It was a very good year for chorus girls named Cupcake O'Leary

[vovat]

So, I've now listened to the first podcast by They Might Be Giants. I'd been hearing a fair amount about podcasts in the recent past, and I had no idea what they actually were. Apparently it's just a downloadable sound file that's arranged somewhat like a radio broadcast. "Podcast" is a pretty inscrutable term for this. I guess we have Apple to blame.

The first song on the podcast is a parody of "It Was A Very Good Year," which kind of sounds like John Linnell made it up off the top of his head. There's stuff in it about Maggie Thatcher and sexual intercourse with dodecahedrons in a state of quantum uncertainty.

Up next is a cover of the Banana Splits' "I Enjoy Being A Boy." I've never heard the original, not being in the right generation to have watched the show. I find the song to be surprisingly TMBG-ish, though. Yes, I know it predates TMBG, but I still think it's reasonable to call it TMBG-ish.

The thing about North American turtle songs is pretty weird. Linnell seems to really have had his weird rambling vibe on while making these new recordings. I can't imagine listening to this regularly, but it's pretty cool just for its sheer ridiculousness factor. This is also a free download on TMBG's website, which I was eventually able to download, but I had trouble with it. On the site, it says to give them your e-mail address, and they'll filter out duplicates. But when I put in my address, it says they already have it on file. They really need to get that fixed.

The turtle speech segues surprisingly well into a version of "Particle Man" that's heavily reminiscent of "Strawberry Fields Forever." I'd heard this before, but I still feel it worth mentioning that it's really damned cool. It's quite possibly my favorite version of the song, which has been performed with so many different arrangements throughout the years. I guess since they feel they have to play it at every single concert, they have to keep switching it up to avoid getting bored. I kind of have to wonder why "Particle Man" is so popular, anyway. I know there's the whole Tiny Toons thing, but that was so many years ago that I tend to doubt the people who want to hear it at shows nowadays are the same ones who saw it on the show.

Speaking of Tiny Toons, I saw their Christmas special on Thursday night (bethje had it on one of her many tapes of Christmas episodes), and apparently Hamton is Jewish. Who knew?

Anyway, getting back to the podcast, it also includes "Minneapolis," "Tippecanoe And Tyler Too," and "The Bloodmobile." I already knew all of those songs well, though, so I don't have any comments on them now.

Winter still sucks just as much as it did the last time I complained about it. Since I'd been able to park without much trouble last night, and it hadn't precipitated since then, I figured it would be easy to get back out of the space. Boy, was I wrong! It somehow got stuck (on what, I'm not sure, as there didn't seem to be much snow behind the wheels), and it took a few minutes and some burning rubber to get the vehicle moving. There's yet ANOTHER irritating thing about snow that I tend to forget about during the warmer times of the year.

I really need to start Christmas shopping. I don't have that many people to buy for, but it's better to do it sooner than later, isn't it?

By the way, thanks to shadarko for the Christmas card.

Comments

[revme.livejournal.com]

That is easily the best "Particle Man" ever, and I say that as a person who frequently skips it when listening to Flood, due to burnout. (I've got an mp3 of that song alone -- if you don't, I can send it to you.)

Also, I usually just dump in a fake address, since I'm already on the TMBG list a few times anyway, soo....

[vovat.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I have the MP3 of just that version of "Particle Man." In addition to be what's probably the best arrangement of the song, I think it might also be the first version that gives Universe Man a chance to fight.

Also, I usually just dump in a fake address

I considered doing that, but then I remembered that someone on the tmbg community had posted a direct link to it, so I used that. I'll probably just do the fake-address thing next time, if they haven't fixed it by then. But someone really should alert them to the problem.

[twobitme.livejournal.com]

Actually, we can blame Adam Curry for the term podcast. He's known as the father of the podcast.

[vovat.livejournal.com]

You mean Aquaman?

Seriously, though, aside from sounding like something out of a bad sci-fi movie, "podcast" implies that you have to listen to it on an iPod, which obviously isn't true.

[aliste.livejournal.com]

Well, I think it was meant as a play on words of "broadcast" as well. And iPods are perceived as the premier mp3-playing devices, so it's not surprising that whoever coined the term "podcast" would choose something related to iPods to give their product added cachet. I mean, people add "i-" on to everything nowadays whether it's really iPod related or not, just so undiscerning consumers will automatically think it must be cool and want to buy it. So I'm sure Apple is happy that these things create more interest in genuine Apple products, but you can't blame them directly for the misleading terminology in this case.

[vovat.livejournal.com]

Well, I think it was meant as a play on words of "broadcast" as well.

I realize this, but that doesn't make it sound any less like something out of a bad sci-fi movie. :P

And iPods are perceived as the premier mp3-playing devices

PORTABLE MP3- playing device, sure, although I don't totally know why. I mean, I used to want an iPod, until I found out how expensive they are compared to other brands of MP3 player. I've seen no indication that they're superior to the cheaper brands in any way, either, so I guess it's just a case of a more aggressive marketing strategy (and brand loyalty on the part of Apple users). But getting back to my original point, has the iPod surpassed the actual computer as the most popular MP3-playing device? I tend to doubt it.

I mean, people add "i-" on to everything nowadays whether it's really iPod related or not, just so undiscerning consumers will automatically think it must be cool and want to buy it.

I can't really think of any examples that aren't actual Apple products (like the iMac, which I believe predates the iPod by some time), but I'm probably forgetting something obvious.

[aliste.livejournal.com]

has the iPod surpassed the actual computer as the most popular MP3-playing device? I tend to doubt it.

I'm sure you're right about that, but for me personally, when somebody says "mp3 player" I don't immediately think "computer," just like when somebody says "calculator" I don't think "computer." I mean of course my computer can do those things but I don't define it by a primary function in that way, and when somebody says "mp3 player" I assume they mean a portable one. And I do think that in the coinage of the term "podcast" whoever it was (possibly Adam Curry, not Apple in any case) wanted to insist on the idea of portability, where unlike regular radio where you have to be where the radio is at a certain time, with a podcast you can carry it with you anywhere and listen whenever you want. And the iPod, whether one likes it or not, is the best-known portable mp3 device. I'm not saying I don't agree with you that the term is misleading—I really do think it's a shame that a lot of people think you have to have an iPod (or even iTunes) to listen to one—but its origin is kind of explainable.

I can't really think of any examples that aren't actual Apple products

There's the iRiver (a non-Apple mp3 player) and a ton of third-party Mac/iPod accessories (like the iCurve, iMic, iHome and iTrip). And I used to use an LJ client called "iJournal" which is pretty ridiculous as a name for a blogging tool. I guess those are all music/computer-related though.

Anyway. In case you hadn't noticed by now, I'm a rabid Apple fanatic, so, y'know, don't mind my rants. It's just a side effect of the persecution complex that goes along with being in the minority. :P

[vovat.livejournal.com]

I'm sure you're right about that, but for me personally, when somebody says "mp3 player" I don't immediately think "computer," just like when somebody says "calculator" I don't think "computer."

Well, neither do I, really. It's kind of a matter of semantics, though. I don't think of a computer as an "MP3 player" per se, but if someone were to ask me how I played MP3's, the answer would be the computer.

There's the iRiver

Oh, yeah. I told you I was probably forgetting something obvious. {g} Was there any real reason for the "i" in the first place?

I've noticed that Apple users generally seem to have an almost fanatical level of brand loyalty. I've never known PC users to be particularly loyal to any brand. I probably won't get another Dell, even though I'm pretty sure the problem with my old computer was actually the operating system (Windows ME). But then, I'm not much for brand loyalty in general.

[k1cup.livejournal.com]

Welcome to podcasts. Anyways, if you check out Tudio 360's podcasts, there's an episode about Oz-dom. You could also stream it from the website (studio 360's, that is).

[vovat.livejournal.com]

Really? Does it cover the books, or just the movie?

[k1cup.livejournal.com]

I'm not sure what it is. It's Studio 360's way of looking at how Oz influenced stuff. Here's the podcast description:

Studio360 - Nov 19, 2005 52:34 Kurt Andersen 11/17/05

Studio 360 follows the yellow brick road. You may think you know the story, but Kurt Andersen and guests will take you to places in the land of Oz that are more wonderful, and weirder, than you ever imagined. We’ll meet the original man behind the curtain, L. Frank Baum, who had all the vision of Walt Disney, but none of the business sense. We'll discover how Oz took over the Soviet Union. We'll check in with filmmakers Neil LaBute and Nora Ephron, novelist Salman Rushdie, performer Bobby McFerrin, and others from across the world who find magic, meaning, and inspiration in Oz.


I don't know if I can send it to you. It is an mp3 so I should be able to if you don't have a way of podcasting. It might be large since it's 52' long. Let me know.

[vovat.livejournal.com]

That sounds pretty cool. Is there any way to access it from the Web? If not, I guess you can try sending it, but it would be best to wait until next weekend for that.

As for the podcasting, can I just do that iTunes? That's what I did with the TMBG one.

[k1cup.livejournal.com]

Yes, you can subscribe to PRI's Studio 360 through iTunes. The date is November 19.

[vovat.livejournal.com]

Do you know the URL?

[k1cup.livejournal.com]

I don't know the URL for the podcast because I go through iTunes. If you want, the URL for Studio 360 is this: http://www.wnyc.org/studio360/archive.html, but it seems like the archived shows aren't free.

[vovat.livejournal.com]

Oh, well. Do you have the MP3, or not?

[k1cup.livejournal.com]

I can burn a CD for you. I think you said you'd be at the TMBG NYE show?

[vovat.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I should be at both of them.

[bec-87rb.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I agree the off-the-cuff stuff is fun, but wouldn't be funny for too long. Plus you'd get it stuck in your head. Who wants to remember that the Tudlow turtle's gasping is both a mating call and a cry for help? Oh shit, now I *will* remember that forever.

But it's free. So it's worth every penny!