The Afterword

Musings on the byways of popular culture

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RIP Sly Stone

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Obituary

Probably a surprise he got to the age that he did given the drug use.COPD cause of death. One of the formative experiences of my musical life was as at age 13 going to the cinema in a seaside holiday crowd and seeing Woodstock. Sly that white tasselled jacket , those purple framed glasses had the crowd on a string. The dynamics of the performance totally exhilarating.

Cocker at Woodstock – was it overdubbed?

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I am sure I read it somewhere. CSN &Y sounded so bad they rerecorded their performance. But I was surprised to read about Cocker, it being a very different performance. I’ve had this challenged and now I can’t find the reference. Can anyone back me up or was I dreaming.

Btw. In my search I came across this youtube posting of every Woodstock performance available to post.

Being a good boy I will post the link in the comments.

Go Ange !

by 123 Comments

Must admit I don’t understand how it works with a team sliding down the tables but at the same time wins the Europa Cup. Are teams playing in multiple competitions simultaneously. Either way, Postecoglou is a quality person.

View post on imgur.com

Rick Beato and Bob Lefsetz talk Spotify, the industry etc

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I just unsubscribed from the Lefsetz newsletter. If anyone over emails it’s him. And the unsubscribe wouldn’t work so I had to block him instead. But he has some interesting views and his view on the emergence of Spotify ,royalties etc is interesting. Clearly he can talk underwater and Beato just let’s him go. At over an hour it was too long for me but the stuff at the start might be of interest.

https://youtu.be/Y8qSctzVhhQ?si=JaLbjDhhgKIyiWiw

Chris Frantz – Remain In Love

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Author:Chris Frantz

This book came out in 2020. I picked it up cheap and just read it. Chris Frantz is the drummer of Talking Heads, the dorky one in polo shirts and the uncool haircuts, BUT married to the seriousy hot bass player Tina Weymouth. A love affair that has endured since art school. Frantz comes across as a very open, easy going guy, not a lot of attitude and as a result continued to make new connections throughout his career. People just get on with him. Well, most anyway. At times it reads like his daily diary in book form. The detail about what happened and who said what, where is remarkable. David Byrne gets a lot of coverage. He’s a prick. Selfish, sneaky, greedy, lying,narcisstic and just plain odd. Neurodivergent is often used in relation to DB these days but the catalogue of anecdotes still has me thinking – prick. Frantz was in the band playing soul covers and recruiting Byrne and getting Tina to play bass. He was incredibly dedicated to the band and its legacy basically saying this is why he put up with so much of Byrne’s crap. He takes credit for introducing most of » Continue Reading.

All Music Guide asking for donations

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I don’t agree with all reviews but it is a handy site for checking up on artists, discographies etc. it is saying that advertising isn’t enough so please make a donation. That’s usually a sign that the end is nigh. If lucky, a splash of money comes in, then that runs out , they come back asking again, get less next time…..

Choosing a format for storing and on demand streaming

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Our funky little country radio station records shows (principally for licensing requirements ) , streams live and then uses the recordings for on-demand services. Currently it’s all MP3 @360. I broadcast records and cds and have argued we need to use a lossless format. The head techie, not a music or a hi fi buff has resisted my suggestion that we use FLAC. arguing processing times and data storage capacity. I am not sure whether this is really true. He is difficult and tends to resist anything not his idea. He has suggested AAC and then HE-AAC V2 BVR 128 kbps as a better choice for all our needs. His option certainly outguns FLAC when it comes to letters and numbers – but is he right?

ATM ( probably Fents) – turntable speed

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I have an early Project belt drive turntable. It sounds a bit slow. I have ordered a new belt but I am told the belt may not fix the issue – ie motor problem. I have used a print at home stroboscope and I am having trouble assessing. To the naked eye the bars are a blur. Through the phone camera a ring of bars seems close to stationary. So I cant tell whether it is at correct speed or , if off pitch whether tge stroboscope is saying fast or slow. Video via imgur in comments.

So, Blue sky then – how has it been for you?

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A little while back there was a big flood of us, enabled by that joiner pack of people we’d be inclined to follow. Plenty of waving and recognition of former Massive. For me it has been pretty meh. Not much interesting debate, little news breaking or compelling stuff. Meanwhile over at the other joint the exodus continues its mojo well and truly lost. So 2 underwhelming platforms. . .

Snowy Fleet of the Easybeats

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Obituary

From a piece by Aussie rock historian Glenn A Baker:

GORDON ‘SNOWY’ FLEET, has left us at 85, in Perth

Like Bill Wyman of the Rolling Stones, he was a half dozen years older than his compatriots. Because of what was presumed to be expected of ‘pop stars’ in the 60s, he was forced to live a lie during his days on the drum stool of The Easybeats.

Harry Vanda, one of two Dutchmen in the band, not only had to change his name (although he didn’t have to bear the appellation of Dick Diamonde!) but he had to hide a wife. Snowy had do the same as they became hugely successful, with eight consecutive smash hits, culminating with the global breakout Friday On My Mind.

This became too much to handle and he took his leave during their triumphant return tour in 1967, citing a need to walk away from their not inconsiderable international fame (they toured Europe with the Rolling Stones) and move to Perth where he took over his family’s construction business.

I’m writing all this and more in a full obituary, which should appear in the next few days.

I got to know Snowy when » Continue Reading.