Wednesday, January 9, 2013 - DT 27006

Puzzle at a Glance

Puzzle Number in The Daily Telegraph DT 27006
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph Thursday, October 25, 2012
Setter Unknown  [... but with all the hallmarks of Petitjean (John Pidgeon)]
Link to Full Review Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 27006]
Big Dave's Review Written By pommers
Big Dave's Rating
Difficulty - ★★★★	Enjoyment - ★★★★
Falcon's Performance ┌────┬────┬────┬────┬────┬────┬────┐ ███████████████████████████████████ └────┴────┴────┴────┴────┴────┴────┘ Legend: █ - solved without assistance █ - incorrect prior to use of puzzle solving tools █ - solved with assistance from puzzle solving tools █ - solved with aid of checking letters provided by puzzle solving tools █ - unsolved or incorrect prior to visiting Big Dave's blog █ - reviewed by Falcon for Big Dave's blog

Introduction

As I worked through this puzzle, I surmised that it must be by Petitjean — a conclusion also reached by several regulars at Big Dave's blog. The puzzle is fairly difficult, but the difficulty level is more than matched by the enjoyment level. It has a theme centred around a group of rock-and-roll musicians who emerged in Memphis, Tennessee in the early 1950s.

Notes on Today's Puzzle

This commentary is intended to serve as a supplement to the review of this puzzle found at Big Dave's Crossword Blog, to which a link is provided in the table above.

1a   Kid getting into music roots out old footwear (4,5,5)

"Blue Suede Shoes"^[7] is a rock and roll standard written and first recorded by Carl Perkins in 1955 and is considered one of the first rockabilly (rock and roll) records and incorporated elements of blues, country and pop music of the time. The song was also recorded by Elvis Presley, Buddy Holly and Eddie Cochran among many others.

9a   Gatsby recalled except via a name in books still? (8)

Jay Gatsby^[7] is the title character of The Great Gatsby^[7] a 1925 novel by American author F. Scott Fitzgerald. The story takes place in 1922, during the Roaring Twenties, the post-World War I (WWI) prosperous time in the United States. Described as the "ironic tale of life on Long Island at a time when gin was the national drink and sex the national obsession," it received critical acclaim.

10a   Fellow embraces company and wine (5)

Perhaps a very appropriate follow-on to 9a. Mâcon^[7] is the basic appellation for wines from Mâconnais, a district which lies in the south of the Burgundy wine region in France, west of the River Saône.

12a   Hairstyle making a comeback in 'Doctor Faustus' (4)

Faust^[7] is the protagonist of a classic German legend; a highly successful scholar but one so dissatisfied with his life that he makes a pact with the Devil, exchanging his soul for unlimited knowledge and worldly pleasures. The Faust legend has been the basis for many literary, artistic, cinematic, and musical works that have reinterpreted it through the ages. These include The Tragical History of the Life and Death of Doctor Faustus, a 1604 play by English dramatist Christopher Marlowe; Faust, an early 19th century play by German writer Johann Wolfgang von Goethe; and Doctor Faustus, a 1947 novel by German author Thomas Mann. Faust and the adjective Faustian imply a situation in which an ambitious person surrenders moral integrity in order to achieve power and success for a delimited term.

18a   Same two chords in Emerson Lake and Palmer's records (6)

Elpee^[10] is an alternative name (spelling ?) for an LP, being a long-playing record [Elpee being a word seemingly found in a very limited number of British dictionaries]. 

Emerson, Lake & Palmer^[7], also known as ELP, are a sporadically active English progressive rock supergroup. They found success in the 1970s and have sold over forty million albums and headlined large stadium concerts. The band consists of Keith Emerson (keyboards), Greg Lake (bass guitar, vocals, guitar) and Carl Palmer (drums, percussion).

23a   Bird of prey noticed displaying evidence of conformity (4-6)

In the UK, a Kitemark™ is an official kite-shaped mark on goods approved by the British Standards Institution.

24a   Marrow in haggis? Turnips apparently (4)

Marrow refers to a vegetable marrow in the surface reading, which I interpret to mean "Is this marrow in the haggis? No, it's turnips apparently." In any event, we have two thirds of a traditional Scottish meal — missing only the neeps. In the cryptic reading, "apparently" is used in the sense of "can be seen" so "in ... apparently" serves as the hidden word indicator — and the clue is equivalent to 'Marrow can be seen in haggis turnips'.

27a   One with depression, needing vermouth — unknown brand (8)

In the UK, it^[5] is an informal, dated term for Italian vermouth ⇒ he poured a gin and it [a cocktail containing gin and Italian vermouth].

In mathematics (algebra, in particular), an unknown^[10] is a variable, or the quantity it represents, the value of which is to be discovered by solving an equation ⇒ 3y = 4x + 5 is an equation in two unknowns. [Unknowns are typically represented symbolically by the letters x, y and z.]

Wing^[5] (mentioned by pommers in his hint) is the British term for the fender^[10] of an automobile.

28a   Head latterly went on about sense and shrewdness of judgment (3-11)

Usually found in place names, ness^[5] means a headland or promontory • Orford Ness. I must confess that, despite getting the correct solution, I needed to have pommers explain the wordplay.

2d   Could be Lulworth skipper having abandoned heading misses France completely (7)

I almost sorted out the wordplay here, At least, I figured out that a skipper^[5] is a butterfly, which led me to the correct solution. However, I thought that the definition must be "could be Lulworth" which did nothing but lead me down a series of dead-end paths.

The Lulworth Skipper (Thymelicus acteon) is a butterfly of the Hesperiidae family found in Europe, Asia Minor and North Africa. Its name is derived from Lulworth Cove in the county of Dorset, England, where the first specimens in Great Britain were collected in 1832 by English naturalist James Charles Dale.

F^[5] is the International Vehicle Registration (IVR) code for France.

4d   Waste burger one tucked into with energy before (8)

You could only tuck into one of these burgers at McDonald's.

8d   Come a cropper cutting into opening question (11)

Come a cropper^[5] is an informal British expression meaning (1) to fall heavily ⇒ he came the most appalling cropper—I think he knocked himself out or (2) to suffer a defeat or disaster ⇒ the club’s challenge for the championship has come a cropper. Judging by this definition (which is essentially the same as the one found in Collins English Dictionary^[10]), the phrase come a cropper would seem to mean to suffer a defeat rather than to make a mistake (which I don't regard as necessarily being the same thing).

11d   Austin maybe left benefits protecting popular originator of 1 (4,7)

The numeral "1" in the clue is a cross-reference to the solution to clue 1a.

The Austin Motor Company Limited^[7] was a British manufacturer of motor vehicles. Founded by Herbert Austin in 1905 ownership was merged with Morris Motors Limited in 1952 in a new holding company, The British Motor Corporation Limited, where Austin, like Morris, kept its separate identity. The marque Austin was used until 1987. The trademark is currently owned by SAIC Motor Corporation Limited (formerly Shanghai Automotive Industry Corporation) [a Chinese multinational automotive manufacturing company headquartered in Shanghai, China] after being transferred from bankrupt subsidiary Nanjing Automotive which had acquired it with MG Rover Group in July 2005.

Carl Perkins^[7] (1932 – 1998) was an American rockabilly musician who recorded most notably at Sun Records Studio in Memphis, Tennessee, beginning during 1954. His best known song is "Blue Suede Shoes". Called "the King of Rockabilly", Perkins' songs were recorded by artists (and friends) as influential as Elvis Presley, The Beatles, Jimi Hendrix, and Johnny Cash, which further cemented his place in the history of popular music.

In the surface reading, might Austin^[7] be a reference to the capital of Texas which promotes itself as "The Live Music Capital of the World", a reference to the many musicians and live music venues within the area, and the long-running PBS TV concert series Austin City Limits^[7] — which is recorded live in Austin.

14d   Overdue, Sun taking blame sadly for Jerry Lee Lewis and 11 among others (10)

Once again, the numeral in the clue is a cross-reference — this time to clue 11d (which itself contains a cross-reference to clue 1a).

Sun Records^[7] is a record label founded by Sam Phillips and based in Memphis, Tennessee. It was known for giving notable musicians such as Elvis Presley, Carl Perkins, Roy Orbison, and Johnny Cash their first recording contracts and helping to launch their careers.

Jerry Lee Lewis^[7] is an American rock and roll and country music singer-songwriter and pianist. An early pioneer of rock and roll music, Lewis had hits in the late 1950s with songs such as "Great Balls of Fire", "Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On", "Breathless" and "High School Confidential". He is the last surviving member of Sun Records' Million Dollar Quartet and the Class of '55^[7] album, which also included Johnny Cash, Carl Perkins, Roy Orbison and Elvis Presley.

"Million Dollar Quartet"^[7] is the name given to recordings made on Tuesday December 4, 1956 in the Sun Record Studios in Memphis, Tennessee. The recordings were of an impromptu jam session among Elvis Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins, and Johnny Cash. It was arguably the first supergroup.

19d   Auntie P rarely reveals her name (7)

Petunia Dursley^[7] is Harry's aunt in the Harry Potter series of books written by British novelist J. K. Rowling.

21d   Cook — no learner — set grill for rubbery piece of meat (7)

The cryptic crossword convention of L meaning learner or student arises from the L-plate^[7], a square plate bearing a sans-serif letter L, for learner, which must be affixed to the front and back of a vehicle in various countries (including the UK) if its driver is a learner under instruction.

Key to Reference Sources: 

^[1]   - The Chambers Dictionary, 11th Edition
^[2]   - Search Chambers - (Chambers 21st Century Dictionary)
^[3]   - TheFreeDictionary.com (American Heritage Dictionary)
^[4]   - TheFreeDictionary.com (Collins English Dictionary)
^[5]   - Oxford Dictionaries (Oxford Dictionary of English)
^[6]   - Oxford Dictionaries (Oxford American Dictionary)
^[7]   - Wikipedia
^[8]   - Reverso Online Dictionary (Collins French-English Dictionary)
^[9]   - Infoplease (Random House Unabridged Dictionary)
^[10] - CollinsDictionary.com (Collins English Dictionary)

Signing off for today — Falcon