Bee Thousand Book Extravaganza at Paradise Lounge in Boston
Before Robert Pollard’s Boston Spaceships / Big Dipper Show
Tuesday, 30 September

To introduce my book on Guided by Voices’ much-loved LP Bee Thousand, part of the world-conquering 33 1/3 series, to the rock cognoscenti of Boston (my home town—well, actually, Concord, but . . .), I'll be presenting a multi-media (or at least bi-media) Bee Thousand "extravaganza" at The Paradise Lounge (967-969 Commonwealth Avenue, Boston/ http://www.thedise.com/) at 6:00 PM on Tuesday, 30 September, in the very same building as, and just before doors open (at 7:00) for the Robert Pollard's Boston Spaceships show at The Paradise.

Come by for pre-show festivities at the Paradise Lounge. There'll be a randomly chosen interview cassette minute (usually at the expense of the author’s dignity), the collective making of a found poem from Bee Thousand lyric fragments using the Tzara Dada method of anti-lyric composition, the playing of a few Bee Thousand-era rarities, and a full-size anagram contest (prix d'honneur for the winner).

Should you require further inducements, the Chicago Tribune had this to say about the tome: “Akin to Guided By Voices themselves, Marc Woodworth's homage to the band's 1994 breakthrough [Bee Thousand] is fun, wordy, spirited and peculiar.” So am I.

Sing alongs? Why not? “Why I love this record in 200 words or less”? Bring your responses and I’ll read a few. I’ll also give away home-made, individually decorated, and very lo-fi indexes to those who buy the book or bring in their tattered, smudged and dog-eared copies.

Gary Waleik is guitarist/singer/writer for Big Dipper. He wrote this appreciation of the record too late to include in the book, but as the Dipper is playing with Robert Pollard's Boston Spaceships IN Boston on Tuesday, 30 September, I offer it up now:

Why I love Bee Thousand
by Gary Waleik

I hate Bee Thousand. I hardly ever take it off the shelf anymore. It’s a mirror in which I look bad as a musician, a songwriter and a singer. It’s a comprehensive encyclopedia of self awareness and honesty, and I’m afraid that my musical attempts sound very unaware and dishonest in comparison. Even the goddamn cover is brilliant, and it cruelly mocks as it reminds me of the time my band made the mistake of dishing out $10,000 to a New York City graphic design firm in exchange for the worst album cover in the history of rock. We had no idea that you could clip a great album cover out of a magazine.

But I also love Bee Thousand. I could say a lot, as many have, about its illogical and breathtaking synthesis of pop hooks and rock riffs and noise and angst and wholly unsentimental acknowledgement of beauty. But there aren’t enough words in a 200 word essay to do that. So maybe the best way to state my love for Bee Thousand is to say that the last few lines of Echos Myron may have saved my life.

AUDIO BEE THOUSAND BOOK FEATURE

Eric A. Thomas of the Missouri Review just posted his audio feature about the book on the Review's website. It's so well-done, wit and irreverence desert me:

http://www.missourireview.com/audio/2007-12-18_woodworth.mp3

Bee Thousand Book Extravaganza at Smart Bar

To introduce my book on Guided by Voices’ much-loved LP Bee Thousand, part of the world-conquering 33 1/3 series, to the vaunted upper-mid-West rock cognoscenti, I'll be presenting a multi-media (or at least bi-media) Bee Thousand "extravaganza" at Smart Bar in Chicago (www.smartbarchicago.com /3730 N Clark St) at 7:00 PM on Friday, 30 November (doors at 6:00), in the very same building as, and just before doors open for, the Robert Pollard show at Metro.

Come by for pre-show festivities at Smart Bar. A binding majority of Chicago’s own Textbook Committee (GbV ‘tribute’ band extraordinaire) will provide live sonic illustrations, there'll be a randomly chosen interview cassette minute (usually at the expense of the author’s dignity), the collective making of a found poem from Bee Thousand lyric fragments using the Tzara Dada method of anti-lyric composition, the playing of a few Bee Thousand-era rarities, and a full-size anagram contest (prix d'honneur for the winner).

Should you require further inducements, your very own Chicago Tribune had this to say about the tome: “Akin to Guided By Voices themselves, Marc Woodworth's homage to the band's 1994 breakthrough [Bee Thousand] is fun, wordy, spirited and peculiar.”

Sing alongs? Why not? “Why I love this record in 200 words or less”? Bring your responses and I’ll read a few. I’ll also give away home-made, individually decorated, and very lo-fi indexes to those who buy the book or bring in their tattered, smudged and thin-paged copies.

LINKS

Bee Thousand book blog: http://b1000.blogspot.com/

The book: http://www.amazon.com/Guided-Voices-Bee-Thousand-33/dp/0826417485

33 1/3 Series Blog: http://www.33third.blogspot.com/

Robert Pollard homepage: robertpollard.net

Uncle Bob turns 50 and Bee Thousand is better than ever

I had a lovely time at the Bee Thousand party in Brooklyn last Saturday night. Here's one of Nina Minichetti's photographs of Nina Katchadourian and Rick Moody playing a fine, sweet version of "Awful Bliss."