EM Survey 4 (Part 19 of 19)

[datta@vacs.uwp.wisc.edu (David Datta)]

                Eclectic Music Survey #4 Results

Survey Posting                                      February 1990

Part 19 of 19 (Thru Frank Zappa)


Suzanne Vega

     One of my favorites among the innovative female artists; I find her more
     understandable than Laurie Anderson, and more compelling than Michelle
     Shocked.
          - Bill White bwhite@oucsace.cs.ohiou.edu

     Wispy folk revivalist. Earnest as all hell.
          - sco!martyst@ucscc.UCSC.EDU

Vergiftung

     samplers & drum machines & live performances. tape loops of barking dogs
     and orgasms over FM hiss and feedback.
          - del Amitri del@ab.ecn.purdue.edu

Violent Femmes

     Their newer stuff seems to blend together in my mind, but their first
     album was (IMHO) quite innovative and had an "honesty" to it that I
     don't think many bands have.
          - Bill White bwhite@oucsace.cs.ohiou.edu

Vivaldi

     Big time classical guy.
          - sco!martyst@ucscc.UCSC.EDU

Andreas Vollenweider

     A very good, very innovative group (man?); his instrument selection and
     style probably classifies him as new-age, but not pretentiously so. Can
     be listened to when you're trying to sleep, trying to meditate,
     thinking, or whatever. I like the use of nonstandard rhythms and such.
          - Bill White bwhite@oucsace.cs.ohiou.edu

     Jazz-rock harp? Don't think it would work? Check out _Down to the Moon_.
          - Russ Levreault RLEVREAULT@EAGLE.WESLEYAN.EDU

     Nice enough harp playing, but frankly all his albums tend to sound alike
     after a while. I have _Caverna Magica_, and while it's a nice album,
     I've felt no great desire to buy any more.
          - Richard Caley rjc%cstr.edinburgh.ac.uk@NSFNET-RELAY.AC.UK

     White Winds! I say no more! (Monty Python: 'Say no more! Say no more!')
          - Geir Stenstud geirs@ifi.uio.no

Tom Waits

     The man who gargles with rocks. Once an chronicler of the down & out,
     now some kind of artist. Smokes a lot.
          - sco!martyst@ucscc.UCSC.EDU

Rick Wakeman

     An accomplished keyboard player (notably with Yes and ABWH).
          - Frank J. Schima francis@pawl.rpi.edu

     I have a single of his called "He's So Straight He's a Weirdo" which
     never got into the top 75. It's weird. It's fun. "On holiday I go to
     Spain/On a chartered aeroplane."
          - Stephen K Mulrine
          smulrine%computer-science.strathclyde.ac.uk@NSFNET-RELAY.AC.UK

     Keyboardist for Yes and Anderson, Br... Did LOTS of solo albums. Good
     luck finding them. He's very orchestral, and his solo albums have a
     jazzish flavor. Unfortunately, the vocalists on the solo albums tend to
     be of inadequate quality.
          - Christopher Waldemar Bochna cb2w+@andrew.cmu.edu

     Rock/Classical mixture. Tends to "show off" in the _Six Wives..._ album.
          - TRM900@PSUVM.PSU.edu

     The original keyboard wizard. Propelled Yes for a long time with stacks
     of keyboards and a white robe. Also has a successful solo career.
          - sco!martyst@ucscc.UCSC.EDU

     The part that is greater than the sum. I always liked Wakeman better
     than Yes.
          - Russ Levreault RLEVREAULT@EAGLE.WESLEYAN.EDU

Wall of Voodoo

     Primo wholesome band.
          - James Martin <martin@cpsc.UCalgary.CA>

     Strange guys who had a film soundtrack business that went belly-up and
     decided to name their new band after their last would-be film. Very
     atmospheric songs heavy on droning vocals and unexpected sound effects.
     Their cover of "Ring of Fire" is quite arresting.
          - sco!martyst@ucscc.UCSC.EDU

Walton

     He got the Celtics a championship, didn't he?
          - Russ Levreault RLEVREAULT@EAGLE.WESLEYAN.EDU

Was (Not Was)

     They look and sound straight but if you listen to the lyrics they're
     more off the wall than Dead Milkmen are. Talented combo, both LPs well
     worth getting. Fave track of all time: "Earth To Doris" . . .
          - Lazlo Nibble lazlo@ariel.unm.edu

The Washington Squares

     Remind me of Indigo Girls a lot. Good mix of voices.
          - Bill White bwhite@oucsace.cs.ohiou.edu

Waterboys

     gonna be bigger than elvis. irish songwriter and a big lineup pull off
     nice productions and great arrangements.
          - del Amitri del@ab.ecn.purdue.edu

Roger Waters

     Good musician, either with or without PF. Try listening to his stuff
     without worring about whose right, or how big anyones ego is.
          - John Gateley gateley@m2.csc.ti.com

Jeff Wayne

     "The Eve of the War" was a big hit at Christmas in the UK - it was
     remixed into a dance track by Ben Liebrand. This was widely criticised
     but I liked it - there was always a good tune in the original although
     the music was a bit dated. I am sure Ben Liebrand sampled Yello's "Tied
     Up" though.
          - Stephen K Mulrine
          smulrine%computer-science.strathclyde.ac.uk@NSFNET-RELAY.AC.UK

Weather Report

     Fusion heavies.
          - sco!martyst@ucscc.UCSC.EDU

Wednesday Week

     Haven't heard much; "Missionary" springs to mind. Very strong melody
     (and/or harmony) to that song. I enjoyed it; probably classified as
     progressive.
          - Bill White bwhite@oucsace.cs.ohiou.edu

Andy White

     irish bob dylan. havent heard anything from him since this refreshing
     relsease.
          - del Amitri del@ab.ecn.purdue.edu

James White and the Blacks

     Contort yourself! Squonking sax desperately attempts smoky jazz and
     comes up with something else entirely. Punk jazz anyone?
          - sco!martyst@ucscc.UCSC.EDU

Karyn White
Whitesnake

     Yet another clone pop-heavy-metal band.
          - Bill White bwhite@oucsace.cs.ohiou.edu

Who

     "Hope I die before I get old" were words to live by :-)
          - Paul Maclauchlan moore!paul@uunet.UU.NET

     Serious contender for greatest rock band ever. Stunning conception and
     execution of sweeping, dynamic music that transcends the rock idiom.
     Entwistle has my vote for best bassist.
          - sco!martyst@ucscc.UCSC.EDU

     Will go down in my lifetime as one of the best concerts ever. I saw them
     during their Anniversary Tour. They were stupendous!!
          - Marylynn Orzeckowski discg1!istda11@bpa.bell-atl.com

John Williams

     Fantastic soundtrack composer and conductor. His music has such a good,
     and triumphant feeling to it. Very exciting music too.
          - Steven Seidman sseidman@polyslo.CalPoly.EDU (The MIDIman)

Lucinda Williams

     I don't generally like country, but on her eponymous albums the stylings
     are close enough to folk to win me over. The "Passionate Kisses" EP
     shows her in more of a blues mode. Hope she becomes a success.
          - Ken Josenhans 13020KRJ@MSU.BitNet


Mason Williams & Mannheim Steamroller
Mason Williams & Mannheim Steamroller If you like "Classical Gas" by Mason
Williams, and you like the Steamroller, you'll definitely want this album.
Recommended.
          - Richard Caley rjc%cstr.edinburgh.ac.uk@NSFNET-RELAY.AC.UK

     Classical Gas was a good album and was my first introduction to Mannheim
     Steamroller.
          - David Caldwell macs!dfc@bikini.cis.ufl.edu

     I liked the original _Classical Gas_ better.
          - Russ Levreault RLEVREAULT@EAGLE.WESLEYAN.EDU

Mason Williams

     Originator of "Classical Gas". Liner notes to that album seem to posit
     him as some kind of Renaissance man, but what has he done lately?
          - sco!martyst@ucscc.UCSC.EDU

     Wrote Classical Gas (exactly 3:00 minutes long) to fit a film collage
     shown on the Smothers' Brothers Show.
          - Paul Maclauchlan moore!paul@uunet.UU.NET


Brian Wilson

     America's Lennon and McCartney. We thought we could surf on Lake Ontario
     if the Beach Boys were playing.
          - Paul Maclauchlan moore!paul@uunet.UU.NET

     Brian is THE musical genius of modern time! It is tragic that his music
     has not really received the recognition it deserves. His solo album from
     1988 is magnificent!!!! Of course, his Beach Boys stuff is classic also.
     The reason I like his music so much is because I feel that it directly
     relates to my life. The pain he talks about in his songs is similar to
     the pains I have felt in my life. Hence, whenever I am depressed, there
     is always a Brian Wilson song that will cheer me up. _Pet Sounds_ is a
     masterpiece album. Lyrics like "I know perfectly well I'm not where I
     should be......" always make me feel that at least I'm not alone in my
     depression. Of course, Brian has several bright, upbeat, happy songs
     that are great as well. I highly recommend listening to his new song "In
     My Car" off of the Beach Boys' newest album _Still Cruisin'_. This song
     will blow any current Top 40 song away!!!! Unfortunately, they didn't
     release it as a single.
          - Eddie Gulbransen cse1011%eve.wright.edu@RELAY.CS.NET

     Mad genius behind the Beach Boys. Total nutcake.
          - sco!martyst@ucscc.UCSC.EDU

Win

     A decent pop group from Scotland (gasp!). Vastly underrated - they
     supplied the music for a well-known lager advert but it never charted.
     The first album "Uh! Tears Baby" was very good but the newer stuff is
     more disappointing - too slow. Their music has a lot going on which
     sometimes makes it a bit over-arranged. The only band I ever went to see
     live.
          - Stephen K Mulrine
          smulrine%computer-science.strathclyde.ac.uk@NSFNET-RELAY.AC.UK

     Underrated Edinburgh group. Their single 'You've Got The Power' (used in
     an award winning lager ad) was very popular in central Scotland back in
     87 (I believe it was outselling the then number one, by Rick Astley, in
     many areas) but, due to lack of national airplay it failed to reach very
     high in the charts. Their early sound was guitar/synth based but
     featuring some interesting vocal harmonies. All the members of the group
     seem to double up on a variety of instruments. Their first album
     'Uh..Tears Baby!' has to be my all-time favourite album - there isn't a
     bad track on it. Their latest album 'Freaky Trigger' is a bit more
     mainstream though and, while it is by no mean a bad album, just isn't as
     good.
          - Alan Crawford awrc%lfcs.edinburgh.ac.uk@NSFNET-RELAY.AC.UK


Winter Hours

     A song of theirs, "Hyacinth Girl," is one of my favorites, though I have
     not heard many others by them. "Hyacinth Girl" is different from most
     progressive songs (a bit slower, "softer") and it always makes me feel
     happy and sad at the same time. This band is worth a look.
          - Bill White bwhite@oucsace.cs.ohiou.edu

George Winston

     In my opinion, his music is the most romantic and relaxing that I've
     heard. I saw him in concert over the holidays and found out that he's
     even better live than on Memorex. He also plays a great guitar and
     harmonica as well. Still waiting for his next new album.
          - Chris Chavez ccmchris@pollux.ucdavis.edu

Paul Winter

     More new age before its time. And anyone that has a contrabass
     sarussaphone in his band can't be all bad.
          - Russ Levreault RLEVREAULT@EAGLE.WESLEYAN.EDU


Steve Winwood

     How was his first eponymous album in comparison to ARC OF A DIVER and
     BACK IN THE HIGH LIFE?
          - Neil Ottenstein OTTEN@UMCINCOM.BitNet

     One-time rocker with Spencer Davis and Traffic, now puts out beer
     commercials. C'est la vie.
          - sco!martyst@ucscc.UCSC.EDU

Wolfgang Press

     "Birdwood Cage" is one of my favorite albums. At times I detect a David
     Byrne influence. Others I hear early 4AD. Always I hear a fantastic
     beat, a melody that keeps my attention ('challenging' as my roommate and
     I say). And fun (if not bizarre) lyrics. I wish that there was something
     I could compare the Press to... The CD for "Birdwood Cage" also has the
     "Big Sex" EP, a bargain at regular CD prices!
          - John Willmore jaw@esl.ESL.COM

Stevie Wonder

     Extremely talented soulmonger with l-o-o-o-o-ng career. Highlights love
     and God a lot, but isn't above getting down.
          - sco!martyst@ucscc.UCSC.EDU

X

     Criminally overlooked punks who put out tough-sounding squalls for
     emotional justice or maybe just a little peace of mind. Guitarist Billy
     Zoom seamless blended tired rockabilly riffs into a furious thundestorm
     of punk rhythm and came out smelling like a rose.
          - sco!martyst@ucscc.UCSC.EDU

Xmal Deutschland

     German guitar band - female vocalist. The new album "Devils" was a
     little disappointing although it was not much of a departure. Their
     chord sequences are quite unique. I wish they would sing in German more.
          - Stephen K Mulrine
          smulrine%computer-science.strathclyde.ac.uk@NSFNET-RELAY.AC.UK

XTC

     "Drums and Wires" was a pretty good album.."Making Plans For Nigel" was
     well ahead of its time. "Generals and Majors" was another good single
     but they went downhill (and out of the charts) after "Sgt Rock".
          - Stephen K Mulrine
          smulrine%computer-science.strathclyde.ac.uk@NSFNET-RELAY.AC.UK

     Mellow trio from England that sing on marriage, God and everything.
          - David Caldwell macs!dfc@bikini.cis.ufl.edu
Yanni

     Great stuff. If the first two minutes of _Keys to Imagination_ don't get
     your attention you had better check your pulse....
          - Russ Levreault RLEVREAULT@EAGLE.WESLEYAN.EDU

Stomu Yamashta

     _Go_ is one of the great supersession albums of all time. Winwood,
     DiMeola, Shrieve, Schulze to mention a few.
          - Russ Levreault RLEVREAULT@EAGLE.WESLEYAN.EDU

Yello

     Band Of The Decade for the '80s. No real cohesive albums but every song
     is a mini-movie, and every album is worth getting.
          - Lazlo Nibble lazlo@ariel.unm.edu

     Creators of "Oh Yeah!", a song which everyone has heard at one time or
     another, (I know it's used in "Ferris Bueller's Day Off"). None of their
     other songs are widely known. The group has a very interesting sound.
          - Christopher Waldemar Bochna cb2w+@andrew.cmu.edu

     From the stuff that I've heard "You Gotta Say Yes To Another Excess" is
     by far the best.
          - Iain Smith & Jonathan Habrovitsky
          jhabrovi%computer-science.strathclyde.ac.uk@NSFNET-RELAY.AC.UK

     I got into them after seeing "Ferris Bueller's Day Off" - "Oh Yeah" was
     played over the credits at the end. Their stuff is all very good. Pity
     they keep putting "Oh Yeah" on their B-sides..nobody is going to buy it
     twice so it won't be a hit in its own right.
          - Stephen K Mulrine
          smulrine%computer-science.strathclyde.ac.uk@NSFNET-RELAY.AC.UK

     These guys are from Switzerland I think. They have possibly an overdose
     of humor, with certainly are totally lacking regarding Kraftwerk. Their
     latest MTV video 'The Race' featured 4 or 5 minuts with crashing cars,
     synth based rhytmical music with a HAWAII - guitar! They do sing but it
     doesn't matter.Newest album 'Flag' (1988?) If you haven't heard this
     check this out!
          - Geir Stenstud geirs@ifi.uio.no

Yes

     Currently they are my favorite group. In terms of musical skill, they
     are hard to beat, and you can't go wrong with a singer like Jon
     Anderson. The amazing thing about Yes is that they could produce an
     Album as good as Drama without Jon. They have so much talent that no
     single member is critical to the band. They have produced their share of
     bad songs, albeit when they were starting out ('Astral Traveller' is
     horrendous).
          - Frank J. Schima francis@pawl.rpi.edu

     Excellent, progressive rock group. Although I don't know how they've
     been progressing lately.
          - Christopher Waldemar Bochna cb2w+@andrew.cmu.edu

     If you don't have any Yes in your collection, get _Classic Yes_. Most of
     the music is long 6+ mins which turns most people away. It also keeps
     them from getting exposure on mainstream radio. Newer music leans toward
     pop; giving $$$ and airplay.
          - TRM900@PSUVM.PSU.edu

     My favorite progressive rock band. Their first two albums are very
     different from their following albums. The early 70's brought forth
     their most amazing music. They are all great musicians who all know A
     LOT about music. Recommendations: _The Yes Album_, _Close To The Edge_
          - Steven Seidman sseidman@polyslo.CalPoly.EDU (The MIDIman)

     No.
          - Hans Huttel  hans%lfcs.edinburgh.ac.uk@NSFNET-RELAY.AC.UK

     Old albums: "The Yes Album", "Fragile", "Close to the Edge" all
     excellent progressive rock. "Going for the One" bridges the gap well.
     Their recent output is vastly different, produced by Trevor Horn, very
     modern sounding and in the same vein as recent Rush.
          - Iain Smith & Jonathan Habrovitsky
          jhabrovi%computer-science.strathclyde.ac.uk@NSFNET-RELAY.AC.UK

     Probably the most famous British art-rock band. Probably not the best
     one, either, but still produced a lot of very nice albums. Of course,
     they also produced _Tormato_, too....
          - Richard Caley rjc%cstr.edinburgh.ac.uk@NSFNET-RELAY.AC.UK

     They made the world safe for imaginary space travel. I never could
     figure out what the songs were about, but the setting was so lush I
     didn't mind. The current incarnation is an overly mechanized heap.
          - sco!martyst@ucscc.UCSC.EDU

Young Marble Giants

     the moxham brothers play endearing acoustic songs during the post-punk
     explosion. refreshing.
          - del Amitri del@ab.ecn.purdue.edu

Young MC

     L.A. rapper. One of the bests.
          - Hussein Yahia hussein@bora.inria.fr

Frank Zappa

     Anybody whom the PMRC hates so much can't be too bad :-). Seriously,
     he's been producing interesting music and entertaining lyrics for over
     20 years now. No record collection is complete without at least one
     Zappa album.
          - Richard Caley rjc%cstr.edinburgh.ac.uk@NSFNET-RELAY.AC.UK

     Unpredictable rock composer who delights in offending boo-zhwah
     mentalities. An excellent guitarist unafraid to surround himself with
     equally exciting players. Prone to overly complex arrangements, he's
     saved by excruciating wit.
          - sco!martyst@ucscc.UCSC.EDU

Thanks everyone again for responding, I really enjoyed reading all of the
comments, many of you had fun replying and I hope everyone has had fun
reading the results.

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	....uwm!uwpvacs!datta
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