// Nothing like a new CD to stimulate the discussion...I kinda like 
// having enough to do a digest every night!
// Enjoy...[BP]

_________________________________________________________________


Subject: NN: DBS and other things
   Date: Wed, 15 Sep 1999 00:03:02 EDT
   From: RITIME@aol.com

Although I've been a member of this list for quite some time, I've never 
posted before,so I guess it is about time. First off, DBS is absolutely 
wonderful. I've had it for less than 24 hrs now and have no idea how many 
times it has been played already. I think it ties for first place as my 
favorite Nanci CD with the other 14. Anyway, I just wanted to take a minute 
to thank everyone for their input, there is so much new music that I have 
found simply by reading others opinions here. Bill Lukesh, a personal thank 
you for all the good laughs. BTW, I did get to meet Nanci in Lubbock a couple 
of weeks ago, and although I had your script commited to memory, she walked 
into a well lighted reception room which I, (and a few dozen other people) 
were already in. With the initial shadow concept gone, all I could do was 
sputter a "hello" as I shook her hand. Oh well, I did get an autograph, But I 
think my date was frightened as I screeched "I got it!!! I got it!!! all the 
way back to Amarillo. Oh well, like they say, "There's always next time".   

Terry "often in error, seldom in doubt" Griffith

_________________________________________________________________


Subject: Re: NN: Re:Last Night at the Wolf Trap
   Date: Tue, 14 Sep 1999 21:39:32 -0700
   From: Lance Beizer (LKB@gte.net>

Donate wrote:
> My name is perhaps uncommon not only here
> in the U.S. but in Germany as well.  It is a Germanized version of the Latin
> word "donata", which means "the gift/the given" (I was the first girl after 6
> boys......).   [Lance Beizer, you may want to jump in here with your Latin
> expertise and try to correct me (just know that I, too, studied Latin for 
> 7 years!!!! :)]

I certainly wouldn't want to take issue with your characterization, but
perhaps it would flesh it out a bit to point out that the word is not a
noun per se (just a little more Latin :-)), but the feminine form of a past
participle used as a noun -- in other words a female who has been given to
someone -- the implication being, I think, that she is a gift from God.
Does that fit you, Donate?

Ave atque vale,

Lance
-- 
Lance Beizer
P.O. Box 1121
Campbell CA  95009-1121
(408) 374-7458 (H)
(408) 792-2751 (W)
(408) 299-3101 (Fax)

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Subject: NN: MM, D.I.S.C.O., DBS
   Date: Wed, 15 Sep 1999 09:50:27 +0100
   From: Pugsley, R.M." (rmp6@leicester.ac.uk>

Donate kindly wrote:
(((Perhaps, we won't find many Marilyn Manson fans -- but
then again, we might be surprised.   Of course, Robert Pugsley will surely
outdo everyone with his expertise in Pakistani Qwalli music (awesome
stuff!).>>>

It is awesome too. We did have a MM fan here not long ago, Troy
where are you when we need your opinion most?  (He was quite a
disco fan too, I'd like to have heard his take on "revisited").  While we're
on the subject just what is people 'hate' about discodance music?
And what's happened to Poetmuse, long time no hear?

Also the cover to DBS really is nice, does anyone know if this is a one
off thing for Suzanne Clark or does she do this for a living?

All the best,

Robert
"Oh, for a few years, maybe many years it will be considered passé and
ridiculous. It will be misrepresented in caricature and sneered at. Or
worse, completely ignored....Those who didn't understand will never
understand; Disco was much more, and much better than all that. Disco was
too great and too much fun to be gone forever, it's got to come back some
day. I just hope it will be in our life times..."
Josh in 'The Last Days Of Disco'

_________________________________________________________________


Subject: NN: Re: MM, D.I.S.C.O., DBS
   Date: Wed, 15 Sep 1999 12:28:48 +0200
   From: "Hans Janssen" (hjanssen@mail.dotcom.fr>

> Also the cover to DBS really is nice, does anyone know if this is a one
> off thing for Suzanne Clark or does she do this for a living?

Suzanne Clark did the painting of the shirt on Guy's first LP in 1975, but
if she is a professional painter I don't know.

met vriendlijke groeten,

Hans Janssen.

See: http://listen.to/Tish and http://fly.to/nanci

_________________________________________________________________


Subject: Re: NN: Re: Dustbowl Pictures
   Date: Wed, 15 Sep 1999 07:55:33 EDT
   From: "Tracy Applebaum" (poohbear512@hotmail.com>

It's interesting reading. Especially...the part where Nanci answers the
question about what's next after Dustbowl, "It'll be a new Nanci Griffith
album, with no hoopla," she says with some humor. "I'm already writing.

Am I totally losing it or did I just read in the FAQ that Nanci was not 
releasing any more albumsm, at least for a long time, after OV2?

Tracy

_________________________________________________________________


Subject: Re: NN: Re: Dustbowl Pictures
   Date: Wed, 15 Sep 1999 09:57:19 -0700 (PDT)
   From: John Alvord (jalvo@mbay.net>

Tracy Applebaum wrote:

> It's interesting reading. Especially...the part where Nanci answers the
> question about what's next after Dustbowl, "It'll be a new Nanci Griffith
> album, with no hoopla," she says with some humor. "I'm already writing.
> 
> Am I totally losing it or did I just read in the FAQ that Nanci was not 
> releasing any more albumsm, at least for a long time, after OV2?

Superficially, Nanci seems to have been in a "now I am retiring" mode for
quite some time. This was pretty clear from Flyer onward.

I personally think that she was feeling pretty bad after breast cancer and
then thyroid cancer treatment. I suspect she felt a lot like retiring. But
now she feels better and has decided to roll along.

john alvord

_________________________________________________________________


Subject: NN: Re: Re: Dustbowl Pictures
   Date: Wed, 15 Sep 1999 07:20:00 -0500
   From: "Virginia" (ginrose@midsouth.rr.com>

> According to her record company's (elektra) website
> http://www.elektra.com/retro/griffith/index.html
> painter/songwriter Susanna Clark (wife of Guy Clark) is given credit for the
> cover of the album.

The article really was interesting. I was puzzled at the form at the top of
the page : "Enter your email address and zip code to join the exclusive
Nanci Griffith mailing list!" Is that for NanciNet or another mail list?

In the article Nanci says, "I decided it was time to pay tribute to my own
songs, to give them the opportunity to mature and be adult. I think we
really succeeded in making these songs what they were meant to be. And now
that it's done, it has turned out to be my favorite album." My copy hasn't
arrived yet, and I can't wait to see if it'll become my favorite.

Hugs,
Gin

// Unfortunately, it doesn't lead folks to this list...yet. [BP]

_________________________________________________________________


Subject: NN: Nanci on Letterman
   Date: Wed, 15 Sep 1999 06:47:44 -0700
   From: "Susan Krauss" (susankrauss@earthlink.net>

So who was that guy singing with Nanci?  She said Bill at the end - was it
Bill Lloyd?  I fast forwarded through Letterman to hear the song and may
have missed something in the intro. I also missed a few messages in the
transition from digest to single posts (I always go on digest when
travelling).

susan
mailto:susankrauss@earthlink.net

_________________________________________________________________


Subject: NN: Re: listening to DBS
   Date: Wed, 15 Sep 1999 10:20:33 EDT
   From: PRobin5478@aol.com

Dear List --

I've listened to DBS a couple of times and think that it is, largely, a BIG 
SUCCESS.

The orchestral settings are lovely and unobtrusive.  The album gives us all a 
new opportunity to enjoy some of Nanci's best songs.  (Of course, I have a 
few quibbles.  I would've swapped Waiting for Love and the Frank Christian 
song for other songs.  Maybe Nanci wants to throw some royalty $$ Frank 
Christian's way.  Darius R. can go back to the bars.)

Of course, I want a new NG album with all new songs soon.  But this will hold 
me for awhile and spend a lot of time in the CD player.

Can't wait to play it for my wife: she'll love it.

Peter in SoCal 

_________________________________________________________________


Subject: Re: NN: Re: listening to DBS
   Date: Wed, 15 Sep 1999 19:56:33 -0500
   From: Jackie (j.klinnert@att.net>

I just received DBS in the mail today. (Thank you Bill Lavery at Village
Records).

My husband and I have only listened to it once, but we both agree it's
going to be listened to again and again. I even like Darius Rucker. Of
course, I always have, so I am admittedly biased when it comes to his
various duets with Nanci. I think I'll like listening to it while I'm on
the computer.

The only one I'm not sure of is the last one - Drops From the Faucet.

Also, thank you to the person who reminded us about the Other Voices,
Too video. I found it at Mediaplay today, and I enjoyed that much more
than the OV2 Audio CD.

Jackie

_________________________________________________________________


Subject: Re: NN: Re: listening to DBS
   Date: Wed, 15 Sep 1999 21:27:31 -0700
   From: snownobile@earthlink.net

I'm glad you enjoyed the video.  I sure did.  Did your copy have a few white
spots of snow here and there, and a few skips where it looked like the tape
stopped and started while recording?
Just wondering.

    Kathy

_________________________________________________________________


Subject: Re: NN: OV2, DBS
   Date: Wed, 15 Sep 1999 10:46:04 EDT
   From: "Tracy Applebaum" (poohbear512@hotmail.com>

>OV2 video is not the same songs as the CD, it has The Road To Aberdeen,
>which I had pretty much given up on ever finding here in the states.
>
> Is this the first day for the video also?  Have any of the rest of
>you seen it yet?

THANK YEW!!!  Oh my gosh I had completely forgotten about the video; today 
I'm going straight back to the store to get it!

OK, my opinion fo DBS.  Feel free to disagree; I love nanci-related debates! 
When I saw her on Letterman last night I thought, "This sounds AWFUL!  
Maybe I shouldn't even buy this album if it's just giong to be 14 songs of 
THIS" That guy's duet vocal was awful, and the clarinet part just didn't 
work for me; it sounded ridiculous on that song, trying to be overdone but 
not even succeeding in that.  But, being the Nanci fanatic that I am, I went 
and bought the album (which was filed under "ROCK" under "Nancy Griffith" 
but anyway I did find it.  Well, you know Iris Dement's assessment of Nanci 
music from the OVOR video?  "The more I listened to it, the more I liked it, 
then I got to where I liked it so much I couldn't turn it off."  Well that's 
exactly how this album was for me. The first few songs I was thinking, "What 
is she THINKING with this?" (though I did love the additional erses to WATW) 
but by IAHL I was really into it, this CD had launched itself into my "can't 
get enough" collection.  "Drops from the Faucet" has yet tp get beyond the 
"This is AWFUL" stage, though.  Ir's too...slick, like what you'd hear in 
the bar of a hotel, I don't really know how to say this but the style just 
doesn't suit her, IMO.  Tell Me How was classic Buddy Holly--good but in a 
corny kind of way, not like IAHL or some of those really powerful, really 
meaningful songs.  But 1937 Pre War Kimball was EXCELLENT! (I'll shut up n a 
minute; I know y'all must be really tired of my all-caps opinions here) But 
I think without a doubt that song was written to honor her musical 
influences, to say thank you in the most profound way for all they had done 
to steer her into the career dshe's enjoyed so long.  It also matches with 
her honoring Susanna Clark's painting by putting it on the cover, and all 
the wonderfully nice things she said about SC in the liner notes.

As always, just MHO but if anyone doesn't have this album yet, GO BUY IT!

Tracy "oh yeah, I have to get to class; I can't listen to Nanci all day" 
Applebaum

_________________________________________________________________


Subject: NN: disco
   Date: Wed, 15 Sep 1999 10:53:59 EDT
   From: "Tracy Applebaum" (poohbear512@hotmail.com>

>While we're
>on the subject just what is people 'hate' about discodance music?

Hi, it's me again.  I don't know, I guess...disco-type music doesn't really 
seem like MUSIC to me, it's too artificial.  Sometimes I do liek to listen 
to it, very briefly, before going on to "real" music.  It just doesn't have 
the integrity of being able to think of smeone's fingers physically getting 
blstered all up and down the neck of a guitar, and you could never recreate 
it without a big-time synthesizar.  But, as soon as REVISITED does come out 
for realm if ti does, I'll gie it a listen.  If anyone can change my mind, 
it's Nanci...

Tracy

_________________________________________________________________


Subject: NN: Kentucky dates.
   Date: Wed, 15 Sep 1999 10:02:07 -0500 (EST)
   From: Peter A Kaczmarczyk (pkaczmar@indiana.edu>

        Awhile back someone posted that Nanci will be playing a few dates
in Kentucky around mid October. Does anyone know if these will be symphony
dates, BMO dates, or some combination thereof? Any information would be
appreciated. Thanks.

        Peter "listening to DBS" K.

// According to the aforementioned Electra site:
//	10/14 - Lexington, KY - Kentucky Theatre 
//      10/15 - Ashland, KY - Paramount Theatre 
_________________________________________________________________


Subject: NN: fairytales for good children
   Date: Wed, 15 Sep 1999 08:32:42 -0700 (PDT)
   From: Reid Mitchell (reidmitchell@yahoo.com>

--- Tracy Applebaum (poohbear512@hotmail.com> wrote:
> 
> Am I totally losing it or did I just read in the FAQ
> that Nanci was not releasing any more albumsm, at least for a long
> time, after OV2?

Tracy,
Nanci says all kinds of stuff.  One gets used to it after a while. 
She's said no more tours for example; she disband the BMO at the end of
one tour and started reassembling it within weeks.  (This confused some
of the musicians--not surprised, but confused.)  I think she's totally
sincere when she says such things but she's succombing to the
inspiration of the moment.  

Like in any other long term love affair, the stuff that bugs the hell
out of you at first becomes stuff that you cherish.  Besides, these
announcements always get the Nancinet stirred up.  I certainly would
love an album of new songs, all or mainly written by the lady herself. 
But then many of this list think that OVOR is her best album.

And if anybody turns the above into the cliche "a woman has a right to
change her mnd" I wash my hands of it.

Reid "waiting for the electrician" Mitchell

_________________________________________________________________


Subject: NN: re:letterma`n
   Date: Wed, 15 Sep 1999 09:06:02 -0700 (PDT)
   From: Bob Riegner (rg48@yahoo.com>

Dear Netters--
Just my 2 cents on the Letterman appearance.  It
seemed to me that Letterman was in a bad mood the
whole show.  Even when he's in a good mood he is (as
far as I'm concerned) very cruel in his jokes and
comments.

As far as Nanci being the "John McEnroe" of music--is
that supposed to be a compliment?  McEnroe was a total
jerk during his career.  He was so bad that he caused
people to root for Jimmy Conners.

I also, didn't appreciate Letterman's harsh comment
before he introduced Nanci of "What's going on over
there, is everyone getting acquanted?"  In other words
"how dare you talk or make noise, while I'm talking?"

I've seen Nanci several times on his show and usually
he can't stop talking about how great she is.  Not
this time.

As to Nanci's performance, she looked and sounded
great, but it looked like she was stuck in the corner
while we had a better view of whoever that awful male
singer was.  All in all I'd give Nanci an A for effort
and the rest of the show a D--and Letterman a "J" for
"jerk"--he is obviosly the "John McEnroe" of talk show
hosts.

Bob Riegner

_________________________________________________________________


Subject: Re: NN: re:letterma`n
   Date: Wed, 15 Sep 1999 10:21:10 -0700 (PDT)
   From: John Alvord (jalvo@mbay.net>

On Wed, 15 Sep 1999, Bob Riegner wrote:

> As far as Nanci being the "John McEnroe" of music--is
> that supposed to be a compliment?  McEnroe was a total
> jerk during his career.  He was so bad that he caused
> people to root for Jimmy Conners.

Even McEnroe made a good joke about it. After hemmerhoid (sp?) surgery he
quipped "Now I am perfect in every way!"

john alvord

_________________________________________________________________


Subject: NN: A Far Cry From Dead
   Date: Wed, 15 Sep 1999 18:31:08 -0500
   From: Ed Maier (eddie@flash.net>

That's the title of Townes Van Zant's album released after his death. The
first song is titled *Dollar Bill Blues*, and has a very unusual and
very intriguing time signature that I believe is 5/4 4/4 4/4 3/4. Haven't
heard anything like this since Brubeck. Possibly he's a far more complicated
songwriter than I imagined. This is a very good album.

Ed Maier
Arlington, TX

_________________________________________________________________


Subject: NN: No Nanci: Letterman
   Date: Wed, 15 Sep 1999 16:57:29 PDT
   From: "Todd Barrett" (astrocity@hotmail.com>

>As far as Nanci being the "John McEnroe" of music--is
>that supposed to be a compliment?  McEnroe was a total
>jerk during his career.

Wow.  There seems to be a sizable amount of people on the list that doesn't 
appreciate Letterman's humor.  There is no doubt in my mind that he meant 
the comment as a compliment.  Anyway, Dave likes John because he isn't dull.

>I also, didn't appreciate Letterman's harsh comment
>before he introduced Nanci of "What's going on over
>there, is everyone getting acquanted?"  In other words
>"how dare you talk or make noise, while I'm talking?"

Well...I didn't record it so my memory may be off...but there seemed to be 
some confusion with Will Lee (as the camera shot over there) and Dave just 
commented on it.  Dave has done that type of thing numerous times....again, 
I took it as a joke.

>As to Nanci's performance, she looked and sounded
>great, but it looked like she was stuck in the corner
>while we had a better view of whoever that awful male
>singer was.  Bob Riegner

I will agree that I did not think that Will Lee did the best job in the 
world, but I am sure that Nanci approved Will as her duet partner.

OK..OK....can anyone tell I like Letterman?

Todd Barrett
*Girls With Guitars*
http://www.geocities.com/SunsetStrip/Balcony/9132/music.html

_________________________________________________________________


Subject: Re: NN: Letterman
   Date: Wed, 15 Sep 1999 20:35:08 EDT
   From: "Tracy Applebaum" (poohbear512@hotmail.com>

Another stupid opinion from me...

Todd Barrett wrote:

>Well...I didn't record it so my memory may be off...but there seemed to be 
>some confusion with Will Lee (as the camera shot over there) and Dave just 
>commented on it.  Dave has done that type of thing numerous 
>times....again,I took it as a joke.

Might it be that he had expected her to show up  with a BMO member to sing 
the duet part, maybe she had announced at one point she would or something, 
and it was like, "Are you guys ready to go, seeing as you never met each 
other before; Will, do you know the words and everything?"????????  I mean, 
we know Will didn't seem that familiar with the song, or at least what it 
sounds like when sung properly (I actually thought Darius did a good job on 
DBS, much better than his massacre of GCH)and we know Dave made this comment 
abut getting acquainted...just wondering if they could be related?

Tracy

_________________________________________________________________


Subject: NN: Re: Dust Bowl Symphony
   Date: Wed, 15 Sep 1999 20:43:21 EDT
   From: BMiller224@aol.com

This past July, I went with some trepidation to hear Arlo Guthrie play with 
the San Francisco Symphony. It turned out to be one of the most interesting 
AND entertaining musical programs I’ve ever seen.  Conductor John Nordolillo 
first led the Symphony with a Leonard Bernstein piece, followed up by a 19th 
century number by Louis Moreu Gottschalk, which Nordolillo explained was a 
precursor to ragtime.  This was followed by the two Aaron Copland selections 
from the ballet "Rodeo":  "Saturday Night Waltz," which borrows the melody of 
"Get Along Little Doggies," and "Hoedown," which has a hint of "Turkey in the 
Straw."

Then Arlo came out in tails (!!!) with his gray, shoulder-length hair and 
opened on guitar with "Last Train to Glory," with a full complement of 
violins, cellos and basses and a generous supply of horns.  It sounded good, 
but it was kind of a shock, probably deliberately so.  Then he spun some 
spaced-out hippie tale to introduce one of his oldest songs, 
"Ring-Around-the-Rosie Rag," and in the middle he resorted to his harmonica 
to play a verse of Stephen Foster’s "The Old Folks at Home," with the 
100-piece symphony still going on the "Rag" tune.  It obviously harmonized 
beautifully and created a reference back to the opening symphonic pieces.

So by the time Arlo sat down at the enormous grand piano to do his fourth 
song, "In My Darkest Hour," it seemed perfectly normal to see him dressed in 
tails and singing folk songs with full-court-press strings, trumpets, 
trombones, tuba, flutes, piccolos, kettle drums and an extra piano.  He and 
Nordolillo came up with a melding of "folk" and "art" music that was a good 
representation of Arlo’s music that also made excellent use of the Symphony’s 
capabilities.  They obviously gave a lot of thought to how to lead both folk 
and classical audiences into what was an unusual program from both 
perspectives.

"Dust Bowl Symphony" fails to bridge that gap for me.  It comes aross not so 
much as a joint presentation of Nanci and the London Symphony Orchestra as a 
Nanci Griffith album with more instruments than usual.

Now, as a Nanci album I like it.  My guess is that it will make Nanci’s music 
more accessible to pop music fans who find a folk/country sound too grating.  
Her voice seems to be in very good shape for this album and that, as always, 
is quite nice to hear - the occasional eccentric pronunciation included!  I 
found the vocals particularly strong on the opening version of "Trouble in 
the Fields" with its memorable turns of phrase like "when the bankers swarm 
like locusts" and "our pockets full of nothing."  And I never hear this song 
that I don’t think of Susan Krauss’ wonderfully creative mis-hearing of "new 
John Deere" as "neutron deer."

Though her vocals were good throughout, I was particularly struck by this 
version of "Waiting for Love" and "Late Night Grande Hotel."  "Tell Me How" 
was also a treat to hear, and she also gives new life to "These Days in an 
Open Book."  Her torch singing on "Drops from the Faucet" is really good. I 
hope she does more of that.

But I think the possibilities of the London Symphony were squandered here.  
That number of instruments and that kind of talent can be put to much better 
use than contributing some nice introductions and playing backup on 
conventional arrangements of Nanci’s songs.  I was really intrigued by the 
Baroque clip from the "Re-mix" project that Shawn had on his Web site a few 
months ago.  This would have been a perfect opportunity to try something like 
that with an original recording.

"Late Night Grande Hotel" is the number that makes the best use of the 
symphony.  The strings give it a lush, pretty sound that goes well with the 
glamorous, decadent undercurrents of the song.  The flute on "Trouble in the 
Fields" is quite effective.  But you don’t need a whole symphony to get a 
flute and a couple of violins.

On "Tell Me How," the symphony is a distraction from the catchy pop treatment 
Nanci and the Blue Moon Orchestra give it.  Why use a conventional, rock/pop 
drum when you’ve got the percussion section of a leading symphony at your 
disposal?   Save it for the next pop album. "1937 Pre-War Kimball" is nice, 
but it’s a bouncy tribute to some of Nanci favorite musicians and writers for 
which the symphony is superfluous.  And aside from the distraction of 
Hootie’s voice, the strings in "Love at the Five and Dime" come off as 
annoyingly smaltzy.  And the harmony vocals at the end of "These Days" is the 
most complex harmony I hear - but that’s one of the most exciting 
possibilities for a symphony.  

It would have been more interesting to me to have, say, 10 minutes of the 
album devoted to a piece by a contemporary composer who would incorporate 
some of Nanci’s melodies into a composition that would make better use of the 
symphony’s capabilities.  "Dust Bowl Reprise" is what the title implies, a 
short reprise and nothing special. 

In other words, the outcome is less a "longhair" version of Nanci’s songs 
than an "easy listening" edition.  I don’t agree with the harsh verdict of 
Stephan Terrell, the reviewer John Graveling earlier quoted from the Sept/Oct 
"No Depression," who says that a lot of this album sounds like "middlebrow 
mush."  But if a popular singer is going to do a symphonic production, then 
go for it and make it a project that makes sense as an orchestral work.  

Bruce Miller
San Bruno, CA


_________________________________________________________________

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