Atlantic/Stax Rhythm & Blues: Danny Boy - Al Hibbler

 "Danny Boy" - Al Hibbler

Apple Music: https://music.apple.com/us/album/danny-boy/280598464?i=280598668

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/track/1IsKF9a2XtQts4e2mTAEN5?si=d117a951b4e1426e

Recorded in New York, April 19, 1950

Al Hibbler may receive some respect from fans of vocal jazz and traditional American pop, but for most listeners today, this music will seem quite dated. Unfortunately, even if you are partial to this genre, one must admit this is effectively "sophisticated" lounge music, aiming to be tastefully in the background of classy settings and not much more. Sincerity and provoking emotional solid reactions are generally not the aims of these singers, so listening closely to this will invoke boredom more than anything else. ESPECIALLY since "Danny Boy" has been covered by everybody and their grandma, and unless somebody manages to sing it with a unique, sincere ring (like Johnny Cash did on American IV: The Man Comes Around) or pushes the theatricality to the tenth dimension (like Jackie Wilson did), I have little interest in listening to yet another rendition.

Verdict: Not recommended

Atlantic/Stax Rhythm & Blues: Tee Nah Nah - Vann "Piano Man" Walls

"Tee Nah Nah" - Vann "Piano Man" Walls

Apple Music: (Read the note below) https://music.apple.com/us/album/anytime-anyplace-anywhere/567052645?i=567052647

Recorded in New York, February 28, 1950

The wonderful Van "Piano Man" Walls arrives here at Atlantic Records, a man seriously responsible for the success of many future classic songs of Big Joe Turner, Ruth Brown, and The Clovers. His performing brilliance generally came from his diligence and tenacity: in other words, he would just play the everlovin' shit out of his instrument, scattering shattered piano notes all over a song whether it demanded such a rock 'n' roll drive or not. It was a unique way of performing that would often make funny songs gritty, lounge numbers blood-boiling, and wild songs even wilder.

Unfortunately, that is not quite what this tune will demonstrate. Van plays some fine piano licks on the song, and Brownie McGhee (Sticks McGhee's brother) gives an amusing vocal performance, but the composition itself is way too generic with too little musical meat provided by the backing players. A mildly entertaining song as a whole but hardly an essential recording.

Verdict: Decent

NOTE: For some bizarre reason, the only song on Apple Music marked as Walls's "Tee Nah Nah" is actually Joe Morris's "Anywhere, Anytime, Anyplace". So, the only way you can hear the song on Apple Music listening to...you guessed it, a recording marked as Joe Morris's "Anywhere, Anytime, Anyplace" on a compilation titled Rhythm and Blues of the 50's Vol. 1. Follow the link above and you should be fine.

Atlantic/Stax Rhythm & Blues: Mardi Gras In New Orleans - Professor Longhair

 "Mardi Gras In New Orleans" - Professor Longhair

Apple Music: https://music.apple.com/us/album/mardi-gras-in-new-orleans/924785185?i=924785207

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/track/21cQzMJzLseYq3Q0Di3XqK?si=984ef7789c034465

Recorded in New Orleans, October 1949

This song is not simply Longhair's greatest gift to the musical world: it is, without a doubt, the greatest embodiment of the spirit of New Orleans in musical form ever made. The overflow of life-affirming jubilance, the warm and friendly playfulness, the lazy but funky rhythms soaked in booze, the gritty sense of humor, and musicianship that, at its best, can blow the mind and rock the heart with the glorious musical synthesis of rhumba, mambo, blues, calypso, and so many other genres. "Mardi Gras In New Orleans" captures all of this and more, instantly defining what this city's musical style was all about and inspiring nearly every significant New Orleans piano player since, from Fats Domino to Huey "Piano" Smith, Dr. John to Allen Toussaint.

Miraculously, the song is as individualistic as Professor Longhair gets while still feeling like an anthem of an entire culture. The steady but wobbly roll of the left-hand bassline nearly propels the jauntier right-hand melody forward as they together form the perfect musical parade: all of his songs have a level of tightness that causes their forward march to never halt, but as it cruises down with the bouncy horn fanfares, catchy choruses, lively vocals full of blues grit, and the wonderful, wonderful whistling, it becomes a sprawling and chaotic musical celebration that immediately shakes you down, lightens you up, and sucks you into the fun. Just hearing the damn thing kick in is unbelievably gutsy and effective, so effective that it takes you a second to realize this is actually less musically complex than most Longhair songs. Not that it matters anyway because this level of greatness comes once in a lifetime, and he wisely chose to not mess with the perfection of his piano concoction and, instead, send this song straight to anthemic status with its distinct New Orleans flavor.

The incredible part is that all of these elements come together so seamlessly and organically that you can imagine the whole thing was perfectly formed from the first take. That natural flow is, perhaps, the greatest reason it is still played today during the Mardi Gras festival, widely considered one of the quintessential songs of the city. And even with all the future cover versions, hoards of imitators of this style, and the poor production quality by today's standards, this recording emits a spiritual glow that has never dimmed since it was released. It is a truly inspiring piece of music that captures almost everything I, and so many people, hold dear music, which is why I insist everybody should hear this masterpiece whether or not you listen to New Orleans blues or not. Relistens are guaranteed to occur afterward because who can resist such a perfect vibe?

Verdict: Masterpiece

Be sure to also check out the version of the song on Rock 'n' Roll Gumbo. It doesn't have as much great piano work but sounds even more anthemic!

Atlantic/Stax Rhythm & Blues: Hey Little Girl - Professor Longhair

"Hey Little Girl" - Professor Longhair

Apple Music: https://music.apple.com/us/album/hey-little-girl/924785185?i=924785195

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/track/14pbVDUZQdtbFwZ3J817tz?si=d38a3d6e2c644866

Recorded in New Orleans, October 1949

Professor Longhair himself had little to do with the story of the Atlantic label, but nearly any decent compilation of Atlantic R&B will, as a rule, include a couple of his songs. Reason? Even though, for Professor Longhair, the label was just a means by which he could get some dough, for the label themselves, Longhair's recordings were an event: not everybody working for Atlantic Records understood it at the time, but they were given an opportunity to cut some sides for the greatest piano-playing genius of New Orleans during his early peak. By giving him this platform, they were among the first to release FOUR timeless New Orleans standards ("Hey Little Girl," "Mardi Gras In New Orleans," "In The Night," "Tipitina") and release two more of his classics ("Hey Now Baby" and "Ball The Wall") on the future New Orleans Piano compilation. Quite an honor for an up-and-coming label that hadn't even become a household name yet.

Still, it really is all about Longhair and Longhair alone here. This song is simply a masterful demonstration of how proper use of dynamics and creative phrasings can transform an ordinary blues melody into something genuinely magical. Just listen to how he places an extra accentuation on that second-to-last note each time that funky piano riff is played, letting it tumble into completion rather than giving it a smooth finale. Or listen to how, before returning to the main groove, he plays a lighter melody that he literally punctures with a sharp glissando, shattering your mind into pieces before sucking you back into its intoxicating strut. With phrasings like these, the recording's drunken stumble feels alive and visceral in a way you can only get from a great bluesman like 'Fess, but the incredible fluency and flow of his piano-playing style allows it to attain the tightness of a perfect piece of machinery.

And if that doesn't already impress you enough, wait until you make it to the "Look what you gonna miss, honey!" solo. This is where Longhair's raw potential is unleashed in all of its glory: the heavy bassline is almost bone-crushing and the light part is incredibly beautiful in its airy and playful elegance, yet both of these parts mesh together perfectly as two facets of Longhair's personality, forever locked into battle for the rest of his career. Really, no other player in the history of the blues has placed heavy basslines and light melodic phrases together in a way that sounds so incredibly organic, and this is one of the first (and finest) demonstrations of this gift. Add in his deep, gritty vocals with his fun but cocky attitude, and you got yourself a recording that hasn't aged a day since 1950. Of course, he would sporadically produce more of this brilliance in the '50s and '60s before reaching his technical peak in the '70s, and while most of the performances on Rock 'N' Roll Gumbo and Crawfish Fiesta well surpass "Hey Little Girl" in terms of complexity and intricacy, in terms of raw power, he would pretty much never surpass the astonishing impact of his best Atlantic recordings. 

Verdict: Classic

Atlantic/Stax Rhythm & Blues: I’ll Get Along Somehow - Ruth Brown

 "I’ll Get Along Somehow" - Ruth Brown

Apple Music: https://music.apple.com/us/album/ill-get-along-somehow/189236797?i=189236809

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/track/1WOhAGd0B7KE6D4PEoRiX7?si=4f749a1b469f4a2a

Recorded in New York, May 25, 1949

Another vocal jazz ballad from Ruth Brown, so those expecting something like "Teardrops From My Eyes" or "5-10-15 Hours" need to be a bit more patient. At this point, the label was still playing it safe, and since "So Long" was quite a commercial success (#6 on the R&B charts), they were going to have Ruth sing a couple more songs like it. The bad news is that "I'll Get Along Somehow" does not have the same level of vocal invention as its predecessor, which is not really her fault: the song itself does not lend itself to much diversity of emotional expression.

Yet, Ruth can bring so much energy to her performances that she can make these stiff standards sound fresh and alive, burning with a believable passion that we normally expect from the likes of Nina Simone nearly a decade later. Even if this sort of music puts you to sleep, the song's ending alone is worth the whole trip: a massive vocal blowout where Ruth sustains those final notes to leave a crater in her listener's mind. In a way, she is already singing and performing with the mindset of a soul singer, ditching the restraint of the pre-war generation for deeply personal, gritty, and honest deliveries. That's what makes these early songs of hers still quite treasurable: her vocal inspiration, confidence, and versatility are all there, but since the material given is not to her strengths, she bends and forces them to obey her command. No wonder, in less than a year, Ruth Brown would get those tough and kickass R&B songs that she was born to sing.

Verdict: Excellent

Atlantic/Stax Rhythm & Blues: So Long - Ruth Brown

"So Long" - Ruth Brown

Apple Music: https://music.apple.com/us/album/so-long/265609437?i=265610155

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/track/5npyCTlMpCXFGZDqdYOcEC?si=624dd169d7ed4714

Recorded in New York, May 25, 1949

The first single of the "Woman Who Built Atlantic" may not be earth-shattering on its own, but in the context of her future classics, it already shows quite a bit of the greatness to come. The song itself is nothing special: a vocal jazz ballad about the common subject of giving a tearful goodbye to the one you love. Yet, Ruth manages to convey quite an impressive range of emotions within less than 3 minutes: youthful optimism, tearful apologies, anguished cries, bitter nostalgia, and so much more. Even with a standard, Ruth imbues each and every lyric with a different micro-emotion, allowing the listener to savor every second of this performance. Whether the label understood it or not, Ruth had already arrived as a monster vocal talent, and while that alone couldn't make this a classic recording (even a performer of Ruth's caliber still couldn't turn a song like this into a great one), it is still quite a nice way for her to begin her rise as the true "Queen of R&B."

Verdict: Excellent

On another note, my favorite version of the song is this explosive, overdriven delivery by a different Brown!

Atlantic/Stax Rhythm & Blues: Drinkin’ Wine Spo-Dee-O-Dee – Stick McGhee

 "Drinkin’ Wine Spo-Dee-O-Dee" – Stick McGhee and His Buddies

Apple Music: https://music.apple.com/us/album/drinkin-wine-spo-dee-o-dee/1405581026?i=1405581644

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/track/2ewbal2eTB9pH9lpCW85kQ?si=4e59c1276f674a91

Recorded in New York, February 14, 1949

To think such an incredible and revolutionary piece of music could have been lost to history: Sticks McGhee played this song frequently while in the military, and in 1947, he recorded the song for a single on Harlem Records, a label that went out of business in 1948. The disappearance of the label easily could have been the demise of the tune from the public conscience, but thankfully, a New Orleans distributor contacted Ahmet Ertegun (the co-founder and president of Atlantic Records) asking if he possessed copies of the original single, and Ertegun, knowing Stick's brother Brownie, got Stick to re-record the song for his label. The single that resulted would become a major landmark commercially and artistically. Commercially, because the single ended up hitting #2 on the R&B charts and ushered in the beginning of major financial fortunes for the label that would culminate in the '50s and beyond. Artistically, because it was unquestionably one of the first rock 'n' roll songs ever recorded, and few songs recorded earlier could claim such a title so firmly.

I understand those who note that the melody is still too strongly rooted in the jump-blues tradition to be truly rock 'n' roll, and there were even two other songs released in 1949 that were written and performed understanding what "rocking out" entailed as a philosophy, Jimmy Preston's "Rock This Joint" and Wynonie Harris's "All She Wants To Do Is Rock." "Drinkin' Wine, Spo-Dee-O-Dee," a drinking tune through and through, lyrically still doesn't stray far away from most rhythm and blues music of the time. Yet, if we focus on the performance itself and less on those minor details, this song is absolutely rock 'n' roll and miles ahead of its time, bringing us closer to the era of Chuck Berry and Scotty Moore that was soon to come.

The most important distinguishing element of the song is the (excellent) guitar playing: like any great rock 'n' roll recording, it sounds like a raggedy, rebellious, but fun-loving guy with his trusty guitar trying to take on the world by kicking its ass, and Stick accordingly delivers inspired and fluent guitar work in each verse until it erupts into a punchy, marvelous guitar solo. Moreover, Stick delivers such a perfect rock vocal performance, balancing the humor and lightweight fun of a drinking party with the grit and toughness of the blues. It is this incredible artistic presence that makes this song such a delight even today, where you can laugh along to the "spo-dee-o-dees" (which Stick used to say "motherfucker" in place of "spo-dee-o-dee" when performing it in the army) while smashing wine bottles to the groove of those guitar solos. No wonder it was so widely covered in the future, most notably by Johnny Burnette's gruff and aggressive Rock 'n' Roll trio, by Jerry Lee Lewis with pounding piano showcases (both in the '50s for Sun and the '70s in London), and by Wynonie Harris, maybe the most perfect person to cover the song (after all, wouldn't this song fit perfectly with a guy who sung about quiet whiskies on the shelf and making love to lovin' machines?). Yet, nobody captured all of the dynamic sides of the song better than Stick did here, so do yourself a favor and hear this absolute classic of wild rock 'n' roll fun as soon as possible.

Verdict: Classic

Atlantic/Stax Rhythm & Blues: Cole Slaw - Frank Culley

"Cole Slaw" - Frank Culley

Apple Music: https://music.apple.com/us/album/cole-slaw/567052645?i=567052710

Recorded in New York, January 17, 1949

Sonically, this is not nearly as huge as Joe Morris's "The Applejack" but hardly any less enjoyable. Culley's sax riff builds a catchy and cozy little groove that gives him room to show off his tone and improvisational skills...which are obviously not that great but they are entertaining and add to the instrumental's low-key boogie spirit nonetheless. As far as easy-listening jazz/R&B instrumentals go, this is certainly above average (hey, I haven't heard this song in almost a year and I still mostly remember how it goes!), but on the overall scale, you're better off making your way to the era of The Clovers, Ruth Brown, and Big Joe Turner if you want your dose of Atlantic R&B. Besides, Frank Culley's role would stake his small but notable place in this story by being the label's first major bandleader (along with providing some excellent sax work for the Clovers' classic "Don't You Know I Love You").

Verdict: Decent

Atlantic/Stax Rhythm & Blues: The Applejack - Joe Morris

"The Applejack" - Joe Morris

Apple Music: https://music.apple.com/us/album/the-applejack/1405581026?i=1405583162

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/track/7qEZYWGM0KAVhf63lPXcXD?si=9014de2415f14b0f

Recorded in New York, September 19, 1948

This already sounds so more confident and more Atlantic-true than "Lowe Groovin'". The band cranks out quite a catchy riff and pretty much rides upon that groove until the very end, and it definitely works. It has a huge, booming sound that feels much more tough and demanding compared to the previous instrumentals on the label. Add in the really nice piano and sax soloing that boosts the excitement level, and you can already tell Atlantic would be ready in less than 2 years to unleash the brassy and sassy glory of Ruth Brown's "Teardrops From My Eyes" upon the world. On its own, it is still less exciting than the future rave-up fun of Tommy Ridgley's "Jam Up" and the Mar-Kays' "Last Night", but if you listen to this while following the chronology of the label, it will surely provide some rock 'n' roll refreshment for your soul.

Verdict: Decent

Atlantic/Stax Rhythm & Blues: Midnight Special - Tiny Grimes Quintet

 "Midnight Special" - Tiny Grimes Quintet

Apple Music: https://music.apple.com/us/album/midnight-special/567052645?i=567052702

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/track/4w6VYAp8MQYAgiztnudhUA?si=ac036f44925243d4

Recorded in Cleveland, August 1948

I really like the smokey, late-night-in-the-city sound of this song, where the horn section, Tiny Grimes's guitar, and Jimmy Saunders's piano have a bit of that relaxed nighttime energy while sounding low-key enough in spirit to not break the atmospheric consistency. This is also the only Tiny Grimes recording of the three instrumentals here where the piano work leads rather than Grimes himself, mainly due to that nice looping piano along with some fine licks and soloing throughout the track. Again, this is just a pleasant piece of R&B, nothing here will shake your foundations, but it really works if you are listening to it on repeat late in the evening, trust me.

Verdict: Decent

Atlantic/Stax Rhythm & Blues: Annie Laurie - Tiny Grimes Quintet

"Annie Laurie" - Tiny Grimes Quintet

Recorded in Cleveland, August 1948

Another very pleasant jazzy R&B instrumental that may not amount to much but sounds quite nice. Here, Tiny Grimes offers some bouncy melodic playing and pretty tones that make for an enjoyable listen, and piano player George Kelly even gives a wonderful piano solo from 0:43-0:57. Not much else to say here: the band sounds fluent and competent, and the song still makes for some tasteful background listening today.

Verdict: Decent

NOTE: For some reason, a song marked as Tiny Grimes's "Annie Laurie" on Apple Music is actually Cliff Richard's cover of the traditional pop standard "As Time Goes By". I have absolutely no idea how that happened, but that means that this song is neither on Apple Music nor Spotify. So, check out the link above if you want to hear it.

Atlantic/Stax Rhythm & Blues: That Old Black Magic - Tiny Grimes Quintet

"That Old Black Magic" - Tiny Grimes Quintet

Apple Music: https://music.apple.com/us/album/that-old-black-magic-remastered/824781926?i=824781934

Recorded in New York, December 30, 1947

I enjoy Tiny Grimes's "Midnight Special" and Joe Morris's "The Applejack" a lot, but if I had to pick one of Atlantic's early instrumentals, it would be this one. Grimes manages to extract some beautiful tones out of his guitar to provide a dream-like atmosphere along with some great horn-guitar dialog throughout the song. Yet, the best part is how it nicely balances that cool, soothing sound of the horns/guitar with the simple but tough hammering of the piano riff throughout the song, allowing it to have quite a kickass bottom to boot while making its general point. A very enjoyable instrumental as a whole: it may sound a bit dated, but there is at least some real magic to the elegant rhythmic simplicity of this song that I find very enduring.

Verdict: Decent

Atlantic/Stax Rhythm & Blues: Joe Morris - Lowe Groovin'

"Lowe Groovin'" - Joe Morris

Apple Music: https://music.apple.com/us/album/lowe-groovin/1405581026?i=1405582605

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/track/5yY7DHBYfxNceVtOz0bCu2?si=5e44b180cf5a4811

Recorded in New York, December 12, 1947

Perhaps the first significant landmark single on the label, and if you are familiar with a lot of '50s Atlantic singles, you can hear how much this rich, gritty, horn-based sound would be the bedrock of the many classics to come. Yet, this jazzy piece of rhythm and blues is probably not very impressive today: it has a decent swingin' horn riff and enough of a lazy strut to keep your attention going, but as far as '40s jazz and old-school R&B goes, the excitement level and compositional substance here do not begin to compete with contemporary classics like Wynonie Harris's "Good Rockin' Tonight," Dizzy Gillespie's "Manteca," Louis Jordan's "Barnyard Boogie," or Amos Milburn's "Chicken Shack Boogie." R&B as a genre had still not reached its summit, but at this point, the label was still more focused on getting itself financially and artistically stable rather than competing with the trailblazers of the day. With this context in mind, it will be easier to appreciate the six instrumentals opening the Atlantic Rhythm and Blues compilation: none of them are major stunners, but they do have their place when learning about the label's history. Listen to this to pay tribute to the beginnings of Atlantic Records, but for true gut pleasure, move on to "Drinkin’ Wine Spo-Dee-O-Dee" and beyond in the history of the label.

Verdict: Decent

 January 2024 Overview

Writer's Check-in

It feels strange that I even write here that I have not regularly written here in 7 months. I mean, does anyone need a monthly overview from me if nothing has been done? Is making something like this too egotistical on my part? Maybe it is, but I enjoy writing these, so I won't stop doing them anytime soon. To be fair, with trying to recover my love of music (which has been going quite well, though we are not fully back to it), it has been hard to get the motivation to get back into writing, but I think this month I'm going to try to at least try to write any rough thoughts that I have on here. Anyways, it's not like this is serious writing: if it sucks, nobody will truly care, and if it is good, my friends will at least get a kick out of it. So, that's what is new.

In other news, music listening has been a bit of a rocky road this month. For the first half of the month, I enjoyed listening to Nico, Etta James, Echo & The Bunnymen, Slayer, Feelies, and many others. Yet, in the middle of the month, I felt I was forcing myself to listen to music when I wasn't really enjoying it, so I decided to take a break for a week and not listen to music, which meant forcing myself to not listen to it even if I felt like it. Seems like a rather psychotic exercise (but hey, a third of the things I do seem psychotic to outsiders, so it's not like it matters), but in the end, it worked out nicely. It gave me a nice period to explore more of my burgeoning hobbies of film and TV, and coming back, I feel I am enjoying it more. I am sure by the end of February and early March, I'll be back writing more ramblings about music and maybe even adding more about movies and TV in the process. So, for any of you still reading these, more stuff will be coming soon!

Best/Surprise/Disappointment

A bit of a new format for these overviews: instead of discussing statistics (which are soulless numbers anyway), I'll talk about, for music and movies, the best album/movie I consumed this month, the biggest (positive) surprise, and the most disappointing one. I'll also talk about whatever show I've been watching the most this month.

Music

Best Album: Crazy Rhythms - The Feelies

I didn't find them that interesting upon first listen, but after enough patience, I absolutely love these guys. Even with their rigid guitar style, they were masters of build-ups, pop hooks, and sustaining tension and excitement while being an ultra-tight and colorful group. You can hear how this album is the roots of so much college rock in the 80s and beyond, and yet, it is absolutely timeless. It's strange to me that a band with songs are perfect as "Crazy Rhythms", "Fa La Cela", and "Forces at Work" are not hugely popular: yes, this is an artistic exercise, but with their love for Beatlesque pop and the rock n roll spirit, the entertainment value is quite high. A reviewer once said this band stumbled into the "cosmic Rosetta stone", and that was exactly right. Definitely one of the greatest guitar albums of the era.

Most Surprising Album: The Marble Index - Nico

I didn't find this album all that impressive when I first heard it, but now, I can really understand the power of the transcendental state it can induce. The songs blend into each into one dark, disturbing, but hypnotic drone that manages to push this sort of chamber folk in the rawest, most intense direction possible. "Frozen Warnings" alone is one of the most mind-boggling tracks with those icy, choppy piano patterns. Highly recommend this album (along with Chelsea Girls, Desertshore, and The End) to anybody interested in 60s music at all: you simply CANNOT get this type of vibe and spirit from anyone else. 

Most Disappointing Album: Joan Baez - Joan Baez

I thought listening to this landmark album would deepen my appreciation, but instead, I found that I enjoy this even less than before. Joan's voice is gorgeous, no doubt, but to perform each song with such stiffness and pretentiousness is almost insulting to the rough, dirty spiritual perfection of the folk sources it pulls from. No wonder it didn't take much for Dylan to wipe her out in the public consciousness.

Movies

Best Film: Life and Death of Colonel Blimp - Powell and Pressburger

A movie I think gets closest to being what Arthur was to rock music, it manages to take a sort of stiff old-school morality and make us not only empathize with it but weep for its demise. Gorgeous sets and color, charming story and characters, and many powerful scenes. It sprawls for nearly three hours, and you just want to bask in its grandness and beauty. Even Candy himself is just a loveable fool and idealist that, when you really feel his heart in some scenes, it can make you tear up. One reviewer on RYM put it best when he said that the two storylines by themselves, the need for uncompromising brutality to win WWII and the life of a British military man and aristocrat, are not very interesting, but putting them together, it become one of the greatest statements of the old vs. new world ever made. And the movie is pretty funny too!

Most Surprising Film: Burn After Reading - the Coen brothers

Most people seem to regard this as a weak effort after No Country For Old Men, but for the life of me, I cannot understand why. It has a beautifully intricate plot, hilarious dialog, a great cast, and a sharp message that conveys a lot of bad people just unfortunately happen to be bad people who do bad things (though that doesn't mean we should try to understand their motivations anyways). I understand that, compared to the world-weary and bleakness of No Country For Old Men, this one feels a little less deep, and this movie fails to be a masterpiece because, unlike Miller's Crossing or The Big Lebowski, they fail to put a central figure within the chaos to help the viewer make sense of what happened. Yet, it is still an excellent movie that I think anyone can enjoy, and it is absolutely essential for fans of the Coens.

Most disappointing film: The Killer - David Fincher

The real tragedy of this film is that the first 30 minutes are actually excellent, and if you made those first 30 minutes a standalone movie, it would have worked a lot better. Yes, it is your typical Fincher, but that first quarter was filled with some interesting psychology and philosophy about life, beautiful camera shots, and a great lead actor, set, and script to build up to a climax you wouldn't have expected to occur. The rest of the movie, however, just wasn't all that great with your typical revenge plot: a bit better than your average movie of that type due to Fincher's unrelentless cynicism and dark mental explorations, but it was all too predictable that sort of fizzled out. It will be a better watch than most of the crap you'll find on Netflix, but I would pretty much recommend this to people who love Fincher's style.

TV Show

Curb Your Enthusiasm - Larry David

Anybody who knows me knows I'm a very big Seinfeld fan, and I've been recently doing a proper overview of Larry's career, starting with Seinfeld all the way to Curb, and it's incredible how many great ideas he had in him. I will say that while Larry didn't deliver a single season less than great starting with Season 3 of Seinfeld all the way to Season 7 of Curb, featuring his gifts in dark comedic psychologisms, plot weaving, sharp cynical worldviews, minutiae analysis, memorable characters, and personal writing in all of its hilarious glory (and pretty innovative too, since pretty much most sitcom comedies these days are either derived from the Seinfeld formula or Curb formula). He managed to, at times in these seasons, transcend comedy and almost make it into something much more tense and revealing explorations of his inner hatreds and fears, which is why his strange forms of humanism penetrate so deeply into our hearts. 

I think around Season 8 of Curb you can feel he started to finally exit his initial peak, sort of like what Nashville Skyline was to Bob Dylan or Goat Head Soup was to the Stones, which was still quite excellently written and done but lacked a strong sense of purpose and sharpness. To his genius, he corrected it with the next two seasons with wackier plots that helped the show feel fresh and new again (the strong writing helped to counterbalance the waning of the show's improvisational genius). Season 111, however, was the season that really made me lose faith that Larry really had more greatness inside him. Curb's form of cringe comedy only really works if the actual substance and writing behind it is strong, but without it, it just ends up being cringy and unwatchable. I'll admit there was one truly great episode in the mix ("The Watermelon"), but the rest of the season felt forced, overproduced, and tiresome in a way that left a very bad taste in my mouth.

However, today Larry is coming out with the first episode of his final season of Curb. I think Larry himself realized how weak the last season was, and decided to leave before it was too late. I am a bit worried about how this will turn out. If anything, I would like him to depart from his usual formula and go for something more reflective or at least something we wouldn't expect. Even if it is a failure, an intriguing failure is a more interesting way to end off than with a generic boredom. We'll see tonight when it ends up being.

Monthly Playlist

Here is the link to this month's playlist: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/4v5NejORehxgI1LXsBbEHe?si=521947c9d49742cb&pt=ab7e9ae4b67c5bd1ba10550a0df29bb5

I'm pretty happy with this one overall, even if it is slightly skewed toward Echo & The Bunnymen and Randy Newman over everyone else. Still, I think this playlist captures my state of mind throughout the month quite well, and I think the apocalyptic cynicism of stuff like PiL's "Swan Lake" and Iggy Pop's "Neighborhood Threat" will complement nicely with the optimistic spiritual glow of Randy's "Birmingham" and Hackett's "Every Day". Moreover, the playlist has an unusual tilt for me towards the '80s and '90s, which should hopefully make it a bit more interesting than what you regularly expect from my playlists. As for the playlist's title (I'll Make A Change Into Something The Same), you'll have to listen to the thing to find the reference. Good luck hunting for it!

Here is the tracklist:

1. "Anywhere I Lay My Head" - Tom Waits
2. "A Promise" - Echo & The Bunnymen
3. "The Game" - Echo & The Bunnymen
4. "Cissy Strut" - The Meters
5. "I'd Rather Go Blind" - Etta James
6. "Stone To The Bone" - James Brown
7. "She Smiled Sweetly" - The Rolling Stones
8. "Proud Mary" - Ike & Tina Turner
9. "Frozen Warnings" - Nico
10. "Lament" - Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds
11. "Neighborhood Threat" - Iggy Pop
12. "The Shape I'm In" (The Last Waltz version) - the Band
13. "Midlife Crisis" - Faith No More
14. "Marie" - Randy Newman
15. "Milk Cow Blues" - Sleepy John Estes
16. "Bring On The Dancing Horses" - Echo & The Bunnymen
17. "John Riley" - The Byrds
18. "Raised Eyebrows" - The Feelies
19. "Crazy Rhythms" - The Feelies
20. "Pleasant Street" - Tim Buckley
21. "Hounds of Love" - Kate Bush
22. "Baltimore" - Randy Newman
23. "Every Day" - Steve Hackett
24. "Bastards of Young" - The Replacements
25. "Swan Lake" - Public Image Ltd.
26. "Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out" - Bruce Springsteen
27. "Birmingham" - Randy Newman
28. "Alameda" - Elliott Smith
29. "She's Not There" - The Zombies
30. "How Could I Be Wrong" - The Auteurs
31. "What You're Doing" - The Beatles

That's all for now. Thanks to anybody who still reads these, and stay tuned for more ramblings and musings on this blog!