LIterally a PERFECT POP SONG. It really doesn’t get much better than this. A top 10 XTC song… which is saying a hell of a lot. Andy Partridge is a musical / lyrical genius. Thanks for doing this one, JP!!
Crocodile is pretty underrated from this album, fantastic foot-stomping track! I'm presuming you'll get to it, lol, as you will The Disappointed and Wrapped in Grey, two of the most beautiful songs they ever recorded.
A wonderful song with amazing melody, great orchestration and dense lyrics. One of my favourite songs by one of my favourite bands. Glad you looked up the details, though you missed two painting references - "Apple Venus on a half open shell" is Botticelli's "Birth of Venus", and "dressed in tricolore and phrygian cap" is Delacroix's French Revolution painting "Liberty leading the people". Well spotted on the "Apple Venus" mention - several XTC albums are named for a lyric on the previous album.
XTC, one of the truly greatest bands in musical history, and Partridge, and Moulding, are, yes, i dare say it, in the same league as Lennon and McCartney 🌟 XTC albums are never a dissapointment, and can be bought without even hearing one track from it 🌟 Not a bad record, or song, in the catalogue of songs 🌟
I hope you'll their "Mummer" album at some point. Also their side project as Dukes of Stratosphear, the album "Chips from the Chocolate Fireball" includes their EP and follow-up album.
The symbolic Phrygian-cap-wearing "Lady Liberty" of the French revolution, referenced in this song, is known as Marianne - also the name of Andy Partridge’s wife at the time.
A great track, made even better by the lyrical references (which many don't appreciate unless they dive in...thanks for doing so!). Positive, intelligent, compelling.
Would love to see you go through this entire album. Omnibus is another great song from this album. “Apple Venus in a half open shell” is where the name of their next two and final albums came from, Apple Venus volumes 1 and 2.
This song was a throwback to their Dukes of Stratosphear albums that were Beatles/psychedelic inspired. The drums mainly n 1 channel goes back to 4-track recording days. The song is also preceeded by another great song…That Wave. Oh, and I chose my YT name based on this album! :-)
@@JustJP Appreciate the notice… Perhaps TOO MUCH JOY ? A fun American band , power pop with a smirk. “ long haired guys from England” (E) “Seasons in the sun” Terry Jacks cover “That’s a lie “ ll cool j cover “Crush story” “Clowns” “King of beer” Or the Vapors ….. “Good kill “. W/ krs1
Hi JP. DP from UK. Yes, it's a feel-good song - a real tonic on another dreary grey day here in London. So, you might say, it's Brighter Than Sunshine, and it's from one of my favourite XTC albums. Fox Talbot, a photographic pioneer as you say, came from the same English county, Wiltshire, as the band, and his village, Lacock, has been preserved in its 'olde worlde' style - frozen in time like one of his (and your) photos! P.S. my song ref Brighter Than Sunshine is by Aqualung - more gorgeousness.
A great track. One of many off a great album. ( my favourite album of theirs). JP you should really do the whole album. You have already done the 1st track if i remember. The rest would be great ❤
I'd been hoping you'd get round to Nonsuch, one of XTC's very best. The whole album draws from the well of mid sixties Beatles/Beach Boys - those harmonies, McCartney's bass, etc - but it never descends into pastiche. Like you say, it's just great feel good music. Like the music, Partridge's lyrics are so colourful. Fantastic wordplay. I love the way he uses 'Catherine Wheeled' and (Edward) 'Leared' as verbs. Thanks for this Justin and please do the rest of the album now!
Andy Partridge is such a genius songwriter! I would also recommend "I'd Like That", which is another highly original love song from the "Apple Venus" album.
This song is good, but I miss their edge that made the earlier albums great. It would be a fun exercise to do Complicated Game after this to get both ends of the XTC spectrum.
Later XTC and a gorgeous song - one of my daughter's favourites . Andy excelling lyrically again - such clever writing that he blows nearly everyone else out of the water in that space . (IMHO) This song was used in a Gilmore Girls episode too .
XTC is one of those bands I never got around to listening to. I need to correct that. It really reminds me of the Beach Boys, especially in the last part.
Oh yeah - this IS one of their best tracks, and you can add me to the list of those who call it a favorite. But ouch - the whole album is a masterwork, one of their very best, I do hope you're just kidding about not caring about whole albums any more, and will get to the rest of this one in time. Some disks just deserve the coherency the artists put so much into creating for an album, and this is one of them. And yes, of course your literalist interpretation of a romance is correct, that layer is there, and I think others are also correct that he is thinking of the birth of his daughter - but given all the superlatives applied in lyrics, and the ecstatic swirl of foot-off-the-ground-and-astonished-at-it buoyancy of the music, I can't help but see this one as about a spiritual awakening experience - The Goddess appearing in all her glory to the fortunate experiencer, in life and nature all around. The literal and metaphorical are so often compatible, as here, and I don't think everything for an intelligent and spiritually oriented (in the Pagan sense) band like this boils down to getting laid or losing one's mind in a romantic lark, or other literal events, although those metaphors provide a time-honored handhold to refer to deeper experiences, and all the more Pagan for playing to the likeness (although the Sufis and Tantrikas also did a wonderful job of steeping their poetry with such metaphors - the romance of the divine).
Well………. one song is better than none, great album, hint hint. Lots of goodness in it. One other song is Books Are Burning, still a current thing happening. Saw a very very rare live video of the three lads playing it LIVE on some tele show. Superb, as was this.
This song reminds me of "There She Goes" (1988) by The La's -- the vocal style and even the guitar opening is almost the same -- it pre-dates "Then She Appeared" by about 10 years, so I think it could be a clear source of inspiration.
Great track from a brilliant album! (much better overall, in my opinion, than its predecessor Oranges & Lemons). This should be a full album reaction....
@@courtneywallace871 Oranges & Lemons has some good songs but sounds too 80s for me and its production too formatted for the US market, whereas Nonsuch has a more timeless sound (as well as stronger songs overall). And Nonsuch is also XTC's last entirely successful album (Apple Venus Volume 1 seemed more uneven to me, while Wasp Star (Apple Venus Volume 2) disappointed me from the start).
I once imagined combining my favourite tracks from both albums, plus a couple of Nonsuch outtakes ("Didn't Hurt A Bit" and "Where Did The Ordinary People Go?") - I pretty much came up with a perfect pop record.
@@aderyncoch3346 From Oranges & Lemons I mainly like “Mayor of Simpleton”, “King for a Day”, “The Loving”, “One of the Millions”, “Cynical Days”, “Miniature Sun” and “Chalkhills and Children”. From Nonsuch I mainly like "My Bird Performs", "Humble Daisy", "The Smartest Monkeys", "The Disappointed", "Holly Up on Poppy", "Omnibus", "Then She Appeared", "War Dance", “Wrapped in Grey,” “The Ugly Underneath,” “Bungalow,” and “Books Are Burning.” Never been very fond of "Didn't Hurt A Bit" and other Nonsuch outtakes.
LOL Andy Partrisge is a little genius. Maybe you can prefer his album with Harold Budd , Through the Hill , from 1994. or his collaborations with other musicians , material some more experimental.
ok I agree - a band I never really got into - I bought their first EP and LP partly because one did!!!! I thought they were ok but not particularly exciting - there's a few other ok (even quite good records) but when they went soft and retro psychedelic (i.e. Beatles pastiche) I was not impressed.
LIterally a PERFECT POP SONG. It really doesn’t get much better than this. A top 10 XTC song… which is saying a hell of a lot. Andy Partridge is a musical / lyrical genius. Thanks for doing this one, JP!!
Crocodile is pretty underrated from this album, fantastic foot-stomping track! I'm presuming you'll get to it, lol, as you will The Disappointed and Wrapped in Grey, two of the most beautiful songs they ever recorded.
A wonderful song with amazing melody, great orchestration and dense lyrics. One of my favourite songs by one of my favourite bands. Glad you looked up the details, though you missed two painting references - "Apple Venus on a half open shell" is Botticelli's "Birth of Venus", and "dressed in tricolore and phrygian cap" is Delacroix's French Revolution painting "Liberty leading the people". Well spotted on the "Apple Venus" mention - several XTC albums are named for a lyric on the previous album.
XTC, one of the truly greatest bands in musical history, and Partridge, and Moulding, are, yes, i dare say it, in the same league as Lennon and McCartney 🌟
XTC albums are never a dissapointment, and can be bought without even hearing one track from it 🌟 Not a bad record, or song, in the catalogue of songs 🌟
Couldn't agree more with everything you have said above. 👏
I hope you'll their "Mummer" album at some point. Also their side project as Dukes of Stratosphear, the album "Chips from the Chocolate Fireball" includes their EP and follow-up album.
Yes, “Mummer” is a must listen!
The symbolic Phrygian-cap-wearing "Lady Liberty" of the French revolution, referenced in this song, is known as Marianne - also the name of Andy Partridge’s wife at the time.
Ahh ty ty!
Such a good song. XTC never ceases to amaze.
A great track, made even better by the lyrical references (which many don't appreciate unless they dive in...thanks for doing so!). Positive, intelligent, compelling.
XTC never released a bad record.
Every band has released something under par, and XTC are no exception.
@ XTC are an exception to every rule!!!!
@@TheProgCorner You're simply wasting your time with some people.
@@Owlstretchingtime78 not really.
Next: Two songs from "Skylarking" that flow together: "Ballet for a Rainy Day" > 1000 Umbrellas".
That is a great pair of XTC songs.
Nice request, Roger! 😁
Would love to see you go through this entire album. Omnibus is another great song from this album. “Apple Venus in a half open shell” is where the name of their next two and final albums came from, Apple Venus volumes 1 and 2.
This song was a throwback to their Dukes of Stratosphear albums that were Beatles/psychedelic inspired. The drums mainly n 1 channel goes back to 4-track recording days. The song is also preceeded by another great song…That Wave.
Oh, and I chose my YT name based on this album! :-)
This song also has shades of another great song of theirs, "Holly Up on Poppy".
Such an original and talented band, great suggestion and reaction!
Ty Adrian 😄
Thanks, XTC is the reason I follow you
Appreciate it Rex
@@JustJP
Appreciate the notice…
Perhaps TOO MUCH JOY ? A fun American band , power pop with a smirk.
“ long haired guys from England” (E)
“Seasons in the sun” Terry Jacks cover
“That’s a lie “ ll cool j cover
“Crush story”
“Clowns”
“King of beer”
Or the Vapors …..
“Good kill “. W/ krs1
@@RexGroovi47 ty for the suggestion; never heard of em
Reminds me of their song "Brainiac's Daughter". Try that one JP...
Thanks JP. It's always a click when I see you're reacting to XTC, one of my favorite groups. This whole album is great.
I knew you'd love it..
How could you not - really ...?
A grrreat song from a grreat album! And next, from the same album, "Wrapped In Gray", please ❤
Big Beach Boys vibe on this track.
Also on my favorite track 'Wrapped In Grey'
@@summertime_bloozAnd on my favourite, “Chalkhills and Children”
Hi JP. DP from UK. Yes, it's a feel-good song - a real tonic on another dreary grey day here in London. So, you might say, it's Brighter Than Sunshine, and it's from one of my favourite XTC albums. Fox Talbot, a photographic pioneer as you say, came from the same English county, Wiltshire, as the band, and his village, Lacock, has been preserved in its 'olde worlde' style - frozen in time like one of his (and your) photos!
P.S. my song ref Brighter Than Sunshine is by Aqualung - more gorgeousness.
A great track. One of many off a great album. ( my favourite album of theirs). JP you should really do the whole album. You have already done the 1st track if i remember. The rest would be great ❤
I'd been hoping you'd get round to Nonsuch, one of XTC's very best. The whole album draws from the well of mid sixties Beatles/Beach Boys - those harmonies, McCartney's bass, etc - but it never descends into pastiche. Like you say, it's just great feel good music. Like the music, Partridge's lyrics are so colourful. Fantastic wordplay. I love the way he uses 'Catherine Wheeled' and (Edward) 'Leared' as verbs. Thanks for this Justin and please do the rest of the album now!
Andy Partridge is such a genius songwriter! I would also recommend "I'd Like That", which is another highly original love song from the "Apple Venus" album.
Probably my favorite track on the album. Brings back memories of the early 90s for me - even though it sounds like the late 60s
Ah, Nonsuch. XTC's finest album and one of the best albums of the 90s. You'd do yourself a favour if you listened to the whole thing.
This song is good, but I miss their edge that made the earlier albums great. It would be a fun exercise to do Complicated Game after this to get both ends of the XTC spectrum.
An absolutely wonderful song from a wonderful, wonderful album!
Later XTC and a gorgeous song - one of my daughter's favourites . Andy excelling lyrically again - such clever writing that he blows nearly everyone else out of the water in that space . (IMHO) This song was used in a Gilmore Girls episode too .
XTC is one of those bands I never got around to listening to. I need to correct that. It really reminds me of the Beach Boys, especially in the last part.
@@stlmopoet their catalog is deep and wonderful.
If you want Beach Boys-sounding XTC, check out their song Pale and Precious, from their alter ego The Dukes of Stratosphear.
Yes do yourself a favour
I saw xtc in their early years when a punk band performing songs lasting no more than 1 minute. A great band.
You think this is upbeat, wait until you hear Stupidly Happy.
Oh yeah - this IS one of their best tracks, and you can add me to the list of those who call it a favorite. But ouch - the whole album is a masterwork, one of their very best, I do hope you're just kidding about not caring about whole albums any more, and will get to the rest of this one in time. Some disks just deserve the coherency the artists put so much into creating for an album, and this is one of them. And yes, of course your literalist interpretation of a romance is correct, that layer is there, and I think others are also correct that he is thinking of the birth of his daughter - but given all the superlatives applied in lyrics, and the ecstatic swirl of foot-off-the-ground-and-astonished-at-it buoyancy of the music, I can't help but see this one as about a spiritual awakening experience - The Goddess appearing in all her glory to the fortunate experiencer, in life and nature all around. The literal and metaphorical are so often compatible, as here, and I don't think everything for an intelligent and spiritually oriented (in the Pagan sense) band like this boils down to getting laid or losing one's mind in a romantic lark, or other literal events, although those metaphors provide a time-honored handhold to refer to deeper experiences, and all the more Pagan for playing to the likeness (although the Sufis and Tantrikas also did a wonderful job of steeping their poetry with such metaphors - the romance of the divine).
I believe the song is about his daughter’s birth.
There's another song on the album about Partridge's daughter 'Holly Up On Poppy'.
I love this song. The jangly intro never loses its allure.
Well………. one song is better than none, great album, hint hint. Lots of goodness in it. One other song is Books Are Burning, still a current thing happening. Saw a very very rare live video of the three lads playing it LIVE on some tele show. Superb, as was this.
"nun-such"
This song reminds me of "There She Goes" (1988) by The La's -- the vocal style and even the guitar opening is almost the same -- it pre-dates "Then She Appeared" by about 10 years, so I think it could be a clear source of inspiration.
Nonsuch came out in 1991, not 1998.
@@nudnick 1992 really. Recorded in 1991.
Not my favorite XTC record, but still a good one worth a listen. I’m still going to push you to try “Mummer” sometime.
PS- 'She' could be a representation of love...luck...good fortune...the sunshine! Just a thought.
Very true Gerard! Good one
The Lilac Time say Excuse Me JP we are still a band that Nobody Knows .
Fields from 1989
In iverna Gardens from 1990
Your call , Justin.
You should listen to their Drums and Wires album.
Jolly decent, what!
Very nice pop song , but not one of their best.
Great track from a brilliant album! (much better overall, in my opinion, than its predecessor Oranges & Lemons). This should be a full album reaction....
Gotta disagree there. For as much as I love Nonsuch, Oranges and Lemons is my favorite XTC album, but that’s just my opinion. It’s ALL good.
@@courtneywallace871 Oranges & Lemons has some good songs but sounds too 80s for me and its production too formatted for the US market, whereas Nonsuch has a more timeless sound (as well as stronger songs overall). And Nonsuch is also XTC's last entirely successful album (Apple Venus Volume 1 seemed more uneven to me, while Wasp Star (Apple Venus Volume 2) disappointed me from the start).
I once imagined combining my favourite tracks from both albums, plus a couple of Nonsuch outtakes ("Didn't Hurt A Bit" and "Where Did The Ordinary People Go?") - I pretty much came up with a perfect pop record.
@@a.k.1740 it’s all good. That’s what makes the world go round.
@@aderyncoch3346 From Oranges & Lemons I mainly like “Mayor of Simpleton”, “King for a Day”, “The Loving”, “One of the Millions”, “Cynical Days”, “Miniature Sun” and “Chalkhills and Children”.
From Nonsuch I mainly like "My Bird Performs", "Humble Daisy", "The Smartest Monkeys", "The Disappointed", "Holly Up on Poppy", "Omnibus", "Then She Appeared", "War Dance", “Wrapped in Grey,” “The Ugly Underneath,” “Bungalow,” and “Books Are Burning.” Never been very fond of "Didn't Hurt A Bit" and other Nonsuch outtakes.
The quirk dropped, it's a bit schmaltzy, but not dreadful.
Oh God, it's this lot again. Why the incessant XTC fellation? They were never that brilliant.🙃
One of the several love-in bands. There's just no escaping them.
Let guess … nvm I know
LOL Andy Partrisge is a little genius. Maybe you can prefer his album with Harold Budd , Through the Hill , from 1994. or his collaborations with other musicians , material some more experimental.
ok I agree - a band I never really got into - I bought their first EP and LP partly because one did!!!! I thought they were ok but not particularly exciting - there's a few other ok (even quite good records) but when they went soft and retro psychedelic (i.e. Beatles pastiche) I was not impressed.
Then don't listen..