Marti

Radioactive Crow
Registration Date: 06-01-2004
Posts: 10,098
Favorite 77s album: Drowning with Land in Sight
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They're here, but not very chatty since yesterday, apparently. Those of us in the Great 77less Plains wish you much happiness stemming from shorter drives to shows that doesn't involve interstate travel. Please share pictures as they become available.
__________________ “This Jesus that the Christians speak of, he sounds like a good man. Why don’t they follow his teachings?” - Crazy Horse
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07-20-2006 11:33 |
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patch77s
Someone New
Registration Date: 07-17-2006
Posts: 7
Favorite 77s album: All of them Location: Virginia Beach
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RE: DVD trailer now up.... |
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Originally posted by JohnL
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Originally posted by patch77s
any hints on where to find the MP3's? i looked around a bit but couldn't find any.
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they are in the "media" section... |
thanks - i found them. i was clicking on the album covers instead of the song titles.
steve
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07-20-2006 11:48 |
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Doctor Love
Doctor Love
   

Registration Date: 08-24-2004
Posts: 1,998
Location: on the moon Alice
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the infamous Fresburg show |
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Omigosh, I totally remember that show. Sheila Walsh was oh-so-New Wave with her short haircut, fog and 80's light show. The rest of the night is a blur, as I had very bad Spring hay fever and it made me feel pretty miserable. I don't remember hitting the deck for It's So Sad, but we kept playing that song at least through 1985 and I fell down every time for it, so I must have done that.
Looking back, I'm not surprised that people just sat there stunned. We were out of place just about everywhere we played, and pretty much always have been except at Cornerstone and a few other places. Very few folks have ever truly 'gotten' The 77s, especially live. I have never quite understood why, but I have come to accept it over time. Perhaps we just lack what Simon Cowell refers to as the ever-elusive 'likeability' factor that he's always looking for.
Thank God for all you guys or I'd be selling insurance.
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Originally posted by Rod
I haven't posted before, but seeing the various incarnations of the band
on the dvd brought back some cool memories. This one sticks in my mind.
In 1983(?), they played with DeGarmo and Key, Joe English and Sheila Walsh in Fresno. When Mike fell down on the stage during It's So Sad, the audience just sat there, kind of stunned. Similar to the response on the dvd. The place was packed, but like 20 people applauded
for them. They seemed to have a totally different vibe than the other
artists.
Any other Central CA. fans?
Rod |
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07-20-2006 23:56 |
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BigDork
Happy Roy
 

Registration Date: 05-28-2004
Posts: 6,116
Location: lI was lonely and hungry, but not so lonely I wouldn't eat
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nice triple post by the good doctor!
__________________ “Tolerance is the virtue of the man without convictions.” - G. K. Chesterton
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07-21-2006 07:11 |
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Audiori J unregistered
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Well Doc, had you been in place back then, maybe you'd be a 700 club host now?
Thats the future career for those Simon Cowell 'likeability' factored artists; Hollywood Squares and talk shows.
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07-21-2006 07:18 |
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Marti

Radioactive Crow
Registration Date: 06-01-2004
Posts: 10,098
Favorite 77s album: Drowning with Land in Sight
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RE: the infamous Fresburg show |
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Originally posted by Doctor Love
Thank God for all you guys or I'd be selling insurance. |
Thank God for all you guys or we'd be listening to less music that we genuinely liked and more that we merely tolerated.
__________________ “This Jesus that the Christians speak of, he sounds like a good man. Why don’t they follow his teachings?” - Crazy Horse
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07-21-2006 13:35 |
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peawinkel
Mezzo

Registration Date: 09-30-2004
Posts: 3,685
Favorite 77s album: Tom Tom Blues Location: Alabaster, Alabama
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RE: the infamous Fresburg show |
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Originally posted by Doctor Love
Thank God for all you guys or I'd be selling insurance.
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Thank God that you've continued at your incredible craft all these years.
Your dual vocal & guitar talent is indeed God-given but it has also been improved & developed throughout the years due to much hard work & practice. Very few can match your musical abilities & you have added many great tunes to the soundtrack of my life.
Thank God for you, Doctor Love.
You give me much entertainment & pleasure.
__________________ No pansy praise and worship
Just solid rock
On P103
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07-21-2006 21:51 |
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Zudrak
Baby Elvis

Registration Date: 07-18-2006
Posts: 263
Favorite 77s album: A Golden Field of Radioactive Location: National Park, NJ
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RE: the infamous Fresburg show |
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Originally posted by peawinkel
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Originally posted by Doctor Love
Thank God for all you guys or I'd be selling insurance.
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Thank God that you've continued at your incredible craft all these years.
Your dual vocal & guitar talent is indeed God-given but it has also been improved & developed throughout the years due to much hard work & practice. Very few can match your musical abilities & you have added many great tunes to the soundtrack of my life.
Thank God for you, Doctor Love.
You give me much entertainment & pleasure. |
Wow. I can't add anything to that. I concur!
Thanks, Mike for adding "many great tunes to the soundtrack of my life", as well.
__________________ "My flesh and my heart fails, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever."
-Psalm 73:26

Michael 4 & Michael 77
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07-22-2006 18:32 |
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peawinkel
Mezzo

Registration Date: 09-30-2004
Posts: 3,685
Favorite 77s album: Tom Tom Blues Location: Alabaster, Alabama
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RE: the infamous Fresburg show |
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Originally posted by Zudrak
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Originally posted by peawinkel
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Originally posted by Doctor Love
Thank God for all you guys or I'd be selling insurance.
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Thank God that you've continued at your incredible craft all these years.
Your dual vocal & guitar talent is indeed God-given but it has also been improved & developed throughout the years due to much hard work & practice. Very few can match your musical abilities & you have added many great tunes to the soundtrack of my life.
Thank God for you, Doctor Love.
You give me much entertainment & pleasure. |
Wow. I can't add anything to that. I concur!
Thanks, Mike for adding "many great tunes to the soundtrack of my life", as well. |
Yeah..I think I'll copy & paste that one to his MySpace comments...the other day all I could think of was.....Hey!
__________________ No pansy praise and worship
Just solid rock
On P103
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07-25-2006 14:09 |
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jeffrey k.
Mr. Magoo

Registration Date: 06-01-2004
Posts: 943
Location: chicagoland illinois
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quote: |
Originally posted by Audiori J
Well Doc, had you been in place back then, maybe you'd be a 700 club host now?
Thats the future career for those Simon Cowell 'likeability' factored artists; Hollywood Squares and talk shows. |
Maybe he could still host a music show with Pat Boone...
jeffrey k.
__________________ "push out the jive, bring on the love...." monty burns
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07-25-2006 23:33 |
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Pfiagra
Someone New

Registration Date: 06-01-2004
Posts: 43
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I'm not one for words and others have certainly echoed my own thoughts and feelings in their glowing reviews about this DVD, so I'll just say: It's excellent!
jeffrey k, Thank you for putting this together. I did have one question: I noticed that the concert footage DVD did not have songs from the "Pray Naked" album even though there are quite a few concerts represented during that era.
What drove your decisions regarding which songs to include? Audio? Video? Length? Based on most of the footage, I presume that you had the entire set from each concert to pick from. Just curious.
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08-10-2006 07:45 |
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jeffrey k.
Mr. Magoo

Registration Date: 06-01-2004
Posts: 943
Location: chicagoland illinois
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quote: |
[i]jeffrey k, Thank you for putting this together. I did have one question: I noticed that the concert footage DVD did not have songs from the "Pray Naked" album even though there are quite a few concerts represented during that era.
What drove your decisions regarding which songs to include? Audio? Video? Length? Based on most of the footage, I presume that you had the entire set from each concert to pick from. Just curious. |
First off, your welcome....it was an honor to do it.
Second, the decisions about what to include were made by Mike. I made initial decisions about what footage was usable in terms of if the audio/video could actually be restored....but then everything that could be used was sent to Mike and he waded through it all and made song choices. I gave my opinions on things, but in the end it's his band and was his call.
In terms of if we had full sets to choose from, actually only in a couple cases. In some cases we had to take 3 versions of the same show and splice it together to create even a couple usable songs. The Pray Naked era stuff actually only came up in one or two of the concerts....the Cornerstone show from the mainstage had the most. There was a great version of Woody that Mike wanted to use...the problem was that every version we had of the show had actual audio and visual gaps during that one song.....and trying to splice it together and make it all look and sound the same was an excercise in futility...so it was cut. Overall though, there really wasn't much footage from Pray Naked....and anything else that was there Mike rejected for his own reasons.
So there you go! Hope that answers your questions. Glad you are enjoying the DVD....
jeffrey k.
__________________ "push out the jive, bring on the love...." monty burns
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08-10-2006 09:11 |
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Doctor Love
Doctor Love
   

Registration Date: 08-24-2004
Posts: 1,998
Location: on the moon Alice
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oooo I had almost forgot about having to cut that performance of "Woody" -- what a drag. It totally rocked.
I actually had not noticed the lack of Pray Naked stuff. In the end, I had to pick performances that I either liked, loved or at worst tolerated. "The Lust" almost didn't make it either, believe it or not, but Jeff talked me into approving that thin sounding and rather rushed-through 1989 version simply because "it would have been criminal" to have not included that song. I didn't agree, but I let it go because I'm certain that many of you would have felt quite the same.
As far as how I chose the songs for the DVD, I used the same criteria that I used when assembling the live It's For You tracks, which is that they had to have something about them that held up over repeated listenings. At best, that 'something' was a magical entertaining quality, or at worst, it retained the same with some severe flaws. However, if the 'flaw' was real irritating, the tune got axed, usually.
In the case of the 1989 performance of The Lust, it had neither, but was acceptable to include alongside the other songs from that show. I really wish I had found a killer "Lust", but for the most part we very rarely play it better than just 'ok' -- it is deceptively simple, yes, and very difficult to play to an outstanding level. Ask Aaron Smith, who had to be taught how to play it correctly by Steve Griffith on the original session. That kind of drunken loose feel is usually best accomplished by musicians that are indeed, drunken, and that is never The 77s (except on the 1995 1-2-3 tour when whiskey was the only medicine I had {until I eventually got to emergency in Philly} for what would prove to be a disastrous case of bronchitis. Playing 'drunk' was difficult because I was not used to it. Fun in a goofy sort of way, but ultimately difficult because I had to learn how to mentally concentrate within the alcohol fog.)
I simply do not understand musicans who add chemicals to an already extreme sensory overload -- what's the point? Music should be the high.
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08-10-2006 15:13 |
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jeffrey k.
Mr. Magoo

Registration Date: 06-01-2004
Posts: 943
Location: chicagoland illinois
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quote: |
Originally posted by Doctor Love
oooo I had almost forgot about having to cut that performance of "Woody" -- what a drag. It totally rocked. |
It really did....it was painful to have to cut it too....but the gaps were so severe....and to complicate matters we had 2 or 3 versions of that show, all shot from different angles by different people...so one version would have totally blown out audio but decent visuals, one version was somewhat "pro-shot" and was the best, but still had gaps during Woody, and the other version was just a total mess both in audio and visual and was shot by some numbnut that talked while he was shooting. His version has his running commentary and him screaming WOOOO-HOOOO off and on! Oh well....we tried.
The only other show that featured Pray Naked stuff was Ichthus 93....but overall that show was sorta.....uh...not great.....the mix is really bass heavy and booms in and out....plus you guys played as it was getting dark, and since the stage only seems to have 2 tiny light trees, as it gets darker you guys can't even be seen...poor Aaron literally vanishes behind the kit..... There is a decent version of Pray Naked on it....but if you remember you guys are playing in the dark by that point...so including it would have been silly....
jeffrey k.
__________________ "push out the jive, bring on the love...." monty burns
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08-10-2006 15:34 |
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Chesterdox
Someone New

Registration Date: 06-05-2006
Posts: 73
Favorite 77s album: Holy Ghost Building Location: Tranquility Base
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The 77's DVD is the best purchase I've made in a looong time!
The '82 footage is awesome (although I wonder at the camera guy for missing the 1st have of Mike's guitar solo on Ping Pong (?)!
Mike's jockey move on This is the Way Love Is is absolutely hilarious!
And my favorite is the 87 Warehouse b/w footage, I only wish Mary & the Baby Elvis & Wild Blue were on there.
Spectacular!
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08-19-2006 08:35 |
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MarkyMark77
Drowning with Land in Sight

Registration Date: 03-24-2005
Posts: 465
Favorite 77s album: 99 Location: Illinois
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I just got the DVD set. It's great to have all that varying footage in one place. I really have no criticism, because just to have it at all is good, and I really enjoyed it. But I do have a couple of questions:
1) Most of the second disc audio seems to be audience recorded. It could be my crappy TV audio, but I'm not sure. I know that "When Numbers Get Serious" contained an amalgamation of performances over a decade, most of which seem to be semi-professional/soundboard recordings. So my question is, why was there no soundboards or semi-professional audio recorded of these shows that were videotaped? I'm assuming that shows that were well recorded audio-wise were not videotaped and vice-versa, but I don't know, so that's why I'm asking the question. The first performance from 1982 seems to have some of the best audio, in my opinion.
2) The lack of videos from either "The 77's" or "Sticks and Stones" seems really weird, especially considering that either one of these discs were/are the most popular, well-known and most marketed. I'm just curious why Island couldn't find a way to make a video for "The 77's" when Exit could make two for "All Fall Down".
Again, no criticism here, just curiousity. It's really good. I really enjoyed it. I will watch it again and again. It was much better than "Cats".
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09-11-2006 08:33 |
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Doctor Love
Doctor Love
   

Registration Date: 08-24-2004
Posts: 1,998
Location: on the moon Alice
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I'm certain that Jeffrey K. will have input on these two questions too, but the short answers are as follows:
Most "fan" videotapes were shot with hand-held amateur video equipment, so the sound will be a result of the camera mic they were using. It would be a rare occurance for us to have a quality soundboard of the same show, although that may have been the case on one or two of these? I doubt it. Even it is was, synching an audio tape to a video tape is a nightmare due to time smear and drift between two disparate pieces of technology. I'll let Jeff explain that one in more detail.....
As far as the dearth of videos during the Island era, it's not surprising. That label wouldn't even release our album on CD, let alone spring for a video. It was a 'pressing and distribution' agreement with Exit Records anyway, so techically Exit was responsible for doing a video. Since we all hated videos and were too busy playing and recording at the time, we just kinda let it go, at least from what I remember. It's too bad 'cuz I looked great during that period. I would have rather been visually represented at that point than later on, but who cares? We certainly didn't, evidently.
As far as the "Broken" era goes, Joe Taylor and Gene Eugene were only licensing "Sticks & Stones" and "88" from us, so once again the burden of video budget would have been in our laps at that point. We still hated videos so we didn't do any then. Once Myrrh Records got involved financially for the Drowning album, things changed. Joe Taylor also sprung for my "Boat Ashore" video on his Innocent Media label, but that one was a real low-budget thing. Looking back, we should have done more of those ourselves over the years, but we were camera-shy and hated videos, mostly.
quote: |
Originally posted by MarkyMark77
I just got the DVD set. It's great to have all that varying footage in one place. I really have no criticism, because just to have it at all is good, and I really enjoyed it. But I do have a couple of questions:
1) Most of the second disc audio seems to be audience recorded. It could be my crappy TV audio, but I'm not sure. I know that "When Numbers Get Serious" contained an amalgamation of performances over a decade, most of which seem to be semi-professional/soundboard recordings. So my question is, why was there no soundboards or semi-professional audio recorded of these shows that were videotaped? I'm assuming that shows that were well recorded audio-wise were not videotaped and vice-versa, but I don't know, so that's why I'm asking the question. The first performance from 1982 seems to have some of the best audio, in my opinion.
2) The lack of videos from either "The 77's" or "Sticks and Stones" seems really weird, especially considering that either one of these discs were/are the most popular, well-known and most marketed. I'm just curious why Island couldn't find a way to make a video for "The 77's" when Exit could make two for "All Fall Down".
Again, no criticism here, just curiousity. It's really good. I really enjoyed it. I will watch it again and again. It was much better than "Cats". |
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09-11-2006 11:30 |
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jeffrey k.
Mr. Magoo

Registration Date: 06-01-2004
Posts: 943
Location: chicagoland illinois
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quote: |
Originally posted by Doctor Love
I'm certain that Jeffrey K. will have input on these two questions too, but the short answers are as follows:
Most "fan" videotapes were shot with hand-held amateur video equipment, so the sound will be a result of the camera mic they were using. It would be a rare occurance for us to have a quality soundboard of the same show, although that may have been the case on one or two of these? I doubt it. Even it is was, synching an audio tape to a video tape is a nightmare due to time smear and drift between two disparate pieces of technology. I'll let Jeff explain that one in more detail..... |
I think the only soundboard source we had to sync with footage was the "Safe As Milk" show....otherwise, whatever audio that was on the video tape was what we had to work with. Why people didn't have soundboard audio to go along with their video? Probably has everything to do with almost everything on the live part of the DVD was more or less filmed for private collections. I don't think anyone filming this stuff probably ever figured it would end up on some big official comp.....not to mention that the live footage spans like 20 years, and the options and ease and affordability of equipment for soundboard recordings was a lot different than it is today....so as far as I know they just don't exist.
jeffrey k.
__________________ "push out the jive, bring on the love...." monty burns
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09-12-2006 15:37 |
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MarkyMark77
Drowning with Land in Sight

Registration Date: 03-24-2005
Posts: 465
Favorite 77s album: 99 Location: Illinois
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quote: |
Probably has everything to do with almost everything on the live part of the DVD was more or less filmed for private collections. I don't think anyone filming this stuff probably ever figured it would end up on some big official comp.
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I knew that this was the case. But, I'm an archivist by nature, so I've taped virtually everything I've done by every band i've been in spanning back 15 years, from my mono Sony reel to reel to Minidisc. So, I tend to wonder why people didn't record this or that or in this or that way. Not that any of my stuff will ever end up on an official compilation...
The "Safe as Milk" stuff sounds to me like an audience recording. Still great, though. And I don't doubt that what we got was the best possible stuff. Thanks again for your work!
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09-13-2006 08:42 |
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