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Home » Music » Interview: fun.’s Andrew Dost Discusses The Making of Some Nights

Interview: fun.’s Andrew Dost Discusses The Making of Some Nights

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On Tuesday, February 21, indie pop band fun. is set to release their long-awaited new album, Some Nights, on Fueled By Ramen Records. The album includes the band’s smash lead single, “We Are Young (feat. Janelle Monáe).”

Andrew Dost, Nate Ruess, Jack Antonoff of fun. credit: Lindsey ByrnesI recently had the opportunity to speak with fun.’s Andrew Dost, where he discussed the differences between recording Some Nights versus 2009’s Aim and Ignite, working with hip-hop producer Jeff Bhasker, and the Glee-ful cover of “We Are Young.”

Congratulations on the new record. I had an opportunity to listen to it this week, and I think it’s fantastic.

Oh, thank you so much.

Can you tell me a little bit about the creative process for the new record?

Well, we started out by taking a week in upstate New York in Woodstock. We just stayed in a cabin/studio. We worked on [the record] for that week, and started to structure out a few songs. Eventually, we had enough songs to start showing to our label and our manager.

So basically, our singer Nate is responsible for the lyrics and I would say a vast majority of the melodies. Usually, he’ll come in with a sketch of a song. And then Jack and I will take that and we’ll structure the music around that altogether. Nate doesn’t play any instruments, but when we get together, we’re all just throwing ideas in and we might be the ones playing the instruments, but Nate’s driving ideas to the pot, too. So we all just kind of go through the songs as a group, see what ideas we like, and kind of work through them altogether. But usually it starts with a sketch from Nate. Sometimes it starts with chords from Jack or I. But we all just get together, we throw all our ideas together and see what sticks.

Was this process different than how you guys approached making Aim and Ignite?

With the last album, I didn’t really know Jack that well. I did a little bit, but not nearly as well as I do now after having spent a few years traveling and hanging with him. For the first album, when we were writing it, a lot of it was about just kind of figuring out how we write together, how we work together, and even like figuring out kind of a language with each other in terms of what I call a “phrase,” Nate calls a “measure.” Just things like that. Figuring out how to talk to each other, so the first album was a lot of that.

With this album, we know how we communicate, we know that we trust each other and like each other’s styles. It was less about feeling each other out and more about just creating, which I think is really nice, because we didn’t really have to worry about anything. It was a lot more fun and a lot more free. So that was the difference in writing process.

With the recording process, the first album we stayed in the studio for like two months and didn’t really leave. We just holed up there and that was that. We just stayed until it was done. And I think a lot of things go along with that. It’s nice to be in a creative world that’s kind of isolated, but you can get led astray down some pathway while you’re recording that you might not like later. And there’s a lot of time to get in your own head and stay there.

And with this album, we kind of jumped around the country. We were in L.A., we were in New York; we were recording in different studios at the same time. Like, I would be working on arrangement stuff while Jack was laying down some guitar in a different studio. And at the very end of the week we would smash it all together and see how everybody had done. And I think that is a very good way to work. You don’t get stuck in any universe too long, and you can kind of get a little perspective constantly. I think motion is very helpful, too. I think a lot of nice things happen when you’re driving, or when you’re on a plane, or whatever. There’s a certain freedom that comes along with motion.

There’s a definite influx of hip-hop on this record, and I was wondering if that was a conscious decision on your guys’ part or did it happen organically?

It started very organically. What started it all was the Kanye album, My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy. We started listening to that and just fell in love with it, fell in love with his production style. For me personally more than anything else, listening to that album really blew my mind as far as a) the sounds he was using and b) just for the attention it demands and for how big of a statement it is. And it really renewed my faith that you can make a big, grand artistic statement, and you can care. You can care so much about your art, and it can come through and that’s okay. So that was how it inspired me, and I think it [inspired] the other guys in different ways, too. We just started working that in gradually.

Then we realized that the album we were writing was very hip-hop influenced. So we started consciously putting it in. Then we realized that we wanted to work with a hip-hop producer and who better than Kanye’s producer himself? We were actually able to get Jeff Bhasker, who co-produced My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy. That was huge for us. He’s just such a talented guy, and we weren’t just emulating those sounds, we were really kind of going through one of the sources in a way, which was really inspiring for us.

What was the dynamic like between you guys and Jeff in the studio?

Well, it was really interesting, because he’s never really worked with a rock band before and we’ve obviously never worked with a hip-hop producer before, so it was a lot of mutually inspired moments where it was like, he loved recording guitars and he’d never done it before. Hearing Jack, our guitar player, bust out an awesome, dirty, historic guitar solo or something was something he wasn’t really used to, so it was really inspiring. And then for us, hearing him start making beats was really mind-blowing.

To see how well he knows his way around rhythms and stuff like that was just incredible. We had the same mindset, but our sound pallets are so different, so it’s just very, very neat to come together and realize that we can just learn so much from each other. And it was awesome. I loved it.

How did you guys come to choose Some Nights as the overall title for the record?

The title was there really before any of the songs. Nate came up with the title, and I think his thought process was based on some nights you’re this, some nights you’re that; you’re a different person on any given night. And that’s what a lot of the album kind of hints at.

It’s not really a concept album, but if it was, that would be what it’s loosely about. It’s really nice once you have a title to know what the parameters are of what you’re working on as a whole. That kind of informed all the songs and kind of seeped in everywhere about the changes in your personality, depending on where you are and who you’re with.

I wanted to talk a little bit about “We Are Young,” because it’s such a fantastic song. What was the inspiration behind the song, and how did it all come together?

Well, I guess with the inspiration behind the song, it started with Nate. I think a lot of it was just about realizing what this album was; we had worked on a couple songs already and then it just, I don’t know, I guess sometimes when you write a song, and you think, “This is somewhere it will get buried on the album, and if people really dig it, they’ll maybe grow to love it.” And there are some songs that you want to take over the world, that you want to be an anthem, and that you want to be huge.

I think from the very beginning with “We Are Young,” there was never any question about where we wanted the song to go and what we wanted it to sound like. And we knew that we wanted it to be big, we wanted it to be booming over the speakers at an arena or something.

And I guess from a perspective of what the heart of the song is, I think we wanted it to just feel like a night out with your friends, where you’re like screaming out the car window, and here you’re young in your life and everything is just new and exciting to you. We wanted to try and capture that feeling.

Was Janelle Monáe a part of the original vision of the song?

We knew we wanted a female vocalist to sing on it. We didn’t really know who that voice was going to be, and we had a couple people that we maybe hoped that we could work with and at the top of that list was Janelle Monáe.

I love all of her work, I think she’s a phenomenal artist, and it just so happened that Jeff, the producer, was hanging out at one of her shows. She toured with Bruno Mars and he met up with her there. He played her the song, she was into it and so we ended getting to work with her. I still can’t even really comprehend how exciting this has been. I think she’s just the best.

The song caught a lot of attention on this little show called, Glee. How did that opportunity come about?

Honestly, I don’t really know. I think that we were so in shock when we got the news, and we didn’t really even know how to process it. I think that’s just one of the coolest things that could possibly have happened. We still are a little bit in shock at how neat that is, the Glee cover of our song, I think it’s really cool.

Glee’s cover of “We Are Young” is the show’s highest selling debut single of their current season. What do you think connected their listening audience to your song?

Well, I think Nate is a phenomenal singer, and it’s a song that lends itself well to other phenomenal singers taking it on. I think the melody is something that… it is a very triumphant thing. I can’t really explain it. I don’t know. I’m just thrilled. I still can’t believe it.

It was a nice moment in the show. I don’t watch the show religiously, but in that episode for sure, there was a nice moment. And in the episodes that I’ve watched since that led up to that episode, with that storyline, it seemed to fit really perfectly.

You guys recently released the video for “We Are Young.” Where did the concept of the video come from?

It came from a number of places. We knew wanted the video to just be us playing in a club, cause I think there’s something just really timeless about that in a video. Just a band playing the song; I think that’s really neat. But, we also wanted there to be a lot of action, bar fighting kind of stuff like that. We wanted it to be pretty rockin’. When we were talking about just our general ideas with Marc Klasfeld, the director, he had a lot of great ideas, too. And then eventually, he introduced the slow motion concept.

He started sending us videos of stuff exploding in slow motion and people shooting through light bulbs and balloons and soda bottles and stuff like that. And he was saying like, “I’m going to get this camera, it’s the same camera that you can use to shoot hummingbird wings flapping.” Right when that started happening, I thought it really started taking shape. He had this image in his head, the whole way along, and we sort of didn’t know exactly what it was going to look like, but we knew it was going to be cool, based on what he was sending us.

Later this month you guys will be hitting the road in support of this new album, what can the audience expect from a fun. show?

I would like to think that people can expect that we’re going to play our songs and they’re not going to sound exactly like the CD, but we’re going to sound like the people that we have onstage. We can play the songs, Nate can really sing. Hopefully it’s going to sound good, hopefully you’re going to get your money’s worth, and hopefully it will be exciting and be a good way to spend an evening. That’s what we try for. We try to make it a great time for everyone.

So with the album release is coming up, how are you guys planning to celebrate?

Our producer sent us some really nice bottles of champagne, so once we were done for the new year, and I think the album night would be the proper night to pop those.

Some Nights, the latest album from fun., is set to be released next Tuesday, February 21. You can listen to Some Nights in full here on Blogcritics.

For more information on the band, including tour dates, check out fun.’s official website.

Photo credit: Lindsey Byrnes

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About Kirsten Coachman

Kirsten Coachman is an Entertainment Writer from the San Francisco Bay Area. She has interviewed a variety of people from across the entertainment spectrum, including singer-songwriter/Matchbox Twenty frontman Rob Thomas, Andrew Dost from the Grammy Award-winning band fun., singer-songwriter Christina Perri, and acclaimed writer-director Derek Cianfrance.


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Home » Music » Reviews music » Music Review: Elvis Costello – This Year’s Model Deluxe Edition

Music Review: Elvis Costello – This Year’s Model Deluxe Edition

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When I first read that Hip-O was going to reissue Elvis Costello’s debut album My Aim Is True, I was incredibly skeptical. The album had already been reissued approximately 219,000 times; another edition stank of pure, unhinged, uncontrollable record company (or musician) greed.

But when the Hip-O version turned out to actually be quite good – a few tunes that had never been released before, plus an early live concert, were included – I was pleasantly surprised. Even if this reissue wasn’t exactly the definitive version of the album (it didn’t by any means top the Rhino version), it had a reason to exist and wasn’t a fleecing of Costello’s fans.

Hip-O’s reissue campaign continues with its release of This Year’s Model. Costello’s second album and the first one featuring The Attractions, the album is rightly recognized as a stone classic, full of the anger, spite, and revenge that Costello personified in the late 1970s. Of course, this album has been reissued previously. The 2002 Rhino reissue was a welcome new take on the album. Jammed full of demos and other goodies, and featuring Costello’s humorous and honest liner notes, that edition appeared to be the final word on the album.

Hip-O’s release of the album won’t do much to change that opinion for most Costello fans. Whereas the MAIT edition had a few twists to make it a worthy purchase, there isn’t much in Hip-O’s edition to justify it as a purchase for Costello fans who already have the Rhino version.

Too much of this release is simply a rehash of the previous reissue. The vast majority of the bonus tracks on the first disc have already been released commercially, with most of them appearing on the superior Rhino editions of This Year’s Model or Armed Forces. This leaves the kick-ass 1978 Washington, D.C. show on the second disc as the only new offering for Costello fans. Although the show itself is fantastic and the sound is great – it’s also noticeable how manic and wild the band’s playing had become since the show featured on the MAIT reissue – it’s hard to justify another pricey purchase of the album for essentially nothing more than the live concert. Costello fans who already have the Rhino version won’t have much interest in this reissue, apart from the second disc.

The packaging itself follows the same formula as the Hip-O edition of MAIT, with printed lyrics and tons of photos that have either appeared in previous reissues or are minor variations of those photos. The packaging is sharp, to be sure; but at a time when creative packaging is one of the things that might influence someone to buy an actual hard-copy album instead of just grabbing it on iTunes, Hip-O’s final product is a little bland and uninspired. Just like the MAIT Hip-O version, Costello’s excellent liner notes that appeared on the Rhino edition are again excluded.

A two-disc set of live Elvis and the Attractions from 1978 might have been a better release and would certainly have satisfied Elvis’ army. With both the Rhino version still in print and a large number of great 1978 shows that circulate unofficially, another rehash of This Year’s Model without much of anything new comes across as pointless, or more cynically, as a typical record label money grab. One can only assume that Armed Forces is next on the reissue list; here’s hoping that reissue is an improvement over this one.

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Home » Music » Music Review: The Pye And Dawn Records Underground Trip 1967-1975 – Cave Of Clear Light (3 CD box set)

Music Review: The Pye And Dawn Records Underground Trip 1967-1975 – Cave Of Clear Light (3 CD box set)

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As we all know colour was invented in 1966. Before then everything in our day to day lives was black, white, and somewhat grey. That is how it stayed until something strange started bubbling on both sides of the Atlantic.

On one side The Beatles released Revolver, and on the other a whole generation realized that the times were indeed a-changin'. So called beat groups many of which, up until then, had their feet firmly in the R&B camp dropped the suits and adopted the look. The Psychedelic era had arrived. Nothing would ever be the same again.

The vinyl album suddenly morphed from being a collection of singles, b-sides, and other three minute creations into something quite different. I can remember the gasps of astonished wonder when we realized that Sgt Peppers seemed devoid of any gaps in the grooves between the tracks.

EMI’s Parlophone and Columbia labels had already provided the outlet for such bands as Sid Barrett’s underground Pink Floyd, and The Pretty Things. Meanwhile Decca’s Deram label had adopted The Move, Procol Harum, and The Moody Blues.

When Island Records, under the leadership of its visionary founder Chris Blackwell, added its weight behind the movement the more established labels began to hatch plans to launch their own progressive wings.

Pye, who had the likes of Donovan and The Kinks on their roster, were, in fact, one of the last to make this move. One act that Pye did have was The Status Quo whose early psychedelic singles “Pictures Of Matchstick Men” and “Ice In The Sun” began to shift the labels reputation away from being considered as the home of more conservative acts such as The Bachelors and Petula Clark.

In 1969 EMI launched Harvest as their progressive outlet. Pye followed when they created the Dawn label in October of that year. Acts like John Kongos, Donovan, and Man switched from Pye to Dawn and were later joined by new signings Mungo Jerry, Titus Groan, Atlantic Bridge, and Atomic Rooster.

Cave Of Clear Light is a beautifully presented 3-CD box set released by Esoteric Recordings that captures this extraordinary period in the history of not only that particular label but of music itself. The set arrives with superb artwork from Phil Smee of Waldo’s Design and Dream Emporium and contains a finely balanced selection of the best tracks to have made it onto the Dawn label.

The excellent liner notes in the form of an extensively detailed 30 page booklet are written by Esoterics founder Mark Powell whose idea it was to release the Cave Of Clear Light. It follows similar sets commemorating the role that Harvest and Polydor played in the era.

CD one opens with the 1968 b-side by The Bystanders the track from which the set takes its name. It acts as the perfect scene-setter for a disc that includes contributions from Episode Six with “Morning Dew”, a very early and psychedelic Status Quo’s “Paradise Flat”, and Welsh band Man with “The Future Hides Its Face."

Velvett Fogg’s “Yellow Cave Woman”, and the often overlooked Blonde On Blonde’s excellent “Ride With Captain Max” and sitar soaked “All Day, All Night" also make welcome appearances.

Also included are two tracks from one of the labels most significant names Donovan who gives us “Season Of The Witch” and the superb “Hurdy Gurdy Man." If that isn’t enough it also provides “Velvet To Atone” a trademark delicacy from Trader Horne, Woody Kern’s acid drenched “Tell You I’m Gone”, The Mooche’s “Hot Smoke And Sassafras”, and Leicester band Pesky Gee’s “Peace Of Mind.”

Meanwhile, John Kongos, who was to enjoy some later chart success with “Tokoloshe Man” and “He’s Gonna Step On You Again”, serves up “Confusions About A Goldfish” which dates from October 1969.

Mark Powell also provides detailed histories and photographs of every band and artist included. Despite all of his attention to detail and its subsequent presentation the real strength of the set lies in its chosen running order. Thoughtful selection follows thoughtful selection with each sitting perfectly within the set making it surprisingly easy and immensely enjoyable to listen to.

This is a noteworthy achievement for what is essentially a compilation album.
Not only that but it provides a definitive historical guide to the label and the role played by its roster of artists in this remarkable period in the history of British music.

CD two gives us Fire’s jangling “Tell You A Story”, Atlantic Bridge’s memorable “Hilary Dixon”, and a contribution from Atomic Rooster with “Time Take My Life.”
Mungo Jerry serves up a nine minute explosion with his version of “I Just Wanna Make Love To You”, Demon Fuzz add “I Put A Spell On You”, whilst acid folksters Comus arrive with a hazy day “Song to Comus”.

If that wasn’t enough it includes more from Quo and the excellent Titus Groan. Jackie McAuley also appears adding further colour and depth with his baroque masterpiece “Cameraman: Wilson And Holmes.”

The third CD provides tracks by Icarus with “Fantastic Four”, Vince McCusker’s Fruupp with “Decision”, and one of my favourite bands of all time Stray who give us “Stand Up And Be Counted." Quicksand's “Flying”, and selections from Gravy Train, Heron, Pluto, and the all black progressive band Noir, add further flavour.

There is far too much in this extensive set to fully do justice to in such a brief review. Suffice it to say that it is a compilation constructed with a love and understanding for the era. It works so well that it leaves you compulsively listening to each track rather than skipping through to the bands that you may know better than others.

Anyone who has even the faintest interest or spark of curiosity in these extraordinary times needs to get a copy of this set. Sit back and let Mark Powell educate you with the promised “cornucopia of psychedelic and progressive sounds.” It’s a grand claim but it is more than delivered in this Cave Of Clear Light.

Please follow the links above to earlier reviews of many of these artists on Blogcritics' Classic Eurorock series.

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Home » Music » The Rockologist: Why Paul Revere And The Raiders Belong In The Rock And Roll Hall of Fame

The Rockologist: Why Paul Revere And The Raiders Belong In The Rock And Roll Hall of Fame

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Earlier this week, the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame inducted its Class of 2010 in a ceremony at New York's Waldorf Astoria. As could be expected, this year's inductees — which included the likes of Jimmy Cliff, Abba, Genesis, The Hollies and roughly half of the songwriters from the old Brill Building — generated the usual howls of protest from certain corners of the rock and roll blogosphere.

Last fall when the 2010 nominees were first announced, a number of Blogcritics writers — including yours truly — thought it might be fun to offer up our own Rock Hall Picks. Amongst a deserving group of artists that also included The Cure, Rush, Stevie Ray Vaughan and Tom Waits, my own pick at the time was Alice Cooper.

So with the nominating process for the Class of 2011 now probably well underway, I'd like to submit another pick: Paul Revere And The Raiders.

My first ever rock concert was a Paul Revere And The Raiders show in 1967 at the old Seattle Center Coliseum. It was one of those old Dick Clark style rock and roll showcase of stars deals, only in this case it was being promoted by Seattle Top 40 radio powerhouse KJR, and its number one jock, the legendary Pat O'Day.

I can't remember exactly who else was on the bill (though I'm pretty sure Tommy Boyce And Bobby Hart and Keith Allison were there), but Paul Revere And the Raiders were the headliners. What I do remember, though, was being accompanied to the concert by my grandma, since at age eleven I wasn't yet old enough to go to rock concerts by myself.

Another thing that stands out in my memory was all the screaming girls. The high-pitched din was so deafening you couldn't even hear the band. Since the Beatles had already stopped touring to make records like Sgt. Pepper by the time I was old enough to attend rock shows by myself, this was also the last time I ever heard anything like that at a rock show again. By then, the teen idols of the early sixties had been supplanted by the "serious rock" of the Jefferson Airplane and the Doors.

That fact alone may account for the mysterious way the Rock Hall has, at least to this point, chosen to ignore Paul Revere And The Raiders. They were definitely a pre-psychedelic era sort of teen-rock band, complete with a ready-made teen idol in lead vocalist Mark Lindsay. That they were closely associated with Dick Clark-produced shows American Bandstand and especially the short-lived Where The Action Is likely doesn't help their case with Jann Wenner and the other stuffed shirts on the Rock Hall's board of directors either.

On the latter show, the Raiders were essentially the house band on a "beach party" sort of show filmed outside on location at what I want to say was Malibu Beach. Even there, with bikini-clad beach babes running about all over the place in the sand, the Raiders still wore their American Revolution-styled uniforms.

Oh yeah, that's another thing: the uniforms. These went hand-in-hand with the name as part of the Raiders whole American military history gimmick. Mark Lindsay even wore a ponytail to match his red coat, long before L.A. Record company weasels turned ponytails into a 1990's music-biz fashion statement.

Looking at it today in modern terms, the Raiders matching military jackets and boots certainly weren't any sillier looking than what Coldplay wore on the Viva La Vida tour. Even so, by the time the hippies took over rock, the Raiders were no longer taken seriously. What's harder to understand, though, is how or why this "bubblegum image" continues to linger today, or why it should continue to matter.

In purely musical terms, when you listen now to any one of the Raiders' string of hit singles from roughly 1965 to 1967, they hold up as well as anything that a band like, say, the Rolling Stones did during roughly the same period.

It was one hell of a streak, too. Starting with "Steppin' Out (#46)" and continuing on through "Just Like Me (#11)," "Kicks (Top 5)," "Good Thing," "Ups And Downs," "Him Or Me — What's It Gonna' Be" and beyond, Paul Revere And The Raiders were arguably the hottest rock band in America during this time.

The classic lineup — with Lindsay on vocals, Paul Revere on Vox organ, guitarist Drake Levin, bassist Phil "Fang" Volk, and drummer Mike "Smitty" Smith — was also one hell of a garage rock band. Paul Revere And The Raiders may have been unfairly tagged as a top forty, teen pop bubblegum act. But the aforementioned singles rocked as hard as anything by bands like the Troggs, The Seeds or The Electric Prunes. Even today, the Raiders' singles hold up remarkably well.

This probably owes, at least in part, to their roots in the early sixties Northwest rock scene, which also produced such noteworthy precursors to Seattle's grunge sound as the Sonics, the Viceroys and the Wailers. Paul Revere And The Raiders even had an early hit with a cover of the frat-rock classic, "Louie, Louie" — although the Kingsmen's version is admittedly better known. Bottom line is that this alone should put them on the radar of a Rock Hall board member like Underground Garage guru Little Steven Van Zandt. Or, at least you'd think…

Next week, Collectors Choice will be releasing the most complete anthology of Paul Revere And The Raiders ever assembled. Spanning three discs, and some 66 songs, The Complete Columbia Singles features all of the original A and B sides of Paul Revere And The Raiders' singles, as well as rarities like the jingles the band recorded for Chevrolet and the Pontiac GTO.

This includes everything from early tracks like "Louie, Louie" and "Louie Go Home," to the big hits like "Kicks" and "Hungry" (along with lesser known singles like "The Great Airplane Strike"), to latter-day hits like "I Had A Dream," "Mr. Sun, Mr. Moon" and "Indian Reservation." The three-disc collection also includes extensive liner notes with comments by Lindsay, Paul Revere, Fang and the rest, as well as other Raiders alumni like Keith Allison and Jim "Harpo" Valley.

This is a powerhouse collection that provides undisputed proof that there was a lot more to Paul Revere And The Raiders than funny suits and hats. The fact is that they were among the best practitioners of American garage rock of their time, and it's high time the Rock Hall took note.

But if the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame isn't listening — yet! — at least you can.

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About Glen Boyd

Glen Boyd is the author of Neil Young FAQ, released in May 2012 by Backbeat Books/Hal Leonard Publishing. He is a former BC Music Editor and current contributor, whose work has also appeared in SPIN, Ultimate Classic Rock, The Rocket, The Source and other publications. You can read more of Glen's work at the official Neil Young FAQ site. Follow Glen on Twitter and on Facebook.
  • El Bicho

    sorry, but they wouldn’t get my vote.

  • Mark Saleski

    hmmm…i dunno. there were SO many garage rock bands back then.

    i can never quote figure what the hall is looking for but for me, i’d want the inductee
    to bring something unique to the table, so i don’t know if it lets these guy in. i say no.

    on the other hand, some people are in favor of the monkees being in, which i think is nuts…so what do i know?!

  • Lisa McKay

    Hmm, I don’t know about this, Glen. I had a pretty big thing for the Raiders when I was in junior high school (and the prerequisite crush on Mark Lindsay), but I can’t honestly say I’ve given them a second thought since then (except maybe in a “whatever happened to” kinda way).

    Just for fun, I’m listening to some on Pandora right now, and it sounds dated to me.

  • VoxMysteron

    Steppin Out, Just Like Me, Kicks and Hungry – most bands would kill for a run of singles like those. Add in stuff like Louise, Louie Go Home and the original version of I’m Not Your Steppin’ Stone and you’ve got a pretty decent canon – certainly far more rock and roll than some of the current occupants of the RRHOF. However, there are still glaring omissions (cough The Zombies cough) that I’d want to see addressed before Paul Revere and The Raiders get in.

  • Glen Boyd

    There’s at least a thousand different arguments for and against bands/artists worthy of induction into the Rock Hall. But I think when you compare “Kicks,” “Hungry” etc. side by side with “Get Off My Cloud,” “19th Nervous Breakdown” it’s a surprisingly close call. And it positively kicks the living crap out of the Hollies.

    Funny suits and Dick Clark association aside of course…

    Thanks for chiming in everyone…

  • Glen Boyd

    Oh, and one more thing…this one directed towards Mark:

    The Raiders, unlike the Monkees, played their own instruments both onstage and off. Big difference.

  • Fernando Barragan

    Oh, hell ya their time is way past due!They hit the charts between 1965-1971 over 20 times. There are act that have been inducted with 1/3 that amount. They were not bubble gum, that’s a title given to them by the hippies that did not know how to catagorize them dueto their unique sound and look. They had a great hard sound with hits like “Just like Me” (covered in the 80’s)”Hungry” “good Thing” “Steppin Out”
    They were the first Rock & Roll band signed up to Columbia Records and had the biggist number one in the history of Columbia in 1971 with their Number one hit “Indian Reservation” There sound is as fresh today then when we first heard them in 1965.

  • VoxMysteron

    Glen, beg to differ, but I recall hearing that the Raiders, like most LA groups of the time had the Wrecking Crew and other noted LA session musicians playing on their records. However, Drake Levin and “Fang” Volk did play very well live.

  • Glen Boyd

    They did use studio musicians from time to time (in fact, in their latter-day incarnation some of the studio cats ended up becoming part of the band). Hell, even the Beach Boys did that.

    My point is, that the Raiders were very much a real band. No one was playing behind the curtain live (as was the case with the Monkees). They weren’t “pre-fab” I guess is the point I was trying to make.

    Thanx for chimin’ in…

  • Frank Elliot

    Where do I begin? The Raiders belong in the hall as do other groups. There are many reasons why they belong there of which I will list a few. To set the record straight, Little Steven has been trying very hard to get them admitted. In the last email I received from him he admitted he has all but given up because of the prejudice against them. Now to some of the reasons they should be in.
    They were the first rock band signed to Columbia Records. Due to the extreme hatred for rock and roll by Mitch Miller who was head of A&R for the label they were not promoted nor did the marketing team have any clue on how to promote a rock band. It’s the main reason they lost the national hit of Louie Louie. In the Northwest they had the hit but the label dropped the ball on it in the rest of the nation.
    Now to some of the things they did first and the musicians they influenced.
    They were one of the first bands to use the double guitar. The group was always looking to new technology and that is one example.
    Drake Levin was the first guitarist who used the crude recording techniques of that time to double track himself playing two leads on Just Like Me. Credit goes to their great producer Terry Melcher. They were a big influence on the Who. The Raiders were hard nosed,punk garage rockers. Before they even had a record deal they were so popular they had to play in armories for 3,000 to 10,000 people a night! This is with no contract. If you look at photos from that time you see a mass of people both black and white. Paul and Mark were huge fans of R&B and the rest of the band loved it too.
    Paul used to buy a piano for many shows and would destroy it by smashing it,setting it on fire or turning it over. The other band members would help by hitting it with hammers or taking a saw to it.
    If you are unaware of the Who’s history, Roger Daltry started the band but was the guitarist. He later became the singer. The band was listening and watching the Raiders because they covered some of the obscure R&B numbers they recorded.
    The most teling influence was their cover of Louie Go Home by the Raiders which was the follow up to Louie Louie which few people are of aware of due again to Columbia’s inexperience with rock. The Who released it in England as Loubie Loubie. When you listen to it, you can hear Daltry patterning his vocals after Mark Lindsay. But don’t just take my word for it, listen to it on the internet and if you look at the book of 100 albums to take on a desert island, the author lists their album Spirit of 67 with Kicks on it and says at the end of his review-Listen and learn where Roger Daltry learned to sing.
    Drake levin was a phenomenal guitarist as was Phil Volk an influential bass player. One of Drakes’s fans was a young guitar player named Jimmy Hendrix who attended their shows in Seattle and expressed his admiration to him. Phils playing was a big inluence on other bass players and he was featured in Bass Player magazine a few years ago.
    Mark was one of the few artists that was allowed to produce his own band. This was unheard of in the days of company producers and large credit goes to Paul who fought for this for Mark and to the knowledge Mark learned from Terry Melcher a true studio genius.
    I could name many more reasons but will save them for another day.
    The problem for the hall is both politics(Madonna-name a member of her “rock band” and Grandmaster Flash) and what constitutes rock and roll. It is such a fluid entity that it is hard to say what makes it up. You could say there should be seperate halls for R&B, blues, disco, singer songwriters etc. but then it takes the craziness and divides it up into more craziness. Perhaps it should be changed to the Music Hall of Fame to recognize the many types of music out there and the important musicians who contributed to it.
    To say, as a recent member did, that Abba belongs in because of all the records they have sold internationally and that he is tired of hearing about Kiss is disengenous—talk about selling large amounts of records and being huge internationally(besides their influence)! Give us a break.
    And, if you are going to admit someone on the base of the strength of one hit and I love Percy Sledge, you have to take into consideration Indian Reservation, which from the time it was released until Billy Jean came out, outsold every single that Columbia released. That was a monster and made a huge amount of money for the label. That’s how strong that song was.
    I am coming off my soapbox now but remember the context of the time. This was the era of the British Invasion and American groups suffered by it in terms of record company signings and the hold it had on the buying public. Literally and figuratively, Paul Revere and the Raiders helped shore up our native bands to compete against and like his namesake of old, help fend off the Brits. They like other important musicians belong there. I hope they do get in but even if they don’t I will always love their music and celebrate what it has meant to me. Long live Paul Revere and the Raiders!

  • Glen Boyd

    Wow Frank…you said it better than I did. I’m truly humbled.

    Maybe, you could forward my article (and your response) to Little Steven. Sounds like he just needs some fresh ammo to renew the fight.

    Thanks for your excellent response to my article.

  • Jim “Jazzbo” Austin

    A rousing HUZZAH for you, Glen! This band started in 1959 and successfully transitioned the bridge from pre-British invasion white R&B to British invasion-type garage rock territory. They also successfully combined elements of early R&B choreography, a raw British invasion-type sound with those American R&B undertones, a distinctive visual image with the costumes,… AND pulled it all off with fun and zany showmanship and live performance gimmicks. They have been called the Greatest American Showband, although no one seems to even know what a 1950s-60s showband is anymore. And as Frank Elliot has said, the late Drake Levin’s guitar antics at the Spanish Castle inspired a young Jimi Hendrix to do some of the stuff he did later on. Levin and Volk (i.e., “the Twins”) had a great performance chemistry, too.

    The Raiders had over 700 TV performances in the 1960s which in my opinion helped make “long haired rock music” somewhat more acceptable to mom and dad,….just from them constantly being pumped into America’s living room. The most dangerous thing about Paul Revere and the Raiders was Lindsay’s pony tail.

    You cannot deny the music or the influence they had on other groups….from The Who to the Sex Pistols. History has seemed to relegate them to a contrived group like The Monkees but the Raiders were anything but, having honed their musical and performance skills in countless clubs, National Guard Armories, and small auditoriums during the early 60s. Fer cryin’ out loud, they were HUGE! For a couple of years in the mid-60s, they were hands down the most popular American rock n roll band around.

    I was a little too young to ever see them play live in the mid-60s, but guys I have spoken to said these guys were the real deal and flat out rocked. The studio musician rumors are over exagerated, especially during the 64-66 peak hit making record years. It’s too bad that there isn’t any mid-60s concert footage around and the only 100% live TV performance was lost when someone threw out all of those 1960s Carson Tonight Show broadcasts (which upset Carson so much that he subsequently had all of his shows stored away in underground mines outside Kansas City). All of the other Raider TV performances you see either are all pre-recorded tracks with Lindsay’s vocal usually the only live track. Those kinds of TV performances were quite common in the 60s, but it only seems to feed the rumor mill in this age of 21st century entertainment industry skepticism.

  • Ed Darrell

    Straight ahead rock and roll. Surely they are deserving of a hallowed place in Cleveland.

  • Frank

    Thank you Glen for your kind words. I really appreciate it. Your page is great by the way. Thanks for the Little Steven suggestion,I will do that. My apologies to all for an error in my section. The follow up to Louie Louie was Louie go home. The Who’s version is called Loubie go home. I tried to edit it but was unable to. I realized no one would be able to look it up. The first version was really a 50’s kind of ramble but they remade it into a kicking hard, jangly song on Spirit of 67. Check it out.

  • A Geek Girl

    Good choice Glen. Loved this band. I loved the solo work of Mark Lindsay (Arizona, Silver Bird) and Freddy Weller (Lonely Women Make Good Lovers) as well.

    Hard to believe they’re not in the Hall of Fame.

  • Glen Boyd

    Thanks AGG. I have to admit I kind of got off the bus when Lindsay went solo, but I’ve always thought he had one of the great rock voices. As Frank so eloquently noted they influenced a lot of the Brit bands, and don’t get near the credit they should.

    Thanks all for the comments.

  • DevanG

    I’ll bet I’ve seen Paul Revere/ Raiders 50 times if I’ve seen them once. From the late 70’s – 90’s They had one of the most consistantly “tight”, musically ‘hot’, and professional shows of any band I’ve seen that much of. Paul Revere and my band always seemed to be at Harrahs Lake Tahoe the same time, so I got to see a lot of their shows. Also, Paul is one of the funniest individuals you might ever run into. To put them in the same category as the Monkeys is rediculous. DevanG “The Tunesmith’s Apprentice”

  • Frank

    Hi Glen,
    I took your advice and forwarded our thoughts to little Steven. Mark influenced many vocalists. Take a listen to Go Insane by Lindsay Buckingham. Dee Snyder
    recently said that someday he would like to meet Mark and thank him.
    I just heard that the new Stone Temple Pilots Cd has a song on it, Huckleberry Crumble,that is a direct tribute to the band. They said that they purposely designed it to reflect the Raiders bass lines,guitar styling and vocals. That’s something special.

  • lainey

    The Raiders deserve to be in the RRHOF for many reasons, but I think one of the most compelling-and maybe this should be pointed out to Mr. Van Zandt as an argument-is their place as pioneers in the medium of tv and its influence on pop culture. They were on for several years straight-day in and day out, or week in and week out. They had their own showcase in Where The Action Is. I know they weren’t the only performers, but they are the ones that most people, I think, identify with the show. I was in my mid to late childhood then, but I was a full fledged teenybopper by the time the “Happening” series came along, and if there ever was a show that was a microcosm of American pop culture, it was that show. Mark interviewed Hubert Humphrey on the show long before Bill Clinton tooted his sax on Arsenio Hall. They were the only rock group-in the true sense of the word-that were able to showcase their talent and promote themselves, successfully, on their own tv show. If you wanted to get yourself out there to young people in 1968 or 1969, then “Happening” was the place to do it. It was the precursor to MTV in many ways.

  • SSG Lew

    Practically invented hard rock – always better live than on album – absolutely everyone knows at least three tracks they recorded WORD FOR WORD – if not the most influential AMERICAN rock band, definitely in the top three – bad Raiders (if you can find any) are still light years better than most other band’s best. I never saw them in the day, but I was at the filming of “Last Madman” – best concert, best fans (next to Cooper’s) I’ve ever seen/met.

  • Frank Elliot

    Hi Folks,
    Check out the new videos on You Tube from the MoonDog show. One of them is Paul Revere and the Raiders. Listen to Paul’s comments on the Hall. Great stuff.

  • Margy Fajardo

    Frank. There are a few fools out there that speak out of pure ignorence and claim that The Raiders never played their own instruments. I wish they would read your comments or at least research things before making fools of themselves in front of the whole wide world!

  • Frank

    Hi Margy,
    It boggles my mind how ignorant people are concerning the Raiders. These guys were professionals in every sense of the word.
    You don’t play night after night over three hundred days a year and not become better.
    They quickly learned their way in the studio and by Where the Action Is and Midnight Ride albums were able to do their own creative stuff and play without having to use studio cats.
    It was a learning process with Terry Melcher and they picked it up quick.
    Mark became a true studio master and producer because of what he learned.
    Just listen to Collage if you want to hear studio magic.
    The drum sound on Dr. Fine alone still amazes me all these many years later.
    An example of how big the Raiders were comes from a story told by Gary Pucket a few weeks back.
    They were recording in a studio in L.A. in 1969.
    In rank of importance was the Raiders in Studio A, Sly and the Family Stone in Studio B, Gary and the Gap in C, and some unknown singer called Janis Joplin in D.
    If you know your history than you can always rest easy that you know the truth. And knowledge is the best response to an uninformed mind.
    The Raiders were not only huge in terms of what they meant to Columbia Records but were far reaching in their influence. Peace.

  • classicraiderfan

    Thanks, Frank, Glen and others for your comments, as it seems all of you were around when the Raiders were big.
    The suit thing started out as a joke between Revere and Lindsay but caught on with the audience, and they were considered the American answer to the British invasion, so that gag stuck—everyone had a “shtick” then, many of the Brit groups wore suits and the Rascals wore the schoolboy shorts, etc. They were considered the hardest working group in show business AND they had the TV shows. When these journalists write articles about the Raiders, they need to first research their subject: listen to Mojo Workout, The Complete Columbia Singles, Spirit of ’67,and Just Like Us! at the very least, to get an idea of who they are writing about. So many articles critical of the group cite the “cheesy” costumes and the dancing onstage, but if those writers could comprehend that part of the decade and the need to stand out among so many who were fighting for the same buck, then maybe, just maybe they would understand. As for the RRHOF voters, you may be a lost cause.
    Once you elect a non-rock act to the Hall, you have lost your credibility as far as the fans are concerned.

  • MommieOD

    Glen, I just came across your blog and thoroughly enjoyed your article. I am a Raiders fan from back in the day, although I was also too young to attend one of their concerts in their hay-day. I sort of moved on to other music and musicians as I entered my teens, but recently got back in touch with my “inner-Raider” after seeing Mark Lindsay perform at the Happy Together Tour. I picked up the Columbia singles collection and listened in awe to the wide variety and quality of the Raiders output. I now have it on my Ipod.

    In describing why their music spoke to me as a kid, I told my young adult children that they played, pure, hard-driving rock and roll. The costumes were just an extra. It’s the music that stands the test of time.

    Frank, I loved your comments as well. So well put, researched, and thought out. The Hall of Fame folks could take a lesson from you. The only shame of it is that if they are, by some miracle inducted, it will have been too late for Smitty and Drake. Let’s hope that this wrong will be righted soon.

  • Triplet Tam

    Hell, I thought they were already in there. Of course They belong. The reason for the prejudice is due–in part–because Mark Lindsay was such a “pretty boy” he was constantly on the cover of Tiger Beat and 16 which somehow took away from their credibility. But I know they were responsible for a lot of kids getting into “power rock”; the kind of music you feel in your toes. I am presently trying to talk some of my musician friends into starting up a club band with me doing updated versions of 60’s hard rock and Brit Invasion. 2 of the first songs we’d learn would be “Just Like Me” and “Kicks.” Perfect songs. Frank Elliot’s response was great by the way.

  • Paul Mosenson

    Paul Revere and the Raiders should definitely be in. Just like the Baseball Hall of Fame did a few years back by inducting a group of Negro League players, the Rock Hall of Fame should gather a veterans committee and right the injustices:
    Besides the Raiders, look up:
    The Clovers
    Wynonie Harris
    Johnny Burnette Trio
    Billy Ward and Dominoes
    Five Royales
    Jan and Dean
    Roy Milton
    Roy Brown
    Amos Milburn

  • Marielle

    Where to begin …. I was one of those young girls who ran home to see The Raiders on Action each day. I printed ‘FANG’ on my French book cover to hold it up to my friends across the room – just like Phil did. My intro into rock along with all those others like me came from he Raiders. Who knew that fast forward 40 years later in 2006 I would become a pretty close friend to Phil ‘Fang’ Volk in las Vegas thanks to my husband’s performing career that helped our paths to cross.

    Now, as in the past, my ‘fan-ness’ is no less strong. But to know the man, know the Talent, know the Artist it infuriates me that anyone would question or belittle this teriffic, history-making group!!!

  • colony1

    Why PRR belong in the Hall. Let’s start with Mark. 1. Name anyone who had stage presence more than Lindsey. He could sing ballads or otherwise. 2. Levin was an excellent guitarist. 3. Volk provided a signature harmony for Marcus. 4.Count the top ten hits.

  • Rita GS

    It’s a shame they are not there already. That huge Pacific NW Wall of Sound on songs such as “Just Like Me”, Steppin’ Out”, “Kicks” and “Hungry”. The truly incredible guitar work of Drake Levin on the early hits. Smitty’s intricate solid drumming. Phil Volk’s driving bass work. And Mark Lindsay’s howling sweet voice. This is great rock ‘n roll. I think the costumes and the multitudes of lip-sync TV appearances has set them back in the eyes of many “rock” purists. They should just listen to the music…

  • Peter Blecha

    Frank’s input is mostly spot-on with 2 exceptions:

    1.) The Raiders were not the first rock band signed to Columbia, even the the claim has been made many times over the years. Spokane’s Runabouts, for one, preceded them with the label. Maybe the Raiders were the 1st with an album contract?

    2.) Though the Hendrix connection tale has also been spread widely in recent years, the fact is: he left Seattle in 1961, well before the Raiders performed here.

  • Karen Wilson Stepp

    Well said, Glenn…. I just hope the Hall of Fame gets your point, and soon. The origianl group belongs in the Hall of Fame; what the problem is, I don’t get it. Like I said: Well said!

  • Mark

    Their induction to the R&RHOF is way overdue. And yes, they had a great string of hits, but some of thier best stuff, their early R&B stuff that appeared on “Just Like Us,” and “Midnight Ride,” and earlier releases could hold up even now. Those were great tunes and mostly original!


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PUBLIC MARKS from hobbes with tags "effet photo" & javascript

15 June 2007 14:45

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Instant.js 1.0 allows you to add an instant picture effect (including tilt) to images on your webpages. It uses unobtrusive javascript to keep your code clean.

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Scanner Review: Fujitsu fi-6140

One of the nice things about working for Adobe is that occasionally nice things show up on my doorstep.

That was the case a few months ago when a Fujitsu fi-6140 scanner arrived. My test of this scanner was delayed as I waited for my new laptop to arrive . . . apologies!

Fujitsu fi-6140 scanner on Rick's desk
Fujitsu fi-6140 scanner on my messy desk.

Fujitsu offers an entire line of scanners from inexpensive personal scanners to heavy-duty departmental scanners. Many of their scanner offerings include Adobe Acrobat, too!

Need to learn about scanning and OCR in Acrobat 9? Check out my movie page to see how to use these features.

The Fujitsu fi-6140 is department-level scanner that is rated to scan 60, double-sided black and white pages per minute at 200 dpi and 40, double-sided color pages at 300 dpi. This kind of performance is about three times what you’ll find in a personal scanner.

The price is also about three times more:

  • The Fujitsu fi-6140 is about $1580 (CDW)
  • ScanSnap S1500 is a bit under $500 (CDW)

For a small firm that doesn’t do a lot of scanning, the Fujitsu fi-6140 might be overkill. However, if you have a lot of documents to scan, or difficult document types, this scanner has many benefits:

  1. TWAIN Interface
    Unlike the ScanSnap personal scanners, Fujitsu’s business
    scanners can interface to any software such as Acrobat. (You can’t scan inside of Acrobat using the ScanSnap, which is an annoyance).
  2. Scanning Options
    The fi-6140 TWAIN driver offers sophisticated imaging tools
    such as edge cleanup, hole removal, document numbering, etc. You can even have the scanner automatically scan the front of pages at one resolution and the back in another.
  3. Paper Handling
    The fi-6140 capably handles thick card stock and other tough to scan documents. I scanned a stack of credit cards and it worked fine!
  4. Speed
    The fi-6140 is fast, really fast. If you scan large stacks of paper frequently, you will benefit the most.
  5. Software Bundle
    In addition to Acrobat, the fi-6140 includes full versions of professional-level software such as Kofax VRS Professional and Fujitsu ScandAll Pro.
  6. Long Duty Cycle

In the rest of the article, you can read more about my overall impression of the Fujitsu fi-6140. In this review, I’ll cover how to use this scanner with Acrobat and access some extended functions.

Spoiler alert: I liked it! Read on . . .

I was able to unpack and install the Fujitsu fi-6140 in under thirty minutes on my laptop. Basically, you unpack the scanner and remove several strips of tape securing moving elements of the device. The only thing left to do is to click the page feeder into place and you’re done.

Software installation takes some time, but is straightforward. Insert the installer CD into your PC and choose which software products you need to install. I installed just the ISIS and Scanner drivers. When you do this, you must also install the small program that stays resident in your system tray called the Fujitsu Error Recovery Guide. If the scanner were to malfunction, an alert pops up on the PC.

After a reboot, I plugged in the scanner which Windows Vista recognized right away.

Initial Impressions

I scanned a variety of types of documents including old typewritten pages on yellowed paper, card stock, magazine pages, etc.

Paper handling is strength of the Fujitsu fi-6140. I have had only one paper jam, and that might have been because I didn’t seat the paper properly.

Like the other scanners I’ve used, there is a lag between the moment that you press the Scan button in Acrobat and when the scan actually starts. On my machine, this is always about five to six seconds.

I ran several tests on the Fujitsu fi-6140. All tests were run on my Lenovo ThinkPad W500 with no other applications open. I tried to test the types of documents that legal professionals might use regularly.

Performance Tests

My tests included an old, ten-page typewritten document, a 78-page computer-generated document, and a 4-page color card stock file.

To perform the scanning, I chose File—> Create PDF—> From Scanner—> Custom Scan and set the page size to letter. Other choices such as resolution and color mode were set in Acrobat.

Document Type
# of Pages
Scan Time
Type and Resolution
Old, typed, stapled doc, hand markups 10 double-sided pages (20 total) 23 sec 300 dpi
Old, typed, stapled doc, hand markups 10 double-sided pages (20 total) 21 sec 300 dpi
Old, typed, stapled doc, hand markups 10 double-sided pages (20 total) 1:04 sec 600 dpi
Computer generated 39 double-sided pages (78 total) 62 sec 300 dpi
Computer generated 39 double-sided pages (78 total) 211 sec 600 dpi
Color, thick card stock, double-sided 2 double-sided (4 total) 9 sec Color, 300 dpi
Color, thick card stock, double-sided 2 double-sided (4 total) 44 sec
(Memory Mode)
Color, 600 dpi

In my 2007 blog article Using Acrobat with the Fujitsu fi-5110C Scanner, I did some time comparisons between a few scanner models. The Fujitsu fi-6140 is clearly faster than the aforementioned scanner, and about on par with the Canon DR-2580C I reviewed about three years ago.

In the Canon article, I mentioned that I had to manually change the defaults for the scanner driver as the initial settings yielded slow scans. I did try quite a few options, but changes I made did not impact scan speed more than a second or two.

All the scans that I observed were very good quality, and gave good results when used for OCR.

I also scanned a color photo and compared the results to those obtained using my Brother MFC-6490CW. While nobody should mistake the fi-6140 for a standalone photo scanner, the results were certainly good enough for most legal professionals.

Adjusting TWAIN Driver Settings

Most often, I let Acrobat control the scanner. Acrobat’s interface is easier to use and frankly, a lot prettier!

For example, you can control many image processing aspects directly via Acrobat such as background removal, deskewing, noise reduction, etc. These options are pretty confusing to work with in the native TWAIN driver.

Still, there are occasions when you may wish to dive into the native driver to take advantage of features that aren’t available in Acrobat. For example, do you have to scan a whole stack of documents with hole punches? The native TWAIN driver can eliminate these during scanning. Below, I’ll discuss one example of functionality you can take advantage of in the TWAIN driver.

Note: Changes you make in the TWAIN driver are "sticky" and are retained for future scanning sessions.

Follow these steps to explore some features of the Fujitsu fi-6140 TWAIN driver.

Getting to the Fujitsu TWAIN Driver

  1. In Acrobat, choose File—> Create PDF—> From Scanner—> Custom Scan
  2. Click the Options button
    Getting to the options button
  3. The Scanner Options window opens. Change the User Interface option to Show Scanner’s Native Interface:

    Showing the native TWAIN inteface in Acrobat

  4. Click OK.
  5. Load a piece of paper in the scanner.
  6. Click the Scan button
Done with the TWAIN Driver?: Just follow the steps above and choose Hide Scanner’s Native Interface.

Making Change in the Native Driver

The Fujitsu Twain Driver window will appear:

Fujitsu Twain driver window

Clicking the Options button reveals several interesting features.

Let’s look at a couple of useful options.

Hole Punch Removal

If you have originals with hole punches, you’ll often see black circles on scans. By changing a setting in the driver, you can eliminate these.

Example of hole punch removal

Here’s how to remove hole punches . . .

In the Rotation tab, set the following:

  1. Adjust the menu for "Automatic Size and Skew Detection" to Set to Black Background.
  2. Adjust the "Hole Removal" menu to Fill with White
    Setting the driver to do hole punch removal
  3. Click OK

TIP: You can save groups of settings in the TWAIN driver so you can easily reuse them.

  1. Click the Config button in the main TWAIN window

    Config button

  2. Click the Add button in the Configuration window
  3. Name your new setting and save. It will now appear in a list of configurations at the top of the TWAIN window:

    Saving settings in the driver

Sometimes the driver does not appear to clear out settings, so you may need to double-check settings.

Further Exploration in the TWAIN Driver

There are other functions in the TWAIN driver that are interesting. I’ve found that you need to play with these functions to figure out what they do. The function labels and accompanying help can be a little cryptic.

Here are some other areas of interest in the Options area:

Cache Tab: Blank Page Skip

You can set the threshold for any dirt or noise which will tell the driver to skip the page.

Filter Tab: Border and Endorser

If you regularly see edge shadows around pages, you can have the driver fill in the area with white. Another option is the digital endorser which allows you to stamp the document during scanning. Both of these options slow down scanning somewhat.

Final Thoughts

The more I used the Fujitsu fi-6140 the more I like it. This scanner is flexible (handles many types of paper) and reliable (doesn’t jam). Those are two critical elements for me.

  • Paper Handling
    This scanner can handle various thicknesses of paper and other materials better than any other scanner I have tried.
  • 300 dpi Scan Speed
    Speed is very good at the resolution I most typically use.
  • Desktop Footprint
    The fi-6140 doesn’t take up a lot of room on my desk. When the paper shoots are closed, it is about the size of shoebox.
  • Unobtrusive Software
    Some scanners have a lot of software overhead including startup files and memory resident apps. These issues are minimal with the fi-6140.

  • The TWAIN driver window is straight out of Windows 95. While it is functional, I would appreciate a modern, fluid interface with less cryptic labels and functions.
  • 600 dpi Scan Speed
    The scanner seems a bit slow at 600 dpi to me. I wish it were faster. I’m starting to scan more at higher resolutions to take advantage of better results and file size reduction using Acrobat 9’s ClearScan technology.

I think any law office would be well served by the Fujitsu fi-6140. I’m not giving up mine any time soon!

Comments are closed.


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Posts tagged "Flash Player 10.1"

Flash Player 10.1 + HTTP Dynamic Streaming – NOW SHIPPING

Today Adobe released Flash Player 10.1 and Air 2 for Windows, Mac and Linux. Upgrade right now for free!

get_adobe_flash_player.png get_adobe_air.png
Read the full details and feature summary on the Flash Player blog.

When we first introduced this new player in October last year, we told a story of incredible improvements to video. Specifically – video delivery, video protection, video quality and video player development. My blog announcement in October summed up a lot of the new delivery options available for customers. I’ll use this blog post and others to come over the next few days to provide some details around all of this, but let’s paint the big picture how video on the web just changed today:

Since the October preview, we’ve shipped some major new technology that is enabled by Flash Player 10.1

Everything comes together today with this release. You should review the Video section of the Flash Player blog – I’ve expanded on some of the thoughts from this blog below.

HTTP Dynamic Streaming – this technology will enable publishers to leverage more infrastructure on the internet to help deliver video with higher scale, and lower costs. Adobe has adopted the industry standard MP4-Fragment format, to deliver video using HTTP. The Fragmented format enables the Flash Player to fetch sections (called fragments) of a video file, and cache them across the network. This is a very different approach than our RTMP delivery with Adobe Flash Media Server, which uses normal FLV or MP4 (F4V) file formats. The MP4-Fragment format (which we named, F4F) adheres to the industry standard which is important for re-usability. The format also enabled a major requirement for media streaming – protection. The F4F format has full support for DRM policies powered by Adobe Flash Access 2. This allows you to deliver your live or pre-recorded content, leverage the caching devices, and still maintain control over your video assets.

A new website was launched for the technology: which includes tremendous detail on the F4F packaging workflow, and downloads for free tools to create and deliver F4F files from your existing FLV or F4V content. The Open Source Media Framework is a major part of HTTP Dynamic Streaming. Inside OSMF are all the working bits required for measuring the QoS, and switching bitrates. OSMF also provides full support for Live streaming and DVR and makes it easy to manage DRM keys to make your playback start quickly, and adapt seamlessly.

RTMP Enhancements – A major update to the RTMP buffer management has allowed us to support some pretty cool functionality to improve the video experience, and reduce the interruptions caused by network troubles. The functionality is enabled with the Flash Media Server 3.5.3 (released back in December 2009). We’ve essentially decoupled the buffer from the connection – which allows video to play back even if the connection drops. Developers can use ActionScript to reconnect to FMS and resume playback – and if this is done before the buffer empties, then there will be no perceived disruption.

Seeking is another benefactor of this enhancement. When enabled, seeking will within the buffer first before going back to the server. This significantly reduces the load on the server compared with today when every seek action goes back and forth between client and server. You can now also specify a “back” buffer – this is one of my favorites. Similar to specifying a normal buffer, you can now specify a duration of buffer to keep – this will enable an instant reply option, or simple time-shifting within the player. This is not the same as DVR, but helps support some of the basic functions you see today in most DVR platforms. Finally the buffer enhancements also allow playback at different speeds (i.e. ½ speed, double or quad speed or more), and also support frame accurate stepping. All in – it’s a pretty major enhancement to video playback when using RTMP or RTMPe.

Peer Assisted Networking – This is a game changing technology for the Adobe Flash Platform, allowing direct communication to occur between a group of Flash Players. This technology is the 2nd generation of the RTMFP protocol introduced in Flash Player 10.0. The key difference in this release is “Groups” – which allows developers to define the capabilities of different groups of apps running in Flash Player 10.1. RTMFP Groups technology enables video delivery using P2P – this is called Application Level Multicast. You can also use Groups to send and receive directed or broadcast messages to other clients in the group. The technology is very powerful for media-based communication like video or voice chat. Using Flash Player’s built-in video and speech encoders, this new technology is perfect for 2-way video chats or 1-way broadcasts of user generated content. To start using RTMFP Groups, you can sign up for free for an Adobe Stratus 2 Developer Key.

You can see more about RTMFP groups here:

Matthew Kauffman’s Max 2009 presentation

My Beet.TV interview from May 2010

My NAB Presentation

You can see examples for RTMFP, and getting started guides here:

We’re very excited about this release, and we hope you are too. From a video point of view – this is the biggest enhancement to video over any other Flash Player release.

More to come….


text:
Pimco’s McCulley Buys A House – In Pennsylvania

Bloomberg News
In A Keystone State of mind.

Paul McCulley, who returned to Pimco two months ago as its chief economist, just bought a home that will make for a tough commute to the firm’s California headquarters, as it’s 2,700 miles away in Waverly Township, Pennsylvania. Wilkes-Barre’s Citizens’ Voice reported the purchase today after recognizing the economist’s name and his Newport Beach location on a courthouse transaction in Lacakawanna County, which recorded the property changing hands for $1.46 million. David Falchek reports for the Voice:

A colleague contacted at PIMCO, who declined to be identified, said Mr. McCulley likes the woods and was looking for a part-time retreat. PIMCO has offices in New York that Mr. McCulley can work from, but the colleague grumbled about the lack of transportation services to the Big Apple….

Perhaps Mr. McCulley wanted to sleep in once in a while, speculated Bert Ely, a financial institution consultant based in Alexandria, Virginia. U.S. markets operate on Eastern Standard Time, he noted, meaning that folks on the West Coast have to get up early, or even earlier if they are watching European markets. These days, high-level financial research of the sort Mr. McCulley does for PIMCO, can be done from anywhere.

Perhaps McCulley might also be seeking a part-time retreat from the bad publicity that’s shadowed Pimco this year since former co-head Mohamed El-Erian left the firm after clashing with Bill Gross, and as investors have fled the firm’s flagship Pimco Total Return Fund (PTTAX) following some subpar performance.

McCulley isn’t the only West Coast bond bigwig doing some big-ticket shopping in the northeast this week. Jeffrey Gundlach, head of Los Angeles-based DoubleLine Capital, is reported to be in talks to buy the Buffalo Bills NFL franchise.

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