Kate on Gurdjieff, Lunar Cheddar & Bloody Flag Songs...

[katefans@world.std.com (Chris'n'Vickie of Chicago)]

Vickie here.
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Jorn writes:

> 2-- Kate definitely was into Gurdjieff, and there's no onus there--

And I disagreed. Here's why.

 She's indicated in many interviews that she was never really a serious
student of his. I have one radio interview made the day TD was released.
Kate took live phone calls and she was asked about Gurdjieff.
She says: "Gurdjieff was an influence in that I read some of his books,
really no more than that. I found a lot of what he said interesting
and that's really as far as it goes" The interviewer asks Kate to elaborate
about who G is. Kate says "Yes, well, Gurdjieff was, um, well he was
considered a leader of a religious movement I think, but as far as I know
he just had a lot of ideas about creating a way that would make people
stronger and more together. And it's just a different way of doing it.
And it was also trying to go for a more Western way of doing it, but I
do know very little about it so I really wouldn't like to say very much
because it's a subject that I feel, if I'm going to speak about, I should
know what I'm talking about." The interviewer asks the caller about his
interest in G and he says that he was curious about Kate's mentioning him
in a few of her songs. The interviewer says "well,, the influence was
minimal by the sound of it" and Kate says "yes, yes it was" and laughs.
I have this on audio, not transcript. To hear Kate actually saying the
above is enough for me to believe that she did not "follow" Gurdjieff.

Kate wrote "Sat In Your Lap" and it's at least partially autobiographical.
She loves to learn about lots of different things and incorporates bits
and pieces of knowledge into her songs. My Kateness, just take a good, long
and hard look at the cover of NFE. That's what it's all about!

By the way, IMHO the "G" in the song "Strange Phenomena" is David
Gilmour, though I admit that I could be wrong.
  

Re: Moon Cheese worship
Richard writes:

> Lots of wonderful stuff. Deleted because I fell on the floor laughing
  and accidently hit the "delete" key.

> I could go on and on listing references but until you bother to understand 
> Moon Cheesers a little better there's not much point.  I'm sure that if 
> you would you'd see Kate's music in an entirely different light.

My humble apologies. You're absolutely correct in saying that there are
many obvious references in her work that can only mean that Kate
belongs to the Loyal Order of Moon Cheesers.
Thank you for pointing them out. 

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Re: The National Anthem
Richard writes:

>> Vickie (one of Vickie'n'Chris) writes:

>> I almost bought both of Sinead's albums to show support for her right not
>> to want our stinky old anthem (it's a STUPID song!) played before her

> I agree that Sinead should be able to do as she pleases (even if she
> is starting to strike me as a bit of a whiner) but I don't feel that
> the Anthem is either stinky or stupid.  I  guess it is fairly old.  You
> can think whatever you like but I hope that you're not taking your
                                              ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
> anger at the people who are misusing our national symbols by
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> denigrating the symbols themselves.

Huh?  Where'd you get the idea that I was angry at anyone who is "misusing
our national symbols?" Misuse them if you feel like it, I say.
It's a free country and being able to burn the flag, laugh at the
National Anthem (or not want it played before a concert), or not
taking an oath on the Bible in court are all part of what makes it a free
country. Plenty of people would just love to see those (and many more)
freedoms taken away. I have NO problem with people who misuse or revere
national symbols, as long as they don't tell me I HAVE to do one or the
other. I respect your feeling that the Anthem is neither stinky nor stupid.
Really I do, but I also respect my feeling that it is both.
Each to his/her own. Who made that song a national symbol anyway?
I'd like to know the story behind that one.

Btw, one National Symbol that I would never condone misuse of is the
American Bald Eagle. But that's because it's an endangered species, not
because it's a symbol of our country.

Vickie (one of Vickie'n'Chris)
katefans@world.std.com