The R. Stevie Moore thread (S/D, C/D)

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DIY avant-pop genius/compulsive music maker. Out of his 300+ releases, what are classic/dud? Seems to me his coolest period is late 70s, early 80s - but I haven't heard his newest stuff.

dleone (dleone), Thursday, 29 April 2004 01:30 (nineteen years ago) link

are you kidding? RSM should be an ILM goldmine.

dleone (dleone), Thursday, 29 April 2004 14:50 (nineteen years ago) link

I saw the thread but had little to offer -- he was on my Sparks list for a bit and contributed to a sort-of in-house tribute album that was put together. Friendly fellow but I know him more by reputation than anything else.

Ned Raggett (Ned), Thursday, 29 April 2004 14:54 (nineteen years ago) link

i wish i knew where to start myself. some him live once, at tonic in nyc, and he sat there with his guitar and a music stand with many many pieces of paper on it. he played in the neighborhood of a hundred million songs over the course of about an hour, and after each one he'd ball up a piece of paper from the music stand and toss it dramatically away, as if to suggest that any given song need only be played once. ever. probably two-thirds of 'em were throwaways, one-third were pretty damn sweet, and two or three were drop-dead gorgeous pop songs that i wished i could capture and keep forever.

fact checking cuz (fcc), Thursday, 29 April 2004 15:26 (nineteen years ago) link

Geez... doing a S/D on Mr. Moore might be a task and a half. I think people could do worse than starting with the compilations "What's the Point?" (Cuneiform) and / or "Everything You Wanted to Know About R. Stevie Moore But Were Afraid to Ask" (New Rose, I think). There's a bit of overlap, but both are great, if you want something curated. A lot of the fun is not knowing what the hell is going to happen next, but I grant that sometimes that kind of fun is hard to appreciate / rife with annoyance.

jazz odysseus (jazz odysseus), Thursday, 29 April 2004 16:10 (nineteen years ago) link

I want him to produce my rekkohd. His studio rates are hella cheap!
5 bux an hour to use his 4-track or sumtn' like that.

Franco Wanko, Thursday, 29 April 2004 16:17 (nineteen years ago) link

Phonography. Legendary debut. Do you have this one?

I also have "Contact Risk" which is lovable but not as consistent.

I love "Phonography" so much, I'm feeling silly I haven't already gone further. Have heard great things about "What's The Point?".

(Jon L), Thursday, 29 April 2004 16:33 (nineteen years ago) link

Yeah I have Phonography, as well as Delicate Tension from a couple of years later. I also have What's the Point, but it has a lot of mid-80s synth and drum machine stuff on there which I'm not wild about. Same idiosyncratic songwriting/singing though.

I also listened to an internet/download only comp last night called Tra La La Phooey which is all over the place (even for him).

dleone (dleone), Thursday, 29 April 2004 16:56 (nineteen years ago) link

the synth and drum patterns are a problem with "Contact Risk" as well.

Delicate Tension's much like Phonography though?

(Jon L), Thursday, 29 April 2004 17:06 (nineteen years ago) link

Recording is better, and there is also some punk influence on some songs. Other than that, I'd say if you like him, you'll like this.

dleone (dleone), Thursday, 29 April 2004 17:40 (nineteen years ago) link

There is a song on there called "Don't Blame the Niggers" that sounds like This Heat.

dleone (dleone), Thursday, 29 April 2004 17:43 (nineteen years ago) link

the web site makes 1977's 'swing and a miss' sound like the goods, and there's the new 'hobbies galore' compilation. ok good then.

(Jon L), Thursday, 29 April 2004 17:58 (nineteen years ago) link

one month passes...
Swing and a Miss is excellent, maybe even a shade better than Delicate Tension. I still like Phonography the best though, five star record, alternate universe hit singles lined up one after another.

(Jon L), Monday, 31 May 2004 05:39 (nineteen years ago) link

Yeah, I need to get this. I keep planning on just sending him money and just asking him to send me his coolest stuff.

dleone (dleone), Monday, 31 May 2004 05:56 (nineteen years ago) link

he filled out the CDRs with the complete Sheetrock album, even though I didn't order it, including a tracklisting. I get the feeling if I'd ordered Sheetrock as well he'd have just put on something else... handwritten CDRs, they look great.

he's the patron saint of home recording really.

he said Delicate Tension might be coming back into print later this year, and he still has some copies of the pressed CD version of Phonography for sale.

(Jon L), Monday, 31 May 2004 06:24 (nineteen years ago) link

three months pass...
Phonography is the shizz, listened for about 2-hours today. Listening to Report Card (2003) now (which has a rough redo of "Goodbye Piano" from Phonography), and have already rated Conscientious Objector as a fave of 2004. He just put out Far Out, and it sounds like another must-have. Should I be proud that I'm in his "hall of fame"?

Dominique (dleone), Tuesday, 14 September 2004 01:34 (nineteen years ago) link

two years pass...
I finally bought some of his old stuff - Phonography, Delicate Tension, Clack...I had the New Rose compilation but listening to the complete albums is a different thing.
This guy is a genius.

Marco Damiani, Wednesday, 7 March 2007 10:04 (seventeen years ago) link

It's quite haunting watching him age over the decades of his film clips available on YouTube . . . is his profile rising slightly due to Ariel Pink's constant championing of him?

etc, Wednesday, 7 March 2007 10:09 (seventeen years ago) link

Hope so.
I need to find more of his stuff: Swing, Glad Music etc.

Marco Damiani, Wednesday, 7 March 2007 10:16 (seventeen years ago) link

"Should I be proud that I'm in his "hall of fame"?"

You should!

Marco Damiani, Wednesday, 7 March 2007 18:33 (seventeen years ago) link

one year passes...

archival youtube explosion

Milton Parker, Friday, 27 June 2008 19:40 (fifteen years ago) link

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wMF2VRnT7vE&feature=related

Milton Parker, Friday, 27 June 2008 19:40 (fifteen years ago) link

Thank you, I always wanna know this stuff.

I know, right?, Friday, 27 June 2008 20:58 (fifteen years ago) link

Or go here for a hunnerd or so vids:

http://www.youtube.com/profile_videos?p=r&user=autosam&page=1

(shill)

Hideous Lump, Saturday, 28 June 2008 04:52 (fifteen years ago) link

ten months pass...

youtubes blowing my mind

gnarly sceptre, Tuesday, 26 May 2009 22:16 (fourteen years ago) link

any particular cassettes to watch out for?

gnarly sceptre, Tuesday, 26 May 2009 22:18 (fourteen years ago) link

start with Phonography. then Delicate Tension / Swing and a Miss / Sheetrock / Stance, then move slowly & carefully through the 80's. but those youtubes, still finding so many incredible songs from 70-84 I'd never heard

funny to reread upthread, Dominique sent RSM a couple of instrumentals, he added overdubs and threw them on one of his cassettes a few months later

Milton Parker, Tuesday, 26 May 2009 22:34 (fourteen years ago) link

funny to reread upthread, Dominique sent RSM a couple of instrumentals, he added overdubs and threw them on one of his cassettes a few months later

On the Report Card CD, he added music behind a recording of his mother-in-law singing "Happy Birthday" into an answering machine. He's dubbed a band onto some Shooby Taylor songs too.

Hideous Lump, Wednesday, 27 May 2009 03:51 (fourteen years ago) link

Only recently found out he was the son of Bob Moore, co- founder of Monument and bass player in the house band there: the lovely bass on all those Roy O. records are him.

sonofstan, Wednesday, 27 May 2009 08:40 (fourteen years ago) link

Found out "Glad Music" in the end.
Its his 80's period, but there's still a lot of great great stuff.

Marco Damiani, Wednesday, 27 May 2009 10:33 (fourteen years ago) link

I was wondering about this guy after hearing one of his songs on one of those Hyped 2 Death 80s Nuggets online comps, thanks for this thread - just found Phonography & Delicate Tension on a blog, that'll do for a start.

Colonel Poo, Wednesday, 27 May 2009 10:55 (fourteen years ago) link

four months pass...

i'm surprised no one's mentioned "games & groceries." from 1978. "i wanna sleep" into "you came along just in time" is amazingly classic.

http://www.rsteviemoore.com/tp/gamesgroceries.html

akaky akakievich, Thursday, 1 October 2009 15:25 (fourteen years ago) link

The man himself mentioned an upcoming Ariel Pink collaboration on Facebook the other day -- not surprising given their mutual admiration society and all.

Ned Raggett, Thursday, 1 October 2009 15:26 (fourteen years ago) link

a while back i heard an awesome r. stevie moore compilation selected by ariel. my friend was gonna release it, but his label went belly up go figure.

akaky akakievich, Thursday, 1 October 2009 15:49 (fourteen years ago) link

five months pass...

http://vimeo.com/10272054

D.V. Caputo (Digital Video Camera), Sunday, 28 March 2010 07:32 (fourteen years ago) link

one month passes...

R. Stevie is what music would look like if it were a man.

Blancminaj (Spinspin Sugah), Wednesday, 5 May 2010 17:11 (thirteen years ago) link

The recordings with Jad Fair are a bit of a kick.

ImprovSpirit, Wednesday, 5 May 2010 19:02 (thirteen years ago) link

http://www.buzzgrinder.com/media/r_stevie_moore.jpg

Davek (davek_00), Wednesday, 5 May 2010 19:15 (thirteen years ago) link

seven months pass...

bump

puff puff post (uh oh I'm having a fantasy), Wednesday, 15 December 2010 00:53 (thirteen years ago) link

youtubes blowing my mind

― gnarly sceptre, Tuesday, May 26, 2009 3:16 PM (1 year ago) Bookmark

puff puff post (uh oh I'm having a fantasy), Wednesday, 15 December 2010 00:56 (thirteen years ago) link

The instrumental "Melbourne" on Phonography is really something else.

timellison, Wednesday, 15 December 2010 01:45 (thirteen years ago) link

pretty much everything is great but this one is really hitting right now

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e6xO1PRALMg

puff puff post (uh oh I'm having a fantasy), Wednesday, 15 December 2010 04:22 (thirteen years ago) link

six months pass...

wow i never knew about this dude.

the beta banned (upper mississippi sh@kedown), Wednesday, 29 June 2011 21:30 (twelve years ago) link

He's a character.

Ned Raggett, Wednesday, 29 June 2011 21:32 (twelve years ago) link

yeah he just played in mpls but i didn't go, but anyway i was curious about who it was and now i'm watching like 8 zillion youtubes

just very...i dunno...weird and distinctive and i don't really know where he fits in, like is he the jandek of power pop or something?

i guess there were lots of young kids in bands and stuff at his show, i think he's some kinda hero now

the beta banned (upper mississippi sh@kedown), Wednesday, 29 June 2011 21:41 (twelve years ago) link

the patron saint of home recording

especially now that home recording is all most of us have

Milton Parker, Wednesday, 29 June 2011 21:58 (twelve years ago) link

A lot of it has to do with the Ariel Pink mutual appreciation society (which does make perfect sense).

Ned Raggett, Wednesday, 29 June 2011 22:02 (twelve years ago) link

oh yeah i guess i could definitely see his influence on ariel pink (or a least the one ariel pink album i heard)

i guess he really wanted to go to paisley park after the show but ppl told him prince doesn't really live there anymore

the beta banned (upper mississippi sh@kedown), Wednesday, 29 June 2011 22:03 (twelve years ago) link

finding all of his well categorized and properly labeled youtubes is kind of like suddenly finding some clear long lost wonderful oldies station while driving through the desert

puff puff post (uh oh I'm having a fantasy), Wednesday, 29 June 2011 22:03 (twelve years ago) link

playing in London in August btw... got my ticket as soon as it was announced

a fucking stove just fell on my foot. (Colonel Poo), Thursday, 30 June 2011 00:08 (twelve years ago) link

Bummed I can't see him in Lawrence. Maybe I already missed it?
Sucks having a life.

Trip Maker, Thursday, 30 June 2011 14:20 (twelve years ago) link

ten months pass...

The man is really having a moment! And guess what!

https://fbcdn-sphotos-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-ash3/581563_3559119829668_1622962720_2845693_372157828_n.jpg

Ned Raggett, Friday, 4 May 2012 14:19 (eleven years ago) link

I'm really hoping that there is a free pair of glasses taped to the front of the magazine for each reader

btw didn't i braek ur heart (NickB), Wednesday, 9 May 2012 10:44 (eleven years ago) link

Oh there's a comb too! Guessing that half the readership have no use for that tho

btw didn't i braek ur heart (NickB), Wednesday, 9 May 2012 10:46 (eleven years ago) link

( :-(

Ward Fowler, Wednesday, 9 May 2012 11:04 (eleven years ago) link

Send it to Ned

btw didn't i braek ur heart (NickB), Wednesday, 9 May 2012 11:13 (eleven years ago) link

hope there is a photo of him playing in his pajamas (which I have witnessed)

World Congress of Itch (Dr Morbius), Wednesday, 9 May 2012 14:29 (eleven years ago) link

Me too! Looking forward to seeing him again early next month. (You'd better be coming too, Nick.)
http://farm7.staticflickr.com/6177/6137732838_6a889b7b1b.jpg

emil.y, Wednesday, 9 May 2012 14:33 (eleven years ago) link

weird he's touring the midwest with bobby conn but not doing a chicago show

congratulations (n/a), Wednesday, 9 May 2012 14:43 (eleven years ago) link

four weeks pass...

huh he covered "academy fight song"?

congratulations (n/a), Friday, 8 June 2012 20:33 (eleven years ago) link

I'm pretty sure he's covered around 25% of all songs ever written. From "Only Shallow" to Captain Kangaroo's "Horse in Striped Pajamas."

Hideous Lump, Saturday, 9 June 2012 06:36 (eleven years ago) link

seven months pass...

Holy crap, Phonography...

Naive Teen Idol, Tuesday, 15 January 2013 13:51 (eleven years ago) link

Dude is swimming in hipster groupie action.

Emperor Cos Dashit (Adam Bruneau), Tuesday, 15 January 2013 19:35 (eleven years ago) link

Listening to the Beatles covers album on Spotify -- it's like 10cc overdubbed a hundred guitars on every track...

Naive Teen Idol, Saturday, 19 January 2013 05:04 (eleven years ago) link

two months pass...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v1MfeLx6Uds

finally checked out r stevie moore after hearing about him since i was a kid (lucky enough to grow up in prime Uncle Floyd/WFMU territory). i love it, it's some groovy weirdo shit.

Spectrum, Wednesday, 27 March 2013 17:45 (eleven years ago) link

I went to a house show in Nashville last weekend where he played, and got to hang out w him and he was a complete sweetheart. Anyways originally he was going to headline but he decided to open the show instead, and it was really a whole lot of fun. He was giving out copies of his new CD "Advanced", so im looking forward to listening to that a bunch this weekend. Super awesome guy!

Emperor Cos Dashit (Adam Bruneau), Thursday, 28 March 2013 15:45 (eleven years ago) link

two months pass...

cool, "chasing an echo" from ku klux glam is an early version of "live it up" from mature themes

i also enjoy in line skateing (spazzmatazz), Wednesday, 19 June 2013 23:35 (ten years ago) link

two months pass...

this fella really likes to chat up my female friends on fb

Coming Out Of Elton John's Mouth (crüt), Tuesday, 20 August 2013 20:59 (ten years ago) link

r. sleazy moore

Coming Out Of Elton John's Mouth (crüt), Tuesday, 20 August 2013 21:00 (ten years ago) link

five months pass...

Haven't hear much of this guy, but he's playing the Doug Fir Lounge in Portland, while I'm in town for work. Might check him out? Anyone seen him live?

Benjamin-, Tuesday, 11 February 2014 00:33 (ten years ago) link

*heard

Benjamin-, Tuesday, 11 February 2014 00:33 (ten years ago) link

He used to have a steady back-up band, does he still have it now?

Also I love this man, you can't go wrong with RSM

DDD, Tuesday, 11 February 2014 10:31 (ten years ago) link

one year passes...

wow this guy is quite special. ive heard his name for years but its only now im checking his stuff out. listening to "clack!" and the best of comp, along with random tracks on youtube.

mmmm those chord changes on "the winner". pop genius.

tayto fan (Michael B), Wednesday, 6 May 2015 16:56 (eight years ago) link

two years pass...

I listened to this guy a bit a few years back, but now I'm jumping back in and realizing how fantastic his stuff is. The North is probably my favorite album—I'm You're Latest Guest and Norway are probably my favorite tracks, but the whole thing is amazing front to back.

It's almost upsetting how huge his discography is. It's not even well cataloged on Discogs. Spotify surprisingly has a lot of it.

beecheese, Friday, 26 May 2017 21:21 (six years ago) link

one year passes...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YWJ4cTrmydo

louise ck (milo z), Wednesday, 6 June 2018 06:25 (five years ago) link

The album he did with Jason Faulkner is so fucking good.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tXj8a__BWv8

Brainless Addlepated Timid Muddleheaded Awful No-Account (Pheeel), Wednesday, 6 June 2018 18:06 (five years ago) link

eight months pass...

Holy fuckin shit yeah, it is so nice. News to me, i just stumbled across it.

Hunt3r, Thursday, 14 February 2019 03:54 (five years ago) link

Wrote this on R. Stevie's new Afterlife , which I think is his best record to date.

eddhurt, Thursday, 14 February 2019 20:27 (five years ago) link

nine months pass...

On Sky Arts (UK) tonight at 9pm - Cool Daddio: The Second Youth Of R. Stevie Moore
http://www.rsteviemoore.com/cd/cooldadfilm.html

PaulTMA, Friday, 22 November 2019 17:49 (four years ago) link

he also put out a collaborative album with gary wilson this year?

na (NA), Friday, 22 November 2019 18:05 (four years ago) link

featuring jason faulkner, jad fair, jimmy whispers, and more

na (NA), Friday, 22 November 2019 18:13 (four years ago) link

one year passes...

On Sky Arts (UK) tonight at 9pm - Cool Daddio: The Second Youth Of R. Stevie Moore

On again tonight but at 2.30am. I'll be in my kip by then.

"Bobby Gillespie" (ft. Heroin) (Tom D.), Friday, 3 September 2021 23:09 (two years ago) link


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