Gary Numan Digest Sun, 9 May 99 Volume 1 : Issue 536 Today's Topics: "Ex Luna Scientia" - an offer Camera. catching up on a few digests.... Cincinnati Numan fans? Cleopatra artwork Flipper. Gary Numan Digest V1 #535 Gigs, Setlists etc., Live Psychics, Live Shows and Exile North American Gary Numan Fan Club Nottingham - My 2 pence worth Numan/Nicholson NUMAN feature in German Music magazine KEYBOARDS Issue 06/99 Of Cars and Christmas set lists, old songs, Cars etc Strange Charm Telekon Telekon and Strange Charm's track order The Mix magazine ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Date: Sat, 08 May 1999 17:57:12 -0500 From: Valerie Iglar-Mobley Subject: "Ex Luna Scientia" - an offer To: The Gary Digest Dear numanoids and Dramatis personae, Years ago, I found a single by Dramatis, "Ex Luna Scientia" w/ the b-side "Lady DJ", in a used vinyl shop. I had no idea they had ever recorded anything else. I assumed it was just Gary's band goofing around with making their own recording. While I've enjoyed this snapshot of their music, I'm no collector, and I'm thinking this would probably do more good in a collection of someone who was more into them. I'm willing to send my 45-- gratis-- to anyone out there who's a Dramatis fan. But I have a request in return. As you can guess from my going on at length in Digest #533, I love the 'Metal Rhythm' album. I also love its counterpart, the 'Skin Mechanic' live album. That industrial intro to "The Park" gets me throttling up the volume every time. But I have just not been able to get my hands on a copy of the accompanying live video, for all that I've been trading with other numanoids. If you can duplicate a video copy of 'Skin Mechanic' for me, I'd consider that an excellent trade. Let me know. Forgive me for getting mercenary here. Love to all, Benjamin Iglar-Mobley proud member of... you know * * * "Questing eyes surveying ether's orb..." ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 8 May 1999 12:32:23 +0100 (BST) From: (null) Subject: To: (null) Did you know that if you go to: http://www.ThemeWorld.com/cgi-bin/redir.pl/som3n1.zip you can get a really cool Gary Numan desktop theme? >From there just do a search for 'Gary Numan' and download the zip file with the eyes next to it. You get sound clips pictures etc, all for free. Check it out ok. Kate. ------------------------------ Date: 07 May 1999 11:41:07 -0000 From: "Poppitt Gary" (MLGB/CSC/CS170) <"Poppitt Gary#FREE#TCGWQ:M4MLGB/CSC/CS170"@topcall.prolabo.co.uk> Subject: Camera. To: "numan@cs.uwp.edu" (TOPCALL/SMTP/GARY) I was reading Numan's web site and he answered a question on why there were= no photos on his website from Rock City, and he explained that someone sto= le his camera. They allegedly leant over when Gemma was looking the other = way, grabbed the camera and left sharpish, now what sort of bastard would d= o that. Especially considering that he had some photos of Spooky on the fi= lm, and we all know what he thought of his dog. I just hope that if somebo= dy knows who this couple are, they do something about it. I always thought= that the reason why Numan fans were some of the most loyal music fans ther= e are, was because we stuck together. Admittedly, they may have just been = there for a night out, and not fans at all, but, I suppose we'll never know= . Anyway, I had to tell someone my views. Gary. See you all in London. ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 8 May 1999 16:05:32 +0100 From: "ncpl" Subject: catching up on a few digests.... To: "numan digest" Good Evening N'oids. Jon, if everyone's allowed to have opinions, then why are you so 'bewildered'. You thought that the Nottingham gig was great, Brian did not. I guess you may have been at the front by the stage ? I was on a staircase with a great view, but the sound WAS pretty disappointing. Huge power but so damned difficult to hear what was going on. I always enjoy seeing Gary do his stuff but he's definitely done better sound-wise...IMHO of course. It wasn't a bad gig, just not as good as others he's done. James C, I totally agree with you about the slowed down synth drum stuff..not a 3rd one please. It powerful but getting boring. Bring back the real skins please. What's Ced doing these days ? Benjamin, a couple of digests ago, I was also talking about the latest friends version. So that's at least two of us ! Ian Blair, I recorded the Warriors gig too. It was 'Saturday night...in concert' on Radio One....amazing paradox...Numan on R1 ? I would love to see that one released on CD. Like Richard Easton is Digest 535, I was 14 and recorded it on a crappy mono radiocassette player that my Dad had in the shed ! Still love it though. I just spotted the Radio 1 recordings on Strange Fruit. I'm looking forward to that although I suspect that most of it has been available at least on vinyl before now. Xavier wondered if anyone found a similarity between GN and Peter Gabriel. Funny that..during the mid 80's, I was sure that Gary had been listening to 'Peter Gabriel Plays Live'. I think PG's lyrics must have impressed Gary as they popped up all over the place. I could be dreaming of course, but, "white noise" is featured in the track "On the Air" just for one example. There were others that I can't recall just now. Next time I'm in the mood for PG I'll let you know. Take care all nickiNu....I'll rip up the trees until you tear yourself apart ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 06 May 1999 11:21:24 -0400 From: Terry Burke Subject: Cincinnati Numan fans? To: Gary Numan Hello, Does anyone on this list live in the Greater Cincinnati, Ohio area? Just wondering if there are any more Numan fans in my backyard. t3rry http://w3.one.net/~dr13/dr13.htm ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 07 May 1999 18:25:14 -0600 From: "Joey Lindstrom" Subject: Cleopatra artwork To: "Gary Numan" I've been reading a lot of criticism here about the Cleopatra re-releases of Gary's Numa Records back catalogue albums, criticism directed at Rod Reynolds and The Art Department. Since I already had the Eagle boxed set, and since cash is a bit tight at the moment, I back-burned these purchases. Because of this, I couldn't get involved in this debate because I hadn't actually seen the covers in question. Today in the mail I received a copy of "Strange Charm" and "Machine + Soul" (advance copy). "Strange Charm" is one that has been particularly maligned. Five words: "What have you been smoking?!?" The "Strange Charm" cover is a *HUGE* improvement over the old one!!! The liner notes are also quite well done, and the disc itself looks really sharp (no pun intended). "Machine + Soul" is also a large improvement, even though they used "Metal Rhythm"-era photographs for the cover (I mean c'mon - the original cover photo looked AWFUL!) (I am assuming here that Rod and Cleo didn't redesign them after being so badly lambasted - ie: as far as I know, I'm looking at the same artwork that you are - these discs are "hot off the presses") Y'know, it's interesting... we look down our noses at people who slag off Gary Numan (ie: the NME, etc.) as being closed-minded dolts, and yet we exhibit the same behaviour - and we do it toward people who LOVE Gary and are trying very hard to make him a success again. I mean, c'mon... it's one thing to say you're not as keen on these new covers as you were on the originals, but some of the criticisms I've read here have been EXTREMELY nasty and, in some cases, highly personal. You ought to be ashamed of yourselves. It's clear that they are professionally done, by someone who actually gives a shit about Gary Numan. If they're not your cup of tea, fine, that's your opinion. But always remember, opinions are like rectums: every asshole has one, and many of them smell quite bad. Rod Reynolds, I don't care what anybody else says, my hat is off to you, sir. You've done a *FINE* job with these discs and I look forward to acquiring the rest of them soon! / From the messy desktop of Joey Lindstrom / Email: Joey@GaryNumanFan.NU or joey@lindstrom.com / Phone: +1 403 313-JOEY / FAX: +1 413 643-0354 (yes, 413 not 403) / Visit The NuServer! http://www.GaryNumanFan.NU / Visit The Webb! http://webb.GaryNumanFan.NU / / There has grown up in the minds of certain groups in this country / the notion that because a man or a corporation has made a profit out / of the public for a number of years, the government and the courts / are charged with the duty of guaranteeing such profit in the future, / even in the face of changing circumstances and contrary public / interest. This strange doctrine is not supported by statute nor / common law. Neither individuals nor corporations have any right to / come into court and ask that the clock of history be stopped, or / turned back, for their private benefit. / -- The judge, "Life-Line" / (Robert Heinlein) ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 06 May 1999 04:45:31 PDT From: "ian blair" Subject: Flipper. To: numan@cs.uwp.edu Last Digest : James Chapman, wrote: "P.S. When I said I was dreading a guitar-fest, I mean I'd prefer more synth, I mean I like Dark Light a lot, it's just the two most recent live recordings I have both feature Kipper on guitar which lets them down somewhat, but it probably isn't like that now. Seeing him strutting his stuff on the intro to AFE on Dream Corosion is real hide-behind-the-sofa stuff :-) James". James, I'm sure you also said earlier, that 12th June, will be your 1st Numan gig. Believe me, Kipper is well & truly (& thankfully!) a thing of the past. I totally agree with you, about him strutting his stuff, on DC. My god, what was Gary thinking of letting him on stage in those fowl cycling shorts? Did he think he was on tour with Satus Quo or something? Kipper, was replaced by the excellent Rob Harris. Rob, was then replaced, by the even better Steve Harris. Steve is a brilliant guitarist, who's style of playing, fits totally with Gary's current style of music. Just to finish the package off nicely, Steve also 'looks' 100% the part & does not get carried away with his own ego. Neither though, does he just stand on the spot and play his stuff, like Rrussel or Rob (who were both excellent & there style fitted with those periods). He has his own presence, but doesn't go too far. As for the synth vs guitar, worries. Don't worry James. For sure, at times the guitars are ruling. For example, the latest re-work of 'Friends' sees 3 guitars at front stage (Gary, Steve & David Brooks). But the synths are coming in really well on stuff like DITP (which IMO was much more synthy than I've ever heard it, at Rock City) Metal & Tracks etc. Cheers - Ian ______________________________________________________ Get Your Private, Free Email at http://www.hotmail.com ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 06 May 1999 11:32:04 -0700 From: Kathryn Silures Subject: Gary Numan Digest V1 #535 To: Gary Numan In regards to... > Date: Sun, 2 May 1999 11:49:16 GMT0BST > From: "James Chapman" > Subject: Random rants and stuff... > > > From: Valerie Iglar-Mobley > > > Let me suggest-- again-- what SHOULD get released, and what would be > > bought by every last one of us is... a new live album. Heartily agreeing! > They were intending to release the LA gig on May 19, 1998 but > couldn't because of stupid bloody pervert Marilyn Manson's management > would sue Cleo if the show ever got released or something. Rod will > probably know more about it. I would LOVE a new live album, I agree. > They had good intensions though. It would be bound to sell thousands > more than the next reissue of Machine and Soul or whatever. Can someone please explain this to me in little words and diagrams? Is it not possible to release the live LA material sans Ms. Manson? I never particularly cared for his mockery of vocalization, anyhow. I do not understand the legalities, that is clear. But what really confuses me is how this release could possibly harm Manson or his management. Is there something personal going on? Dammit, I want that tour on CD! On video, too, if possible. I was willing to give Manson a listening chance since Gary seemed so taken with him. Now, I would as soon purchase some Slim Whittaker muck as sit through any Manson (so called) music. Fuming, Kathryn ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 6 May 1999 11:55:01 +0000 From: philip.lindsay@bae.co.uk Subject: Gigs, Setlists etc., To: numan@cs.uwp.edu People, Just thought I'd come out of hiding for a moment, as you've piqued my interest.... I too am hoping that the setlist for London is a bit more adventurous. I= t's only to be expected that it won't be, because Gary quite frankly hasn't got the tim= e (and doesn't like spending the money) to rehearse a band for 2 gigs, 3 months apart. With his current band up to speed on the (approximately) US tour set, he'll maybe= spend a week or two practising these tracks and a couple more, including the new one (which by all accounts isn't too ground-breaking anyway). He really doesn't have a= ny need to do a totally different set, no matter how much we'd like it. It seems to me that Gary lurches from one era to another when touring. = For ages, probably up to and including Isolate, The Fury and newer dominated the setlists, then came the odd years of Outland and M & S (Abomination, Abomination!). At = the moment, it's either very old stuff or very new stuff, and nothing in between. Personally, I'd quite like to hear some Warriors, I, Assassin, SC and Metal Rhythm tunes. However, this doesn't appear likely given the current band makeup. I, Assassin is neve= r going to be done again unless a reasonable fretless bass player appears (and Ade Ora= nge isn't it, believe me). The rest seem unlikely because Gary's abandoned saxophone a= nd female backing singers. This is a shame IMO. The good backing singers were ace,= it's just that some of them were pretty god-awful (pardon my french) - just listen to Dream Corrosion. Lets be honest, Gary feels constricted by his old conventional band form= at, and if you add fretless bass (I wish he would - he only has to ask and I'll be ther= e! very low rates and everything) sax, and singer the cost of touring goes way up. We all know he's a bit more careful with his money these days, so it ain't going to happen. So, to summarise, I think we're stuck with what we have (and let's remember, it's not really too bad, now is it? :-) ). Lets just hope he can maybe make the mix of t= he Exile/Sacrifice tracks a little less muddy and his vocals clearer. The 'new' version of Friends is really amazing, maybe more of these will appear. I'm probably just being pickly= , 'cause I'll go to the gigs anyway, and enjoy them greatly. Roll on the new album..... (don't get me started on that.) Phil. Proud member of the "Gary can play pretty much whatever the hell he want= s and I'll still be there - club" ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 6 May 1999 17:56:21 -0400 From: "Warren, Sam" Subject: Live Psychics, Live Shows and Exile To: "'numan@cs.uwp.edu'" After ranting a bit about Ghost not being available on CD, I got a couple of responses which assured me it was (and probably still is). So I suppose availability sometimes depends on where you've been looking. ;-) Whoever this is: silvia_brown@usa.net, she felt compelled to send us an ad for >LIVE PERSONAL PSYCHIC! (as seen on T.V.) Isn't junk mail fun? I just love *live* personal psychics. They're so much more fun than the dead ones. ;-) On the subject of old songs in concert, Matthew Roberts wrote: >>Numan has himself to blame for the myth that he only has 2 good songs. He >>dropped Cars in 1994, he dropped Are Friends Electric in 1998, but they >>both came back. It's very sad, and incredibly self destructive. How many >>people on the Digest wouldn't buy a ticket if they new Cars & AFE wouldn't >>be played? And Kathryn Silures responded: >I would. No matter what he decided to play. I am not going to get on the >Gary-can-do-no-wrong bandwagon but as a U.S. fan starving so long to see >him perform live and nearly feeling for the longest time that I was the >only one (before I discovered the online fandom)... Ditto to that! For this particular tour, he could have done 15 versions of Cars, and I would have been thrilled! ;-) He does come up with new arrangements (this year there were interesting new versions of Voix and Friends), so I find I don't usually skip over them on the live discs. I do think I would be disappointed if I left his concert without hearing AFE, but I'm sure I'd survive, nonetheless. :-) Cars seems to have run its course for me (although the kazoo version Kathryn mentioned sounds like it must have been great fun!), and I could live quite peacefully without ever hearing it again. Well, maybe once or twice more before I die. ;-) A good mixture of new and old songs is best (Dream Corrosion and Dark Light did a pretty good job of bringing various phases of his career together). Seems to me it would be more fun for Gary and the band, though, if they varied the set list from time to time, instead of doing the same 17 or so songs every night in every city. Maybe they could even ask for a request from the crowd for an encore? I know I would have shouted Slowcar to China, just to keep him on stage for another 15 minutes or so. ;-) But I'd seriously love to hear Sleep By Windows at a live show. And, please, Gary, don't ever stop playing Every Day I Die! Tom Gorham says: >When the album Exile came out, I noticed a few people saying that the weakest song was 'Exile' itself. >More than a year after buying it, it's the only one I listen to (the rest - apart from 'Innocence Bleeding' - I >think is repetitive pseudo-goth drivel, whereas before I found the other songs samey, but listenable). Has >anyone else had a similar change of heart? I was going to weigh in with my opinion of Exile earlier, but I wasn't really sure what my opinion was for a long time. After living with it thus far, however, I find very little difference in the songs because of that backing loop. They all sort of bleed together in my mind. I like the lyrics when I read them in the booklet, but by and large, I find I don't understand them when I listen on my Discman. Either he's mumbling, or his voice is buried in the mix (or both). I found new respect for Dominion Day after the concert, and I've always liked Dark, but most of the others are pretty much indistinguishable to me. And I'm afraid I'm pretty dense when it comes to figuring out the "story" behind the concept, too. I get the part where heaven and hell and god and the devil are all the same, and it seems in one or two songs Gaz thinks "something" is after him (not an entirely new concept on his albums ;-)). What I don't really know is if there is a linear story to tell or whether it's just a lot of images. Has anyone connected a tale from the lyrics? So I must say that although I like the sound of the Exile album, I tend to lose interest after a couple of tracks, whereas Sacrifice keeps me involved throughout. Sam Warren ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 06 May 1999 13:15:23 PDT From: "Jim Napier" Subject: North American Gary Numan Fan Club To: numan@cs.uwp.edu Hello Numanoids of the World! Jim "The Machman" Napier at your service. Holy mackeral, could it have been one year ago this week the NAGNFC held its 5th North American Numan get-together? How time flies. Captain's log, Stardate May 1st, 1998. Thirty Numanoids gathered together to win goodies and see Gary's first show on these shores in 16 years later that evening. Audio snippets from the show will appear on the new and improved NAGNFC Website debuting Wednesday. The new site will have no chemical additives or artificial filler. Well, okay, maybe a little olestra. Also look for the addendum to the 11 Chapter saga, exclusive photos unseen heretofore, junky prizes, interesting real audio (such as I Live Your Dream (Gary Numan Remix) in realaudio) along with no shortage of mindless rambling to sift through. Who's in? Consider it an online version of the NAGNFC, Gary's longest running non-official fan club. And thanks to the internet, it is free for everyone. Even though $17 for 12 issues wasn't a bad fee back in the day. I kept the prices low to reflect Gary's live concert stance of giving the fans value for their hard-earned bucks. No other monthly fanzine was cheaper to subscribe to actually :-) And thanks, en masse, to all the Numanoids I have, and am currently trading with. Nothing except a pleasure. Jim "The Machman" Napier President American Dairy Association Got Numan? _______________________________________________________ Get your free, private email at http://mail.excite.com/ ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 6 May 1999 15:23:14 +0000 From: steve.gardner@intentia.co.uk Subject: Nottingham - My 2 pence worth To: numan@cs.uwp.edu Well it takes a lot for me to email the digest! I usually read the digest for any snippets and funny stories (Tick Tock in Moscow has me in stitches many times) and sometimes I think '....I will reply to that .....' but leave well alone as the next digest tends to include the majority of the comments that I would state. I must take issue with anyone who slag's of Numan for Nottingham - I hate CARS but understand why he plays it as some fans and some of the audience wish to hear it! I love COMPLEX and its been a while since this was played but I go to as many gigs as I can with the hope that it (and many of my other favs) will be included. I enjoy the buzz of the audience that gets more and more excited nearer the time for him to come on stage and , oh so quickly its over. If he played for a day I'd still do what I do now - worry that every song is going to be the last of the evening! I live in dread of him finishing the gig as I feel empty for a couple of minutes as another night of pure bliss is gone. Lets remember that the guy has written many songs over many years and whilst there are a lot of people who have been a fan through thick and thin (including me) we cannot expect him to give us everything. Gary cannot win - if he concentrates on the new or old criticism will be made. I for one am glad that he still performs live, still gives all he has to give and still makes the 1.5 to 2 hours of the evening something for me to look forward to, back on and most of all enjoy! I am not a person that lives on everything to do with Mr Numan, I am a person who fell in love with his music in the late 1970's and have enjoyed to different degrees his different music offerings ever since. I do not follow out of blind faith or obsession, I follow because his music hits me in many ways and I like 'my perception' of him (even though I have never spoken with him - unfortunately)! Remember 'he could end all this' anytime he wants to - It would hurt to know that I would never see him perform again and more so if he never released any new material - I thank my god (yes unlike Mr Numan I do believe in God) that he is still performing live and producing new material that I like - long may it continue! I can plan my life so that I can attend one-off gigs - I cannot go to every gig on a tour (I don't think that I'd want to either - I did it twice in the early years) so I prefer this arrangement - Gary must as he plays to sell-out venues and doesn't live life on a tour bus for 2 / 3 months! I really enjoyed Nottingham - I am looking forward to London and the release of his new album. Long may he continue! Stephan Proud member of boys like us support Chelsea! ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 06 May 1999 05:23:27 PDT From: "James Choma" Subject: Numan/Nicholson To: numan@cs.uwp.edu Hi, Can someone tell me what this material is? I've seen it commented on maybe once or twice concerning its availability, but nothing regarding its content. Is it soundtrack material (a la "Human") or is it a pop colaboration like the Numan/Sharpe material. I have seen it advertised at a few different online sites (Amazon & CDNow) at the price of $29.95, but has anyone been successful at obtaining a copy? I'd love to hear feedback from anyone who's heard the material. Thanks! Jim _______________________________________________________________ Get Free Email and Do More On The Web. Visit http://www.msn.com ------------------------------ Date: 07 May 1999 10:26:56 +0200 From: Stef Weber Subject: NUMAN feature in German Music magazine KEYBOARDS Issue 06/99 To: numan@cs.uwp.edu Hello from Germany ! The German music-magazine KEYBOARDS have now published the promised NUMAN feature ( it should be in the MAY Issue - but it was delayed ). The title is: GARY NUMAN - BACK IN BLACK. The June issue will be in the shops today ( 07. May ) so I do not own the magazinee itself yet... ...but they have a website...and there is the beginning of the feature incl. a small picture of 2 very good looking pages of the feature... Of course it is in German...but I can tell you the beginning sentences are positive and very favourable for Gary. Please look at: http://www.keyboards.de/magazine/m0699/numan.htm I hope that info was useful for you. Kind regards ...and best wishes from Germany STEFAN WEBER ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 09 May 1999 00:42:15 +0100 From: TDS Subject: Of Cars and Christmas To: numan@cs.uwp.edu Concerning live "Cars" and "AFE": Gary can do whatever he wants, especially in the UK, but I know that here in the good ol' U.S. of A. most people at the shows - even those who showed up just to see the opening act - would be VERY disappointed, dare I even say angry, not to hear those familiar tunes? C'mon, Cars is GN's trademark. Take it away and anyone who's not a hardcore fan would say Why did I even buy the ticket? Hearing the hard-rock Cars while standing mere feet away from Gary was a thrill of a lifetime. And, i think both Cars and AFE got a MUCH bigger reaction from the crowd than the likes of Alien Cure, Noise Noise and Voix. There you go; Gary shoulda' dropped THOSE songs and put in MORE old ones! Second, reading about the Christmas Card from Gary and Gemma, it begged one question: if they are both (or at least Gary) devout atheists, why would they be wishing us all a Merry Christmas? (Note: this is not an invitation to start any kind of debate... it was just an observation). Mike T ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 6 May 1999 13:33:02 +0100 From: CK Subject: set lists, old songs, Cars etc To: numan@cs.uwp.edu On the subject of set lists, I have to disagree with anyone who thinks that Cars & Are Friends Electric should be dispatched from the gigs, or that the songs should be drawn exclusively from the last two studio albums. Especially since Random (the tribute album) and the general renaissance of the last few years, Gazza'll be attracting a lot of casual non-converts, who want to hear at least a couple of things they recognise, which is fair enough. Plus, they are (lest we forget) great songs and part of the man's heritage (and ours, as fans), so they should stay. As for the newer material, while it's mostly better and unquestionably more Numanesque than before, even the most die-hard fan must agree it's quite samey, especially as far as tempo and drum loops go. A whole night of those grinding grooves would be really boring. On the subject of rehearsal, Gazza IS a little bit lazy (or overstretched time-wise), according to some friends of mine who have known members of the band. Musical rehearsals take place in his living room at home, but if the tour preparations coincide with a flurry of promotion, he'll generally leave the band to it and go and do TVs or press or radio. I've seen opening nights of a couple of tours, including Sacrifice and Premier Hits, and they were pretty shaky, in fact the first Sacrifice gig was one of the most untogether performances I've ever seen from a pro act, and the only time I've ever seen Mr Numan sporting stubble (he looked exhausted). It's a combination of underestimating time needed to learn lots of new songs (on that tour especially - Do You Need The Service, The Hunter, Stormtrooper In Drag, Mean Street, Moral etc etc) and having to do everything else as well due to the fact that there is no proper management or a production office. I think the choice of material in the live set post-Gemma (his wife) has been excellent though and the cross-section of unplayed oldies (which changed every tour for a while in the 90s but has settled down again now) and generous number of tracks from Sacrifice / Exile is perfect. I lost interest in Gary after about 1989/90 when every year it was Sister Surprise, Metal, Me I Disconnect From You, We Take Mystery (with interminable bass solo) etc etc, even in the same order, with absolute classics (and big hits) like Warriors, Complex, Your Fascination left on the shelf for no good reason. I got to the point where if I heard Metal again (and you can imagine my horror to see it reintroduced lately) I would have a mild psychotic incident. It was when I happened to see the Dream Corrosion tour that I rejoined the flock. Bombers! I Don't Believe! Noise Noise! No Metal! No f***ing Sister Surprise! A new, young band! No Ced! No Rrussell! FAR OUT!! Be grateful that it's not like it was anymore, otherwise I'm sure there's some very good bootlegs out there of the Isolate Tour if anyone's interested. Finally, I feel a tiny pang of guilt about using the word 'lazy' in the sentence about being under-rehearsed, it's not a fault our man suffers from, I think he takes his responsibility to his fans very seriously and as a music business person myself (I run a medium-sized record label) I think he looks after his fans better than virtually any other artist I've observed. Gary, if you're reading this (am I the only person who thinks that if there was a bulletin like this about you, you'd want to read it??), I think you're doing a fantastic job and your tenacity and integrety is an inspiration and a benchmark for other artists to aspire to (but please get a manager so you can concentrate on just being a great artist, and let Richard Beasley play drums on the new album). As Peter Gilbert said to me in 1987 on the subject of GN, there really isn't anyone else. Aw. CK ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 07 May 1999 18:36:04 -0400 From: Ken Bryant Subject: Strange Charm To: Numan Digest Hello All! James Chapman, Digest #534: >I believe I am the only person on this planet >who thinks that Strange Charm is Gary's masterpiece although Gary >himself doesn't realise it :-) Oh no you're not! Strange Charm, both the album and song are masterpieces! I will stand by Strange Charm as my all-time favorite Numan album! There is only one thing that weakens Strange Charm... "The Need". Bye, Ken "The Numaniac" Bryant ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 8 May 1999 16:20:08 +0100 From: "ncpl" Subject: Telekon To: "numan digest" Hi All, I managed to break the 'gotta have 10 copies of everything ever pressed' disease a few years back, so haven't bought every CD ever issued, only those that offered something I couldn't get/didn't have. Some people still do, and that's great (so don't flame me for calling it a disease, but, I was absolutely obsessed with having everything !!). When I last looked, I had about 7 or 8 copies of Telekon in different coloured vinyls etc. I also bought the original CD issue with Assassin. I think I also had a cassette too. However, today I picked up the remastered CD with the extra B-sides. It's Saturday afternoon, it's raining outside and I've just sat on the couch and listened to it twice. I could say loads about Telekon, but, all I want to say now is: What an absolutely fantastic LP ! 19 years on...Nice one and Thank you Gary ! NickiNu ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 6 May 1999 15:28:13 GMT0BST From: "James Chapman" Subject: Telekon and Strange Charm's track order To: numan@cs.uwp.edu In #535, Ben Iglar Mobley wrote: > The order for the cd goes back to the 'Asylum 2' box set that was > released in Japan. It had this same order. Then, when BB released > their double-disc sets a few years ago, they again used this order. > > I don't know why they chose this order. It's as if they want us to > think they recorded the first side of the album, then put on "We Are > Glass" then flipped the record and recorded the other side. Come on, > though, we know they were using master tapes, not a vinyl! > I asked a question about this a while ago. It turns out that the first 12 tracks on the CD are in the same order as the original UK cassette release of Telekon so if this was the order of the original master tape then Gary must have wanted to put the two big singles on the vinyl album but couldn't because of vinyl time restrictions. Shame as I feel they are the two strongest songs from 1980, especially "I Die:You Die". > Cds, though, are programmable, of course. You could just take a moment > and tell your player how you'd like it to play the disc. And as long as > they were going to muck about with the order, here's how I would've > programmed it: > > 1. Down In The Park (piano) 9. I'm An Agent > 2. This Wreckage 10. I Dream of Wires > 3. The Aircrash Bureau 11. Remember I Was Vapour > 4. Telekon 12. Please Push No More > 5. Remind Me To Smile 13. The Joy Circuit > 6. I Die: You Die 14. Photograph > 7. A Game Called 'Echo' 15. We Are Glass > 8. Sleep By Windows 16. Trois Gymnopedies (first movement) > I would have though you'd want "The Joy Circuit" to be the end of the CD as it seems a perfect finishing track, and Ben, you always say how it's a classic to finish your favourite album with :-) > Cds should have a beginning, a middle, and an end. And I still think of > them in terms of a first side and a second side. So, while we're on the > subject, here's how I would've programmed 'Strange Charm': > > 1. I Can't Stop 5. My Breathing > 2. The Sleeproom 6. Unknown and Hostile > 3. The Need 7. This is Love > 4. New Thing From London Town 8. Strange Charm > I agree with this as well. I've just listened to it in that order and I found I loved it even more (which was a hell of a lot anyway)! The main points are that "My Breathing" would be much better in the middle of the album as it seems to be one of the all-time favourite Numan songs and having it as the first track seems to put a dampener on the rest of the album. "This Is Love" is a nice ballad but I reckon the album needs a big finish and "Strange Charm" certainly is that and it's very much my favourite song on the album. Also I feel "I Can't Stop" is a good way to start as long as the screechy female intro doesn't scare too many of the less-faithful off altogether :-) The three prevous albums all have the big single as the first track and this would have been a good way to continue. Heck, "New Thing From London Town" is the only track in its original position and I'd have preferred the 12 inch version to have been on the album. I propose my own order for The Pleasure Principle: 1. Airlane 6. M.E. 2. Films 7. Engineers 3. Observer 8. Complex 4. Metal 9. Cars 5. Conversation 10. Tracks God, I could be at this for ages! Cheers James ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 05 May 1999 23:18:50 -0700 From: Gregor Torrence Subject: The Mix magazine To: numan@cs.uwp.edu (Gary Numan) Anyone get the issue of The Mix with the Numan interview and CD? I'm curious to hear what it's like. Gregor. ------------------------------ End of Gary Numan Digest ****************************** _______________________________________________________________________ _____ ____ ____ _____ _____ / \ | | / \ / \ / \ / \ | |-----| |-----| | |-----| |-----| | | | G | | A | | | R | | Y | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |-----| |-----| | |-----| |-----| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | N | E | W | S |=====| | | | | | | | & | | | | | | | \_____/ I | N | F | O | | | | is produced and distributed by Derek Langsford dlangs@sunstroke.sdsu.edu -------------------------------------------------------------------------- To reply to the messages in this list, mail to: numan@cs.uwp.edu If you want to be removed, or someone wants to be added, you can mail to numan-request@cs.uwp.edu ----------------- The Gary Numan Digest is brought to you via Datta Production and Development, 905 97th Street, Kenosha, WI 53143 USA datta@cs.uwp.edu and computer resources courtesy of University of Wisconsin-Parkside and Datta Production and Development. 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