Brian
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Post by Brian on Feb 22, 2009 1:26:54 GMT -8
 Tim Finn's latest album doesn't come out in North America for another month or two, but Martine and I have been listening to "The Conversation" since it was released in Australia and Tim's native New Zealand in November. We've talked on three message boards, on the phone and via e-mail for six years -- and met when Martine came from Winnipeg to see the Finn Brothers in San Juan Capistrano in 2005 -- so I was gratified to hear her appreciation of Tim's latest work and interest in discussing it here. "The Conversation" means so much to me, not just because it furthers a prolific, artistic winning streak this century after a stellar career. This time, he recorded with no bass and drums -- with two musicians who helped him found Split Enz in the mid-1970's -- and delivered some of his strongest melodies and most insightful and heartfelt lyrics. The first time I heard the album, I didn't know "Out of this World" would be my favorite song. The video features his daughter Harper in a spacesuit: |
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Post by martine on Feb 22, 2009 13:33:31 GMT -8
Unlike Brian, who was a Split Enz fan from around 1977 til present, I only became aware of Split Enz around 1980-81 or so when "I Got You" penned by Tim's younger brother became a worldwide smash radio hit. It seemed you couldn't turn around without hearing it blaring out of someone's record player, radio or television set.
When I re-discovered Split Enz music somewhere in and around 2002, I remembered that I had bought a Split Enz album back in the day--and lo and behold--I had three! Suddenly all those nights of sitting in my first apartment getting ready to go out or getting ready to settle in for the evening with all my lps scattered around the living room floor came back to me in a rush.
i suddenly remembered how I tended to skip over most songs that I later learned were either written by or sung by poor old Tim in favour of his younger brother's songs. With a few notable exceptions like the beautiful Tim sung "I Hope I Never" ...the rocking "Hard Act to Follow" and the Beatlesque "What's the Matter with You?"
As I got more and more into Neil Finn's catalogue, my earlier mild distaste for his older brother's stuff completely disappeared and I quickly gobbled up (audibly speaking) any of Tim's stuff that I hadn't heard.
Both Messrs Finn have an uncanny ability to eek out the most gorgeous melodies and while Neil's lyrics invite the listener to fashion their own interpretations of his intent, Tim tends to have a more straight forward style of communicating via his lyrics.
What I love about Tim and his stories (songs) is how romantic he can be with his themes. The pathos of Poor Boy! The warning behind Small World..the bravado behind Six Months in a Leaky Boat....the pain and wit of I Hope I Never....the blood stained tragedy of Charlie...the eternal peace of Unsinkable.
And my goodness, he's only gotten better and better with age. We all thought his last album Imaginary Kingdom was amongst his very best and I had the pleasure and privelege of catching him live twice in very very small venues featuring songs from Imaginary Kingdom.
So imagine how exciting it is for Brian and I to receive the latest offering "The Conversation" and realize that it continues the promise of Imaginary Kingdom and this time with no drums and the inclusion of two very old and trusty friends. And if you're into "saw" music (music made by a ... saw) this is your record for sure!
On Imaginary Kingdom, Tim's ode of love to his son was the last track "Unsinkable" on the Conversation, it appears he's written a beautiful song with his daughter in mind "Out of This World" (Pretty soon, Tim will have an entire collection of songs involving space travel--LOL) As someone who came to fatherhood relatively late in life, it has proved to be a grounding experience for him opening up many new lyrical veins for him (much to our thrill)
So Brian...what makes this song your favourite?
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Brian
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Post by Brian on Feb 24, 2009 0:00:27 GMT -8
How beautifully you tell your story along with Tim's, Martine -- the sweep of his career and what his music means. Comprehensive and compact! I pick up here: And my goodness, he's only gotten better and better with age. We all thought his last album Imaginary Kingdom was amongst his very best and I had the pleasure and privilege of catching him live twice in very very small venues featuring songs from Imaginary Kingdom. That club in Portland last year -- it used to be a big old house that seated 50 or so, right? And you were the first in the door. I can't think of many artists who have been as consistent as Tim Finn for as long, except for his little brother. Since 1975, Neil Young has been prolific but he's released several forgettable albums. Bob Dylan had some weak patches in the 1980's. Ray Davies basically sat out the 1990's. But all of them have done some of their best work in this decade. Tim's an old fashioned tunesmith, one of the last practitioners of the pop song. Yet each of his four solo albums since 2000 sounds and feels different than the others although Tim has always kept true to himself. It's hard to say, but I'm going to try. A great song will surprise and delight me while still sounding familiar. It will have deep roots but ever changing foliage and flowers. "Out of This World" touches me in unexpected ways. It's childlike and visionary, solid and vapor. I didn't warm to the song when I first heard the album but it's been stuck in my head for weeks now. Maybe my teenage Ziggy Stardust fixation has found a mature home in a song to a child. As you mentioned elsewhere in your post, Tim has a straight forward approach lyrically that has always reached me through all the stages of his life and career. Coincidentally or not, his favorite all time song is also mine, the Kinks' "Waterloo Sunset." So last I heard, Martine, you were fixated on the first three songs. I agree they might be the strongest on the record. Any others popping out for you? |
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Post by martine on Feb 24, 2009 18:21:21 GMT -8
Why thank you Brian..I just thought I'd do my own little version of "Haul Away" so folks would know how I got into Tim. "Haul Away" is a Tim song from Time and Tide--quite autobiographical. Yes indeed, the venue in Portland was insane. It was a club that had literally been a three story home and the performance area was on the ground floor right in front of the living room window. I was the first in line with my group and even though we were told to have tickets and proof of age ready, I was waived through without having to show my ID. I was grievously offended that the guy at the door didn't want to see it (Do I look that much older than 21 or whatever the drinking age is in Oregon? Harumph  ) (Heh heh..rhetorical question) Here is a photo I took that evening. There is no zoom:  In any case, I digress... I also, recently discovered and completely digested whole, Tim's first solo album -- Escapade. Released in 1983, I think--yet almost completely devoid of 80s orchestration. I played it for a friend of mine about 10 years older who is totally in love with Cliff Richard because I thought Escapade had a bit of Cliffy vibe to it and she totally agreed. I have been ordered by a mutual friend of ours to try to wrap my head around the 2nd solo album--Big Canoe..but I can't tear myself away from the Conversation so it'll have to wait. It's the 3rd solo album--the eponymous (sp?) "Tim Finn" album of ...is it 1989? There are so many beautiful songs on there that are ruined for me by overzealous nonsensical musical arrangements--his spare, live versions of these songs are so much better. So, I think I agree with you that his output has been consistent and each album has at least a few gorgeous things on it, but the man is only human and there are a few clunkers that even changing the arrangements wouldn't really save. I still retain enough of that "ew" factor from my olden days with Tim that I can recognize 'em when I hear 'em. Just don't ask me for specifics right now, I'd have to go through the songs again. But then, I don't like "Ghost Girl" and "Walking Thru the Ruins" (even still) and my brother thinks I'm insane. I'm not as intimate with Tim's solo work as I should be, but knock on wood, I still have time. "Out of this World" to me --is lovely--the melody, the words, the sentiment--it's totally one of those "ear worm" type songs that once it's in your head, it's there for a looooong time. And his imagery and ability to squeeze two possible but simaltaneous meanings from one line! "There's vapour flowing..like a bridal veil...from the rocket ship...that we're counting down... and love is leaving for the cold of space...it's a mystery...it's our saving grace....searching for life I never knew...out of this world" Along with the visuals of the little one in an astronaut outfit, we're led to believe that "the life I never knew" could be a combination of fatherhood and traveling the universe with his daughter. So sweet. Sigh. Anyways... I was just speaking with someone the other day about Waterloo Sunset. (I can't remember who???) They like Waterloo Sunset, but don't understand how it could be someone's favourite. I can understand it. It speaks of a time and place (I guess?) As for have I moved on beyond the first three songs? Sorta. My next post will be waxing lyrical about "Invisible" |
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Brian
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Post by Brian on Mar 1, 2009 0:03:20 GMT -8
 By 1989, Tim had decided to make another bid for pop music stardom. The record industry was booming and he had a face made for MTV. After signing to Capitol Records, Tim enlisted Mitchell Froom, who produced his brother's band Crowded House and later Los Lobos and Elvis Costello, to create an album I've enjoyed constantly for 20 years. I have been ordered by a mutual friend of ours to try to wrap my head around the 2nd solo album--Big Canoe..but I can't tear myself away from the Conversation so it'll have to wait. It's the 3rd solo album--the eponymous (sp?) "Tim Finn" album of ...is it 1989? There are so many beautiful songs on there that are ruined for me by overzealous nonsensical musical arrangements--his spare, live versions of these songs are so much better. So, I think I agree with you that his output has been consistent and each album has at least a few gorgeous things on it, but the man is only human and there are a few clunkers that even changing the arrangements wouldn't really save. I still retain enough of that "ew" factor from my olden days with Tim that I can recognize 'em when I hear 'em. Just don't ask me for specifics right now, I'd have to go through the songs again. "Big Canoe" is a huge topic, and another album criticized for its production now, mostly by younger fans. They do sound dated today -- but not as much as to me his first solo album, "Escapade." I didn't hear it when it came out either. But the songs are fairly forgettable, which may be why you never hear Tim perform any of them. (Though I'd love it if he whipped out "In a Minor Key" too.) We talked about this elsewhere: you favor many live versions in your wealth of worldwide bootlegs and I'm partial to the official release as the gold standard, something the Beatles and Bowie taught me, though I appreciate the wondrous variations you've sent me. The "Tim Finn" album has some of his greatest works -- "How'm I Gonna Sleep." "Crescendo," "Young Mountain," "Parihaka" and maybe his best song, "Not Even Close" -- draped in state of the art, high tech studio wizardry. (Remember when we used those terms?) I never thought any of the arrangements were overzealous or nonsensical -- they're steeped in contemporary blue-eyed soul. And Tim gave us a better album than Steve Winwood or Daryl Hall ever delivered. Yes, there's at least one clunker, "Been There Done That," as there is on every album Tim has made. (Like "Snowbound" on "The Conversation.") Yet I always play the CD all the way through like I did the cassette and the record. Hearing that song at the end, when I'm annoyed but trying to be generous, reminds me that Tim has bared his soul in 1989 and provided songs for the ages -- what else could I expect from him? But I certainly understand how one could appreciate "Parihaka" more while looking up his nose hairs, from first-hand, 3-D experience. Tim brings an additional 20 years of love and wisdom to the song when he plays it today. The lines that break me: It's only when I look into your eyes
I can see beyond
What I fear inside
And I love the way that you reminded me
How it all belongs
To eternityZiggy Stardust grew up on earth and had a little daughter who looks normal but visionary. Didn't we do a thread on the old board about late-in-life fathers? Like Lindsey Buckingham and Paul Simon, guys in their late 50's with fifth graders in their home recording studios. It does but it's timeless, the lyrics and the melody. They transcend the four-track tape and Ray Davie's maiden voyage as a record producer. The narrator's empathy for the love around him despite his isolation will always pull us into the song. Excellent! And maybe I'll be able to explain what's so engaging about "Great Return," which Anni points out is a waltz. Here's Tim Finn's slow-loading My Space page -- it has generous samples of all the songs on the new album and others: profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewProfile&friendID=99660628&albid=9099326&songid=32197822 |
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Post by martine on Jun 23, 2009 18:31:56 GMT -8
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Brian
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Post by Brian on Jun 24, 2009 23:00:38 GMT -8
That's one of the best and most heartfelt pieces I've ever read about Tim Finn, and I'm going back 32 years. And fresh! You posted the link only six hours after it was published. Thanks, Martine! We talked about it on the phone recently, and it's particularly sad now that the non-release of "The Conversation" in North America has been confirmed -- by a newspaper in Louisville, Ky. But that hasn't stopped him from recording new songs for his long-awaited greatest hits collection. This is from the blog Tim posted on his My Space page last week, his first since February, in case you missed it: I've been recording new tracks, some here in Auckland with Eddie Rayner and Brett Adams, and some in Sydney with Tony Buchen (producing and playing bass) and Carlos on drums...I'm recording a last track with Tony in Sydney at the end of the month. It's a brand new song called "The View Is Worth The Climb." I wasn't expecting to write any more for a while, but it was one of those ones that you wake up humming, and race down to the piano before you forget. So that means 4 brand new tracks for the Anthology, which comes out early Oct. And a remake of Stuff and Nonsense with Missy Higgins. We also did a new version of "So Deep" from Big Canoe. That was in Auckland with Eddie, Brett, Wayne Bell on drums....we did it first take and it sounds atmospheric and very free...the way songs do when you don't overwork them... |
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Post by martine on Jun 27, 2009 10:45:48 GMT -8
This song title "The View is worth the Climb" is interesting to me due to a bit of second hand gossip I was once privy to.
My brother's friend was a huge SE fan back in the day and so inspired by Tim, became a musician and then later a lighting technician for the Wpg film industry.
She had a chance to work on a film partially filmed in Wpg (don't ask me what movie, I have no idea) that starred the actor Sam Neill, a well known actor born in New Zealand. This lady and Mr Neill became friends during the shoot and when the whole thing moved down to the Bahamas for further filming, she also had to go down there.
One of the things you tell a new found friend maybe, is how you came to choose the career you did and what your influences were etc and having no idea really, that Mr Neill was friends with the Finns, she found herself invited to a house party in the Bahamas where Mr Neill either had a home or was renting.
Imagine her surprise and excitement when Mr Neill led her to a solitary Tim Finn enjoying a quiet glass of wine, introducing them to each other and then bowing out..with a twinkle in his eye...
During the course of their hours long conversation (in which she admitted to Tim that he was a major influence in her musical work and aspirations--with some trepidation, she didn't know how he would react) (He reacted very well) the chit chat turned to Tim's equally famous brother Neil.
With a far off look Tim admitted (I'm para-phrasing here) that he had accepted that "he was on the other side of the mountain now...and Neil was too..but hadn't admitted it to himself yet"
This event took place around 8 years ago as far as I know.
So I find it very interesting (I see connections all the time--LOL) that he's written a song with this title...in the end, it doesn't matter what is going on with the songwriter internally--it's how it hits each individual listener and it takes me back to this anecdotal conversation he once had with a devoted fan on a hot night over wine in the tropics.
;D
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anni
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Post by anni on Jun 27, 2009 15:18:34 GMT -8
I say, Martine. What a lovely, lyrical piece.
"The art of being a fan"
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Post by martine on Oct 3, 2009 7:16:04 GMT -8
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) (Heh heh..rhetorical question)