Re: 'My head was spinning. My oh my!' / RE: (TV) Tom interview from 2006

[Phil Obbard <pobbard@yahoo.com>]

Hey, so I am trying to set a record for late replies to posts, but I'm just
going through some old email and came across this. 

Just one comment to
Leif's great post:

"Actually, this A&R man was interviewed somewhere about
all this -- I don'tremember where, and I don't remember his name, but anyway:
as far as I
remember, his view on it all was that Fontana had ambitions with
Verlaine and
they thought Verlaine could do better than "The Lost Album" --
and who could
say anything else than that he was right there? I often listen
to "Flash
Light" but rarely to the drum-machine heavy second-rate material
that's "The
Lost Album"."

I agree that FLASH LIGHT is better -- much better
-- than the so-called "Lost Album" material, compiled as VANITY FAIR. But it's
important to remember that the material on VANITY FAIR is just the material
that has been legitimately released. We know not everything came out as
b-sides (e.g., "Ah Lee" has never been officially released -- it is a truly
lost track) and there could be more, unheard tracks in the vaults; we knows
Verlaine re-recorded at least one track during the FLASH LIGHT sessions (like
"Sundown") from the rejected sessions, and he could have re-recorded more (for
all we know, "At 4 AM" is s remake -- we just don't know). 

My point being,
we don't know what the A&R man heard in 1986/7. We can guess that some of it
was the material heard on VANITY FAIR, but we have no way of knowing if the
VANITY FAIR material is all material Verlaine intended for inclusion on the
"lost album", of it some of represents unfinished ideas, recordings, etc.
--Phil




________________________________
 From: leif joley
<leifjoley@hotmail.com>
To: tv@obbard.com 
Sent: Friday, September 28, 2012
9:22 PM
Subject: RE: 'My head was spinning. My oh my!' / RE: (TV) Tom
interview  from 2006
 
It's 3.15 in the morning here and I can't get any sleep
because of this. We
have to solve the mystery. Once and for all.

Within the
same paragraph about "Flash Light" -- if it even IS about
"Flashlight" --
Verlaine is cited as saying first:

"The idiot A&R man insisted that I use
another guitarist"

And then:

"[The A&R] man said 'whered you get the
guitarist' and I said its all live,
I
did it with this other guy Jimmy and he
said 44oh yeah, I know him from
your tour4"

So the A&R man didn't wanted Rip,
for reasons not explained, and then Verlaine
hands over a new recording which
the A&R man thinks is fine, actually "much
better" than the rejected one, and
he wants to know the name of the guitarist
-- and it's Jimmy! It's Jimmy
again! The A&R man KNOWS about Jimmy because
Jimmy's been playing live with
Verlaine! He has seen Rip with his own eyes!
The A&R man now fully accepts
Jimmy -- the same worthless Jimmy who was the
reason for giving thumbs-down to
Verlaine's first effort to make a record for
Fontana.

Actually, this A&R man
was interviewed somewhere about all this -- I don't
remember where, and I
don't remember his name, but anyway: as far as I
remember, his view on it all
was that Fontana had ambitions with Verlaine and
they thought Verlaine could
do better than "The Lost Album" -- and who could
say anything else than that
he was right there? I often listen to "Flash
Light" but rarely to the
drum-machine heavy second-rate material that's "The
Lost Album".

The
interviewer uses the Q&A form, which, for a journalist, in one way is
easier
and in another way is harder to do than writing in an ordinary style.
Anyone
who's been making interviews and publishing them know this. Easier,
because
then you just write down the transcript; you are allowed to be lazy.
Harder,
because you DEFINITELY must be word-by-word accurate -- which means
that the
interview must be recorded. I think this reporter has messed up badly
here --
it's a long interview, he may have recorded it but then left out parts
that
are crucial to make the conversation understandable -- but he may also
not
have recorded it. The gaps could be the result of a reporter without
recording
device, with the phone in one hand and the pencil in the other,
trying to make
notes while he's speaking and then, when it's time to write, he
does not
remember every word that has been said. And this is the mind-boggling
result.
And then, Leo Casey appears out of nowhere, adding insult to injury by
writing:

"Again I think the interviewer talking about the B-sides he bought
(e.g.,
Shimmer')"

1. "Shimmer" was NOT a B-side!

2. "Shimmer" was NOT off
"The Lost Album"!

This is serious business, Leo. Get your facts right!

Leif
J, Sweden





> From: LeoCasey@comcast.net
> To: tv@obbard.com
> Subject: 'My
head was spinning. My oh my!' / RE: (TV) Tom interview from
2006
> Date: Fri,
28 Sep 2012 18:21:03 -0400
>
> I totally agree with Leif. I really appreciate
Deb tracking this down, but
> the interview itself was one of the most
confusing ones with Tom I have
ever
> read. I also agree his lack of follow-up
Qs (or asking poor ones) was
> criminal.
>
> There's also some mistakes and
silliness. E.g.,
> Interviewer: "...noticed in looking over your solo albums
that Jimmy only
> makes a sporadic appearance here and there.   well, that's
what I picked up
> on and that's why I wondered why there wasn't more of that
in the studio
> context. Might I suggest that for someday? It's something a
lot of people
> don't know about."
>
> Not true Rip's all over 4 of TV 's 8
solo albums!
> Also, despite the interviewer love of it, IMHO "Words From The
Front" was
> the 2nd worst solo album he ever did.
>
> Leo's initial analysis
and possible solution to interview's strange
> references/comment on
Flashlight:
> Maybe either the Interviewer mangled his tape or his notes and
left out the
> part where TV mentions songs from The Lost Album aka The
B-Sides Album aka
> The London/Bascombe Sessions.  And it's that album that TV
is responding to
> when TV says: Actually, Ripp didn't play on it at all!
(Laughs) The idiot
> A&R man insisted that I use another guitarist.
>
> Ditto
for TV's comment on the horrible mix done by some young fool; TV's
not
>
talking about Flashlight's mix.  But the stupid interviewer thinks Tom is
>
discussing Flashlight so the interviewer answers, "Paul Duffy was the
>
mixer", and TV doesn't know or remember who Duffy was [it was 20 yrs
>
earlier]. Fact I just verified: Paul Duffy mixed Flashlight but that's moot
>
since TV's talking about The Lost Album not Flashlight.
>
> Interviewer: It
[the mix] just makes it sound so '80s, it's so unnecessary
> because it was
music that transcended time and now it just sounds so dated.
>
> IMHO, there
was never anything wrong with Flashlight's mix and it doesn't
> sound dated. 
Again I think the interviewer talking about the B-
> sides he bought (e.g.,
Shimmer')
>
> On the other hand we have this which totally blows my mind and
my initial
> analysis and solution to the confusion:
> Interviewer: It would
be really nice if, well I don't what the
possibilities
> of getting them back
in your possession and fixing them would be. TV: No,
> you can't really do
that. Sometimes, if you pay for it yourself, you can
> remix it, but
****Collectors Choice****, who knows what their game is.
>
> Collectors Choice
did TV's re-release Tom's eponymous solo album,
Dreamtime.
> WFTE, and
Flashlight! So maybe Tom is talking about Flashlight afrerall.
Or
> maybe
Collector's Choice around 2006 purchased the rights to The Lost Album
> and TV
wonders whether they will improve the mix of The Lost Album?!?
>
> Independent
to all of the above: I think it was Joe Thorton who 2 years ago
> posted to
the MM List about how he had met Jimmy Rip in Spain and Rip told
> Joe he did
not play on The Wonder.
>
> But I say Rip absolutely plays on Flashlight!
>
>
On the other hand there's this which that totally messes with my head:
>
>
Interviewer: So, in a way there's kind of like, in terms of a pure Tom
>
Verlaine album, you have to jump from 'Cover' to 'Warm & Cool.'
> TV: In terms
of mixes, yeah. In terms of a sound thing, maybe half of 'the
> Wonder'
*****isn't as bad in terms of a mix as 'Flashlight' is.*** I still
> like
those songs and he couldn't screw it up too much because what's on
tape
> is
what's on tape but certainly putting in all of these drum samples
doesn't
>
help it.
>
> Could the interviewer have edited the transcript [he claims not]
, or was
> Tom using Flashlight as 'short-hand' to refer to the Lost Album
that has a
> small direct connection to Flashlight? Or was Tom losing his
mind/memory?
>
> My head hurts! "My head is spinning. My oh my!"
>
> Philip!
Keith! Anyone! Please come to the rescue.  Offer an explanation or
> theory
that will make this claim that the mix of Flashlight is horrible all
> go
away.
>
> Leo
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: tv-owner@obbard.com
[mailto:tv-owner@obbard.com] On Behalf Of leif
> joley
> Sent: Friday,
September 28, 2012 6:40 AM
> To: tv@obbard.com
> Subject: RE: (TV) Tom
interview from 2006
>
> I have to disagree. The only fabulous thing with this
interview must be
that
> fans are delighted by the sight of a lenghty
conversation with Verlaine,
> since
> there are rather few of them. But to me
it's sloppy, un-edited, without
> necessary follow-up questions, and it tries
to cover too much ground. Many
> times nothing of real value comes out of the
Q&A. I also sometimes read
> Verlaine's answers like he's becoming a little
tired of the interviewer and
> doesn't want to give proper responses to the
questions. The funniest thing
> in it is the comments about Bill Laswell's
appearance on "Miss Emily" (a
> particular fave of mine) off "Cover".
>
>
Downright confusing is the part about Jimmy Rip's input on "Flash Light".
>
Did
> or did not Rip played on it? I might be a little dumb but can't
understand
> the
> reasoning there.
>
> The complications about the follow-up
to "Cover" is well-known, with all
the
> recordings that were later used as
B-sides, but I wasn't aware that
Verlaine
> didn't approve of the mix. That
said: Personally, I've never had any
> problems
> with the "Flash Light"
sound. To me, it's not especially "80's", and if it
> is,
> then I think the
production (and mixing) makes full justice to these songs.
> Big, loud,
blaring, with many guitar playing things going on throughout. To
> me, it
makes for a LP that's in my personal grading is tied on a second
> place
>
(together with "Dreamtime") if we're talking about his solo catalogue --
but
>
none can challenge the first one as being the best one.
>
> Leif J, Sweden
>
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