Greg Oehm of Western Creek (Tas) is one of many to take up Chris Wilkinson’s stereophonic challenge (C8): “I nominate Gerry Rafferty’s Whatever’s Written in Your Heart from the City to City album. A creditable performer in her own right, Barbara Dickson sings backing vocals and, at one point, rather disconcertingly takes a wander from your left ear to your right ear and back, right through your head! A second mention must go to Let’s Talk About Me from the Alan Parsons Project’s Vulture Culture album. This track opens with a conversation about NATO in one ear and porcupines in the other. It takes some concentration to listen to both conversations at once. I use this track at school as a bit of a test to see if my music students can follow two separate lines at once - it’s good ear training.”
“The very best use of stereo effects is in If You Want to Be a Bird (Bird Song) by the Holy Modal Rounders, a track on the Easy Rider soundtrack,” says John Boddington of Dalton. “If you listen, you will hear the vocals flying from side to side all over the room.” Yeah, well, John’s just getting his thing together.
Sticking with music, it looks like Beyoncé has the gig with Freedom, but Chips Mackinolty of Nightcliff (NT) suggests a rethink: “Clearly the US Democrats should adopt as their theme song, the Australian piece Walzing Kamala?”
This sounds a little flaky, but “the grave of Charlotte Sargent in Waverley cemetery has a nice story and photos of Sargents Pies,” says Graham Russell of Clovelly. “It makes me yearn for a pie every time I walk past it. It brings back my very distant school days.”
Despite being snake-related, commentary on the burglary at the herpetologist’s house (C8) has legs, with Jenny Stephenson of Wollongong remarking: “Maybe the burglar was lucky enough to have landed on a ladder?”
Looks like we have ourselves a George-off: “I have to agree with both Meri Will and Barry Myler about the Column 8 George Manojlovic overload (C8), especially recently,” says George Zivkovic of Northmead. “Having contributed several worthwhile submissions without a guernsey lately, I feel very much like less than a lesser mortal myself.”
“Crikey, Meri Will, that’s a bit harsh,” says the man himself. “If ‘inane’ wasn’t cruel enough, ‘Manic’ is truly heartless.” Signed, G. MAN(ojlov)IC of Mangerton.
Column8@smh.com.au
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