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Post by BSJ on Aug 10, 2014 2:08:42 GMT
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Pete Townshend – All the Best Cowboys Have Chinese Eyes – 1982 This solo work of Townshend we've loved from the first song. Not many out there that does this. It’s solid.
Two stand outs: a typical Townsend rock ballad, The Sea Refuses No River and Somebody Saved Me shows off his expressive voice. These are all good Townshend. As I grow older my appreciation and insight of some songs have changed for the better. He was only 34 when writing this and newly off of alcohol and drugs. What else could he have written at that time but a personal and emotional album? We bought the album when it came out; now have two copies of the cd - one for the car is a must.
Give it a listen at least a few times if not familiar. Let’s knock it around.
There is no full album that I could find on YouTube; just the individual songs. If you find one let me know. Here is list of songs in order.
Stop Hurting People The Sea Refuses No River Prelude Face Dances Part 2 Exquisitely Bored Communication Stardom In Action Uniforms North Country Girl – wonderful! Somebody Saved Me Slit Skirts
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Post by queenofthehours on Aug 10, 2014 12:22:09 GMT
I'm not a huge Who/Townshend fan so I didn't think I'd enjoy these songs. But I do! There's a great upbeat 80s bounciness about them. The icing on the cake is that the great Mark Brzezicki is on drums and the legendary Chris Stainton is on keyboards. I even enjoyed this 30 min video of Pete -
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Post by BSJ on Aug 10, 2014 16:08:31 GMT
This is a great Video! Thank-you!
I'm happy you gave it a listen.
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Post by 88keys on Aug 10, 2014 16:28:50 GMT
Not Pete's best effort. But I do agree that North Country Girl is a brilliant song.
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Post by jrmugz on Aug 10, 2014 22:55:22 GMT
I always liked this one to some degree; but never indulged in it too much, because of it's serious nature. I remember being surprised how serious the songs were when it came out, "Stop Hurting People" is an unusual opening track and an unusually serious song as well, but it sets the tone of the album.
I always liked "Stardom in Acton" (not Action!), the best. I think it has a great chorus. "Sombebody Saved Me" has a great chorus too.
All that said, the bottom line is this album stands the test of time wonderfully and seems like somehwat of a groundbreaker musically and lyrically. Thanks for bringing it back to my attention for a fresh listen after all of these years.
Jim
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Post by jrmugz on Aug 10, 2014 22:59:47 GMT
Great album to focus on this week BSJ and great video QOTH.
Jim
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Post by jrmugz on Aug 10, 2014 23:02:17 GMT
Not Pete's best effort. But I do agree that North Country Girl is a brilliant song. It's a nice song; it uses the same guitar rhythm from two previous Who songs, "In a Hand or Face" from The Who By Numbers, and "Wasp Man", a Keith Moon b-side song from the "Rarities" album. Jim
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Post by BSJ on Aug 11, 2014 21:46:06 GMT
I always liked this one to some degree; but never indulged in it too much, because of it's serious nature. You know, it didn't bother me that it was a of a serious nature at that time. I loved the songs so much that that kind of took a back seat. As I wrote up top, as time has past my perceptions have changed.
Thanks for the thanks! I really enjoy this.
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Post by jrmugz on Aug 12, 2014 13:40:03 GMT
Not Pete's best effort. But I do agree that North Country Girl is a brilliant song. It's a nice song; it uses the same guitar rhythm from two previous Who songs, "In a Hand or Face" from The Who By Numbers, and "Wasp Man", a Keith Moon b-side song from the "Rarities" album. Jim Actually, a third who song uses the guitar rhythm, "Here for More", a Roger Daltry composition. So in the totality of Whosville, that guitar rhythm was used four times, that I'm aware of. Jim
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Post by jrmugz on Aug 12, 2014 17:08:21 GMT
Here's Pete Townshend's explanation of the strange album title to Rolling Stonemagazine, in 1982:
-------- Basically, it's about the fact that you can't hide what you're really like. I just had this image of the average American hero – somebody like a Clint Eastwood or a John Wayne. Somebody with eyes like slits, who was basically capable of anything – you know, any kind of murderous act or whatever to get what was required – to get, let's say, his people to safety. And yet, to those people he's saving, he's a great hero, a knight in shining armor – forget the fact that he cut off fifty people's heads to get them home safely. Then I thought about the Russians and the Chinese and the Arab communities and the South Americans; you've got these different ethnic groups, and each has this central image of every other political or national faction as being, in some way, the evil ones. And I've taken this a little bit further – because I spent so much of my time in society, high society, last year – to comment on stardom and power and drug use and decadence, and how there's a strange parallel, in a way, between the misuse of power and responsibility by inept politicians and the misuse of power and responsibility by people who are heroes. If you're really a good person, you can't hide it by acting bad; and if you're a bad person, you can't hide it by acting good. Also – more to the point, really – that there's no outward, identifiable evil, you know? People spend most of their time looking for evil and identifying evil outside themselves. But the potential for evil is inside you. —Pete Townshend, Rolling Stone interview, 1982 -------
Jim
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Post by jrmugz on Aug 12, 2014 19:59:56 GMT
Here's Pete Townshend's explanation of the strange album title to Rolling Stonemagazine, in 1982: -------- Basically, it's about the fact that you can't hide what you're really like. I just had this image of the average American hero – somebody like a Clint Eastwood or a John Wayne. Somebody with eyes like slits, who was basically capable of anything – you know, any kind of murderous act or whatever to get what was required – to get, let's say, his people to safety. And yet, to those people he's saving, he's a great hero, a knight in shining armor – forget the fact that he cut off fifty people's heads to get them home safely. Then I thought about the Russians and the Chinese and the Arab communities and the South Americans; you've got these different ethnic groups, and each has this central image of every other political or national faction as being, in some way, the evil ones. And I've taken this a little bit further – because I spent so much of my time in society, high society, last year – to comment on stardom and power and drug use and decadence, and how there's a strange parallel, in a way, between the misuse of power and responsibility by inept politicians and the misuse of power and responsibility by people who are heroes. If you're really a good person, you can't hide it by acting bad; and if you're a bad person, you can't hide it by acting good. Also – more to the point, really – that there's no outward, identifiable evil, you know? People spend most of their time looking for evil and identifying evil outside themselves. But the potential for evil is inside you. —Pete Townshend, Rolling Stone interview, 1982 ------- Jim I think it's a very interesting explanation with some good points. One thing I do find interesting that I think has been the source of much of the confusion and sorrow he has had in his life is from this sentence he said towards the end: "there's no outward, identifiable evil, you know? " That belief, in moral relativism, I think is responsible for some of his bad choices in his life, from all I've read in his interviews, etc.; but I don't think he would ever admit it. I also think it's the downfall of the liberal / rock and roll, type of attitude /culture, and has caused much sorrow, pain, and regret in the world in general. He always says crazy things in interviews, like one time he said the song "Ebony and Ivory" was just as obscene as "Squeeze Box". So it seems like, he's a guy who often wants to throw out the moral compass when trying to justify some of his actions, and that's what compounds the confusion in his life. It's a lot easier to just say "I made some very bad mistakes, and by the grace of God, will try to not make any more." If he would do that, his life and interviews would sound a lot less like one big therapy session. Jim
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Post by BSJ on Aug 13, 2014 22:50:14 GMT
Thanks for finding this interview. So many interviews (of others) do read like a therapy session that leaves shaking of head; we don’t want to weed out the bs, or care. There are other types of interviews I wish I had not read. They are from that person who, over time, becomes great at not saying anything and reads like an idiot. The first line in Pete's interview: “Basically, it's about the fact that you can't hide what you're really like.”Then (yours): "there's no outward, identifiable evil, you know?”
Is this double talk? “Because I spent so much of my time in society, high society, last year – to comment on stardom and power and drug use and decadence, and how there’s a strange parallel, in a way, between the misuse of power and responsibility by inept politicians and the misuse of power and responsibility by people who are heroes.”
He sees himself as a hero too, (not in saving anyone – maybe he has, but to family and fans) who has misused power and responsibility. Last time I choose a cd! Who’s next with the CD of the week for Aug 17?
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Post by jrmugz on Aug 14, 2014 21:06:05 GMT
Thanks for finding this interview. So many interviews (of others) do read like a therapy session that leaves shaking of head; we don’t want to weed out the bs, or care. There are other types of interviews I wish I had not read. They are from that person who, over time, becomes great at not saying anything and reads like an idiot. The first line in Pete's interview: “Basically, it's about the fact that you can't hide what you're really like.”Then (yours): "there's no outward, identifiable evil, you know?”
Is this double talk? “Because I spent so much of my time in society, high society, last year – to comment on stardom and power and drug use and decadence, and how there’s a strange parallel, in a way, between the misuse of power and responsibility by inept politicians and the misuse of power and responsibility by people who are heroes.”
He sees himself as a hero too, (not in saving anyone – maybe he has, but to family and fans) who has misused power and responsibility. Last time I choose a cd! Who’s next with the CD of the week for Aug 17? Yeah, sounds like double-talk to me, that's why I'm afraid to look at his book "Who I Am", it would be like a drunk using the psychiatry couch for a barstool. To me, it becomes self-centered. For my life, I like to say "sure I've some mistakes, but so has everyone and I'm following God and that's my focus". For him I don't think he knows what he even believes. It's a great album and a great topic. And it's a great question of who is doing the next CD, I'll put a post for it. Jim
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Post by BSJ on Aug 15, 2014 1:08:38 GMT
Yeah, sounds like double-talk to me, that's why I'm afraid to look at his book "Who I Am", it would be like a drunk using the psychiatry couch for a barstool. To me, it becomes self-centered. For my life, I like to say "sure I've some mistakes, but so has everyone and I'm following God and that's my focus". For him I don't think he knows what he even believes. Yes, I agree.
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Post by jrmugz on Aug 15, 2014 21:15:12 GMT
What do you guys think is the most powerful song on the album? Seems like "The Sea Refuses No River" is a particularly strong song, with a powerful performance.
It seems like it would be a really effective album for someone going through rehab like he was when he made it.
Jim
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