I thought Nick's song thing was a great idea. I was trying to come up with a verse myself (bearing in mind Walt Whitman's contention that "the powerful play goes on and you may contribuite a verse") but couldn't manage the Murdochesque inflection of Nick's. Anyhow hooray for Paul, the good shepherd of this List. I think we're lucky to have him and I want to tell him that he's ace! I am, sir, your most assuredly happy bunny. John xxx

---------- From: Nick Dastoor/BSHO/GB[SMTP:Nick_Dastoor/BSHO/GB%BSHO@notesgw.compuserve.com] Sent: 04 Dec 1997 19:01 To: sinister Subject: Re: Sinister: jesus wept

Sinister: jesus wept

Peter Higgins (p.higgins@mailgate.csm-li.co.uk) Thu, 04 Dec 1997 13:54:05 +0000

...

Don't take this personally, but... That pastiche of a B&S song which someone suggested we could all add to in a kind of >internet happy clappy

collaborative perfect world vomit inducing experiment type thingy was simply astounding! Please >keep such "ideas" to yourself next time, I could do without the kind of mental upset which your "song" caused me. It's >nonsense like this which gives fans a bad name. Right, can I go back to sleep now?

Oh dear, I feel like I've had the stuffing knocked out of me. Don't take this personally but... I think you misunderstood my intentions, character, whatever, Peter. Of course my "song" was crap. And no, I don't really subscribe to all this global village nonsense either. It was a _joke_. Maybe not a very good one after all, and of course jokes that fall flat are worse when they are in print (well, not print, but you know what I mean) because they just sit there lurking in their irretrievable, semi-permanent state.

The lines I wrote where supposed to be a piss-take of some of the more obvious, recurring themes in Stuart Murdoch's songs (esp. the earlier ones). Such as:

* Mentioning misfit girls by name a lot (Jean, Jenny, Judy, Lisa, Jane, etc) * Dropping in names of years ('82 in She's Losing It, 1975 and 1995 in The State I Am In, 1972 in Me and the Major) * Ecclesiastical matters (IYFS, Le Pastie) * Not being into the drugs scene (Me and the Major, Photo Jenny, Le Pastie)

I'm not remotely suggesting that these 'sum up' Belle and Sebastian - they're the kind of things that if taken to extremes would make for a very dull, formulaic twee pile of rubbish. Of course I think there's infinitely more to them them than that - they wouldn't be my favourite bands for years if I didn't.

But in a light-hearted (crap phrase I know - shades of '..and finally' items on local news) way I thought maybe others might have spotted other things in Belle & Sebastian to satirise which they could post as further verses to mine. But if no one thinks it's funny or appropriate, I shall bow to your sharp tongue (hey - mix those metaphors), consign my thread to the bin and hang my head in shame at Manchester Town Hall.

So long, Nick

nick_dastoor.bsho@notes.compuserve.com

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