Guided By Voices' Bee ThousandBloomsbury Publishing USA, 2006 M10 2 - 144 pages Marc Woodworth's book covers the album's long and unorthodox period of writing, recording, sequencing, and editing. It includes interviews with members of the band, manager Pete Jamison, web-master and GBV historian Rich Turiel and Robert Griffin of Scat Records. At least sixty-five songs were recorded and considered for the album and five distinct concepts were rejected before the band hit upon the records final form. One late version, very nearly released, contained only a few of Bee Thousand's definitive songs. The rest were left out and nearly ended up in the boxes of cassette out-takes cluttering up Robert Pollard's basement. The story of Guided By Voices transformation from an occasional and revolving group of complete unknowns to indie-rock heroes is very much part of the story behind the making of Bee Thousand. In addition to providing a central account of how the record was made, Woodworth devotes a substantial chapter to the album's lyrics. Robert Pollard's lyrics are described by critics, when they're described at all, as a brand of tossed-off surrealism, as if his verbal sensibility is somehow incidental to the songs themselves. Nothing could be further from the truth. Woodworth offers a sustained discussion of Pollard's work as a writer of often sublime, beautiful, and very human lyrics. The third key section of the book covers aesthetics. Woodworth considers the great appeal of the do-it-yourself nature of Bee Thousand and reflects on the larger importance of the strain of alternative rock for which this record is a touchstone. |
From inside the book
Results 1-5 of 40
Page 13
... thought I was going to have to become- as some people put it— “ responsible . ” But just as I had settled on not making any more records and made the decision to put more time and effort into teaching , Guided by Voices became the ...
... thought I was going to have to become- as some people put it— “ responsible . ” But just as I had settled on not making any more records and made the decision to put more time and effort into teaching , Guided by Voices became the ...
Page 14
... thought some of my titles and ideas were ridiculous , especially in the early days before people really knew who we were . Later , I found out a lot of people liked those kinds of songs best and that I did too . I was full of second ...
... thought some of my titles and ideas were ridiculous , especially in the early days before people really knew who we were . Later , I found out a lot of people liked those kinds of songs best and that I did too . I was full of second ...
Page 15
... thought it was funny and a little too boastful and over the top with tongue - in - cheek pride . What became “ Echos Myron " had been a really creamy love song before we charged it up with a double - time drum 15 BEE THOUSAND.
... thought it was funny and a little too boastful and over the top with tongue - in - cheek pride . What became “ Echos Myron " had been a really creamy love song before we charged it up with a double - time drum 15 BEE THOUSAND.
Page 16
... thought of some occupations that could be associated with my state of mind at the time . What am I ? What exactly am I ? It's a kind of self - analyzing song . I'm a scientist studying myself . I'm a journalist recording and reporting ...
... thought of some occupations that could be associated with my state of mind at the time . What am I ? What exactly am I ? It's a kind of self - analyzing song . I'm a scientist studying myself . I'm a journalist recording and reporting ...
Page 17
... thought that song is more important than poetry . A song combincs poetry and music . A song floats around in the ether where the human consciousness can gain access to it . Art — music , poetry , literature , and film - provides an ...
... thought that song is more important than poetry . A song combincs poetry and music . A song floats around in the ether where the human consciousness can gain access to it . Art — music , poetry , literature , and film - provides an ...
Contents
1 | |
3 | |
4 | |
6 | |
12 | |
13 | |
Listener Response 5 | 36 |
A Correspondence with Lewis Klahr | 37 |
Fauna | 110 |
A SonnetMade from Bee Thousand Fragments Themselves Often Fragments | 111 |
Robert Griffin | 112 |
States Of Being | 117 |
Fiction Man Hardcore Facts Part Four | 118 |
Dan Toohey | 130 |
Listener Response 12 | 132 |
Dayton Ode | 135 |
Fiction Man Hardcore Facts Part Two | 44 |
Listener Response 6 | 54 |
Don Thrasher | 55 |
Fiction Man Hardcore Facts Part Three | 64 |
Desire Its Limits | 70 |
Kevin Fennell | 72 |
Listener Responses 7 8 | 81 |
Spatial Representation 9 of Bee Thousand Action Motives | 84 |
On Robert Pollards Lyrics | 85 |
Listener Responses 911 | 109 |
Listener Response 13 | 137 |
Kicks | 138 |
Greg Demos | 142 |
Generation | 144 |
Tobin Sprouts Tascam Portastudio 1 FourTrack ElectroHarmonix Memory Man | 145 |
Tobin Sprout | 146 |
Listener Responses 1416 | 154 |
Fiction Man Hardcore Facts Part Five | 155 |
Acknowledgments | 159 |
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Common terms and phrases
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