"Street Angel" and "Jane"

[miriamswell]

Ok, blame this post on way tooooo much caffeine and a lack of new topics for a while. I am one of those odd people who actually likes "Street Angel." I especially like the outtakes, which have far fewer affects. Songs like "Blue Denim," "Street Angel," "Rose Garden," "Destiny," and even "Just Like a Woman" are quintessentially Stevie. And who else could just phone Dylan to come play harmonic? How can you not love this woman? On the outtake she does a perfect Bob imitation without turning into parody.

My favorite song is "Jane," but then I have always adored Jane Goodall and “her” incredible chimpanzees. I get the feeling that for whatever reason Stevie really connected with Jane Goodall, even if they’ve never met. BTW, does anyone know if they =have= met? Dr. Goodall is, like Stevie, a woman who sacrificed everything to her passion -- in this case the study and survival of the chimpanzee. Dr. Goodall has lived in the jungle for almost her entire adult life. She has risked life and limb to protect her chimps from poachers, politics and ignorance. And then there are the chimps themselves. You cannot look into a chimp's eyes without singing a soul that is both gentle and wise and oftentimes sad. But they can also be very playful and great jokers (like Mick! ) I also have the feeling that Stevie in someway sensed all of this about the chimps. She was at a time when she was being both judged and scorned by a press and public who had once deemed her the High Priestess of Rock and Roll. Maybe she had chance to spend some time with a chimp or chimps and was in some way healed a bit by their non-judgmental love. A captive chimp judges people by the quality of the snacks they provide and how much hugging and tumbling they wish to participate in; they bring no agendas to the interaction. Much like a child. So maybe Stevie was identifying with Jane and realizing what a huge tragedy it would be if there were no more chimpanzees in the world. It is also interesting that Stevie uses the "pushed against the wall" refrain from "Joan of Arc." Maybe Stevie was envious of Jane's exile, which was self-imposed rather than a cause of external forces. Who knows? All I know is that for whatever reason, Stevie wrote a gorgeous and powerful song. I would love other opinions!
Mim, feeling chatty

[tommer]

a lack of new topics for a while.

yeah, those stupid polls and pointless speculations threads does make this place a little more shallow... (and which tampon do you think stevie uses???)
the chit chat forum is very missed.

I am one of those odd people who actually likes "Street Angel."

me too.
it's not that i don't think this album has it's fair share of bad tracks (unconditional love, rose garden, destiny, maybe love and listen to the rain) but over all it's an album which i will more easily listen to these days than to TOSOTM or RAL for example.
i don't really care that much about the chimps tho, they make annoying noises and i think they carry parasites. not to mention the fact that they smell bad...

[BellaDonnaGypsy]

Yay! People who do actually like Street Angel! So it's not Stevie's best, but then I guess her worst is far greater than most people's best. There are songs on Street Angel that I really love, such as Greta and Rose Garden.

Laura.

[Robert]

Stevie and Jane Goodall have met ,she performed "Jane ' at a tribute to Jane Goodall,I believe about a year before Street Angel was released.

[estranged4life]

like "Street Angel"...Maybe not all of it I enjoy, But there is a few songs that are quite fun to listen to:

"Blue Denim", "Greta", "Street Angel", "Listen To The Rain", & "Rose Garden"

Still not as bad an album as assumed...Brian

[rhiannon1119]

I also like Street Angel. Granted, it was not one of Stevie's best, but there is something about it that I like. I can listen to it straight through without hardly ever skipping a song. Jane is one of my favorite tracks on there, as well as.. Destiny, Rose Garden, Love Is Like A River, Greta and Blue Denim. I also really love the way she sounds when she is singing Just Like A Woman!

Michelle

[KathyD]

I enjoy several songs from Street Angel -- Maybe Love... is probably in my top 10 fave Stevie solo songs. And I like Blue Denim, Street Angel, Destiny. I also dislike a few songs, especially Unconditional Love. But I enjoy listening to this album more than OSOTM.

About Jane... I really didn't like this song for the first couple of years that I had this CD. I guess I just couldn't get over the fact that she actually had the word "chimpanzee" in a song. Even after I found out that the song was about some lady named Jane Goodall who worked with chimpanzees, I still didn't like it. Then, a couple of months ago, I read a book about Jane Goodall. What an amazing lady. She knew exactly what she wanted to do with her life at a very young age, and she went after it... totally. I definitely admire her determination and spirit. Anyway, now I listen to the song from a different perspective, and I kind of like it. Especially the lyrics, I guess. It's still not a favorite, but now I don't skip over it.

[miriamswell]

I'm glad I'm not the only one who likes "Street Angel." It is interesting though that almost nobody has the same favorite songs, usually people seem to agree about any given songs from an album.

I agree Greta is also gorgeous.

I am so glad Steve was able to meet Jane Goodall. She, Dr. Goodall, is one of the most amazing women ever.

Tommer, keep in mind that humans and chimps share 99% of their DNA and that the chimp/human split occurred less then 5 millionyears ago, a dew drop in the bucket of evolution, which makes them our closest relatives on earth. Perhaps that explains the male propensity to scratch without shame, make relentless advances toward any available female and eat whatever is handed to them. I won't even get into the smelly part or the bit about parasites -- too obvious. And did you know that chimps are not only capable of acquiring and using language, they are also able to fabricate and use tools. Still sounding an awful lot like a guy. Hmmm. Could this be why there is so much pressure of late to teach creationism rather than evolution in the schools? A strong desire not to let the genetic cat out of the bag, so to speak?
~Mim, reliving physical anthropology

[tommer]

Tommer, keep in mind that humans and chimps share 99% of their DNA and that the chimp/human split occurred less then 5 millionyears ago, a dew drop in the bucket of evolution, which makes them our closest relatives on earth.

perhaps the ability to see that this single remaining 1% can make such a HUGE difference is one of the things which makes us human...

Perhaps that explains the male propensity to scratch without shame, make relentless advances toward any available female and eat whatever is handed to them. I won't even get into the smelly part or the bit about parasites -- too obvious

... that's not the way you'll get yourself a husband darling.

[DrummerDeanna]

I like Street Angel as well, though it is my least favorite album. I hated it when I first bought it...then it grew on me..I think the only songs I don't listen to on it are Street Angel, Docklands, and Jane...I love Greta...and Destiny, and Just Like a Woman, and Kicks it...Yeah...I think I may go and listen to Jane after this thread, I just have a problem with songs that have the same name as my relatives....I have this same problem with Shery Crow's song Rose Marie...anyway...I'm about to start rambling...so I'll end my bit here

[miriamswell]

DrummerDeanna, did you by any chance used to post (frequently on a now vanished Tom Petty board? Your name is really familiar. "Kick It" is great -- Mike Campbell plays on it and I think it is one of the few songs Stevie wrote on the electric guitar. That is another one of her songs that is multi-layered -- drug references to refer to romance that refer back to drug references. And a great hook.

Tommer darling, you are taking this a bit personally, aren't you? Perhaps the 1% to which you refer so vehemently is rather more a personal idiosyncrasy instigated by perhaps the teeniest bit of insecurity, than a sweeping statement about the family tree of Homo Sapiens Sapiens.* And* you are making assumptions, which is a bit coarse. I appreciate your concern, but trust me, my dear boy, I most certainly would never consort with a man who is hairy, unwashed, infested with parasites, lacking binocular vision, unfamiliar with the English canon and hasn't developed a palate for ceviche and La Grande Dame de Veuve-Clicquot. Finally, if I may be frank with you -- I hope that isn't too much of an assumption on my part, but since you seem so concerned for my well being, I feel it only appropriate to return the favor -- in my experience, chimps tend to be a bit more, shall we say, discerning, then you appear to be.
~Mim

[DrummerDeanna]

Originally posted by miriamswell
DrummerDeanna, did you by any chance used to post (frequently on a now vanished Tom Petty board? Your name is really familiar. "Kick It" is great -- Mike Campbell plays on it and I think it is one of the few songs Stevie wrote on the electric guitar. That is another one of her songs that is multi-layered -- drug references to refer to romance that refer back to drug references. And a great hook.

No....that wasn't me...I never did post on any Tom Petty boards...but I used to frequent a Xena board..LoL...

[KathyD]

Originally posted by tommer
... that's not the way you'll get yourself a husband darling.

darling tommer, what century are you living in? i certainly can't speak for miriamswell, but i would never censor myself from stating facts or even opinions just because it might stop me from "getting a husband" (by the way, i am happily married). or were you just joking around? god i hope so.

[tommer]

Originally posted by KathyD
were you just joking around? god i hope so.

of course i did.
after miriamswell's post i felt an urgent need to stick a chauvinistic remark there to get even.
obviously enough, i wasn't REALLY trying to be personal, the funny outcome of this is ridiculing MY discernment.
hairy, unwashed, infested with parasites, lacking binocular vision, unfamiliar with the English canon me.....

[highpriestess53]

Originally posted by miriamswell
Could this be why there is so much pressure of late to teach creationism rather than evolution in the schools?
~Mim, reliving physical anthropology

This subject constantly amuses me......creation v evolution....

BUT lets be honest since when did the THEORY Of Evolution as propagated by Charles Darwin become fact????