF record store. Inside was a tear sheet
review of the Rounder Records reissue - they obviously thought
they were selling the reissue!
-------------------[ archived by Spectropop ]-------------------
Message: 13
Date: Sat, 02 Nov 2002 12:20:07 -0800
From: Don Lonie
Subject: why we like what we like
If I could figure out why I like what i like, maybe I could
teach myself to dislike things that I feel like I shouldn't
like so much. For instance, I joined this list originally
years ago because of The Free Design. I still can't figure
out why music with such insipid lyrics is so addictive. I do
listen to a fair bit of music without lyrics but there are
large areas of my taste where lyrics are pretty important.
Generally the only time I can handle bad lyrics is when I
can't really hear them, which is often the case with me. But
that doesn't work with The Free Design because the lyrics are
very clear. And while I'm on the topic of lyrics, there are
many mysteries there. I tell myself that I don't like lyrics
that are too obvious. A good example would be "Sometimes when
we touch". The next line "The honesty's too much" gets my vote
for the worst lyric of all time. On the other hand, I love
classic country music of the fifties and sixties in spite of
the fact that those lyrics are often "on the nose" or a bit
too obvious. I wonder if Johnny Cash could have gotten away
with a lyric like "the honesty's too much". If he'd somehow
slipped that line into the song "I still miss someone", could
he have made it work?
This is way too big a topic to be definitive but it's nice to
try anyway.
DL
-------------------[ archived by Spectropop ]-------------------
Message: 14
Date: Sat, 02 Nov 2002 18:48:47 -0000
From: Phil Chapman
Subject: Vari-CD players
Keith:
> CD players that would adjust the speed of a CD
> without changing the pitch etc....
Hi Keith, of the two links I posted only one of
them actually says it will time-stretch (i.e.
change pitch not tempo, and vice versa)
http://www.freefolk.com/cdplayer.htm
I can't ascertain if the others have that feature:
http://www.progressive-concepts.com/25.html
Here's some other software that will enable
computer-housed CD players to do what you want.
http://www.otsjuke.com/press/2001nov15.html
Phil
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Message: 15
Date: Sat, 02 Nov 2002 19:05:49 +0000
From: Stuffed Animal
Subject: Re: Joyce Webb/Dean Christopher/Jeff Barry
From: Davie Gordon, Subject: Joyce Webb:
> I've been researching the career of Joyce Webb and noticed that
> she recorded "I Don't Wanna Be Left Outside" (Greenwich - Rashkow)
> for Columbia ( 44845, 1969). Production is credited to "Dean
> Christopher for LK Productions.
Joyce Webb also released a great Jeff Barry/Ellie Greenwich two-sider on ABC
Records' Probe subsidiary: "I Don't Want Nobody If I Can't Have You" b/w "I
Believe In Love." It was issued between 1968 and 1970. Dean Christopher
(brother of Jeff Barry's wife Nancy Cal Cagno), produced this one, too. DC
worked as a staff arranger at Steed Records, and I know of two other records
he produced: "You Made Me A Man" by the Neal Ford Company (ABC) and "Mister
Music Man" by The Mission (Ranwood).
Speaking of Jeff Barry-related music, can anyone tell me who produced a
wonderful UK cover version of "Wait 'Til My Bobby Gets Home?" The label, I
believe, was either HMV or Columbia, and the artist was Beverley Jones.
Also, who produced Ricky Valance's chart-topping UK cover of "Tell Laura I
Love Her?"
Stuffed Animal
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Message: 16
Date: Sat, 02 Nov 2002 20:18:46 -0000
From: Billy G. Spradlin
Subject: Re: Dave Clark Five's Greatest Hits
On the Audities mailing list we had a thread about "What was the
First Power Pop Song" and while The Who's "I Can't Explain" was my
choice I put "Any Way You Want It" on my Honorable Mention list.
The DC5's Greatest Hits on Epic is an excellent album! My only gripe
is that it's only around 23 minutes long, but my copy the grooves
were mastered W-I-D-E to cram all that noise onto the vinyl.
-------------------[ archived by Spectropop ]-------------------
Message: 17
Date: Sat, 02 Nov 2002 20:27:30 -0000
From: Leonardo Flores
Subject: Re: Bob Lind etc
Previously:
> I think it was entitled "The Elusive Bob Lind". When we got home I
> remember my brother and I searching high and low for "Elusive
> Butterfly" and being disappointed on it not being included.
I found that LP at the thrift store and was quite confused by that
title as well, because I already had the World Pacific LP. One of my
favorite Bob Lind songs "White Snow" is on that Lp, even tough the
rhythm is off a bit, but it kind of adds to the somberness of the
songs. Bob Lind's music was creepy to begin with and even without Jack
Nitzsche production it still had that Bob Lind sound. Jack and Lind
made a great pair for producing and writing music, they fit together
so well. I've been dying to hear the 4th LP on Capital but it's very
tough to find. The good thing is that a lot of people covered his songs,
Thanks!
Leonardo Flores
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Message: 18
Date: Sat, 02 Nov 2002 14:42:39 -0600
From: Dan Hughes
Subject: The Ballad Of Lucy Jordan
CP sez:
>...[I find Marianne Faithfull's] "Ballad of Lucy Brown" chilling and
> brilliant.
This fabulous Shel Silverstein song was actually the Ballad of Lucy
Jordan. Gotcha!
---Dan
By the way, have you heard the version by Dr. Hook? Wonderful stuff.
-------------------[ archived by Spectropop ]-------------------
Message: 19
Date: Sat, 02 Nov 2002 14:50:16 -0500
From: James Botticelli
Subject: Re: the Shaggs
Phil Milstein:
> Their name, by the way, was in reference not to a
> hairstyle but to the Disney movie The Shaggy Dog.
The Shag was an early 7T's haircut, also a cult dance
on the Beach Music scene. Weren't the Shaggs mid 6T's?
-------------------[ archived by Spectropop ]-------------------
Message: 20
Date: Sat, 02 Nov 2002 16:31:16 -0600
From: Dan Hughes
Subject: Re: Bob Lind
Don't remember if anyone mentioned this, but the Elusive Bob
Lind album was a bunch of tracks he recorded long before he
did Elusive Butterfly. When he had his hit, suddenly there
was a market for the earlier recordings. So clever to
purposefully mislead the public (with that Elusive Bob Lind
title) into thinking this was the new album rather than tapes
from the beginning of his career.
-Dan
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Message: 21
Date: Sat, 02 Nov 2002 20:01:25 +0000
From: Phil Milstein
Subject: Re: the Shaggs
James Botticelli wrote:
> The Shag was an early 7T's haircut, also a cult dance
> on the Beach Music scene. Weren't the Shaggs mid 6T's?
I believe Philosophy Of The World was recorded in '69. It
received a fair amount of airplay at the time on WBCN in
Boston, until a DJ there played it for a visiting Frank
Zappa, who was impressed enough to steal the station's only
copy, stopping its airplay dead in its "tracks."
Who knows where, absent that criminal event, the 'BCN
momentum might have led! Only kidding, of course; in fact,
it was a moot point, as the pressing was so small (the
family believes the 25 or 50 that they received were the
only ones made, although that account was recently disputed
by the label owner) that no copies were available for sale.
Following the Zappa caper the album went even deeper under
ground, enjoying only very minor cult interest, primarily in
the Patti Smith Group camp, until the early '80s, when NRBQ
reissued it via Rounder Records. Upon that reissue it became
an instant cult classic, and has been regaining its lost
momentum ever since.
A New Yorker article about two years ago stimulated Tom
Cruise's production company to buy the film rights attached
to the article. With uncharacteristic boneheadedness,
however (as Cruise is ordinarily nothing if not savvy about
choosing projects), the company promoted that largely
unnecessary licensing deal before securing the rights to
either The Shaggs' story directly or to their music.
Outwitting Cruise, the family rode a small bidding war until
finally licensing the properties to a competing company,
Artisan Entertainment, of Blair Witch Project fame and
wealth. A writer-director was hired, and the project was
moving forward until the events of Sept. 11 '01 knocked it
off-course. I don't know where it stands now, and personally
I'd be thrilled if it never got made.
By the way, the Shag dance actually dates to the late '40s!
--Phil M.
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Message: 22
Date: Sun, 03 Nov 2002 21:35:04 -0500
From: Javed Jafri
Subject: Re: Velvet Underground . . . No, not that one!
From Phil Milstein:
> The Land Down Under appears in some ways to have been an alternate
> pop universe, at the same time both attached to and detached from
> the wider Western pop world. In the late '60s they too had a
> Velvet Underground, a band which has since claimed (and no one's
> disputing it) that they were unaware of the existence of the U.S.
> band of the same name. How they came up with their's, however, I
> don't know.
Wasn't The Aussi VU an early incarnation of ACDC ?
Javed
-------------------[ archived by Spectropop ]-------------------
Message: 23
Date: Sat, 02 Nov 2002 18:50:28 -0800 (PST)
From: Steve Harvey
Subject: Shaggadelick!
Yes, the Shag was a various of the jitterbug done on
southern states like the Carolinas and Georgia. Like
the jitterbug (which continued with 50s rock and
roll)it transcended the big band era and ended up
being done to what is now known as "beach music".
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Message: 24
Date: Sun, 03 Nov 2002 03:02:46 -0000 (GMT)
From: Kent
Subject: Re: Cutie Pop and beyond... Suggestions?
Previously:
> About seven years ago, seven separate "Cutie Pop" volumes were issued.
> Each was on a seperate Japanese label (lets see: King, Nippon Columbia,
> Tokuma, I'm forgetting the others).
I have a broader question about Japanese 60s/70s pop. Any Spectropoppers
have recommendations of material from this period? I'm specifically
looking for 60s/70s Japanese "equivalents" (even loosely) to:
French ye-ye/go-go girl pop (ie: France Gall, stuff on the Ultrachicks
collections).
Lusher, orchestrated Euro (esp. French) pop (esp. moodier stuff like
Francoise Hardy circa late 60s-early 70s or Iranian singer Googoosh)
Girl groups (Shangri-Las) or quieter, breathy Spector style (a la Paris
Sisters).
Are there any good info sources (websites or mailing lists) dealing with
older Japanese pop? Most Japanese music sites seem to concentrate
exclusively on modern J-Pop sadly. Any tips in this realm would be highly
appreciated. There's not a lot of (English) information out there.
Cheers,
Kent
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Message: 25
Date: Sat, 02 Nov 2002 19:03:12 -0800 (PST)
From: Xavier
Subject: Re: so bad it's good...
Indeed, who knows why people do like things they shouldn't,
or don't like things they should...I actually can't stand
The Shaggs, despite many of my sensible friends loving them.
However, I love Mrs. Miller and Shooby Taylor to death, and
get a sadistic thrill in subjecting people to them (provided
they aren't armed at the time). And who can forget the
Portsmouth Sinfonia's take on "Pinball Wizard"?? Or...anything
by Harvey Sid Fisher?
Does anyone remember the group Bowser and Blue who did
"Polka Dot Undies"? Legend has it that it was actually
Bob Dylan doing a Bob Dylan parody...
Dementedly,
Xavier
=====
"Extraordinary how potent cheap music is." --Noel Coward
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