Stats:
Single most associated with XTC: "Making Plans for Nigel"Biggest early eighties college hit: "Senses Working Overtime."Exposure hit: "Dear God"Biggest US hit: "The Mayor of Simpleton"
there is no language in our stats
― guess that bundt gettin eaten (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Thursday, 16 October 2014 23:48 (nine years ago) link
Didn't vote as there's way too much I haven't heard or only heard once. But had I voted "Runaways" and "Greenman" would both be higher, and no longer tied. Also very surprised that "Love at First Sight" was so low.
― JoeStork, Thursday, 16 October 2014 23:48 (nine years ago) link
Should have voted for Ladybird myself; it's absolutely lovely but not one of the songs I grew up with & hasn't *completely* clicked into place yet - it's definitely one of those I considered though. I know exactly who made it their #1, I think, although I notice it had an extremely high average placement - maybe the highest here for a song with multiple voters
― Ƹ༑Ʒ (imago), Thursday, 16 October 2014 23:52 (nine years ago) link
Here's my list, bolded didn't poll. I think my surprise was how unloved the 90s releases are in general, and also, I expected White Music/Go2/Drums and Wires to have a bigger showing, given how often they are cited as icons of the new wave era. I like Mummer more than I thought, and hell, even The Big Express has Liarbird. Still no love for the Dukes records though.
1 The Mayor of Simpleton 2 Respectable Street 3 Making Plans for Nigel 4 No Thugs in Our House 5 The Ballad of Peter Pumpkinhead 6 Towers of London 7 Runaways 8 My Bird Performs Nonsuch9 Your Dictionary Apple Venus 10 Earn Enough for Us 11 The Disappointed 12 Life Begins at the Hop 13 Ball and Chain 14 This Is Pop 15 Senses Working Overtime 16 Stupidly Happy Wasp Star 17 Then She Appeared 18 King for a Day 19 Crocodile Nonsuch20 I Bought Myself a Liarbird The Big Express21 Garden of Earthly Delights Oranges & Lemons22 That's Really Super, Supergirl 23 Merely a Man Oranges & Lemons 24 I'd Like That 25 Dear Madam Barnum 26 Dear God 27 Generals and Majors 28 Scarecrow People Oranges & Lemons29 Science Friction White Music 30 Sgt. Rock (Is Going To Help Me) 31 Grass 32 Paper and Iron (Notes and Coins) Black Sea33 River of Orchids 34 Beating of Hearts 35 Are You Receiving Me? 36 Great Fire 37 When You're Near Me I Have Difficulty 38 Funk Pop A Roll Mummer 39 Living Through Another Cuba Black Sea40 One of the Millions Oranges & Lemons
― campreverb, Thursday, 16 October 2014 23:58 (nine years ago) link
The big scandal of this poll is the poor showing for 25 O'Clock. I mean, what in the world??
68. What In The World??...78. Bike Ride to the Moon91. The Mole from the Ministry92. Your Gold Dress101. 25 O'Clock107. My Love Explodes
― Hideous Lump, Friday, 17 October 2014 00:14 (nine years ago) link
i tried!
― Ƹ༑Ʒ (imago), Friday, 17 October 2014 00:16 (nine years ago) link
So did I! 4 out of 6 25 O'Clock songs made my ballot!
My top 50:
1. Beating of Hearts2. Generals and Majors3. It's Nearly Africa4. Earn Enough for Us5. Wrapped in Grey6. Sacrificial Bonfire7. Yacht Dance8. 25 O'Clock9. Wake Up10. Green Man11. Love on a Farmboy's Wages12. Chain of Command13. Senses Working Overtime14. Vanishing Girl15. Red16. Life Begins at the Hop17. Are You Receiving Me18. Pulsing Pulsing19. Another Satellite20. Towers of London21. King for a Day22. Travels in Nihilon23. Blame the Weather24. Garden of Earthly Delights25. Science Friction26. Melt the Guns27. Man Who Sailed Around His Soul, The28. What in the World29. Terrorism [Home Demo]30. Mayor of Simpleton, The31. Scarecrow People32. Fly on the Wall33. Crocodile34. In Loving Memory of a Name35. My Love Explodes36. Little Lighthouse37. Radios in Motion38. Ballet for a Rainy Day39. Rocket from a Bottle40. Jump41. Merely a Man42. I Bought Myself a Liarbird43. Pale and Precious44. Roads Girdle the Globe45. In Another Life46. Bike Ride to the Moon47. Poor Skeleton Steps Out48. Helicopter49. Dear Madam Barnum50. Shake You Donkey Up
#51 to 75, unranked:Chalkhills and ChildrenCollideascopeComplicated GameCross WiresEnglish RoundaboutEveryday Story of Smalltown, TheFunk Pop a RollI'd Like ThatInstant TunesJason and the ArgonautsLadybirdMaking Plans for NigelMeeting PlaceMy Bird PerformsNo Thugs in Our HousePlaygroundPunch and JudyRed Brick DreamReel by RealRespectable StreetRiver of OrchidsStatue of LibertySummer's CauldronTake This TownWashaway
#76 to 100, unranked:Ball and ChainBallad of Peter Pumpkinhead, TheDown in the CockpitExtrovertFruit NutHappy FamiliesHarvest FestivalHeaven Is Paved with Broken GlassKnights in Shining KarmaMiniature SunMy Brown GuitarNeon ShuffleNo Language in Our LungsPink ThingRhythm, TheRunawaysSeason CycleSmartest Monkeys, TheSmokeless ZoneThanks for ChristmasThis Is PopThis World OverWheel and the Maypole, TheWorld Is Full of Angry Young Men, TheYou're the Wish You Are I Had
― Hideous Lump, Friday, 17 October 2014 00:24 (nine years ago) link
Incredible that 'You're The Wish You Are I Had' made the Top 60 and 'Train Running Low On Soul Coal' didn't. 'The Wheel and The Maypole' was my #1.
― Welcome To (Turrican), Friday, 17 October 2014 00:24 (nine years ago) link
XTC fandom is so personal and particular that it wouldn't surprise me if we all have at least one song in our top 10 that barely received any other votes.
― Hideous Lump, Friday, 17 October 2014 00:26 (nine years ago) link
143. Young Cleopatra (96 points, 1 votes)TIE 144. Dance Band (93 points, 1 votes)TIE 144. Life Is Good In The Greenhouse (93 points, 1 votes)145. All along the watchtower (91 points, 1 votes)
^^^top tens with unique votes
i was one of these
― Ƹ༑Ʒ (imago), Friday, 17 October 2014 00:28 (nine years ago) link
I was too.
― kwhitehead, Friday, 17 October 2014 00:50 (nine years ago) link
Great poll, thanks Οὖτις for running it, and thanks Hideous for really delightful artwork -- it caught the spirit of the band perfectly imo.
With about 2 days left to vote and almost no new listening achieved, I wound up just ranking Waxworks, Beeswax and "Respectable St." "Senses" ended up higher on my ballot than I initially thought it would.
1. Life Begins at the Hop 2. Making Plans for Nigel 3. Science Friction 4. This Is Pop? 5. She’s So Square 6. Are You Receiving Me? 7. Towers of London 8. Dance Band 9. Pulsing Pulsing 10. Generals and Majors 11. Wait Till Your Boat Goes Down 12. Respectable Street 13. Senses Working Overtime 14. Ball and Chain 15. She’s So Square 16. Heatwave 17. Instant Tunes 18. Statue of Liberty 19. Smokeless Zone 20. Don’t Lose Your Temper 21. The Somnambulist 22. Blame the Weather 23. Tissue Tigers 24. Heaven Is Paved With Broken Glass 25. Sgt. Rock Is Going to Help Me 26. Punch and Judy 27. Hang On to the Night
― warning, #4 can't be unseen (WilliamC), Friday, 17 October 2014 00:56 (nine years ago) link
listening to some White Music deep cuts...they're really good, shit!
― Ƹ༑Ʒ (imago), Friday, 17 October 2014 01:04 (nine years ago) link
Points per album:
Skylarking (12,224)Black Sea (10,574)English Settlement (10,084)Non-LP (6,924)Drums & Wires (6,842)Oranges & Lemons (6,735)Nonsuch (6,713)Apple Venus (5,734)The Big Express (5,562)Mummer (4,275)Psonic Psunspot (3,671)White Music (2,551)Wasp Star (2,541)25 O'Clock (1,970)Go 2 (1,675)Fuzzy Warbles (1,003)
― Hideous Lump, Friday, 17 October 2014 01:08 (nine years ago) link
(Oops, some of my math is wrong there, but probably not enough to change the ranking.)
― Hideous Lump, Friday, 17 October 2014 01:14 (nine years ago) link
Keep in mind that the Non-LP category includes "Life Begins at the Hop" [1,688 pt.] and "Are You Receiving Me" [743 pt.]. Without those, the rest of the Non-LP cuts total 4,493 pt., still more than Mummer got.
Conclusion: XTC has one of the best catalog of B-sides ever.
― Hideous Lump, Friday, 17 October 2014 01:18 (nine years ago) link
I take it "Take Away/The lure of Salvage" got no votes?
― Mark G, Friday, 17 October 2014 01:20 (nine years ago) link
CORRECTED Points Per Album:
(Non-LP moves down 3 slots)
Skylarking (12,224)Black Sea (10,574)English Settlement (10,084)Drums & Wires (6,842)Oranges & Lemons (6,807)Nonsuch (6,713)Non-LP (6,675)Apple Venus (5,734)The Big Express (5,562)Mummer (4,275)Psonic Psunspot (3,848)White Music (2,551)Wasp Star (2,541)25 O'Clock (1,970)Go 2 (1,675)Fuzzy Warbles (1,003)
― Hideous Lump, Friday, 17 October 2014 01:29 (nine years ago) link
x-post
"New Broom" was the only dub track--1 vote, 71 points
― Hideous Lump, Friday, 17 October 2014 01:31 (nine years ago) link
Statistics nerdery continues.
Songs Receiving No Votes (all non-LP tracks except *):
A Dictionary of Modern MarriageAlways Winter Never ChristmasBeat the BibleBlack Jewelled Serpent of SoundBlue OverallBushman PresidentCairoCherry in Your TreeClap Clap ClapCommercialityCountdown to Christmas Party Time*Crowded RoomDance with Me, GermanyDidn't Hurt a Bit*Do What You DoDown a PegEgyptian SolutionElla GuruFind the FoxFireball XL-5/Fireball Dub*Frivolous Tonight*Fruit NutHappy FamiliesHomo Safari*Human Alchemy*I Am the AudienceI Need ProtectionI Sit in the Snow*I'm Bugged*Jumping in GomorrahLet's Have FunLet's Make a DenLimelightLiving in a Haunted HeartMadhattanMantis on Parole*Millions*My Brown GuitarMy Paint Heroes*My WeaponNicely Nicely JaneOfficer Blue*OmnibusOpen a Can of Human BeansOver Rusty WaterProcession Towards Learning LandSay ItSkeletons*Spinning Top*Standing in for JoeSteam Fist FuturistStrange Tales, Strange TailsSusan RevolvingThe Day They Pulled the North Pole DownThe Forgotten Language of LightThe Good ThingsThe RotaryThe TroublesThings Fall to BitsTin Toy Clockwork TrainToo Many Cooks in the KitchenToysTraffic Light RockUs Being Us*War DanceWashawayWe Kill the BeastWhere Did All the Ordinary People GoWork Away Tokyo Day*Wounded Horse
― Hideous Lump, Friday, 17 October 2014 02:26 (nine years ago) link
No-one voted for my weapon?
― Mark G, Friday, 17 October 2014 06:36 (nine years ago) link
Wow great top 60Feel pretty bummed for Wonderland, but great to see Earn Enough for Us so high - not just my top XTC track, but one of my all time favesFantastic job, thanks for running this!& Superb work on the pics, perfect.
― nxd, Friday, 17 October 2014 08:11 (nine years ago) link
I'm only a dilettante when it comes to XTC, so here are mine. Sad Poor Skeleton didn't make the cut. Really love the groove on that one. Wrapped In Grey has recently revealed itself as my favourite XTC. Wheel & the Maypole is also a recent discovery. And why didn't Great Fire make it? Such a strange song of violence.
Wrapped In GreyPoor Skeleton Steps OutGreat FireDear GodThe Wheel & the MaypoleThe DisappointedGenerals & MajorsThe Ballad of Peter PumpkinheadThe LovingMaking Plans For NigelWonderlandStatue Of LibertySgt Rock Is Going To Help Me
― Shepard Toney Album (dog latin), Friday, 17 October 2014 08:35 (nine years ago) link
oh it did make it, my bad.
Great work, thanks Οὖτις and Lump.
1.Paper and Iron (Notes and Coins)2. Vanishing Girl3. Ten Feet Tall4. Respectable Street5. Easter Theatre6. No Language in Our Lungs7. Life Begins at the Hop8. Wrapped in Grey9. That's Really Super, Supergirl10. Making Plans for Nigel11. Chalkhills and Children12. Sacrificial Bonfire13. You're the Wish You Are I Had14. Shiny Cage15. When You're Near Me I Have Difficulty16. Summer's Couldron17. The Meeting Place18. Towers of London19. I Remember the Sun20. Knuckle Down21. The Everyday Story of Smalltown22. Mermaid Smiled23. Season Cycle24. Burning With Optimism's Flames25. Helicopter26. Another Satellite27. Grass28. What in the World?29. Ballet for a Rainy Day30. Statue of Liberty
I should maybe have had 'Vanishing Girl' at #1, it's been stuck in my head for the last 24hrs. I think I need to spend some more time with English Settlement and Mummer. Not as keen on the post-Skylarking albums but perhaps I should revisit them too.
― Gavin, Leeds, Friday, 17 October 2014 10:31 (nine years ago) link
My ballot (and final poll position)
I Remember The Sun (66)Great Fire (39)King For A Day (30)Wonderland (70)Earn Enough For Us (3)Red Brick Dream (93)Senses Working Overtime (1)Snowman (23)The Ballad Of Peter Pumpkinhead (52)Easter Theatre (9)Respectable Street (2)Generals And Majors (6)Sgt. Rock (Is Going To Help Me) (48)Making Plans For Nigel (5)Yacht Dance (35)Rook (75)Then She Appeared (29)The Mayor Of Simpleton (8)1000 Umbrellas (38)Greenman (51)I Can't Own Her (82)Wake Up (42)No Thugs In Our House (13)Grass (11)The Meeting Place (23)I'm The Man Who Murdered Love (137)Dear God (58)
I should have spent a bit more time with the order but I'm happy with the top 3 and the overall selection.
― treefell, Friday, 17 October 2014 10:35 (nine years ago) link
thanks to this thread i discovered Wrapped In Grey so thanks thread!
― piscesx, Friday, 17 October 2014 10:49 (nine years ago) link
Oh, here's my ballot. No regrets! Although I'm the only one who'd rather be a plant than a Mickey Mouse...
Senses Working OvertimeComplicated GameTravels In NihilonEnglish RoundaboutNo Language In Our LungsThe Wheel And The MaypoleBallet For A Rainy DayLife Is Good In The GreenhouseThe Smartest MonkeysBattery Brides (Andy Paints Brian)1000 UmbrellasLeisureWhat In The World??...Real By ReelJason And the ArgonautsThat WaveHarvest FestivalSnowmanAnother SatelliteThe Mole From The MinistryHelicopterSmokeless ZoneGreenmanGenerals And MajorsEaster TheatreNo Thugs In Our HouseRoads Girdle The GlobeLiving Through Another CubaThen She AppearedPlaygroundBall And ChainWrapped In GreyYour Gold DressBeatownStupidly Happy
― Ƹ༑Ʒ (imago), Friday, 17 October 2014 11:01 (nine years ago) link
Okay here is mine.
1. Ladybird2. Red Brick Dream3. Rook4. Rocket From A Bottle5. Yacht Dance6. Season Cycle7. Complicated Game8. No Language In Our Lungs9. Summer's Cauldron10. Tissue Tigers11. Me And The Wind12. Earn Enough For Us13. Ten Feet Tall14. Battery Brides15. Deliver Us From The Elements16. Runaways17. Beating Of Hearts18. You're The Wish You Are I Had19. The Man Who Sailed Around His Soul20. Scissor Man21. 1000 Umbrellas22. Harvest Festival23. Travels In Nihilon24. One Of The Millions25. Wrapped In Grey26. Sleepyheads/Looking For Footprints27. Jason & The Argonauts28. Heatwave29. Little Lighthouse30. Across This Antheap31. Ball & Chain32. Science Friction33. Knights In Shining Karma34. Reign Of Blows35. In Loving Memory Of A Name36. Seagulls Screaming…..37. Another Satellite38. What In The World39. Pulsing Pulsing40. Millions
― MaresNest, Friday, 17 October 2014 11:44 (nine years ago) link
Who voted for Desert Island? Gotta know.
― MaresNest, Friday, 17 October 2014 11:46 (nine years ago) link
there's a lot in your list that I need to listen to properly, obv. still regretting leaving Ladybird off - I listened to it a couple of times yesterday and yeah I mean
― Ƹ༑Ʒ (imago), Friday, 17 October 2014 12:27 (nine years ago) link
Who voted Tissue Tigers #1? It was in my top 10, was considering making it my #1 myself. I love that song so much.
― Maggie killed Quagmire (collest baby ever) (frogbs), Friday, 17 October 2014 12:40 (nine years ago) link
frogbs post your ballot!
― Ƹ༑Ʒ (imago), Friday, 17 October 2014 12:40 (nine years ago) link
I decided to just do 20, 50 seemed like way too much but in retrospect I had more than enough songs to put up there.
#1 I felt was an obvious choice. Everything about that song is perfect. That description from Andy as to how the bass parts bounce off the chords makes total sense and likely was the reason I love the song so much. I felt bad about ranking "Senses Working Overtime" so low but I docked it points because I find the chorus gets lodged in my head for so long that I almost dread thinking about it.
1. Mayor of Simpleton2. Yacht Dance3. Greenman4. Another Satellite5. Generals and Majors6. No Thugs in our House7. What in the World?8. Tissue Tigers9. Snowman10. Little Lighthouse11. Your Gold Dress12. Life Begins at the Hop13. Neon Shuffle14. Senses Working Overtime15. My Bird Performs16. River of Orchids17. English Roundabout18. Burning With Optimism's Flames19. Life Begins at the Hop20. Chalkhills and Children
― Maggie killed Quagmire (collest baby ever) (frogbs), Friday, 17 October 2014 12:51 (nine years ago) link
I played in an XTC tribute band for a short time and Mayor is such a bugger to play, just the last bar of the loop joining onto the first bar, so tricky.
LJ, was I your Ladybird suspect?
― MaresNest, Friday, 17 October 2014 12:59 (nine years ago) link
Yeah the second time I heard Simpleton yesterday it suddenly leapt into giddy focus. The baseline is genuinely extraordinary
Course you were MN!
― Ƹ༑Ʒ (imago), Friday, 17 October 2014 13:00 (nine years ago) link
baseline? This phone!
Yeah this, I take my hat off sir/madam.
― MaresNest, Friday, 17 October 2014 13:02 (nine years ago) link
iirc correctly Partridge wrote the line too.
― MaresNest, Friday, 17 October 2014 13:03 (nine years ago) link
TB: Back to the song -- let's talk about the bass line.
AP: Yeah! I'm going to be immodest, because this is part of my drive toward immodesty this year...
TB: Well, the line is yours, after all! It's obvious -- it's there on the demo.
AP: *chuckles* People do these survey things, and say, "Let's vote for Colin's best bass line" or something, and they don't realize that the two bass lines they vote for -- "Vanishing Girl" and "Mayor of Simpleton" -- it's me playing bass on "Vanishing Girl"...
TB: Oh, I didn't know that.
AP: Yeah. Or "What in the World?" -- that's me playing bass as well.
TB: Get out of here!
AP: That's me on bass -- Colin's on rhythm guitar.
TB: And you came up with that bass line?
AP: Yeah.
TB: That's funny -- I've always thought that was him channeling McCartney.
AP: No, we had to cut it live. He obviously couldn't play the bass and the rhythm guitar, and I didn't know how the chords went, so instead of him teaching me the chords, I said, "Look, you play the chords, I'll play the bass, and we'll get this thing done before lunchtime!"
But the one they mention is "Mayor," and Colin had to work very hard to get that bass line. It's very precise. It took me a long time to work it out, because I wanted to get into the J.S. Bach mode of each note being the perfect counterpoint to where the chords are and where the melody is. The bass is the third part in the puzzle.
TB: You do that a lot in your songs.
AP: Yeah, it's a compulsion. On many of the songs I don't tell him which exact notes to play, but with this one, I said, "You have to play this bass line, because it's taken me weeks to work this out." I went through and worked it out a note at a time, to go with where the vocal note was at, where the implied guitar chords were, where the actual notes of the guitar being twanged to make that implied chord were. It was built scientifically, it was [laughs] precision-engineered so that every note is in the perfect place. And I think Colin liked the bass line, because we talked about it sounding like a collegiate peal of bells.
TB: Why did you feel you needed that kind of driving bass line in there?
AP: To keep the song moving, moving, moving. I wanted it to have a fleetness of foot, a joyousness to it. I used to love running as a kid -- in fact, I still dream of running. If I ran now, I'd die of a heart attack in about 30 steps [laughs], but I used to love running, and got really high on it as a kid. I wanted this track to have a sense of fleet forward movement, so the bass had to be very propulsive. The guitars are doing that kind of [sings guitar pattern] -- they almost sound sequenced, but they're not. They're played. I wanted the bass to move against that continuous arpeggio. And of course the drums locked into that as well, with the bass drum really hammering along.
So yeah, it was tough for Colin to get, but he did get it, because we played it live during the radio tour we did, where he would play that line on the acoustic guitar.
― MaresNest, Friday, 17 October 2014 13:05 (nine years ago) link
*something about synaesthesia* ;)
Great snippet. He seems quite generous with his self-insight; I should read more of his sayings
― Ƹ༑Ʒ (imago), Friday, 17 October 2014 13:09 (nine years ago) link
Yeah, this is a great rabbit-hole (incase you didn't know already)
http://chalkhills.org/articles/XTCFans.html
― MaresNest, Friday, 17 October 2014 13:18 (nine years ago) link
Is Mayor of Simpleton supposed to be a tribute to Wonderful World?
― Shepard Toney Album (dog latin), Friday, 17 October 2014 13:27 (nine years ago) link
Whoa ty MN! Awesome
― Ƹ༑Ʒ (imago), Friday, 17 October 2014 13:38 (nine years ago) link
Great poll, thanks for organizing Οὖτις! Also great art!
1. 1000 Umbrellas2. Chalkhills and Children3. Harvest Festival4. No Language In Our Lungs5. Ballet for A Rainy Day6. Easter Theatre7. Snowman8. Humble Daisy9. Wonder Annual10. Ladybird11. Grass12. I'd Like That13. Love On A Farmboy's Wages14. That's Really Super, Supergirl15. I Bought Myself a Liarbird16. Respectable Street17. Summer's Cauldron18. Wake Up19. That Wave20. The Wheel and the Maypole21. Minature Sun22. You're the Wish You Are I Had23. Ship Trapped in Ice24. This Is Pop25. Towers of London26. Me & the Wind27. Brainiac's Daughter28. I'm Unbecome29. Pale and Precious30. I Remember the Sun
― Dominique, Friday, 17 October 2014 13:44 (nine years ago) link
Great poll, Οὖτις! And great images, Hideous Lump! Thanks for doing this!
my ballot:
1. Earn Enough For Us2. Respectable Street3. Senses Working Overtime4. Making Plans For Nigel5. Grass6. Are You Receiving Me?7. The Meeting Place8. Summer's Cauldron9. Ball and Chain10. The Man Who Sailed Around His Soul11. Travels in Nihilon12. What In The World??...13. Life Begins At The Hop14. My Love Explodes15. Wake Up16. Bike Ride To The Moon17. When You're Near Me I Have Difficulty18. (The Everyday Story of) Smalltown19. Snowman20. Complicated Game
"Earn" was the first XTC I heard, on the radio. They had me at "[first snare hit]."
But 25 O'Clock was actually the first XTC I heard, only I didn't know it was XTC until maybe a year after I'd heard it. I'd heard about this psychedelic parody record, saw it in a record store, and thought the liner notes were hilarious.
― Montgomery Burns' Jazz (Tarfumes The Escape Goat), Friday, 17 October 2014 13:45 (nine years ago) link
Is Mayor of Simpleton supposed to be a tribute to Wonderful World?― Shepard Toney Album (dog latin)
― Shepard Toney Album (dog latin)
baseline? This phone!― Ƹ༑Ʒ (imago)
― Ƹ༑Ʒ (imago)
― hardcore dilettante, Friday, 17 October 2014 13:48 (nine years ago) link
frogbs: little lighthouse REPRESENT!
― a drug by the name of WORLD WITHOUT END (Jon Lewis), Friday, 17 October 2014 14:23 (nine years ago) link
1 Earn Enough for Us2 Wonderland3 The Wheel & The Maypole4 Easter Theatre5 Grass6 All You Pretty Girls7 The Meeting Place8 Another Satellite9 Pink Thing10 Mayor of Simpleton11 The Disappointed12 Dear Madam Barnum13 Summer's Cauldron14 Making Plans for Nigel15 King for a Day16 Generals and Majors17 Great Fire18 Vanishing Girl19 When You're Near Me I Have Difficulty20 The Everyday Story of Smalltown21 Rocket From a Bottle22 Jason and the Argonauts23 I Bought Myself a Liarbird24 Respectable Street25 This World Over
thanks again all involved :)
― nxd, Friday, 17 October 2014 14:30 (nine years ago) link
1. Summer's cauldron/grass2. Garden of earthly delights3. Senses working overtime4. Mayor of simpleton5. Respectable street6. Easter theatre7. Earn enough for us8. No thugs in our house9. Life begins at the hop10. Merely a man11. Scarecrow people12. River of orchids13. Complicated game14. Towers of London15. Harvest festival16. Travels in Nihilion17. Generals & majors18. Beating of hearts19. Roads girdle the globe20. Season cycle21. Peter pumpkinhead22. Living through another Cuba23. Melt the guns24. Smalltown25. Poor skeleton steps out 26. Scissor man27. Dear madam Barnum28. Ball & chain29. When you're near me I have difficulty 30. Radios in motion 31. Meccanik dancing32. Burning with optimism's flames33. Greenman34. Helicopter35. Wheel & maypole36. Reel by real37. Rocket from a bottle38. Pink thing39. Another satellite40. This is pop41. Holly up on poppy42. Science friction43. Then she appeared44. Hold me my daddy45. All you pretty girls46. The rhythm47. Ballet for a rainy day48. Day in day out49. Into the atom age50. Sacrificial bonfire51. Playground52. Are you receiving me53. Wake up54. Fly on the wall55. The meeting place56. Mermaid smiled57. Deliver us from the elements58. Ten feet tall59. Church of Women60. Making plans for Nigel61. Chalkhills & children62. Supergirl63. I'd like that64. Reign of blows65. Man who sailed66. Statue of liberty67. The loving68. 1000 umbrellas69. Love on a farmboy's wages70. Dear god71. King for a day72. Runaways73. Chain of command74. Punch & Judy75. Across this antheap76. My bird performs77. Outside world78. Crocodile79. Extravert80. The last balloon81. Seagulls screaming82. All of a sudden83. Newtown animal84. We're all light85. I set myself on fire86. This world over86. English roundabout87. One of the millions88. Shake you donkey up89. You & the clouds 90. No language in our lungs91. Your dictionary92. Red brick dream93. Love at first sight94. I remember the sun95. Cynical days96. The man who murdered love97. Big day98. President kill
A few regrets I have about my list: I ran out of time relistening to all the albums in sequence, ending with O&L, so Nonsuch and the 2 after I ranked from memory; I suspect there would have been 5 or 10 songs out of those records that I'd forgotten how much I enjoyed (just as happened with all the others) and would have made the list somewhere. I forgot about the Dukes ("Vanishing Girl" would have been high on my list, and "Mole" and "Brainiac" would have both been top 50). And I've never spent enough time with any Fuzzy Warbles to rate anything from them. I'd have liked to pick, say, the top 150 and make a playlist to obsess over the order - after the top 2 or 3, the order was pretty arbitrary in that any group of 10 or 15 songs could be reranked more accurately.
And I should have plumped hard for "Garden of Earthly Delights" in the discussion thread. I guess I just imagined that its glory was obvious to anyone with ears.
― hardcore dilettante, Friday, 17 October 2014 16:13 (nine years ago) link