The next step in our tour of XTC albums is Nonsuch, which has a special place in my heart, as it's the first XTC album I heard all the way through.


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The next XTC album is Oranges and Lemons. From what I've heard, Andy wanted a title that tied in with nursery rhymes, and originally considered "Songs of Sixpence." The final choice for the title references both the nursery rhyme about church bells ("Oranges and lemons," say the bells of St. Clement's) and the colors of Los Angeles, where the ( Read more... )

Okay, so, this past weekend wasn't all that eventful, but most of them aren't, so why would this one be any different? On Friday night, bethje and I watched Bubba Ho-Tep, which I enjoyed. Bruce Campbell did a good job playing old Elvis. Later that night, I had a dream that I was in high school (I guess it was high school, anyway), and the bathrooms ( Read more... )

I'm getting a bit tired of doing these album reviews, but I might as well finish out the XTC catalog. Besides, the next album on my list is my personal favorite, Skylarking.


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In this entry, I review two cool things that bethje introduced me to. The first is Wally Cox's book, My Life As a Young Boy. I don't think it's any secret that my wife has a thing for the late Wally Cox, star of Mr. Peepers, voice of Underdog, and mainstay on Hollywood Squares. The book actually holds up quite well for something written in the sixties ( Read more... )

Let's see here. I slept pretty much all morning, except for when I was taking bethje to work. I had some weird dreams, but I can't remember most of the details. Trying to return home after some event was a major recurring theme, though. It was at least the second time I was trying to get multiple cars back home from somewhere, which really doesn't ( Read more... )

At one point in their long, illustrious careers, the members of XTC decided to come up with an EP of pastiches of the psychedelic rock they grew up listening to. For this, they transformed into the Dukes of Stratosphear, made up of Sir John Johns (Andy Partridge), The Red Curtain (Colin Moulding), Lord Cornelius Plum (Dave Gregory), and E.I.E.I. ( Read more... )

The next in my series of XTC album reviews is the seriously underrated The Big Express.


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Several variations of that title were considered as titles for XTC's sixth studio album. The possibility of the band wearing fruit costumes for the liners was also discussed, but we ended up not seeing the lads dressed up like the Fruit of the Loom mascots. In fact, the cover we got for the album, which ended up being called Mummer, was this ( Read more... )

The next stop in my ongoing reviews of XTC albums is English Settlement, apparently a favorite among the general public, but not really of mine. That's not to say it's bad, just that I think there are other albums with better overall song quality. Oh, well. It was originally released as a double album, and the earliest American releases cut it ( Read more... )