RSM special, EstoniaRAADIO 2, "Retrorubriik" by DJ Vaiko Eplik a full week of morning shorts (T T = 32:35)
monday, 2 January 2006 8:30 AM, R2 (5:33) well, my good friends, it`s time for retro-section and this week is dedicated it to the man called R. Stevie Moore ...who is a genius. He was born 1952 meaning he`s already relatively old man. Until now he is not particularly well known and living below "poverty level" in his house in New Jersey where he also has his home studio. He records his music on tapes and cdr-s and has recorded since the middle of 70s. He made first home recordings already 1972 inspired by Frank Zappa, who was also an home recorder (he is still a big fan of Zappa). The thing with the home recording is that....related to fact that RSM started to record at home, he basically invented a thing called "lo-fi", which has just lately become one of the rising styles in music, represented by the likes of Ariel Pink, but RSM has done it already more than 30 years. Dispite the fact that he is basically unknown and recorded only at home, having been criticized for the bad sound quality, he has on his way achieved some remarkable things. For example talking about rap-music, the black people started rapping around second half of 70s, and the first rap sung by white (wo)man has "officially" claimed to be a song called "Rapture" by Blondie, from their 1980`s album "Autoamerican". The year 1978 was a a tough time for R. Stevie Moore, he even thought about suicide, while starting to realize that he will never be rich and famous nor have a record deal. He then recorded a sad song about recording alone in his bedroom with his 4 track tape recorder, and in this song, recorded in his New Jersey bedroom, is a white man rapping first time ever. "Technical difficulty" from the album "1952-19__" - here it is - RSM, one of the most ingenious living people in today`s music. /playing the song/ it`s time to write the history of music once again and getting it right this time. you just heard the first rap song ever by a white man. the year was 1978, and song called "Technical difficulty". Tomorrow we`ll see how the same man accidentally invented "drum n` bass".
tuesday, 3 January 2006 8:30 AM, R2 (4:23) welcome again to the retro section and this week`s subject is one of the best kept secrets in rock n`roll - R. Stevie Moore, a pioneer of lo -fi who has invented several styles of music experimenting in his home with available means and achieving thereby very interesting results. Yesterday we talked about him rapping fluently as a first white man ever, when most of the music world is convinced it being in Blondie`s song "Rapture" which we heard just before today`s retro-section. Today we take a look on the history of drum n` bass (Toomas Luhats, the other host: "Yeah!"). As you, Toomas are an old friend of drum n` bass....I hold in my hand an article about drum n bass printed from net-encyclopedia "wikipedia" telling me that drum n` bass, also known as "jungle" was invented back in the beginning of 90s in London and Bristol, claiming that actual year the drum n` bass was first heard was around 1993. But it turns out that this is rubbish and the encyclopedia tells us lies. In a moment we listen to a song which RSM has recorded in his home with available means. The song is called "Signal" and the year was 1986. The track sounds as follows /track plays in backround/ I`m sorry, all you admirers of official music history but if this is not drum n` bass then ..i really don`t know what to do with myself.../song is playing/ Toomas: wow I`m standing on my eyebrows right now. Vaiko: you see...Ladies and gentlemen, this was to our knowledge the first drum n` bass track in the world recorded by the gentleman called RSM in his home. Please visit the forum of our show where you find a link to RSM web-page where you can not only download the tracks but the whole albums. Do get familiar with his creation, cause it`s worth it. Tomorrow we`ll talk more about the life of RSM and him as the guitarist (not much about that, though;) Tauno).
wednesday, 4 January 2006 8:30 AM, R2 (7:29) welcome again to the "retro-section" about R. Stevie Moore, and remember to visit his web-page www.rsteviemoore.com where you can freely download his best off and some other tracks too. The last few years RSM has been dedicated to set up a museum about his life, cause the man is convinced, regardless his relatively little fame, that one day he will be discovered and people need that kind of museum, and I personally share his conviction. RSM was born on 18 January 1952 into the family of Bob Moore and Betty Agnes Palmer. His father Bob Loyce Moore was one of the most well known country contrabass player, played among others with Elvis Presley and recorded with Frank Sinatra and Simon & Garfunkel - we all know the song "Bridge over Troubled Water" - RSM`s father is playing the bass in this very song. In any moment this honored gentleman will probably be added to the "Hall of Fame". I keep in my hand the short biography of RSM, where it is funnily noted that "1956 Elvis changed the world and due to this fact our family moved to Hillhurst Drive". Anyway the beginning of 70s he already started to experiment with home recording, among other things he for example recorded a record consisting only of guitar solos and a few records where he was just practicing the piano. In 1973 the first proper record was made and recording has ever since continued until today. He has had many hard times, when realizing the fame will probably never reach him. In the end of 80s he had really had enough, he stopped recording music 1988, bought a video-camera instead and started with video-arts. From that time there are several videos to his songs, which can be bought on dvd at his website. The last entries into his biography are as follows: 2002 - reached 50, 2003 - reached 51, 2004 - I made 4 great albums but almost no-one knows nothing about them, 2005 - still unknown, 2006 - it`s too late already. But I don`t agree it`s too late at all because it seems that his "student" Ariel Pink is close to break-through, and when that happens, RSM will soon reach the people as well. Anyway we now listen to one of my favourite songs , it`s "Part of the Problem" from 1984 - a perfect pop-song. /song is playing/ lyrics of rare talent and fantastical guitar parts, a songcraft accomplished to perfection in the course of the years. This was R. Stevie Moore.
thursday, 5 January 2006 8:30 AM, R2 (7:14)
itīs time of "retro-section" again. The year`s first retro-section is dedicated to R. Stevie Moore, a man who has "pre-invented" several music styles and created unique way of recording music, about which we will talk more today and also about his student Ariel Pink. The method RSM invented in 70s is about, or should I say the charm of this method lays in fact that we all are capable to use it. We all have at homes quite powerful computers you could not even dream about in 70s, so with available means and almost with no costs you can record music at home. So all of you my listeners can make music at home, even good music the quality of which can be compared to professionally produced music. There are many examples of such artists, for example Daft Punk who almost never meet each other, exchanging the files in internet instead and making music that way. Also members of Outcast record a lot at homes, so the home recording is reaching mainstream already. It`s only a matter of time when it turns into common trend and I dare to predict that the 21st century belongs to home recorders, to people who record their music themselves. RSM is also remarkable due to fact that he has always played most of the instruments himself, so he`s a multi-instrumentalist as well. As is his student Ariel Pink who is a guy from LA, born and raised there. He as well records all his music alone with tape recorder, plays all instruments himself and btw - making all the drum parts with his mouth with the help of some cheap microphone. It seems that he is just about to break through. Estonia is such a progressive country that here all the music specialists and fans of good music already know Ariel Pink and quite many of them already know RSM as well, while Ariel Pink has openly declared himself being the "student of RSM" and he is also spreading the word about RSM. Btw, I`ve heard that RSM sells Ariel Pink`s dvd-s on his website. Anyway Ariel Pink has had his first frontpage story in "LA Weekly", which is similar to our "Linnaleht" (laughing) ("Townpaper", it`s a free newspaper of Tallin City Government). Anyway it`s seems to be a fresh movement in todays music, although RSM has done it almost 40 years (laughing). It must be mentioned that Ariel Pink`s "Worn Copy" was elected as the best album of 2005* by "Eesti Ekspress" ("Estonian express", biggest Estonian weekly newspaper). Here is a song by Ariel Pink, "For Kate i Wait" from its album called "Doldrums", which preceded "Worn Copy" /song is playing/
friday, 6 January 2006 8:30 AM, R2 (7:53) it`s the time for retro-section again and time to sum up the week of R. Stevie Moore, the man we have introduced during this week, looked at his creations and found out many interesting things - like the facts that he rapped 2 years "too early" and invented drum n` bass 6 years "too early" or how he 35 years "too early" started to record at home. The biggest lesson or gift by RSM to us is not the fact that he invented a way to make music and several styles before they were officially born. Most important thing about R. Stevie Moore is the fact that he has survived, although he is still basically unknown....btw this morning we got an email from him, he is very happy that he is known, talked about and remembered in Estonia (laughing), a little country of 1,5 million in mystical north between Finland and Russia. The most important thing is that he has not stopped making music, is still active and performing sometimes with his student Ariel Pink, living actively creative life which is a good lesson to us. For example when I`m sometimes having hard times, I listen to music of RSM and think about how he has survived for 35 years and is convinced that one day he will be discovered, which is the conviction I fully share. All the friends I have introduced RSM to, have been immediately infected by his music as well. Some critic has said about RSM once: "imagine that The Beatles were a secret, that nobody knows that they are there..." I think itīs really nicely said. To be honest I was surprised that the man actually exists (laughing) ..cause it was hard to believe that there really is a man who has produced the music in such quantity and quality as well. Anyway, that was the retro section of this week, next week we talk about Russian rock-music in the 80s, a song called "Everyone but Everyone" will play in the end, a song by a man who is talked about by everyone but absolutely everyone .../song is playing/ . . . . . . . . . . . . .
(the rsm fans are in the capital of Tallinn on the north shore) *www.ekspress.ee/viewdoc/40B0D2F11035A9BAC22570E40058ADB3
this stereo show available on collectors CDR (32min) US$12
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translated from audio files by Tauno Maarpuu
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