on-reflection-digest Saturday, September 11 1999 Volume 01 : Number 1862 Re: gg: NOGG: New Tull gg: noGG: Books, T-shirts, Cjam, Renaissance Re: gg: "Green Haze", Wizard of OZ gg: local stuff Re: gg: Read any good books lately? gg: no GG - L.Shankar Re: gg: Terrapin Free Hand gg: favoRitE: BOOKS (or Litlist) gg: PoS Re: gg: books I'm reading gg: Keneally viewpoint. gg: Recent books gg: Book -- "Ring" Re: gg: favoRitE: BOOKS (or Litlist) gg: Dot Com, Brighter than a ... gg: Chessmen Re: gg: no GG - BOOKS Re: gg: no GG - BOOKS gg: Tull/Thompson & uniqueness/newness Re: gg: favoRitE: BOOKS (or Litlist) Re: gg: favoRitE: BOOKS (or Litlist) gg: Fester Bestertester (or Chess-Tour?) gg: Hall of the shRe: dder ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Sat, 11 Sep 1999 09:09:37 EDT From: Biffyshrew@aol.com Subject: Re: gg: NOGG: New Tull mammienun dun wroted: > >Did anyone find the hidden mystery track (The Secret Language of Birds) >on JT's dot.com? It's about one minute after A Gift of Roses at the end >of the disc. Am I setting myself up for a lot of "Duh!"s? Probably, since at least the U.S. edition of the CD comes with a sticker *announcing* the presence of the "hidden" track. Unclear on the concept, anyone? BTW, the advance promo CD also included a hidden track, but it wasn't S.L.O.B.--it was a repeat of "Dot Com." Your pal, Biffy the Elephant Shrew ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 11 Sep 1999 06:24:00 -0700 From: Nicholas Haus Subject: gg: noGG: Books, T-shirts, Cjam, Renaissance Hail! Well, they're pokin' at me on the #Gentle-Giant chat channel because I'm lurking too much... New Tunes: New to me anyway--Pain of Salvation...strange name but some really wonderful prog metal. All the elements we talk about here--on steroids! If you like it intense & relentless, give this band a try. I found 2 MP3s. I'd compare them favorably with Liquid Tension Experiment but with vocals...way good vocals! >...What book are you reading at the moment? Good thread, Marc. Now you get to see how truely lopsided I am! ;-) I'm reading some selected Victoria's Secret Catalogs...I can only get thru a coupla dozen pages a week so this is some slow going. ;-) Serously: Frederick Crews--The Memory Wars Freud's Legacy in Despute AE Wilder Smith--The Natural Sciences Know Nothing of Evolution David Boaz--Libertarianism a Primer David Boaz--The Libertarian Reader Pauline Marie Rosenau--Post-Modernism & the Social Sciences Insights, Inroads & Intrusions Richard P Feynman--Quantum Electro Dynamics The Strange Theory of Light & Matter Norman L Geisler--Baker Encyclopedia of Christian Apologetics Robert L Heilbroner--The Worldy Philosophers The Lives & Times of the Great Economic Thinkers Mortimer Adler--The Great Ideas Also: I just got 3 illustrators books from Kiirja. These are great for inspiration. Chock full of different subjects, styles & techniques. Thanks, K! Just finished ( but that doesn't mean I won't read these again): RD Laing--Knots John R Searle--Intentionality an Essay in the Philosophy of Mind John R Searle--The Construction of Social Reality Mortimer Adler--Aristotle for everybody Mortimer Adler--Art, the Arts & the Great Ideas Robert G Olsen--Existentialism Peter McWilliams--Ain't Nobody's Business if I Do The Absurdity of Concentual Crimes in a Free Society Norman L Geisler--Philosophy of Religion (I visit the used book stores a lot!) ;-) GORGG T-shirt Update: The artwork is at the printers & the shirts will be ready by Friday or so. Nearly everybody who was interested has sent their funds. Anyone who wants a shirt ($11.50 each) & hasn't contacted me, better get on the stick. I'm mailing the shirts ahead of time so there won't any available at the event. So far 54 shirts have been ordered by people with impeccable fashion sense! Julian's Show: What a nice mix of energetic tunes. Thanks for a great show, Reg! Got me so wired I had to do some house-cleaning, for crying out loud! Vicki will faint. Renaissance: I'm still stalking Annie Haslam!...'cept weekdays 'cause I have to work....& then last weekend I was busy with "Honey Do's". Ya happy now, ChatFinks?!? ;-) Cheers, Nick in Fresno ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 11 Sep 1999 09:40:13 -0400 From: Bob Angilly Subject: Re: gg: "Green Haze", Wizard of OZ This is true to a point, the full story is at this web site: http://www.ameritech.net/users/pinkfloyd/wiznet.html I was able to make a tape of this using my WoOz laser disc for the video feed and a CD of Dark Side in the audio feed. It's important to use Autorepeat for the CD (which my player doesn't have) so I lost a few seconds restarting the CD and filpping over the Laser Disc. But the Synchronization is amazing (the black and white segement is exactly the same length as Side One, and Dorothy opens the door right as the first sound effects of Money start. I'll frequently use my own music for silent films (like playing Magma Retrospective 1-3 while I watch Metropolis). JohnEric wrote: > I heard someone once say that you could play some Pink Floyd while > watching The Wizard of OZ and the two would sink up to one another. What > was all that about? > > JohnEric > > --- "David J. Loftus" wrote: > > > > > > On Fri, 10 Sep 1999, Bob Angilly wrote: > > > > > There's a local Boston band who used to do Stairway to Heaven with the > > > > > lyrics from Gilligan's Isle. > > > > > > It's not a perfect fit because of the "But it's all right..." portion of > > > > the chorus, but large chunks of the Stones' "Jumping Jack Flash" and > > Joni > > Mitchell's "Woodstock" (in the rocking mode that Crosby, Stills, Nash > > & Young did it) may be sung over each other, so of course I do that. > > > > > > David Loftus > > > > === > http://www.mindspring.com/~jjellison/nightsky.htm > __________________________________________________ > Do You Yahoo!? > Bid and sell for free at http://auctions.yahoo.com - -- Tickle me! :-) Elmo __ __ .' '.' `. _.-| o | o |-._ .~ `.__.'.__.'^ ~. .~ ^ / \ ^ ~. \-._^ ^| | ^_.-/ `\ `-._ \___/ ^_.-' /' `\_ `--...--' /' `-.._______..-' /\ /\ __/ \__ | |/ /_ .'^ ^ `. .' `__\ .' ^ ^ `.__.'^ .\ \ .' ^ . ^ . ^ .' \/ / / ^ \'.__.' | ^ /| ^ | ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 11 Sep 1999 11:05:34 -0400 From: astley@ica.net Subject: gg: local stuff Hi All, P-Frank commented re.. >Mature Dave sez: "and talking about awesome, you gotta talk "THINKING >PLAGUE" " > >Just missed them in Philly last night. Also in Philly last night, Alan >Parsons Project, with sets designed by Roger Dean. Missed that, too. Also >had to skip Godspeed You Black Emperor last week. It's a bitch being broke. too bad..too bad...Alan Parsons is here this week,I wont be there,its one of those stand-up things,I promised myself I would never pay money to a stand up concert again,unless it was GG or Flim & the BB's...could be a thread...also on Monday at Lee's Palace here in Toronto is Godspeed You Black Emporer,the opening act is LaBradford...on Thursday at the Elmo,is Scott Henderson and Tribal Tech,I'll DEFINATELY be there,and tonight [Sat],I'll be at Lee's Palace to see a local neo-prog band,"The Last Placid Days of Plenty",so I'll get my fill this week... enough of this Argent/Three Dog Night crap!!!,at least Argent wrote their own songs,I saw them in '69 with the one man band Duster Bennett,and they were amazing,I have all their lp's and they are all good,especially Nexus...and talk about Three Dog Night live,I saw them in '71 headlining an outdoor show in Toronto,other bands on the bill were,the Greaseband,Humble Pie & Black Sabbath,now I ask you,who could listen to Three Dog Night after those guys,Humble Pie were the highlight,Steve Marriott was in fine form...I headed for the exit before the 3rd song by TDN,I thought I was going to throw up! BTW,I dont like Three Dog Night.. Dave Sr.mature student ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 11 Sep 1999 10:21:44 +0000 From: Diana Green Subject: Re: gg: Read any good books lately? - --------------DAD296BE08DBB0AE8354FE50 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit hail all; re: mammienun@webtv.net wrote: > Who has time to read? Just going through my daily e-mail with you > people > is like a novel a night! Ok..I read two newspapers a day (focusing on > the sports and funnies). Most recently I did read a Muhammed Ali bio, > Only In America (Don King Bio), and last X-mas one of my gifts was The > Real Frank Zappa. > Read that one, dug it. I still think Frank pulled an Al Capp and got reactionary in some really weird ways in his declining years, but overall I admire his intelligence and insights. Last book I read was just a couple weeks ago: WICKED by Geoffrey Maguire. It's the "biography" of the Wicked Witch of the West from Oz. Remarkable study of compassion and the nature of forgiveness, nicely woven into both the Oz movie and the Ox books. Go for it! still, dg np: Leonard Cohen: The Future - --------------DAD296BE08DBB0AE8354FE50 Content-Type: text/html; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit hail all;
re:
 
 

mammienun@webtv.net wrote:

Who has time to read? Just going through my daily e-mail with you people
is like a novel a night! Ok..I read two newspapers a day (focusing on
the sports and funnies). Most recently I did read a Muhammed Ali bio,
Only In America (Don King Bio), and last X-mas one of my gifts was The
Real Frank Zappa.
Read that one, dug it. I still think Frank pulled an Al Capp and got reactionary in some really weird ways in his declining years, but overall I admire his intelligence and insights.
    Last book I read was just a couple weeks ago: WICKED by Geoffrey Maguire. It's the "biography" of the Wicked Witch of the West from Oz. Remarkable study of compassion and the nature of forgiveness, nicely woven into both the Oz movie and the Ox books. Go for it!
still,
dg
np: Leonard Cohen: The Future
- --------------DAD296BE08DBB0AE8354FE50-- ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 11 Sep 1999 17:42:16 +0200 From: "Jan Dubbe" Subject: gg: no GG - L.Shankar Pete wrote: >On another topic entirely, a few weeks ago I found a used lp by L Shankar. >It was produced by FZ himself. He co-wrote 2 of the songs (No more Mr. Nice >Girl and I forgot the second title), and FZ wrote most of the lyrics. No so >interesting except for the 2 FZ contributions. Obviously. He should have >played on it though because the guitar player (don't recall his name at the >moment) did not really succeed in is Zappaism. I have exactly the same take on this album, ("Touch me there"). I had searched for this album for ages and ended up paying a fortune for it only to be disappointed with all but the two tracks, the other one being "Dead Girls of London"........"No more Mr. Nice Girl" is, mind you, a KILLER tune! Pete. there is more on this record to be discovered. What about "Darlene" and Shankar's wonderful imitation of a fly/violin solo. Don't forget the innovative drumwork by Simon Phillips! Cheers, Jan Dubbe np: Judie Tzuke - Shoot the Moon ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 11 Sep 1999 11:22:03 -0700 From: "Frank Lauria" Subject: Re: gg: Terrapin Free Hand In a recent post, I thanked Aldo and Michael for info about the GG CDs at Spin Street; I just noticed it was Mogul-Hespa who initially brought them to our attention. Thanks to you too, M-H! Setting the record (or CD) straight, P-Frank ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 11 Sep 1999 11:44:58 -0500 From: DE Johnson Subject: gg: favoRitE: BOOKS (or Litlist) "drj_saro" wrote: >...and how many of us have read "Knots" by RDLaing? Not yet, but it's on my list (or under my bed?)... >i'd like to start a related thread - top ten fave books, any genre, fact or >fiction, but not _just_ a list, but at least a short blurb on _why_. I don't know that these are my top ten, but they are ten of the books (the last one is a series) that have been important to me. They are in no particular order: Isaac Asimov "Foundation Trilogy" ...this was the first sci-fi book I actually liked enough to finish. I read this about the same time I was listening to DP's "The Mule." I'm about ready to read it again. George Perle "The Listening Composer" ...an excellent book for all composers or would-be composers. Perle lays it out so anyone can understand it. Gloria Farley "In Plain Sight" ...this book is incredibly full of American pre-history. I'd like to see our schools actually deal with this information instead of ignore it. I won't hold my breath. I read a bit of it each day. Vladimir Nabokov "The Defense" ...once I thought this was my life. Beautiful prose writing. Vladimir Nabokov "Transparent Things" ...my first Nabokov. I have returned to this book twice in the last 10 years, it's that good. Robert Cogan & Pozzi Escot "Sonic Design" ...a fresh, albeit sometimes a bit odd, approach to music. A book I know I will return to from time to time. Frank Herbert "The White Plague" Probably my fav sci-fi book...it actually kept me guessing. I think it was Herbert's last offering. Igor Stravinsky "Poetics of Music" ...a very thoughtful book by a well-known, unknown man. I'll be reading this again, too. C.S. Lewis "The Screwtape Letters" ...I like the way this book plays with my mind. I like the fact that most people can't deal with that. It maxe me laff. I've read it thrice. Brandt, Corra, etc. "The Comprehensive Study of Music" ...this is how music should be taught, but this series was never completed for financial/political reasons. I'm reading it thru for the first time and know, like several others listed above, I will return to it often. Okay, that's more than ten and I could add several more. There are so many decent boox (like recordings) that I find it difficult to name a top ten. But I enjoyed the exercise! Doug ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 11 Sep 1999 11:48:03 -0500 From: DE Johnson Subject: gg: PoS Nicholas Haus wrote: >Hail! Hail yes! >...Pain of Salvation...wonderful prog metal...I found 2 MP3s... Someone told me I need to hear this. Where did you find the mp3s? Thanx in advance. Doug ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 11 Sep 1999 13:55:45 -0400 From: "dr" Subject: Re: gg: books I'm reading Great !! Another chess player on this list !! Didn't Gallagher also write something called 'Winning with the Sicilian' ? Personnally, even as a chess player, I'm considered a nut case in Quebec City. I read Mike Basman's books on the St-George and the Grob, then proceeded to beat the crap out of people rated up to 2000 ( QFC. Add 150 point to get the equivalent USCF). But then people started beating the crap out of me... :-) I currently enjoy playing the Reti ( or KID, depending on Black's pawn structure) and the Modern with Black . From time to time, I still play the Grob as Black against the English. Anybody else a chess freak on this list ? DR - -----Message d'origine----- De : Bob Taylor À : on-reflection@darkwing.uoregon.edu Date : 11 septembre, 1999 06:52 Objet : Re: gg: books I'm reading >My current reading includes "Beating The Sicilian 2" by John Nunn. >I'm enjoying it, even more than I enjoyed "Mastering The Spanish". >"Anti-Meran Gambits" I just couldn't get into at all. > >Can't wait to get a copy of "Beating The Sicilian 3" ..written not by >Nunn but by GM Joe Gallagher. > >the >hidden benefit of having to occasionally visit doctors or dentists! > >I will now go off to a corner and wail about this sad fact: on Monday >Spocks Beard and The Flower Kings are on the same bill, but I happen to >be in the wrong land ..... you lucky German people! >Just a short Letter from a Nut .... > >Bob > >-- >Robert Taylor ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 11 Sep 1999 11:28:37 -0700 From: "Skip Rizzo, Ph.D." Subject: gg: Keneally viewpoint. Hail all, In reference to this: << Have listened to "Boil That Dust Speck" and "Hat" all the way through without cringing >> I have done this many times...comments about "obscurity issues" with Keneally's music, just don't fit with my perception of it! While he can go off on little tangents along the way...I hear this as similar to much of Zappa and also the first side of Todd Rundgren's "Wizard: A True Star"..... all of which I enjoy very much. That's it. Best Regards, Dr. Skull Albert "Skip" Rizzo, Ph.D. Research Assistant Professor Integrated Media Systems Center and School of Gerontology University of Southern California 3715 McClintock Ave. MC-0191 Los Angeles, CA. 90089-0191 email: arizzo@mizar.usc.edu phone: 213-740-9819 fax: 213-740-8241 !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ***JOIN THE VIRTUAL REALITY MENTAL HEALTH EMAIL LIST SERVER...201 (SO FAR) PROFESSIONALS WORLDWIDE SHARING IDEAS, DATA, AND THE LATEST INFORMATION. SIMPLY RETURN THIS EMAIL WITH YOUR REQUEST TO BE INCLUDED IN THIS USEFUL FORUM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! "The problems of the world cannot possibly be solved by skeptics or cynics whose horizons are limited by the obvious realities. We need people who can dream of things that never were." John F. Kennedy And back by popular demand: "Understanding is a 3-edged sword!" Vorlon Proverb ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 11 Sep 1999 11:34:57 -0700 From: "Skip Rizzo, Ph.D." Subject: gg: Recent books Hail all, In a message dated 9/10/99 6:32:38 AM Mountain Daylight Time, mlp@god-of-thunder.demon.co.uk writes: << What book are you reading at the moment? I mean not literally, right now but, you know, is on the coffee table, bedside table, in your bag, whatever? And what was the book you read before that? >> Currently: The Age of Spiritual Machines by Ray Kurzweil Strongly recommend to anyone with a brain! Before that: The Making of Mind By A. R. Luria Strongly recommend to anyone who wants to understand the brain! Thats it! Dr. Skull Albert "Skip" Rizzo, Ph.D. Research Assistant Professor Integrated Media Systems Center and School of Gerontology University of Southern California 3715 McClintock Ave. MC-0191 Los Angeles, CA. 90089-0191 email: arizzo@mizar.usc.edu phone: 213-740-9819 fax: 213-740-8241 !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ***JOIN THE VIRTUAL REALITY MENTAL HEALTH EMAIL LIST SERVER...201 (SO FAR) PROFESSIONALS WORLDWIDE SHARING IDEAS, DATA, AND THE LATEST INFORMATION. SIMPLY RETURN THIS EMAIL WITH YOUR REQUEST TO BE INCLUDED IN THIS USEFUL FORUM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! "The problems of the world cannot possibly be solved by skeptics or cynics whose horizons are limited by the obvious realities. We need people who can dream of things that never were." John F. Kennedy And back by popular demand: "Understanding is a 3-edged sword!" Vorlon Proverb ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 11 Sep 1999 12:54:14 -0700 (PDT) From: JohnEric Subject: gg: Book -- "Ring" Hard core science fiction fans should like the book I'm reading right now. I's called "Ring", by Steven Baxter. This one utilizes recent theories in the superstring theory, time travel, and wormholes. Normally, I'm not very interested in plots involving time travel, however, because of my love for the writings of Michio Kaku this one grabbed my interest. It mentions "Superstrings" on the front cover. "Ring" ranks among the hardest of hard-core sci-fi .. a departure from the sci-fi/fantasy mix I normally enjoy (Chalker, Zelazny, Saberhagen, to name only three out of many). JohnEric === http://www.mindspring.com/~jjellison/nightsky.htm __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Bid and sell for free at http://auctions.yahoo.com ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 11 Sep 1999 13:01:45 -0700 (PDT) From: JohnEric Subject: Re: gg: favoRitE: BOOKS (or Litlist) I am going through a sci-fi faze right now, so I'll put that Frank Herbert on my list. Although many folks have recommended the "Foundation Trilogy" I've never read it. I understand Star Trek somehow sprang from it. I guess that's why I've not read it. I'm afraid it will remind me too much of that TV series. Please correct me if I'm wrong. The only C.S. Lewis I've read is the "Space Trilogy", which I thoroughly enjoyed. JohnEric - --- DE Johnson wrote: > Isaac Asimov "Foundation Trilogy" > ...this was the first sci-fi book I actually liked enough to finish. > Frank Herbert "The White Plague" > Probably my fav sci-fi book...it actually kept me guessing. > I think it was Herbert's last offering. > C.S. Lewis "The Screwtape Letters" > ...I like the way this book plays with my mind. I like the > fact that most people can't deal with that. It maxe me laff. > I've read it thrice. > === http://www.mindspring.com/~jjellison/nightsky.htm __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Bid and sell for free at http://auctions.yahoo.com ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 11 Sep 1999 13:12:27 -0700 (PDT) From: JohnEric Subject: gg: Dot Com, Brighter than a ... I purchased "Dot Com" and "Brighter "Than a Thousand Suns" (Killing Joke) today. I am enjoying J-Tull's new one about as much as any of their recent works. I took all of your reviews under advisement while listening to it, with one critique in particular in mind. that one indicated that the songs tend to run together somewhat. I stopped listening at half-way through. then finished it later. My mind was then free to enjoy the memory of fewer songs at a time. This worked for me. As for the Killing Joke release, I found it to have a softer touch than "Pandemonium". Of course, I'm not surprised and enjoyed it none-the-less. I do prefer them heavier handed. By the way, who was the Killing Joke fan in here? JohnEric === http://www.mindspring.com/~jjellison/nightsky.htm __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Bid and sell for free at http://auctions.yahoo.com ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 11 Sep 1999 13:40:02 -0700 From: William Tindall Subject: gg: Chessmen DR opens with P-K4, Kt-K B3, B-Kt5: <> I love chess, though I am way out of practice. One of my fave books is Richard Reti's "Modern Ideas In Chess". I actually won a few matches thanks to Reti. Thanks for the reminder, DR, I'll be pulling the set out of mothballs this weekend! PxR and wins!, ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 11 Sep 1999 18:07:00 EDT From: Claudio666@aol.com Subject: Re: gg: no GG - BOOKS In a message dated 9/10/99 11:20:06 PM Mountain Daylight Time, drj_saro@neo.rr.com writes: << home sickly on Wednesday, i read "Hannibal" (the sequel to "Silence of the Lambs", which is the only other movie (the _other_ "other" is 2001) that is _better_ than the book)), verrrrrrry disappointing ending, although not _entirely_ a waste of time. >> It WAS a pretty weak ending, but it certainly leaves room for another book in the series, now doesn't it? Other than that, grisly great page turning! As to my Top 10 (and I thought we weren't going to do any more Top 10 lists...) #1. Ayn Rand "Atlas Shrugged" Her philosophy of "egoism" changed my life forever. I learned that it was okay to stick to your convictions, that it was good to live according to your own beliefs even when everyone else thinks you're wrong, misguided or just confused. Great story, too! #2,3,4. Tolkien's "Lord of the Rings" My only excursion into fantasy (I've tried others but...), Tolkien made this so believable with his deep backround, incredibly fleshed-out characters, descriptive landscapes, languages and cultures, and a classic "good vs. evil" storyline. #5,6,7. Asimov's "Foundation" trilogy Really, this has ended up being about 12 books, but I'll address the 1st 3...This is a universe-girdling work which comprises high technology, politics, belief systems, human relationships and mathematics. Asimov is the only writer I've been exposed to who can deal with subjects on a multi-millenial scale and not only make it believable, but vibrant. #8,9,10. Herbert's "Dune" trilogy The 1st 3 books are all that matter here, the last 3 were a little obsessive...Herbert was a master story teller. In Dune, we have, again, the technology, politics, good vs. evil, and not just belief systems, but outright religion. Great details in characters, landscapes/environments and cultures. Unfortunately, all of my favorite authors are dead... Dan6 ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 11 Sep 1999 20:23:54 -0400 From: "drj_saro" Subject: Re: gg: no GG - BOOKS From: Claudio666@aol.com >drj_saro@neo.rr.com writes: ><< home sickly on Wednesday, i read "Hannibal" >It WAS a pretty weak ending, but it certainly leaves room for another book in >the series, now doesn't it? > do you think that's a good thing? >As to my Top 10 (and I thought we weren't going to do any more Top 10 >lists...) > i'm not doing this _just_ to pick on you, but you inadvertantly seem to have listed soe of my pet-peeves all in one place, so i hope you don't mind if i make a comment or two.... >#1. Ayn Rand "Atlas Shrugged" >Great story, too! well, that's _your_ opinion! i can sympathise better with Officer Barbrady's on a recent "South Park". >#2,3,4. Tolkien's "Lord of the Rings" >My only excursion into fantasy (I've tried others but...), > i just have never "gotten" what anybody over 12 sees in this. >#5,6,7. Asimov's "Foundation" trilogy > i _love_ Asimov's non-fiction and a lot of his short-stories, but find his novels _extremely_ tedious. talk about needing an editor (with a bad attitude and a machete, imo!) >#8,9,10. Herbert's "Dune" trilogy > the _first_ book was really engrossing, but i really think he was flogging an expired equine with the sequels, and they just kept getting worse and worse. (in a rather extreme moment of cynicism, the first thing i said when i found out about his passing was "at least there won't be any more Dune books", but i was wrong....there was at least one post-humous volume completed by a Herbert offspring, wasn't there?) >Unfortunately, all of my favorite authors are dead... > >Dan6 > i can sympathize, a few of my favorites might as well be! thank you for your time and attention. Julius J. SAROKA drj_saro@neo.rr.com Cuyahoga Falls OHIO ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 11 Sep 1999 22:04:34 EDT From: "Virginia Landgraf" Subject: gg: Tull/Thompson & uniqueness/newness Drew knows that I'm a Richard Thompson fan and writes: <> Yes! Before I go any further I will also state that I think the new Richard Thompson album is excellent. Drew, you misinterpreted a compliment as a complaint -- has your work situation been blurring your reading of O-R threads lately? ;-) (BTW, my commiserations with you over a work situation that may threaten your attendance at GORGG. We all hope it clears up). <> That was actually what I assumed Nick meant by saying that _Mock Tudor_ was RT's strongest album in a while. <> "Sibella" has a terrific hook that is humming in my head as I write; "Walking the Long Miles Home" puts a grin on my face, as a contrarian pedestrian, although that's not really the point of the song (oh, BTW, you Brits -- what's the story behind the phrase "Shanks's Pony", as in "When you ride Shanks's pony, you don't have to pay"?); "Hard On Me" is full of blistering guitar playing; "Do You Like the New Me" is a bleak, scary ending to the album; etc., etc., etc. <> (shaking my head and laughing) Drew, I agree completely. You must have missed Rik Beck's post about the new Tull. *His* complaint was, "I don't hear anything new here." *That* is what brought on the comparison with Thompson. My point was that here were two new albums that I thought were *excellent* yet were definitely in a particular style of the artist in question and the idioms they had chosen to work with. A lot of the texture of the Tull album sounds as if it could have come from the _WarChild_ period, although some of the musical modes owe a debt to Indian and Middle Eastern pop music, which Anderson seems have discovered within the past 7 years or so -- but had this (musically) been a lost Tull album from 1975, I wouldn't have disbelieved it. Had _Mock Tudor_ been the followup to 1988's _Amnesia_ (which is the last Richard Thompson album before _Mock Tudor_ that I've heard in its entirety, because of Thailand, grad school, etc., although I saw Thompson live in 1991 and 1996 and he was his usual excellent self), it would have made perfect sense to me then. *That* is the sense in which I said to Rik that I didn't hear anything *new* in it. It wasn't meant as a disparaging comment at all, but to throw down the gauntlet: does something have to be completely new and different to be excellent? which seems also to be the point you're making. I think the more interesting question is what, if anything, "newness" has to do with the fact that both you and Nick have points after which little of the new Tull has moved you, whereas my interest in new Tull has been given a new lease of life by _Roots to Branches_ and _J-Tull Dot Com_. (From the 80's Tull, I also find _The Broadsword and the Beast_ and _Crest of a Knave_ quite creditable, and I scarcely can think of any Tull I *don't* enjoy a lot from the 70's). You cite Richard Thompson's "uniqueness" (and I would certainly agree with that); yet Ian Anderson is unique too. I do find it credible that some people may be moved by one and not the other, but I'm not sure that "newness" or "difference" has all that much to do with it -- rather the different personalities of the two musicians and the levels at which they work. I can understand that if Ian Anderson doesn't hit your nerve, he may seem like a dilettante compared to Thompson. "Too theatrical and contrived," some may say. "Too moralistic," is a complaint I remember reading from rock critics of the 70's. And there were moments from the 80's and early 90's when even I -- who enjoy his professional persona and reflecting on the ethical & theological opinions expressed in some of his songs -- felt that the final product was a pale imitation of what I loved about Tull through _Stormwatch_. But with _RtB_ and _J-T.C_ he sounds as if he's interested in music again, and some of the recent songs are quite strong IMO. Thompson's interest in music or songwriting genius have never been doubted by me, although I find that his songs have been more or less important to me during different parts of my life. Since there are so many breakup or bad relationship songs in the Thompson corpus, it's not surprising that when I was having the academic equivalent of a breakup in college (academic crisis leading to a change in the career I envisioned) I would want to sing a lot of Thompson's songs myself. But now, I'm in a position where persistence even when "spells" are "broken" is necessary (1% inspiration and 99% perspiration seems to hold true for dissertations, and I'm no genius), so as much as I love "Walking the Long Miles Home," it seems to portray a part of the human condition that I don't want to be the whole story of my life . . . there's probably more to be said here, but I need to do some work and stop rambling. Ginny ______________________________________________________ Get Your Private, Free Email at http://www.hotmail.com ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 11 Sep 1999 22:31:54 -0400 (EDT) From: mammienun@webtv.net Subject: Re: gg: favoRitE: BOOKS (or Litlist) - --WebTV-Mail-8377-10158 Content-Type: Text/Plain; Charset=US-ASCII Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7Bit Beam me up Slotty! - --WebTV-Mail-8377-10158 Content-Disposition: Inline Content-Type: Message/RFC822 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7Bit Received: from mailsorter-101-3.iap.bryant.webtv.net (209.240.198.120) by postoffice-262.iap.bryant.webtv.net with WTV-SMTP; Sat, 11 Sep 1999 13:12:04 -0700 (PDT) Return-Path: Received: from darkwing.uoregon.edu (darkwing.uoregon.edu [128.223.142.13]) by mailsorter-101-3.iap.bryant.webtv.net (8.8.8/ms.adl.990907) with ESMTP id NAA27304 for ; Sat, 11 Sep 1999 13:12:03 -0700 (PDT) Received: (from majordom@localhost) by darkwing.uoregon.edu (8.9.3/8.9.3) id NAA00024 for on-reflection-outgoing; Sat, 11 Sep 1999 13:01:09 -0700 (PDT) Received: from web117.yahoomail.com (web117.yahoomail.com [205.180.60.91]) by darkwing.uoregon.edu (8.9.3/8.9.3) with SMTP id NAA00019 for ; Sat, 11 Sep 1999 13:01:08 -0700 (PDT) Message-ID: <19990911200145.20950.rocketmail@web117.yahoomail.com> Received: from [207.205.175.18] by web117.yahoomail.com; Sat, 11 Sep 1999 13:01:45 PDT Date: Sat, 11 Sep 1999 13:01:45 -0700 (PDT) From: JohnEric Subject: Re: gg: favoRitE: BOOKS (or Litlist) To: DE Johnson , =?ISO-8859-1?Q?=22Gentle=A0Giant=22_Group?= MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Sender: owner-on-reflection@lists.uoregon.edu Precedence: bulk Reply-To: JohnEric I am going through a sci-fi faze right now, so I'll put that Frank Herbert on my list. Although many folks have recommended the "Foundation Trilogy" I've never read it. I understand Star Trek somehow sprang from it. I guess that's why I've not read it. I'm afraid it will remind me too much of that TV series. Please correct me if I'm wrong. The only C.S. Lewis I've read is the "Space Trilogy", which I thoroughly enjoyed. JohnEric - --- DE Johnson wrote: > Isaac Asimov "Foundation Trilogy" > ...this was the first sci-fi book I actually liked enough to finish. > Frank Herbert "The White Plague" > Probably my fav sci-fi book...it actually kept me guessing. > I think it was Herbert's last offering. > C.S. Lewis "The Screwtape Letters" > ...I like the way this book plays with my mind. I like the > fact that most people can't deal with that. It maxe me laff. > I've read it thrice. > === http://www.mindspring.com/~jjellison/nightsky.htm __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Bid and sell for free at http://auctions.yahoo.com - --WebTV-Mail-8377-10158-- ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 11 Sep 1999 23:00:04 -0500 From: DE Johnson Subject: Re: gg: favoRitE: BOOKS (or Litlist) JohnEric wrote: >...Although many folks have recommended the "Foundation Trilogy" I've >never read it. I understand Star Trek somehow sprang from it. I guess >that's why I've not read it. I'm afraid it will remind me too much of >that TV series. Please correct me if I'm wrong... (DJ)All hail the M_l_! (!hahahaHAhahaha!) (D)I had heard that about Star Trek, but I never watched the show, so I (O)have no idea what bearing Asimov's book had on it. I enjoyed the trilogy (U)at the ripe age of 15 and thought it was a good read then. It had quite (G)a profound effect on me at the time. I'd like to read it again to see (J)what I think of it now... Doug ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 11 Sep 1999 23:02:48 -0500 From: DE Johnson Subject: gg: Fester Bestertester (or Chess-Tour?) "dr" wrote: >Great !! Another chess player on this list !! >...Anybody else a chess freak on this list ? (D)If playing one or two games almost daily is enough to label a person (J)a chess freak, then I guess that's me. I play chess to relax. Doug ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 11 Sep 1999 23:21:19 -0500 From: DE Johnson Subject: gg: Hall of the shRe: dder "Ant" wrote: >Doug, Hail Oh Thou Who Hast a Nickname Like an Insect Friend! About the Grieg/Savatage trib...yes, they're 'heavy metal' (or a 'hair band'). As I wrote prev., I had no interest in doing the trib until I heard what the tunage was! When I heard I would have TOTAL FREEDOM as long as you could tell it was a 'heavy metal' version (in some respex) of Grieg's "ItHotMK"...I wanted to do it up right. So I went back to Grieg's score and approached the tune that way. This led to us (the keyboardist/bassist I was working with) to add a prelude ("Ase's Death") to "ItHotMK"...which, I think, is quite hilarious considering (here's link you asked for) that Savatage had done a very 'basic' version of the Grieg (with very little orchestration and no real dynamix) and called it...(wait for it)..."Prelude to Madness." My only guess is that they heard the Apollo version of the Grieg (which is pretty decent, btw) and took a bit of that title (I think Apollo called it "Prelude to a Mad King"). So... ...I wanted to call the tune "Hot Monkey"...but the label wouldn't let me. I am now calling it "Prelude/Resurrection of the Mountain King." So far, the label has gone for that one. Oh, "Ase's Death" is just another movement from the same suite as "ItHotMK." Now you most certainly see why I wanted to call it "Hot Monkey?" Heh... My sense of humor often gets me in trouble. Oh well. DJ/CiViLiAN/le Uncroyable M. Personne ------------------------------ End of on-reflection-digest V1 #1862 ************************************