ALISTAIR RIDDELL on the cover of the SPACE WALTZ lp '75
...manana...
JADE BLACKMORE recently interviewed 70s Glam rocker BRETT SMILEY, and famous author NINA ANTONIA, read that review at this link here ~
http://www.jadeblackmore.com/brettnina.htm
promo for a book on BRETT SMILEY was sent to us by our good friend NINA ANTONIA see below,......many of you know she wrote the book on the DOLLS, as well as JOHNNY THUNDERS, yrs ago when the 70s invasion was in it's early stages we exchanged a lot of letters with her, we took out a couple of quotes, one of us thought we posted it in a mini interview format style somewhere on this site but we were never able to find it anyways.......info on 70s glam act ANOTHER PRETTY FACE added close to the bottom also
Before we begin the term glitter rock has been referenced for a couple different styles for this glam rock that began in the early 70s,. . . For example an issue of Bomp magazine from Bomp '78 looks back on glitter rock and showcases bands like Mud and Hello and the Glitter band as 'glitter', while some journalists said Bowie was the king of glitter rock, elsewhere when the Guardian put out it's famous article on the more obscure bands and called them junk shop glam many yrs later, then one could say these smaller bands like Iron Virgin with a rough hard approach could be called glitter rock as opposed to glam, but really both terms are the same as the rule was there had to be some element of 'camp added to the look or sound, so then a lot of the bands featured on this page are more influenced by Bowie rather than say Bolan, , ,
Great news - SPACE WALTZ original lp is now out as a cd on RPM records,
SPACE WALTZ has reformed and played on july 17th '03. FOR FUNDRAISING GIG FOR THE TEMPLE ( Auckland, New Zealand )Eddie Rayner/Alistair Riddell/Paul Crowther [SPACE WALTZ]
played alongside.... Shona Laing Chris Knox Hammond Gamble Graham Brazier
and
Mahinarangi Tocker
SPACE WALTZ lp ' 74
GREAT lp from new zealand and famous there and in australia, recorded from '74 - 75 came out in '75, it's hard to find an artist who came closer to BOWIE than ALISTAIR RIDDELL did with his band SPACE WALTZ, some songs come a bit close to the atmospheric sound of COCKNEY REBEL, and ROXY as well, elsewhere he crosses the same musical paths as one JOBRIATH and one BRETT SMILEY ( see page 14), and also predates the sound of such new -wavers as thee GREAT BOOMTOWN RATS...........RIDDELL was previouly in ORIGINAL SUN in the late 60's then by the early 70's he formed a band with other musicians called ORB, they broke up in '73, and 2 members would go on to form 'SPLIT ENZ' who made some great new wave pop lps.......alistair would form SPACE WALTZ and release a GREAT lp of high musical proportions.........we would like to know who are the girls who sing the background vocals here....?
GREG CLARK gtr PETER CUDDIHY bs
BRENT ECCLES drms TONY RAYNER keyb'ds, synth
ALISTAIR RIDDELL gtr, vcls PAUL BAEYERTZ keyb'ds, synth
'FRAULIEN LOVE'
...EXCELLENT opener 'fraulien love' referring to the love of a german girl :), from the beginning the SUPERB melodic guitar riff reminds one of an old BOWIE glam lp, melodic plastic musical sound, the vocals are closer to BRYAN FERRY's..... 'WELL SOMEONE IS BREAKING AND THE FRAULIENS ARE SAYING, NICE DREAMS ON A SATURDAY NIGHT, WITH MARTINI ON THE ROCKS, AND WON'T YOU PLEASE SLOW DOWN, I GET CONFUSED TO THIS PACE', and 'FRAULIEN LOVE THAT MEANS NOTHING TO ME, AND THE WAY THAT I SAW YOU I HOPE YOU DON'T MEAN EVERYTHING', and 'BUT YOU CAN'T RISE ABOVE IT IF YOU TRY'.....with some ''LA, LA, LA's' thrown in.....
'SEABIRD'
VERY GOOD followup, this one begins with a solid drum beat, with slow piano, and we swear the melody at the beginning is the same peculiar music that was on some b movie we can't quite remember exactly which one but it's something like ED WOOD's MASTERPIECE 'NIGHT of the GHOULS', perhaps added for effect......the band builds up an atmospheric COCKNEY REBEL-type sound.....'WE LEFT YOU BEHIND A LONG LONG TIME AGO, WE WERE ALL VERY YOUNG ALL OUR FUTURES PRISTINE BRIGHT, WE LEFT YOU BEHIND', and 'WE WERE FLYING A SILENT SEABIRD REFLECTING IN YOUR EYE, OH SHE COULD TAKE YOU BY CONTROL, SHE COULD LET YOU KNOW, AND WE WERE FLYING........~.....later in the song the band begins to chant like monks, says ALISTAIR 'we were focused, focused in '70'
'OUT on the STREET'
GOOD song....'WATCH OUT YOUNG LOVE', and 'SOME SORT OF APHRODITE'............................'SHE'S OUT ON THE STREET, SHE TALKS TO EVERYONE SHE MEETS, SHE'S NO ILLUSION , SHE TELLS ME SHE'S RIGHT BUT SHE KNOWS THAT SHE'S WRONG'..........remember how the BOOMTOWN RATS fine songs sounded like they were influenced by COCKNEY REBEL ? well here you can hear that same sound...........
'ANGEL'
.....sci-fi beginning, synths pop and zoom, 'WELL I'M BESIDE MYSELF MORE THAN ANYTHING I'M TRYIN TO ADJUST MY FACE TO BELIEVE YOUR GRACE'.............and 'AND GOODBYE ANGEL THERE'S BLOOD IN MY EYES', and 'WHEN I START TO SCREAM I'M REALLY CALLIN' U'...........this one closer in sound to JOBRIATH.....
'OPEN UP'
GREAT one here, this one sounds rather similiar in style to BOWIE's 'R-n-R SUICIDE' with strong glam guitars......'THEY AMAZE ME THEY'D NEVER KNOW I CARE, BUTMANY TIMES NOW THEY QUESTIONED MY BELIEF IN U AND THEY RETURNED ME, DEVULGED ME, MY GOLD IS BARE', and 'OPEN UP OPEN UP THE FIRST TIME oooooooo PERHAPS UNTIL THE RIGHT TIME COMES'........
side 2
'SCARS'
SUPER-GLITTER ROCK, cowbell begins this #, which turns into pure BOWIE influenced rock along the lines of 'REBEL REBEL' but harder......'FLASHING, FLASHING, FLASHING, TURN THE LIGHTS SO LOW MY LOVE's A PULSE SYNC PROGRESSION 'OH MY SISTER WHEN THE QUESTION COMES TO U, WHAT DID, DO U KNOW WHAT DO U KNOW WHAT YOU'LL SAY', and 'THEIR ONLY SCARS OF LOVE, THAT SURE YOUR SCARS OF LOVE COME FROM ABOVEH YEA...' later in the song the synths open up, and the guitar rocks out, one of the lp's BEST !.............
'AND UP TO NOW'
....ROXY Music/BOOMTOWN RATS sound.... 'I'VE BEEN SEARCHING FOR A LONG TIME,, and 'HE's MUCH, MUCH OLDER, 42, AND I'M 23', and AND UP TO NOW I'VE THOUGHT I'D NEVER FIND ANOTHER GIRL LIKE U, AND UP TO NOW I'D NEVER THOUGHT I'D FOUND A LOVE THATS TRUE'....
'LOVE THE WAY HE SMILES'
slow piano begins to build up the atmosphere, although ehre he sounds as if he is IMIIATING STEVE HARLEY in vocals, and COCKNEY REBEL in style.....rather than just being influenced them him, but it's a damn GOOD imitiation, afterall they say imitiation is the sincerest form of flattery.....'HE COULD MAKE THE SUN SING , AND DECIDE TO SPEND THE AFTERNOON BEYOND THIS PLACE OUR TIME IN VILE SPACE', , later ALISTAIR sings 'I LOVE', and the girls in the background sing along 'THE WAY HE SMILES', after hearing this the chorus remains with u for sometime in your mind, later alistair sings 'HE COULD MAKE OUT SO SWEETLY' then in comes a crowd which cheers in the background and a crazy piano beat all the way thru the 2nd half, in comes a UNIQUE bass part which brought about a sense of deja vu for these music fanatics here also sings alistair 'HE WOULD LAUGH AND SING AND MY HEAD WOULD RHYME........all sounds like it was cued from the 'PYSCHMODO', or 'BEST YEARS OF OUR LIVES', and that in itself is a big compliment....
'BEAUTIFUL BOY
EXCELLENT song ! if there was ever a case where an artist saves the best for last well this is it, the BEST of the lot , and one of the best pop-rock songs of the 70s !! we could write a whole chapter on this song ....the guitars begin here like the ones on BOWIE's 'THE MAN WHO SOLD THE WORLD'.......overall sound is similiar to ROXY Music......some GREAT lyrics here .........'STARTED OUT A POP STAR WITH LONG HAIR BEADED ON THE STAGE BUT HE HAD IT MADE WITH THEIR ASTRAL VIOCES SINGING AND A STRANGER'......girls sing 'LA, LA, LA's' sweetly throughout the tune, they sing in a similiar style as the girls in LOU REED's wonderful 'SAD SONG'........... sings Alistair 'BUT MY BOY YOU COULD GO FAR, THE WONDERFUL JOY', and 'BEAUTIFUL BOY WAITING FOR YOU, WON'T LET YOU DOWN', towards the end he sings 'YOUR HEAVEN BOUND,....the WONDERFUL JOY OF GOING ON....OH YEA ' !!!!!!!!...the girls in the background sing along wonderfully .............GREAT surreal guitar riff comes in and carries the tune home...........(fades)....the band really sound like angels soaring for the heavens and praising the joys of God . .. ( try listening to this song on salvia an you will have an otherworldly experience that you will never ever forget (:
thought we heard somewhere that there was more to the discography of SPACE WALTZ,one thing's for sure this lp can be considered a masterpiece of glam and pop rock............................
here is a small writeup on SPACE WALTZ sent in early '02 by a new Zealander and fan of the 70s invasion . . .
We had a glam-band here in New zealand back in 1974 called Space Waltz. They were led by Alastair Riddel who was a real Bowie-clone. They appeared on our "New Faces" talent quest in 1974 doing Alastair's song "Out On The street". I remember they didn't win, but the song was great, albeit very Bowie in phrasing and arrangement. "Out On The Street" came out on single soon after (EMI HR526) with "Angel" on the B-side which is another Bowie type arrangement. Space Waltz released an LP which I haven't heard.
--Everett McKinley Dirksen
Be patient toward all that is unsolved in your heart and try to love the questions themselves. Live the questions now. Perhaps you will find them gradually, without noticing it, live along some distant day into the answer.
--Rainer Maria Rilke
Just as a tree without roots is dead, a people without history or culture also becomes a dead people.
--Malcolm X (1925-1965)
BRETT SMILEY rare 45 'VA VA VA VOOOOOOOOM ' '74
Some of u know that Mr. Smiley recently did a radio show with some friends of ours on Wfmu, they played lots of lost 70s Glam tracks, see our downloads 2 section for this info, and here is a promo sent to us by NINA ANTONIO at the end of Nov. '04 about a Great book she has written on Mr. Smiley ~
Whatever Happened To Brett Smiley?
Fourteen and forlorn, Nina Antonia escaped the torment of her teens with dreams of Marc Bolan and the New York Dolls. They ruled supreme in her glam rock universe until the night she saw Brett Smiley on the Russell Harty TV show.
Appearing to reside in very different worlds, Nina and Brett shared the same wish - some kind of transformation through music. The youngest child ever to play 'Oliver' on Broadway, Brett seemed poised for stardom, and as the Seventies went into orbit, he found himself the prot駊e of Rolling Stones' svengali Andrew Loog Oldham.
Coming to terms with her damaged childhood, Nina started writing about the lives of her teen idols, resulting in a friendship with former New York Doll, Johnny Thunders. Eventually she learned of Brett's fall from the high> life and his crash landing on the boulevard of broken dreams.> 'The Prettiest Star' details two people's search for redemption, and is a tender and sad love letter to the heady days of glitter, champagne, cocaine and platform boots.
OF COURSE U FOLKS WANT TO BUY THIS BOOK entitled 'THE PRETTIEST * ',....... YOUR LIFE WILL BE EMPTY WITHOUT IT, SO PLEASE CONTACT NINA OR ELSE CONTACT SAF PUBLISHING TO GET YOUR COPY TODAY, SEND YOUR MONEY AND INQUIRIES TO ;
Dave Hallbery SAF Publishing Ltd London, UK
www.safpublishing.com
( some of u know we did this review long before the actual cd was released, when we did the review, the music was still considered unreleased, the cd has extra tracks not reviewed here.......)
BRETT SMILEY unreleased lp of '74
FOR THOSE INTERESTED, SMILEY'S LONG AWAITED unRELEASED LP WILL BE RELEASED FINALLY IN AUG 'O3, HE PLAYED AT THE GARAGE ON AUG 18th IN LONDON, A FRIEND SENT IN AN ARTICLE WHICH CAN BE SEEN IN THE BRETT SMILEY GALLERY, SEE OUR 'GATEWAY', LOOK FOR #20....here is his site url -
http://www.brettsmiley.com/
Rpm released 'BREATHLESS' in aug. '03, the long awaited tracks, however it seems the track listing is somewhat diiferent than the demo tape we have, 8 of the 10 songs we have reviewed are on there however 1 track did not make it ; his cover of 'SUGARPIE HONEYBUNCH', we wonder why ?, a part was included in the medly for 'Somewhere over the Rainbow'...... here is the tracklisting for Rpm's release -
Brett's Lullaby / Highty Tighty / Space Ace / April in Paris / Solitaire / Va Va Va Voom / Run for the Sun / I want to hold your Hand / Pre-Columbian Love / Queen of hearts / I can't help myself / Over the Rainbow / Young at Heart
above is a picture of BRETT SMILEY's 45 'VA VA VA VOOM/SPACE AGE', see page 15 for reviews,..... listening to this lost classic of soft glam is like discovering a hidden treasure few people know of................................ SMILEY EVOKES SOPHISTICATED SOUNDS THE WAY STEVE HARLEY, and BOWIE did, as well as LOU REED, and JOBRIATH as well, he shows a strong influence from those artists mostly, he has some of the softest vocals ever heard perhaps comparable to PETER PERRETT who at the time was in ENGLAND's GLORY, who had a GREAT lp before goin off to the ONLY ONES ( see page 4, and 6)his vocals also kinda predates the vocal style of TELEVISION PERSONALITIES, see page 6.............this lp is not quite as good as SPACE WALTZ, but it's a GREAT one nonetheless in a similiar BOWIE style......
'HIGHTY TIGHTY'
a very GOOD song about a girl named Heidi Riley......original plastic rock sound with horns, ROXY-type experimentation......some lyrics ; 'THAT SHE's AN ENTERTAINER, THE BOYS ARE TO BLAME', and 'WITH LEGS LIKE THAT , LIKE A PERSIAN CAT', and 'REALLY LIKE YOUR MASK'........ and 'WHY DON'T U STAY AND WE'LL.......' he does not say anything after that part, but u can guess the implication.....towards the ending he says 'HIGHTY, HIGHTY'......
'PRE COLOMBIAN
.......GOOD followup to the opener, good guitar sound, bongos, horns, similiar in style to JOBRIATH,'also similiar to ROXY.....'I'LL JUST DO IT SO, DON'T ASK ME WHY', IT's SO EASY I DON'T EVEN TRY', and 'HAVE ANOTHER CHANCE TO SEE WHAT YOUR WEARIN', and 'WHY NOT GIVE IT ALL UP AND STOP CARING.......
'APRIL in PARIS'
'LALALALALALALALALALALA.............goes the band at the beginning of this WONDERFUL pop song about a girl named April in the town of Paris, that sounds very influenced by LOU REED 'TRANSFORMER' era lp, campy ambiance, background singers sound like they are acting like kids..............'CRYIN IN THE NIGHT CAUSE NOTHING GOES RIGHT WITH HER, I'M THRU, AND U HOLD ME SO TIGHT THAT I LOST MY SIGHT, AND EVERYTHING SEEMS OK ', and 'OHH I'M LOVIN' IT', and 'WHAT CAN I SAY I'M A MILLION MILES AWAY', and 'A NIGHT WITH APRIL IN PARIS', and 'CRYIN' IN THE NIGHT, OH THAT WOULD BE SOMETHING NEW'........
'QUEEN of HEARTS'
WOW ! IF THERE EVER WAS A song that stands OUT IN AN LP TOGETHER THIS SONG IS IT !.....strong HARLEY/LOU REED style, very sophisticated pop song with great ambiance, very very slow with lovely piano and violin, violin begins the song ' ELEVATE A DIFFERENT PLANE, FABRICATE AHHHHH, JUST ENTERTAIN', and eslewhere Brett sings about 'A FAR OFF SUNSET', and ' A TRAGEDY OF BROKEN HEARTS'.......'IM JUST A QUEEN OF HEARTS, A QUEEN OF HEARTS'.......SMILEY really holds this song together well,
'SUGAR PIE, HONEY BUNCH'
'Sugarpie honeybunchYou know that I love you,I can't help myself I love you and nobody else,In and out my life you come and you go,leaving just your picture behind,and I kissed it a thousand times'.....yes the old motown cover from the 60's, done up here in a camp style that suits the singer and the audience well, then in the middle of the song out of nowhere he sings a line from 'OVER THE RAINBOW', 'somewhere by a rainbow way up high there's a song that i heard of once in a lullaby', .....this song has been covered by many people....
'SOLITAIRE'
listen closely if u ever come accross this UNRELEASED lp which very few have heard, here u can hear a song that sounds very influenced by LENNON's 'JEALOUS GUY' ......'I'M JUST A LONELY MAN' sings brett...sorry our copy did not come with the cover of the BEATLES ' I WANNA HOLD YOUR HAND', but i bet that one sounds great..
'RUN to the SUN'
another GREAT one, campy glam-pop, here BRETT evokes the sounds of COCKNEY REBEL's 2nd lp, using a keyboard sound that reminds us of some of JOHN CALE's unique pop ..........EXCELLENT VOCALS here.....'EVERYTIME I TRY AND TOUCH THE SKY, IT'S JUST THE SAME, AND IT STARTS TO RAIN.....', and 'EVERYTIME I RUN TO THE SUN.......' 'SO DAY TO DAY IS THE ONLY WAY, PLEASURE, PAIN, THE SUN AND THE RAIN, ALL THOSE CLOUDS CRYING OVER ME, I SAID SINGING IN THE RAIN', and 'ALL I EVER KNOW I'M SINGIN' IN THE RAIN, SO TODAY IS THE ONLY WAY, PLEASURE, PAIN, IT's STARTING TO RAIN'......the mellotron is it ? and the guitar make a pretty sound together as the song plays into it's last minute....
'YOUNG AT HEART' this very lovely ballad closes the lp, and it's a winner indeed, very slow, soothing vocals over piano, just as good as SINATRA himself who made this song famous......
Fairy tales can come true, It can happen to you, If you're young at heart!
( Young at heart! )
For it's hard you will find To be narrow of mind, If you're young at heart!
( Young at heart! ) You can go to extremes, With impossible schemes, You can laugh when your dreams Fall apart at the seams . . .
And life gets more exciting, With each passing day, An' love is either in your heart, Or, on the way!
Don't you know that it's worth, Every treasure on earth, To be young at heart! ( Young at heart! )
For as rich as you are, It's much better by far, To be young at heart! ( Young at heart! )
And if you should survive, To a hundred an' five, Look at all you'll derive Outta bein' alive!
And here is the best part, You have a head start . . . If you are among, The very young at heart!
( Don't you know that it's worth, Every treasure on earth, To be young at heart! For as rich as you are, It's much better by far, To be young at heart! )
And if you should survive, To a hundred an' five, Look at all you'll derive Outta bein' alive!
And here is the best part, You have a head start . . . If you are among, The very young . . . at heart!
~ (featured in the 1955 film "Young at Heart" Music by Johnny Richards with lyrics by Carolyn Leigh, 1954 Arranged by O.B. Masingill )
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here is the track listing for the unreleased lp we just reviewed from Smiley, that was recorded and shelved in '74, see our reviews of his FANTASTIC single and even better b side 'VA VA VA VOOM/SPACE AGE' '74 on page 15, and see page 21 for a gallery on him with 3 pictures ....*
Solitaire, Pre-Columbian ,April In Paris, Sugar Pie Honey Bun, Young At Heart,
Run For The Sun, Space Age, I Wanna Hold Your Hand, Queen Of Hearts, Heidy Riley
....our tape copy did not come with 'I WANNA HOLD YOUR HAND' the BEATLES cover, however on here are 3 other covers as u can see.........WHAT A GREAT UNDISCOVERED TREASURE, then he went to star in a film 'CINDERELLA'in '77,
Note: Smiley lived in L.a. in the mid 70s, he was a close friend of Ygarr Ygarrist of ZOLAR X, see page 23 for info on this L.a. sci fi band.........
he also used to play some acoustic versions of his songs for his friends including one STEFEN SHADY of SHADY LADY whom were an early 70s underground glam band along the lines of the N.Y. DOLLS and the STONES, to find out where SMILEY lived during this time see our 2nd page on SHADY LADY in our gateway 2 close to the bottom....
CARSON ARNOLD has interviewed Smiley at this link, there is also a lenghty article he wrote on him as well, u can get there directly thru our links 2 page....
http://www.longhousepoetry.com/hear.html
Prabhupada: Desire means material desires. If you think that you are Indian and your desire is how to make your country improve... Or so many desires. Or if you are a family man. So these are all material desires. So long you are enwrapped by material desires, then you are under the condition of material nature. As soon as you think that you are, your, you are not Indian or American, you are not a brahmana or Vaisnava, brahmana or ksatriya, you are eternal servant of Krsna, that is called purified desire. Desire is there, but you have to purify the desire. That I have explained just now. Sarvopadhi-vinirmuktam [Cc. Madhya 19.170]. These are upadhis. Suppose you are in a black coat.
So does it mean you are black coat? If you say... If I ask you, "Who are you?" If you say, "I am black coat," is that the proper answer? No. Similarly, we are in a dress, American dress or Indian dress. So if somebody asks you "Who are you?" "I am Indian." That is wrong identification. If you say, "Aham brahmasmi," that is your real identification. That realization required.
ad for JOBRIATH's first performance
JOBRIATH
we've been trying to review his 2 lps for the longest time ever since we have been able to download the 2 great lps of Jobriath he made in '73, and '74,.....however we were sent a few songs,....... stop what you are doing, go to our downloads page, listen to one of his songs while you read this...'ROCK of AGES''73 we think is the best song he has done, it's a N.Y. DOLLS style glitter rock raver....with hard guitar and a STONES-like rhythm section, in fact the song is so GOOD we put the complete lyrics for it on page 21.....'GONE TOMMORROW' '73 is a WONDERFUL ballad in a BOWIE/HARLEY mold, very nice piano sound where Jobriath sings 'i don't believe in yesterday, gone tommorrow'..... against the tickling piano keys, which make a soothing sound....
'SPACE CLOWN' '74 ....'oh Pierrot where do you go,.....oh your a space clown, when u laugh, when u laugh u bring the world down, and when u cry, when u cry u bring the sky down'.....GREAT ballad,...........'WORLD WITHOUT END' '73 is a STRONG rock # with a unique guitar sound that goes around in circles....'sister sue' '74 is a rock number, with good guitar work and good background vocals...and 'OOH, LA, LA' '74 again is a BOWIE-like rocker with swirling guitars, and vocals.....JOBRIATH had an lp in '73, and another in '74, and some singles, we think they are both very GREAT full of ballads like the ones above, a few rockers, and some tin-pan-alley old time inspired pop, however at the time rock critics were against him getting bigger, he should have been as his music is very well written, to find out more of this sound search for BRETT SMILEY's rare single and b side ( see above)..the b side is more along the lines of JOBRIATH....maybe soon we'll review the rest of his songs here....
'Space Clown'
You're so entertaining and amusing And God knows everybody loves a clown Boredom wails you can't refuse him O Pierrot where do you go when you come down A star shot across the sky and smiled Then vanished in a tear
Ah you're a space clown When you laugh you bring the house down When you smile you bring the walls down You're a space clown 'Cause when you cry When you cry you bring the sky down'
don't forget to download the music of JOBRIATH on the 70's invasion download page :)
ANOTHER PRETTY FACE,
interested in an obscure 70s glam act who painted their faces and had an lp released around '74 called Another Pretty Face ? read the excert below, then afterwards search for the info on this band....
excert from PRABHUPADA's LECTURES SITE
"Birth And Death Caused By Maya"
72/11/25 Hyderabad, Bhagavad-gita 2.20 listen
Prabhupada:
na jayate mriyate va kadacin nayam bhutva bhavita va na bhuyah ajo nityah sasvato 'yam purano na hanyate hanyamane sarire [Bg. 2.20]
So the soul cannot be killed. Na hanyate hanyamane sarire. And the soul has no birth, no death. As Krsna is eternal, Krsna has no birth and death... Ajo 'pi sann avyayatma. Krsna says in the Fourth Chapter. Aja. Krsna's another name is Aja. Or visnu-tattva. Aja. We are also aja. Aja means who does not take birth. So the both Krsna, or God, and the living entities, they are eternal. Nityo nityanam cetanas cetananam (Katha Upanisad 2.2.13). The only difference is because we are a small particle, therefore we are prone to be covered by material energy. This is the difference. We become cyuta, fallen down. But Krsna is Acyuta. He never falls down. That is the difference. So just like cloud. Cloud can cover a portion of sunlight. Not that cloud can cover the, all the sunlight. That is not possible. Suppose now this sky is covered with cloud, maybe hundred miles, two hundred miles or five hundred miles. But what is five hundred miles in comparison to the sun, millions and trillions of miles? So the cloud covers our eyes, not the sun. Similarly, maya can cover the eyes of the living entity. Maya does not cover the Supreme Person. No. That is not possible.
So this so-called birth and death is due to the covering of maya. The marginal potency. We are... Krsna has got many potencies. Parasya saktir vividhaiva sruyate [Cc. Madhya 13.65, purport]. That is the Vedic instruction. The Absolute Truth has multi-energies. Whatever we see... Parasya brahmanah saktis tathedam akhilam jagat. Whatever little we are seeing, that is simply distribution of the energy of the Supreme. Exactly the same way: the sunshine and the sun globe, and the sun-god. Sun-god, from him... Not only sun-god, there are other living entities also. Their body is glowing. They have got fiery body. As we have got earthly body... Earth is prominent in this planet. Similarly, in the sun planet, the fire is prominent. As earth is one of the five elements, fire is also another one of the five elements. These things will be explained that the soul is never burned by the fire.
So there is no question of thinking that in the sun planet there is no living being. There are living beings, suitable for the planet. We learn from Brahma-samhita that kotisu vasudhadi-vibhuti-bhinnam. Vasudha. Vasudha means planet. There are innumerable planets in each and every universe. Yasya prabha prabhavato jagad-anda-koti-kotisv asesa-vasudhadi-vibhuti-bhinnam [Bs. 5.40]. This is only one universe. There are millions of universes also. When Caitanya Mahaprabhu was requested by one devotee of Lord Caitanya that "My dear Lord, You have come. Kindly You take away all these conditioned souls. And if You think that they are horribly sinful, they cannot be delivered, then You transfer all the sins upon me. I shall suffer. You better take them away." This is Vaisnava philosophy. Vaisnava philosophy means that para-duhkha-duhkhi. Actually, a Vaisnava is unhappy by seeing others unhappy. Personally, he has no unhappiness. Because he's in contact with Krsna, how he can be unhappy? Personally, he has no unhappiness. But he becomes unhappy by seeing the conditioned souls unhappy. Para-duhkha-duhkhi. Therefore, the Vasudeva Ghosa, he requested Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu that "You deliver all these unhappy conditioned souls. And if You think they are sinful, they cannot be delivered, then transfer all the sins of these people to me. I shall suffer, and You take them away."
So Caitanya Mahaprabhu was very much pleased by his proposition and He smiled. He said that "This brahmanda, this universe, is only just like a mustard grain in the bag of mustard seeds." Our point is that there are so many universes. Just compare. You take a bag of mustard seeds and pick up one grain. In comparison to the pack of mustard seeds what is the value of this one grain? Similarly, this universe is like that. There are so many universes. The modern scientists, they are trying to go to other planets. Even they go, what is the credit there? There are kotisu vasudhadi-vibhuti-bhinnam. One cannot go so many planets. Even according to their calculation, if they want to go to the topmost planet, which we call Brahmaloka, it will take forty-thousand of years in the light-year calculation.
So in God's creation everything is unlimited. It is not limited with our perspective of knowledge. So there are so many, innumerable universes, innumerable planets, and there are innumerable living entities. And all of them are rotating according to their karma. And birth and death means changing, one body to another. I make one plan in this life and... Because everyone is in the bodily concept of live. So so long we are in the bodily concept of life... "I am brahmana," "I am ksatriya," "I am vaisya," "I am sudra," "I am Indian," "I am American," "I am so and so." These are all bodily concept of life designations. So so long I am in bodily concept of life, I think, "I have got this duty to do. As brahmana, I have got to do such and such things." "As American, I have got to do so many things." So long this consciousness will continue, we'll have to accept another body. This is the nature's process. So long...
Therefore we make some plan in this life, and my, this material body, this gross body is finished, that is dead, but my idea, in the subtle body, in the mind, it remains. And because it remains in my mind, therefore to fulfill my desire I have to accept another body. This is the law of transmigration of the soul. The soul is, thus, with his plan, he is transferred into another gross body. And along with the soul, there is Supersoul, Supreme Personality of Godhead. Sarvasya caham hrdi sannivisto mattah smrtir jnanam apohanam ca [Bg. 15.15]. So the Supersoul, Supreme Personality of Godhead, gives him intelligence: "Now you wanted to execute this plan. Now you have got a suitable body and you can do it." So therefore we find that somebody is great scientist. Or a very nice mechanic. This means that in the last life he was mechanic, he was making some plan, and this life he gets chance, and he fulfills his desire.
vasamsi jirnani yatha vihaya navani grhnati naro 'parani tatha sarirani vihaya jirnany anyani samyati navani dehi [Bg. 2.22]
Dehi, the living entity, simply changing the dress. It is the dress. This body is dress. Now the question is... Just like there was some discussion that the spirit has no form. How it can be? If this is, this body is my dress, how I have no form? How the dress has got form? My coat or shirt has got a form because my body has got a form. I have got two hands. Therefore my dress, my coat, has also two hands. My shirt has also two hands. So if this is dress, this body, as it is described in the Bhagavad-gita -- vasamsi jirnani yatha vihaya [Bg. 2.22] -- so if it is dress, then I must have a form. Otherwise how this dress is made?
It is very logical conclusion and very easy to understand. Unless I have got my own form, how the dress has got form? What is the answer? Anyone can say? How the original living entity can be without hands and legs? If this body's my dress... Just like you go to a tailor. He takes measurement of your hand, of your leg, of your chest. Then your coat or shirt is made. Similarly, when you have got a particular type of dress, it is to be assumed that I have got my form, spiritual form. Nobody can refute this argument. And apart from our so-called argument, we have to accept the statement of Krsna. The... Because He's authority.
So if I think that I, I am this coat, that is my ignorance. And that is going on. The so-called service to the humanity means washing the coat. Just like if you are hungry and I wash your coat very nicely with soap, will you be satisfied? No. That is not possible. So every one of us is spiritually hungry. What these people will do by washing the coat and shirt? There cannot be any peace. The so-called humanitarian service means they are washing this vasamsi jirnani. That's all. And death means... It is explained very nicely that when the dress, your dress, my dress, becomes too old, we change it. Similarly, birth and death means changing the dress. It is very clearly explained. Vasamsi jirnani yatha vihaya [Bg. 2.22]. Jirnani, old dress, old garment, we throw it away, and take another new dress, new garment. Similarly, vasamsi jirnani yatha vihaya navani grhnati. A new, fresh dress. Similarly, I am old man.
So if I am not liberated, if, if I have got so many plans to execute in this material world, then I'll have to accept another body. But if you have no more plan, no more plan, niskincana... That is called niskincana. Niskincanasya bhagavad-bhajanonmukhasya. Caitanya Mahaprabhu says, niskincana. One has to be completely freedom, completely freedom about this material world. One should be disgusted. Then there is possibility of being transferred to the spiritual world. So long one has got a pinch of desire that "If I would have become like Brahma, or like king, like Jawaharlal Nehru," then I'll have to accept a body. This desire. Krsna is so liberal, so kind. Whatever we want -- ye yatha mam prapadyante [Bg. 4.11] -- Krsna will give you. To take something from Krsna... Just like the Christians pray, "O God, give us our daily bread." So is it very difficult task for Krsna to give our dai...? He's giving already. He's giving daily bread to everyone. So this is not the mode of prayer. Their mode of prayer...
As Caitanya Mahaprabhu said, mama janmani janmanisvare bhavatad bhaktir ahaituki tvayi [Cc. Antya 20.29, Siksastaka 4]. This is prayer. We haven't got to ask anything. Krsna, God, has made ample arrangement for our maintenance. Purnasya purnam adaya purnam eva avasisyate. But it is restricted by nature when we are sinful. We become atheists. We become demons. Then the supply is restricted. Then we cry for: "Oh, there is no rain. There is no this, no..." That is nature's restriction. But from God's arrangement, there is sufficient food for everyone. Eko bahunam vidadhati kaman. He supplying everyone.
So so long we'll have a pinch of material desire to execute our plan, then we have to accept a material body, and that is called janma. Otherwise, the living entity has no birth and death. Now, this janma, and mrtyu... The living entities, they are compared with the sparks, and the Supreme Lord as the big fire. So the big fire, that is the comparison. And the small sparks, both of them are fire. But sometimes the sparks fall down from the big fire. That is our falldown. Falldown means we come into the material world. Why? Just to enjoy, to imitate Krsna. Krsna is the supreme enjoyer. So we are servants. Sometimes... It is natural.
The servant desires that "If I could enjoy like the master..." So when this sentiment or proposition comes, that is called maya. Because we cannot be enjoyer. This is false. If I think that I can become enjoyer, even in this material world, so-called... They're, everyone is trying to become enjoyer. And the last snare of enjoyer means that one thinks that "Now I shall become God." This is a last snare. First of all, I want to become manager, or proprietor. Then prime minister. Then this and that. And when everything is baffled, then one thinks that "Now I shall become God." That means the same propensity, to become master, to imitate Krsna, is going on.
Therefore this desire, that I shall merge into the existence of God, I shall become... Just like the example is given that "I am drop of water. Now I shall merge into the big ocean. Therefore I shall become ocean." This example is generally given by the Mayavadi philosophers. The drop of water is, when mixed up with the ocean water, they become one. That is only imagination. Every water, molecular. There are, there are so many individual molecular parts. Apart from that, suppose you mix up with the water, and merge into the Brahman existence, the samudra, the sea, or the ocean. Then again you'll be evaporated, because the water is evaporated from the ocean and it become cloud and again falls down on the ground, and it goes down again to the ocean. This is going on.
This is called agamana-gamana, coming and again mixing. So what is the benefit? But the Vaisnava philosophy says that we do not want to mix up with the water; we want to become a fish within the ocean. That is very nice. If one becomes fish, a big fish, or small fish... It doesn't matter. If you go deep into the water, then there is no more evaporation. You remain.
Similarly, the spiritual world, the Brahman effulgence, if... Nirbheda-brahmanusandhi. Those who are trying to merge into the Brahman existence, for them, it is not very safe. That is explained in the Srimad-Bhagavatam: vimukta-maninah. Vimukta-maninah. They're thinking that "Now I have merged into the Brahman effulgence. Now I am safe." No, it is not safe. Because it is said, aruhya krcchrena param padam tatah patanty [SB 10.2.32]. Even after great austerities and penance, one may rise, param padam, in the, merging into the Brahman effulgence. Still, from there, he falls down. He falls down. Because Brahman, the spirit soul, is anandamaya. As Krsna, or the Absolute, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, is anandamayo 'bhyasat (Vedanta-sutra 1.1.12), sac-cid-ananda-vigrahah [Bs. 5.1].
So simply by merging into the Brahman existence, one cannot become anandamaya. Just like you are going very high in the sky. So to remain in the sky, it is not very anandamaya. If you can get shelter in some planet, then it is anandamaya. Otherwise, you have to come back again on this planet.
So nirvisesa, without varieties, there cannot be any ananda. Variety is the mother of enjoyment. So we are trying to... We are disgusted with these material varieties. Therefore some is trying to make these varieties zero and some is trying to make these varieties impersonal. But that will not give us the exact transcendental pleasure. If you can go up into the Brahman effulgence and take shelter of Krsna or Narayana... There are innumerable planets in the Brahman effulgence. They are called Vaikunthaloka. And the topmost Vaikunthaloka is called Goloka Vrndavana. So if you are fortunate enough to take shelter in one of these planets, then you are eternally happy in blissful condition of knowledge. Otherwise, simply to merge into the Brahman effulgence is not very safe.
Because we want ananda. So in impersonal zero standard there cannot be any ananda. But because we have no information, the Mayavadi philosophers, of the Vaikuntha planets, they come back again to these material planets. Aruhya krcchrena param padam tatah patanty adhah [SB 10.2.32]. Adhah means in this material world. That I have explained many times. There are so many big, big sannyasis. They give up this material world as mithya, jagan mithya, and take sannyasa, and then again, after a few days, they come to social service, politics. Because they could not realize what is Brahman. They, for ananda, they have to take part in these material activities. Because ananda... We want anandamayo 'bhyasat (Vedanta-sutra 1.1.12). So if there is no spiritual ananda, there must be, they must come to the inferior quality. This material world is inferior quality. Apara. If we cannot get spiritual ananda, or superior pleasure, then we have to take this material pleasure. Because we want pleasure. Everyone searching after pleasure.
So aruhya krcchrena param padam tatah patanty adhah [SB 10.2.32]. So for this pleasure only we are making so many plans. According to our own brain, teeny brain, we are making plans. Just the, in the state also, they're making plans. Personally, individually, and commercially, everyone is making plan. The plan-making means becoming entangled. And he has to, they have to take birth again to fulfill the plan. Vasana. This is called vasana. So we have to purify the vasana, desire. That is required. If we don't purify, then we have to take birth, birth and death, repetition of birth and death. So that desire, how it can be purified? That desire can be purified. Sarvopadhi-vinirmuktam tat-paratvena nirmalam [Cc. Madhya 19.170]. We have to give up this designation, "I am brahmana," "I am sudra," "I am ksatriya," "I am American," "I am Indian," "I am this and..."
So many designations. Because I am spirit soul, but this is, this covering is my designation. so if I identify with this designation, then I'll have to repeat the birth and death. That you can purify. How it can be purified? That can be purified by devotional service. When you understand that you are part and parcel of Krsna, when I understand that "I am eternally related with Krsna. He's Supreme, I am servant," and when I engage myself in His service, that is the purification of desires. Without Krsna consciousness, everyone is acting on different material consciousness. "I am American. Therefore I must work in this way. I must fight with the Russians." Russian thinking that "I am Russian. I must fight the Americans." Or the China... So many designations. This is called maya, illusion.
So we have to purify. That purification means one must know that "I am not this body. I am spirit soul." So what I am doing as spirit soul? Whatever I am working, at the present moment, on this bodily concept of life... But what about, what I am doing as spirit soul? This knowledge required. This knowledge comes when we are purified.
brahma-bhutah prasannatma na socati na kanksati samah sarvesu bhutesu mad-bhaktim labhate param [Bg. 18.54]
Mad-bhaktim labhate param. When? After being free from this material designation, brahma-bhutah. After being free, not before that. So bhakti is not a sentiment. Bhakti... People say, "Those who are not very learned, cannot study Vedic literature very nicely, and therefore they take to bhakti." No. Bhakti, actual bhakti, begins when one has become completely brahma-bhutah.
brahma-bhutah prasannatma na socati na kanksati samah sarvesu bhutesu mad-bhaktim labhate param [Bg. 18.54]
That, that is pure transcendental stage of executing devotional service, after being free from material designation. Sarvopadhi-vinirmuktam tat-paratvena nirmalam [Cc. Madhya 19.170]. That is called nirmala. That is mukti. Because spirit soul is eternal. It has to be cleansed, the material contamination. So when he's clean, then hrsikena hrsikesa-sevanam bhaktir ucyate [Cc. Madhya 19.170]. When our senses are purified... Not this American hand or Indian hand. "It is Krsna's hand. This hand should be engaged in Krsna's service, in sweeping the temple." If he thinks like this, he is far, far greater than any Vedantist. If he simply knows that "This hand belongs to Krsna," then he is far, far greater than any Vedantist. These Vedantists... Of course, all devotees, they are Vedantists. But somebody thinks that he has monopolized as Vedanta. Veda means knowledge. Anta means ultimate. So Vedanta means ultimate knowledge. So ultimate knowledge is Krsna. Vedais ca sarvair aham eva vedyah [Bg. 15.15]. So the so-called Vedantist, if he cannot understand what is Krsna, what is the meaning of that Vedantist? It has no meaning. They, the, he's perfect vedanti, who knows that "Krsna is Supreme. He's my Lord. I am His eternal servant." This is Vedanta knowledge.
Thank you very much. Hare Krsna. [break]
Indian: ...that is omkara. Omkara-svarupa. But what I want to know is who is Lord Siva, Visnu and Brahma? Whether these three of them are gods?
Prabhupada: Yes. They're expansion of God. Just like the earth. And then, from earth, you find trees, wood. And then, in the tree, you can set fire. It becomes smoke. Then comes out the fire. When you get the fire, you can take your work from the fire. So the, everything is one, but... Just the same example: from earth, the wood; from wood, the smoke; from smoke, the fire. But if you have to take business, then it is required the fire, although the, all of them, are the one. Similarly, there are demigods, Brahma, Visnu, Mahesvara. So if you have to take business, then you have to go to the fire, Visnu, sattama, sattva-guna. This is the process. Although they are one, but your business can be completed with Visnu, not with others. What is my business? My business is to get out of these material clutches. So if anyone is eager to be free from these material clutches, then he must take shelter of Visnu, not others.
Indian: Kindly let me know that what is desire. So long desire is there, we can't realize God. And realizing God is also a desire.
Prabhupada: Desire means material desires. If you think that you are Indian and your desire is how to make your country improve... Or so many desires. Or if you are a family man. So these are all material desires. So long you are enwrapped by material desires, then you are under the condition of material nature. As soon as you think that you are, your, you are not Indian or American, you are not a brahmana or Vaisnava, brahmana or ksatriya, you are eternal servant of Krsna, that is called purified desire. Desire is there, but you have to purify the desire. That I have explained just now. Sarvopadhi-vinirmuktam [Cc. Madhya 19.170]. These are upadhis. Suppose you are in a black coat.
So does it mean you are black coat? If you say... If I ask you, "Who are you?" If you say, "I am black coat," is that the proper answer? No. Similarly, we are in a dress, American dress or Indian dress. So if somebody asks you "Who are you?" "I am Indian." That is wrong identification. If you say, "Aham brahmasmi," that is your real identification. That realization required.
Indian: How can I get...?
Prabhupada: That requires, uh, you have to go... Tapasa brahmacaryena [SB 6.1.13]. You have to undergo the principle. Adau sraddha tatah sadhu-sango 'tha bhajana-kriya [Cc. Madhya 23.14-15]. You have to accept the process. Then you'll realize.
Indian: But yesterday you also represented that there was some devotee, he renounced this whole world, went to forest, and he was chanting the name of Lord Krsna, this and that. But he was, some step of (?) bhakti-yoga, and he was having the love of one deer. So at the time of death, he got idea of deer, and next birth, he become deer. So there was no desire intentionally, but anyhow he came in that...
Prabhupada: No, there was desire. He was thinking of a deer. There was desire.
Indian: We think about so many things...
Prabhupada: So that is the practice. You should simply come to the thinking of Krsna. That is perfection. And if you become embarrassed with so many things, then there is risk of becoming a cat, dog, deer, or demigod, anything.
Indian: Maharaja, why you...?
Prabhupada: Yam yam vapi smaran loke tyajaty ante kalevaram. Your, at the time of death, whatever you desire, you get the next body. That is the nature's law. [break] ...had been in Russia, in Moscow, many young men there are, very much anxious to accept this Krsna consciousness movement. And some of them were initiated by me. And they are going on. Just like these boys are going on. So this... So far my experience is concerned, everywhere I go, people are the same. It is by artificial, I mean to say, means, they have been designated as Communist and this and that. [break] ...people, they're all the same. As soon as we speak of Krsna consciousness, they respond immediately. That is my experience. Actually that is a fact. In the Caitanya-caritamrta, it is said, nitya-siddha krsna-prema sadhya kabhu naya, sravanadi-suddha-citte karaye udaya [Cc. Madhya 22.107]. The Krsna consciousness is there in everyone's heart. It is dormant. But it is contaminated and covered by the material dirty things. So sravanadi, suddha-citte. This means, as you are hearing... Just like these boys, these American and European boys, they came, first of all, to hear me. By hearing, hearing, now the Krsna consciousness is awakened, and they have taken seriously to Krsna devotion [break] ...or Africa or India.
Everyone has got Krsna consciousness within. Our process, the sankirtana movement, is to awaken that consciousness. That's all. Just like one man is sleeping. To awake him: "Get up! Get up!" Uttisthata jagrata prapya varan nibodhata. So this is our process. It's not that artificially we are making somebody Krsna conscious. Krsna consciousness is there already. That is a birthright of every living entity. Krsna says, mamaivamso jiva-bhutah [Bg. 15.7]. Just like father and the son. There cannot be any separation. But sometimes it happens that the son goes out of home, by some chance, or from childhood. He forgets who is his father. That is a different thing. But the relationship between father and son is never broken.
So we are all Krsna's part and parcel, mamaivamso jiva-bhutah [Bg. 15.7]. So our relationship is eternal. Now we have forgotten. We are thinking that "I am not Krsna's; I am America's." "I am India's" This is our illusion. So by proper method... The method is hearing. And to chant through his ear: "You are not American. You are Krsna's. You are not American." "You are not Indian. You are Krsna's." In this way, hearing, hearing, he may: "Oh, yes, I am Krsna's." This is the way. We have to constantly inject: "You are not American. You are not Indian. You are not Russian. You are Krsna's. You are Krsna's." Then each mantra has got value; then he comes, "Oh, yes, I am Krsna's." Brahma-bhutah prasa... "Why I was thinking I was Russian and American and this and that?" Brahma-bhutah prasannatma na socati na kanksati [Bg. 18.54]. As soon as he comes to that state, he has no more lamentation. Here, as American or Indian or Russian, we have got two things: lamentation and hankering. Everyone is hankering, what he does not possess: "I must have this." And what he possesses, if it is lost, he's lamenting: "Oh, I have lost." So these two business are going on.
So long you come, do not come to Krsna consciousness, your, these two business will go on, lamenting and hankering. And as soon as you come to Krsna consciousness, you become joyful. There is no reason of lamenting. There is no reason of hankering. Everything is complete. Krsna is complete. So he becomes free. That is brahma-bhutah state. So this can be awakened by hearing. Therefore the Vedic mantra is called sruti. One has to receive this awakening through the ear. Sravanam kirtanam visnoh [SB 7.5.23]. Always one has to hear and chant about Visnu. Hare Krsna, Hare Krsna, Krsna Krsna, Hare Hare/ Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare. Then ceto-darpana-marjanam [Cc. Antya 20.12], everything will be cleansed, and he'll come to understand that "I am eternal servant of Krsna."
Indian: [break]
Prabhupada: When you become Vaisnava, the brahminism is already included. General process is, unless one does not come to the sattva-guna platform, he cannot understand what is Krsna consciousness. That is the general rule. But this Krsna, devotional service, Krsna consciousness movement, is so nice that simply by hearing about Krsna, you come to immediately to the brahminical platform. Nasta-prayesu abhadresu nityam bhagavata-sevaya [SB 1.2.18]. Abhadra. Abhadra means these three qualities of material nature. Even brahminical qualities. The sudra quality, the vaisya quality, or the ksatriya quality, or even brahmana quality. They are all abhadras. Because in brahmana quality, again the same identification comes. "Oh, I am brahmana. Nobody can become brahmana without birth. I am great. I am brahmana." This false prestige comes. So he becomes bound up. Even in brahminical qualities. But when he comes to the spiritual platform, actually, as Caitanya Mahaprabhu said, "I am not brahmana, I am not sannyasi, I am not grhastha, I am not brahmacari," Not, not, not...These eight principles, varnasrama, He denies. Then what You are? Gopi-bhartuh pada-kamalayor dasa-dasanudasah [Cc. Madhya 13.80]. "I am the servant of the servant of the servant of Krsna." This is self realization.
Indian: [break] ...is supposed to be universal Lord, and about Him...
Prabhupada: Why supposed? He is. Why you suppose like that?
Indian: Of course. But, at the same time, only in Indian history or in Indian philosophy, only God's description is there. But whereabouts, in America or other places, in other continents, there is no description in their history at all.
Prabhupada: Because there is no history and there is no philosophy.
Indian: Pardon me.
Prabhupada: There is no philosophy in other countries.
Indian: But, God, there is no...
Prabhupada: If there is any philosophy, that is in India. And you are so, I mean to say, what can I say, that you say because the philosophy's not in America, therefore this philosophy is null and void.
Indian: But they say later there was no Lord Visnu, because...
Prabhupada: Why not? They do not know. Now they are knowing it.
Indian: But they say that that description that He has wandered there, He lives in there. That should be some reason.
Prabhupada: Why you are so envious of America? (laughter)
Indian: No, no. God is distributed (?) everywhere.
Prabhupada: God is everywhere. Therefore God's disciples or God's sons are everywhere.
Indian: Why you...
Prabhupada: So if, in America, this Krsna consciousness is preached, why you are envious?
Indian: Why?
Prabhupada: Why you are envious?
Indian: I didn't follow you.
Prabhupada: You do not like that this philosophy should be preached in America?
Indian: Should be preached
Prabhupada: Then?
Indian: But why they are not in all these histories?
Prabhupada: That...
Indian: There is no history at all. Even in the United States also there is no mention that Lord Visnu or Lord Krsna, like that, and They were also...
Prabhupada: Have you read, have you read Krsna's book, Bhagavad-gita?
Indian: To some extent.
Prabhupada: Then you do not know what Krsna says, that "Everyone, My son." Krsna says, sarva-yonisu kaunteya sambhavanti murtayah [Bg. 14.4], tasam mahad yonir brahma aham bija-prada... Krsna claims everyone -- American, Indians, birds, beasts -- everyone, His son. You do not know the philosophy.
Indian: The Gita is coming out of India. That is my question.
Prabhupada: So it is therefore, because it is made in India, it should not be accepted?
Indian: Not like that.
Prabhupada: Then what is your philosophy, I do not know.
Indian: There is no mention of...
Prabhupada: What is your philosophy? I do not know.
Syamasundara: He says because there is no history books...
Prabhupada: Eh?
Syamasundara: There are no history books from the West showing Krsna used to live in the West, or that He ever was in the West.
Prabhupada: So... There is history, the Christians believe, God. So Krsna is God. So what is the difference? Krsna is God. So do they not believe in God? In the Western histories?
Indian: They believe.
Prabhupada: Then that's all right. Now, they believed in God. Now we are giving that "Here is God." That is the difference only. They believed in God. But they did not know...
Indian: ...there only the Lord existed.
Prabhupada: What is that? (laughter)
Devotee: So much rascal philosophy.
Prabhupada: [break]...understand. They... [break] ...God. Now we are giving "Here is God, here is the name and address of God." What is the difference?
Indian: In India, about God it is...
Prabhupada: India! Why you are thinking in India? God is not for India or American. God is for everyone.
Indian: Then why varnasrama-dharma, there also, they are prevalent, that brahmana, ksatriya, vaisya, sudra?
Prabhupada: Yes. They prevailed. They also went from India. That is the history. There were... All the ksatriyas, they went to Europe and America. That is in the Mahabharata history. They were also on the Vedic culture. Now they have lost. Just like recently. We have got experience, within twenty years. Some of the Hindus who became Mohammedan. And they become Pakistani. But twenty years before, they were not Pakistan. So gradually this misconception is increasing. Otherwise, there was one. One God, one civilization, everything, there was one. [break]
Indian (2): We have come to the world as the servant of Lord Krsna, but then why should we think, why should we think that we are Krsna's?
Prabhupada: What is that?
Devotee: Why should we... He said... You say that we are all come to the, as servants of Krsna. So why should we think that we are Krsna?
Prabhupada: Who thinks we are Krsna? We do not think. We do not think like that.
Devotee: Belong to Krsna.
Devotee (2): We are Krsna's.
Prabhupada: We are servants of Krsna. We are Krsna's. Just like you are son of your father, similarly, we are servants of Krsna. We are not Krsna. Who says that we are Krsna? We do not say. We are servants of Krsna.
Indian: (indistinct)
Prabhupada: [break] ... and chant Hare Krsna. Where is the difficulty? This is the short cut. This is the shortest cut.
Indian: (Hindi)
Prabhupada: Eh?
Indian: (Hindi)
Prabhupada: Harer nama harer nama harer namaiva kevalam, kalau nasty eva nasty eva nasty eva [Cc. Adi 17.21]. (Hindi) (end)
November 25, 1972
and think of God while chanting, and take an occasional look at the 70s invasion *
this uk artist was not so well known in the music world in the 70s, but like many others he managed to attract a cult following, he released 2 lps in the mid 70s, the 1st 'WHIZZ KID' was released in ' 74, the 3rd in '79, all 3 are said to have superb glam rock tunes on them, indeed on the 3 songsfrom his 2st lp reviewed below, he shows amazing talent and a strong similiarity to one DAVID BOWIE.....
' BALLAD of TRIXIE SILVER'
what a title, what a song, slow piano opens up an atmospheric pop number, melodic and a GREAT tune !.......some interesting lyrics here ; 'SHE RIDES A ROCKIN' HORSE, WELL THEN SHE ROCKS OF COURSE, SHE's A .......SHE's A KILLER ON THE SCENE, ......WELL SHE GETS PAID IN CASH, FOR SELLING BOUTIQUE TRASH, SHE's A KILLER ON THE SCENE, ...SHE SAYS HEY U LOOK A LOT LIKE A COWBOY, BOY',.....and.......'SHE SAYS HEY THERE WILL NEVER BE NO TIME LIKE NOW TO TAKE ME FOR A RIDE'......and....'ALL GO GET HER TEX, WELL LIFE IS GIVE AND TAKE, WELL TRIXIE's BIG MISTAKE WAS TAKING TEX FOR SOMEONE's FOOL'......rests musically somewhere between BOWIE and HARLEY
' WHIZZ KID'
...BOWIE rock, electric guitar notes zip.....some of the lyrics are hard to decipher.... 'I NEVER MET SUCH, IT's JUST ANYTHING,.............SAY YOUR MOUTH FILLS DOWN CRAZY.....the girls in the background sing EXCELLENT vocals ; ' WWWOOOOAAAAHHH', and 'OOOHHH YEA, YEA, YEA'......
'IMAGINATION QUOTA'
this one can be compared stylistically to ALICE COOPER's 'NO MORE MR. NICE GUY', but leaning more towards glam-pop...a GREAT number.....elec. guitar, piano...'SWEET SOUNDS AND TOKENS OF RAPTURE , YOUR ARMS STRETCHED OUT TO CATCH HER, ....MY WORLD ENDS IN DELUSION, EVERYTIME I TRY AND END MY DELUSION', .....and....' WELL HOLD MY IMAGINATION QUOTA, STRUNG OUT AND STARTING TO WONDER'......
this was a black uk artist who had some lps in the 70s, and a few ace singles as well......not many black artists of the 70s played glam rock,......
'DON'T TAKE THAT AWAY' '73
this single is campy glam with strings and some STRONG percussion......also note that STRAKER had a really GOOD vioce....' SEARCHING IN YOUR EYES, WANTING TO BE LOVED, IS IT LOVE OR LIES I FIND THERE WHAT I HAVE WITH U, TELL ME IT HASN'T CHANGED, STARS BEGIN TO FADE, DON'T TAKE THAT AWAY CAUSE WE DREAM THAT ALMOST FELT SERENE'.....and....'SOMETHING IN YOUR EYES IS THAT A DISGUISE YOUR WEARING' ?
'RAGTIME PIANO JOE' '77
GREAT old fashioned pop number musically along the lines of JOBRIATH, HARLEY, and has a similiarity you find on the GODSPELL lp, lotsa enthusiasm from the whole band singing along......here are the complete lyrics -
'The man who made his name in the moving picture show Was the man whose face we saw but whose voice we didn't know The only things we heard him say were on the cards we read too slow The man who made them speak was Ragtime Piano Joe
It was the only life that he knew Ragtime Piano Joe It was the only thing he could do Ragtime Piano Joe And when the hero walked in the door Or Charlie Chaplin fell through the floor Who was it made the show? Ragtime Piano Joe
Al Jolson mooned and crooned when talking pictures came to town Hoagy Carmichael played a tune it really bought Joe down Then Busby Berkley clinched the deal and all the flicks had sound Joe took his life one night, they say that he was drowned
La la la la la la la la la
If late at night into the movie house you go Sit at the back stay out of sight you can still hear Ragtime Joe When the crowds are gone the old time songs the ones we used to know Can still be heard but very faint, it's the ghost of poor old Joe
the b side was 'the saddest clown', ....'ragtime piano joe' was a small hit in holland.....
Note: like STRAKER there were a few black glam artists such as an underground ERASMUS CHORUM from the u.k. who released some funky SLADE-like glam singles ( see our page 14 and Glam Rock Bear's site for more info ), PARLIAMENT FUNKADELIC can be considered a glam band with their loud fashion sense and electronics, in fact GEORGE CLINTON has been quoted as saying they were the best glitter-funk band on the planet, the fact remains that a few of 70s funksters flirted with glam in their sound, before eventually going disco-glam, then onto disco, and other styles, and some such as LA BELLE indeed dressed the part, they hit it really big with 'LADY MARMALADE'.....GLORIA JONES, and PAT HALL were both in the Glam-Soul mode, ( see our page 16 for reviews )and BETTY DAVIS was one gal who made some really crude funk and dressed outrageous as well, see our page 5 for Black soul and funk.....interested in black punk and pre-punk ? search out our page with a mid 70s trio called DEATH from detroit, yet another band who surfaced in '77 were called PURE HELL, see atop our homepage where to find these 2 bands and more artistes like WICKED WITCH from D.c.....
you can find pictures of both these artists in our 'gateway 2', accessible from the bottom of our gateway 1, :)
ANOTHER PRETTY FACE
back in the early mid 70s this Pennsylvania band played lotsa shows at Max's in n.y. and other clubs, they were one of the very first bands to wear makeup, their music is said to be for fans of BOWIE, JOBRIATH, etc. they released an lp called 'FACE FACTS', around '74 or so, singer T.ROTH had an afro bigger than ZENDA JACKS', recently in the summer of '05 we reviewed this band's music in our gateway 4, ( so go there for the reviews ) here is a forum on them -
http://inessential.com/?comments=1&postid=2070
and a site for ANOTHER PRETTY FACE -
http://hometown.aol.com/notherprettyfaze/index.html
STUD LEATHER
from the early 70s this obscure u.k. glam band released at least one single we know of called 'CUT LOOSE 'in '73, to say this is a unique 45 is an understatement, this is very tongue in cheek glam, the a-side is a really good LSD induced glitter rocker with handclaps, this one is really out there, fans of and SPARKS/KIM FOWLEY would like this one....... pre-punk guitar joins frantic piano and tribal drums for a great one-off single, hopelessly obscure from the 70s glam era, def. junkshop glam sound....'YOU KNOW YOU GOT ME THINKIN' THAT MY RHYTHM's LOSING SOMETHING THAT I DON'T KNOW I HAD, AND THAT MAKES ME SAD......HALLELUJAH, OH HALLELUJAH.....' !
the band were ; Roger Cook -lead vocals, Alan Kirkham - guitar, Hayden Gridley -bass, Johnny Aldrich - drums and Dickie Graves - backing vocals, after the single was released it sank and they broke up as did most js glam bands......'SLICK-GO GETTER' '73....Roger Cook released this single after STUD LEATHER broke up, a very different sound here, this one is more KINKS-like whimsical pop and a cheerful one :).... enjoyable but not as good as his former band, both these singles were released on DART records......if you like the band above you'll like these 2 singles....
FIREBALLET
were mining the bottom of the barrell with a band like this jersey band whose musically are not for our taste but they appeared in ballet tights on their 1st lp in '75 and had a 2nd lp with "Two too", so this is a band that only appeared to be visually trying to be akin to the glam/fringe scene at the time but musically this is prog rock led by synths, with highly operatic vocals kinda like SPARKS and like an experimental rock band of the time, allright but not nowhere in the same league as the next artist....
- BASARAB NICOLESCU
BRIAN WELLS
well this musician put out a glam single in '72 'Paper Party/Just A Summer High', musically it is somewhere between SPARKS and CHICORY TIP synth rock, it's allright and we give it credit for originality...... ( some lyrics ) 'you can catch a tiger by it's tail, but you can be a fighter pilot but watch out when they shut you.....' see the pure pop blog for a download....
just check out the Futurisitic cover of this glam / pre-new wave singer's lp in '77 'VICTORY in ROCK CITY who echoed BOWIE, ROXY MUSIC,DAVID WERNER, and to a lesser extent artists at the time like JOHN HOWARD, visually he looked like BRYAN FERRY, or say DUNCAN BROWNE of METRO, and wore threads like bands like DEAF SCHOOL did, there is some unique songwriting and sounds to be found here as there are in his lp from '76 like 'BORN TOO LATE', this is smoky atmospheric glam kinda like the long lost single that surfaced onto the js glam comp. BUBBLE POP called 'Late,late show' by CLIVE KENNEDY, these kind of albums that were HARD to come by at the time especially in the light of Punk rock, he ended up in a new wave bad mtv video from '84 and it's is an example of how phony mtv was at the time, best to stick to these 70s lps....... wonder what his folk lp from '73 sounds like ( as ROD TAYLOR ) ? judge for yourself at this link ~
http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=38878375
https://www.angelfire.com/vt2/70sinvasion