Synthesizer Patel

i quite like this album, but i don't like jeff tweedy's production on it. it's way too safe. it's like the musical equivalent of smearing vasaline on the camera lense - and you don't need to do that with her voice. i think i'm comparing it to "don't give up on me" by solomon burke, and it doesn't stand up to that in its production; also the dixie hummingbirds "diamond jubilation" - both those seemed a lot more vitalized. oh, and the johnny cash work with rick rubin.

if i'm going to love the show, i'd expect it to be songs from the new album, or from an album that is about to come out (especially if it means i haven't heard them before) - and then a few well known tracks for an encore. if a band is going to play a lot of old songs, i'd expect them to be rearranged enough that they sound new. i also expect the set to be no longer than 1 hour 30 mins. if you can do all that for me, i'm happy.

http://stereogum.com/507781/neil-young-angry-world-video-stereogum-premiere/top-stories/lead-story/ the video for Angry World. it is utterly terrible. be warned. the music is bad, and the lyrics just made me laugh. it seems like he just has to make music; ok, fair enough neil - my dog has to take a shit each day - that's why i take him for a walk in the woods, i don't invite all my friends and family around the house to watch him do it. so take a break for a bit; do that shit in private, and when something worthwhile enters your head and makes it on to tape - then release it. by the way, i

What if Lou Reed thought it was foolish too, but still went ahead and done it? You're not gonna tell me he didn't know Metal Machine Music was foolish, but he still went ahead and made it! So, you see, he had set a precedent right there.

If I'm right about this story, Susan Boyle said she'd not sing another song and so went home. Am I right about that? If I am, then this is the only person with integrity I can see. Even if she is bad to listen to. Look at this pile of shit Lou made to promote the BBC And, you need to understand here, the BBC is funded in the UK by paying a license fee, which is mandatory for anyone owning a tv in a house, therefore we funded it - for what reason? Do you really need to promote a channel that you have to pay for whether you watch it or not? The c$£t!

"This Is England 86" actually started on British TV last night. It's a four part - 1 hour - show, seeing what the characters are up to in 1986. It's the World Cup Year, which is why they chose that year, apparently (I heard he might do one for 90 too, in the future) - I also think the backdrop of the world cup and Maradona's "hand of god" goal against england will probably feature at some point, as the film had The Falkland's War, so it will tie in nicely. I thought it was really good tv, perhaps not as immediately engaging as the film, but then this gives him more room to explore the charact

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yGk2TojOd-4 four lions did this film make it across the atlantic yet?

I've got Jimmie Spheeris on cd - it's fantastic. I've not heard of Maffitt/Davies - so I'm searching now for that - the cover looks like it'll be cool, anyway. Thanks NP

I'm sure you are the American me. You listen to 90% of the same things, and, whilst others will say it's no good, I commend you for it! I love those 2 Ronee Blakely albums - got some fantastic songs on them, and that Dillards album is one of my favourite rock/pop/bluegrass albums - I assume you've got/heard Copperfields too? That's the other one of their albums which is great.

Don't stop there! They are pretty much fantastic right up to and including Life In A Tin Can, actually also Main Course is pretty special too for the start of the disco sound (well on some tracks). NP.

anyone else seen this? bob dylan mono box set everything up to and including john wesley harding in mono. sounds pretty cool, but seeing as how i've only just finished upgrading my old cds to the stereo remasters, i doubt i can be bothered with this.

just to change things up a bit. i was re-reading Huckleberry Finn the other week and i found the line "the wind was trying to whisper something to me and I couldn't make out what it was". wouldn't it be good if "love and theft" turned out to be completely made up of stolen lines from books?

the way you keep saying that, it makes it seem like i said what you think i said, rather than what i actually said. even i am starting to doubt myself. anyway, as for reading about dylan - Chronicles (as Shakespeare said) is a brilliant book to read, forget about if you want to know anything about dylan or not. also, i really love Invisible Republic - i think you could read either of those books and enjoy them, and still come away knowing nothing concrete about dylan - which is a good thing.

in that interview doesn't he also say he likes manfred mann covers of his songs best, or have i got that wrong?

ok, i thought you wre waiting for me to explain myself all over again.

good edit: hang on, you changed that from YES, and then to "Yes, but only after your clarification." - you can't do that!

do you agree with me, then?

i wasn't including dylan, himself - just everyone else covering it. when american acts covered his songs it was often like they had huge gloves on with a pointy finger - and every time they sang something, they'd all point at it and go "groovey, and radical lyrics man!"

hmmm. good question. i know i've got manfred mann doing "with god on our side" and "if you gotta go" on an old ep - from about 65. the hollies did a lot of dylan covers too, maybe they did an earlier one, although i doubt it. i think bands like fairport convention & fotheringay etc... did have their own songs - i think they just loved dylan more than trying to get a hit.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U8VyS_x6IBk yeah, great stuff! those drums and bass are fandabidozi. i think the brits back then just treated them like good songs with a good melody, rather than treating the lyrics as being more important than everything else. don't know if that makes sense?

i think the british in the 60s did the best dylan covers. fairport convention did a load, manfred mann, pretty much every one. this is a good cover by heron of john brown http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oEYlKEbrAxY

be very careful with people selling them cheap. there are loads of cheap chinese knock-offs being sold. i actually bought one, and fortunately the person gave me the money back, after i proved to him it was fake - you might not be so lucky. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VPBHT_O2_NU that shows the fake, and i got my fake from amazon, so it's not just ebay apart from that - the mono box set is the best version to get. for the sound and for the packaging etc...

memo to my son - randy newman What have you done to the mirror? What have you done to the floor? Can't I go nowhere without you? Can't I leave you alone any more? I know you don't think much of me But someday you'll understand Wait'll you learn how to talk baby I'll show you how smart I am A quitter never wins A winner never quits When the going gets tough The tough get going Maybe you don't know how to walk baby Maybe you can't talk none either Maybe you never will, baby But I'll always love you I'll always love you