Lizzy Mercier Descloux (1957-2004)
I got this unbelievable news from my Louisville based friend (and former drummer in my long ago group Rakehell) Cesar Perez:
hought you could spread the concern for another fallen angel...
(from the French Press)
Paris, 29 April 2004 - French singer Lizzy Mercier Descloux died a week ago at the age of 47, but news of her demise did not filter through to the media until yesterday. For the mainstream music public, Lizzy?s name will forever be associated with her one and only chart hit, Mais o? sont pass?es les gazelles. But committed fans will recall other Lizzy classics such as Wakwazulu Kwezizulu Rock. In trendier circles, Lizzy Mercier Descloux will be remembered as one of those protean figures who pioneer cultural revolution.
She died of cancer in her estate in Corsica...
I wonder if Arto Lindsay gives a damn!
Heard a wonderful tribute to her legacy today on WFMU.
Thanks Ceez. Jeez. I've always been a huge LMD fan. I still have my old vinyl of "Press Color" and often played it on WCBN. I once had the twelve-inch of Rosa Yemen, but was never able to get a copy of her masterpiece "One From the Soul."
For those of you to whom the name "Lizzy Mercier Descloux" means nothing, she was an avant-garde poet, singer and guitarist who was initially based in Paris in the late 1970s. She was in New York in 1979-80, where she recorded two albums for Ze Records that are timeless classics. Simple funky beats and pop licks, Lizzy's own scrapy atonal guitar and a minimalist approach to lyrics. Her work had a HUGE impact on my own musical thinking. She went on into the pop market in France and recorded, in 1984, "One From the Soul", an album made in South Africa with South African musicians. Paul Simon heard it and in 1985 recorded "Graceland" - the exact same kind of project. Paul Simon was called a genius and the record went platinum. Lizzy, well - died two weeks ago in obscurity so complete that
I didn't even hear about it.
A few years back I joined a mailing list called "onefromthesoul.com" which was LMD's fan group. It had about 19 members. Most of the time we talked about how no one ever seemed to have news of her whereabouts and how impossible it was to find her records. Finally the guy shut the list down as the server wanted to charge him, he couldn't afford to keep it, and anyway there was simply no news at all.
This was not the newsbreak I was hoping for. I should mention, however, that Ze just reissued her two albums for them last fall. I hadn't heard about it, but I will be getting them now. The disc of "Press Color" has the six Rosa Yemen tracks added to it. I would have been very excited about learning this, had it been under other circumstances.
Still More on Centaur!
Wonders never cease - I got this marvelous letter today from a representative of the Bayonne, New Jersey Historical Society, Gerry Nowicki. While I haven't asked him to allow me to republish his comments here, I hope he'll forgive me for doing so in condensed form:
(Gerry Nowicki)
David Horsley' s first company, a partnership with a cameraman, was called Centaur
Films. After he parted company with that partner, his called his new venture
Nestor, since the Nestors came after the Centaurs in Greek mythology.
Nestor was the company that merged with seven other indepenedents
including Carl Laemmle's Imp to form Universal circa 1911.
After a short period of time as Universal's treasurer, Horsley was bought
out by Laemmle, and ended up reusing the old Centaur brand again.
He created a large glass-roofed studio over a film production plant in
Bayonne, but eventually he sold that also to Universal. They called it the
Cello Film Manufacturing Company, but it was the site of a huge fire circa 1922.
The vaults they found last week should be the Cello ones...
(end Gerry Nowicki)
Thanks Gerry for this chapter in the exciting story of movie pioneer David Horsley. As to future filmographies, I am working on one of all the Edison Kinetoscope subjects of 1889-1896, which will be up when I'm done. It'll be awhile though, I think - I still have the huge Rodeheaver project to finish (several discographies), to play in Columbus May 29, and to move June 1.
Oh, and By the Way, I Played Last Night
This was during the open house opened by AMG. I played "Dash Out the Brains", "The Academy of Anthrax", "Red Alert", "Is Who" and "(When I Kiss You) You Look Like John F. Kennedy." Much to my surprise, it was very well recieved. I had also planned to play "In Cold Vomit" and a day-old guitar improvisation which I am calling "Woodstra", but I realized during "Is Who" that I could not hear the backing track and it would be better for me just to play "Kennedy" and bow out. On "Is Who" I was joined by AMG colleague Kris Truzzi on guitar.
I thought this would be "one for the afterlife", but later I learned it had been recorded. So soon I should have a copy to add to the archive.
Uncle Dave Lewis
UncleDave41@comcast.net