BIRDSONGS OF THE MESOZOIC

Friday, 10 July 1987

CBGB
315 Bowery
New York, New York 10003
USA


FLAC master, 8 April 2021, by elegymart:
Analog audience recording (stereo) {recorded by Gene Poole}: unknown mics/recorder > 1985-86 US TDK SA (Type II CrO2) 90-minute analog audio cassette master {from the Gene Poole collection} > Sony TC-WE435 (azimuth adjustment) > Roland R05 (24/96) > Cool Edit Pro 2.0 (audio cleanup, convert to 16/44) > SHNtool (fixed SBE) > CD Wave (track splits) > TLH (WAV > FLAC8).
Created this text file.


Total running time [48:42]
--------------------------------------------------------
01 crowd [0:24]
02 Shiny Golden Snakes [2:51]
03 Ptoccata [3:37]
04 Sombre Reptiles [3:18]
05 Pulse Piece [5:00]
06 Chariots of Fire [3:33]
07 Laramide Revolution [5:53]
08 Waterwheel [4:27]
09 Lost in the B-Zone [4:56]
10 Theme from Rocky and Bullwinkle [2:44]
11 Beat of the Mesozoic, Pt. 1 [6:58]
-- encore --
12 Triassic, Jurassic, Cretaceous [4:55]


Band line-up:
Rick Scott – piano, farfisa, synthesizer, percussion
Erik Lindgren – synthesizer, rhythm machines, percussion
Roger Miller – piano, organ, percussion
Martin Swope – guitar, percussion


Notes:

THE GENE POOLE COLLECTION VOL. 199

Here's the latest installment of the Gene Poole Collection, a random wellspring of recordings which have recently surfaced in 2020. To paraphrase Lou: This is gonna go on for a while, so we should get used to each other, settle back, pull up your cushions, whatever else you have with you that makes life bearable in what has already been the start of trying decade...

Some of Gene's handiwork has probably been heard by your very ears before, for the most part via the Stonecutter Archives, but this is the first major unearthing of tapes direct from the legend himself. As promising as that may seem, it's best to let the surprises hit as they are shared. The trade-off to the prolific taping on Gene's part is that the expectations for a perfect track record would be unrealistic and unfair. There will be instances of incomplete recordings, caused by late arrivals to gigs, recorder and mic malfunctions, and other assorted foibles as would befall any mortal taper. There will be times where a master from another source exists which could be superior. For the most part, Gene recorded with a variety of mics and recorders, and many shows suffered from wire dropouts, so that only one channel was extant in the capture. Due warning about the past imperfect given and out of the way, credit should be given where due as well -- for many shows thought lost forever, it's exciting to discover that many of these even in incomplete form have now cropped up.

The transfers, the audio fixes, and the research all have required some lead time -- many tapes had scant info (sometimes just the name of the artist/band, with no date listed for the performance). Needless to say, gear documentation is virtually nil -- we wait around for that precise detail to be forthcoming, nothing from the collection would probably see the light of day.

Here's one more Birdsongs gig for those who have enjoyed the prior two volumes. This time we're at CBGB for a short set, on the day which kicked off the start of the nearly week long New Music Seminar that was taking place simultaneously at various NYC clubs and venues.

The Birdsongs of the Mesozoic shared the bill with In a Strange Cave, Band of Susans, and Mad Orphan. Whether Gene taped the other sets is unknown at the moment. The music here has to compete a touch with the crowd din, which sounds like what you'd expect of people in a club half-interested in checking out a series of bands they don't really know. It'll be a step down in sound quality from the Maxell's show due to the chatter.

Roger Miller didn't leave the band until autumn of this year, so you'll hear him on organ on compositions like "Pulse Piece" and "Lost in the B-Zone," confirmed by the absence of saxophones in the set. They do sound very RIO in every regard, and the song repertoire here originates primarily from their discography on Mission of Burma's Ace of Hearts label for their first three releases. Like their 1989 set, they cover Eno and Vangelis here, and "Laramide Revolution" gets dedicated to Hilly Kristal.

Enjoy,
elegymart