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vovatThe next XTC album is Oranges and Lemons. From what I've heard, Andy wanted a title that tied in with nursery rhymes, and originally considered "Songs of Sixpence." The final choice for the title references both the nursery rhyme about church bells ("Oranges and lemons," say the bells of St. Clement's) and the colors of Los Angeles, where the recording was done.
Garden of Earthly Delights - Great opening track, with the vocals kicking things off with a bang (or something like that) after the Arabian market sound at the beginning. And I quite like the lyric "Just don't hurt nobody, 'less of course they ask you."
The Mayor of Simpleton - A really catchy single about how love triumphs over brainpower. I've never totally believed that this song was autobiographical, though. I've heard that Andy dropped out of school, but he's also struck me as kind of a nerdy intellectual type anyway. I mean, he says, "I can't unravel riddles, problems, and puns," yet there's a pun right in the title. But songs don't have to be about the singers, and this is a cool song.
King for a Day - Okay, this song sounds a LOT like Tears for Fears' "Everybody Wants to Rule the World," doesn't it? It's more blatantly eighties than any of the other songs on here, but it's still enjoyable. Not an overall favorite of mine, but it DOES hold the dubious honor of being the only XTC song I've heard in a grocery store (well, except possibly "Thanks for Christmas" around the holidays).
Here Comes President Kill Again - On the commentary for the "Citizen Kang" Halloween segment (don't worry, this IS related to the song {g}), the Simpsons writers pointed out that its main message is that it doesn't really matter much which candidate you vote for, because they're all basically the same. I forget who it was, but one of them mentioned that this isn't at all true. This song has a similar message, and I can't say I agree with it either. Sure, all politicians are politicians, and not likely to totally represent any private citizen's interests. But to say they're all the same ignores the deeds of both the really good and really bad leaders. That said, I still like the song, and it's hardly Andy's job to propose a better alternative to representative government in a three-and-a-half-minute pop song.
The Loving - A simple but cool little song that presents love as a sort of product (despite the fact that Andy had earlier said "love's not a product you can hoard, or pack a suitcase with" :P). My favorite line in it is probably, "The loving's humming your favourite song. For once it won't annoy the neighbours."
Poor Skeleton Steps Out - I like this one a LOT. I guess my taste often veers toward the weird, and that's what this song clearly is. Great percussion part, and interesting lyrics about the liberation of skeletons.
One of the Millions - I think this is actually my favorite of Colin's contributions to this album. The rocking-boat rhythm and accompanying music is what really makes it for me. Colin's vocals on it are also good.
Scarecrow People - Another kind of weird song, with a tiny bit of a country sound to it, and sort of a fantasy theme. Not surprisingly, this is another one I quite like. There's even a passing Wizard of Oz reference, with the "we ain't got no brains, and we ain't got no hearts" line in the chorus. And like "Here Comes President Kill Again," the lyrics are deliciously sarcastic.
Merely a Man - Another very catchy song, and this time with an explicit Wizard of Oz reference. It also mentions Muammar al-Gaddafi, Daffy Duck, and Jimmy Swaggart in the same line. How can I help but like it?
Cynical Days - I've never liked this one very much, and often skip it when it comes up. Since I'm listening to the entire album now, I'm not skipping it, but I can't say I like it any more than I did before.
Across This Antheap - On the other hand, I like this one quite a bit, and not just because it includes the line "the orgasm's faked." {g} Presenting humanity in general in a metaphorical way seems to be a recurring theme on this album, and this time we're being compared to ants.
Hold Me My Daddy - Sorry, Andy, but this ranks down there with "Cynical Days." I'm not totally sure what Andy was going for here, and I don't know that he did either. Not bad musically, but it doesn't really work for me.
Pink Thing - Another one where I'm not entirely sure what Andy was thinking when he wrote it, considering that he's said it's either about a penis or a son. I wonder what his then-newborn son Harry thinks of sharing the subject of a song with his father's member. :P Really, though, I think the penis interpretation is the one everyone will immediately come up with, so I'm not sure it matters much. Despite its odd perversity, though, it works. It's amusing, and has a nice, light sound to its music.
Miniature Sun - Musically speaking, the jazzy sound to this one is not one of my favorite XTC arrangements, to say the least. Lyrically, though, it's pretty clever, with the narrator describing himself with both positive and negative traits of the Sun, depending on his mood.
Chalkhills and Children - I think this one might be a bit overrated, but it is a good song, if a bit long. And now that I've heard the work of Flanders and Swann, I get the "reluctant cannonball" pun.
Overall, I think I would consider this one of those albums that has a lot of great tracks, but doesn't so much function as a single unit (which Skylarking did quite well). Also, I notice that this album has more of an easy-listening/adult contemporary sound than most of the band's earlier records. Well, maybe that's taking it a little too far, but it's definitely musically softer, yet not in a pastoral way like the previous album or Mummer.
Incidentally, speaking of XTC, the Dukes of Stratosphear records are being re-released on CD, with bonus tracks and new notes. I'm not yet sure whether these would be a good investment for me, but I must say I'm tempted.
Garden of Earthly Delights - Great opening track, with the vocals kicking things off with a bang (or something like that) after the Arabian market sound at the beginning. And I quite like the lyric "Just don't hurt nobody, 'less of course they ask you."
The Mayor of Simpleton - A really catchy single about how love triumphs over brainpower. I've never totally believed that this song was autobiographical, though. I've heard that Andy dropped out of school, but he's also struck me as kind of a nerdy intellectual type anyway. I mean, he says, "I can't unravel riddles, problems, and puns," yet there's a pun right in the title. But songs don't have to be about the singers, and this is a cool song.
King for a Day - Okay, this song sounds a LOT like Tears for Fears' "Everybody Wants to Rule the World," doesn't it? It's more blatantly eighties than any of the other songs on here, but it's still enjoyable. Not an overall favorite of mine, but it DOES hold the dubious honor of being the only XTC song I've heard in a grocery store (well, except possibly "Thanks for Christmas" around the holidays).
Here Comes President Kill Again - On the commentary for the "Citizen Kang" Halloween segment (don't worry, this IS related to the song {g}), the Simpsons writers pointed out that its main message is that it doesn't really matter much which candidate you vote for, because they're all basically the same. I forget who it was, but one of them mentioned that this isn't at all true. This song has a similar message, and I can't say I agree with it either. Sure, all politicians are politicians, and not likely to totally represent any private citizen's interests. But to say they're all the same ignores the deeds of both the really good and really bad leaders. That said, I still like the song, and it's hardly Andy's job to propose a better alternative to representative government in a three-and-a-half-minute pop song.
The Loving - A simple but cool little song that presents love as a sort of product (despite the fact that Andy had earlier said "love's not a product you can hoard, or pack a suitcase with" :P). My favorite line in it is probably, "The loving's humming your favourite song. For once it won't annoy the neighbours."
Poor Skeleton Steps Out - I like this one a LOT. I guess my taste often veers toward the weird, and that's what this song clearly is. Great percussion part, and interesting lyrics about the liberation of skeletons.
One of the Millions - I think this is actually my favorite of Colin's contributions to this album. The rocking-boat rhythm and accompanying music is what really makes it for me. Colin's vocals on it are also good.
Scarecrow People - Another kind of weird song, with a tiny bit of a country sound to it, and sort of a fantasy theme. Not surprisingly, this is another one I quite like. There's even a passing Wizard of Oz reference, with the "we ain't got no brains, and we ain't got no hearts" line in the chorus. And like "Here Comes President Kill Again," the lyrics are deliciously sarcastic.
Merely a Man - Another very catchy song, and this time with an explicit Wizard of Oz reference. It also mentions Muammar al-Gaddafi, Daffy Duck, and Jimmy Swaggart in the same line. How can I help but like it?
Cynical Days - I've never liked this one very much, and often skip it when it comes up. Since I'm listening to the entire album now, I'm not skipping it, but I can't say I like it any more than I did before.
Across This Antheap - On the other hand, I like this one quite a bit, and not just because it includes the line "the orgasm's faked." {g} Presenting humanity in general in a metaphorical way seems to be a recurring theme on this album, and this time we're being compared to ants.
Hold Me My Daddy - Sorry, Andy, but this ranks down there with "Cynical Days." I'm not totally sure what Andy was going for here, and I don't know that he did either. Not bad musically, but it doesn't really work for me.
Pink Thing - Another one where I'm not entirely sure what Andy was thinking when he wrote it, considering that he's said it's either about a penis or a son. I wonder what his then-newborn son Harry thinks of sharing the subject of a song with his father's member. :P Really, though, I think the penis interpretation is the one everyone will immediately come up with, so I'm not sure it matters much. Despite its odd perversity, though, it works. It's amusing, and has a nice, light sound to its music.
Miniature Sun - Musically speaking, the jazzy sound to this one is not one of my favorite XTC arrangements, to say the least. Lyrically, though, it's pretty clever, with the narrator describing himself with both positive and negative traits of the Sun, depending on his mood.
Chalkhills and Children - I think this one might be a bit overrated, but it is a good song, if a bit long. And now that I've heard the work of Flanders and Swann, I get the "reluctant cannonball" pun.
Overall, I think I would consider this one of those albums that has a lot of great tracks, but doesn't so much function as a single unit (which Skylarking did quite well). Also, I notice that this album has more of an easy-listening/adult contemporary sound than most of the band's earlier records. Well, maybe that's taking it a little too far, but it's definitely musically softer, yet not in a pastoral way like the previous album or Mummer.
Incidentally, speaking of XTC, the Dukes of Stratosphear records are being re-released on CD, with bonus tracks and new notes. I'm not yet sure whether these would be a good investment for me, but I must say I'm tempted.
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Nit Pickin'
Date: 2009-03-25 02:26 am (UTC):->
Re: Nit Pickin'
Date: 2009-03-25 07:19 pm (UTC)Seriously, though, I fixed it. Thanks.
no subject
Date: 2009-03-25 04:34 am (UTC)I fuckin' love "Chalkhills" though -- but I don't get the pun... or, rather, I mean I get the line (cannonballs being, y'know fired, so it's hard for them to be reluctant, or at least for said reluctance to matter), but yeah?
[1] Paul Simon, not Elvis
no subject
Date: 2009-03-25 07:22 pm (UTC)Yeah, once you realize that none of your songs are going to be played on the radio anyway, I guess you might as well just release the better ones as singles. Which makes me wonder why Virgin bothered pulling "Wrapped in Grey."
but I don't get the pun... or, rather, I mean I get the line (cannonballs being, y'know fired, so it's hard for them to be reluctant, or at least for said reluctance to matter), but yeah?
Flanders and Swann have a song (well, I guess it's actually more of a spoken-word piece) called "The Reluctant Cannibal." I assume Andy was playing on that, although I've never seen this confirmed.