#manic street preachers 1996

[iamtryingtobelieve]

Here chewing your tail is joy

[intravenous-agnostic]

📸: Gie Knaeps

[sleepflower93]

Manic Street Preachers - Last Christmas

[oldgigtickets]

Manic Street Preachers Everything Must Go album playback @ City Art Gallery, Manchester. 1996.

[musicandotherdelights]

Daily Listening, Day #985 - September 11th, 2022

Album: Everything Must Go (Epic, 1996)

Artist: Manic Street Preachers

Genre: Alternative Rock, Britpop

Track Listing: 

"Elvis Impersonator: Blackpool Pier"

"A Design For Life"

"Kevin Carter"

"Enola/Alone"

"Everything Must Go"

"Small Black Flowers That Grow In The Sky"

"The Girl Who Wanted To Be God"

"Removables"

"Australia"

"Interiors (Song For Willem De Kooning)"

"Further Away"

"No Surface All Feeling"

Favorite Song: "The Girl Who Wanted To Be God"

[bisnes-socks]

The Big Finnish Music Project for International Kääryleet, part 2.

Go to part 1 for context. We continue where part one left off, and we're in the 1980's right now, as the list is (more or less) in chronological order.

Hanoi Rocks

One of the most successful Finnish acts internationally, especially in the 1980's, and they were a significant influence on the entire genre of glam rock. The likes of Foo Fighters, Manic Street Preachers and Pearl Jam have all mentioned Hanoi Rocks as a favourite or an influence, and Axl Rose has said there would be no Guns N' Roses if it wasn't for Hanoi Rocks. This is one of their earliest hits, Tragedy.

Dingo

Hysteria is the only word to describe the popularity of Dingo in the 1980's. They had a couple of huge hits but they broke up quite soon after reaching their peak. They've made comebacks since, but never reached the same popularity as what they had for a couple of Dingo hysteria years in the mid 80's. This is one of their big hits, Autiotalo. 

Popeda

Considered to be the fathers of "äijärock". I don't know how to translate äijä, but if you look at them and their vibe, you'll get the idea. They're also part of the Manserock scene of Tampere. They are hands down one of the oldest still active rock bands in Finland, a band that just simply everyone knows. This is their song Pitkä kuuma kesä, originally from 1985. This live performance is from 2002.

Leevi and the Leavings

Iconic. The moment. The voice of the nation. A poprock band that never performed live (only one exception) but were insanely popular, especially in the 1980's. The frontman of the band, Gösta Sundqvist (passed away in 2003), is considered one of the best songwriters in Finland, and is definitely one of the most beloved. Leevi and the Leavings had their own recognisable sound while also being quite experimental. Their lyrics are often exactly the sort of thing that i've mentioned in multiple Käärijä analysis posts as being incredibly Finnish: songs about difficult and hard subjects with actually kind of hilarious lyrics at times. I could have chosen soooo many different songs from them, but decided to go with Teuvo, maanteiden kuningas, simply because I felt like it and because it slaps.

Kaija Koo

Kääryleet might know Kaija Koo as the artist who was the main act of the Helsinki Olympic Stadium gig. She rose to fame in the 90's and has had quite a steady career ever since, slowly growing to her iconic status. This is one of her huge hits, Tinakenkätyttö.

Aikakone

As 90's as it gets. Aikakone basically defines the 90's dance vibe in Finland, and this song is etched into every millennials brain. Very much just a Finnish version of the same style of music, that was globally massive in the 90's. The song is Odota, from 1995.

Apulanta

One of the biggest names in Finnish rock. They started in the 90's and have been a significant influence in the scene ever since. This is one of their early cult classics, Anna mulle piiskaa, from 1996, which i chose because i figured kääryleet appriciate whipping references.

Ultra Bra

Icons of the 90's, the favourite of all liberal millennial hipsters. Known for their distinctive sound produced by four (originally five) lead singers, and having quite a large band set up where brass and horns play a big part. And also for their yellow raincoats. Their song lyrics are often very poetic and kind of.. odd, thematically speaking, like they have a whole song about pike, the fish. Most of the song lyrics are written by Anni Sinnemäki, who has since become a politician. Their composer and pianist is Kerkko Koskinen, a very influential and highly regarded musician and composer. Ultra Bra is doing a comeback at the moment.

This is one of their biggest hits, Sinä lähdit pois, from 1997.

End of part 2. We've reached the 90's, and the next part is reaching the turn of the century, so exciting times ahead musically speaking.

[the-90s-music-colosseum]

September 24th - a very important day for '90s music

Released on September 24th, 1990 (dates vary by region):

AC/DC - The Razor's Edge

Fields of the Nephilim - Elizium

Released on September 24th, 1991 (dates vary by region):

Red Hot Chili Peppers - Blood Sugar Sex Magik

Nirvana - Nevermind

A Tribe Called Quest - The Low End Theory

Pixies - Trompe le Monde

Kyuss - Wretch

Primal Scream - Screamadelica

...and many more including Van Morrison, The Cult, Kid 'N Play, Prong, Thompson Twins.

Originally scheduled for this day but delayed until October: Soundgarden - Badmotorfinger

Released on September 24th, 1996 (dates vary by region):

Weezer - Pinkerton

The Roots - Illadelph Halflife

Sheryl Crow - Sheryl Crow

John Parish and PJ Harvey - Dance Hall at Louse Point

Making this post has made me aware that I missed a lot of very important album birthdays in the past three weeks and I am very sorry to: *deep breath*

Muse - Showbiz, Bjork - Homogenic, Nine Inch Nails - The Fragile, Tori Amos - To Venus and Back, Type O Negative - World Coming Down, Hole - Celebrity Skin, Manic Street Preachers - This Is My Truth Tell Me Yours, Blonde Redhead - In an Expression of the Inexpressable, Mariah Carey - Butterfly, Incubus - S.C.I.E.N.C.E., Dream Theater - Falling Into Infinity, Tool - Ænima, Jamiroquai - Travelling Without Moving, Suede - Coming Up, R.E.M. - New Adventures in Hi-Fi, Blur - The Great Escape, Red Hot Chili Peppers - One Hot Minute, The Notorious B.I.G. - Ready to Die, Nirvana - In Utero, Melvins - Houdini, De la Soul - Buhloone Mindstate, Sepultura - Chaos A.D., Nine Inch Nails - Broken, Blind Melon - Blind Melon, Madonna - Erotica, Suzanne Vega - 99.9F°, Talk Talk - Laughing Stock, Guns N Roses - Use Your Illusion, Hole - Pretty on the Inside, Ozzy Osbourne - No More Tears, Rush - Roll the Bones, Cocteau Twins - Heaven or Las Vegas, Megadeth - Rust In Peace, Judas Priest - Painkiller, INXS - X, and anyone else who I forgot.

September is such a brilliant month for 90s albums! I'll try not to miss any more important birthdays.

[daisies66]

Manic Street Preachers for Arena Magazine, c. 1996

📸: Mark Mattock

[all-rock-and-roll-is-homosexual]

Manic Street Preachers Everything Must Go Tour ad scanned from the November 1996 issue of Select Magazine

if you like my scans and want to repost them off of tumblr or crop/otherwise make edits to any of the photos contained within this article please credit my blog, and if you're feeling extra generous and want to help me out you can donate via my ko-fi donating will allow me to obtain more magazines to scan and upgrade my equipment.

[hoodssery]

Recommending Albums 1 & 2

So technically, calling this either "Recommending Albums 1" or "Recommending Albums 2" is wrong, because my recommendation of In the Aeroplane Over the Sea was called “Recommending Video Essays #8” because I didn't know if I was ever gonna recommend another album, especially so soon. However, it's still the first instance of "Recommending Albums" as a title. So what I'm gonna do is cheat and just say that this is 1 & 2.

Recommendation 1 can be found here.

Recommendation:

The Holy Bible 20 – Manic Street Preachers

The Holy Bible 20 (or just The Holy Bible) is an album that I haven't ever really heard many people talk about. To me this is shocking, and to the annoying RateYourMusic dweller part of me, is just downright unacceptable. It also may not be that shocking in reality.

The Holy Bible came out in 1994, a single year filled with so many unbelievably influential and important albums like Illmatic by Nas, Dummy by Portishead, The Downward Spiral by Nine Inch Nails, Grace by Jeff Buckley, Ready to Die by The Notorious B.I.G., Weezer's self-titled Blue Album, Superunknown by Soundgarden, MTV Unplugged in New York by Nirvana, and Diary by Sunny Day Real Estate. In the years before 1994 (most notably for me), My Bloody Valentine's Loveless (1991) became the singular Shoegaze album, A Tribe Called Quest's Low End Theory (1991) largely dictated what Hip-Hop would sound like for the coming decades, and Nirvana would inform the world about Seattle grunge rock with Nevermind (1991) and In Utero (1993). This train of revolutionary albums chugged through to the end of the 20th century as well with Radiohead's The Bends (1995) and Ok Computer (1997), Outkast's ATLiens (1996) and Aquemini (1998), Elliot Smith's Either/Or (1997), Lauryn Hill's The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill (1998), Neutral Milk Hotel's In the Aeroplane Over the Sea (1998), etc. This single decade spawned so many of the most recognizable, popular, and highest rated albums of all time, so to be drowned out among the all time greats is maybe to be expected.

But, The Holy Bible 20 should absolutely be one of these recognizable classics, and absolutely deserves to be talked about as much as Rage Against the Machine's self titled debut or Nine Inch Nails' The Downward Spiral.

The mention of these albums specifically are of particular interest for comparison as they share a lot with The Holy Bible. Rage Against the Machine is a really easy comparison to make. They're pretty similar sounding albums, although Rage Against the Machine lays way more into the metal side of Punk Rock. The Holy Bible has some really catchy riffs both in the lead guitar and bass and is just as head-bang-able as any good Punk Rock album should be. It's instruments are more often than not really clear and bright for the genre, only using heavy distortion and loud, complex sound for the choruses of songs where the energy goes way up. It's never cheery, but it definitely reflects the bands British origins. James Bradfield's voice very clearly and sharply cuts through the instrumentals when he sings and gives the most to the album's shockingly clean sound.

Both of these albums go through song-by-song, serving almost as revolutionary crys for the disgruntled group of mostly suburban high-school aged kids in the nineties who sees the flaws and cruelties of modern capitalist society and wants change. Largely aiming at the most relevant target around for this, white America and the institutions they created, the albums (in the most simple reading) go “Fuck off, I see what you're doing here and how you marginalize people. Die.” For Rage Against the Machine this most notably comes in the form of comparing the hardcore right wing accelerationists like the KKK and contemporary neo-nazi movements and modern police forces and the people who work for them, and the racial injustices spawned out of the idea of white supremacy. The album is also a call to arms to take back power for the people. “We gotta take the power back!” For The Holy Bible it's drawing the comparison between modern (for the nineties) gender politics and the systematic marginalization of anyone considered other, and a telling of how the constant re-enforcement of the “normal” affects those considered abnormal. The Holy Bible takes a more poetic approach to the overall presentation of the message compared to Rage Against the Machine, which is mostly just a really banging call to arms.

Potential Content Warning for Suicide and Self-Harm

While this an accurate summary to The Holy Bible 20 it misses the some of the finer points of the album that allowed me to make the kind of pretentious sounding comparison to Nine Inch Nails' The Downward Spiral; an album largely about Trent Reznor's declining mental state in the face of a society who seems content with eating itself alive to keep in it's direction. The Holy Bible 20 was mostly written by Richey Edwards, who served not as the bands vocalist or a player of the instrumentals, but as the band's spokesperson and main lyricist along with the band's bassist Nicky Wire. I don't know a lot about Richey, but what I do know is that Richey was very open about having pretty severe depression and self-harm issues in interviews and from what I understand had an issue with alcohol abuse. Richey has been a missing person, since February 1, 1995, and has been legally presumed dead since 2008.

While a lot of songs can be read as, and are, really powerful critiques of how the systems of power in today's society marginalize anyone deemed unfit to be the normal, the perspective of a lot of what the album is about changes when you know that most of it was written from the perspective of someone who was really struggling with themselves mentally and would go missing 6 months after the album was released. It's not just an example of how these injustices and hardships can hurt and negatively shape and mold people into broken people, it's a first hand account. This makes a lot of the lyrics on the album even more sad and tragic than they already apparently are, and adds a new context to the entire album.

The first track “Yes” is a critique of the mind set consumerism creates for both the rich and poor, but with knowing what Richey went through, the account of the emptiness of depression starts showing through. “She is Suffering” and “4st 7lb” transforms the the messages about beauty standards into really haunting accounts of problems with self-image and self-worth. This in my opinion is what really makes this album special. It is a biting, unrelenting, extremely blunt critique of the system that disregards and hurts people for the feeling a uniform feeling of normalcy that anyone can pick-up and understand that is formed and shaped around a hidden perspective of someone that can't seem to help themselves. It's really sad, really haunting, and all of it is put over some of the most catchy riffs of the 90's.

The music is great, and really makes me feel like a kid from suburban Illinois in 1996 who really hates going to church, but what it has to say both on the surface and the more sub-textual accounts is what really makes this worth listening to.

It's one of my absolute favorite albums of all time. 10/10.

Other Recommendations:

I just talked about them a little bit, but both Rage Against the Machine (1992) and Nine Inch Nails' The Downward Spiral (1994) are really worth listening to if you even just like music. I personally like The Downward Spiral more because of how unique it still sounds to this day, so if you can only listen to just one I would pick that one.

But don't pick just one. Listen to them both. Please listen to them both. Please. Okay thank you bye <3

[iamtryingtobelieve]

Twenty foot high on Blackpool promenade

Fake royalty second hand sequin façade

Limited face paint and dyed black quiff

Overweight and out of date

[intravenous-agnostic]

📸: Rob Watkins

[ijustwantedtobeoneofthestrokesuk]

1991 - 2000

1991

March

26th - NOFX released Ribbed

May

28th - N.W.A. released Niggaz4Life

August

12th - Metallica released their self-titled album

26th - Blur released debut album Leisure

September

24th - Red Hot Chili Peppers released Blood Sugar Sex Magik

October

1st - Public Enemy released Apocalypse 91…. The Enemy Strikes Black

November

12th - Tupac Shakur released debut album 2Pacalypse Now

December

17th - Green Day released Kerplunk

1992

February

10th - Manic Street Preachers released debut album Generation Terrorists

April

21st - Beastie Boys released Check Your Head

June

19th - Pulp released Separations

October

16th - The Offspring released Ignition

November

5th - NOFX released White Trash, Two Heebs and a Bean

December

15th - Dr Dre released debut solo album The Chronic

1993

The Hives formed, Fagersta

February

16th - Tupac Shakur released Strictly 4 My N.I.G.G.A.Z…

22nd - Radiohead released debut album Pablo Honey

May

10th - Blur released Modern Life Is Rubbish

10th - Rancid released their self-titled debut album

June

21st - Manic Street Preachers released Gold Against the Soul

July

26th - Conor Oberst released debut album Water

1994

The Moldy Peaches formed, New York

The Vines formed, Sydney 

January

Yahoo started

February

1st - Green Day released Dookie

April

5th - Kurt Cobain died

8th - The Offspring released Smash

18th - Pulp released His ‘n’ Hers

25th - Blur released Parklife

25th - Outkast released debut album Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik

May

10th - Weezer released debut album Weezer (Blue Album)

23rd - Beastie Boys released Ill Communication

June

14th - Rancid released Let’s Go

July

19th - NOFX released Punk in Drublic

August

23rd - Public Enemy released Muse Sick-n-Hour Mess Age

29th - Manic Street Preachers released The Holy Bible

29th - Oasis released debut album Definitely Maybe

September

13th - The Notorious B.I.G. released debut album Ready to Die

1995

February

17th - Blink 182 released debut album Cheshire Cat

March

8th - Radiohead released The Bends

14th - Tupac Shakur released Me Against the World

July

Amazon was launched

4th - Foo Fighters released their self-titled debut album

August

22nd - Rancid released …And Out Come the Wolves

September

11th - Blur released The Great Escape

11th - Red Hot Chili Peppers released One Hot Minute

October

2nd - Oasis released (What’s the Story) Morning Glory?

10th - Green Day released Insomniac

30th - Pulp released Different Class

November

16th - Camden Crawl started

1996

January

31st - NOFX released Heavy Petting Zoo

February

13th - Tupac Shakur released All Eyez on Me

May

6th - Backstreet Boys released their self-titled debut album

16th - Nickelback released debut album Curb

20th - Manic Street Preachers released Everything Must Go

June

4th - Metallica released Load

25th - Jay Z released debut album Reasonable Doubt

August

27th - Outkast released AtLiens

September

13th - Tupac Shakur was murdered in Las Vegas

24th - Weezer released Pinkerton

November

12th - Eminem released debut album Infinite

1997

Interpol formed, New York

January

Erol Alkan started Trash club night at Plastic People in Soho, London

20th - Daft Punk released debut album Homework

February

4th - The Offspring released Ixnay on the Hombre

10th - Blur released their self-titled album

March

9th - Biggie Smalls (The Notorious B.I.G.) was murdered in LA

25th - Life After Death by The Notorious B.I.G. was released

May

15th - Feeder released debut album Polythene

20th - Foo Fighters released The Colour and the Shape

20th - Radiohead released OK Computer

26th - NSync released their self-titled debut album

June

17th - Blink 182 released Dude Ranch

July

1st - Limp Bizkit released debut album Three Dollar Bill, Y’all

August

11th - Backstreet Boys released Backstreet’s Back

14th - The White Stripes played their first gig, at the The Gold Dollar, Detroit

25th - Stereophonics released debut album Word Gets Around

29th - Netflix was founded

31st - Oasis released Be Here Now

September

8th - Travis released debut album Good Feeling

22nd - The Hives released debut album Barely Legal

October

14th - Green Day released Nimrod

November

4th - Jay Z released In My Lifetime, Vol.1

11th - NOFX released So Long and Thanks for All the Shoes

18th - Metallica released Reload

1998

The Rapture formed, New York

The Strokes formed (as a 5 piece), New York

January

20th - ...And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead released their self-titled debut album

20th - Bright Eyes released debut album A Collection of Songs Written and Recorded 1995–1997

February

17th - Destiny’s Child released their self-titled debut album

March

30th - Pulp released This Is Hardcore

June

30th - Rancid released Life Won’t Wait

July

14th - Beastie Boys released Hello Nasty

September

1st - Nickleback released The State

4th - Google launched

14th - Manic Street Preachers released This Is My Truth Tell Me Yours

22nd - Queens of the Stone Age released their self-titled debut album

29th - Jay Z released Vol. 2… Hard Knock Life

29th - Outkast released Aquemini

November

2nd - Bright Eyes released Letting Off the Happiness

10th - NSync released Home for Christmas

17th - The Offspring released Americana

1999

CD sales peaked

The National formed, New York

January

12th - Britney Spears released debut album …Baby One More Time

19th - The first Blackberry device launched

February

23rd - Eminem released The Slim Shady LP

March

Nokia 3210 - First mobile phone targeted to young people was launched

8th - Stereophonics released Performance and Cocktails

15th - Blur released 13

May

18th - Backstreet Boys released Millennium

24th - Travis released The Man Who

June

1st - Napster was founded

1st - Blink 182 released Enema of the State

8th - Red Hot Chili Peppers released Californication

15th - The White Stripes released their self-titled debut album

22nd - Limp Bizkit released Significant Other

29th - Slipknot released their self-titled debut album

July

20th - Public Enemy released There’s a Poison Goin’ On

22nd - MSN Messenger launched

27th - Destiny’s Child released The Writing’s on the Wall

August

24th - Christina Aguilera released her self-titled debut album

30th - Feeder released Yesterday Went Too Soon

September

7th - Muse released debut album Showbiz

14th - The Strokes played their first gig, at The Spiral, New York

October

19th - ...And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead released Madonna

November

2nd - Foo Fighters released There Is Nothing Left to Lose

16th - Dr Dre released 2001

December

28th - Jay Z released Vol. 3… Life and Times of S. Carter

2000

Broadband internet started to replace dial-up internet in 2000

The Walkmen formed, New York

Yeah Yeah Yeahs formed, New York

January

Pandora Music launched

February

28th - Oasis released Standing on the Shoulder of Giants

March

21st - NSync released No Strings Attached

April

Blackberry released the 975, their first smartphone

10th - The Distillers released their self-titled debut album

10th - The Hives released Veni Vidi Vicious

13th - Metallica filed a lawsuit against Napster

May

3rd - Limewire launched

16th - Britney Spears released Oops!... I Did It Again

16th - Radio 4 released debut album The New Song and Dance

23rd - Eminem released The Marshall Mathers LP

29th - Bright Eyes released Fevers and Mirrors

June

6th - Queens of the Stone Age released Rated R

13th - NOFX released Pump Up the Valuum

20th - The White Stripes released De Stijl

27th - Sum 41 released debut album Half Hour of Power

30th - Friends Reunited launched

July

10th - Coldplay released debut album Parachutes

August

1st - Rancid released their self titled album

September

12th - Christina Aguilera released Mi Reflejo

26th - Good Charlotte released their self-titled debut album

October

3rd - Green Day released Warning

3rd - Radiohead released Kid A

17th - Limp Bizkit released Chocolate Starfish and the Hot Dog Flavored Water

24th - Christina Aguilera released My Kind of Christmas

24th - Linkin Park released debut album Hybrid Theory

31st - Jay Z released The Dynasty: Roc La Familia

31st - Outkast released Stankonia

November

14th - The Offspring released Conspiracy of One

21st - Backstreet Boys released Black & Blue

December

31st - The Von Bondies played their first gig

2001 - 2005

[mediamemoir]

1996: April-June

This was supposed to start with Rage Against the Machine but I'm saving them for Metal Monday.

The Cranberries released their third album but it was a style shift which didn't speak much to me.

And then Tina Turner released Wildest Dreams. Other than the excellent Bond theme GoldenEye, written by U2's Bono and The Edge, it contained one of my favorite tracks of the year, Whatever You Want, co-written by 80s dance-pop singer Taylor Dayne and illustrious producer Arthur Baker, with sweeping production from Trevor Horn. (video directed by Stephane Sednaoui.)

Then came electronica duo Orbital, aka brothers Paul and Phil Hartnoll, with In Sides, producing the rhythmic yet mysterious The Box, accompanied by a stop-motion music video starring Tilda Swinton. (directed by Jes Benstock - more on this video here.)

Backstreet Boys released their debut album and became huge.

George Michael, finally free from his Sony Music contract after a long battle, released Older, featuring the funky (and horny) Fastlove and the smooth jazzy Spinning the Wheel. (both directed by Vaughan Arnell and Anthea Benton.)

Manic Street Preachers released Everything Must Go, including A Design for Life.

The Wallflowers, fronted by Bob Dylan's son Jakob, released Bringing Down the Horse, featuring One Headlight.

And then, of course, we got the massive Down on the Upside by Soundgarden, with Pretty Noose, Blow Up the Outside World, and my favorite, Burden in My Hand (video directed by Jake Scott).

There was Everything but the Girl with Walking Wounded (video directed by indie film giant Hal Hartley - go watch The Unbelievable Truth.) Metallica with Load's Until it Sleeps (directed by Samuel Bayer). Robert Miles released Dreamland featuring Children, kickstarting the Dream house genre.

Placebo, with gender-bending frontman Brian Molko, released their eponymous debut, spawning single Nancy Boy. The music video's thumbnail might be a little disturbing so I'm posting the audio version.

Nada Surf spouted the sarcastic Popular on High/Low.

And lastly, Beck released Odelay which became big, but unofortunately I wasn't really taken by it.

See you on the next one.

[petervc88]

Cappelle Classics - 90′s editie - 1 augustus 2023

Terug luisteren kan hier.

Dit was de playlist:

The Smashing Pumpkins - Tonight, Tonight (1995) Tori Amos - Silent All These Years (1991) The Cranberries - Dreams (1993) Nirvana - Something In The Way (1991) Foo Fighters - My Hero (1997) Elliott Smith - Waltz #2 (XO) (1998) Manic Street Preachers - Motorcycle Emptiness (1992) Eels - Beautiful Freak (1996) Monaco - What Do You Want From Me (1997) New Radicals - Someday We'll Know (1998) Oasis - Live Forever (1994) Blur - Tender (1999)

Volgende week dinsdagavond van 22:00 t/m 23:00 is er weer een nieuwe uitzending van Cappelle Classics op Ice Radio. De uitzending wordt op donderdag van 13:00 tot 14:00 herhaald.

[greenbagjosh]

26-27 May 1998 - return for a second stint in IT in Germany

Tuesday 26th May 1998

Hello everyone, Welcome to my 25th anniversary revisiting of my time in Europe in Summer 1998.  I worked at a high technology firm on a temporary job assignment, and lived in a shared apartment.  I also had the opportunity to visit some cities like - Cergy Le Haut FR - Nuremberg, Fürth, Garmisch-Partenkirchen (DE) - Scharnitz AT - Prague CZ - Salzburg AT - Berchtesgaden - Fischhausen-Neuhaus near Brecherspitz - Berlin via Fulda and Braunschweig - Frankfurt an der Oder - Slubice PL - Zürich and Chiasso CH - Milano and Bozen IT - Vienna AT - Budapest HU - Zürich (again for Street Parade 1998) - Paris - Lyon

I flew over from San Francisco through New York JFK Terminal 6 (has since been demolished), and back through St. Louis, Missouri.

Here is what I remember from the first day, Tuesday 26 May 1998, and Wednesday 27 May 1998.   Woke up about 5:30 AM, had breakfast and left the house at 6:30 AM, was taken to SFO airport by parents. Checked in luggage about 7:30 AM, said goodbye to parents, went through security in Terminal 1 (Harvey Milk Terminal), listened to The Dog House on KYLD 94.9 FM, heard Elvis Medina (radio_elvis) do a prank call on a man who owed child support payments to his soon to be ex-wife, flew to NYC JFK airport and landed about 1 PM there.

Was a bit worried that the flight would explode as it did in 1996.  I made it across the Atlantic just fine.  

Tuesday 27 May 1998 Before landing, I was able to listen to BBC Radio 1, 97 to 99 FM in the UK.  I heard "La tristessa durera" by Manic Street Preachers.  It would have been around 8 AM Paris time, when the plane would have landed.  I landed at CDG T1, took the underground travellator to customs and baggage claim. Took a shuttle bus as there was no Roissyval constructed yet (was ready by 2008 when I returned), to the RER T1 station.  I bought a Paris Visite ticket for the RER and entire RATP metro, trams and bus, even the Montmartre funicular. Took the RER from CDG T1 to Paris Gare du Nord.  At Sevran Beaudottes, the station is underground as well as CDG T2/TGV and Gare du Nord, most others were surface stations.  At Gare du Nord, the ticket was used to change to the M5, where I rode it to République, then M8 to Lédru Rollin where the Auberge Internationale des Jeunes was located, in the 11ème district.

Dropped off my luggage, then took the M8 to Nation, changed to a M9 for Croix de Chavaux.  Took a bus to Gallieni.  Took the M3 to see the Georges Pompidou building and the Stravinsky fountains.  Took metro to Montmartre (Metro station Anvers) and went up the funicular.  Came back and took the M2 from Anvers to Jaurès to ride the 7Bis metro line.  The 7Bis at the time used MF88s, quite unique for a metro.  The most advanced rolling stock was MP89, used mostly on the M1, which still had drivers long before it was automated.  Came back to Louis Blanc to ride the M7 to Opéra / Auber for the RER.  A woman was shouting on the southbound platform of the Louis Blanc M7, could not understand what she was shouting about.  I took the RER to Port Maillote, then a RER C to Champ De Mars and another RER C to Issy Val De Seine.

At Issy Val De Seine, I took a T2 the entire distance to La Défense.  The T2 was built on former Banlieu commuter rail tracks.  The only underground station was La Défense.  I exited, and looked around the complex including the Grande Arche.  The weather was not very good.  I went inside the Les Quartre Temps mall and looked for something to buy in the Auchan grocery store. I found some drinks but not much else.  

After La Defense, I took the RER A to Cergy Le Haut.  The previous year, I rode to Cergy St. Christophe, which was quite a long way from Paris.  In early October 1983, my family stayed close to the Cergy Préfecture station, so I kind of knew where I was going more or less.  One thing I noticed at Cergy Le Haut, was that there were no fare gates, unlike at other stations.  The weather was a bit friendlier by the time I visited Cergy Le Haut.

I returned to the 11ème district and looked for a place to eat supper.  I ate at Tony's Restaurant at the corner of Rue Trousseau and Rue du Faubourg.  It has since been renamed to Nakama Resto.  The owner gave me a free glass of tomato juice, with a small amount of vodka.  I think I had a four seasons pizza called "quattro stagioni", was really good.

I went to bed about 10 PM, and had to wake up in time to catch the "Mozart" Eurocity train to Munich.  More will be told in the next chapter.

Good night!  Bonne nuit!