[kj] OT: UK music heard in the USA

[GREG SLAWSON]

lol Alex. Did you see the current Figgs/Graham Parker gig? Very entertaining stuff (they played at a small club/restaurant in Boston)--audience of around 100.
 


From: vassifer at earthlink.net
To: gathering at misera.net
Date: Sat, 8 May 2010 07:40:25 -0400
Subject: Re: [kj] OT: UK music heard in the USA




"any Americans know who Elvis Costello is; none know who Graham Parker is. Fuck Americans--they know nothing."


Speak for yourself. Graham Parker is currently touring here with the Figgs. There are just as many tasteless, dull, misinformed, lazy Brits as there are Yanks. YOU GAVE US SIMON COWELL, REMEMBER? 


Alex in NYC






On May 8, 2010, at 1:03 AM, GREG SLAWSON wrote:


 Just some thoughts--what are the similarities and differences b/w Elvis Costello, Joe Jackson, and Graham Parker? All 3 are UK-born pub/new wave rockers of the late 70s, who sing with strikingly accurate American accents, and long ago had some radio/critical success in the US (and I'm assuming the UK, where bands that are completely undergound in the f-ed up US (Buzzcocks and Bad Manners, for example) were radio stars in the UK). Differences: I'll ignore Joe Jackson, who is/was pretty talented and had several radio hits in the US and weathered his musical style changes well, and even had a solid comeback album in 2003. Elvis--just ok, overrated songwriter/singer (with a perpetual cold--I do a great impression of him)/performer who'se made millions and has a hugely overblown ego. Parker--top-notch songwriter/performer (just ok singer) with NO ego, who has not had any radio play in US since about 1980, and currently hides out in a tiny village in upstate NY (i.e., the woods), and plays occasional shows to about 100 people around the US East Coast. I've seen him 3 times over the past 5 or so years, twice w/a band and once solo, each time in front of 100 or 200 fans, and he did a different set each time, and killed too. Many Americans know who Elvis Costello is; none know who Graham Parker is. Fuck Americans--they know nothing.
Case in point: over the last 10 or 15 years, the US has produced the best beers in the WORLD, period. Just check any current beer book (including those by the late UK beer Godfather Michael Jackon--his real name) or website and they will back me up. The US is currently making beers that would put to shame UK brewers like Youngs, Fullers, and Samuel Smith (all good ones; just not as good as the top US ones). The problem is, these 1500 or so top quality breweries make up only about 5% of the US beer market. (Do Fullers/Youngs/Sam Smith etc. make up a tiny % of the UK market too)? Amerikkkans are too misinformed to know what is good, whether it's music, beer, politics (the Green Party here is just a few random hippie/yuppie liberals who don't stand a chance of winning an election of any kind, anywhere, even a city council seat in a tiny village anywhere, ever--they're considered the radical left). 


From: gregslawson at msn.com
To: gathering at misera.net
Date: Fri, 7 May 2010 23:10:51 -0400
Subject: Re: [kj] Book? Why, perhaps a film could be made that dramatized the old days?

     Glad to hear someone else enjoys it. It's a good example of how a movie can slowly build up to a good, long climax (sound sexy, eh?). Do you know some of the small parts/cameos?--The former TexAss governor's brother (great quote: "Einstein was probably one of them"), former leading astronomer/UFO scientist (no spoken part), and the synthesizer guy who was not an actor but a real sythesizer guy, who took extra time off work to "act" in the movie. Funny, the only flaw I've found in the film is when the scientist/technicians were supposed to be gawking at the aliens and were looking in different directions. 
     Here are some of my other fave films from the past 30 years or so: Awakenings (DiNero/Robin Williams in a casting/acting masterpiece), What About Bob (fave comedy, and I don't even like Bill Murray), Mr. Holland's Opus (ok, I am a teacher and of course love music--this movie was spot on), Born on the Forth of July (intense and mostly historicaly accurate), Dawn of the Dead (briefly spoke w/director George Romero last Wed as he did a signing at a punk rock record store), and for purely (communist) politics, They Live (no joke), City of Joy (about India), and for a recent film about a real communist, Denzel Washington in Great Debaters.
 


From: karen.weil at sddt.com
To: gathering at misera.net
Date: Fri, 7 May 2010 17:59:42 -0700
Subject: Re: [kj] Book? Why, perhaps a film could be made that dramatized the old days?


Yes, I agree with you, Greg. "Close" is a really entertaining film. And the usual Spielberg touch--feely-ness works in that case.
 
 
k.w.
SoCal

----- Original Message -----
From: GREG SLAWSON
To: gathering
Sent: Friday, May 07, 2010 5:24 PM
Subject: Re: [kj] Book? Why, perhaps a film could be made that dramatized the old days?

but Close Encounters of the Third Kind is in a league of it's own. I've watched it dozens of times and it's still good (and Douglass Trumbull's special effects were
great for the time)>
 


From: karen.weil at sddt.com
To: gathering at misera.net
Date: Fri, 7 May 2010 17:03:52 -0700
Subject: Re: [kj] Book? Why, perhaps a film could be made that dramatized the old days?


"Blade Runner" is a truly great film. The others are OK.
 
k.w.
SoCal

----- Original Message -----
From: Paul Wady
To: Gatherers Killing Joke Gatherers
Sent: Wednesday, April 14, 2010 2:41 AM
Subject: Re: [kj] Book? Why, perhaps a film could be made that dramatized the old days?

Best science fiction film ever made.  Blade Runner?  Star Wars & Empire?  Solaris?  Pah!
 
(Here we go - frenzy!)






  


Date: Wed, 14 Apr 2010 09:37:52 +0000
From: jimharper666 at yahoo.co.uk
To: gathering at misera.net
Subject: Re: [kj] Book? Why, perhaps a film could be made that dramatized the old days?






Not quite. I watch it every five years or so, just to make sure. It's absolute crap. Arguably the most overrated film ever made, from arguably the most overrated director ever.
 
Jim.

--- On Wed, 14/4/10, GREG SLAWSON <gregslawson at msn.com> wrote:


Ah, one of those great movies that everyone loves but no one understands (what the hell were the apes at the beginning and the 
bedroom at the end all about?). The MUSIC was cool though...
 



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