Here's Andy (Partridge) talking about Outside World on the myspace blog:

Only registered users can see links on this forum! Register or Login on forum!

AP: This one was written pretty early on, I think, and the other stuff just sort of took it over. I think it's sort of a giveaway that it ended up in the "dead spot" on the album -- about three-quarters of the way through.

TB: I've never heard you mention that before. Is this for your own albums, or do you think it's true of most albums?

AP: Usually, the stuff that isn't so good tends to gravitate toward that spot, near the end of side two in vinyl terms, or four-fifths of the way through a CD or something. It's the dead spot. I think Dave coined the phrase, and I knew exactly what he meant. We tend to shuffle stuff there that we're not so in love with. You know, maybe you finish the album, and you go, "You know what? That one didn't work out so great after all. Yeah, we've still got it, and it's better than such-and-such a track, which we're going to leave off, so where should we put it? Maybe we'll put this one in the dead spot."

TB: So, "That Is the Way" is right next to this one -- were those your two songs for the "dead spot" on this album? You don't feel this way about "Millions," do you?

AP: Ummm ... no. I think "That Is the Way" wasn't so successful. It was okay, for sure. I really love the flugelhorn on it. I guess "War Dance" would also be a dead-spot song for me. That's probably the weakest number on Nonsuch.

TB: "Leisure"?

AP: Yeah. That's the weakest number of English Settlement. You see the formula here?

TB: We're going to have to look through the catalog! [laughs]

AP: It's something for people to talk about, actually! They can argue about whether or not such-and-such was a correct choice for the dead spot or not.

But generally, I think that's a kind of pattern with our albums -- it's like the quiet before the storm, usually.

========================================

So, shall we talk about it?



I Can't Own Her in the dead spot? Really? It 's the emotional climax of the album for me.

Hmm, that's interesting, I've never thought about that before. Usually an album either has filler or doesn't, not a dead spot. I like Outside World though, the guitar riff is simple but catchy. War Dance is another favorite, but it seems to get a lot of flack- so I won't argue it. In my mind Nonsuch & English Settlement are perfect albums, no filler or dead spots.

Some albums are just front loaded with singles or the catchier tracks and I think that might lead to this idea of a dead spot more than actual track weakness. I'm not saying the catchy tracks are fast tempo or happy, but just more universal in their appeal or easier to get into. I think you can apply Andy & Dave's dead spot theory to many albums, but just not every non-masterpiece album. You know what I mean?

Maybe I'm just jabbering on though..

There's no dead spot on Mummer, every song is a gem. I suppose that Ladybird and In Loving Memory Of A Name occupy the dead spot position, but they are both wonderful songs.

So they're talking the third song from the end.
That makes "Burning With Optimism's Flame" the dead spot on Black Sea.

I don't think so.

AP, "OK, this is the first one tonight, it's called Outside World."

They very often opened with it live.

And very good it was.

Now this is interesting.

I was reading George Martin's rational for the Sgt Pepper running order - he basically said 'cram side 1 with belters and end on a high' (i.e. 'A Day In The Life' couldn't be followed!)

Pepper's dead spot, for Martin, was 'Lovely Rita' - he found it tedious!

This fits in with my theory that 'classic' albums are rarer now than they used to be, cos bands have to fill 70 minutes of plastic rather than 45, which means that tracks that maybe woulda been b-sides are included.

Black Sea's 'Optimism's Flames' and Mummer's 'Me & The Wind' are very much dead spot tracks, IMO - sorry!

If you've ever been in a relationship you thought wasn't worth it and then when it ends you realize it was more, then me and the wind, means more. as you get older it just means you have IBS

I don't think there is any such thing as a filler. It's just a matter of personal preference. AV1 has 4 or 5 weak songs in my opinion but I'm sure most on here would not agree with me. Perhaps it's better that albums have a wider appeal to encompass all tastes. Anyway if nothing else it gives us something to talk about