Errors-To: owner-tmbg-digest@tmbg.org Reply-To: tmbg-digest@tmbg.org Sender: owner-tmbg-digest@tmbg.org Precedence: bulk From: owner-tmbg-digest@tmbg.org To: tmbg-digest@tmbg.org Subject: tmbg-list Digest #22-23 tmbg-list Digest, Volume 22, Number 23 Saturday, 23 October 1999 Today's Topics: TMBG: Setlist for Bowery Ballroom show, New York City, 10/21/99 Re: TMBG: Setlist for Bowery Ballroom show, New York City, 10/21/99 Re: TMBG: Setlist for Bowery Ballroom show, New York City, 10/21/99 TMBG: Day 1 & 2 of Bowery series - Oct. '99 TMBG: One more thing to add TMBG: Day 1 & 2 of Bowery series - Oct. '99 TMBG: TMBG Trivia Question of the Day *HINTS* Administrivia: If you wish to unsubscribe from this mailing send mail to tmbg-digest-request@tmbg.org for instructions on how to be automatically removed. --------------------------------------------------------------------- The views expressed herein are those of the individual authors. --------------------------------------------------------------------- tmbg-list is digested with Digest 3.5b (John Relph ). ---------------------------------------------------------------------- From: MuseKJ@aol.com Message-ID: <0.cba55a03.254163c0@aol.com> Date: Fri, 22 Oct 1999 02:52:48 EDT Subject: TMBG: Setlist for Bowery Ballroom show, New York City, 10/21/99 Wow..all I can think of to say is "Wow." Tonight was the best show I've ever seen by TMBG -- and with a great opening act to boot, an amazing night. John Linnell was giddy as a school boy when he walked out onto the stage to play their first set, composed of their earlier material, saying later on that he "felt like a kid again." The second Flans walked up to the mike, he said that it seemed like he'd "just stepped into a freaky time machine" and suddenly "felt thinner." It was just the two of them alone, and I had never seen them perform like this before, so this was a special treat for me. The second set started off containing some earlier material as well, then finished with more recent material. Danny Weinkauf has shaved off his mustache and goatee. Mike Viola sang a short sweet song that went "Congratulations on having your baby," or something to that effect...is that in reference to Danny Weinkauf's baby?...he said it was his ex-bass player and his wife...Danny and Michelle...could someone on here clarify that for me, that Mr. Weinkauf was who Mr. Viola was referring to? The Candy Butchers opened, and I do believe they've gained a new fan in me. They have this wonderful early-Beatlesque mod look, and they're just a very talented band that play great music...period. Mike Viola's a real charmer on stage -- love his voice. One of our list members was invited to come up and sing backup with Mike Viola...(Hi Shana! -- she was great, and told her that myself after the show) TMBG's First Set (Just John F. on guitar, and John L. on accordion [exception being "I'll Take Manhattan," see below] for the whole set, drum machine in the center of the stage) Hello Radio (Instrumental -- no "hellos")...played via tape on darkened stage before the Johns came on. Stage lights up, Johns come out to thunderous applause...the looks on their faces are priceless. Cowtown Where Your Eyes Don't Go Number Three Hope That I Get Old Before I Die, segued into Cage & Aquarium Mister Me (awesome!) I'll Sink Manhattan...a true show-stopping number...Linnell picked up his baritone sax, and played it for this number...I've never seen Lin play his bari sax live, and this was just too fantastic for me to believe...it sounded fabulous on this song tonight! Flans voice in top form on this one. 32 Footsteps (also sounded great) She's An Angel (with just the accordion and guitar, sounds so different from the way it usually does these days in concert with the full band) Put Your Hand Inside the Puppet Head (it was so great to hear this, especially after seeing the video for it)...Linnell jumping up and down with the accordion, Flans saying "Guitar Solo!" over and over at one point, instead of actually playing a guitar solo. Shoehorn With Teeth (again, sounds different with just the accordion and guitar -- Dan Hickey still coming out to play the glockenspiel, but to especially enthusiastic applause. When Dan finished his glocking duties, Flans yelled out "Dig him now!" over and over) Maybe I Know (with Flans "fuck-up" -- Flans put a positive spin on the mistake by saying that they would now continue with "another" Ellie Greenwich song, the B-side of Maybe I Know, a "super short song" called "Inside I Know She Loves Me," and continued on to finish Maybe I Know with the words "inside I know she loves me." Istanbul (wow!) Ana Ng (again, wow!) Hotel Detective (this sounded really great with the accordion, like a jazzy version without the sax) Hide Away Folk Family (men and women were told to yell or scream (women with that 'pet-killing scream', show us what you're made of!" as loud as possible, at Flans' double-fingered signal) Nothing's Gonna Change My Clothes (awesome, full of cranked up energy) TMBG's Second Set (with full band, Lin on keyboards, on accordion for Particle Man, The Famous Polka, Pencil Rain, Finished with Lies, and Dr. Worm): Toddler Hiway (just Flans singing it into the mike, no music) Don't Let's Start We're The Replacements (first time I've heard this live, fun to hear in concert!) Mr. Klaw Particle Man The Famous Polka (with super-fast guitar at end -- Flans had from the "head" of the song to the end replayed super fast again, to see if he made a mistake -- he said afterward that he had indeed erred somehow) Pencil Rain (very powerful accordion/full band version...the full band adds a lot to this song!) This is where Flans said "that's all the 80's material we have planned for tonight, folks -- now back to our "regularly scheduled programming"...Linnell back on keyboards. Twisting (what is it about this song being played live that fills me with such complete and utter glee?) Older (oh this was interesting...they are starting to play a bit with this song, I see...Flans was going slower and slower still on his guitar, then playing at the regular slow pace, then slowing down to almost a snail's pace for the intro part of the song, then during the rest of the song, Flans and the Dans were freeze-framing their bodies on the stage in cool poses each time the song comes to it's pauses. It was a wonderful effect..I hope they continue to do this sort of thing with this song in future performances. On The Drag (Flans fuck-up #2, complete with irking heckler..Heckling Dude: "That's the second mistake you made!" Flans face says that he's heard the above comment. Heckling Dude: "You're something else!" Flans now looks at the man with steely resolve. Flans: "Oh yeah, well you just try to come up here and do this..." The man said nothing after this, probably thinking that he wasn't ready to make his musical debut yet :-) I love this song live!...again, first time I've heard it played in concert...very powerful piece. They said it would be on their next album. Finished With Lies (this is my favorite Linnell song in concert -- it has such a hypnotizing effect...Lin on accordion, his mike dropped a bit while he was in mid-song, causing him to pause and laugh for a sec, having to bend a bit to the mike in finishing the song) Dr. Worm (Lin improv on the lyrics with this one tonight -- singing short "ah ah ahs," then one flowing "ahhhhh"...the whole band really wailed on the ending) Encore: Full band jam, with Flans breaking his guitar strings in between (musical introductions of the band members mixed in as well) James K. Polk (ending in whole band bowing down to audience at end) New York City (great finale-style ending) Again, tonight I was lucky enough to meet three more list members tonight: JJR (John), Shana and Jordan (HallofEyes)...nice to meet you all! Karen :-) MuseKJ@aol.com ------------------------------ Message-ID: <38105E5E.498F409C@fruhead.com> Date: Fri, 22 Oct 1999 08:53:50 -0400 From: lawrence solomon Subject: Re: TMBG: Setlist for Bowery Ballroom show, New York City, 10/21/99 MuseKJ@aol.com wrote: > Where Your Eyes Don't Go was this the duo arrangement they used to do? or was there a tape? > Istanbul (wow!) did they do the long echo thing at the end or did they play it relatively normally? > Pencil Rain (very powerful accordion/full band version...the full band adds a > lot to this song!) hmmm... I knew Dan Hickey had been continually hinting at this one to bring back... figured it was only a matter of time. (for reference, listen to Ana Ng on the 6/11/99 show and The Planet of the Apes Song at the 12/18/97 show) damn. why do they only ever do special shows in New York? well, maybe now that they know how to play it, they'll start doing it more... -- lawrence solomon * http://www.fruhead.com/users/zaph * zaph@fruhead.com "You knew it was true, when I held you, there were no secrets. I believed it." -Moxy Fruvous, _I Will Hold On_ ------------------------------ From: MuseKJ@aol.com Message-ID: <0.7b6a738f.2541ea3d@aol.com> Date: Fri, 22 Oct 1999 12:26:37 EDT Subject: Re: TMBG: Setlist for Bowery Ballroom show, New York City, 10/21/99 In a message dated 10/22/99 8:54:56 AM Eastern Daylight Time, zaph@fruhead.com writes: << > Where Your Eyes Don't Go was this the duo arrangement they used to do? or was there a tape? >> it was the duo arrangement they used to do << > Istanbul (wow!) did they do the long echo thing at the end or did they play it relatively normally?>> it was played relatively normally Karen :-) MuseKJ@aol.com ------------------------------ From: JJRRutgers@aol.com Message-ID: <0.b46e31a.2541f1e1@aol.com> Date: Fri, 22 Oct 1999 12:59:13 EDT Subject: TMBG: Day 1 & 2 of Bowery series - Oct. '99 The real NY Subway Series is at the halfway point, and here is my report. Wednesday was the "typical" TMBG show. Opened up by an ABBA Tribute Band featuring Robin Goldwasser on Thank You For The Music, TMBG took the stage at 10:45, their usual late time. Pretty much the standard set, almost a warm-up for the rest of the shows. Some highlights that haven't been mentioned... Seemed like a tribute to another New Yorker John, the John who was once a Beatle. Danny Weinkaupf quoted "Hey Bulldog" during "The Guitar" jam session, and John Linnell quoted "Imagine" during the spy improv. Attack of the foul-mouthed Johns. Flans - "Man I hate this rock s**t!" Flans - "F**k, F**k, F**k! F**k Y'all" Linnell - "F**k all of you." They basically ripped through the set, very workmanship like. NOTHING LIKE THURSDAY. Thursday, first of all, Shana was the star of the night. She got to sing with the Candy Butchers on their closing song. This is a privilege I have experience with, when I soloed with the Pietasters on trombone. Then, of course, the Then set. Vintage TMBG at their best. Linnell was not kidding when he talked about having to see his chiropractor that day. He had to hold his accordion for an awful long time that night, playing it for every song except for the grand return of the bari sax for "I'll Sink Manhattan". Lots of story time from the Giants, no "Pencil Rain" story though, although the fans really wanted, Flans emphatically said no! We learned the reason why the learned Istanbul was they needed to go from a 20 minute to a 2 hour set, and that song was only 2 chords. Back in the olden days, they used to do that song twice in one set, because they couldn't fit 2 hours of their music into one set. It was wonderful to hear normal songs with just the duo. "She's An Angel" with the drum machine was wonderful. On "Maybe I Know" (Which they've been playing forever anyway), Linnell wondered if he knew how to play it on accordion. "Ana Ng" with drum machine. However bootlegged it, this one's a keeper. My personal highlight. The last song of the set Flans mentioned was the last song on their first album. I knew that meant "Rhythm Section Want Ad". He then said it was the last song on side 1. I said, "No, that's side 2." Flans said, "That guy over there who stole the set list already tells me it's side 2." The funny thing is that I never try to get TMBG setlists, ever! I don't have any set lists at all, I'm not interested in them. The 2nd half was just as good. This was the 80s, 90s, LTW preview show. For the 80s, Flans surprised everyone by singing solo "Toddler Highway". Also, a wonderful full band version of "Pencil Rain". I hope it creeps into the normal setlist, it sounds great with a full band. During the preview section, they played for the first time that I've heard it, "On The Drag". Flans screwed up it like he did on "Maybe I Know", but it was all good. The problem was he started singing with a starting pitch, and ended up in the wrong key. The lyrics are different from the Dial-A-Song version folks, so beware. The microphone didn't like Linnell on "Finished With Lies" as it fell a few inches. Linnell had a few chuckles and continued in quite an awkward stance! Anyway, this is the best TMBG show I have ever been to. Wonderful to hear songs that I have never heard live before. I'll see you the next two nights. - John "JJR" Ryan ------------------------------ From: JJRRutgers@aol.com Message-ID: <0.ded3f62d.2541f2c0@aol.com> Date: Fri, 22 Oct 1999 13:02:56 EDT Subject: TMBG: One more thing to add Before anyone lynches me for posting incorrect information, they did "Where You're Eyes Don't Go" instead of "Rhythm Section Want Ad". Flans should have said that they were doing the last song on side 1, not the last song off the first album. - John "JJR" Ryan ------------------------------ Message-ID: <001d01bf1cc9$47bc7300$a2540418@ocnsd1.sdca.home.com> From: "-=eRiCh=-" Subject: TMBG: Day 1 & 2 of Bowery series - Oct. '99 Date: Fri, 22 Oct 1999 13:09:00 -0700 Well this is the most inevitable question: Who booted it and is ready to copy, copy, copy?????? -=eRiCh=- ------------------------------ Message-ID: <3811270D.B0EBBE72@pacificnet.net> Date: Fri, 22 Oct 1999 20:10:07 -0700 From: Bongo Subject: TMBG: TMBG Trivia Question of the Day *HINTS* No one has yet given the correct answer to my little trivia question: >Name two They Might Be Giants songs that make reference to the music of Alice Cooper. Of course one of them is Why Must I Be Sad but what's the other? ...here's a couple of hints: 1) Its very subtle. So subtle that Linnell may have done it subconsciously... though I doubt that. (And a few of you will probably deny its a reference at all.) 2) The TMBG song is on a CD single only. 3) The Alice Cooper reference is to a song of his that is mentioned in Why Must I Be Sad. (And you would have to have heard that song to notice the reference.) I'm not an Alice Cooper fan but I'm surprised I didn't notice it years ago! 4) The Alice Cooper song title is also the album title. Give it another try and if you still can't get it, I'll reveal the answer tomorrow. -B O N G O ------------------------------ End of tmbg-list Digest #22-23 ******************************