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Old 10-01-2015, 15:51
Judge_yrself Judge_yrself is offline
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Obscure references in JFPL lyrics

Hello all

I've recently been listening to JFPL again and had forgotten how good it is. I ended up digging out my copy of it and re- reading the original copies of Richey's lyrics, which include lines that the manics didn't use on the album. I'm in awe of the amount of information Richey's mind must have been processing at the time to come up with lyrics like these.

I apologise if this has already been done but I'm new to the forum. I was wondering if anybody had managed to decipher some of the more obscure references on the album. I'm thinking specifically of things like "Glaad occurs in the chestnut trees" and the references to Robert F Stroud on 'Peeled Apples' and the majority of 'Me and Stephen Hawking' (Spider Robot? Underground car park born at Stonehenge? Three strikes your out - execution - pizza? Did Giant Haystacks ever fight in front of 100,000 in Bombay?)

Any thoughts/interpretations?
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Old 10-01-2015, 17:53
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andy andy is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Judge_yrself View Post
Hello all

I've recently been listening to JFPL again and had forgotten how good it is. I ended up digging out my copy of it and re- reading the original copies of Richey's lyrics, which include lines that the manics didn't use on the album. I'm in awe of the amount of information Richey's mind must have been processing at the time to come up with lyrics like these.

I apologise if this has already been done but I'm new to the forum. I was wondering if anybody had managed to decipher some of the more obscure references on the album. I'm thinking specifically of things like "Glaad occurs in the chestnut trees" and the references to Robert F Stroud on 'Peeled Apples' and the majority of 'Me and Stephen Hawking' (Spider Robot? Underground car park born at Stonehenge? Three strikes your out - execution - pizza? Did Giant Haystacks ever fight in front of 100,000 in Bombay?)

Any thoughts/interpretations?

re.the giant haystacks reference - it has been questioned on wrestling forums and no-one on the couple I frequent knows either...
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Old 10-01-2015, 18:34
Judge_yrself Judge_yrself is offline
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It's a strange one. I like a bit of wrestling as well and I've never come across the Haystacks/Bombay thing before. I assume it's based on fact because I don't know what it adds to the context of the song if it's fiction. Then again, what does it add by being fact? And if it is fact, I can't imagine where Richey would have come across it.
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Old 10-01-2015, 19:17
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beautifuldistortion beautifuldistortion is offline
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http://h2g2.com/approved_entry/A978348
Apparently he did wrestle in India
No further details though
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Old 10-01-2015, 19:19
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beautifuldistortion beautifuldistortion is offline
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http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/10...se-rescue.html
Seems like it could be true!
Keep reading and you'll see it
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Old 10-01-2015, 19:49
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could have been in a newspaper article or anything i guess.
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Old 10-01-2015, 21:29
Judge_yrself Judge_yrself is offline
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That's the first quote I've seen where someone's sort of confirmed the Bombay line. I never quite got what Richey was getting at with that line, to be honest. I just like the fact Giant Haystacks of all people got a mention in a song.
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Old 10-01-2015, 22:51
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MoMoney MoJunk MoMoney MoJunk is offline
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I was always thought the Bombay line was a continuation of the "African Punch and Judy show at half the price" one. Implying the first world taking advantage of the third. You could make the Punch and Judy show for half the price in Africa and similarly you could pack 100,000 people to watch a wrestling match in India, as presumably they wouldn't have much health and safety.
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Old 10-01-2015, 23:23
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Got a feeling I read somewhere that Richey didn't like wrestling, "a joke sport" no less...
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Old 11-01-2015, 09:49
Judge_yrself Judge_yrself is offline
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Wink

Quote:
Originally Posted by MoMoney MoJunk View Post
I was always thought the Bombay line was a continuation of the "African Punch and Judy show at half the price" one. Implying the first world taking advantage of the third. You could make the Punch and Judy show for half the price in Africa and similarly you could pack 100,000 people to watch a wrestling match in India, as presumably they wouldn't have much health and safety.
That does make sense, and I could imagine western promoters in India having a "pack 'em in and count the cash" attitude.

Anyone got any ideas about the "Glaad occurs in the chestnut trees" line? It shouldn't obsess me as much as it does but it seems so impenetrable that I want to crack it
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Old 11-01-2015, 11:19
Tiresias Tiresias is offline
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If you want a whole album about british wrestling listen to Haines' 9 and a half psychedelic meditations on british wrestling in the late 70s and early 80s (yess that is the album title).
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  #12  
Old 11-01-2015, 13:12
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raven raven is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Judge_yrself View Post
That does make sense, and I could imagine western promoters in India having a "pack 'em in and count the cash" attitude.

Anyone got any ideas about the "Glaad occurs in the chestnut trees" line? It shouldn't obsess me as much as it does but it seems so impenetrable that I want to crack it
The only answers there might be are within the Manics interview with the NME published over 3 parts around the time of the album release and that you've likely already read. In full here - http://www.repeatfanzine.co.uk/inter...nme%20full.htm

where the answer to the chestnut trees, though not referenced, probably falls under the who knows category
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Old 20-01-2015, 22:12
newtransistorhero newtransistorhero is offline
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Maybe it's a Gimmick match? Although I don't know if there's any evidence that Richey was a wrestling fan. Imagine the lyric - "100,000 watched Big Boss Man, in the Kennel from Hell"

It's reasonable to assume he wrestled in India at some point. He wrestled for Joint Promotions for nearly 20 who had links to tours all over the place. They even had a Empire/Commonwealth Championship Belt! Unfortunately for researching, only his very short WCW run (i.e. right before he got Cancer and from 1996) is well chronicled despite being one of the most famous men in Britain for a long period of time.

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