______________________________________________________________________________ // // The \\kyway \\ // skyway@novia.net Issue #56 February 5th, 1998 ______________________________________________________________________________ (c) 1998 Bastards of Young (BOY/BetaOmegaYamma) Productions list manager: Matthew Tomich (matt@novia.net) technical consultant and thanks to: Bob Fulkerson of Novia Networking ______________________________________________________________________________ SKYWAY SUBSCRIPTION/LISTSERVER INFORMATION Send all listserver commands in the body of a letter to "majordomo@novia.net" To subscribe to the //Skyway\\: subscribe skyway To unsubscribe from the //Skyway\\: unsubscribe skyway THE //SKYWAY\\ WEB PAGE Check here for back issues, lyrics, discography, and other files. http://www.novia.net/~matt/sky/skyway.html ______________________________________________________________________________ Send submissions to: skyway@novia.net ______________________________________________________________________________ 0. I Hate Music (m@) I. Stories. (Lee Taejoo, Cheryl Gross, Lee Herendeen, Stephen Missar, Mike Edgerley, Kevin/Dan Franke, Tim Wheeler, M.N., Darren Beauchamp, Michael DeGeorge, Elizabeth Kugle) II. Other people's opinions in case you were interested. (Alex Steininger, John Loughney) III. "What the f**k yah sayin'?" - I Don't Know (Damon Jordan, H. Karesh, Mo Conklin) IV. The uncategorizable rest. (Hans Huttel, Bill Kelley) ________________________________________________________________________________ 0. I HATE MUSIC. A Sunday three weeks ago, I was hanging out seeing some local Chapel Hill bands at the local combination Mexican restaurant and rock club when I was handed this provoking diatribe: "FUCK MUSIC. I was at a show recently, here in Chapel Hill, watching what under some broad definition could be called a 'punk rock band'. They were great. The kids certainly thought so; they had packed the place, crammed awkwardly up against the stage, or to the sid e and swaying back and forth in that semi-enthused trance-like hypnosis dance which has done so much to kill music in the 90's. The last note of the last triumphant emo[tional]-anthem rang out, and the sweaty kids began to unpack themselves, elated. The singer informed us that the band had a new CD out on which many of the killer jams played that very night were featured. The kid standing right next to me turned to his friend and said, "That was beautiful." "Yes," his friend agreed, "I feel complete now. The void has been filled." He pointed to his heart and they nodded at each other solemnly. I was filled with dread. What void do these kids feel? And what is filling it? Yes, I make the mistake of confusing metaphor and meaning too. It's easy to say nothing but say it very sincerely. It's also easy to imbue that nothing with your own personal meaning and feel a sense of connection, a moment of catharsis. But music is just a commodity. It's a corporate industry, as is fashion and rebellious lifestyle ideology. Find a void and fill it - that's basic capitalist economics. Do /you/ feel something missing inside? What is it? Is it that you don't get to see enough bands rock out? When some guy (it's almost always a guy) yells some incomprehensible lyrics about some feelings he has about something, do you connect with that? The kids standing next to me went and bought the CD, a momento of their catharsis, a time-capsule of the revelation they had. I hope it serves them well. I hope that they went home and played it on their CD player and recaptured that sense of "filling the void." That CD has a lot of work to do, because as the years go by and those kids find a house or a car or some other consumer goods, "the void" will only grow, becoming the all-encompassing chasm of a life without ideology, a canyon so deep you can't even see your way out, a black hole you don't even perceive of as a void anymore, because it is just your life. It will be nice, in the future, to have that recording to remind you of the "kick ass" times. Maybe you'll think back to the night that you first got it, the fight that broke out later on, and the songs will thus connote danger and "living on the edge." You'll feel like once, at least, your life had possibility, and that anything could have happened, even if not much did. That critical moment of undiluted realization, that moment of thinking something is totally wrong and empty, some band did you the incredible disservice of turning up their amps loud enough to drown out what you felt. It's a placebo, a Band-Aid which allowed you to think yourself healed and then spend your life slowly bleeding you to death. Music is the metaphor, but there is no meaning. It just tells you lies. You should listen to the incessant sounds of fax machines connecting, or fluorescent lights humming, the buzz of an engine or the shrill squeal of a power tool. This is the soundtrack to what is actually coming, the strangulating Wal-Mart world you embrace with open arms when you do nothing. Fuck music. It's all empty form and signifies nothing - like the soundtrack to a movie which doesn't even exist. Who can believe in that? Only the blind." This guy must have never listened to The Replacements. - m@. P.S. This just in at the last minute: Date: Wed, 4 Feb 1998 19:46:58 -0400 From: Stephanie Muriglan Subject: Tommy Stinson at Coney Island High (NYC) I don't know how many people from Skyway would be able to attend a New York City show, but maybe you can pass the word. Tommy Stinson is doing a solo set at Coney Island High on St. Marks Pl. (that's 8th St. between 2nd and 3rd Ave, Manhattan). It's a small club that provides an intimate setting. The show is March 5 at 7:30 and the tickets are $7.00. You can get tickets in advance at the club, and MAYBE Ticketmaster. Stephanie Muriglan ________________________________________________________________________________ I. STORIES (like yours or like you wish you had or glad you don't) Date: Fri, 26 Dec 1997 15:30:54 -0500 From: "Lee.Taejoo" 11/07/97 Going to the 'Mats By Tina Plottel I have tried to like the Replacements, but it's always been difficult. I should like them really, since the 'Mats songs are hooky, guitar-riffy pop. But I just don't get it. Mainly because the Replacements are all about teen-boy angst, as evidenced by the fact that between the years 1983 and 1987, this band was loved by almost every junior high school boy. Yes, I am well aware that there are several older and more stately folk who are fans of the band, particularly in the group's Midwestern hometown. But this is my world we're talking about here, and while I was busy following New Wave acts from England, the boys in my school were identifying with Paul Westerberg. I much preferred Duran Duran's metaphysical lyrics of religion and alien visits to Paul's cranky complaints. After all, how could I feel any sympathy towards a guy singing about being dissed by a girl, when his fellow disciples were dissing me? It's a rite of passage, I suppose, that the boy you like ends up going out with the complete wrong girl, who steps all over him like the white shag rug in her bedroom. And, I suppose, that's why vintage Replacements makes me uneasy. But for the boys I'm talking about, Paul is their hero. A few years ago when Lewis Largent hosted 120 Minutes, he was all giddy when he got to interview Paul. He kept telling they guy how much it meant just to talk to him. It was embarrassing, really. And now, not even five weeks after I dedicated this space to a retrospective compilation by a band from my formative years, the Replacements release their very own look back. Theirs is called All for Nothing/Nothing for All and features songs that I actually like: "Alex Chilton," "Bastards of Young," and the beautiful and poetic "Here Comes a Regular," which contains my favorite Paul lyric: "You're like the picture on the fridge, that's never stocked with food." What an image that paints. What gets me, though, is that song comes from the album Tim, which for the boys is the most influential. It's the record I regard as the musical tree house, it's a party I wasn't invited to. I remember once in school, a bunch of us were listening to records, and when someone began to play Tim, the boys completely ignored us gals. They all gathered 'round the record player as if it were a campfire and sang along, sounding their barbaric yawps. So it seems strange that I actually like All For Nothing, since it should remind me of feeling left out. I might actually pop it into my computer's CD player. The older songs are much less threatening to me now, since I'm well over my crushes on Replacement fans (well, sort of). Although when Paul played the 9:30 Club last year, he played mostly 'Mats songs, and when he'd get to an oldie but goodie, all the boys who were teenagers during 1983 to 1987 became reminiscent. They'd lean over and whisper to their date just how influential the song was. And of course, the girl would only nod, because she didn't get it. I know this because I was one of those girls. My Replacement fan friend was just as giddy as Lewis Largent. I truly understand the need for this companionship between boys, but when songs are that good, I want to be a part of it, too. It's just not fair. All those boys sang along like they just wanted to thank the guy for allowing them to stand in a crowded room and sing along. Frankly, it was a little embarrassing. Date: Tue, 30 Dec 1997 14:56:32 -0500 From: Cheryl Gross Subject: First Meeting with the Replacements Hi! My name is Cheryl and I read through the Skyway and was pleased to find so many people who feel the same as I do about Paul and the gang. I am originally from Ohio and my loyalty to the Replacements started back in about 1984 or 85. My then boyfriend handed me a tape of Hootenanny, and when I listened to it, I thought, what shit!!! About a month went by, and we were out carousing the bars as usual and on the way home, totally smashed, he puts on "Willpower". Well, it was SO cool and SO haunting, I was hooked. By the time I heard "Unsatisfied", I couldn't wait until the next day to play this album over and over. So much for shit. We went to several concerts, being centrally located between Cleveland and Pittsburgh offered us the chance to see a show in each city, but the first time I saw them was in Cleveland in Peabody's Down Under in the Flats. We arrived really early in Cleveland, and so, being party-ers that we were, we went for drinks at Rumrunners. While we were there, the band came in with the same idea. We didn't go up to them at that point, but we did buy them beers. Later, after a really LOUD show, I talked to Tommy (who was very chatty and friendly) and Paul was wasted out of his gourd. Bob was in the band then, and when we asked what they were doing after the show, his reply was that he had to call the wife. I did talk to Paul at other shows, but that's another letter. My all time favorite song is still "Unsatisfied", and there are about 50 ties for second. I am really glad to see a site like this, because over the years, I think Paul felt he was never going to make it "big". I just hope he realized his fans are loyal and his music will not fade away. Thanks for the forum Matt, Cheryl From: "Lee Herendeen" Subject: Replacements fan Date: Thu, 1 Jan 1998 10:25:20 -0800 My name is Lee Herendeen - from Southern California. In high school, I was into everything; including Vespa and Lambretta scooters, The Cure, The Smiths, INXS, Mod (The Who/The Jam) and ska (the English Beat/The Specials) bands. I thought The Replacements where surely somewhere along these lines from the "Pleased to Met Me" album cover. Luckily, it was something totally different. Within the month I had the whole collection. This was progressive stuff for my Orange County high school. None of my friends shared my interest in this music, until an old best friend from Los Angeles came on a weekend visit to his Dad's. Bryce had a Replacements patch on his backpack. Seems that Palos Verdes (wealthy suburban area between L.A. and Long Beach) was enlightened. All of Bryce's friends were Mats fans, and eventually became my friends - to this day. I even decided to go to UCLA, because of the Replacements. We all drove down Sunset Blvd. oohing and aahing at the exotic cars, beautiful women and a Johnny Mathis billboard (who doesn't love Mathis?). Anyway, The Replacements and the Posies were playing. It was brilliant. I swear... Paul asked what should we play now? I screamed out from four feet away, "On the bus". Paul looked at me and said "Okay" - turns to Tommy's ear - and they came out singing "ON THE BUS..." This is recognized still by my friends. After this, I hung a UCLA pennant on my desk, for motivation to study, and got later got accepted. I got to see The Lemonheads, Gear Daddies, Soul Asylum (Horse They Rode In on band) and solo Mats a few times, plus a lot more filler. I feel very lucky to have the Replacements in my life; and I speak for about ten friends too. Thanks, Lee Herendeen velocelee@jps.net Date: Tue, 06 Jan 1998 12:06:39 -0800 From: "Stephen D. Missar" I was 17 at the time, I guess it was 1988. A friend of mine in high school who was into hardcore (Minor Threat, DagNasty, etc.) as I was said," Hey, check out the Replacements, these guys put on one incredible show and they are fast." I went to Georgetown and all I found was this pink and teal album called "Sorry Ma, Forgot To Take Out The Trash" I bought it and put it in my car stereo. I was amazed. This was the best I had ever heard. I bought "Pleased To Meet Me" next and listened to it non stop. I bought all the others soon after. When "Don't Tell a Soul" came out I managed to get tickets for the Warner Theater show. The band came out and Paul said, "If we are at your party, pay no mind to us, we're just a minor threat." and launched into "Color Me Impressed" It was the most amazing show I had seen. Paul jumped into the crowd with his guitar, got pissed about the audience not being able to smoke, and tried to play "Answering Machine" but said he couldn't because he needed someone or something to guide him through it. By the end of the show I think they were getting drunk. They smashed their stuff and left. A roadie carried Tommy back onstage over his shoulder and waved his arm at the audience. I guess he was passed out. I saw them one more time. They opened for Elvis Costello and my friend who was also a rabid Mats fan went. They were really down on themselves. Paul said at one point, "This is from our latest failure" and played "Merry Go Round" Later he asked, "Anyone wanna hear 'Swinging Party'?" When they finished, about 30 people in our area began to chant, "Bring back Paul!". Elvis came on, we left. The Replacements are my all time favorite band. I wish I could write like Paul or could have played the guitar like Bob. I was sad they split, but Paul's solo stuff is good too. I saw his show at the 9:30 club for eventually and it rocked. I thought the drummer was great (I think it was the guy from Prince's New Power Generation) and he had Tommy Keene on guitar, who is another favorite of mine. It was great to be among so many people who loved the Mats and Paul's solo stuff. We all sang along drank and made fools of ourselves. Thanks, Steve. From: msedgerley@juno.com Date: Wed, 14 Jan 1998 08:44:11 -0500 Subject: Stories from '85 and '89 In January 1985, I drove a few of my friends from Jacksonville, FL to Gainesville to see the 'Mats. At the time, I was not fully aware of their concert antics. Some friends of mine opened for them ("3 Blind Mice" later called the "Meices"). The 'Mats came on and played as well as I've seen any band play. This lasted all of 10 minutes. They started going downhill from there. As a reference point, listen to "The Shit Hits The Fans", except the crowd this night was not as friendly as the one on that tape. I watched them basically trash around for what seemed like hours, and I was both fascinated and disgusted. The crowd at the start of about 200 thinned out to about 10-20 people. I stood right in front of Paul and let the band have a few "you suck"-s while requesting them to play a Hank Williams song. Paul kind of obliged, and introduced one of their songs as "Hank Williams got a Boner". Finally Paul got tired, and just handed me his guitar. I handed it back. My friends saw this game of "hot potato" with the "Mr. Hyde" guitar and encouraged me to grab it jump on stage. Paul had left, Bob was wearing a tutu that developed a hole that showed part of his "family jewels" & was trashing around the stage. Tommy still had his bass in his hand, and my friend Alan Cowart & Chris were wrestling over the drums. I kind of led the band into something resembling a riff until Bob decided to trash the drum kit. The gig was over. I followed the band backstage to a more surreal scene. Tommy, Chris, Paul and a few hangers on were sitting around and Bob was raving in the next room. I asked Tommy and Chris if this was just an off night, and they tried to tell me that they'd never acted like that before. Meanwhile, Bob's raving had spread into the room we were in. There were some promo albums of "Hootenanny" and "Let it Be" that Bob was smashing along with a beer cooler. Being greedy, I grabbed a beer and a copy of "Let it Be" and split back into the bar. I figured they would get smashed anyway. I gave that extra copy of "Let it Be" to my then-girlfriend (NOT my future wife), who hated it. I should've let Bob smash it. Weird things happen, I became a major fan that night, and I still have Paul's guitar pick. Alan and I still joke about being in the 'Mats together. Fast Forward to April 15, 1989. (Tax Day). I am now living in Tampa FL, & I buy tickets to the 'Mats gig in St. Petersburg. My girlfriend (Susan, my future wife) gets invited to a wedding that day. Major conflict, wedding reception or 'Mats. We compromise, split the reception early and get to the 'Mats gig right after the opening act. The 'Mats played very well that night. I guess they had a record on the radio (I'll Be You) , & didn't want to trash the place for these new fans. Susan was pissed, though, and so was Paul. Who'da thought these two bad moods would ever meet? Anyway, it was a rowdy gig, people were throwing things at the stage. Paul suffered a direct hit and decided to retaliate. He grabbed a beer and spotted a projectile thrower in the crowd. His aim was terrible and he threw the cup over most of the audience but got Susan pretty good with the cup's contents. After that, she wanted to do one of two things: 1) Get out of there or 2) Get revenge on Paul. We did neither, and somehow made it through the gig. Meanwhile, the marriage we'd witnessed that day didn't last. The groom wasn't remotely ready for marriage and the bride wound up getting pregnant by another. I almost had my wife write the last part. Maybe you'll see her version in the future. Apologies for being long-winded. I'm surprised that I remember this much. Mike E. Date: Thu, 15 Jan 1998 19:51:15 -0500 From: Kevin I got a really cool 'Mats story from a guy I met on the net, Dan Franke (deerlick@execpc.com). It's about when The 'Mats played in La Crosse, WI (Home of the World's Largest Six-Pack). The birthday hats part is truly a 'Mats moment! Kevin (a.k.a. me) I was reading your comments on the Grandpa Boy Comments section at the Monolyth page when you wrote that you opened for the 'Mats in '84 in La Crosse. Is this true? I went to college in La Crosse and I heard a great story that goes something like this: Back in the early 80's, a place called The Concordia Ballroom on La Crosse St. used to hold concerts for touring punk bands (Husker Du, Black Flag, etc.). When the 'Mats played there, they set up their instruments, walked across the street to Howie's Hof Brau & proceeded to get shit-faced. When they showed up to play, they were so pissed to the gills that Paul couldn't stand up. After about attempting to play for 5 minutes, they stumbled off the stage and left. Is this the concert you were talking about? Just curious... Kevin (a.k.a. me) ---- Hey Kevin, Well your version is close, but like most legends...very exaggerated. I was a member of the concert committee at UW-L (Soundstage?) and was getting pissed at the lack of shows and shitty shows that we were putting on. I had seen The 'Mats about 10 times and my band (The Slow Pedestrians a/k/a/ The Slow Peds) reeeeeeally wanted to open for them. So I took my roommate's (our bass player's) student loan and booked The Replacements to play LaCrosse on Feb 14, 1985 (not 84...I think - it was on the "Let It Be" tour, but after "Shit Hits The Fans"). Then I rented the Concordia and a sound system. We sold about 30 advanced tickets, and I was convinced that I'd be paying back our bassist's Student Loan as well as my own. A true punk rock show! On the night of the gig, they had all of these other extras in their contract rider such as beer/booze & food. We made a big picnic kinda meal with BBQ's and chips & what-not for both bands to enjoy after soundcheck. They were pretty blown away, because they said most places usually just order a few pizzas or some shit. The Concordia wouldn't let me do the beer/booze part of the contract, so I worked it out with Howie's across the street. After dinner, we all went to Howie's and started to drink and play pool. I went across the street to open the doors and (lucky for me) about 250 people showed up. We played our set to an enthusiastic crowd, but they all really wanted to see The Replacements. After our set, we had to go and round up the boys at Howie's. They had started to tie one on and were having a lot of fun, so playing wasn't the main thing on their minds. They played a few songs and screwed around with few covers that they didn't complete. Someone found a stack of birthday hats (the kind that look like dunce caps) and a few people kept yelling for "Fuck School". Paul (with his dunce cap on) told the crowd that they'd play "Fuck School" if everyone shut-up and sat down on the floor - he could still stand, but was pretty drunk. Then the band proceeded to sit down on stage, until everyone in the place sat on the floor - which they did (all 250!). Then they played "Fuck School" in a very "Treatment Bound" manner - slow and sloppy. Their contract was for a 45 minute set w/an encore and they were up there pretty much the whole time (much more than 5 minutes). They came back for the encore and played "Heartbeat, It's a Love Beat", Temptation Eyes" and "If I Only Had A Brain" from Wizard of Oz. (I think those were in the encore - I was pretty drunk myself at that point). Some people were pissed off that they screwed off so much, but since I had seen them a few times, I thought it was hilarious. The local papers totally missed the point and even went as far as saying that we blew them away...yeah, right. BTW, after all was said and done, I paid back my roommate and our band made $100. Some friends of mine Garrett Whatley & Mike Starling thought that it was a cool idea, and they started booking shows at the Concordia after that. We got to open for a lot of great bands (Soul Asylum, True Believers, Scruffy The Cat, and more) and saw some really cool shows there (Black Flag, Husker Du, and more). One band, Brave Combo grabbed acoustic instruments and for their encore led everyone on a dance through Howie's and Taco Bell and the gas station. Sorry this is so long, but I hope you enjoyed the real story. If you are interested, I have a good story about the True Believers (Alejandro Escovedo from The Nuns and Rank & File, now solo & Buick MacKane - his brother Javier from The Zeros, and Jon Dee Graham). Thanks for listening, Dan Franke Date: Wed, 21 Jan 1998 00:41:24 -0700 From: Tim Wheeler I grew up in northeast Minneapolis and The Replacements were the best thing to ever hit town. Their music changed the whole scene. I know growing up with there influence has affected the way I play music, only I play sober. Bob Stinson was one of the best guitar players I've ever heard and Paul Westerberg's lyrics are the way life was growing up in Minneapolis. The Replacements will always live in my heart and their sound will live on forever. From: "M.N." Date: Wed, 21 Jan 1998 15:43:11 -0500 Okay...here goes for all the Skywayers out there....How y'all doin'? Well I came to the States in 1984 and I was lucky enough to live next to a guy who was a casual Replacements fan and he made a tape for me of various recordings. One side of the tape were some 'Mats songs, if I remember correctly there were songs from Stink and Pleased To Meet Me, so I guess that would if make that time period around 1986-87, possibly? I loved that tape. I remember thinking (On "Kids Don't Follow"...when the Minneapolis police voices are heard)...I want to party with these guys. Well anyway, my Replacements fandom began. In rapid succession I tracked down their earlier stuff (Sorry Ma, Hootenanny, Let it Be, Tim...all on vinyl of course), and I was entrenched as a fan. Besides my neighbor I knew of no other Mats lovers in my area so I listened to this great music and had no one to share it with. Sometime in '88-'89 the "Mats came to Allentown PA (about a two hour ride from me)...I was enthralled to finally see them. They were "opening up" (what an injustice) for Tom Petty. As soon as they came out on stage Stinson with his waxed up hair, painted shoes and his red outfit the rest of the band in flannel, t-shirts and jeans I was pumped. They came out playing four different songs at the same time...Paul stopped the band, chuckled and asked the crowd what they wanted to hear....I think I was the only 'Mats fan in the crowd...and I yelled "Fuck School" while everyone else was calling for Petty's "Refugee" or something. Sure enough Paul and the 'Mats belted out the chords and strained their vocals to Fuck School. The rest of the concert floored me... they did Twin Tone stuff and "new" stuff---it was the best show I've seen. (The unappreciative Petty crowd only cheered when The Replacements did a Who cover and trashed there stuff at the end of the show). Ever since the end of the 'Mats I've been struggling to find bands who could sustain my attention and need for good music. The Westerberg albums are good, Chris Mars stuff was cool, Bash n' Pop is in my car as we speak, and the All For Nothing disc is in my computer now. But I still can't help going back to my house and listening to those Twin/Tone vinyl albums.. Well anyway I've prattled on long enough. Sorry for taking on so much space but I haven't been able to talk to any fellow listeners in a long long time... Stay good everyone, and if you go out remember: "Bring your own lampshade somewhere there's a party...." From: "Darren Beauchamp" Subject: The Replacements and I Date: Sat, 24 Jan 1998 10:59:38 -0600 I just joined the Skyway and figured I'd make some initial input. I'm Darren Beauchamp of LeRoy, IL. I have been a Mats fan since around '87 when a friend turned me on to them. I saw them twice live, once at the Aragon in Chicago with the Posies and then their final show at the Taste of Chicago. Both shows were incredible. I remember Paul cut his finger on a guitar string during the first show and he had blood all over the guitar and kept on playing. In the days of Axl Rose's whining and stopping shows over a lost contact lens--that was one example of why they deserve respect they earned. I would like to put out that I am interested in finding some rare Mats material. The new CD really made me remember how much I loved them. I'd like to find a copy of "The Shit Hits The Fans" tape and any other live CDs. Gotta go-I'm shiftless when I'm idle. Yesterday's trash too bored to crash, Darren Beauchamp Date: 27 Jan 1998 16:20:56 -0500 From: "Michael DeGeorge" Subject: You asked for it... 1/27/98 Well, I am not someone who usually writes in to people I don't know, but after all, we are talking about The Replacements. So here goes. I live in Boston, am 29, work at a non-profit, and am in a band. I don't remember exactly when I heard them for the first time. If I had to guess it would probably be during some drunken escapade around 86/87 while I was at UMass Amherst. This is probably pretty accurate considering Buffalo Tom, The Pixies and Dinosaur Jr. were all at UMass at this time and I think one of these bands, BT I think, would play a Mats tape in between sets.... So that leads me to other bands I'm in to.... the afore mentioned Buffalo Tom, Dinosaur Jr., Pixies, anything by Bob Mould, Th Lyres, Uncle Tupelo (Son Volt & Wilco included), Guided by Voices, Bailter Space, and most other indie bands you don't here on the radio... As far as my band goes... well lets just say if we ever do anything that gets some attention, I wouldn't be surprised if Paul ended up taking us to court. Without a doubt he and The 'Mats are our biggest influence. In fact we are going to be on a compilation of Boston bands doing Replacements' songs. I think we've decided on Nowhere is My Home. Currently we cover "Take Me Down to The Hospital" during our shows.. ..... My bandmate has a collection of over 1000 albums (vinyl) and has more cool and rare 'Mats stuff than I knew existed. In fact he just spent $25 for the B-sides and Outakes CD that has Nowhere is My Home on it. The only time I've seen it on CD. Sorry, can't remember the name. Well, I'll stop blabbering now.. Anyway Let It Be just ended and I need to put it back on... This is a great idea and I hope it continues. I am looking forward to my first issue... Michael DeGeorge michael_degeorge@wgbh.org Date: Fri, 30 Jan 1998 01:15:40 -0600 From: Elizabeth Kugle I have to say, I feel a little geeky actually writing in to an online newsletter like this, but the Replacements are the only thing that would drive me to do this. I sit in front of a computer all day at work, and can't for the life of me know why I come home and get right back on again. Anyway, I think I can easily say that the Replacements are one of the greatest bands of all times--certainly my very favorite. I discovered the Replacements around 1988. The first album I listened to was Let It Be--after that, I was hooked. I listened to "Favorite Thing" over and over. Probably my most memorable Replacements story is actually two-fold. I saw them twice on their last All Shook Down tour. Me and two of my friends went to the show in Houston, Texas--the show was great - what I remember about it - I was in the bathroom half of the time puking from a few too many beers (I was young and stupid). Nonetheless, I was pretty pissed at myself for missing out on seeing my very favorite band play live - however, by the time the show was over, I had pretty much sobered up. My friends and I walked around to where the Replacements' bus was, and waited for them to come out. We noticed that the back door to the theater was opened, and could see Tommy Stinson through the doorway talking to one of their managers. So my oh-so-bold friend decides she would go and try to sweet-talk her way backstage. Well, it worked, and before you knew it, my friend was on the bus with the Replacements, now heading back to the hotel they were staying at. So me and my other friends follow the bus to the hotel - and we all hung out with the band in the hotel bar till after 2:00 a.m. Tommy was very entertaining, fun and friendly - but of course Paul had gone straight to his room--what a party pooper. Tommy mentioned that they had a show the next night in Austin and said if we would like to go he would put us on the guest list. Well, there was no decisions to be made here - we were on our way to Austin the next afternoon to stay with a friend of ours who was attending The University of Texas at the time. This time I kept my alcohol consumption to a limit - we went to the show, and sure enough they had remembered to put out names down on the list. So we got our badges and proceeded to watch an incredible show. After the show, we went backstage--there were quite a few people, and lots of great food and drinks. Again, Paul seemed to disappear pretty quickly - I don't he is what you would call a social butterfly - unlike Tommy. They asked us if we wanted to tag along with them to stop by Liberty Lunch. We said why not? It was great--no cover, free drinks - we were treated like royalty all because we were with the Replacements. Now, I know what you're thinking--that me and my friends--who are all girls, are just a bunch of groupies. But it really wasn't like that. We all just hung out, listened to music--got the grand tour of the bus and sang along with Tommy singing and playing "Hey good lookin', What you've got cookin'". He also played "Satellite", which I immediately fell in love with and couldn't find anywhere on tape, CD or vinyl for years - until All For Nothing came out. It was really a lot of fun - and I think they knew we weren't the type of girls who just wanted to sleep with them - although there were a couple of those hanging around that night also. We all stayed up until about 4:00 a.m. - Steve Foley told us all about how he became a Replacement, what it was like making the first video, etc.. He eventually did end up mugging down with one of my friends - but that is a whole other story. It was probably was of the greatest nights of my life - one I will remember for a long, long time. I was really bummed after the Mats broke up. However, I did see Paul Westerberg live in Austin (where I now live) about a year ago, and I was really blown away! The show was about 75% old Mats' songs - which was great - but everything he played was just amazing. He is truly one of the most talented musicians/performers alive today. So, this is why I am writing this email at 1:00 a.m. - only for the Mats. I look forward to hearing all about other Mats fans' memorable stories, and hope I didn't bore everyone to death with mine. Thanks for listening. Elizabeth Kugle (24 yrs. old) B-day 5/14/73--Taurus. Austin, Texas ________________________________________________________________________________ II. REVIEWS (of Eventually) Date: Mon, 19 Jan 1998 18:34:53 -0800 From: Alex Steininger Organization: In Music We Trust You can find a great review of The Replacements' two-CD set on Reprise Records entitled "All for Nothing/Nothing for All" at: http://members.aol.com/zinepres/ in issue #4. Issue #3 also contains a review of Grandpa Boy, Paul Westerberg's back to indie roots project! Please check them out, and if you would like, we would greatly appreciate a link to the magazine (or reviews) on your Replacements/Paul Westerberg fan page! Also, a mention of these two reviews in the next issue of The Skyway would be great! Have a great day : ) Alex Steininger In Music We Trust President Date: Fri, 23 Jan 1998 12:04:32 +0200 From: John Loughney Subject: Review in the Village Voice Here's a review from Robert Christgau, in the Village Voice. Pretty good, I think. THE REPLACEMENTS: All for Nothing/Nothing for All (Reprise) I never bought the theory that Warners tamed them--life generally has that effect anyway. But the All-For-Nothing disc's selection from the descent made inevitable by Let It Be, which stands beside Wild Gift as Amerindie's very peak, shortchanges the wild ("I Won't") and the tasteless ("Waitress in the Sky"); you'd be better off just proceeding from Tim. The miscellaneous arcana on the Nothing-For-All disc, however, are pretty unkempt for a pop band that's mastering its craft as it loses its purpose--blues, lo-fi come-on, Disney cover, B sides, what-all. Although it's a mess, or because it is, it's got more life than either of their two final albums--and no "Achin' To Be," either. A MINUS Oh, yeah, if people want to trade Replacement tapes, here's my set list 'n more file (stuff that I have to trade). http://www.geocities.com/SunsetStrip/Towers/6792/replacements.txt Bye, John ________________________________________________________________________________ III. WHAT THE FUCK YOU SAYIN'? (I don't know.) From: "Damon Jordan" Date: Sun, 4 Jan 1998 16:00:38 +0100 I never really write to this thing even though I've been on the list for several years, but on receipt of the most recent Skyway, I have been moved to do so. Actually, this is more a question than it is anything else, so I apologize from the get-go. Here 'tis: Does anyone actually KNOW what Paul says at the end of "Bastards of Young?" I've always thought he says "take control," but a friend of mine swears he says "Damon Jordan," which is, of course, my name. Please advise. Thanks, Damon. --------------------------------------------------------------- e-mail : jordan@clsh.u-nancy.fr From: karesh Subject: Bastards of Young lyric info Thanks for the Replacements website. I wanted to pass on some info about the Bastards of Young lyric page you have. I see that your not quite sure about the line "we got no war to name us." I believe it is correct, and this anecdote supports this version. I saw the Replacements at the Warfield in San Francisco on the day the Gulf War started. As we know, the Replacements are not what we would call a political band. As Paul said this line on this eve of war, you could see the realization of the now falseness of this statement move across his face. He then rolled his eyes and said, "yeah, right". Not a particularly political soapboxing editorial, but in contrast to the apolitical stance of the "Mats normal demeanor, especially as cops cars were burning a block away, it was a goosebump invoking moment. It was just the thing to link the passion of the show and band to the angst we were feeling. I hope this helps remove the ambiguity of the actual lyrics. Date: Tue, 06 Jan 1998 10:31:15 -0800 From: Morvren Subject: Scotty? I don't know if you want to throw this one out to everyone, but do you (or does anyone else) know who Paul is talking to in the song "Treatment Bound" when he says, "Take it, Scotty!"? Another friend? A brother? The dog? I've been wondering about that one for years now. Thanks. Mo ________________________________________________________________________________ IV. EVERYTHING ELSE (for all) Date: Wed, 14 Jan 1998 09:33:08 +0100 (MET) From: Hans Huttel Subject: A Mats feature on national public radio (in Denmark!) I seem to have managed to get Danish national public radio to do a retrospective about the Mats. Every Sunday night there is a two-hour show with retrospective profiles of important artists in popular music. Among the recent artists featured have been Squeeze, Pulp and the whole late 60's East Coast acid rock scene. Most of these retrospectives have been prompted by the release of multi-CD box sets and are usually really informative. So I wrote the producer an email about The Replacements and the sad fact that there hadn't been a Mats retrospective yet. And now I hear that my mail message was mentioned on the radio the other night (when I wasn't home...) and that because of my request, there will now be an extensive feature about The Replacements in two weeks' time. I do hope they will play some of the rarities from the Twin/Tone years (as I specifically asked for those), and even if they don't, this feature will introduce a lot of people to Westerberg and his band. Danish readers of alt.music.replacements (if there are any) should note that the show is broadcast on P3 every Sunday night at 2200 hrs. -- Hans Huttel | email: hans@cs.auc.dk BRICS, Dept. of Computer Science | WWW: http://www.cs.auc.dk/~hans/ Aalborg University | tel.: (+45) 96 35 88 88 Fredrik Bajersvej 7E | fax: (+45) 98 15 98 89 9220 Aalborg Ø, DENMARK | Fight spam! http://www.cauce.org From: WKelley928 Date: Sat, 27 Dec 1997 19:03:11 EST Subject: Replacements poster I'm looking for a Replacements poster and T-shirt -- in fact, I've been looking for months (if not years) -- any ideas? Thanks. Bill Kelley (since you asked: Alex Chilton and I Will Dare) fin. ________________________________________________________________________________ The //Skyway\\: The Replacements Mailing List (digest only) http://www.novia.net/~matt/sky/skyway.html The //Skyway\\ | c/o Matt Tomich | 311 S. LaSalle #43g | Durham NC 27705 | USA ________________________________________________________________________________ "I heard that even the stars have names Some of them are cooler than others Some are just letters and numbers." - Cursive