[Timothy Connelly]

Steve,

I appreciate that. But I’ll be more than happy looking for things that I can respond to. I won’t have to work so hard and it’ll give me loads of extra time each day.

I’m in complete agreement with you that MonaLisa fans are very good-natured.

[Timothy Connelly]

Thanks Jung and Jacki,

I appreciate the support.

And a special thanks to Howard, who emailed me with a number of positive suggestions.

This forum is not about me. It was set up by the MonaLisa Twins as a way to promote their artistry and to give back to their closest fans. They have done an amazing job.
Unfortunately, I am a veteran of a number of music forums from more than 20 years ago. The people on those boards were argumentative, often rude, occasionally obnoxious but very, very active.
We averaged more than 100 posts per day on the Dan Fogelberg board for several years and often hit 200 posts per day. If I made a couple of posts per day, well, so did a lot of people.  We had disagreements- we had to ban people because there was some really bad behavior.

Posts that compared Dan with Jackson Browne and Neil Young- both favorably and unfavorably- were the staple of the board. Which song or songs- which album or albums, which, how, why- there was constant analysis going on at all times.

It’s very different here. This has been a wonderful experience for me in every way except one- you guys are into listening to and appreciating the MonaLisa Twins but not analyzing their music. or comparing them to other acts. None of the posts here except mine tended to do that.

I was already frustrated by the lack of follow up to my posts when Steve came back with “Lisa doesn’t need to be compared to anyone.” Even before I read Howard’s, “Comparison’s don’t mean a lot in the scheme of things”, I knew I was badly out of step here and that continuing to post my more analytical posts needed to stop.

The unfortunate thing is- this is how I think- this is what I enjoy so there’s no way to alter my posting style and even half way enjoy it.

I will continue to monitor the board and take advantage of this wonderful club. I will respond to posts and give support and enthusiasm to other posters. The only thing that stops is my longer, more analytical posting-

I’m good with this decision and there’s no reason for anyone to comment further. You guys are wonderful and have great taste in music!

[Timothy Connelly]

Or maybe not.
If I’m going to go to all the trouble to make my comparison posts, I need people to care about them. You guys obviously don’t. I appreciate your feedback but unfortunately it leads me to believe my posting is a poor fit here.
I will continue to be a member of the Club and lend support to the Twins. Thanks to everyone for being exactly who you are.

Tim

[Timothy Connelly]

I’m sorry for answering for you Michaela. I clicked on this post, without realizing where it was at and wrote a response that tried to be humorous. Howard and I send email back and forth and enjoy debating our sometimes different perspectives. If you think we come across in a negative way to other posters, we’ll stop immediately.

[Timothy Connelly]

I think the importance of Hamburg to The Beatles has been vastly overrated. Their popularity soared in Liverpool when they returned because Paul was now the bass player instead of Stu and because their more animated stage presence was in direct contrast to all the other bands who were imitating the Shadows.

All the many hours of being onstage, playing to all hours of the night- mainly for drunks- made them sloppy, lazy and got them started on pills. You don’t completely change your drummer and bass player- out with Pete and Stu- and come away as a tight, wonderful band. They flunked the Decca audition with Pete because they simply weren’t that good with him on drums.

The addition of Ringo and Paul as the rhythm section changed everything and it gave birth to their being able to write songs that had a power and substance the Hamburg band never had. Practice is a vitally important aspect of talent development and Lisa had one tremendous advantage over George. She knew exactly what she wanted to do and has worked every bit as hard as George to get there.

Now it’s doubtful that she has the sheer genius that he had as a songwriter. But if you listen to her acoustic guitar solo on Time of the Season- you tell me a Beatles number where George’s guitar rivals that. Genius trumps talent. George as a guitarist was exactly as good as he needed to be but for playing talent, he was never one of the best.
Part of my source for this is Geoff Emerick’s book Here, There and Everywhere. Another thing I’m looking at is how often somebody else- usually Paul played the lead guitar parts from Rubber Soul on.
All of this is opinion and I have the utmost respect for yours. I’m just sharing another point of view.

[Timothy Connelly]

Overthinking- go ahead and do it! We are obviously twin brothers, separated at birth and brought together by two sisters who weren’t.

[Timothy Connelly]

Hey Howard,

I always appreciate your feedback. If you think I’m over analyzing, I’m sure you’re not alone. On this particular post, I feel like I’m okay. But I’m fine with your disagreements and criticisms. I know you’re only being honest and you’re all about Mona and Lisa. When I veer off course, it’s great to know you’ll be there, pointing me back in the right direction.

You give some excellent examples of artists who have been taken advantage of by management. I’m not sure that needs to prevent Mona and Lisa from being open to future management deals; it just means they need to be careful. Irving Azoff made all of the Eagles multi-millionaires- including Don Felder, who got kicked out of the band. Robert Stigwood was accused by the Bee Gees of stealing 120 million dollars from them. Only a few years later they refused an honor unless he was honored with them. Brian made some terrible deals for the Beatles yet we may never have heard of them were it not for him. Management is rarely perfect or just what we want but it can serve a purpose from time to time.

 

[Timothy Connelly]

Agree completely!

[Timothy Connelly]

Thanks for commissioning the song, Rich! The rest of us get a double win out of it- this faster, uptempo song that we’re enjoying so much and the extra help your financial support gave them helps us have things like this club! I had heard the song by Allison Krause but didn’t know it from Dumbo until I saw the song listing and discovered that on YouTube.

[Timothy Connelly]

You are right, Steve. Although George was amazing at playing the early lead stuff for the Beatles (Roll Over Beethoven, Hard Days Night) Paul was Paul- simply an amazing talent and was better at playing many of the later songs (Drive My Car, Helter Skelter). Between the 4 lads, they always got it perfect!

[Timothy Connelly]

Geoff Emerick- who was very critical of George as a guitarist in his book, “Here, There and Everywhere” said it was George. It reminds me of the work George did for John on the Imagine album. There’s a wildness to it that’s generally absent from his guitar work. As much as I love the Twins version, they didn’t quite capture that wildness, IMO.

[Timothy Connelly]

“You Really Got Me” on that. Her version also brings out the melody more. I think there’s room in the world for both of them.

[Timothy Connelly]

I hear what you’re saying and for me, it would be advantageous. But with new members joining all the time and catching up on some of the older posts, it’s probably better if it starts with the first post. One of the things they’ve done for posts with a new response is add an arrow and if we click on that, it goes to the bottom.

[Timothy Connelly]

Hey Daniel,

Yeah, they really do speed it up. I loved Allison’s version of this but after listening to the Twins version about 6 times, it seems slow and dull.

[Timothy Connelly]

You got it perfect, Jacki!!