???
― s1utsky (slutsky), Tuesday, 19 August 2003 02:06 (twenty years ago) link
― Jordan (Jordan), Tuesday, 19 August 2003 12:18 (twenty years ago) link
Nothing against Fishing with John or anything, but this and The Lounge Lizards? is a pretty lame showing for these guys.
I was always into the stammering Live 79-81 myself with Arto -- title track to Big Heart: Live In Japan is a beautiful thing as well.
― Naive Teen Idol, Sunday, 13 December 2009 05:26 (fourteen years ago) link
The first two Golden Palaminos albums with Arto haven't been mentioned much as well. But according to the ilx search there are some people who have posted their love for those albums.
xp I haven't heard that Lounge Lizards album
― I'm losing my Vitamin C (CaptainLorax), Sunday, 13 December 2009 06:37 (fourteen years ago) link
I was very much into this scene for a while at the beginning of college -- the groups were definitely linked in my mind. I remember reading a really interesting article somewhere (Downbeat?) about how the first generation of the Golden Palominos with the two-bass setup (including Jamaaldeen Tacuma) was way too ambitious to last more than a few gigs. And it didn't. I think Arto may well have left the LL for the GP...
― Naive Teen Idol, Sunday, 13 December 2009 19:35 (fourteen years ago) link
only this teaser is online, but the current new yorker has a pretty astounding article about lurie's whole weird life the last 10 years.
― a tenth level which features a single castle (tipsy mothra), Friday, 13 August 2010 16:58 (thirteen years ago) link
ORLY? I will buy this New Yorker. I still think Lurie/Lizards have done a lot of great music.
― life behind bras (admrl), Friday, 13 August 2010 17:05 (thirteen years ago) link
yeah, really weird article, both parties involved end up coming off as pretty o_O
― congratulations (n/a), Friday, 13 August 2010 17:08 (thirteen years ago) link
srs they are both on some high school shit it's wack
― johnny crunch, Friday, 13 August 2010 17:20 (thirteen years ago) link
lol @ "on some high school shit"
― life behind bras (admrl), Friday, 13 August 2010 17:21 (thirteen years ago) link
Would somebody care to sum up the article in a little more detail?
In more detail than the abstract?
― jaymc, Friday, 13 August 2010 17:24 (thirteen years ago) link
lurie befriends up-and-coming artist, they're tight bros for years (even as lurie's having all sorts of bizarro health problems), then things get real twitchy over a tv pilot the up-and-comer is shooting, and next thing you know lurie's convinced duded intends to kill him and has spent the last few years flying all over the world and living basically in hiding from the guy -- who has not exactly helped matters by continually cyberstalking lurie, even though he says he just wants to talk to him.
― a tenth level which features a single castle (tipsy mothra), Friday, 13 August 2010 17:25 (thirteen years ago) link
(lurie has repeatedly contacted police, who say there's no real threat there, and even hired a high-dollar private eye to stalk the other guy in return, but the private eye also ended up thinking lurie is pretty much just paranoid.)
― a tenth level which features a single castle (tipsy mothra), Friday, 13 August 2010 17:26 (thirteen years ago) link
what do you think is really going on here
― life behind bras (admrl), Friday, 13 August 2010 17:27 (thirteen years ago) link
and on the side, lurie not surprisingly shits all over former friends and scenesters: "Jim Jarmusch, David Byrne, Keith Haring -- all the bad ones got ahead, all the apple-for-the-teacher lightweights."
― a tenth level which features a single castle (tipsy mothra), Friday, 13 August 2010 17:28 (thirteen years ago) link
it's hard to say! the article did make me want to see some of his current painting, he's apparently doing good stuff.
― a tenth level which features a single castle (tipsy mothra), Friday, 13 August 2010 17:29 (thirteen years ago) link
... while living in flea's guest house ...
yea it's somewhat compelling cuz it's so weird. neither of them come off as mature or emotionally healthy ppl
― johnny crunch, Friday, 13 August 2010 17:30 (thirteen years ago) link
I like Lurie's paintings they're funny, sort of like a (somewhat) prettied-up Shrigley
― life behind bras (admrl), Friday, 13 August 2010 17:31 (thirteen years ago) link
This is the other guy:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9zbhxHvKU80
What's really fascinating is how concise the episode is that causes everything to spin apart between these two best friends...Lurie is sitting opposite for his portrait for just a few hours years and years of neuroses and jealousies collapse into that space like it's a black hole.
― Hadrian VIII, Friday, 13 August 2010 17:32 (thirteen years ago) link
Title "First You Blow Us, Then We'll let You Go" haha
http://www.markallencam.com/JohnLuriePainting.jpg
― life behind bras (admrl), Friday, 13 August 2010 17:33 (thirteen years ago) link
http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_XpuL2NqyPso/TD8CAGn7nbI/AAAAAAAACJM/xrBwa1ZSc-4/s1600/john+lurie.jpg
ugh xpost, I mean and in that short time all those feelings collapse into the space between them.
― Hadrian VIII, Friday, 13 August 2010 17:34 (thirteen years ago) link
i like when lurie reaches under his bed for his cellphone and accidentally cuts his finger on the machete he keeps there in case the guy somehow finds him and attacks him in the middle of the night.
― a tenth level which features a single castle (tipsy mothra), Friday, 13 August 2010 17:40 (thirteen years ago) link
hahahaha
― Hadrian VIII, Friday, 13 August 2010 17:48 (thirteen years ago) link
lolll
― life behind bras (admrl), Friday, 13 August 2010 17:52 (thirteen years ago) link
Isn't this largely the plot of that Fishing With John Lurie did with Tom Waits?
― Naive Teen Idol, Friday, 13 August 2010 18:03 (thirteen years ago) link
sorta. just w/ added facebook stalking/etiquette issues & debate over how much of the roy jones/calzaghe fight lurie watched
― johnny crunch, Friday, 13 August 2010 18:10 (thirteen years ago) link
that article is a great read
weird dude
― surfboard dudes get wiped out, totally, Friday, 13 August 2010 18:10 (thirteen years ago) link
it actually makes reference to the fishing with john episode, saying that he and tom waits didn't speak after the ep. i thought it was kinda tom's indignant schtick.
― baby i know that you think i'm just a lion (schlump), Friday, 13 August 2010 18:18 (thirteen years ago) link
Don't forget Lurie's assistant, a Turkish woman who "looks attractively like a female Michael Jackson."
― jaymc, Friday, 13 August 2010 18:18 (thirteen years ago) link
not even close to the most homoerotic thing in the article, though
― surfboard dudes get wiped out, totally, Friday, 13 August 2010 18:21 (thirteen years ago) link
Speaking of, I'm straight, but always thought Lurie circa Down By Law was an attractive/interesting looking dude.
http://www.stevekdanceparty.com/listen/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/JohnLurie.jpg
― All 10 songs permeate the organs (Dan Peterson), Friday, 13 August 2010 18:24 (thirteen years ago) link
Doesn't Lydia Lunch describe Lurie as 'human sewage' in Black Dog's No Wave book? No disrespect to her but I'm guessing with the calibre of people she's known over the years, that's hardly a ringing endorsement.
Whatever he's like in real life I love Fishing With John. I'm disappointed to find out the Tom Waits thing was real. It's such a hilarious bit of TV. "Do you think they've got goat fish?", "They don't have goat fish here Tom." "What about cheese fish?"
― Duran (Doran), Friday, 13 August 2010 18:25 (thirteen years ago) link
i think this guy is an obnoxious prick who is clearly delusional. just my two cents. also fuck jim jarmusch moveis
― surfboard dudes get wiped out, totally, Friday, 13 August 2010 18:29 (thirteen years ago) link
nah I'll always have some time for both. Jarmusch quite probably will never do anything good again but he has done enough. Lurie I like although I don't know all of his music and I didn't read the article. Was never a huge fan of Fishing With John despite its obvious appeal.
― Henry's Hepcat (admrl), Saturday, 14 August 2010 21:57 (thirteen years ago) link
just read this today -- weirdness. along with that gil scott heron article last week, the ny-er is covering some seriously wacked out nyc personalities. but however odd he may be, i do love that first lounge lizards record.
― tylerw, Saturday, 14 August 2010 22:15 (thirteen years ago) link
Tell about Gil Scott Heron
― Henry's Hepcat (admrl), Sunday, 15 August 2010 21:08 (thirteen years ago) link
Strange piece, yeah. Once someone starts injecting ozone, you pretty much have to write them off.
― Mark, Sunday, 15 August 2010 21:59 (thirteen years ago) link
Still reading this - can't help but feel like the writer is just getting sucked into Lurie's paranoid delusions and investigating them a little too seriously.
― Ground Zero Mostel (Hurting 2), Friday, 20 August 2010 17:33 (thirteen years ago) link
the other dude doesn't really do much to make himself seem not-crazy is the thing though
― congratulations (n/a), Friday, 20 August 2010 17:35 (thirteen years ago) link
I don't know much about Lounge Lizards but I was searching for Marc Ribot videos on YouTube and found this, which is pretty sick despite being only in one stereo channel:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kRY_PZIKeqM
― congratulations (n/a), Friday, 20 August 2010 17:36 (thirteen years ago) link
i really love 'queen of all ears', i should dig that out
― emotional radiohead whatever (Jordan), Friday, 20 August 2010 18:04 (thirteen years ago) link
In retrospect he was kind of paranoid about Washington D.C. when I interviewed him in the early '80s at D.C.'s 930 Club. As I recall when I asked him something about coming to D.C. he said he didn't want to live so close to the government. This was shortly after Reagan was elected so it did not seem that unusual. He was not the friendliest interview subject (not that my questions at age 20 or so were that brilliant though).
― curmudgeon, Friday, 20 August 2010 21:29 (thirteen years ago) link
^^^this, totally.
― diurnal eternal falafel (get bent), Friday, 20 August 2010 21:35 (thirteen years ago) link
"just because you're paranoid don't mean they're not after you" etc
Their greatest contribution to music is clearly:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XfeWWO8eGrQ&feature=related
― dlp9001, Monday, 8 November 2010 00:27 (thirteen years ago) link
http://wfmu.org/playlists/shows/46445
John Lurie currently sitting in on trouble's show on FMU; I've only just tuned in so I'm only hearing the music, but they're playing some really nice stuff - something at the mo from a score called African Swim, w/Pontiac-esque guitar
― blossom smulch (schlump), Tuesday, 10 July 2012 15:05 (eleven years ago) link
this is a great show btw, listen again if you don't catch it
― blossom smulch (schlump), Tuesday, 10 July 2012 15:22 (eleven years ago) link
Bought the Marvin Pontiac reissue on Record Store Day after having not heard it in years. I used to play it all the time, but it hasn't aged especially well. It's still cool, and I'm glad I got it, but I couldn't get over the fact that a third of these tunes sound like Lurie rapping over RHCP's "Mellowship in B Slinky" (or whatever that one was called). Flea plays on this, right?
― Paul Ponzi, Monday, 30 April 2018 18:58 (six years ago) link
https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/cult-favorite-john-lurie-makes-way-for-an-alter-ego/2018/04/12/4fb378f6-3825-11e8-9c0a-85d477d9a226_story.html?utm_term=.44ff04286d2a
Had missed out on Marvin Pontiac till I read this Marc Masters (No wave book writer, sometime Pitchfork contributor) piece on Lurie. Was not wowed on first listen, but Lurie talks about humor in this piece and little kid listeners, so maybe I will give him another chance.
Lurie didn’t mean Pontiac as a hoax, but as an opportunity. “I can’t really sing,” he admits. “I kind of can now, but really couldn’t when I did the first [Pontiac] record, so I needed a mask to give me some footing. Plus, by doing it with a character, it freed me up to make it stranger than I would have with a record under my own name.” ...So it’s a small miracle that a second Marvin Pontiac release, “The Asylum Tapes,” recently turned up on streaming music services. It came with a brief explanation: “Marvin Pontiac was anonymously sent a four-track tape recorder during the years he was held at Esmerelda State Mental Institution. This is what he did with it.” Made by Lurie alone, the album’s 24 short songs are funny, scary and hopeful, and Lurie’s performance on guitar, banjo and vocals is full of life.
― curmudgeon, Monday, 30 April 2018 19:20 (six years ago) link
Insensitivity to mental illness! (j/k, sorta)
― i’m still stanning (morrisp), Monday, 30 April 2018 19:26 (six years ago) link
I just want to say that John Lurie's return from obscurity to hilarious, big mouthed Tweeter and making appearances at q&a's and stuff has been so wonderful and heartwarming. The man is a great asset to the planet and a brilliant human and painter. We're lucky to have him.
― kurt schwitterz, Monday, 30 April 2018 19:41 (six years ago) link
Also that first LL album still blows me away.
― kurt schwitterz, Monday, 30 April 2018 19:42 (six years ago) link
Agreed on all of that. I'm a big fan.
― Paul Ponzi, Monday, 30 April 2018 21:01 (six years ago) link
Seeing this thread for the first time---I always dug the live set on ROIR and the two albums on Island, haven't heard the others or Lurie solo, just now posted news from Northern Spy re Rainwater reissue (it's on Rolling Reissues)
― dow, Monday, 30 April 2018 21:47 (six years ago) link
so happy to have heard the marvin pontiac album playing in the record store the other day. think i'll pick up the LP reissue. the songs are really great !!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7k7tfvvgsSc
― budo jeru, Sunday, 11 November 2018 18:59 (five years ago) link
"small car" sounds like classic-era francis bebey (before the finger piano stuff) except in english and more surreal
― budo jeru, Sunday, 11 November 2018 19:10 (five years ago) link
where are we talking about painting with john
― adam, Monday, 1 February 2021 17:09 (three years ago) link
He Tweets w pix of his paintings sometimes, worth looking for. "Small Cars" is one of his all-time best, though I'm not that crazy about most of the rest of the album, compared to Lounge Lizards.
― dow, Monday, 1 February 2021 17:27 (three years ago) link
not as funny as fishing with john but i like it, its fun to just hang out in his vibe for a while. hes kind of the master of the genre of impressionistic shows that dont really have a point. couldnt have been released at a better time too, imo.
― nobody like my rap (One Eye Open), Monday, 1 February 2021 17:44 (three years ago) link
I def. dug the first episode when I happened upon it by chance. He looks like the physical embodiment of the pandemic these days.
― Naive Teen Idol, Monday, 1 February 2021 18:04 (three years ago) link
Wonder if this will be worth the while?
https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/561234/the-history-of-bones-by-john-lurie/
In the tornado that was downtown New York in the 1980s, John Lurie stood at the vortex. After founding the band The Lounge Lizards with his brother, Evan, in 1979, Lurie quickly became a centrifugal figure in the world of outsider artists, cutting-edge filmmakers, and cultural rebels. Now Lurie vibrantly brings to life the whole wash of 1980s New York as he developed his artistic soul over the course of the decade and came into orbit with all the prominent artists of that time and place, including Andy Warhol, Debbie Harry, Boris Policeband, and, especially, Jean-Michel Basquiat, the enigmatic prodigy who spent a year sleeping on the floor of Lurie’s East Third Street apartment. It may feel like Disney World now, but in The History of Bones, the East Village, through Lurie’s clear-eyed reminiscence, comes to teeming, gritty life. The book is full of grime and frank humor—Lurie holds nothing back in this journey to one of the most significant moments in our cultural history, one whose reverberations are still strongly felt today. History may repeat itself, but the way downtown New York happened in the 1980s will never happen again. Luckily, through this beautiful memoir, we all have a front-row seat.
It may feel like Disney World now, but in The History of Bones, the East Village, through Lurie’s clear-eyed reminiscence, comes to teeming, gritty life. The book is full of grime and frank humor—Lurie holds nothing back in this journey to one of the most significant moments in our cultural history, one whose reverberations are still strongly felt today.
History may repeat itself, but the way downtown New York happened in the 1980s will never happen again. Luckily, through this beautiful memoir, we all have a front-row seat.
― alan dean impostor (Matt #2), Friday, 25 June 2021 16:11 (three years ago) link
I'm in, anything that lists Boris Policeband among "all the prominent artists of that time and place" can't be all bad.
― Position Position, Friday, 25 June 2021 17:17 (three years ago) link
and here it is, described as "a tell-all that settles old accounts and names names"
https://www.nybooks.com/articles/2022/08/18/downtown-confessional-the-history-of-bones-john-lurie/
― budo jeru, Thursday, 4 August 2022 14:49 (one year ago) link
Could have sworn that came out years ago. Maybe I'm just thinking of the announcement?
― Josh in Chicago, Thursday, 4 August 2022 15:04 (one year ago) link
Wait, I think it *did* come out a year ago!
― Josh in Chicago, Thursday, 4 August 2022 15:06 (one year ago) link
It did come out last year, it is pretty good until about the moment the Lounge Lizards play their first show, then it does get into "score-settling" (though I'd say "whining" was a little more accurate) for another 200 pages.
― chr1sb3singer, Thursday, 4 August 2022 15:22 (one year ago) link
hmm ... not sure why NYRB is only getting to it a year later
― budo jeru, Friday, 5 August 2022 03:12 (one year ago) link
love cintra wilson!
my claim to sexual fame in new york was that i dated someone who broke up with john lurie in order to go out with me. all downhill from there let me tell you.
― Tracer Hand, Saturday, 6 August 2022 09:49 (one year ago) link
Loved the book. I recommend.
― SQUIRREL MEAT!! (Capitaine Jay Vee), Saturday, 6 August 2022 11:01 (one year ago) link