I probably listened to The Fall as much as any band in the second half of the '80s. Even though Mark E. Smith continues to work at a prolific rate and has now released 26 Fall albums, I haven't kept up. Every time I'm in SoundScapes I consider picking up a Fall record, but there have been so many in the last 10 years that I don't know which one to get and I always put one back on the shelf. But I found the following article to be intriguing. More than 40 people have served under Smith, a stern taskmaster, in The Fall over the years. A writer for England's Guardian newspaper tried tracking them all down. Even if you're not a Fall fan, it's worth a read just to get an idea about the crazed genius that is Mark E. Smith.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/arts/features/story/0,11710,1678307,00.html

np Stereo Nation - I've Been Waiting