From: Level42-request @ worldmachine.com (Level42 Digest) Subject: Level42 Digest V97 #115 _ ____ _ ____ _ _ ___ // //__ // / //__ // /__// __// //__ //__ \\_/ //__ //__ // /__ D I G E S T Level42 Digest Volume 97 : Issue 115 495 subscribers Today's topics: Re: Level42 Digest V97 #114 Jdelsav Koinonia/Canonea/Spice Girls Winman42 Running In The Family Out Of Print????? Paul Fucito Spice Girls tale JNSMITH UK and US WM Steven_Libenson Verbal bagatelles Randall L Collins Spice Girls? Daniel James a Level Connection Collection Bruce_Conrad Keyboardists, The Dan lolita Einstein A go-go Lazlo Nibble IRC N Collier Loz and the Re-issues Julian Arnold Leaving Me Now and Strike - Order your CDs Bilaltab Various dirk.vael L42 and EW&F Arjan Meijer Master Series CD, again... Mikep3099 ------------------------------ Subject: Re: Level42 Digest V97 #114 From: Jdelsav @ aol.com Date: Fri, 25 Apr 1997 08:35:15 -0400 (EDT) > when I was in NY visiting Winston (damn we had a good time...), we > pondered (however shortly) how some of the younger people on the list > got into Level 42? Most of us old people ( >25) heard them on the radio > and what not, but what about the young people, where did you hear them > first? how did you come to like them? Why am i so cool? :) two older brothers who played them so much that i HAD to like them eventually. The music really does grow on you! Anyway that's the way I got into them, otherwise I probably wouldn't be on the digest. dan ------------------------------ Subject: Koinonia/Canonea/Spice Girls From: Winman42 @ aol.com Date: Fri, 25 Apr 1997 09:15:54 -0400 (EDT) Mark - I have heard of Koinonia, I'm sure I have something by them in my collection. I got into them in the late eighties, when my fusion fever kicked in. My friends and i used to always make jokes about the name, because it reminded us of another fusion group called Canonea. They are a latin Jazz Fusion band who had a few albums out, the best one was released with the clever title of 'Desperately Seeking Fusion'. April - I do remember Night Music, hosted by Sanborn and Jools Holland, of Squeeze. That was a great, great, show with the worst time slot. It came on at about midnight here in New York. I always thought that show had the best band in TV history. Omar Hakim on drums, Marcus miller on bass, Phillipe Saisse on Keyboards, Sanborn, etc. Spice gals redux - Here's my take on this phenomenon. I have only heard their song once at Blockbuster, where they showed the video. I personally thought it sucked the big one. To damn poppy for my taste. I bet If listened to the radio all day I would like it, because sometimes you fall in love with things you dislike, when you hear them enough. I prefer artists who play instruments over artists who don't, especially If i pay money to see them in concert. That's probably why I tend to go with bands and not vocalists. Most vocalists these days seem to rely too much on 'producers'. These albums sounds more like production resume's than anything else. I mean, 12 songs and 9 producers, and they don't even write any of the tunes. However, one of my fave artists, Michael Franks, is a vocalist, but he doesn't play an instrument. (he does play guitar, but VERY rarely on his stuff) I don't think that i would like the Spice Girls more or less if they played instruments. I also don't think that people are trying to shoot them down because they are very popular. I liked Madonna when she first came out, and I don't see that her first album was any better than the Spice Girls. But you can't pay me to buy anything from Madonna now, because my tastes have changed. There is nothing wrong with what they do, but it's just not my cup of tea. Put me on the dancefloor though, and I'll love it. I guess my tolerance for this stuff has shrunken a bit in the last ten years. Hell, I remember loving the Archies as a kid. Anyone remember the hit they had with 'Sugar, Sugar'? I got my copy on the back of a box of apple jacks cereal, and man I must have drove my parents nuts playing that piece of crap. I guess what I'm trying to say is..Actually, I don't even remember what the hell my point was, but thanks for listening, or reading, or whatever. Oh! there is a place for all of the music thats being made, maybe just not in our house. I keep remembering that some of my friends can't get into Level 42, and I say 'What?, these guys are THE best." Diff strokes and all that jazz. Sorry for the length of this, but look at the bright side. No talk of MD or ATRAC!! Tcoy, Winston ------------------------------ Subject: Running In The Family Out Of Print????? From: Paul Fucito Date: Fri, 25 Apr 1997 09:18:00 -0700 Well, I never thought it went out of print in the states, but apparently it did for a while, and it was just re-issued again...Same as before with the same bonus track.Some friends of mine in the retail business brought this to my attention. Also, check it out on those in store computers and it will still list Running In The Family as being out of print.. The album went Platiunm here, and Polydor would consider dropping it? What are they smoking over there? Paul ------------------------------ Subject: Spice Girls tale From: JNSMITH @ msuvx2.memphis.edu Date: Fri, 25 Apr 1997 08:28:11 -0600 (CST) A quick non-level question: Anyone who saw the Spice Girls, Does anyone else think they sounded pretty good when they sang together but SUCKED HARD when they sang solo? Also, their "dancing" kind of reminded me of the Village People! Oh well, just my .02 worth. JOE ------------------------------ Subject: UK and US WM From: Steven_Libenson @ monitor.com Date: Fri, 25 Apr 1997 09:37:05 -0400 > Lolita writes... >> * UK World Machine is better because it has Dream Crazy, one of my top >> five Level songs. It also has I Sleep on My Heart, and has a consistent >> track order, IMO. > > I'm confused. I have what I thought was the US version of WM. > Bought it here. But it has both of those songs. What up with that? My reply: I'm sure you'll get a bunch of responses on this one. DC and ISOMH are on the UK version. Both were available in the US. The US version, conveniently enough, has a stripe in the bottom corner on the front which says "US version." Back in February of 96, there was a string on the merits of the two versions. I preferred the US version, while most people (everyone else?) preferred the UK version. I guess having listened to the US version a billion times, the tracks and ordering seems better to me; however, if I had started with the UK version, I'd might think differently. If you want to know more, you might want to check the archives for the discussion. - Steve ------------------------------ Subject: Verbal bagatelles From: rcol @ ix.netcom.com (Randall L Collins) Date: Fri, 25 Apr 1997 09:47:36 -0500 (CDT) Pat writes: (in ref to SNL with Pamela Lee) > I guess I was just in a daze from watching Ms. Lee's incredible > surgical enhancements. It's wearing off, now, I'm coming back to > reality. I was going to say something about that in the last digest but I wasn't sure if others would feel like me. I think surgical enhancements is an understatement! Can you say "yikes"? I personally don't find Pamela attractive at all. Her imfamous "nude" monologue reveled someone who is too skinny for her altered assets. "One (Two) of these things is (are) not like the other....." ( as the Sesmae Street tune says) Too gaudy for me. Her live acting wasn't too bad, in all fairness. She did make me laugh a little. Still, not an attractive woman to me. Martin Ashby: Yes, I received your postard. Thank you. That card made me want to come back to England again....<>..."And did those feet, in ancient times...walked upon England's mountains green...." Winston: Lost your mailing address (sorry). I have made you a tape of the Megamix. Could I have it again? Thanks. To those who were sent copies of the LMN piano part: "How's it going?" Trillian: You requested a tape of bass-oriented music and I have made one for you. Please email me your address so I may send it. Right, then! Randall "This is the violence inherited in the system. Help! Help! I'm being repressed!!" ------------------------------ Subject: Spice Girls? From: Daniel James Organization: Mathsoft, Seattle Division Date: Fri, 25 Apr 1997 08:31:57 -0700 > I'd say American audiences are too ethnocentric to think in these > terms. :) I think they catch flak because they're a "girl group", > they have catchy tunes, and they're showing themselves to be popular > and successful. So naturally people want to try and cut them down. Actually, part of it for me is that they misrepresent themselves as feminist women, while they parade about on a beach in what looks like leather teddys and sing about love=sex and such... Not that other groups don't do the same, but these girls are obviously targeting the early teens, and I think they're sending off the wrong message. Other than that, I find the music catchy as well :) -- ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Daniel James - Database Administrator djames @ statsci.com DAPD Div of MathSoft (formerly StatSci) (206) 283-8802 x284 ------------------------------ Subject: a Level Connection Collection From: Bruce_Conrad @ hphc.org Date: Fri, 25 Apr 1997 12:47:21 -0400 OK. I'm going to start gathering info on a proposed project. I think it would be nice to create a collection of original songs by digest members - sort of like 'Cover 42' created by Bill Wilson, except this will contain originals, not L42 covers. I hope people will discuss this on the digest, but if you already have something willing to contribute, I'd like to start gathering that information. Please send that info to the email address below (not HPHC.Org). The formats I support are LP, cassette, CD, and DAT. I don't know if we would want to put the collection on CD-R, but we could... I know there are a lot of musicians on this digest - this would be a chance for everyone to hear/share our own creations. (I'll be submitting songs from my friends' demo tape. He IS a L42 fan) p.s. yeah, I've heard of Koinonia, but I don't think I know anyone that has their records. (that was Alex Acuna, [sp] I believe) Bruce_Conrad @ BMUG.Org Software Control Analyst Harvard Pilgrim Health Care, Quincy, MA ------------------------------ Subject: Keyboardists, The Dan From: lolita @ interserv.com Date: Fri, 25 Apr 1997 12:18:08 -0700 STEELY DAN! For the newbie who asked if anyone on the Digest likes them, the answer is that many of us do. Levelheads recognize superior musicianship, which that group had in abundance. They give a great live show as well, as many of us can attest. I've seen them six or seven times, but have never had the good fortune to meet them. I did used to live in the building next door to Donald Fagan here in NY and saw him a few times, but never had the guts to approach him. What an idiot I am. Anyway, they took arranging to a new level, and I still say Aja is one of the best engineered CDs of all time. My faves: Haitian Divorce, Caves of Altamira, Black Cow, Home At Last, and Babylon Sisters. Night Music - That David Sanborn show was so good that network TV couldn't handle it. I really miss it. He had such a great format and good guests, and you can't really see a show like that anymore. It's a shame. As far as keyboardists are concerned, Joe Sample is the man; particularly when he was with The Crusaders and during his first solo album. I also like his stuff on other people's albums like Steely Dan (Black Cow) and Marcus Miller (Sun Don't Lie - the song). Herbie Hancock is next in line for me just for versatility alone. I own the Best of CD released by Blue Note which has all his sixties stuff from his quartet, and I also have Headhunters from his 70's period as well as Dis is Da Drum and Nocturnal Sunshine from 1994. All of this stuff is vastly different, and its all great. Bob James is cool, especially Westchester Lady and the Double Vision album with David Sanborn. I have to say, one thing I love about jazz music is that you can hear your favorite artists all the time since they all do so much session work for each other. It is sort of like Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon in the movies - almost everyone in jazz has worked with at least one of the following: Vocals: Al Jarreau Percussion: Paulinho Da Costa Bass: Ron Carter or Marcus Miller Keys: Herbie, Joe, or Bob Piano: Keith Jarrett, Greg Phillinganes Drums: Jack DeJohnette, Omar Hakim Guitar: Pat Metheny, Hiram Bullock Sax: David Sanborn, Tom Scott You get the picture. Marcus Miller has only had three CDs of his own, but I have dozens of songs that he's played on, and can usually recognize him immediately - same with Joe Sample. I have often bought CDs by artists that I didn't know solely because of the supporting cast. Anyway, I'm sure a lot of you feel the same way so I'm preaching to the choir, but what do you think about my list? Who would you add or take off? Lolita ------------------------------ Subject: Einstein A go-go From: "Lazlo Nibble" Date: Fri, 25 Apr 1997 13:31:32 -0600 (MDT) >> I just found on the WWW a 12" of a Level 42 song called "Einstein >> A Go-Go". Can anybody tell me what this is, because I never heard >> about it!? > > My memory ain't what it was, but in the early '80s there was a vaguely > monster hit of the same name by a band called Landscape. Probably someone confused the Landscape track with the Thunderthumbs 12" (B-side: "Freedom A-Go-Go"). -- ::: Lazlo (lazlo @ swcp.com; http://www.swcp.com/lazlo) ::: Internet Music Wantlists: http://www.swcp.com/lazlo/Wantlists ------------------------------ Subject: IRC From: N Collier Date: Fri, 25 Apr 1997 22:09:02 +0100 Will there be an IRC session this Sunday? I'd like to join in one week but I've never used IRC before - can somebody 'hold my hand' and tell me what to do? Regards, Nigel "...friends all over the world, none in this country but all over the world" - Tony Hancock, The Radio Ham http://www.ncl.ac.uk/~nnac/ [for a good primer, check the FAQ at: http://www.kei.com/irc.html -Eric] ------------------------------ Subject: Loz and the Re-issues From: "Julian Arnold" Date: 25 Apr 1997 15:21:00 -0700 Howdy friends, I'm wondering where Loz is, I know he was writing to the digest a while ago but nothing for a long time. I tried to mail him some weeks ago but I never received a response. Anyone shed any light? Secondly, whatever happened with those Polydor re-issues due out in March?. If ANYONE can update me that would be soooooo kewl of you. Please note I won't have access to email until Monday morning, but please write if you know something. Thanks a bunch! (Margie from "Fargo"!) Jules. P.S. Norm Peterson walks into Cheers and Woody asks: "How's life treatin' ya Norm?" Norm says: "like a Baby treats a diaper now pour me a beer!!" ------------------------------ Subject: Leaving Me Now and Strike - Order your CDs From: Bilaltab @ aol.com Date: Fri, 25 Apr 1997 18:42:18 -0400 (EDT) Hi guys The band is called 'Strike', the song: 'I have Peace' and it is based on the Leaving Me Now tune. UK release date is 5th May. It is a catchy rap/dance tune. Whatever your taste, I must emphasize that it is a compliment to Level42 that another band is playing their music. I'd love to know if anyone hears any comment from L42 or Crockford. Personally I would be really proud if anyone used my music! If any of you guys want the single, just mail me - Bilal bilaltab @ aol.com ------------------------------ Subject: Various From: "dirk.vael" Date: 25 Apr 97 23:19:50 TDK blanks for 4.99 with a $1 rebate WHOW! Perhaps worldwide prices have dropped I'll check my store soon. I listen to Kiss 100 FM London in realaudio everyday, in the background of my computer cool! ERiC > check this Kiss site in realaudio Tuesday 7-9 PM GMT and/or Friday 10-11 PM GMT or Saturday 9-11PM GMT. ****Awesome**** Garage/Howze music!!! (needs ISDN to be CD-stereo quality, but at 15k/s you already have a good mono signal. I like Steely Dan too (esp. where they got that name from!!) The Nightfly is in my top 10 ever CDs... I have also their 4CD box. The $1900 Sony JA50ES MiniDisc recorder is really one of the most advanced digital audio recording machines Sony made up to date. The A/D/A convertor is reported to be one of the most breath-gasping ones around. The sound is also reported to be better than DAT (German pro-audio magazine). Has also about 8 digital fade functions, and yes, digital recording level, smart recording modes, etc etc... But too much for me!! The Digest L42 MultiMedia CDROM ... info soon on this Digest (we're working on it!!!) Re: Something About You SISA Mix > I don't remember who had offered it, but I'm looking for a good copy of > the Something ABout You SISA Mix...... If somebody has this on disc or > tape for sale/trade/copy....PLEASE e-mail me... this SISA remix is avail on a remix CD > A co-worker of mine has a mail order business with nothing but band > memorabilia (posters, concert passes, gold records, promos, etc..) and > he is currently looking into his inventory for any remaining Level 42 > memorabilia... I will post his findings once they are here... He used to > have a good amount of Level 42 material, including HUGE subway posters > from France.... I wonder what happened with all those MEGAHUGE L42 banners from the UK gigs back in 91... I got pictures of them and I was wondering "Where are these 30 feet sized banners???" > From: "eyesee communications" Whow, another Belgian dude, I'll need to contact him!!!! Christophe, here I come! From: DonZipf @ aol.com > Older players aren't completely compatible with the CD-R specification, > Dirk. I have an original Magnavox portable (the very first CD boom box - > the one from the early Energizer commercials - an eighties relic) which > will play my CD-R's, but won't give me track access until it gets three > or four tracks in. If I just start a disc, and try to skip ahead a track, > it crashes! And , remember, Philips and Magnavox are synonamous. Just to note that my Sony CDP151 Discman won't play any CDR, no matter on what CDrecorder they were made (sometimes it finds the TOC, but won't play a single second of it) My JVC XP131 Discman does play CDRs without a single problem... it's the lens adjustment I guess: CDRs are different in track layout after all... (see further on in this posting) Subject: CD-R: Journey to the edge of the disc to JohnV: it's not actually the 71:30 limit, more the actual distance from the edge. My Philips CD471 plays a CD (Sunset sound of LA - awesome MCA disc from good old '88, with many great tunes from Jimmy Jam, Terry Lewis, LA Reid & Babyface) perfectly... time: 75:13... I think there was already some info posted on narrowing tracks for more space (see the Resurgence release, 77m and something) Even weirder, this CD has a microscopic scratch which wil make skip track one at 3:53 ON ANY CD PLAYER (JVC, Denon DCD1015 and DCD3000, Pioneer,Teac, Luxman, JVC, even a $3000 player I already forgot the exotic name of) won't play it... except that dusty Philips CD471 player!!! He plays it fine without any tick or whatever... Philips did invent the CD after all! (but the DA is awful... put it on pause and you might think it's raining outside!) (not real 16bit sampling, but enhanced 14bit sampling (oversampling)) For the rest of John's remarks: words of wisdom... > As someone had asked as to why the exits of some tracks on AYGB seemed > shortened, it was done to make sure that all the tracks would fit in the > safety time limit. You might be putout that you are missing 5 seconds > of reverb fade out or 8 seconds of well... reverb fade out, but this > was done to make sure that AYGB would play on everyone's disc player. Since the resurgence release is easily available, I don't think many would complain if "Time will heal" would be skipping all of a sudden on their olde CD players... BTW John, only 'All she wants' differs in time from the original, right? > Burning CD-R is no different than copying a file to a floppy. If you > try to create a disc longer than 74 minutes (650 Megs) the CD burning > software will say "not enough space available". Well, it's that way for > the CD software _I_ use. Toast-DA for the beloved Macintosh. But WHAT if you override the software, like I can do ??? A floppy will just say, disk full, insert other disc, but will a CDR lock up or what??? btw, I can use Mac software on my Amiga too :-) > msg to Dirkes: Blow Me No thanks! ;-) And just to say that Level Best was released on MiniDisc too. Also here, Polydor messed around with the MD format to fit the bonus tracks on the MD) That's all a more than [-Nervous] Dirkies "Last night, I dreamt of Ra..." ------------------------------ Subject: L42 and EW&F From: Arjan Meijer Organization: IP/Informatica Projectgroep B.V. Date: Sat, 26 Apr 1997 10:02:22 +0200 Hi there Levelheads! Due to extreme busy times at my work, I have been a "lurker" for some time now. But I have followed all the discussions on the digest, so I take this opportunity to reply to some of those things. A couple of digests ago, J Shuford wrote: I don't know why I never really thought of this before, but does anybody else notice a connection/similarity between "Let's Groove" and "Micro Kid"? Can't quite place my finger on it, but it's there. Well, I have the same feeling. I can think off a couple of reasons. - Most obvious: Micro Kid was produced by Larry Dunn and Verdine White of EW&F. - More into detail: the use of the vocoder. The what?!? Yes, the vocoder. I think that a lot of digesters out there know exactly what I mean, but for those who don't I will explain. A vocoder is a synthesizer that alters the voice. The microphone is plugged into the synth, and when you sing and play the notes you sing on the synth at the same time, it sound like a "computer voice". This effect was used a lot in the eighties, but even today you can hear it every now and then. And I don't know why, but it always excites me... In the EW&F song you hear it at the beginning and later on in between the lyrics (I don't know the exact words, but the synth-voice goes something like "Down, the boogie, down and down, the boogie" repeatedly). The extra special thing about the Micro Kid vocoder, is that Mike plays the synth, while Mark sings/scats the words... That's quite special, 'cause the two of them really had to know what the other was doing, otherwise the effect doesn't really work. I know in live performances Mike did the singing and the synth playing. You can hear that in the incredible version of Micro Kid-Live at Wembley'87, which will be on the first digest Live-disc (or am I wrong John?). In the end of that song Mike sings more synth solo, and it just the best! The use of vocoder stuff in recent songs: the beginning of the Salt and Peppa song Get Down With The Party (it starts with "Baby, baby, baby baby"), the song of Foxy Brown with Blackstreet, and some time ago there was "California" by (if I'm correct...) Two-Pac and Dr. Dre (No, NOT Andre :-) ). You will notice that mainly the R&B and Rap acts use it nowadays. In the eighties there was a guy named Roger, who had a little hit completely sung through the vocoder. Strangely enough, while I love vocoders, I hated this song! And I'm NOT into Rap and R&B at all, so you know what I think about most of the recent vocoder-stuff. - last connection between Lets Groove and Micro Kid: the bassline. The bassline Mark uses during the lyrics ("Pushing all the buttons" and so on) resembles the bassline of EW&F. But this is more farfetched... I know this has been discussed before, but IMO the sound of the bass on Standing In The Light (the album with Micro Kid) is the most awful of any L42-albums (although Guaranteed has some pretty bad bass-sounds too). It seems that the guys from EW&F didn't know how to EQ the bass. It sounds nosy (is that a correct musicians statement in English? In Dutch we say it, I just translated it literary). Other EW&F-stuff: I know the live-album you all talk about, and indeed, it's extremely tight. I was a bit disapointed when I read the liner-notes, and there you can see that they used at least three recording studios (if I remember correctly...) to make the overdubs... Well, so much for a live-album... But omitting that knowledge from my mind: I like the album! Well, I stop this rather lengthy message with my opinion about our much discussed favorite (?!?) girlgroup SG: I say YES! I agree with the "is there any problem with mindless, happy-go-lucky, feel-good, sing-along-able pop music by five girls?? OK, maybe they cannot sing live. OK, maybe they say very stupid things in interviews, and OK, maybe it's just the best marketing trick of last year, but finally there's some upbeat music in the charts again. Bubblegum for my ears! I think the SG re-cycle the seventies much better than Oasis recycles the sixties! I hope I didn't spur a lot of negative reactions. And if I did, that's OK too :-) Arjan. PS. The track order on the UK/European release of WM is MUCH better than the US-edition. What the hell are Hot Water and The Chant doing on that album?!? Just buy True Colours, another extremely good, and much underrated L42-album (I've listened to it all week) "Knowledge fuels the mind of the few" - Micro Kid ------------------------------ Subject: Master Series CD, again... From: Mikep3099 @ aol.com Date: Sat, 26 Apr 1997 04:20:20 -0400 (EDT) Hi all, After many months of trying to get the Master Series CD ABCD was finally able to get me a copy. When it arrived though, it was an Australian issue! It seems to have the same tracks that were listed by someone else a few months back as being on the Zounds label issue from Germany. I am curious, does anyone have a copy of the Zounds version? The version I have is on Polygram International BV from Australia. It's cat. # is 531 038-2. It has the red Poldor insig on the back. It is simply called Level 42 Master Series. The front art features a strip of pictures of mark and his bass. A close-up of his face followed by a close-up of his hand on the strings of his blue bass followed by the same 2 shots simply pulled back a bit. Above this it is all black and says Level 42 in 1.5 inch white letters.Inside is a 2 page band history by Arthur Davis. The sound seems to be improved to a pretty large degree but the transfer engineer had a pretty heavy hand on the EQ in the top couple of octaves. The early tracks see the most improvement While the Staring At The Sun tracks almost sound weak in comparison. Slightly muted and far less dynamic than the rest The high end is so tweaked that tape noise on the earlier cuts, Especialy Wings Of Love, intrudes. Overall though the sound is vastly more open and transparent. All in all, it's worth having. Here is the track listing. Please let me know if the Zounds issue differs any and how it sounds. This CD really makes me yearn for the remastered reissues of the entire albums! 1. Something About You 4.24 2. To Be With You Again 5.19 3. Running In The Family 6.12 4. Hot Water 3.38 5. You Can't Blame Louis 5.05 6. Tracie 4.51 7. Last Chance 4.30 8. Flying On The Wings Of Love 3.49 9. Dance On Heavy Weather 4.29 10. Take A Look 4.41 11. Love Games 4.26 12. Seven Days 4.28 13. Staring At The Sun 4.44 14. It's Not The Same For Us 4.36 15. Two Solitudes (Everyone's Love In The Air) 5.37 16. Leaving Me Now 5.00 LOZ please let us know what is up with the reissues!! We miss hearing from you. Well, That's it for now, Mike Jonh V. I'm still working on borrowing a DAT to tape the live stuff for you.