Robyn Hitchcock/Soft Boys: Classic or Dud?

(this is what my 1981-centric saturday morning looked like)
https://instagram.fapa1-2.fna.fbcdn.net/vp/70a74e79381c153ebbfac61c93770f69/5B32FBC0/t51.2885-15/e35/29093386_212974649257650_3805667218432196608_n.jpg

I has that "Lope at the Hive/Only The Stones Remain" two-half-albums. It is nifty.

There are days when I think You & Oblivion is my favorite RH record.

yeah that, Invisible Hitchcock and A Star for Bram are the big reasons why I say his castoffs are so frequently top shelf stuff

xposts i guess the closest RH has come to a "Do Me, Baby" is Wafflehead? Or Agony of Pleasure.

I always forget to think of Invisible Hitchcock as an outtakes album when I listen to it. I bought it in the 80s and to me it was just One of his first solo records, maybe with some iffy quality control on side B.

my favorite RH album cover tbh

i guess the closest RH has come to a "Do Me, Baby" is Wafflehead? Or Agony of Pleasure.

when i was listening i was half-imagining Prince covering RH's "Heaven"

i guess "egyptian cream" is the most prince-like title he's got, haha

Well, he does say "Fuck me baby, I'm a trolley bus" in "The Authority Box". But I can't tell if he's being sexual.

Like, "Woke up this morning, and fuck me I'm a trolleybus 🚎"

?

wow i never thought of applying that phraseology to that lyric

i always just figured he wanted her/him/them to have sex with him because he's a trolleybus.

Now i think your interpretation is right

like holy crap i'm a trolleybus

However, there still remains the weird swallowed "UCK me darling" in La Charite on Nextdoorland

Robyn's written many not-so-veiled songs to now ex-lovers and wives. I wonder what it's like for him to play them, does he just mentally transfer the implications to his new love or is it a painful reminder?

I feel beautiful and beautiful queen are the biggest Michele songs I can think of - does he play those still? I can’t remember.

Man, “The Beauty of Earl’s Court” is really lovely. Interesting decision leaving that off Eye, and including “Agony of Pleasure.”

Looking forward to seeing him at the Betsey Trotwood (London) on Tuesday night - and I have a spare ticket, if anyone's interested...

report???

I was utterly heartbroken to not be able to see him last friday night in nyc playing in front of an electric band because we had to go to massachussetts for an emergency. i hope this mini tour will not be the last time he ever tours electric with backup.

I saw Liz Phair in Nashville a few weeks ago, and in the encore she brought Robyn Hitchcock on stage to sing "I Wanna Destroy You" with her and Sadie Dupuis (Speedy Ortiz were the opening band). It was pretty great.

There's a video of that on Youtube - not a combination I'd ever imagined.

the show on Tuesday was amazing - one of the best I've seen him play (of the 40 odd I've seen at this point). solo acoustic, about 50 people in the audience, just magical - kicked off with Tonight, ended with Airscape, but in between we got a bunch of interesting stuff - the first time I've seen him play Glass (which suddenly clicked for me), what he claimed was the live debut of You've Got, the banter was as good as ever. Also the first time (I think) of hearing I Wanna Destroy You on acoustic - not quite as good as the incredible versions from the electric shows earlier in the year, but still pretty good.

Also I thought he was off in a fantasy when he was talking about writing songs for an Ethan Hawke movie, but I guess it's real (and he also played this):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y1sAd6_WruI

haha, maybe that movie is good, i have no idea — but the cover of that soundtrack is the worst.

I'm looking forward to his Nashville show in November - I haven't seen him with a band since the Jewels For Sophia tour.

EZ you didn’t catch any of the Venus 3 tours?

Unfortunately not. I lived too far away from any of the shows.

Last night's show was a lot of fun. Loose and freewheeling set in a tiny club. One of the benefits of Nashville is he plays hometown shows often enough that he can pick and choose his venues.

Bummed I couldn't get also tickets to his Bluebird Cafe acoustic set tonight but such is life.

Last nights show solo or band?

Band. Him and the Fabs. Good setlist:

Try again:
Hitchcock setlist

Winchester! Love that one ... don't think I've ever heard him play it live.

It was a first for me!

I haven’t kept up w him in years but nice to see Madonna. Aleah liked Queen Elvis and thought it was unjustly maligned.

Madonna of the Wasps was lovely as always. The surprising Queen Elvis highlight was Freeze. As close to ferocious as I’ve heard from him.

He played Winchester?!?!?!

Fuck you!

So jealous

He apparently played it at the Bowery show last month, too

Arrrrrgh

I seriously absolutely could not get out of the thing I had to leave town for that weekend

He's played it 4 times this year. I'm glad to see it back in rotation after 30 years.

I just really hope he tours with band some more.

I hope so too. I know solo Hitchcock is a much easier logistically but I like when he mixes it up.

my god, this setlist from Woodstock NY on the 14th:

Set 1
01- Robyn walks on...
02-Tonight
03-The Abyss
04-I Pray When I'm Drunk
05- Robyn banter...
06-52 Stations
07- Robyn banter...
08-The Lizard
09- Robyn banter...
10-I Want To Tell You About What I Want
11- Robyn banter...
12-I Often Dream Of Trains
13-Vibrating
14-Luminous Rose
15- tuning and Robyn banter...
16-You & Oblivion
17- Robyn banter...
18-Sinister But She Was Happy
19- tuning and Robyn banter...
20-I'm Only You
21- Robyn banter...
22-The Queen Of Eyes

Set 2
23-Robyn banter...
24-Flavour Of Night
25- Robyn banter...
26- ? ? ? ? ?
27- ? ? ? ? ? (new song)
28-Ring Them Bells (Bob Dylan)
29-Autumn Is Your Last Chance
30- Robyn banter...
31-Victorian Squid
32-The Cheese Alarm
33-NY Doll
34- Robyn banter...
35-Madonna Of The Wasps
36- Robyn banter...
37-The Devil's Coachman
38- Robyn banter...
39-The Ghost Ship
40- tuning and Robyn banter...
41-Saturday Groovers
-encores-
42-Robyn banter...
43-Gene Hackman
44-My Wife & My Dead Wife
45-tuning > Calvary Cross (Richard Thompson)
46- Robyn banter...
47-Raymond Chandler Evening
48-Queen Elvis

EGAD

damn

wow

he's touring...something. covering something but now I can't remember what....anyway I keep wanting to see him (he plays SF constantly, like, it seems, twice a year at least) and missing him, and in fact have NOT seen him since the early 90's at this point.

He's got a gig in SF covering John Wesley Harding next month.

I read that as the musician at first and thought it seemed odd.

I saw him in Providence, RI on Nov. 17. He was great and played a few songs on piano, as well as three Dylan covers. Here's the set list, according to setlist.fm:

Set 1:
Trying to Get to Heaven Before They Close the Door
(Bob Dylan cover)

I Pray When I'm Drunk

My Wife and My Dead Wife
(Robyn Hitchcock and The Egyptians song)

The Lizard

Dismal City

I Got the Hots
(The Soft Boys song)

Brenda Bad Vibes
(new, unrecorded song)

Hurry for the Sky
(Robyn Hitchcock & The Venus 3 song)

I'm Only You

Saturday Groovers
(Robyn Hitchcock & The Venus 3 song)

Queen Elvis
(with harmonica)

Set 2:
Somewhere Apart
(Robyn Hitchcock and The Egyptians song) (Robyn on piano)

Flavour of Night
(Robyn on piano)

Ring Them Bells
(Bob Dylan cover) (Robyn on piano)

Balloon Man
(Robyn Hitchcock and The Egyptians song)

Luminous Rose
(Robyn Hitchcock and The Egyptians song)

The Devil's Coachman
(Robyn Hitchcock and The Egyptians song)

Chinese Bones
(Robyn Hitchcock and The Egyptians song)

The Cheese Alarm

Flowing...
(new, unrecorded song)

Sally Was a Legend

Dead Guys
(new, unrecorded song)

I Wanna Destroy You
(The Soft Boys song)

You and Oblivion

Visions of Johanna
(Bob Dylan cover)

One of my favorite bootlegs: https://archive.org/details/robynhitchcock2007-05-26

This is really enjoyable, thanks!

i have been listening to tons of underwater moonlight and a can of bees recently, and i'm ready to spread out. what is the greatest robyn hitchcock solo album of all time?

I like Fegmania.

you should listen to something like uncorrected personality traits and determine if you want more raved up psychedelia or acoustic psychedelia.

if the former go to fegmania, if the latter go to I often dream of trains.

Going back through time:

Propellor Time
Nextdoorland
A Star For Bram
Element of Light
Fegmania!
I Often Dream of Trains (also the IODOT in NY live version)
The “While Thatcher Mauled Britain” rarities comp included in the I Wanna Go Backwards box set

Or search for the long and short versions of my Verities & Verdigris spotify RH playlist

NB my favorite versions of a lot of the post 2000 material are in live audience recordings available for free from Archive.org, especially shows from the Venus 3 tours.