Laurie Anderson "United States Live": C/D?

i still prefer the way Big Science uses those particlar tracks, especially "Let X=X" and "Example" and "It Tango" but this show is its own very special thing, the difference between Albums by Artists and what you can do outside of those confines

xpost to dow: Your memory is correct. In an interview she did with William Duckworth for his book Talking Music, Anderson talks about her Columbia MFA sculpture days, when that massive welded steel aesthetic (believe she used the term "machismo") was very much in vogue. If you want to see the kind of work Anderson was exhibiting before her turn to performance art, RoseLee Goldberg's 2000 book (which someone has helpfully/illegally scanned in its entirety) is the place to start.

The art history lecture story recurs frequently. The first place I recall finding it was in a Christian Science Monitor interview from 1983, where Anderson told the interviewer: "I was a horrible teacher, because I didn't keep up with the field and I couldn't remember anything. So I improvised. And I found I really enjoyed being in the dark with people, talking to them and showing them pictures."

... one last thing while I'm nerding out: I know plenty has been written about the NYC loft scene of the 1970s, but I want to put in a plug for Toni Sant's book, Franklin Furnace and the Spirit of the Avant-Garde. Almost 1/3rd of the book is taken up by a long interview with Martha Wilson, which I found invaluable for understanding how performance art fit into the cultural landscape during that moment in time when Anderson was crossing over to mainstream success.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BR6zVM1MFo8

Haven't spun this in 20+ years, really enjoying it but it's a commitment - 4.5 hours! I love what sounds like non-performers reading their lines. "You're walking, and you're falling"

Anyone here see the original production? I was under the impression it had been filmed, but possibly more for preservation than anything else and that the film has never been made available to the public.

it was! Home of the Brave, on VHS, is from the United States tour

(or maybe it isn't?)

I think that was a later tour, yeah

There's discussion upthread including a confirmation from Anderson herself that USA Live was not filmed.

Aw man