Dear The Word

Apologies in advance of your having answered this Q many times before, but have you released or do you intend to release an app to enable your fine publication to be read on the iPad?

If so, I'm buying an iPad (if not, then I'm not).

Kind regards

LD

Dear all you lovely people

In my quest to go minimalist, I've just completed digitising all 2000 odd of my CDs to a removable hard drive.

I also intend to digitise all of my DVDs:

a) Please could someone let me know the best way to do this, using a MacBook Pro; and

b) is there a way of digitising, saving to disk and then recalling digitised files to view on TV (as well as on the Mac/iPod)?

Finally - I have a shed-load of magazine back catalogues of The Word, Mojo, Classic Rock etc. I would also like to digitise these. Has anyone taken the brave step of scanning hard copies? Any thoughts/recommendations very gratefully received.

Thank you so much

Now that the summer season is upon us, and a couple of festivals (IoW and Download) have blazed the trail for events to come, it got me thinking about my fantasy, one stage, one day line-up (in the good ol' tradition of the Donington Monsters of Rock of yore). Of bands who could conceivably perform today (albeit needing to reform in some instances), mine goes a little something like this:

11am - Mansun

12.30pm - Goldfrapp

2pm - XTC

3.30pm - Sigur Ros

5pm - Massive Attack

6.45pm - Nine Inch Nails

8.20pm - Radiohead

Anyone care to divulge?

Took a bit of time to draw up a list of classic albums, and have noticed a remarkable paucity of platters generally deemed worthy of inclusion from 1995 onwards

Pre 1995
Revolver; Pepper; White album; Abbey Road; Exile on Main Street; Nevermind; Automatic for the People; Astral Weeks; Joshua Tree; Kind of Blue; Never Mind the Bollocks; London Calling; Talking Book; Grace; Dark Side of the Moon; The Wall; Back in Black; Ziggy Stardust; Heroes; a Night at the Opera; Goodbye Yellow Brick Road; Rumours; Exodus; Electric Ladyland; Who's Next; Bridge Over Troubled Water; Bat out of Hell; Appetite for Destruction; Metallica's Black album; Purple Rain; Graceland; Disraeli Gears; The Band; The River etc etc

Post 1995
The Bends; OK Computer

I know that one argument is that it takes time to make an album a classic, but short of the two mentioned under the post 1995 bracket, are there any others which we should hang around for??? I'm struggling to think of any more....anyone got any suggestions?

Just having a quick ponder about those bands who have really cut the mustard with their singles releases, but have rarely impressed over an album.

Let me start the ball rolling by submitting:

- Abba
- Muse
- Manic Street Preachers
- The Jacksons
- Kiss
- INXS
- The Police

Anyone care to add??

Has anyone yet pondered the question as to whether in the opinion of The Word's readers (ie the most passionate music afficionados, with impeccable taste) there are any bands with reputable, extensive back catalogues (ie more than 3 albums) who never really bettered the quality of their debut album?

A few spring into my mind:

Appetite for Destruction - Guns n Roses

Showbiz - Muse

Blue Lines - Massive Attack

In Rock - Deep Purple

Van Halen - Van Halen

Anyone else care to add??

Caught site of some hapless punter's selections as he was queuing up to pay for them in HMV. I should have immediately intervened. Can you honestly think of a more bland, pointless exchange of £30 than the following:

- Coldplay - the album with the French Revolutionary painting artwork (La Vida Loca or something)

- Little Britain DVD set

- The Pigeon Detectives CD

- Standing on the Shoulders of Giants.

dear o dear.

Maybe it's because I'm a metaller at heart, but I have an undeniable weakness for lip-smacking, great-looking band logos. You know the ones - those that rudely emblazon a T-shirt and force passers-by to take notice, and those which perfectly form a no-nonsense backdrop to a stadium stage. Here are my faves - in perfectly simple b/w. Anyone else got anymore to add?

Was strolling along enjoying the sun, iPod plugged in, when a bottle ricocheted off the road at great velocity after being hit by a passing car. It came hurtling towards me and smashed into the wall head-height, a whisker away from my stride.

My final thoughts simply encompassed the undesirability of being found dead in the street in a mess of glass and blood, with Sheryl Crow playing on the iPod (which she was at the time). If I go in a freak unpredictable accident, I'd like to do it to an appropriate soundtrack with which I would be proud to be found enjoying in my final moments. Toss up between 'Golden Brown' by The Stranglers, 'American Tune' by Paul Simon and 'Closer' by Nine Inch Nails. Anyone else ever given any thought to this?....no?....just me then.

OK, just a piece of sunny weekend fun, which hopefully doesn't come across as too morbid, nor crass.

We have all pondered the 'what if' question in relation to the premature passing of some of the biggest names in rock n roll, ie 'what if Elvis, Lennon, Cobain, Mercury, Bonham, Hendrix, Joplin etc were all still around today'?

Could we extend that question to ask 'what if they were to get back on-stage at a fantasy festival with the acts with which they were synonymous, to play a one-off 40 minute set-list'?

What would that set-list be (giving careful consideration not only to the songs which made the band famous, but to those with special poignancy with the deceased)?

Let me get the ball rolling with The Beatles;

Twist and Shout
I Saw Her Standing There
I Wanna Hold Your Hand
She Loves You
A Hard Day's Night
Help
Yesterday
Ticket To Ride
Day Tripper
Come Together
Something
Hey Jude

Encore
And Your Bird Can Sing
Revolution
Let it Be

The above might be a tad over 40 mins but given that The Beatles romped through most of their early numbers in 2 minutes or so the set would contain a good number of songs.

What amends would you make to the above set-list, and what would you expect to feature in 40 min set-lists of the following;

Elvis
Led Zeppelin
Queen
Jimi Hendrix
Nirvana
The Doors
(any other rock giant with a sadly deceased member)

...too morbid??

In light of other recent posts celebrating hidden album gems, and expressing dislike for unfathomly successful acts, I thought it was an appropriate moment to start a poll to toast some of the most criminally underrated bands of all time - those who have slogged away, perfected their craft, and have entertained (and indeed continue to entertain in some cases) whilst never getting the break they so wholeheartedly deserve. I'll get things rolling with:

XTC - genius songsmiths, wonderful eclectic array of perfectly crafted albums. Should be as big as The Beatles (or The Who at the very least).

The Wildhearts - helped themselves into this position by repeatedly pressing their self-destruction button, but have put out the best heavy rock of the past 20 years. Ginger is a prolific songwriting master.

Super Furry Animals - not sure if their current status bothers them, but I think their unique eclectic musical blend deserves a much wider promotional platform.

Cooper Temple Clause - great debut album, superb live act, unpromoted, unloved by A&R, got dropped, disbanded, reformed, new label, great second album, great live act...hope they break the cycle this time round.

Mansun - didn't live in London, didn't suck the corporate cock and so their outstanding live performances and 4 terrific studio albums were doomed to be a distant memory.

any more you'd like to mention?

Not sure if anyone has posted anything similar to this in the past....if so, many apologies.

Has it ever annoyed you that the tracks which really stand out for you on an album never receive the recognition they deserve, but are instead forgotten about in favour of the hit singles which become associated with the record? Here's a chance to inform us all about track 4 on side 2 of that album from 1973 which really cranks your tractor.

I'll start the ball rolling with;

- Teo Torriate - Day At The Races (Queen)

- Head Down - Superunknown (Soundgarden)

- Ruiner - The Downward Spiral (Nine Inch Nails)

- American Tune - There Goes Rhymin Simon (Paul Simon)

- Paper Bag - Felt Mountain (Goldfrapp)

- nice dream - The Bends - (Radiohead)

I could go on....

Three pieces of album artwork immediately spring to mind when pondering the subject of urban mythology (would love to attach the relevant photos of each, but alas have yet to work out how to do so);

1. Abbey Road - The Beatles - the rumours were in abundance that Paul McCartney had actually died in a motorbiking accident back in 1968, and a stand-in 'McCartney' was used as his replacement. Such a tale was enhanced by the cover of Abbey Road showing 'McCartney' in the middle of a funeral parade striding bare-footed between pall-bearer Ringo (appropriately suited in black), and grave digger George (appropriately suited in denim), all following the white suited 'vicar' of John Lennon. The enigmatic numberplate of the VW Beetle in the background reads '28 IF', which is the age (28) Paul McCartney would have been in 1970 on the release of Abbey Road IF he had been alive....

2. Hotel California - The Eagles - the inner sleeve photo of the band shows them in the foreground of the lobby of their mythical hotel. The alleged satanic connotations of the album's title track were furthermore fuelled by the dark sinister figure looking down at the collection of guests from the back of the above balcony.

3. Black Sabbath - Black Sabbath - no mythical stories about this cover....it just scares the shit out of me.

Has anybody any other artwork-related urban myths to add to these?

Righto - ever notice how there is an abundance of album titles which also feature a song of the same name thereupon - I refer thee to Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, Help, Number of the Beast, Wish You Were Here, A Kind of Magic to name but 5....

BUT can you think of any artists' songs which do NOT appear on the album of the same name - I've got 4;

1. Sheer Heart Attack by Queen appeared on the News of the World album as opposed to Sheer Heart Attack

2. Houses of the Holy by Led Zeppelin appeared on Physical Graffiti as opposed to Houses of the Holy

3. On Through the Night by Def Leppard appeared on High and Dry

4. Out of the Silent Planet by King's X appeared on Gretchen Goes to Nebraska

....too boring?