JOHN WESLEY HARDING a.k.a. WESLEY STACE - March 18, 1998 - Borders Books, Austin, Texas, USA
**Audience DAT-master, MWM 0052**
>> Acoustic Instore Gig during SXSW 1998, together with ROBERT LLOYD <<
Preliminary remark 1:
This one here is especially for RIOBLANCO and AUSTAPER,
and all the fine musicians, music-fans and tapers in
Austin, TX. (not to forget the Texas Hill Country),
and all the nice people in the Lone Star State...
Preliminary remark 2:
Steve Wynn is touring in Europe right now, together with Robert Lloyd.
As there seems the possibility to view one of their concerts soon, we
checked out when we've seen Robert the last time live in concert...
ten years ago in Austin during SXSW 1998, together with our friend Wes,
and this tape here came out of our vaults...ENJOY !
I'D LIKE TO SEE SOME MORE STEVE WYNN/ROBERT LLOYD FROM THE RECENT TOUR ON DIME !!
This recording here comes directly from the "Men With Microphones" archive.
"MWM" started in the 70ies in South Germany with analog recording equipment,
and at least two of them are still recording sometimes (since the 90ies on DAT,
and, lazy as we are, since lately with small, handheld WAV-recorders on SD-cards).
BIOGRAPHY
Wesley Stace was born in Hastings, Sussex in 1965, and educated at The King's School,
Canterbury, and Jesus College, Cambridge. Under the name, John Wesley Harding, he has
released 15 albums, ranging from traditional folk to full on pop music. His most
recent pop release Adam's Apple (2004) was called "the finest album of his career"
(All Music Guide), "one of his best, a sharp collection of pop that cleverly weds
sunny melodies to dark matters" (The New Yorker) and "a dazzling piece of popcraft
that shows wide range and real heart" (No Depression.)
John Wesley Harding has been joined onstage by Lou Reed, Iggy Pop, John Prine,
Bruce Springsteen (with whom he recorded a duet on his album Awake), Joan Baez,
Peter Buck, Evan Dando, David Baddiel, Rick Moody, Scott MacCaughey and
Robyn Hitchcock amongst others. He has appeared on Late Night with Conan O'Brien,
The Late Show with David Letterman, and The Tonight Show with Jay Leno. His songs
have been featured in films (including High Fidelity) and covered by other artists.
His most recent record was "Songs of Misfortune", a (mostly) a capella recording by
The Love Hall Tryst, featuring the ballads from his first novel, Misfortune.
The recently released DVD "A Bloody Show" documents an epic show filmed at Bumbershoot
in Seattle, featuring songs from Misfortune, on which JWH is accompanied by a rock band,
a string quartet and The Love Hall Tryst, and readings from the novel, with Robyn
Hitchcock as the narrator. He has just recorded his new album with The Minus Five,
to be released in 2008.
About this concert:
The Steve Wynn Quartet was touring Europe in January/February 1998 to support his/their
album "Sweetness and Light". John Wesley Harding was the support act, the first half
of his shows solo acoustic and the other half with band: Kirk Swan on guitar, Kurt
Statham on bass guitar, and Linda Pitmon on drums (3/4 of the Steve Wynn's band !).
And he joined Steve regularely during the Quartet's set...as musicians and vocalist.
A nice example of an outstanding concert of this collaboration you can find here:
Torrent #167449 STEVE WYNN QUARTET and JOHN WESLEY HARDING - January 30, 1998 - Kulturfabrik, JUZ,
Lichtenfels, Germany **Audience-DAT master, MWM 0022** >>STRANGE CIRCUMSTANCES & UNIQUE SETLIST<<
Promoting some of those shows and having all of them as guests for a few days/nights,
sharing not only our kitchen and laundry facilities, it was easy to become friends.
Especially with Wes, sharing the same kind of whacked out humor...BUT THAT'S ANOTHER STORY.
Wes informed us that, after returning home to the USofA, he (together with Robert) was
doing the 'John Wesley Harding "Borders" tour Spring 1998' to promote his new album
"Awake", starting March 18, and ending April 12, all shows at Borders bookstores...
So we took the "next" plane and showed up in Austin JUST to see them play.
Delta Airline tickets: 1000 $
Rental van for some weeks: 600 $
WES' face when we showed up for soundcheck: P-R-I-C-E-L-E-S-S !
NO - THIS IS A LIE,
BUT WES (AND ROBERT...)
HAD BEEN MIGHTILY IMPRESSED
WHEN WE TOLD THEM THIS WEIRD STORY...
listen to the (NOW SHORT) intro he did about us
(track # 4, omitted is just our real name, our address,
our phone and fax-numbers and our birthdates (Wes IS SO
funny !) as a simple act of privacy protection...lol!)
THE TRUTH:
Checking 'The Austin Chronicle' for a perfect recording day schedule
we found this ad for the 'John Wesley Harding "Borders" tour Spring 1998'.
And it turned out as a very nice way to start the usual evening concert madness
during South By South West, start it with good friends...completing the fun was
that our german friend SP (a manic SXSW fan, taper and photographer, now living
in Canada) showed up too...we knew him in town, but it was a surprise meeting him
at Borders to visit the concert (and surely recording it too, his lineage: OKM II >
> A3 > portable DAT Sony TCD- D100..., as always).
It was an extremely funny show, both Wes and Robert in great shape, we three germans
and the rest of the about 80 to 100 visitors enjoyed the concert to the fullest.
Although it was recorded in the middle of this hugh store with just a small portable
PA-system for the artists, the recording turned out excellent. Some people coughing
sometimes (it was cold and windy in Austin during March 1998...), some noises of the
camera shutter and a very enthusiastic audience...but recording from the seated area,
first row middle, just 4 or 5 feet away from the musicians made those circumstances
nearly inaudible...somehow ;-)
THE MAIN PROBLEM OF THIS RECORDING was to find out the correct 'Borders' in Austin.
On the DAT cover was just noted "JWH & RL, Borders Books Instore, 98-3-18, 7:00pm, 43mins"
but not which of the nearly one dozen 'Borders', and i'm too lazy to search the box
with the Chronicle or all the other stuff from this tour, hidden in our vaults.
BUT:
I remember my wife driving the US 183 north and it was near the Arboretum, so
checking the Austin map and viewing the area with 'gugle earth' it turned out as:
Borders Books Music & Cafe @ 10225 Research Blvd, Austin, TX
And if you're interested what we did after hugging and waving goodbye to our
friends Wes, Robert and SP, here's a short scheme of this specific night:
08:30 pm Paul Metsa @ Saxon Pub (South Lamar)
10:15 pm John P.Strom @ Hole In The Wall (Guadalupe St)
11:00 pm Slowpoke @ Hole In The Wall (Guadalupe St)
12:00 pm Nadine @ Hole In The Wall (Guadalupe St)
Not bad for a wednesday night...and the tapes of those shows are
planned to be upped on DIME within the next five years...promised ;-)
In the meantime enjoy this recording,
and knowing that our friend SP was too
busy to do trades, this one here is/was
UNRELEASED AND UNTRADED SO FAR:
JOHN WESLEY HARDING a.k.a. WESLEY STACE
with ROBERT LLOYD
Instore Gig, Borders Books Music & Cafe,
10225 Research Blvd, Austin, Texas, USA
March 18, 1998
7:00 pm
lineage:
recorded by lonetaper, audience to DAT with permission by both artists...
OKM II K professional, Studio Version > terminal voltage adapter Soundman A3 (impact noise
setting on "linear", attenuation -20 dB) > 'Line In' portable Sony TCD-D8 (16 bit, SP 48 kHz) >
DAT (Maxell HS-4/90s, Helical-Scan 4mm Data Cartridge, 90 meter tape)
DAT (master) > Tascam DA-20 II, S/P-DIF out > Digital Cable (coax) >
> Behringer Ultramatch SRC 2000 (Sample Rate Converter & Jitter Remover) > Digital Cable (coax) > Soundcard, S/P-DIF in >
> CD Wave (recording) > Harddisc > CD Wave (tracking) > Traders Little Helper (SB aligned/level 8) > FLAC > DIME
the concert:
01. complete soundcheck 2:00
02. introduction by Wes 1:18
03. Windowseat 4:58
04. "...two people from Germany & the Tinitus story...." 1:39
05. Miss Fortune 5:46
06. I'm Staying Here (And I'm Not Buying A Gun) 4:42
07. Heart Without A Home (take 1, aborted) 0:44
08. Heart Without A Home (take 2) 1:39
09. -> The Original Miss Jesus 4:15
10. Your Ghost (Don't Scare Me No More) 3:24
11. "...the next shows & take your free book" 2:01
12. Kill The Messenger 3:49
13. "...fantastic Tele-Tubbies..." 1:16
14. Things Snowball 4:48
total: 42:19 mins
musicians:
John Wesley Harding - vocals, guitar, fun
Robert Lloyd - guitar, mandolin, accordion, humming
Please support the artists, visit their concerts and buy their CDs...
Check out their websites...
Wes:
http://www.wesweb.net/
http://www.johnwesleyharding.com/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Wesley_Harding_(singer)
http://www.wesleystace.com/
http://www.myspace.com/wesleystace
Robert:
http://www.houseofhere.com/
THIS TORRENT IS DEDICATED TO WES AND ROBERT ALLOWING ME TO RECORD THIS EVENT !
Thanks to my wife, Mrs. Leo for supporting all my crazyness...and to SP - miss ya!
You know, our friend Dave T says: "There's always more to come..."
And i'll promise you to keep MY tapes coming...
Leo
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Absolutely no selling! Do not alter this recording in any way, repost to other sites
or convert it to mp3 or other lossy formats except for your own personal use.
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Recorded, transferred & finally uploaded by lonetaper on Dime, February 2008. This is "MWM 0052"