15-60-75 - The Numbers Band - time for its own thread

They play in a few locations around Akron most of the time:
http://www.numbersband.com/schedule.html

By cartoon - I mean the scene is most remembered* for Devo (Revenge of the Nerds) and the Waitresses (Square Pegs) - both of which were incredible bands that had very little to do with High School USA.
(* or maybe "remembers itself") The Pretenders (Brass in Pocket, Back on the Chain Gang and anyway, from London) and Tin Huey (I'm a Believer) - and Cleveland itself - hell, you've been there....

well i don't know, i "got" the live reissue just fine! I played the hell out of it. I loved it to death and then loved it some more. i can't remember if i put it on my pazz & jop ballot last year, but it shoulda been on there. I think i put the last david thomas album on instead. i have some bad 70's rock album and after hearing the numbers band album i noticed that this other band did a version of jimmy bell's in town and that led me on a google odyssey to discover the origins of that tune. interesting stuff.

But see, without seeing Bob Kidney lead a room full of people into a dark booth in the corner and then turning the table over (metaphorically speaking) .. I can't describe the way "Matchbox Blues Defined" sounds in real life.

xpost - RE: Pretenders - everyone from Akron does.

MY CITY WAS GONE

I WENT BACK TO OHIO
BUT MY CITY WAS GONE
THERE WAS NO TRAIN STATION
THERE WAS NO DOWNTOWN
SOUTH HOWARD HAD DISAPPEARED
ALL MY FAVORITE PLACES
MY CITY HAD BEEN PULLED DOWN
REDUCED TO PARKING SPACES
A, O, WAY TO GO OHIO

WELL I WENT BACK TO OHIO
BUT MY FAMILY WAS GONE
I STOOD ON THE BACK PORCH
THERE WAS NOBODY HOME
I WAS STUNNED AND AMAZED
MY CHILDHOOD MEMORIES
SLOWLY SWIRLED PAST
LIKE THE WIND THROUGH THE TREES
A, O, OH WAY TO GO OHIO

I WENT BACK TO OHIO
BUT MY PRETTY COUNTRYSIDE
HAD BEEN PAVED DOWN THE MIDDLE
BY A GOVERNMENT THAT HAD NO PRIDE
THE FARMS OF OHIO
HAD BEEN REPLACED BY SHOPPING MALLS
AND MUZAK FILLED THE AIR
FROM SENECA TO CUYAHOGA FALLS
SAID, A, O, OH WAY TO GO OHIO

The Akron PBS station did a documentary on the Akron scene a few years ago - I've been looking for a copy of it ever since - I never did get to see it.

That's a pretty good description. Before they start playing, they're just walking around, talking to people. Then they get up in front and just start going, and it seems like no big deal - the house band has just interrupted your conversation with their band thing. But holy shit, it builds quickly. And it's a pressurized tank, letting out a steady, continuous stream of steam power. And every so often, you can tell that the pressure's getting to an unsafe level, and Bob opens the relief valve .. and that's why you need to experience Matchbox Blues in person. And even though they play almost every week of the year, you can tell they mean it every time.

Just my opinion.

"But does anyone really associate the Pretenders w/ that geographical location? Dunno, but I don't."

and you are probably right. i only think of ohio when i think of C.H., not the whole band. but i kinda consider her the whole band by this point. and i always think of ohio when i think of her. i think of lots of things when i think of ohio. i should really start a bizarros thread. unless there is one. i am not from ohio.

In case anyone's interested .. Matchbox Blues Defined:
(Oh, nevermind - I'll have to post later because it's a WAV file & me with no converter.)
..still, doesn't do the song justice - maybe if you turn it up real loud .. (I really wish they could get a better different engineer, maybe..)

..also, in reference to scott's comment above - most of their releases have been live recordings, not really planned for release. More like they record and then say, "yeah, that's a decent recording. We can put that out." ..because they aren't really a *recording* band - they're a *live* band... they don't really seem to care much about recording.

I personally enjoy hearing bands play live because the talent is exposed. If a band sounds better on thier recordings than they do on stage, then the recording engineer should be famous, not the musicians!

JCK, December 29, 2005

The liner notes (and their web site) refer to the audience at the show where Jimmy Bell was recorded as lackluster. This is so hard for me to believe, even given the fact that they were there for Bob Marley. I'm really curious what they sound like these days.

I noticed recently that the first album is on Spotify and have been playing it non-stop lately. Since I'm not likely to make it to Ohio anytime soon, any advice on other recordings worth getting (some seem easier to find than others, Jimmy Bell is the only one I see on Spotify).

Been slow to get on board with "Jimmy Bell's Still In Town" - heard it a number of years ago but it finally clicked. I can't seem to find a CD version of the recent reissue with 9 tracks (3 bonus), unclear if one actually exists though it's listed in Discogs it could be a CDr.

Got the two Hearpen digital singles, they make an excellent complement to the albums seeing as they're recorded by the same lineup.