The evil of the unions: remember those absurd mimes on TOTP?
 

From the biography of Johnny Pearson

In 1966 the all-powerful Musicians’ Union had banned pop stars from
miming to their records. This meant that artists either had to
pre-record their numbers especially or perform live with the Top Of The
Pops Orchestra, an assembly of jobbing musicians more accustomed to
easy-listening arrangements for crooners like Matt Monro and Des O’Connor.

As disorganised pop stars often arrived at the studio on the day with no
band parts at all, Pearson and the orchestra frequently had to improvise
backing tracks. Inevitably the session men, almost all middle-aged,
often struggled with the enormous range of rock and pop tunes with which
they were presented. A gentle ballad by Val Doonican was one thing; a
funky disco track by Tina Charles quite another.

Even a middle-of-the-road artist like Cliff Richard had his doubts about
the band’s inner grooviness, and ability to “get it on”. “They had no
feel for the tracks,” he complained. “You could tell they didn’t even
like rock and roll.”

Another problem for Pearson was that, on the conductor’s rostrum, he had
to contend with the extensive and rigidly-enforced provisions of the
union’s rule book. In rehearsal, if a tea break was due, the orchestra
would break off in the middle of a song and walk out, leaving American
funk and soul superstars scratching their heads.

****

I was employed for 35 weeks. That was it. I was made to join a union. I
was so glad when I became self-employed and thus represented myself,
instead of having some useless union gob****e to pretend to do it.

Bill

The evil of the unions: remember those absurd mimes on TOTP?
 

Yes, well it all seems so quaint now. However ther is still a bit of a
tyrany in the actors union lovvy.

Brian

--
Brian Gaff....Note, this account does not accept Bcc: email.
graphics are great, but the blind can't hear them
Email:
__________________________________________________ __________________________________________________ __________


"Bill Wright" wrote in message
...
From the biography of Johnny Pearson

In 1966 the all-powerful Musicians’ Union had banned pop stars from miming
to their records. This meant that artists either had to pre-record their
numbers especially or perform live with the Top Of The Pops Orchestra, an
assembly of jobbing musicians more accustomed to easy-listening
arrangements for crooners like Matt Monro and Des O’Connor.

As disorganised pop stars often arrived at the studio on the day with no
band parts at all, Pearson and the orchestra frequently had to improvise
backing tracks. Inevitably the session men, almost all middle-aged, often
struggled with the enormous range of rock and pop tunes with which they
were presented. A gentle ballad by Val Doonican was one thing; a funky
disco track by Tina Charles quite another.

Even a middle-of-the-road artist like Cliff Richard had his doubts about
the band’s inner grooviness, and ability to “get it on”. “They had no feel
for the tracks,” he complained. “You could tell they didn’t even like rock
and roll.”

Another problem for Pearson was that, on the conductor’s rostrum, he had
to contend with the extensive and rigidly-enforced provisions of the union’s
rule book. In rehearsal, if a tea break was due, the orchestra would break
off in the middle of a song and walk out, leaving American funk and soul
superstars scratching their heads.

****

I was employed for 35 weeks. That was it. I was made to join a union. I
was so glad when I became self-employed and thus represented myself,
instead of having some useless union gob****e to pretend to do it.

Bill

The evil of the unions: remember those absurd mimes on TOTP?
 

On 28/02/2013 04:09, Bill Wright wrote:
From the biography of Johnny Pearson

In 1966 the all-powerful Musicians’ Union had banned pop stars from
miming to their records. This meant that artists either had to
pre-record their numbers especially or perform live with the Top Of The
Pops Orchestra, an assembly of jobbing musicians more accustomed to
easy-listening arrangements for crooners like Matt Monro and Des O’Connor.



if you watch the top of the pops repeats on bbc 4 at the moment from
1978 it's still going on - althea and donna had a real ordeal singing
'uptown top ranking' while the totp orchestra tried to sound like a
reggae band, brotherhood of man didn't fare much better.


--
Gareth.
That fly.... Is your magic wand.

The evil of the unions: remember those absurd mimes on TOTP?
 

Of course miming is now called lip syncing. I know they had a lot of
problems with acoustics at the superbowl recently resulting in having to let
some artists mime, erm I mean, well you know. Not that it matters to me but
I'd be a bit miffed if I went there to see a star and they sang nowt.
I was indeed a bit put out when dragged along by my mother to the Black and
White minstral show to find that except for the soloists, the rest was from
tape and mimed.

Brian

--
Brian Gaff....Note, this account does not accept Bcc: email.
graphics are great, but the blind can't hear them
Email:
__________________________________________________ __________________________________________________ __________


"the dog from that film you saw" wrote in
message ...
On 28/02/2013 04:09, Bill Wright wrote:
From the biography of Johnny Pearson

In 1966 the all-powerful Musicians’ Union had banned pop stars from
miming to their records. This meant that artists either had to
pre-record their numbers especially or perform live with the Top Of The
Pops Orchestra, an assembly of jobbing musicians more accustomed to
easy-listening arrangements for crooners like Matt Monro and Des O’Connor.



if you watch the top of the pops repeats on bbc 4 at the moment from 1978
it's still going on - althea and donna had a real ordeal singing 'uptown
top ranking' while the totp orchestra tried to sound like a reggae band,
brotherhood of man didn't fare much better.


--
Gareth.
That fly.... Is your magic wand.

The evil of the unions: remember those absurd mimes on TOTP?
 

In article ,
Bill Wright wrote:
I was employed for 35 weeks. That was it. I was made to join a union. I
was so glad when I became self-employed and thus represented myself,
instead of having some useless union gob****e to pretend to do it.

"can't work as part of a team"

--
*Time is fun when you're having flies... Kermit

Dave Plowman London SW
To e-mail, change noise into sound.

The evil of the unions: remember those absurd mimes on TOTP?
 

In article ,
Brian Gaff wrote:
Of course miming is now called lip syncing. I know they had a lot of
problems with acoustics at the superbowl recently resulting in having to
let some artists mime, erm I mean, well you know. Not that it matters to
me but I'd be a bit miffed if I went there to see a star and they sang
nowt. I was indeed a bit put out when dragged along by my mother to the
Black and White minstral show to find that except for the soloists, the
rest was from tape and mimed.

It sort of depends what you want from TV. Pop radio with pictures - or an
impression of what the talent would be like at a live gig.
Of course with the various boy bands etc it doesn't much matter with their
following being rather more interested in seeing than hearing them perform.

--
*Friends help you move. Real friends help you move bodies.

Dave Plowman London SW
To e-mail, change noise into sound.

The evil of the unions: remember those absurd mimes on TOTP?
 

Dave Plowman (News) wrote:
In article ,
Bill Wright wrote:
I was employed for 35 weeks. That was it. I was made to join a union. I
was so glad when I became self-employed and thus represented myself,
instead of having some useless union gob****e to pretend to do it.

"can't work as part of a team"

Yes. I'm a leader; you're a follower.

Bill

The evil of the unions: remember those absurd mimes on TOTP?
 

In article ,
Bill Wright wrote:
Dave Plowman (News) wrote:
In article ,
Bill Wright wrote:
I was employed for 35 weeks. That was it. I was made to join a union. I
was so glad when I became self-employed and thus represented myself,
instead of having some useless union gob****e to pretend to do it.

"can't work as part of a team"

Yes. I'm a leader; you're a follower.

Does anyone ever need to follow your white van?

--
*Why is a boxing ring square?

Dave Plowman London SW
To e-mail, change noise into sound.

The evil of the unions: remember those absurd mimes on TOTP?
 

Dave Plowman (News) wrote:

Yes. I'm a leader; you're a follower.

Does anyone ever need to follow your white van?

Yes, usually other white vans driven by younger and more tempestuous men
than myself. I confuse other road users utterly by driving my white van
like a limousine.

Bill

The evil of the unions: remember those absurd mimes on TOTP?
 

On 2013-02-28, Martin wrote:
On Thu, 28 Feb 2013 13:48:50 +0000, Bill Wright
wrote:

Dave Plowman (News) wrote:
In article ,
Bill Wright wrote:
I was employed for 35 weeks. That was it. I was made to join a union. I
was so glad when I became self-employed and thus represented myself,
instead of having some useless union gob****e to pretend to do it.

"can't work as part of a team"

Yes. I'm a leader; you're a follower.

Your a loner.

Your grammar is terrible.

--
David Taylor

The evil of the unions: remember those absurd mimes on TOTP?
 

Agreed.
While on the subject of enhancing of talents or making them worse, this
device that puts people back in tune is terribly audible, and if ill used
can make established artists sound weird.
I noted some spotty engineer had used it on a live recording of Carole King
from the mid norties, and as the whole point of her voice is that its pretty
rough, trying to make it sound smooth made it sound very peculiar.
Lets get back to basics as someone used to say.
Brian

--
Brian Gaff....Note, this account does not accept Bcc: email.
graphics are great, but the blind can't hear them
Email:
__________________________________________________ __________________________________________________ __________


"Dave Plowman (News)" wrote in message
...
In article ,
Brian Gaff wrote:
Of course miming is now called lip syncing. I know they had a lot of
problems with acoustics at the superbowl recently resulting in having to
let some artists mime, erm I mean, well you know. Not that it matters to
me but I'd be a bit miffed if I went there to see a star and they sang
nowt. I was indeed a bit put out when dragged along by my mother to the
Black and White minstral show to find that except for the soloists, the
rest was from tape and mimed.

It sort of depends what you want from TV. Pop radio with pictures - or an
impression of what the talent would be like at a live gig.
Of course with the various boy bands etc it doesn't much matter with their
following being rather more interested in seeing than hearing them
perform.

--
*Friends help you move. Real friends help you move bodies.

Dave Plowman London SW
To e-mail, change noise into sound.

The evil of the unions: remember those absurd mimes on TOTP?
 

On Thu, 28 Feb 2013 04:09:05 +0000, Bill Wright wrote:

I was employed for 35 weeks. That was it. I was made to join a union. I
was so glad when I became self-employed and thus represented myself,
instead of having some useless union gob****e to pretend to do it.

My very first job in 1982 was at the Raleigh bike factory, I got a job in
the wheel shop fitting tyres, they tried to get me in the union but I
ignored them. Some time later I got a job in the assembly shop (one of the
top jobs to have, & looking back now, very happy times). There were a group
of us starting & we were already acquainted with some of the guys already
working there.
On arrival we were approached by the union guy, recognisable by the suit
jacket that they wore over their overalls.

"Are you lads in the union?"
"No"
"Well these lads won't work with you if you aren't."

Off he trots.

We start work with 'the lads'.

"What's this about you not working with us if we're not in the union?"

"A load of ********" came the reply.

Never joined one.

The evil of the unions: remember those absurd mimes on TOTP?
 

On 01/03/2013 09:01, CD wrote:
On Thu, 28 Feb 2013 04:09:05 +0000, Bill Wright wrote:

I was employed for 35 weeks. That was it. I was made to join a union. I
was so glad when I became self-employed and thus represented myself,
instead of having some useless union gob****e to pretend to do it.
My very first job in 1982 was at the Raleigh bike factory, I got a job in
the wheel shop fitting tyres, they tried to get me in the union but I
ignored them. Some time later I got a job in the assembly shop (one of the
top jobs to have, & looking back now, very happy times). There were a group
of us starting & we were already acquainted with some of the guys already
working there.
On arrival we were approached by the union guy, recognisable by the suit
jacket that they wore over their overalls

"Are you lads in the union?"
"No"
"Well these lads won't work with you if you aren't."

Off he trots.

We start work with 'the lads'.

"What's this about you not working with us if we're not in the union?"

"A load of ********" came the reply.

Never joined one.

Okay chaps here is an example for you

hourly paid worker, normal working conditions 4 hours then the break of 45 minutes then a later session 5 hours

total hours worked 9. Total length of working day 9 3/4 hours.

Come in another day, and find things have changed.
Work 4 hour. Meal break 1 hour. Work 3 hours 45 minutes. Wait one hour work 15 minutes.

Total work for day equals 8 hours pay length of working day 10 hours . this is what happens in some industries. Without the unions were I work this would be happening all the time. Our company tried it and got stomped on. But they will try it again. Every now and again they try to sneak in. They love getting 12 or 13 hours cover for 10 hours pay.

Unions have their place and without them even self-employed workers wouldn't have the conditions they have now.

The evil of the unions: remember those absurd mimes on TOTP?
 

In article ,
CD wrote:
"What's this about you not working with us if we're not in the union?"

"A load of ********" came the reply.

Never joined one.

I take it you turned down any pay or conditions improvements negotiated by
that union?

--
*If love is blind, why is lingerie so popular?

Dave Plowman London SW
To e-mail, change noise into sound.

The evil of the unions: remember those absurd mimes on TOTP?
 

Agreed. It's awful. It makes me cringe every time I hear it. The
original purpose may have been to "correct" the pitch of a singer with
indifferent abilities, but sometimes the effect is so extreme I can
only assume they're doing it deliberately because some philistine
actually likes it. I usually have to wash my ears out with something
by Bach or Beethoven as soon as possible.

I think the gadget must work on the same principle as what used to be
called a "PA Stabiliser", in other words by creating a suppressed
carrier modulated signal from the voice track, then reinserting the
carrier with a slight offset to change the pitch of the audio. Because
it changes the pitch of all the frequency components by the same
linear amount, the harmonic relationships between them are destroyed,
and the greater the shift the worse it sounds.

Rod.

On Fri, 1 Mar 2013 07:13:37 -0000, "Brian Gaff"
wrote:

While on the subject of enhancing of talents or making them worse, this
device that puts people back in tune is terribly audible, and if ill used
can make established artists sound weird.

The evil of the unions: remember those absurd mimes on TOTP?
 

On Fri, 01 Mar 2013 10:41:54 +0000 (GMT), Dave Plowman (News) wrote:

I take it you turned down any pay or conditions improvements negotiated by
that union?

In the 3 years I was there, there wasn't a pay award as Raleigh were in the
****. The working conditions were apalling in some areas of the plant, but
were talking about 30 years ago. Thankfully it's all been razed to the
ground now. For the record we all got made redundant in '85 union or not.

The point I was trying to make was the underhand tactics/lies to get you to
join the union. Why not try to sell it to us explaining the benefits?

My overwhelming memory of the union conveners was that they all had
specific jobs there, but did absolutely **** all all day long, wearing
their uniform of the jacket over the pristine overalls.

In every job I've had since which is only 7 (4 in the last 2 years, thanks
to another redundancy), there hasn't been a union presence at any of them.

The evil of the unions: remember those absurd mimes on TOTP?
 

On Thu, 28 Feb 2013 04:09:05 +0000, Bill Wright
wrote:

I was employed for 35 weeks. That was it. I was made to join a union. I
was so glad when I became self-employed and thus represented myself,
instead of having some useless union gob****e to pretend to do it.

If it wasn't for those 'useless gob****es' you'd still be hacking coal
out of a two-foot thick seam you ignorant yob.

The evil of the unions: remember those absurd mimes on TOTP?
 

In article ,
CD wrote:
On Fri, 01 Mar 2013 10:41:54 +0000 (GMT), Dave Plowman (News) wrote:

I take it you turned down any pay or conditions improvements
negotiated by that union?

In the 3 years I was there, there wasn't a pay award as Raleigh were in
the ****. The working conditions were apalling in some areas of the
plant, but were talking about 30 years ago. Thankfully it's all been
razed to the ground now. For the record we all got made redundant in '85
union or not.

The point I was trying to make was the underhand tactics/lies to get you
to join the union. Why not try to sell it to us explaining the benefits?

To 'us' or just you? Did you ask anyone? By the sound of it you were
spoiling for a fight with 'the union' anyway.

My overwhelming memory of the union conveners was that they all had
specific jobs there, but did absolutely **** all all day long, wearing
their uniform of the jacket over the pristine overalls.

It's a full time job in some places.

In every job I've had since which is only 7 (4 in the last 2 years,
thanks to another redundancy), there hasn't been a union presence at any
of them.

I'm not quite sure what point you're making.

--
*Gaffer tape - The Force, light and dark sides - holds the universe together*

Dave Plowman London SW
To e-mail, change noise into sound.

The evil of the unions: remember those absurd mimes on TOTP?
 

Grimly Curmudgeon wrote:
On Thu, 28 Feb 2013 04:09:05 +0000, Bill Wright
wrote:

I was employed for 35 weeks. That was it. I was made to join a union. I
was so glad when I became self-employed and thus represented myself,
instead of having some useless union gob****e to pretend to do it.

If it wasn't for those 'useless gob****es' you'd still be hacking coal
out of a two-foot thick seam you ignorant yob.
I hope you're drunk. I wouldn't like to think you'd be so rude when sober.
Your assertion is very unlikely because mechanisation took over from
manual labour in the coal industry a long time ago. It was much cheaper
and more reliable.
But I note your allusion to my coal-hewing grandfathers. And it was only
that generation. Before that they were farmers. And after that?
Well, let me first tell you about my grandfathers.
On my dad's side, his dad was a communist agitator. The reason was that
he was a firebrand and exceptionally intelligent and an original
thinker. These traits run in the family and have caused us no end of
bother. Between us we've been thrown out of a grammar school, the RAF,
the Labour Club, a Methodist Sunday School, and endless pubs. Oh, and
Belgium. But at the time, given the injustices then present, being a
communist agitator was a pretty reasonable response. Unfortunately the
overweening power of the colliery owners meant that after he'd organised
several strikes he was blacklisted. He was 30 at the time. He went to
work at a colliery twelve miles away, under an assumed name, and that
continued until he died from miners' lung aged 55. Him and his wife (the
beloved 'Chiefy') had a child roughly every ten months right through the
period 1918 to 1932. As Chiefy was to tell me much later, "He only had
to sneeze and I dropped for one." She was a highly intelligent woman
(one of those grandmas that could see right through you) and I could
never understand why she endured such a series of pregnancies.
Of those of their children that survived to adulthood, not one went down
the mine. They were all too intelligent to have to, and anyway they'd
seem what it did to dad. The girls all became schoolteachers. Given the
social and educational situation at the time that's remarkable. The
oldest boy didn't go to the grammar school but in later life he was very
successful. The other boys all passed to go to the grammar, and all
became members of the middle classes (!). Two of them were 'IBM pioneers'.
On my mother's side, her dad worked down the mine but he was a frail
little man so he was just a gateman. He never earned much. His passion
was music and he travelled all over to see concerts. My mother showed
considerable artistic talent as a teenager but couldn't go to art school
because she was needed as an earner. Many years later, aged 70, she took
up the graphic arts again, and got an A at A level.
So you see, the unions were not responsible for me being able to avoid a
life spent on my side hewing a narrow seam. It was sheer talent that got
my family out of the mines. That's the thing the unions don't like. They
want everyone to be held down to the level of the slowest, thickest,
most idle worker. They don't understand about talent or dedication or
hard work. I don't blame the unions for supporting the halt and the lame
and the thick, but I object to them promoting the interests of the bone
idle at the expense of those who are prepared to work hard.

Bill

The evil of the unions: remember those absurd mimes on TOTP?
 

On 01/03/2013 21:15, CD wrote:

The point I was trying to make was the underhand tactics/lies to get you to
join the union. Why not try to sell it to us explaining the benefits?

In my place of work, where 95%+ are not union members, the union
representatives distribute union joining forms. Along with a
description of all the benefits of being a member there is a direct
debit mandate to pay for the service. Nowhere do they state the actual
amount to be paid. Do they really expect people to sign a blank cheque?


--
mailto:news{at}admac(dot}myzen{dot}co{dot}uk

The evil of the unions: remember those absurd mimes on TOTP?
 

On 01/03/2013 23:36, Grimly Curmudgeon wrote:
On Thu, 28 Feb 2013 04:09:05 +0000, Bill Wright
wrote:

I was employed for 35 weeks. That was it. I was made to join a union. I
was so glad when I became self-employed and thus represented myself,
instead of having some useless union gob****e to pretend to do it.

If it wasn't for those 'useless gob****es' you'd still be hacking coal
out of a two-foot thick seam you ignorant yob.


If it wasn't for those useless gob****es and their control of
restrictive practices Britain may have more of a manufacturing industry.

--
mailto:news{at}admac(dot}myzen{dot}co{dot}uk

The evil of the unions: remember those absurd mimes on TOTP?
 

On Sat, 02 Mar 2013 02:14:02 +0000, Bill Wright
wrote:

So you see, the unions were not responsible for me being able to avoid a
life spent on my side hewing a narrow seam. It was sheer talent that got
my family out of the mines. That's the thing the unions don't like. They
want everyone to be held down to the level of the slowest, thickest,
most idle worker. They don't understand about talent or dedication or
hard work. I don't blame the unions for supporting the halt and the lame
and the thick, but I object to them promoting the interests of the bone
idle at the expense of those who are prepared to work hard.

That's the biggest load of bull**** I've ever read and by ****, that's
something coming from you.

The evil of the unions: remember those absurd mimes on TOTP?
 

On Sat, 02 Mar 2013 17:35:05 +0000, alan
wrote:

If it wasn't for those 'useless gob****es' you'd still be hacking coal
out of a two-foot thick seam you ignorant yob.


If it wasn't for those useless gob****es and their control of
restrictive practices Britain may have more of a manufacturing industry.

Oh aye, nothing to do with useless gob****es on the office and
governmental side, then?

The evil of the unions: remember those absurd mimes on TOTP?
 

Grimly Curmudgeon wrote:

That's the biggest load of bull**** I've ever read and by ****, that's
something coming from you.
That isn't a contrary argument. It's just meaningless abuse.

Bill

The evil of the unions: remember those absurd mimes on TOTP?
 

On Sat, 02 Mar 2013 19:46:57 +0000, Grimly Curmudgeon
wrote:

On Sat, 02 Mar 2013 02:14:02 +0000, Bill Wright
wrote:

So you see, the unions were not responsible for me being able to avoid a
life spent on my side hewing a narrow seam. It was sheer talent that got
my family out of the mines. That's the thing the unions don't like. They
want everyone to be held down to the level of the slowest, thickest,
most idle worker. They don't understand about talent or dedication or
hard work. I don't blame the unions for supporting the halt and the lame
and the thick, but I object to them promoting the interests of the bone
idle at the expense of those who are prepared to work hard.

That's the biggest load of bull**** I've ever read and by ****, that's
something coming from you.

I must congratulate you on your choice of posting name. It is
certainly most apposite,

The evil of the unions: remember those absurd mimes on TOTP?
 

alan wrote:

On 01/03/2013 21:15, CD wrote:

The point I was trying to make was the underhand tactics/lies to
get you to join the union. Why not try to sell it to us explaining
the benefits?

In my place of work, where 95%+ are not union members, the union
representatives distribute union joining forms. Along with a
description of all the benefits of being a member there is a direct
debit mandate to pay for the service. Nowhere do they state the
actual amount to be paid. Do they really expect people to sign a
blank cheque?

If I remember correctly some union dues were based on your salary so
they couldn't give a figure on the form.

--

The evil of the unions: remember those absurd mimes on TOTP?
 

On 02/03/2013 19:48, Grimly Curmudgeon wrote:
On Sat, 02 Mar 2013 17:35:05 +0000, alan
wrote:

If it wasn't for those 'useless gob****es' you'd still be hacking coal
out of a two-foot thick seam you ignorant yob.


If it wasn't for those useless gob****es and their control of
restrictive practices Britain may have more of a manufacturing industry.

Oh aye, nothing to do with useless gob****es on the office and
governmental side, then?


Perhaps it's a good move that the unions wreaked the chances of Britain
having a manufacturing capacity of note, for if the wicked management
were to continue in their ways, we'd have the working conditions of
Chinese workers. Foxconn anyone?

Pass me the spade, I think there is coal deep in my back garden...

--
Adrian C

The evil of the unions: remember those absurd mimes on TOTP?
 

On Sun, 03 Mar 2013 13:40:38 -0600, "Ashley Booth"
wrote:


In my place of work, where 95%+ are not union members, the union
representatives distribute union joining forms. Along with a
description of all the benefits of being a member there is a direct
debit mandate to pay for the service. Nowhere do they state the
actual amount to be paid. Do they really expect people to sign a
blank cheque?

If I remember correctly some union dues were based on your salary so
they couldn't give a figure on the form.

That's true, and if you want to know what your own subscription would
be, you should only have to ask your local representative, who will be
somebody you know in your own workplace, quite possibly the same
person who handed you the form.

Rod.

The evil of the unions: remember those absurd mimes on TOTP?
 

In article ,
Ashley Booth wrote:
If I remember correctly some union dues were based on your salary so
they couldn't give a figure on the form.

Usually a percentage, but often with a cap at the upper end.

Obviously, the actual cost of union membership is pretty uniform
regardless of salary, so just a way of the better paid subsidising the
costs of the lowest paid.

IMHO, most of those who object to union membership - often quoting
'principle' - simply are too mean to pay the subscription, while happily
accepting any benefits the union may negotiate. Give them the choice of
not belonging to the union but paying the equivalent to a recognised
charity, and those 'principles' miraculously disappear.

--
*Red meat is not bad for you. Fuzzy green meat is bad for you.

Dave Plowman London SW
To e-mail, change noise into sound.

The evil of the unions: remember those absurd mimes on TOTP?
 

On 04/03/2013 11:12, Dave Plowman (News) wrote:
In article ,
Ashley Booth wrote:
If I remember correctly some union dues were based on your salary so
they couldn't give a figure on the form.

Usually a percentage, but often with a cap at the upper end.

Obviously, the actual cost of union membership is pretty uniform
regardless of salary, so just a way of the better paid subsidising the
costs of the lowest paid.

IMHO, most of those who object to union membership - often quoting
'principle' - simply are too mean to pay the subscription, while happily
accepting any benefits the union may negotiate. Give them the choice of
not belonging to the union but paying the equivalent to a recognised
charity, and those 'principles' miraculously disappear.




personally i've always thought there should be a specific law saying
that unions must be politically unbiased.
trade union members vote for every party under the sun, yet the unions
are all labour lovers and openly expect to influence government policy -
and yet complain that companies that donate to other parties are trying
to do the same.
they should try to be proper worker representing unions instead and keep
their nose out of politics.

--
Gareth.
That fly.... Is your magic wand.

The evil of the unions: remember those absurd mimes on TOTP?
 

In article ,
the dog from that film you saw wrote:
personally i've always thought there should be a specific law saying
that unions must be politically unbiased.

Which union are you a member of? All union policy is defined by their
members. All you need to do to change that policy is get enough support at
annual conference time.

trade union members vote for every party under the sun, yet the unions
are all labour lovers and openly expect to influence government policy -
and yet complain that companies that donate to other parties are trying
to do the same.

If governments kept their nose out of industry, you might have a point.

they should try to be proper worker representing unions instead and keep
their nose out of politics.

And organisations like the CBI? And most industries that spend money
lobbying parliament, etc?

--
*I almost had a psychic girlfriend but she left me before we met *

Dave Plowman London SW
To e-mail, change noise into sound.

The evil of the unions: remember those absurd mimes on TOTP?
 

On Fri, 01 Mar 2013 11:28:35 +0000, Roderick Stewart
wrote:

Agreed. It's awful. It makes me cringe every time I hear it. The
original purpose may have been to "correct" the pitch of a singer with
indifferent abilities, but sometimes the effect is so extreme I can
only assume they're doing it deliberately because some philistine
actually likes it. I usually have to wash my ears out with something
by Bach or Beethoven as soon as possible.

I think the gadget must work on the same principle as what used to be
called a "PA Stabiliser", in other words by creating a suppressed
carrier modulated signal from the voice track, then reinserting the
carrier with a slight offset to change the pitch of the audio. Because
it changes the pitch of all the frequency components by the same
linear amount, the harmonic relationships between them are destroyed,
and the greater the shift the worse it sounds.

Rod.

On Fri, 1 Mar 2013 07:13:37 -0000, "Brian Gaff"
wrote:

While on the subject of enhancing of talents or making them worse, this
device that puts people back in tune is terribly audible, and if ill used
can make established artists sound weird.

There was an analogue satellite channel for the nursing profession
that used a very similar technique to scramble the sound. I has a
degree of success inserting the ultrasonic BFO signal.

I am sure in principle Autotune is how you describe it, I am equally
sure it is implemented entirely with DSP techniques.

I heard an interview with Cher about how she liked its (over)use on
"Believe"
Personally I have the same contempt for it as I did for those bloody
Syndrums in the '70s & 80s

--
Graham.

%Profound_observation%