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Sun, 06 Dec 1998 10:00:19 -0700
U2 to star in classic album TV series
U2�s The Joshua Tree, Meat Loaf�s Bat Out of Hell and The
Wailers� Catch A Fire are to feature in a second series of Classic
Albums to be broadcast on ITV next year.
The programmes, which are expected to be shown next spring,
follow the highly-acclaimed first series which was broadcast by
the BBC last summer and helped boost sales of the six albums
it featured including Jimi Hendrix�s Electric Ladyland, Paul
Simon�s Graceland and Fleetwood Mac�s Rumours.
Nick de Grunwald, executive producer of the show at production
company Isis, who came up with the idea for the first series
while producing The Making Of Sgt Pepper, says, �The BBC
were taking a long time coming back to me. ITV came in and
really loved the whole thing.�
The new series will again set out to dissect six classic albums to
find out how they captured the spirit of their age so effectively.
�We�ve again gone back to the original multi-track recordings
and isolated different musical components like the voice,� says
Grunwald, who adds that the remaining three albums to feature in
the series will be announced shortly.
The Band�s The Band, Grateful Dead�s American Beauty and
Stevie Wonder�s Songs in the Key of Life also featured in last
year�s series and all re-entered the chart following their
appearance on the programme. Says Grunwald, �The Band
were really delighted because their back catalogue also started to
sell really well.�
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>From Bigmouth:
Bono and Jim Kerr unite to play football
U2 frontman Bono and Simple Minds frontman Jim Kerr, are
apparently part of a consortium that want to take over the
Scottish football club Celtic along with ex-Newcastle manager and
Scotland International, Kenny Dalglish, and buy out the club's
chairman Fergus McCann. Bono and his old mate Kerr have made
several attempts in the past to take over the Glasgow club, currently
at No.3 in the Scottish Premier League charts. The consortium,
backed by City financiers, is hoping to take control of Celtic using
their respective fortunes in a bid that could cost them over �100
million. McCann has already made it clear that he would prefer to
sell his majority shareholding to existing shareholders and is against
the club being owned by a consortium. Celtic fans are unlikely to
agree with him, as Dalgleish is a big Celtic hero, having appeared
for the club over 300 times in the '70's, and the addition of Bono
and Kerr would be an attractive prospect.
Pop's most famous association with the football world was when
Elton John bought his cherished Watford Football Club back in the
early '80's. As owner and chairman, his influence and cash took
the club from the then division three (now called two) to the
runner-up spot in division one (now called premier) in 1983. In
1984 Elton had the pleasure of seeing his club in the FA Cup Final
at Wembley, but sadly they lost. Noel Gallagher also has dreams
of owning his favourite team, Manchester City, and if Oasis's last
album had lived up to his expectations, sales-wise, no doubt he
would have made a bid for the club. Talking of Oasis, Glaswegian
Jim Kerr was married, for a short time, to Patsy Kensit, Liam
Gallagher's wife, and also to Pretenders' frontgirl, Chrissie Hynde.
Kerr is the father of Patsy's eight year old son.
>From The Washington Post:
Bono's Team Effort
U2 crooner Bono has joined a partnership to take control over
Scottish soccer champions Celtic, according to a report in a
British newspaper yesterday. Leading the bid for the team is
former Celtic player Kenny Dalglish and Simple Minds singer
Jim Kerr.
Irish native Bono and the interested parties hope to buy the stake
of chairman and majority shareholder Fergus McCann. The Mail
Sunday said McCann plans to sell his stake by March and return
to Canada.
>From The Irish news:
ROCK star Bono has been revealed as the third high-profile member
of the consortium aiming to take over Celtic Football Club.
Former Scottish international and Celtic great Kenny Dalglish and
Jim Kerr, the lead singer of rock group Simple Minds, are heading
the group which is preparing to attempt to buy out club chairman
Fergus McCann.
Now Bono, the lead singer of Irish group U2, has been confirmed as
a member of that consortium by sources close to the star in his
home country.
Bono, who is a close friend of Kerr and has been linked several times
in the past with attempts to take over the Glasgow club he avidly
supports, has so far preferred to remain out of the limelight.
But it is likely that just like Dalglish and Kerr, he will invest some of
the vast fortune which he has accumulated during his rock career
into the club if the bid succeeds.
The consortium, which is backed by city financiers, is hoping to take
control of Celtic with a takeover that could cost them more than �
100 million.
McCann, who plans to leave the club by the end of this season after
a highly controversial and increasingly unpopular five-year reign, must
decide whether to accept their bid amid growing pressure from many
Celtic fans.
However, he has already indicated that he would prefer to sell his 51 per
cent shareholding to existing shareholders and does not want a powerful
consortium to dominate the club.
Many supporters are nevertheless attracted by the glamorous figures
fronting the consortium, with former Liverpool and Newcastle manager
Dalglish being a legend at Celtic, having appeared 324 times for the club
between 1968 and 1977.
Nobody was available to comment at Celtic, while a spokesman for the
consortium said he was unable to say whether Bono was involved or
not due to legal reasons at this stage of the bid process.
-------------
The review from the New York Post-Star has been added to the
Best of Reviews file available at:
http://www.members.home.net/u2-news/gh_reviews.html
-------------
Steve Lillywhite Chat(from SonicNet):
SonicNetHost: Goldberg: This is Michael Goldberg, editorial director of
SonicNet. I'm
really happy to have legendary producer Steve Lillywhite with us tonight.
Steve Lillywhite: My name is Steve Lillywhite, I'm a record producer. I'm
currently at
Bearsville Studio on the first day of recording a new album by a band
called Ours on
Dreamworks. I took an hour from work to talk to you good people.
SonicNetHost: Goldberg: Steve, you've worked with some of the greatest
artists of
the '80s and '90s. Recently, you've produced great albums for Phish and
Dave
Matthews. What were your experiences like working with Dave Matthews?
Steve Lillywhite: With Dave Matthews, when I heard Remember Two Things'. I
thought,
this is a band I must produce. I hadn't been in America much. I really got
on well with the
band. It was really good to see them go from there to a stadium band. I
always enjoy
working with the people I work with. The bonus is that they've been
extremely successful,
so it's been a journey for all of us.
SonicNetHost: Goldberg: Can you give us some specific examples of what the
process of producing a particular Matthews song was like. How you work
with that
band in the studio.
Steve Lillywhite: Between all three albums, there were three sounds and
three ways of
recording. On the first album, the basic tracks were done with Dave and
Tim Reynolds
panned left and right. And that was pretty much it, there was no
electric’s on that
record. Tim would overdub more acoustics. Dave never does a guitar
overdub. When it
came to ' Crash, we kept them acoustic and miked them up through amps. So
we gave an
acoustic a more electric feel which gave it a tougher sound. For Before
These Crowded
Streets we went back to just acoustics. But then we did a fair amount of
electric
overdubbing with Tim. Violin and saxophone were done pretty much the same
on each
album, I add reverbs and choruses post recording.
SonicNetHost: Goldberg: You also produced the best studio Phish album to
date (I
haven't heard their new one yet).. what did it take to pull that album out
of them?
Steve Lillywhite: Phish decided to produce "Billy Breathe" themselves and
their engineer
also did 'Crash' Siket who is working with me today. They did about a
month of recording.
At the end of the month they decided to take a break. So they decided they
needed a
recording producer, and I went up and met them. I came up and really liked
what I heard. I
took over and allowed them to be musicians. Before I came they were trying
to wear two
hats, which defected both 'hats.'. I enabled them to become musicians and
not think about
the production process. I really enjoyed that album, certainly, the second
half of that album
is one of my favorite pieces of music I've ever done, just because of the
way it flows.
SonicNetHost: Goldberg: I'd like to see if you can explain what, exactly,
your
approach to producing is. Some producers get in and co-write songs,
heavily
rearrange material-- totally control and craft the music. others work more
hands
off. What's your approach?
Steve Lillywhite: My approach I'm responsible for the finished product.
Some producers
write songs and do everything and others are hands off. I fall between the
two. I am not a
songwriter, so that never happens. The musicians I work with build this
ship and it's my
job to steer the ship into port. I'm the captain. On some records I have a
lot to do with
arrangements and others not so much. XTC had spot on arrangements,
whereas, early U2
albums needed guidance. So we worked together on making them what they
were.
SonicNetHost: Goldberg: You produced the 2nd Marshall Crenshaw album,
which I
think is one of the great "lost' albums of the '80s. As I recall, it
really didn't get the
attention or recognition it deserved. I must have listened to that album
200
times—at least. It remains one of my favorite albums of the '80s.
Why do you
think that was?
Steve Lillywhite: 'Field Day,' I haven't listened to that album since I
did it. The only song I
remember is the first track. That's very kind of you, I really enjoyed
working with Marshall I
didn't produce it as I could have, I think I ruined it with my big drum
sound I was working on
at the time. He actually lives here in Woodstock, so I'll probably be
seeing him soon.
SonicNetHost: Goldberg: What made you work with Crenshaw? Were you excited
at the time by his songwriting?
Steve Lillywhite: Yes, I'd heard his first album and thought, these are
great songs. I can't
remember too much more than that. He will admit, in retrospect, he didn't
have as many
songs prepared for that record as he did his first record.
SonicNetHost: Goldberg: What currently active record producers are you
impressed by?
Steve Lillywhite: I hate them all. And wish they would all drown in a vat
of oil.
SonicNetHost: Goldberg: Since you started, you've seen sampling and DJing
come
into their own. How do you feel about the heavy use of sampling in
contemporary
music?
Steve Lillywhite: There are two ways of sampling, taking a single sound,
like a snare
drum beat and taking a loop And the other end of sampling is what Puff
Daddy does, which
is take the whole song. There are no rules in music. I'm not a puritan
about anything.
Technology is leading this art form, so 'good luck' to everyone who's
doing it.
SonicNetHost: Goldberg: Tell us about Dark Star, a band you're currently
working
with? Are they a Grateful Dead influenced band, as their name would imply?
Steve Lillywhite: They have nothing to do with Grateful Dead, think Pink
Floyd meets
Nirvana. We finished the album in the summer. And it's just coming out in
England just
now. They're a three piece. The album is coming out next year in the
States and I
recommend it to anyone who likes good music.
SonicNetHost: Goldberg: What are your expectations for that album? Do you
think
America will go for it?
Steve Lillywhite: I have long ago given up thinking along those terms. I
did Travis about
18 months ago, and I really thought they'd be big "All I Wanna Do Is
Rock," by Travis, I
thought would be huge. But they didn't get taken by the Americans. I just
try and make
records that people will like and hopefully other people will like them as
well.
SonicNetHost: Goldberg: Is there anything you've heard lately, or in the
last year,
that you like?
Steve Lillywhite: 'OK Computer,' love Beck and his new album, he can do no
wrong in
my book. The new REM sounds interesting, but I haven't had a chance to get
into it. The
Propellerheads I liked.
SonicNetHost: Goldberg: Is Beck an artist you'd like to work with?
Specifically what
about him?
Steve Lillywhite: Sometimes when you work with your favorite artists, it
doesn't
guarantee you'll make a great record. I don't normally approach artists.
Maybe I should
approach Beck and say 'How bout me for your next one?'
SonicNetHost: Goldberg: Which artist that you worked with was the most
intimidating.
Steve Lillywhite: I was most intimidated working with Lee Mathers from the
La's and
Shane McGowan when he's drunk, which is most of the time.
SonicNetHost: Goldberg: You clearly are into an eclectic group of current
artists.
Some people turn off to new music at a certain point. How have you managed
to
remain excited about "young" artists?
Steve Lillywhite: Just a love of music. As long as I feel I have something
to offer, I'll keep
doing it. It doesn't seem like a job to me. As soon as it feels like a
job, I'll stop doing it.
Because there are so many other people who can be doing it for excitement.
I never
complain about doing, because I have a great job.
SonicNetHost: Goldberg: Will you be working on Dave Matthews next album?
Steve Lillywhite: I don't know. The end of the last one, he didn't give
any signs that he
wanted someone else. So if he asked me, I'd be honored to help move their
sound along
yet aging.
SonicNetHost: Goldberg: How do you see his sound continuing to evolve?
Steve Lillywhite: On the last album, we used backing singers and The
Kronos Quartet,
piano and various new musicians. Perhaps on the next one we'll experiment
more with
harmonies. There are some very good singers in band, but we never work on
the backing
vocals. There's lots of room for more harmonies. I'd have to talk to Dave
how we want to
approach it.
SonicNetHost: Goldberg: Can you talk about Matthews growth as an artist
during
the time you've worked with him?
Steve Lillywhite: I always like to make people feel confident and to make
them feel like
recording is an enjoyable process. Wow, we had great fun, that's what I
want them to say.
'We worked hard, but we had a laugh and enjoyed it.' Dave's grown up a
lot, Dave has lost
some innocence, but gained something else.... experience, I suppose.
jarbuthn : Did you find working with U2 more or less exciting as their
career
progressed?
Steve Lillywhite: It became more exciting. Funnily enough, normally
artists become more
uptight but with U2 it was the other way around. They were serious on the
first albums. As
success came, they loosened up more and more. And as they grew up they
became more
confident. They're great, great times. Even though at the time it was
really intense stuff, I
just look back and remember it being fun.
SonicNetHost: Goldberg: War is one of the best rock albums ever made. It
was a
real leap from the first two. To what do you attribute that?
Steve Lillywhite: It was the first time that we'd used a click track with
the band. Up till
that point we'd just used live versions of songs. At that point I'd worked
with Simple Minds
and Big Country. It's a big change, when you play along to a click track.
Bono is the
pusher, wanted more....tougher, better sound. And I remember when sang
'40' it was half
an hour before we had to finish the whole album. And it's subsequently the
last song on
the record. I'm not really aware of a heavier sound... I don't really
know, when you're a
producer you try and suit the sound and production value to the
songwriting. Songwriting
became heavier, thus so did my production value. Though not as heavy as
'Bullet The
Blue Song.'
jarbuthn : What's your favorite U2 song, that you produced?
Steve Lillywhite: My favorite U2 song......the Joshua Tree tracks I worked
on "With Or
Without You." I sort of molded that song and really enjoyed putting that
together.
jarbuthn : Do you have any examples of songs where one mistake or accident
has
changed the whole character of a song and actually improved it?
Steve Lillywhite: I remember, off the top of my head, on 'Drive In, Drive
Out' by Dave
Matthews we did a bunch of takes in the afternoon. And then me and Dave
and couple
members of the band had to leave and gave an engineer all these
instructions for cutting it
all together. Came back six hours later and he got one of the edits wrong,
but the band
really liked it. At the end of the bridge section is where it occurs,
there's actually half a bar
missing. And the band actually play it that way now.
dmb__420 : What was your most memorable moment with Dave Matthews Band?
Steve Lillywhite: There were so many memorable moments. I loved the
recording of
'Crash Into Me'. It's one of my favorite songs, even though it became
really big. Even
though 'real Dave' fans hate it, it's really a classic song. So all the
'real Dave' fans can
stuff it. An early version of 'Rapunzel' had lyrics that Dave scatted
about a tapeworm I just
had removed. The song made me laugh, though it was not funny having
tapeworms.
she1agh : Please give us Morrissey stories!
Steve Lillywhite: There's plenty. One of the songs I really loved called
"Lifeguard
Sleeping, Girl Drowning. Morrissey was about to give up on the track. And
I kept on saying
take it softer, softer. And he had to do about fourteen takes. Which is
unusual for
Morrissey. And on "You've Got To Find Out For Yourself." The vocal was
good, but the
music was terrible. He wanted to drop the song. We dropped all the music
and just kept
the vocals. And I was very proud about what we did with that songs.
jarbuthn : Do you feel you have total control over the production of a
song?
Steve Lillywhite: Of course. I have total control, but it's my job it's
like being a film
director. Though it's not as dictatorial because my actors write their own
script.
NavySeal_98_Team5 : How did you and Peter Gabriel get along?
Steve Lillywhite: I thrashed his ass at table tennis. Although he's a good
player. We got
along very well.' Table tennis is my game. As a lot of people who know me
know all to well.
Goldberg: How was it for you going in and working with the Rolling Stones.
I would think
that would have been intimidating. The Rolling Stones. Up until their new
album I reckon I
produced the worst RS album My job was as much Henry Kissinger between
Mick and
Keith. Without Mick and Keith talking to each other, which they weren't.
You know that
you'll make a bad record. I learned a lot from them, more so than they
learned from me. I
learned a lot from Keith Richards, I thought he was anything BUT the burnt
out rock star.
His sense of rock 'n' roll is fantastic.
SonicNetHost: Goldberg: What did you learn? Give a few specifics.
Steve Lillywhite: You can't say in words what you learn. It's attitudes.
Keith is all attitude.
And you can't say in words what attitude really is. He passes on a rock
'n' roll attitude. I'm
a very instinctive person and I can pick up on things. If you ask me
specifics, compressor
numbers, amps, etc, but I know rock 'n' roll.
SonicNetHost: Goldberg: So it was kind of about how one handles themselves
in
that kind of situation? I was thinking more that you were speaking about
how
Richards deals with people...
Steve Lillywhite: His attitude towards music and live performance, I think
I learned about
recording live performances from him. I'll give you an example, the way he
plays the guitar,
it goes out of tune very easily. So, towards the end of a song it would go
sour. And I would
turn down the guitar sound, but he said 'Turn it up' and somehow it
sounded right. That's
what I learned, even if it sounds wrong, turn it up loud and it'll sound
right. But if you are
intimidated and turn it down, people know it's a mistake.
stephen_dedalus80 : What do you guys think the best album of the nineties
is....so
far?
Steve Lillywhite: 'OK Computer,' and 'Achtung Baby' as well.
SilverOpal : How has been the most fun artist to work with in your
opinion?
Steve Lillywhite: Oh dear, the most fun....I suppose because it's
relatively recently, I'd
have to say Dave Matthews, Because everything seems to be going so right
them. They
have complete faith in me and let me do things for them. I normally have
fun with the
people I work with. I try and set the atmosphere right.
Greedom1 : So Steve... who's better at Ping Pong? Your or Boyd Tinsley
from
DMB?
Steve Lillywhite: I have been teaching Boyd, and in the next ten years
Boyd will be
coming a major player. At the moment, the best player in the band is Dave
or Carter But
I'm still wearing the yellow jersey, the trophy and I wear it 90% of the
time.
-- Prarit....[email protected] U2 news: http://www.members.home.net/u2-news/u2.html
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