S or D/OPO: Trevor Horn

Fave T. Horn moment I know about -- mid-nineties Romo wannabes Sexus are somewhere posing. T. Horn introduces himself. Their response: "Yes, we have heard of you."

Owner Of a Lonely Heart - Yes
Duel - Propaganda
Relax - Frankie Goes To Hollywood
Cry - Godley & Creme
Slave to the Rhythm - Grace Jones

Finally heard Tatu - it's fantastic!

I know I keep banging on about this album, but search Buggles 'Age of Plastic' - please. I refer you to previous comments about ABC

They never had any sort of mainstream radio splash in America, and that was all I was listening to/had access to up through 1985 or so.

Age of Plastic is fun. The Tatu album does sound better in Russian, like Otis said elsewhere.

D-wise, I could do without some of his Rod Stewart productions, and wouldn't mind losing some Seal either. But that's about it.

"But Simple Minds and Spandau Ballet are bad bands in a way that no amount of historical revisionism is going to tame..."

I'm assuming it's only regarding the tracks represented here???

Also, there's a *killer* single disc to be made from his productions.

"Horn's lost-weekend as a member of Yes (as bizarre-yet-right as Pharrell joining Pearl Jam) produced one undeniable classic in 'Owner of a Lonely Heart'."

90125 has way better songs on it than "Owner of a Lonely Heart." And Drama, which he sang lead on, is one undeniable classic after another. No one who's heard both could pick "Owner of a Lonely Heart" over "Tempus Fugit." That's just not possible.

Drama is one seriously overlooked album. "White Car" should be on the Horn comp, just for how strange it is. What an eerie piece of music.

Destroy: Horn's production of Rod Stewart's "Shotgun Wedding", a terrible song on its own that also features a shotgun sample which renders the song entirely unlistenable.

spandau ballet, on the other hand, are so ass they have panty lines.

and for the record .. according to the 30 page booklet that comes with the new 3cd boxset of AP's ZTT work, it's pointed out (in bold!!) that all of his stuff was self produced.

though much of the credit goes to their vocals,
which is supported by Bazar on "Love's Got A Hold On Me" which I like almost as much
that is, several eons apart

In this awesome interview from last year The Trev reveals, among other things, the drums on Art Of Noise's "Close To The Edit" are none other than Yes's Alan White.

a mixture of Kirsty Maccoll, prefab sprout, Skin Games and Delays

listen:

http://www.myspace.com/captaintheband

melodic atmospheric art-pop-rock

In fact, I think they may be the new Deacon Blue The Pinefox has been waiting for all these years.

http://rateyourmusic.com/album_images/s22348.jpg

also the production sounds similar to Thomas Dolby on this 1992 album:

http://rateyourmusic.com/album_images/s63128.jpg

Thomas Dolby also produced prefab sprout

I will mention it to him.

http://rateyourmusic.com/album_images/s2728.jpg

Captain are clearly influenced by prefab sprout

I haven't heard of Captain! I don't think Ken Bruce has played them neither.

It's good to be esteemed.

Surely I have liked some recent records. Loads! But it is entertaining to think of stopping with the Bedingfield. The thing about that one is, it was a #1 - that's the distinction.

Martian is so 'factual'!

check the video for Captain - Broke single:
http://www.thisisfakediy.co.uk/articles/1363.html

the female singer looks rather twee

Oh wait Pinefox, I remember you saying you liked Delays 'Valentine' now!

Also to some extent "Relax", but the actual songs were better in the two aforementioned cases.

too. hard.

...gah! no can't be done. 'left to my own devices'
(introspective version) at a push i guess.

if you dig into his early to late 80's archive as thoroughly as i've done in the past few years you can still find gold. mint juleps'
'don't let your heart slip away from me' anticipates about 3 new musical scenes in 4 minutes.

the look on ilm regular Affectian's face when i played it to him *very* loudly bears witness to it's brilliance.

I guess he'd better produce the next Eminem album instead then.

But ABC? Gay? Now that's new to me.

Oh no Wendy & Lisa just outed them.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HetJNakF5ls

why does it hurt when my heart misses the beat?

I tend to think that Living in the Plastic Age remains a little underrated. Not in terms of how many people may have heard it or how often I see it referenced, but there's a certain grandiosity to that record.

Lord, those glasses...

Do you mean "The Age Of Plastic"? Great, great album...

Oh right. Yes.

Both Buggles albums are great and underrated.

yeah, the age of plastic doesn't get near enough attention, credit or love. such a strange combination of restrained prog musicianship, lush 70s production and textbook technopop. also seems to have invented and in one album thoroughly explored the collision of electronic futurism and nostalgia for the world it threatens to replace. not a bad song on the album, though "i love you miss robot" seems at this remove to tower over the rest.

love this:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wIZe6DL08DI

god, this is so incredibly depressing:

Lisa: He would come in and start talking, “Well, I asked my rabbi about homosexuality and my rabbi said it’s comparable to being born a mass murderer. You can be born a mass murderer, but if you practice mass murder it’s sinful.” I was like, “Okay, you can be born gay, but if you practice being gay, you might as well be a mass murderer?” Oh, thanks Trev. Let’s record this song now.

moral: never learn things about artists whose work you admire

This one's fun as well. I guess ol' Trev can be a prick but - hey - what else is new in showbiz?

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

PS Prince gave Wendy & Lisa shit for being gay as well.

details

?

[digs around]

yeah, okay, plus w his prop 8 support ;_;

PS Prince gave Wendy & Lisa shit for being gay as well.

IIRC, sometime after Prince went full-Jehovah, he approached W & L about recording and doing a reunion concert or tour, but only on the grounds that they both convert to Jehovah and renounce homosexuality. W & L said thanks but no thanks. I believe the fence has since been mended.

(x-post)

v frustrated by this homophobic thing (missed it until now) as i can't find any results that aren't from that W&L interview.

never knew about the Derrick May thing either! tragic. it's not clear why that fell thru considering May could clearly have been persuaded to play the game to a reasonable extent. plus you'd think he would've asked Saunderson to remix Seal following May's refusal.

Has there ever been any corroborating evidence that Horn is a homophobe beyond that W&L interview? Because while it's possible, I find it shocking that a producer who has worked with so many flamboyantly gay acts - Frankie Goes to Hollywood! Pet Shop Boys! Um, TATU! let alone the likes of Grace Jones - should be homophobic. I mean, he worked with the Pet Shop Boys again just a few years ago. Why would they hire a virulent homophobe?

Wasn't the gayness of TATU just marketing gimmick?

After watching the Pet Shop Boys documentary released a few years ago, I disavowed the Wendy-Lisa story. He's got a moment in which he's asked to address the reaction to Queen in America in the eighties. "Raging faggots," he said a radio promoter said, and from the way the scene is framed and Horn's resigned air it's clear he's offended.

That he's a prick, no doubt. But no homophobe.

Lisa: He would come in and start talking, “Well, I asked my rabbi about homosexuality and my rabbi said it’s comparable to being born a mass murderer. You can be born a mass murderer, but if you practice mass murder it’s sinful.” I was like, “Okay, you can be born gay, but if you practice being gay, you might as well be a mass murderer?” Oh, thanks Trev. Let’s record this song now.

Also: Coleman quotes what Horn said his pastor said.

doesn't explain the weird silverware thing tho

So Wendy and Lisa are anti-Semites. Who cares?

maybe he's become (or briefly became?) homophobic for religious reasons. honestly, though, i don't know anything about his beliefs. a lot of people do seem compelled to adopt dogmatic stances when they're getting deeper into godhead. yusuf islam and the rushdie fatwa, for ex...

Maybe Horn doesn't let people use the same silverware the Grace Jones had used. I know I wouldn't.

"I find it shocking that a producer who has worked with so many flamboyantly gay acts - Frankie Goes to Hollywood! Pet Shop Boys! Um, TATU! let alone the likes of Grace Jones - should be homophobic. I mean, he worked with the Pet Shop Boys again just a few years ago. Why would they hire a virulent homophobe?"

bobby orlando to thread

I can't believe this stupid comment is getting some traction here. You will notice that Lisa is paraphrasing something that Trevor said his RABBI said. Not Trevor. His rabbi. Okay? The "I" in the second part of Lisa's statement refers to herself, Lisa. Not Trevor. Someone please direct me to something where Trevor Horn says something homophobic because otherwise, this is a fucking non-starter. And yes, I do believe that the statement is more about anti-Semitism than racism. What rabbi would actually say that? Jeez.

whether or not TH was quoting his rabbi, he was (allegedly) speaking to gay friends who were offended by his words. this suggests either that W&L misconstrued something, or that horn was at the very least being insensitive. perhaps both, perhaps worse.

Lisa: Not only that, but he was so homophobic. I hate to say it, but he wouldn’t even let us eat off of his silverware on Friday because he was Jewish. It turned into this nightmare. He and his wife, oh God, I don’t want to talk disparagingly about anybody, but it made us very uncomfortable.

What is funny about this is that Trevor Horn is not Jewish. But anyway, his family is and I guess he's into it all so if his family has a religious thing about dishes etc as many Jews do, then that has fuck all to do with W&L being lesbians. So why exactly is he "so homophobic"?

i think it's that he presented what his rabbi supposedly said (about the equivalence of homosexuality with mass murder) in a way that offended his gay friends.

or gay guests, rather

the bit about denying W&L use of the silverware is odd, though. i mean, i get that one can't re-kosher anything during shabbat, so there's a conservation of resources angle, but it seems to me that denying your guests a fork is bad form no matter what. also odd is lisa's apparent belief that this had something to do with her sexuality. whole thing is baffling, tbh. prefer to believe that it was all some big, weird misunderstanding.

or maybe everyone involved is a solipsist?

i had no idea wendy or lisa were gay. I mean I may have fantasized this, but I did not know it for a fact.

Wendy's with Lisa Cholodenko now.

tattoo reasons?

so the Buggles played maybe their first ever gig, covering Horn's greatest hits, or something:

It was when The Buggles started to play an instrumental version of Frankie Goes To Hollywood’s Two Tribes that we started to question reality. On guitar was the ZTT label's in-house engineer/mad scientist Stephen Lipson – the man who played on the original record. Pulling off the the far-too-tricky bass part with ease is Trevor – the man whose unique production tinkering turned a barely-there song into a mighty, remixed beast of a record. If anyone had a right to play Two Tribes it was them.

The aforementioned Video Killed The Radio Star sounded as invigorating as ever, Living In The Plastic Age a quaint reminder of what the future was once meant to sound like, and Elstree is a forgotten gem from Horn and keyboardist Geoff Downes’ brief career as reluctant popstars.

A further delve into Trevor's greatest hits gave us 1985’s Slave To the Rhythm (possessor of one of the most exciting intros to any pop record ever). But instead of Grace Jones, Alison Moyet took the bellowing diva roll [sic](sic). Only Alison Moyet is skinny and slinky now. When did this happen? We were torn between marveling at how good she looked, and declaring her a traitor to the cause of big women. They’ve only got Dawn French left now.

Then Lol Creme (sorry, we forgot to mention he was also on stage) revisited his lead vocals on 10cc’s first number one Rubber Bullets and we became convinced we were somehow watching TOTP2 live.

The Buggles ended what we think was only their third live performance with a cover version of Will.I.Am and Nicki Minaj’s Check It Out! You know, the one that samples Video Killed The Radio Star. Neat.

We’re not entirely sure why this all happened. The venue was the British Music Experience, at the O2. Which, apart from trying to charge us £3.20 for an actual can of Coke, is planning to host similar shows by musical pioneers. So we’re in favour.

We think the gig also served as a relaunch for Trevor, Stephen and Lol’s The Producer’s project. But we’ll tell you more about that when we know more about it. It’s sounding exciting though – if you’re the kind of person who gets excited about such things.


And if you are the kind of person who gets excited about such things, there’s a second volume of the ZTT compiling The Art of the 12" on the way.

Disc One:
01. ‘you are warmly invited to come inside’
02. Frankie Goes to Hollywood: ‘Two Tribes’ (Keep the Peace) *
03. Paul McCartney: ‘Spies Like Us’ (Art of Noise Remix) **
04. Godley & Creme: ‘Cry’ (Extended Remix) *
05. Instinct: ‘Swamp Down’ (12” Mix) **
06. Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark: ‘Julia’s Song’ (Extended Version) *
07. 808 State Vs. Art of Noise: ‘Moments in Love’ (Massey Mix One) **
08. Thomas Leer: ‘Heartbeat’ (Extended Mix) *
09. ‘bassline interlude’ **
10. Act: ‘Chance’ (Whammy Mix) **
11. Frankie Goes to Hollywood: ‘War’ (Coming Out of Hiding) **
12. Propaganda: ‘Dr Mabuse der Spieler’ (An International Incident) *

Disc Two:
01. Scritti Politti: ‘Absolute’ (Version)
02. Art of Noise: ‘Close Up’
03. Propaganda: ‘Sorry for Laughing’ (12” Mix) **
04. Das Psych-Oh! Rangers: ‘He He Radical’ (Episode 2) *
05. ‘piano interlude’ **
06. Nasty Rox Inc.: ‘What Is It’ (Live Instrumental Wonder) **
07. Mint Juleps: ‘Every Kinda People’ (Parts I, II and III)
08. Anne Pigalle: ‘Hé Stranger’ (Parts I, II and III);
09. 808 State Vs. Art of Noise: ‘Moments in Love’ (Massey Mix Three) **
10. ‘the flash forward’
11. Frankie Goes to Hollywood: ‘Relax’ (Man Has a Sense for the Discovery of Beauty, Part I) **
12. ‘zang tuum interlude’;
13. Art of Noise: ‘Close Up’ (Hop)
14. Propaganda: ‘Dr Mabuse’ (Special Instrumental Mix) *
15. ‘cadenza’

** previously unreleased
* previously unreleased on CD

while I'm at it, last week's Solid Steel featured a mix by Strictly Kev/DJ Food including

Frankie Goes To Hollywood - Welcome To The Pleasuredome (Hibakusha Pleasure Dub) [unreleased]
Frankie Goes To Hollywood - Welcome To The Pleasuredome (DJ Food Re-fix) [unreleased]

as well as a Foetus/Food track. Downloadable from Soundcloud.

3. Paul McCartney: ‘Spies Like Us’ (Art of Noise Remix) **

** previously unreleased

The world anxiously awaits.

dubious about that btw, there was an Art Of Noise remix with an actual title on the 12"

New interview in Tape Op is awesome. He talks about how he got the ABC album so tight, by programming all the drums himself, with instruction from the drummer, then having the drummer play over the programming as exactly as possible, then cutting out the programming and leaving the real drums. Sort of an elaborate click track.

Also, lots of the crazy drum parts on the Yes album was Alan White noodling around on a new keyboard, triggering weird drum patterns and patches that the rest of the band liked enough to keep in.

Psyched to read this. Tape Op is great.

Haven't seen this linked here yet. Loads of great anecdotes. Good thing ol' Trev's a talker because these Red Bull folks are dry as mummies.
http://vimeo.com/32447278

New and very great and nerdy three hour interview (with Trevor Jackson) on NTS Radio : http://www.nts.live/shows/trevorjackson/episodes/trevor-jackson-trevor-horn-in-conversation-16th-december-2016

^ this show / chat is fan-tastic.

Yes it is. Only bum note for me is tooooo little time spent in Propaganda ( some rancor still there, obviously) while way too much time spent on McClaren and "Duck Rock".

*on Propaganda

I thought Stephen Lipson produced the Propaganda stuff?

Wiki says he was "too busy" to produce it but I don't believe it. His signature is all over the album, good as Lipson was with working the synths and programming.

"He" meaning Horn

A simple list, m'kay?