Recording the Dukes of the Stratosphear's 25 o'clock

April 24, 2009 5:56 AM

Andy Partridge (ex-XTC frontman) and producer John Leckie (Stone Roses/Radiohead) discuss the making of The Dukes of the Stratosphear 25 o'clock EP, getting sacked by Mary Margaret O'Hara, Roy Harper kissing a sheep and recording Syd Barrett in Abbey Road in 1975 (parts I and II).

XTC's only live performance of Yacht Dance as a bonus extra.

posted by johnny novak (24 comments total)

I know it's myspace, but xtcfans has been posting some lengthy and well-conducted interviews. I think they're recorded by phone, then transcribed for web. Lotsa great reading there-- Partridge is a pretty good extemporaneous storyteller.

Thanks for the link -- I've been a huge, obnoxious fan ever since English Settlement.
posted by Devils Rancher at 6:06 AM on April 24

Man, do I ever love that "25 O'clock" EP. Thanks for finding and sharing this interview.
posted by NoMich at 6:10 AM on April 24

I was so looking forward to reading this, and then, BLAM! No transcript. Anybody know where I can find a transcript?
posted by Afroblanco at 6:56 AM on April 24

XTC puppet show.
posted by bardic at 7:19 AM on April 24 [1 favorite has favorites]

There is no finer record to usher in the summer than "Skylarking".
posted by davebush at 7:21 AM on April 24 [5 favorites has favorites]

A-Haaa! Oh wait. Wrong Partridge.
posted by prufrock at 7:24 AM on April 24

lovely post, johnny n!
posted by fingers_of_fire at 7:24 AM on April 24

I feel really terrible now. I had no idea XTC split up-- I just figured they were on another 15-year hiatus.
posted by Dr-Baa at 7:26 AM on April 24

I feel really terrible now. I had no idea XTC split up-- I just figured they were on another 15-year hiatus.

Partridge and Moulding aren't even on speaking terms. It's a little tough when your personal musical hero declares he's so sick of it he no longer even listens to, much less wants to play music, and that he has pretty much put down his instrument forever. Porcupine Tree is the only thing that has saved me from utter ennui. (There's a relationship -- Dave Gregory has scored the strings on multiple PT songs)

Oh, hey, on another tangential note, Thomas Dolby is apparently releasing another album of music for the first time in pretty much 15 years. (Dolby almost got Gregory's gig in XTC when Barry Andrews left)
posted by Devils Rancher at 7:47 AM on April 24

Davebush: Word. Skylarking is near and dear to my heart. (Self-link.) I think armed with that album along with Who's Next, I can survive anything.
posted by Skot at 7:55 AM on April 24

Roy Harper?
posted by Halloween Jack at 8:03 AM on April 24

Thanks for the post. I've warmed to their later stuff over the years, but Drums and Wires amd English Settlement will always be the sweet spot for me when it comes to XTC.
posted by metagnathous at 8:21 AM on April 24

Oddly enough, I've been singing Yacht Dance (and Wait til Your Boat Goes Down) all morning before ever seeing this post. Thanks for the post! Think I'll listen to Skylarking this gorgeous spring day as well.
posted by mollweide at 8:30 AM on April 24

Go-2… Battery Brides!

dung…dung
ts ts ts tit
dung…dung
ts ts ts tit
dng-dng
ts ts ts tit
dng-dng
ts ts ts tit
dun-din
ts ts ts tit
dun-din
ts ts ts tit
din-dinn
ts ts ts tit
din-dinnn
ts ts ts tit
battery brides…hah-hah-haave you ever tried.....
posted by JBennett at 8:39 AM on April 24

Thanks for that Yacht Dance video - it brightened my day. As a long-time fan, I've always been saddened by the periodic reports of Partridge/Moulding friction, particularly when accompanied by the soundtrack of the amazing music they made together. Am I the only one not surprised that the (seemingly to me) brooding and lower-key Moulding has gone the route he has? It's hard to imagine the disillusionment some of these very talented but under-appreciated and generally quite under-compensated (financially) musicians must experience. I would probably react the way he has, I have to admit.

Also, the idea of Thomas Dolby in XTC is quite weird to me. (I have to say I thought the idea of Todd Rundgren producing them was weird in a similar ego-clash way as well when I first heard that was going to happen, and was sad to have been proved right, though Skylarking did prove to be a very good album.) Plus, anything that would have kept Dolby from going on to make The Flat Earth would be a bad thing; that's one of my favorite albums ever.
posted by aught at 9:25 AM on April 24

Roy Harper?

No, the fantastic Roy Harper
posted by PeterMcDermott at 9:41 AM on April 24 [1 favorite has favorites]

Also, the idea of Thomas Dolby in XTC is quite weird to me. (I have to say I thought the idea of Todd Rundgren producing them was weird in a similar ego-clash way as well when I first heard that was going to happen, and was sad to have been proved right, though Skylarking did prove to be a very good album.) Plus, anything that would have kept Dolby from going on to make The Flat Earth would be a bad thing; that's one of my favorite albums ever.

Partridge nixed it due to that just being too many strong songwriters for one group, and too much good stuff would have to be left out from all sides. You can see the wisdom of his decision when you look at the 9-CD box set full of songs he's written that never made it to an XTC album. He's crazy-prolific. It would have been a curious combination had it occurred, but I totally agree with all parties that Dolby was best left to his solo career & that Dave Gregory is THE MAN. The Flat Earth is awesome. It was playing a little while ago, which jogged that bit of trivia out of my brain as I read the thread.

Also, nice to see that I've been fingering Yacht Dance right all these years. Moulding doesn't always play on the strings that would make the most sense at first, often opting for moving down a string and up 5 frets to keep it fat. His technique is incredible.
posted by Devils Rancher at 9:48 AM on April 24

English Settlement guy over here, right down to multiple plays of 'Knuckle Down' in the shop on November 5th, so many thanks for that live clip of 'Yacht Dance,' which I'd pretty much forgotten about.
posted by Kinbote at 10:48 AM on April 24

I just discovered the Dukes. My friend's were all, "wait, what, this is from the 80s?" Great stuff...I'm getting Skylarking now! I'm excited!
posted by saul wright at 11:28 AM on April 24

My original 25 O'clock cassette eventually broke after too many plays.
Excuse me while I have an nostalgic conniption.
posted by ...possums at 12:18 PM on April 24

My original 25 O'clock cassette eventually broke after too many plays.

So you listened to it twice, then?
posted by dersins at 4:13 PM on April 24

The very next song my ipod shuffled to after reading this post? 25 O'clock. Poetic.
posted by medium format at 5:15 PM on April 24

So awesome. Thanks. When I was in college in the late 90s, Andy Partridge came to the local record store for a CD signing - this was when Apple Venus vol. 1 was released, maybe? Anyway, I'm not usually one for going to these kinds of things, but I went and brought along basically my entire collection of XTC CDs and had him sign a bunch. I'm so glad I did. I have a special affection for that band that I don't think any other musicians could ever replace.
posted by chinston at 7:53 PM on April 24

Skylarking and the Dukes recordings are intertwined with my early adulthood; I still listen to those discs. Recently I talked to an old girlfriend for the first time in twenty years and she brought up the Dukes as being part of the soundtrack to our crazy relationship.

I didn't really get into Skylarking until later, but I'll always associate it with my first long-term relationship (different woman) and many summer days smoking on the backyard deck in my own little patch of the northern forest, sun filtering through green needles onto buttercups (which cupped the light). The devil's club and blueberries in full leaf, drowning there in summer's cauldron.

I've ordered both Dukes reissue discs for the improved sound quality and extra tracks. It's very rare that I'll choose physical CDs over digital downloads these days.
posted by D.C. at 9:24 AM on April 25