Late last night Mr. Moderator unexpectedly dropped in on The Back Office. To his dismay, the place was in utter chaos.
“Papers were scattered on the floor, the staff was browsing the Financial Times Weekly site for the latest on the FTSE, and a distinctive oder hung in the air,” said Mr. Moderator, when seen at the San Diego Airport tonight. “I was dismayed, to say the least,” he continued.
The staff quickly got things in order, and then a late-night business meeting followed. The team engaged in a vigorous session of thinking outside the box, “blue-skying,” and other high-level business mumbo-jumbo. “Significant developments” and “Clear objectives” resulted from the meeting. A full report is expected in the morning, and affiliates will be contacted shortly thereafter.
The most significant development is that you will soon be seeing a banner ad for eMusic. If you’re not familiar with the program, it’s a monthly subscription service that allows a set number of downloads at a reasonable rate. Details will follow along with the ad itself, but the introductory trial offer is a pretty good way to test it out, if you’re so inclined. You can cancel any time before the intro period is up for no charge and all that jazz. I’m sure others out there have checked out this service or similar ones already.
Rock Town Hall’s taking on an ad does not mean you should expect a page full of ads, many of which having nothing to do with rock ‘n roll. That looks bad and is annoying to navigate, if nothing else. We believe eMusic is a worthwhile service and potential tool for your rock learning. Thanks.
I was actually going to suggest this. Through their affiliate program, I think you guys make money through each trial membership you give away.
I think it’s great. I’ve been using emusic for a year. Great Site.
I’m a big advocate of emusic myself. In fact my new membership month started yesterday, and I’ve got 90 downloads waiting for me. That new Elliott Smtih collection and the Betty Davis reissues are calling my name.
That New Elliott Smith is great, but burns up quite a few downloads.
I need those Betty Davis reissues myself, but I think I’m going to pass on the bonus tracks, and just get the original tracks, to save on downloads.
Mr. Moderator- It was such a delight to have you drop in on The Back Office. The staff is abuzz with energy anew and your creative suggestions, as always, were nothing short of out of this world. We are all especially looking forward to “Wear a Crazy Hat to Work Day.”
Question regarding the video you chose for this post. Certainly it has relevance to the “technology” of the eMusic offer. But is it also a cheeky reference to the “Kiss Me Deadly” noir painting that hangs in the lobby of The Back Office? Or is that expecting too much even from you?
Thank you for your attention.
That was not expecting too much from me. Good stuff.
Maudlin,
The Moderator’s been doin’ subliminal shit to needle me every so often. Hence, the posting of the Gen-X clip. I’m standin’ behind these guys, regardless of the fact that he says they’re the Monkees of Punk rock.
What’s your take on these dudes? I think their first LP still holds up fairly well.
Hope to hear from you soon,
E. Pluribus
I’ve always been tempted to explore GenX. Unfortunately I didn’t learn about them until there was a Billy Idol. That made it difficult as did an unbearable Idol fan that lived down the hall from me in college.
And until today I never thought I’d be interested again. But damn if I don’t dig that song.
And, as I’m a Monkees fan, that “slur” only makes it more appealing. I think Sweet is the Glam-Monkees and I dig their greatest.
You’re not a Monkees guy would be my guess so how do you take the “Punk-Monkees” comparison and where would you suggest I start with Generation X?
And now that I’ve written it I’d like to go on record- I created the concept of “Punk Monkees” and define it as the name of cover band that I will assemble that will only play punked up versions of Monkees songs. Watch for us on Conan in about 4 years.
Sammy, save me a spot in the Punk Monkees. I’ll wear a straw hat, red striped coat, shake a round tamborine and do Davey’s Daydream Believer dance for every song.
c-frank: That’s what you were wearing the last time I saw you! I would especially like to see that dance during our rendition of The Porpoise Song, which I imagine being performed something like The Stooges L.A. Blues.
The Porpoise Song!! Just reading that cracks me up. My girlfriend seriously loves that song, but I’ve stayed with her anyway.
Dude. I love The Porpoise Song. So, um, is your girlfriend hot?
I want to do a music video for it that is a scene for scene duplicate from the opening to Head and I want to get the actual Monkees to play themselves.
Don’t even think that I’m joking.
I’m sure they work cheap. Goodbye, Goodbye, Goodbyyyyyye…..
Maudlin,
A couple of things:
1) What the Moderator means by “punk Monkees” is that Gen-X was more or less assembled to cash in on the punk thang. None of that bothers me in the least. Good sounds are good sounds, period. You should check out that first Gen-X LP. It kicks ass.
2) I think the Monkees are great, “Headquarters” in particular. I think those Nesmith country rock songs are just as good as anything Gram Parsons concocted while he was with the Burritors.
3) Let me know when you guys are gonna get together for another summit to discuss the site. I’m kinda friendly with Tony Sanchez, the guy who wrote “Up and Down with the Rolling Stones”. He hooks me up regularly with Mandrax and Peruvian Blue Flake, something my dog Andyr. just loves to ram up his sniffer. If you let me put my two cents in where it don’t belong, I’ll let you partake in some of the finery.
Hope to hear from ya soon,
E. Pluribus
They probably work cheap except for Nesmith with his goddamn White-Out F.U. bucks. But I got it covered. Turning lemons into lemonade as they say. I’m gonna get Geri Reischl to perform the Nesmith role wearing only a wool Nesmith hat.
eplurbis- I just went to investigate the Gen-X album and saw that the US and UK versions are strikingly different. Which way should I go?
Whatever one has 100 Punks, Ready Steady Go, Gimme Some Truth, and Kiss Me Deadly. I honestly didn’t know there was any difference between the two!
Get the one that has all those tracks.
Let me know what ya think,
E. Pluribus
I hear traces of pub rock in Kiss Me Deadly. Or is it hard rock? Is this the original version of the band in this video?
I have never seen such a difference between US and UK releases.
UK:
#1 “From The Heart”
#2 “One Hundred Punks”
#3 “Listen”
#4 “Ready Steady Go”
#5 “Kleenex”
#6 “Promises Promises”
Side 2
#1 “Day By Day”
#2 “The Invisible Man”
#3 “Kiss Me Deadly”
#4 “Too Personal”
#5 “Youth Youth Youth”
US:
1. “Gimme Some Truth”
2. “Wild Youth”
3. “From The Heart”
4. “Ready Steady Go”
5. “Kleenex”
6. “Promises Promises”
Side B
1. “Day By Day”
2. “One Hundred Punks”
3. “Your Generation”
4. “Kiss Me Deadly”
5. “Wild Dub”
6. “Youth Youth Youth”
On closer look though it appears that the only version available on CD is the UK with all but the Lennon cover added as bonus tracks. So I can rest easy.
But it seems extreme that the US version dumped 3 tracks and added 4 from the UK. Is there another example more extreme than this?
The first Clash album. The US version dropped 4 tracks from the UK version and added 5 tracks.
E Pluribus wrote:
The album does sound great, and I always love “Kiss Me Deadly” in particular. The other songs you listed as the winners are indeed winners. It’s not so much the reasons they were put together that bother me but rather I feel uncomfortable listening to the naked posing and ambition of songs so brazenly aping “youth culture” rallying cries. Despite my discomfort with the album, I’ve never dumped it and I continue to spin it. If Billy Idol did not emerge from the band, I’d be much less uncomfortable with it.
Hey BigSteve. I never knew that. What were the 4 dropped and the 5 added?
Sammy wrote:
Dropped: “Protex Blue”, “1977”, “48 Hours”, original “White Riot” (am I forgetting one? Probably.)
Added: Alternate “White Riot”, “Clash City Rockers”. “White Man in Hammersmith Palais”, “Complete Control”, and at least one other that’s slipping my mind.
I think the US version was the greatest UK to US swap in the history of rock album resequencing. “1977” is pretty lame. “Protex Blue” and “48 Hours” are one-trick ponies.
The US version of ‘The Clash’ was not released till after Give ‘Em Enough Rope. It dropped Deny, Cheat, Protex Blue, and 48 Hours. The added songs are Clash City Rockers, Complete Control, White Man in Hammersmith Palais, I Fought the Law, and Jail Guitar Doors. Mr Mod has noted the different versions of White Riot. The first run of the US release also contained a bonus 7″ with Gates of the West b/w Groovy Times.
Right – “Deny”. Now there’s a SuperTurd of a Clash song. I was blanking on the other newcomers, also strong songs in comparison with what was dropped. Does anyone miss the impact of those dropped numbers compared with the added ones?
I don’t think I’ve ever heard the dropped numbers. Are there any worth hearing? How about the original version of White Riot?
Christgau, whom I usually like, always went on and on about how the UK version was the perfect rock album, but I think it’s clear that they dropped the right songs and that the US version has more great material, esp if you add Groovy Times and Gates of the West. The biggest fault of the US version is that it doesn’t open with Janie Jones, which just needs to be the opening salvo. At least on LP it opened side 2, but on CD it’s buried in the middle of the tracklisting.
I just checked Amazon, and both versions of the album are available on CD in remastered versions. Interesting concept — let the consumer decide.
Good point about “Janie Jones”‘s effectiveness as an opener, Steve. Of the cut tracks, there’s a brief build toward the end of “48 Hours” that makes the song worthwhile, and Mick Jones curses at a key point in “Protex Blue”, so that was cool when I was 16. There are some good things about the single version of “White Riot” – it’s really raw – but I think the US release version is all-around more powerful.
My US copy came with the single. “Groovy Times” is real good; “Gates of the West” would have made a good album cut on Give ’em Enough Rope.