tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2558055401220732192.post1441653603689418782..comments2023-10-01T11:24:45.430-04:00Comments on So Hip It Hurts: two before trueVinny Verohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11167457760151973169noreply@blogger.comBlogger13125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2558055401220732192.post-48697674764096270472010-04-19T00:34:55.962-04:002010-04-19T00:34:55.962-04:00For your sake I hope so too! I know you would LOVE...For your sake I hope so too! I know you would LOVE it! They were so on form and cool live. I was very impressed. The audience went wild for all the hits, even the ones Revo didnt like!! hehe I would happily have swapped We Are Virgin for Be Free WIth Your Love, but they seemed very happy to be playing it. Said that during soundcheck at the winery, being out in the sun etc reminded them of Live Aid. It really was a great show tho. Id love to have met them, maybe have got some stuff signed, but alas it was not to be. Other than that, it was perfect. Almost every bit as good if not better than that last time I saw them in 86! Alas, if Steve is older now, at least I was a lot closer than back then :) <br /><br />SteveAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2558055401220732192.post-84444721970906344642010-04-18T15:46:05.022-04:002010-04-18T15:46:05.022-04:00@OberonOZ - I hope Spandau visit the US. Both Gary...@OberonOZ - I hope Spandau visit the US. Both Gary and Tony have told me they are working on it. And I'm so glad to hear you like "Be Free With Your Love". One of my faves, too! I was hoping they would have played it when I saw them last October.Vinny Verohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11167457760151973169noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2558055401220732192.post-18666749821837466312010-04-18T09:39:38.089-04:002010-04-18T09:39:38.089-04:00Thought I would add to these comments because I we...Thought I would add to these comments because I went to see Spandau/Tears For Fears on a double bill last night at Sandalford Winery just north of Perth, Australia. It was a beautiful night and both bands were AWESOME. Spandau particularly were in amazing form and really had the crowd screaming and singing along. It was the first date of the Australian tour and if this was any indication, its going to be a barnstormer! Spandau played pretty much everything you would expect for a greatest hits show, so I was only mildly disappointed that they didnt play Be Free With Your Love, which is one of my fave late Spandau songs. As for TFF, they did a shorter set, but managed to cram in a couple of lesser known songs along with the big hits. Unfortunately no encore, but the audience really got carried away with Shout as the final song. I hope both bands come back on their own next time! And not too long away either.<br />Am pleased to hear that you dont think the Spandau remasters are too bad, Vinny, cos I wanted to get them, but was put off by some of the comments Id read. Very disappointed to hear about the Duran re-issues, since I was definitely looking forward to both of those as well. I wonder how the next set [Notorious/Big Thing] will sound! At the moment, its not encouraging! Its a pity too, cos if they had been decent then they would definitely have got my dollar. Oh well :)<br /><br />SteveAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2558055401220732192.post-66764132532889528952010-04-05T16:40:21.287-04:002010-04-05T16:40:21.287-04:00@REVO - Yes. There is compression. Yes. Just like ...@REVO - Yes. There is compression. Yes. Just like most remasters it suffers from loudness. However, and I've done a lot of these, I didn't think it was awful.<br /><br />If you want awful, take a listen to the first disc of the remastered edition of Duran Duran's debut album. I thought my teeth were gonna rattle out of head. Way too much treble. Very brittle. An example how NOT to do it.<br /><br />I think a lot of people immediately say the remastering is crappy as a force of habit. But the Duran debacle is truly awful.Vinny Verohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11167457760151973169noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2558055401220732192.post-86698023310043876902010-04-05T16:07:08.481-04:002010-04-05T16:07:08.481-04:00Well, the reviews are in on the Spandau deluxe rem...Well, the reviews are in on the Spandau deluxe remasters. Looks like the same frightful re-mastering that scuttled "Reformation" [http://www.amazon.com/review/RPG1240DCU83S/ref=cm_cr_rdp_perm] is at the fore on these new ones:<br /><br />http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/B0034GYAU8/emi-cat-21/ref=nosim<br /><br />I find it amazing that all ten reviews give it a horrible rating due solely to the harsh, compressed remastering. I'm gobsmacked. Can <i>all</i> ten reviewers be audiophile veterans of the "loudness wars"? Or is this RM job so bad as to make casual listeners sit up and notice? Your thoughts, Vinny?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2558055401220732192.post-55279945425097237002010-04-02T23:40:31.224-04:002010-04-02T23:40:31.224-04:00One of the best things about the interweb is that ...One of the best things about the interweb is that that all of us generation "Jones" - thats the generation that straddles the baby boombers and Gen X'ers can finally have our say and influence others! We are the ones who took Punk and New Wave into the charts by actually buying the records and then the CD's. We are primarily "First Adopters" in fact if it wasn't for us most wouldn't even know what that meant. <br />But I digress. Spandau Ballet, for this Queens, NYC boy was one of those pleasures that I chose not to share with friends. I wanted them all to myself - add ABC, Simple Minds, early Duran and so many more. When they played the Savoy in Mid town Manhattan, around the time of True first being released I found myself with tickets to both Big Country at Roseland Ballroom and Spandau! But the music gods were with me and my friends as Big Country went on early and Spandau went on late as they were playing what was normally a nightclub as well as a concert space. We sacrificed Big Country's encore's to make sure we had time to get ourselves down front for Spandau! AND WAS IT EVER A GREAT SHOW! As pop show's go, it ranks up there with ABC's Lexicon of Love tour and Soft Cell's final tour for This Last Night in Sodom!Echorichhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02853063796135973187noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2558055401220732192.post-17674813269675452582010-03-26T18:34:26.820-04:002010-03-26T18:34:26.820-04:00@REVO - Flitted around your site. We have very sim...@REVO - Flitted around your site. We have very similar taste in music. A couple of requests. Do you have a great, clean, digital copy of the 12" extended mix of "Fight For Ourselves" by Spandau Ballet? <br /><br />Also, any chance I can get a copy of "Elaine", your Frazier Chorus set? It's lovely! I have everything digitally expect the 4AD stuff. I might have some rarities for you since I'm good friends with Tim Freeman.<br /><br />Thanks for all your fantastic comments!Vinny Verohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11167457760151973169noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2558055401220732192.post-8121839609457210682010-03-26T05:07:02.183-04:002010-03-26T05:07:02.183-04:00Seeing Spandau with Tears For Fears as support on ...Seeing Spandau with Tears For Fears as support on April 21st! Can't wait. I love these 2 albums. Although I do think Parade is underrated and the title track from Through The Barricades is a classic. Wonderful post. cheers, hatzijAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2558055401220732192.post-86446620915041895842010-03-24T21:14:27.875-04:002010-03-24T21:14:27.875-04:00I love Spandau Ballet. But it's a tough love.
...I love Spandau Ballet. But it's a <i>tough love</i>.<br /><br />I never got to see them back in the day. I had tickets for an opening gig they had touring with the false Power Station, but Steve Norman's broken leg put the kibosh on that, damnit. If they came within 200 miles of my home would I see them? Sure, I'd have to. But the first three albums are the goods for me. I'm not even sure I want to hear the new one as I'm fairly certain that it would not sound remotely like what I'd love to hear from these guys. And yes, Martin Kemp is a stylish bass player. Okay, so he's no Derek Forbes, but who is? In retrospect, keys were not the band's strong suit and Jess Bailey came along just in time. Gary Kemp was all over the map with his guitar playing, and for that I am thankful that he didn't stay in a rut. But it's the thin, funky period that I could loop all night on repeat.<br /><br />I've thought of making a Chant No. 1 disc with every version I have of that tune. Alone, none of them are long enough!<br /><br />All of the bands that I'm a fervent fan of have portions (sometimes large portions) of their career arc where I am less than forgiving. Don't get me started on ABC, Ultravox, Simple Minds, OMD, The Blue Nile...Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2558055401220732192.post-68238883067393311872010-03-24T14:21:18.227-04:002010-03-24T14:21:18.227-04:00@REVO - Brilliant! Nicely done job on "Canon&...@REVO - Brilliant! Nicely done job on "Canon". Love your notes. <br /><br />I'd say we're two peas in a pod on Spandau. However, I think they are quite good musicians. Having written with both Gary and Tony, I don't understand how they don't get the credit they deserve.<br /><br />"Diamond" is a baffling album. But, as I mentioned, in retrospect, you can hear them wanting to move in another direction.<br /><br />While Duran kept some of their arty, obtuse side in tact, Spandau went rawk. That may have been part of their undoing.<br /><br />I've never known a fan quite as into Spandau as I am. Pleased to meet you!Vinny Verohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11167457760151973169noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2558055401220732192.post-62153784858250673332010-03-24T09:43:41.009-04:002010-03-24T09:43:41.009-04:00Well if it's liner notes you need, why not use...Well if it's liner notes you need, why not use my catty, yet opinionated liner notes for my personally designed/compiled/remastered insane Spandau Ballet 5xCD + DVD Boxed Set Of God® "Canon" as a starting point? Sure, I treat 'em rough, but <i>every f***ing thing is in there</i>, even the weak sauce (and there's a <b>lot</b> of it, in my opinion). If that's not <b>fandom</b>, <i>then what is?</i> Look here and know that this project took the free time of at least two months - possibly three. You'll never find a DVD with both the EMI and SONY videos on it elsewhere... more details and what would be a big fat booklet worth of liner notes dissecting and analyzing the entire pre-2009 career of Spandau Ballet can be found here:<br /><br />http://home.earthlink.net/~suedotjim/data/Spandau_Ballet%3A_Canon.html<br /><br />I will love to get these. Especially the deluxe Diamond! What a magnificently f***ed up album that is! Not their "best" album (that would certainly be "True") but it's certainly their most <b>fascinating</b> album by leaps and bounds! Possibly the most fascinating album of its period, as well!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2558055401220732192.post-43376993121570775452010-03-24T07:31:53.810-04:002010-03-24T07:31:53.810-04:00@Paul - I expect a full report. There will be a qu...@Paul - I expect a full report. There will be a quiz. :)Vinny Verohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11167457760151973169noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2558055401220732192.post-48872808307161995992010-03-24T03:52:38.360-04:002010-03-24T03:52:38.360-04:00I honestly feel educated when i come here! I learn...I honestly feel educated when i come here! I learn so much!! I'm going to track down my brother's vinyl copies and go and listen to them at my parents house this week now...Myfizzypophttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02947668142001550049noreply@blogger.com