lots o' stuff on XTC (long, but kinda interesting)

[rutgers!r.brandi]

Seems to me that there's lot's o' people with lots o' opinions on
XTC, so of course I have to throw my hat in to the ring, along with
my two cents...

|_English Settlement_ (the UK release) was the last album from which
|they would play live. It is the creative climax of the sound XTC
|had been nurturing through _Drums and Wires_ and _Black Sea_: a very
|guitar-band sound. I've never heard a band even come close to
|their style. Incredibly original. What impressed me most was their
 
There seems to be a lot of confusion on this group about the
discography of XTC, especially relating to *English Settlement*.
For the record, *English Settlement* was released in 1982 in England
on Virgin as a two record set, and a few months later in the US on
Virgin/Epic as a single record, with 5 songs deleted.  Pity,
actually, since some of those five were my faves.  This single album
version can still occasionally be found as a cutout.  The English
version has a very nice, textured cover.  The Epic US version takes
much of the same graphics but prints them instead of embossing them.
The English cover is much nicer.

In 1984, XTC signed to Geffen in this country, and as part of the
deal, bought XTC's back catalogue from Epic and re-released it with
great fanfare shortly after *Mummer* came out.  The best part of
this was that *English Settlement* was released by Geffen *intact*,
complete as a two record set.  So now the US and UK versions are
identical, at least on vinyl (The UK cover is still nicer, though) 

|Anyway, I think that English Settlement is their "Sgt. Pepper's" as
|others have indicated.  I do think, however, that their recordings
|before Drums and Wires are pretty bad.  What great songs, great vocals
|and a REALLY great drummer.

Definitely a matter of taste.  I like *all* of the albums.  I think
that you can divide XTC's career into pretty much three distinct
phases.  The first, consisting mostly of the first two albums,
*White Music* and *Go 2* was pretty strange, but they grow on you
(or at least on me) with time.  The music is dominated by the sound
of Barry Andrews' keyboards.  Barry left after *Go 2*, and formed
Shriekback with refugees from The League of Gentlemen
and The Gang of Four, as I recall (I could be wrong on that,
though).  This changed the sound considerably, and the following
album, *Drums and Wires*, has a much more poppy sound to it.  This
"pop band" phase coincided roughly with the albums *Drums and
Wires*, *Black Sea*, and *English Settlement*.  Critical response
varies about these three considerably, but if you like one, it's
fairly safe to say you'll like all three.  *English Settlement* has
the most baroque feel to it, *Drums and Wires* the most
"experimental" feel (coming out of the first phase, as it was), and
*Black Sea* the most straight-forward pop feel.  

After *English Settlement*, the band stopped touring and went into a
kind of "pastoral" phase, which is best represented on *Mummer* and
*The Big Express*.  The music on these tends to be quieter, more so
on *Mummer*.  I like both very much, but again, it depends on your
taste.  *Skylarking* can also be seen as fitting in this period,
although the album doesn't have *quite* the same feel to it.

|> There is also at least one single (Life Begins at the Hop, perhaps?)
|> that's on the US version of an LP but not on the UK.
|
|Actually, I've seen at least three versions of "Drums and Wires", and have two.
|There is the original US version, the butchered Epic US version, and two
|different British versions.
|The songs that vary are:
|  Life Begins at the Hop  (not on British versions, I think)
|  Making Plans For Nigel  (I think this is on all but the fucking Epic/CBS
			   version...I couldn't find this song at all until
			   "Waxworks" came out.)
|  Day In, Day Out	   (Obscure song on one British version.)
|
|I think one British version may not have "Ten Feet Tall" but I could be
|totally bogus here, yunnerstan.

I have a German version of *Drums and Wires* that has both "Life
Begins at the Hop" and "Making Plans For Nigel".  No "Day In, Day
Out", though... (It also has "Ten Feet Tall", too...)

|I believe "Making Plans For Nigel" is on the UK but not the US version of
|_Drums_and_Wires_, and "Life Begins at the Hop" is on the US but not the UK.
|On the other hand, I seem to recall seeing an album with both...perhaps it
|was a hallucination.

See above.

|When the Waxworks/BeesWax combo first came out it was packaged as a double
|album in that the two single albums were wraped together and priced as a
|double album.  Or at least that the way it was at the Virgin MegaStore in
|Oxford St.  However I must admit that sometime after that it was split into
|two seperate albums.

Waxworks/BeesWax was released in the UK as two records shrink
wrapped together.  The German version is the two records in one
gatefold sleeve.  Here in the US, only Waxworks was released, and
then only on Geffen after they signed the band (see above).

|Now all I wish Virgin would do is release Go 2 with the Go+ EP so that I have
|it in plastic form instead of having to listen to a tape of somebody elses Go+
|EP.

*Go +* was originally included in copies of *Go 2* when it first
came out, as kind of a limited edition bonus if you bought the album
early.  It was later released on its own.

Okay, so much for answering.  On to other stuff.  In an interview on
local college radio station WFMU-FM, Andy Partridge claimed that the
fan club up in Canada is going to be releasing an album very soon of
home demos done by the band.  It's supposed to be similar to the
stuff they released on the back of the UK 12" single "The Meeting
Place".  I don't know if the album is going to overlap the demos
from *Skylarking* that are making the rounds now; I got the
impression that that isn't the case, and that the reason the band is
doing such a thing is to give some of the many songs they write that
_aren't_heard a chance to see the light of day.  Sounds interesting.
I'm looking forward to that one.

Anyways, this posting is ludicrously long, so I think I end it here.
If anyone is interested, I *think* I may be able to come up with a
fairly comprehensive XTC discography given some time.  BTW, what
does everyone think of the new Dukes of Stratosphear album?

Ralph

Note:  All of the above (at least the opinion parts) are to be taken
with a large grain of salt... Please excuse the length and
pomposity...


    ====      | Disclaimer: Just `cuz I work on the Death Star, 
 ==OOO=====   | that doesn't mean I speak for Darth Vader...
=OOOOOOO====  | Ralph Brandi, {ihnp4,mhuxt}!homxb!mtuxo!lzfme!ralph
=OOOOOOO====  | Kopykat (k) 1987, R.A.Brandi
 ==OOO=====   | All Rights Reserved, All Jams Preserved,
    ====      | All Nasty Comments Soundly Deserved...

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