How can a red-blooded American go through life without having seen Star Wars?
Encountered this hilarious video clip today, and just thought I would share it. Reminds me of my friend Tom in college, who told me he had not seen the Star Wars movies. Shocking, I know.
Star Wars: Retold (by someone who hasn't seen it) from Joe Nicolosi on Vimeo.
Enjoy your weekend :)
Friday, January 16, 2009
Friday, January 9, 2009
say it ain't so, John
So this week all us Atlanta Braves fans across the country have yet another reason to feel slighted this offseason. After 21 years in a Braves uniform, John Smoltz has decided to sign a contract with the Boston Red Sox.
Its a very tough pill to swallow I'd imagine for most Braves fans to see such a longtime player turn his back on the organization that has done so much for him and especially its fans. The only thing that would have made it worse would have been if he would have signed with the Yankees.
With the exception of the acquisition of Javier Vazquez in early December, Frank Wren in his second offseason as the Braves GM has been getting the proverbial shaft left and right. I would say that Smoltz's decision to leave is the very definition of kicking a man while he's down. Not trading for Peavy, missing out on AJ Burnett, getting swindled by Raphael Furcal's agents, and now this bombshell.
The contract Smoltz has agreed to, guarantees him $5.5 million up front, with incentives that could increase his earnings for the year up to $10.5 million. The contract the Braves offered him, guaranteed $2.5 million upfront, with anywhere from an additional $5 million to $8 million in performance based incentives, depending on who's report is more accurate. It also seems that the guaranteed portion of the contract kicked up to $5 million if Smotlz spent just 60 days on the active roster.
Smotz has earned a little over $130 million over the course of his Hall-of-Fame career thus far with the Braves. And unless his now ex-wife (who divorced him this past year after 16 years of marriage) took him to the cleaners, he shouldn't really be hurting for money.
So if its not a money-related move, then that leaves the two possibilities that he felt disrespected by the Braves organization, or he merely wants to take the best shot available at getting back to the World Series and winning another ring.
The disrespected line I'll buy, but its a slippery slope on both sides. However you slice it; Smoltz is a huge injury risk. He's 41 years old, and coming off a repair of his lab-rum and rotator cuff. After the Braves have had to eat large contract's like Mike Hampton's due to injury, I can understand their trepidation in guaranteeing Smoltz's contract for the 2009 season. To be fair their offer gave Smoltz a chance to earn quite a bit, it just didn't guarantee it.
So Smoltz feels that $2.5 million less guaranteed is a slap in the face? What about the previous $130 million you've earned jackass? What about the $8.5 million you got to ride the pine while injured in 2000? What about the $14 million you got for a whopping 28 innings pitched last year? Why Smoltz are you willing to turn your back on the Braves and your fans for a measly $2.5 million guaranteed?
On the other hand, its tough to realize the Braves are willing to let him slip away over such a small amount. I feel that they gave him the proper amount of respect with their offer while at the same time protecting the organization in the case that he doesn't return from injury well. Yes the organization still has lots of payroll to spend this offseason, but it would be better spent finding a more durable frontline starter, or a power-hitting left-fielder to protect Chipper Jones in the lineup.
Tim Kurkjian's recent article outlines how Smoltz is an unparalleled fierce competitor, and it makes sense to argue that Boston has a better chance to win the World Series next year than the Braves do. But here I thought John Smoltz stayed with the Braves for so many years out of loyalty. Apparently not. Smoltz was only ever granted free agency in 1996, and in 2001. 1996 was the Braves last trip to the World Series, and 2001 their last trip to the NLCS. I gag a little to think that Smoltz has wanted out of a Braves uniform for a long time.
I'm now glad that I decided a couple years ago to get a Chipper jersey rather than one of Smoltz's. But Chipper is apparently not happy with the way things were handled; hopefully they do him right when the time comes.
God I hope the Braves make it back to the World Series this year (as improbable as that may be) and Smoltz gets to watch from home.
Monday, January 5, 2009
Thoughts on Will Smith's latest dramatic turn
So despite all of the negative press it's generated to this point, I decided to see the latest Will Smith drama Seven Pounds the other night. Normally this type of film is right in my wheelhouse. Its a film that deals with controversial issues, and is built upon a sizable plot twist, and gives steady, but not easily discernible clues to its viewer throughout the film. I like having to work for it.
I have very rarely been let down by Will Smith. Its no mistake that Hollywooder's consider him to be the #1 most bankable movie star. Of the 14 films of his that I have seen (not including Seven Pounds), I have thoroughly enjoyed 10 of them. And among those favorites are his serious films in addition to his bread-and-butter action flicks. On the periphery of those 10 are my somewhat questionable acceptance of I,Robot and Hitch. In both those cases I overlook serious flaws in both films, due almost solely to Smith actually elevating those films singlehandedly.
I was initially excited to see Seven Pounds because it reunited Smith with Italian director Gabreile Muccino, who directed Big Will, to his second Best Actor Oscar nomination two years ago in The Pursuit of Happyness. I was naturally confused then as this years Oscar buzz began to pick up and Smith's name was never being mentioned. The cryptic trailer combined with the movie's title did little to assuage my fears. Nor did nearly every review I read from the major critics, who scoffed at the instruction they were given to "not give away the film's major twist." Most simply said "This film's not worth spoiling anyway."
So on New Year's eve my friend Chris offered to spoil it for me before I saw it, and I took him up on it.
Here's what I was able to deduce prior to talking to Chris:
Seven Pounds is most likely a direct reference (I say most likely because the film never actually makes the reference) to William Shakespeare's Merchant of Venice. The titular character, Shylock demands that his penniless debtor repay instead with a pound of flesh. This has trickled down into the mainstream like many of the Bard's master works. The most resonant pop culture reference that came of my mind almost immediately was in David Fincher's movie Se7en, when in John Doe's depiction of the deadly sin Greed, he instructs his victim to repay his "debt" with several pounds of flesh.
Based on the trailer Will Smith's character, Ben Thomas, is man of extraordinary wealth and means, who seeks to use these means to better the lives of several people, including Rosario Dawson, and Woody Harrelson playing a blind man.
I don't think I can fully launch into my thoughts on the film from this point without saying SPOILER ALERT. DO NOT CONTINUE READING IF YOU HAVEN'T SEEN THE FILM AND INTEND TO.
******************************************************************************************
As it turns out Ben Thomas is an extremely tortured soul. The film begins with him calling 911, to report his own suicide before he actually commits the act. The major impetus for his desire to kill himself is hinted at a few times in the first act, but only fully revealed in the film's resolution. Thomas was involved in a horrific car crash that killed seven people including the love of his life. Thomas was irresponsibly using his PDA while driving, and thus feels he must pay the penance for these seven deaths (hence he owes seven pounds of flesh).
Thomas decides to take a very literal slant on this debt. He begins by donating one of his lungs to his brother who was a chronic smoker (one pound down). This selfless act inspires him to donate the rest of his usable body parts, to atone for the lives he took in the accident. If the premise stopped here, I could truly buy this as a noble act, but I admit it would make for a fairly uninteresting movie.
Thomas decides instead to seek out the "perfect" recipients for the remaining pieces of his body/life. This immediately turns the inherently selfless act of organ/charity donation into a selfish act. The religious underpinnings of this judgment are enormous, as Thomas is undoubtedly playing God. He invades the privacy of likely hundreds of people on donor lists, in order to judge whether these people are worthy of receiving his 'hallowed' organs. Who he is he who decides to receive his charity?
He chooses to donate a piece of his liver to a social worker. He then uses these first two recipients of his charity, to select his next benefactors. He steals his brother's IRS credentials to gain illegal access to tax records, and enlists the help of the social worker to find a battered mother of two, to whom he gives his opulent beach home. Why would he choose to dramatically impact the lives of so few when could have just as easily sold his home, and donated the proceeds to a charity that would impact thousands of lives.
He makes two rather innocent choices for his next two donations, choosing to donate a kidney to a deserving high school hockey coach, and bone marrow to a cute kid.
His final two donations involve the most elaborate of his schemes, and further cloud the lines of selfish/selfless and right/wrong. He selects a meek blind man Ezra Turner (Harrelson) to receive his eyes, and a single woman Sarah Posa (Dawson). He spends the most film time getting to know Posa, which makes since as it seems to be the most important of his seven pounds of flesh that he intends to give. As he does comparably meek favors for Posa (weeds her backyard, repairs her ancient printing press) while he determines she is the true recipient for his heart, Thomas endears himself to Posa, and the two of them fall in love. He makes a last ditch effort to see whether Posa can survive without his heart, but then commits suicide, with his best friend/lawyer having explicit instructions to be sure that the Turner and Posa receive his remaining two pounds of flesh.
To complain about his method of suicide is fairly pointless, because is the grand scheme of things it pales in comparison to the ethical debates raised by the movie. Thomas has admired a jellyfish since childhood that was described to him by his father as the deadliest animal on the planet, and he decides to place one in a bath of freezing water to kill himself. From one vantage point, he doesn't actually die until the moment he reaches the hospital, which makes his organs the most valuable. But also wouldn't the poison from the jellyfish also render his heart (the most important organ in the whole equation) useless?
I also find my evaluations on the actors and director to be inconsequential to ethical debates. Ben Thomas is set up early on in the film as a very caustic character. He is unflinchingly mean and judgmental. Even knowing what his character was up to, I still felt that the director Puccino gave his lead an unnecessary uphill battle. Smith I felt was out-acted by his character. With a few exceptions, he merely one-tones it through most of his emotional scenes. Dawson, on the other hand was a glimmer of sunshine, giving one of her strongest performances ever, and showing she is capable of great things, and if she's given a shot at a good role she could be in line for some end of the year hardware for sure. Just not this time.
This sort of movie sets itself up to be over analyzed to death, which I normally value very highly. As a rabid contrarian, any movie that sparks hearty debate is usually aces in my book. But based on much of the public response to this movie, many people do not find fault with the actions of this films protagonist. Which I feel automatically vilifies anyone who finds fault with his actions.
The two people with whom I saw this movie both cried their eyes out. One of them was even watching the movie for a second time. Needless to say I found it slightly awkward based on my quibbles with the film overall. Its a natural thing, and I've found that I've cried more often in powerful movies in the recent years, just not this time. I may have had something smart-ass to say if someone cried watching 27 dresses, but not this time. And nothing can top my first tearjerker... I cried my eyes out when Luke Skywalker burned his father in his funeral pyre at the end of Return of the Jedi. I was five and it was his father for Christ's sake.
OK no more tangent... back to the show.
Suicide, anyway you slice it, is a ridiculously selfish act. Those who love you are greatly affected by your loss, and can often blame themselves for your decision to end your own life. This is one of the main reasons I believe that suicide is a crime in most Western societies. Thomas's lawyer/best friend is visibly destroyed by knowing of his friend's plan to kill himself, and that's just one person. And I was annoyed that Thomas allowed the connection to be established between himself and Posa, given his overarching intention. He inserted himself into her life, knowing that he would be dramatically removing himself eventually. The movie skirts around this issue by emphasizing Posa's close relationship with her new heartbeat, insinuating that he never really leaves her.
So Ben Thomas suicide is supposed to be viewed as noble because he has carefully selected the most suitable recipients for his heart and eyes? By determining who receives his last two pounds of flesh, Thomas has in effect sold his organs. It sets a dangerous precedent to allow someone committing suicide to designate to whom his organs should go. Its one small step away from someone choosing murder someone else for their vital organs in order to save someone that they love.
Ultimately I don't want to feel empathy for someone who commits suicide. This is the same reason I vehemently dislike the movie Blow. I didn't want to feel sorry for the man responsible for 60% of the cocaine introduced into the US.
Wow that went longer than I thought. I apologize to anyone who is still reading. Just had a lot of these ideas rattling around. Combined with the book I'm reading (Jon Krakauer's Under The Banner of Heaven; which is about the people, in this case Fundamental Mormons, who commit violent and heinous crimes in the name of God) I just felt the need to purge some of these ideas. Perhaps I'll blog about he book next once I finish.
I have very rarely been let down by Will Smith. Its no mistake that Hollywooder's consider him to be the #1 most bankable movie star. Of the 14 films of his that I have seen (not including Seven Pounds), I have thoroughly enjoyed 10 of them. And among those favorites are his serious films in addition to his bread-and-butter action flicks. On the periphery of those 10 are my somewhat questionable acceptance of I,Robot and Hitch. In both those cases I overlook serious flaws in both films, due almost solely to Smith actually elevating those films singlehandedly.
I was initially excited to see Seven Pounds because it reunited Smith with Italian director Gabreile Muccino, who directed Big Will, to his second Best Actor Oscar nomination two years ago in The Pursuit of Happyness. I was naturally confused then as this years Oscar buzz began to pick up and Smith's name was never being mentioned. The cryptic trailer combined with the movie's title did little to assuage my fears. Nor did nearly every review I read from the major critics, who scoffed at the instruction they were given to "not give away the film's major twist." Most simply said "This film's not worth spoiling anyway."
So on New Year's eve my friend Chris offered to spoil it for me before I saw it, and I took him up on it.
Here's what I was able to deduce prior to talking to Chris:
Seven Pounds is most likely a direct reference (I say most likely because the film never actually makes the reference) to William Shakespeare's Merchant of Venice. The titular character, Shylock demands that his penniless debtor repay instead with a pound of flesh. This has trickled down into the mainstream like many of the Bard's master works. The most resonant pop culture reference that came of my mind almost immediately was in David Fincher's movie Se7en, when in John Doe's depiction of the deadly sin Greed, he instructs his victim to repay his "debt" with several pounds of flesh.
Based on the trailer Will Smith's character, Ben Thomas, is man of extraordinary wealth and means, who seeks to use these means to better the lives of several people, including Rosario Dawson, and Woody Harrelson playing a blind man.
I don't think I can fully launch into my thoughts on the film from this point without saying SPOILER ALERT. DO NOT CONTINUE READING IF YOU HAVEN'T SEEN THE FILM AND INTEND TO.
******************************************************************************************
As it turns out Ben Thomas is an extremely tortured soul. The film begins with him calling 911, to report his own suicide before he actually commits the act. The major impetus for his desire to kill himself is hinted at a few times in the first act, but only fully revealed in the film's resolution. Thomas was involved in a horrific car crash that killed seven people including the love of his life. Thomas was irresponsibly using his PDA while driving, and thus feels he must pay the penance for these seven deaths (hence he owes seven pounds of flesh).
Thomas decides to take a very literal slant on this debt. He begins by donating one of his lungs to his brother who was a chronic smoker (one pound down). This selfless act inspires him to donate the rest of his usable body parts, to atone for the lives he took in the accident. If the premise stopped here, I could truly buy this as a noble act, but I admit it would make for a fairly uninteresting movie.
Thomas decides instead to seek out the "perfect" recipients for the remaining pieces of his body/life. This immediately turns the inherently selfless act of organ/charity donation into a selfish act. The religious underpinnings of this judgment are enormous, as Thomas is undoubtedly playing God. He invades the privacy of likely hundreds of people on donor lists, in order to judge whether these people are worthy of receiving his 'hallowed' organs. Who he is he who decides to receive his charity?
He chooses to donate a piece of his liver to a social worker. He then uses these first two recipients of his charity, to select his next benefactors. He steals his brother's IRS credentials to gain illegal access to tax records, and enlists the help of the social worker to find a battered mother of two, to whom he gives his opulent beach home. Why would he choose to dramatically impact the lives of so few when could have just as easily sold his home, and donated the proceeds to a charity that would impact thousands of lives.
He makes two rather innocent choices for his next two donations, choosing to donate a kidney to a deserving high school hockey coach, and bone marrow to a cute kid.
His final two donations involve the most elaborate of his schemes, and further cloud the lines of selfish/selfless and right/wrong. He selects a meek blind man Ezra Turner (Harrelson) to receive his eyes, and a single woman Sarah Posa (Dawson). He spends the most film time getting to know Posa, which makes since as it seems to be the most important of his seven pounds of flesh that he intends to give. As he does comparably meek favors for Posa (weeds her backyard, repairs her ancient printing press) while he determines she is the true recipient for his heart, Thomas endears himself to Posa, and the two of them fall in love. He makes a last ditch effort to see whether Posa can survive without his heart, but then commits suicide, with his best friend/lawyer having explicit instructions to be sure that the Turner and Posa receive his remaining two pounds of flesh.
To complain about his method of suicide is fairly pointless, because is the grand scheme of things it pales in comparison to the ethical debates raised by the movie. Thomas has admired a jellyfish since childhood that was described to him by his father as the deadliest animal on the planet, and he decides to place one in a bath of freezing water to kill himself. From one vantage point, he doesn't actually die until the moment he reaches the hospital, which makes his organs the most valuable. But also wouldn't the poison from the jellyfish also render his heart (the most important organ in the whole equation) useless?
I also find my evaluations on the actors and director to be inconsequential to ethical debates. Ben Thomas is set up early on in the film as a very caustic character. He is unflinchingly mean and judgmental. Even knowing what his character was up to, I still felt that the director Puccino gave his lead an unnecessary uphill battle. Smith I felt was out-acted by his character. With a few exceptions, he merely one-tones it through most of his emotional scenes. Dawson, on the other hand was a glimmer of sunshine, giving one of her strongest performances ever, and showing she is capable of great things, and if she's given a shot at a good role she could be in line for some end of the year hardware for sure. Just not this time.
This sort of movie sets itself up to be over analyzed to death, which I normally value very highly. As a rabid contrarian, any movie that sparks hearty debate is usually aces in my book. But based on much of the public response to this movie, many people do not find fault with the actions of this films protagonist. Which I feel automatically vilifies anyone who finds fault with his actions.
The two people with whom I saw this movie both cried their eyes out. One of them was even watching the movie for a second time. Needless to say I found it slightly awkward based on my quibbles with the film overall. Its a natural thing, and I've found that I've cried more often in powerful movies in the recent years, just not this time. I may have had something smart-ass to say if someone cried watching 27 dresses, but not this time. And nothing can top my first tearjerker... I cried my eyes out when Luke Skywalker burned his father in his funeral pyre at the end of Return of the Jedi. I was five and it was his father for Christ's sake.
OK no more tangent... back to the show.
Suicide, anyway you slice it, is a ridiculously selfish act. Those who love you are greatly affected by your loss, and can often blame themselves for your decision to end your own life. This is one of the main reasons I believe that suicide is a crime in most Western societies. Thomas's lawyer/best friend is visibly destroyed by knowing of his friend's plan to kill himself, and that's just one person. And I was annoyed that Thomas allowed the connection to be established between himself and Posa, given his overarching intention. He inserted himself into her life, knowing that he would be dramatically removing himself eventually. The movie skirts around this issue by emphasizing Posa's close relationship with her new heartbeat, insinuating that he never really leaves her.
So Ben Thomas suicide is supposed to be viewed as noble because he has carefully selected the most suitable recipients for his heart and eyes? By determining who receives his last two pounds of flesh, Thomas has in effect sold his organs. It sets a dangerous precedent to allow someone committing suicide to designate to whom his organs should go. Its one small step away from someone choosing murder someone else for their vital organs in order to save someone that they love.
Ultimately I don't want to feel empathy for someone who commits suicide. This is the same reason I vehemently dislike the movie Blow. I didn't want to feel sorry for the man responsible for 60% of the cocaine introduced into the US.
Wow that went longer than I thought. I apologize to anyone who is still reading. Just had a lot of these ideas rattling around. Combined with the book I'm reading (Jon Krakauer's Under The Banner of Heaven; which is about the people, in this case Fundamental Mormons, who commit violent and heinous crimes in the name of God) I just felt the need to purge some of these ideas. Perhaps I'll blog about he book next once I finish.
Monday, December 22, 2008
my songbook Christmas (and possibly final) edition
So a few weeks ago my hard drive crashed and I've busy dealing with getting that solved. I stand by my Macintosh, as the process for getting the computer service was quick and easy. It would have been even smoother if I lived close to a licensed Mac computer center, and didn't have to ship my computer off to get worked on. Since I've gotten it back, I've been sorting through it as if it were a new computer, resetting all my preferences, address books, and bookmarks. So I've given myself less free time to write.
In other news, I've pretty much decided to can posting these entries on Myspace. I've set Facebook Notes to import directly from this site, and its no secret that I've preferred Facebook to Myspace. The inital import sparked some light conversation based on my previous songbook entry and I was intrigued enough to reread some of my past entries. Truth be told, I've grown tired of the theme, and I imagine this will be the last of these entries...Also Oscar season is very much upon us, and I intend to at least dedicate one serious blog entry into discussing the movie awards season.
And it just so happens that the song I've chosen provides a nice bookend based upon my first songbook subject so here we go.
This year I've been wearing out the Christmas music ever since the first of the month. I've got a solid list of about 150 songs pumping on random. The list is dominated by holiday favorites and classics, with an occasional new Christmas song or creative re-imagining of a classic. So I thought it would nice to talk about what I consider to be my favorite Christmas song.
So without further ado:
"Hallelujah, (Chorus) from Handel's Messiah" performed by the Mormon Tabernacle Choir"
I was mildly tempted to focus on one of the non-traditional songs that is slowly gaining ground on my Christmas song ranking list (like Rilo Kiley's Xmas Cake or Sufjan Stevens' "That Was the Worst Christmas"), but Christmas is all about tradition, and this ripping choral number has it in spades.
And being that the first song I wrote about was Hallelujah, this makes sense too.
The Hallelujah chorus concludes the second of three acts in George Frideric Handel's Messiah oratorio composed in 1741(thank you Wikipedia). I can't remember a time in my life when I recalled ever hearing any other part of Handels masterpiece, and I can say with some confidence that I don't care to, as the chorus stands well alone.
So you may wonder why I didn't chose a more popular carol-friendly tune like Jingle Bells? Well the Hallelujah resonates with me on a couple of different levels.
First, this song is best heard sung by a choir, with proper direction/orchestration. The different vocal sections of the choir are called upon throughout the song. Its simply a very best "showing-off" of what a well-directed choir is capable of. Another great holiday staple that accomplishes this (and also one of my faves) is Carol of the Bells. Its almost like a structured and and refined version of singing in "rounds" like you would do at summer camp, with different groups of campers staggering their belting of "Row Row Row Your Boat" so that as you sing it sounds like their is an echo.
I specifically remember attempting to sing along to the Hallelujah chorus at the tail end of the service of Lessons of Carols run by one Marc F. Cheban at St. Andrews. I hung in the back with the regular choir, and attempted to chime in with the bass singers intoning "And he shall reign for ever and ever." So I suppose this song will always remind me of that.
The words are nothing particularly earth-shattering. Much of the lyrics are extrapolated from the bible (Revelations actually), but I easily get lost in this song. Yeah maybe they're a bit repetitive, but hey the delivery is spirited.
So no your average caroler will not be attempting this ditty on your front door, but there is no shortage of recordings of the this masterpiece to sate yourself with during the holidays. For my money Christmas music doesn't get much better.
I would love to hear what some other peoples favorite holiday songs are so comment away (I love when I assume people actually read these).
In other news, I've pretty much decided to can posting these entries on Myspace. I've set Facebook Notes to import directly from this site, and its no secret that I've preferred Facebook to Myspace. The inital import sparked some light conversation based on my previous songbook entry and I was intrigued enough to reread some of my past entries. Truth be told, I've grown tired of the theme, and I imagine this will be the last of these entries...Also Oscar season is very much upon us, and I intend to at least dedicate one serious blog entry into discussing the movie awards season.
And it just so happens that the song I've chosen provides a nice bookend based upon my first songbook subject so here we go.
This year I've been wearing out the Christmas music ever since the first of the month. I've got a solid list of about 150 songs pumping on random. The list is dominated by holiday favorites and classics, with an occasional new Christmas song or creative re-imagining of a classic. So I thought it would nice to talk about what I consider to be my favorite Christmas song.
So without further ado:
"Hallelujah, (Chorus) from Handel's Messiah" performed by the Mormon Tabernacle Choir"
I was mildly tempted to focus on one of the non-traditional songs that is slowly gaining ground on my Christmas song ranking list (like Rilo Kiley's Xmas Cake or Sufjan Stevens' "That Was the Worst Christmas"), but Christmas is all about tradition, and this ripping choral number has it in spades.
And being that the first song I wrote about was Hallelujah, this makes sense too.
The Hallelujah chorus concludes the second of three acts in George Frideric Handel's Messiah oratorio composed in 1741(thank you Wikipedia). I can't remember a time in my life when I recalled ever hearing any other part of Handels masterpiece, and I can say with some confidence that I don't care to, as the chorus stands well alone.
So you may wonder why I didn't chose a more popular carol-friendly tune like Jingle Bells? Well the Hallelujah resonates with me on a couple of different levels.
First, this song is best heard sung by a choir, with proper direction/orchestration. The different vocal sections of the choir are called upon throughout the song. Its simply a very best "showing-off" of what a well-directed choir is capable of. Another great holiday staple that accomplishes this (and also one of my faves) is Carol of the Bells. Its almost like a structured and and refined version of singing in "rounds" like you would do at summer camp, with different groups of campers staggering their belting of "Row Row Row Your Boat" so that as you sing it sounds like their is an echo.
I specifically remember attempting to sing along to the Hallelujah chorus at the tail end of the service of Lessons of Carols run by one Marc F. Cheban at St. Andrews. I hung in the back with the regular choir, and attempted to chime in with the bass singers intoning "And he shall reign for ever and ever." So I suppose this song will always remind me of that.
The words are nothing particularly earth-shattering. Much of the lyrics are extrapolated from the bible (Revelations actually), but I easily get lost in this song. Yeah maybe they're a bit repetitive, but hey the delivery is spirited.
So no your average caroler will not be attempting this ditty on your front door, but there is no shortage of recordings of the this masterpiece to sate yourself with during the holidays. For my money Christmas music doesn't get much better.
I would love to hear what some other peoples favorite holiday songs are so comment away (I love when I assume people actually read these).
Tuesday, November 18, 2008
my songbook pt. 5
"Tango de Roxanne" - Ewan McGregor, José Feliciano & Jacek Koman from "Moulin Rouge" (2001)
I would say I am a little guarded about my affinity for musicals. To be blunt...its not very heterosexual. I have received quite a bit of flack from some friends, one in particular (James) for being adamant that I enjoy most forms of musicals. It seems strange given that I this a recent trend. I wouldn't say that I was decidedly anti-musical in high school, but my enjoyment of all things Fosse, Minielli, etc. wasn't at its current level.
I dug our school's production of Godspell, Me Me in St. Louis, and The Sound of Music, but it wasn't until very late in the year when my roommate Pedro and I got into a very deep Rocky Horror Picture Show rut. Pedro was the only male student at our school that was out of the closet, and his introducing me to Richard O'Brien's tranny masterpiece was the caboose to the yearlong train of education of all things rainbow. While Pedro pined for the Adonis-inspired Rocky, I oogled the youthful Susan Sarandon. I fell for her hardcore when i peeped he in Bull Durham (A cougar like her with a religious devotion to baseball...oh yeah), so the fifteen-years-younger version in her underwear was an easy sell.
Its staggering to think about how cloaked in ignorance about that lifestyle. There's no one in my life to blame for that, save for a lack of real exposure. Its that same cloak of ignorance that allows for horrible things like Prop 8 to pass even the most liberal of states. Yeesh...lets nip that political rant in the bud shall we.
I took my brother's friend Jenny to see Moulin Rouge in the theater in the summer of 2000. I had a thing for her (redhead, what do you expect), she had one for my brother, he had one for her younger sister (at least I think so; I could be completely fabricating that entire love trapezoid--I destroyed plenty of brain cells that summer). This was both our first and last date. I was transfixed by every bit of celluloid that night. As I began to gush about the magic we had just witnessed leaving the theater, I was stopped dead in my tracks as Jenny soundly denounced the film as weird. She didn't like it, didn't get it. Needless to say I found less and less attractive about her.
Moulin Rouge is this wonderful postmodern musical, that is a fusion of three distinct old style operas (La Traviatta, La Boheme, and Orpheus in the Underworld), set at a brothel in turn-of-the- (19th) century France. The rub on that period setting is that the film's songs (save one original "Come What May") are simply re-interpretations of popular songs throughout history, most having to do with love. Setting the film in 1899, allows its hero Christian (played by Ewan McGregor) to appear stunningly innovative as the original writing that he pimps are in fact a Greatest hits from popular music and musicals. When he belts out the classic sound of music line "The hiiillls are allive with sound of muuuuussssic!" that stops the bohemians dead in their tracks, I nearly died laughing at the genius of that moment. So many of this films musical cues elicited this sort of response, I panic that I may have made a hasty decision.
Perhaps I should have chosen to feature this entire soundtrack. I could wax on for quite a while on so many of these tracks (some more than others) Here's a complete list of tracks for the film, and quickly where I see the discussion heading in each case:
1. Nature Boy - David Bowie -- Ziggy himself doing a rendtion of a Nat King Cole classic...some great levels to explore there
2. Lady Marmalarde - Christina, Pink, Mya, Lil' Kim, Missy Elliott -- the pop sensation spawned by the film; its seems so disconnected from the film when I think of it now.
3. Because We Can - Fatboy Slim -- would devolve quickly into a dicussion of his uber cool "Weapon of Choice" video with Christopher Walken, which would segway not so subtley into me just needing more cowbell (its the only solution to my fever)
4. Sparkling Diamonds - Nicole Kidman & Jim Broadbent -- much to be said about the great references to Madonna and Holly Golightly herself
5. Valeria - Rhythm of the Night - Gloria Estfan just won something big right
6. Your Song - Ewan McGregor & Nicole Kidman -- The second big appearance by Elton john in a film fave of mine in as many years (the first being "Tiny Dancer" in Almost Famous) this coupled with the sweet music videos for "I Want Love" (w/ Tony Stark/Robert Downey Jr.) and "This Train Don't Stop Here Anymore" (w/ Justin Timberlake before he brought SexyBack) convinced me to purchase the Elton John double disc Greatest Hits album. He ceased to be from that moment the weirdo who did those two songs for the Lion King, and became a musical icon. Weird how my mind works.
7. Children of the Revolution - Bono, Gavin Friday, Maurice Seezer -- A T. Rex song. Actually not much here. Believe it or not talking about Bono bores me these days
8. One Day I'll Fly Away - Nicole Kidman -- old Jazz standard by Kidman here
9. Diamond Dogs - Beck -- just really one kickass artist doing his thing. Every album is so different from the last its hard to realize their the same guy. I remember belting out Loser in middle school & grooving to Midnite Vultures in high school, but both those memories are on completely different wavelengths.
10. Elephant Love Medley - Nicole Kidman & Ewan McGregor -- At the time I could only identify pieces of this roller coaster of homages. To effortlessly glide from KISS to U2 to the Beatles to disco queen Thelma Houston I was impressed as hell. This medley gets at the very postmodern heart of this film. These songs like "Up Where We Belong" and "I Will Always Love You" already exist to evoke certain movie moments (whether it be An Officer and a Gentleman, or The Bodyguard), but Lurhman pilfered them perfectly, to not only recall those emotions, but project his own gravitas on those already in place.
11. Come What May - Nicole Kidman & Ewan McGregor -- I was miffed during Oscar season that this was not nominated for Best Original Song. It prompted a very close examining of the rules for that an other categories. Because the song was originally written for Romeo + Juliet, it could not qualify for the category for the wholly different movie.
12. El Tango de Roxanne - Ewan McGregor, Jose Feliciano, Jacek Koman -- I'll get there
13. Complainte De La Butte - Rufus Wainwright - My sister recognized his voice, prompted me to gift her his CD, then I heard him sing "Hallelujah," see my first songbook blog for the rest.
14. Hindi Sad Diamonds - Nicole Kidman, John Legizamo, Alka Yagnik -- Ahh the Bollywood-inspired number. Could go any number of ways, including Mira Nair's work, or even Bend it Like Beckham
15. Nature Boy - David Bowie & Massive Attack -- that sets up a wicked tangent on house music
All of these don't even begin to scratch the surface on my initial fascination with Baz Lurhman and his take on Romeo + Juliet. I was so enamored with that world he created. The reason so many of my online login names include the Shakespeare character Mercutio is because of that movie. Harold Perrineau (pre LOST and pre Matrix) created a version of that character that found extremely daring and charismatic. But alas I digress....in a big way....Back to El Tango de Roxanne.
--
"Roxanne" ... Its embarrassing to admit that I never considered what the 1978 Police track was actually about. It took its re-imagining for Moulin Rouge as a tango, for me to recognize that its a song about a French prostitute.
As Satine goes to be the Duke to save the production of Spectacular Spectacular, Christian laments his powerlessness. Jacek Koman (The Unconscious Argentinean) performs a steamy tango with Caroline O'Connor (Nini, Legs in the Air). The resulting dance is cross cut with Satine's "encounter" with the Duke. The Argintinean lays it out for Christian that falling in love with someone who sells intimacy to the highest bidder is path to insanity, for "Jealousy will drive you MAD!"
Two distinct things about this track send chills down my spine. The first is the marked difference between the Argentinean's delivery of this song and Sting's original higher range. What can I say I love a good cover song, particular one that is more of a reinterpretation and not simply a tribute band trying to recreate the original sound.
Secondly is the slow building of drama within the track. The backing begins simply... As the song's momentum builds the vocal focus shifts from the Argintinean to Christian, and the backing, builds and builds. The melancholy felt by Christian and Satine underscored through the song is so achingly palatable. They are torn between wanting their love displayed through their art, or rather in actuality in their very lives.
This scene embodies what is magical about musicals. For so many who scoff at the bright and cheery spectacle of a musical production, it is unfathomable that people are driven by songs in their every action, and it's even more strange that one would let that inner song out, and simply sing to show how they feel.
"People don't just break out randomly into song," is the anti-musical sentiment I've had to contend against for so long. And there's a nugget of truth to that, because most people don't. But the feelings that drive and saturate any music exist within us whether we choose to let feeling erupt from us or not.
This may be why I was first drawn to the darker songs in all musicals like "Tango. My favorite track from Chicago is the self-loathing anthem "Mr. Cellophane" Another track responsible was "I've Seen It All" from Dancer in the Dark. Sadness and inner pain made more sense to be set to music at first. As I came to watch and dissect more musicals (My film class on musicals in college turned out to be one of my favorites) I came to appreciate all aspects of the art form.
I discovered gems like Rent, Mamma Mia!, and Sweeney Todd after college, and loved them.
So I'll guess that the melancholy that eloquently shattered the screen and my senses in "Tango de Roxanne" is responsible for a deep-seeded appreciation of the musical genre. They're a tough sell to much of the movie-going public, but feel renewed with each big studio production that makes it to theater (Even if they make to listen to the terrible vocal stylings of Pierce Brosnan sometimes...for every actor who can't sing there are several that can and thank God they still do.)
I would say I am a little guarded about my affinity for musicals. To be blunt...its not very heterosexual. I have received quite a bit of flack from some friends, one in particular (James) for being adamant that I enjoy most forms of musicals. It seems strange given that I this a recent trend. I wouldn't say that I was decidedly anti-musical in high school, but my enjoyment of all things Fosse, Minielli, etc. wasn't at its current level.
I dug our school's production of Godspell, Me Me in St. Louis, and The Sound of Music, but it wasn't until very late in the year when my roommate Pedro and I got into a very deep Rocky Horror Picture Show rut. Pedro was the only male student at our school that was out of the closet, and his introducing me to Richard O'Brien's tranny masterpiece was the caboose to the yearlong train of education of all things rainbow. While Pedro pined for the Adonis-inspired Rocky, I oogled the youthful Susan Sarandon. I fell for her hardcore when i peeped he in Bull Durham (A cougar like her with a religious devotion to baseball...oh yeah), so the fifteen-years-younger version in her underwear was an easy sell.
Its staggering to think about how cloaked in ignorance about that lifestyle. There's no one in my life to blame for that, save for a lack of real exposure. Its that same cloak of ignorance that allows for horrible things like Prop 8 to pass even the most liberal of states. Yeesh...lets nip that political rant in the bud shall we.
I took my brother's friend Jenny to see Moulin Rouge in the theater in the summer of 2000. I had a thing for her (redhead, what do you expect), she had one for my brother, he had one for her younger sister (at least I think so; I could be completely fabricating that entire love trapezoid--I destroyed plenty of brain cells that summer). This was both our first and last date. I was transfixed by every bit of celluloid that night. As I began to gush about the magic we had just witnessed leaving the theater, I was stopped dead in my tracks as Jenny soundly denounced the film as weird. She didn't like it, didn't get it. Needless to say I found less and less attractive about her.
Moulin Rouge is this wonderful postmodern musical, that is a fusion of three distinct old style operas (La Traviatta, La Boheme, and Orpheus in the Underworld), set at a brothel in turn-of-the- (19th) century France. The rub on that period setting is that the film's songs (save one original "Come What May") are simply re-interpretations of popular songs throughout history, most having to do with love. Setting the film in 1899, allows its hero Christian (played by Ewan McGregor) to appear stunningly innovative as the original writing that he pimps are in fact a Greatest hits from popular music and musicals. When he belts out the classic sound of music line "The hiiillls are allive with sound of muuuuussssic!" that stops the bohemians dead in their tracks, I nearly died laughing at the genius of that moment. So many of this films musical cues elicited this sort of response, I panic that I may have made a hasty decision.
Perhaps I should have chosen to feature this entire soundtrack. I could wax on for quite a while on so many of these tracks (some more than others) Here's a complete list of tracks for the film, and quickly where I see the discussion heading in each case:
1. Nature Boy - David Bowie -- Ziggy himself doing a rendtion of a Nat King Cole classic...some great levels to explore there
2. Lady Marmalarde - Christina, Pink, Mya, Lil' Kim, Missy Elliott -- the pop sensation spawned by the film; its seems so disconnected from the film when I think of it now.
3. Because We Can - Fatboy Slim -- would devolve quickly into a dicussion of his uber cool "Weapon of Choice" video with Christopher Walken, which would segway not so subtley into me just needing more cowbell (its the only solution to my fever)
4. Sparkling Diamonds - Nicole Kidman & Jim Broadbent -- much to be said about the great references to Madonna and Holly Golightly herself
5. Valeria - Rhythm of the Night - Gloria Estfan just won something big right
6. Your Song - Ewan McGregor & Nicole Kidman -- The second big appearance by Elton john in a film fave of mine in as many years (the first being "Tiny Dancer" in Almost Famous) this coupled with the sweet music videos for "I Want Love" (w/ Tony Stark/Robert Downey Jr.) and "This Train Don't Stop Here Anymore" (w/ Justin Timberlake before he brought SexyBack) convinced me to purchase the Elton John double disc Greatest Hits album. He ceased to be from that moment the weirdo who did those two songs for the Lion King, and became a musical icon. Weird how my mind works.
7. Children of the Revolution - Bono, Gavin Friday, Maurice Seezer -- A T. Rex song. Actually not much here. Believe it or not talking about Bono bores me these days
8. One Day I'll Fly Away - Nicole Kidman -- old Jazz standard by Kidman here
9. Diamond Dogs - Beck -- just really one kickass artist doing his thing. Every album is so different from the last its hard to realize their the same guy. I remember belting out Loser in middle school & grooving to Midnite Vultures in high school, but both those memories are on completely different wavelengths.
10. Elephant Love Medley - Nicole Kidman & Ewan McGregor -- At the time I could only identify pieces of this roller coaster of homages. To effortlessly glide from KISS to U2 to the Beatles to disco queen Thelma Houston I was impressed as hell. This medley gets at the very postmodern heart of this film. These songs like "Up Where We Belong" and "I Will Always Love You" already exist to evoke certain movie moments (whether it be An Officer and a Gentleman, or The Bodyguard), but Lurhman pilfered them perfectly, to not only recall those emotions, but project his own gravitas on those already in place.
11. Come What May - Nicole Kidman & Ewan McGregor -- I was miffed during Oscar season that this was not nominated for Best Original Song. It prompted a very close examining of the rules for that an other categories. Because the song was originally written for Romeo + Juliet, it could not qualify for the category for the wholly different movie.
12. El Tango de Roxanne - Ewan McGregor, Jose Feliciano, Jacek Koman -- I'll get there
13. Complainte De La Butte - Rufus Wainwright - My sister recognized his voice, prompted me to gift her his CD, then I heard him sing "Hallelujah," see my first songbook blog for the rest.
14. Hindi Sad Diamonds - Nicole Kidman, John Legizamo, Alka Yagnik -- Ahh the Bollywood-inspired number. Could go any number of ways, including Mira Nair's work, or even Bend it Like Beckham
15. Nature Boy - David Bowie & Massive Attack -- that sets up a wicked tangent on house music
All of these don't even begin to scratch the surface on my initial fascination with Baz Lurhman and his take on Romeo + Juliet. I was so enamored with that world he created. The reason so many of my online login names include the Shakespeare character Mercutio is because of that movie. Harold Perrineau (pre LOST and pre Matrix) created a version of that character that found extremely daring and charismatic. But alas I digress....in a big way....Back to El Tango de Roxanne.
--
"Roxanne" ... Its embarrassing to admit that I never considered what the 1978 Police track was actually about. It took its re-imagining for Moulin Rouge as a tango, for me to recognize that its a song about a French prostitute.
As Satine goes to be the Duke to save the production of Spectacular Spectacular, Christian laments his powerlessness. Jacek Koman (The Unconscious Argentinean) performs a steamy tango with Caroline O'Connor (Nini, Legs in the Air). The resulting dance is cross cut with Satine's "encounter" with the Duke. The Argintinean lays it out for Christian that falling in love with someone who sells intimacy to the highest bidder is path to insanity, for "Jealousy will drive you MAD!"
Two distinct things about this track send chills down my spine. The first is the marked difference between the Argentinean's delivery of this song and Sting's original higher range. What can I say I love a good cover song, particular one that is more of a reinterpretation and not simply a tribute band trying to recreate the original sound.
Secondly is the slow building of drama within the track. The backing begins simply... As the song's momentum builds the vocal focus shifts from the Argintinean to Christian, and the backing, builds and builds. The melancholy felt by Christian and Satine underscored through the song is so achingly palatable. They are torn between wanting their love displayed through their art, or rather in actuality in their very lives.
This scene embodies what is magical about musicals. For so many who scoff at the bright and cheery spectacle of a musical production, it is unfathomable that people are driven by songs in their every action, and it's even more strange that one would let that inner song out, and simply sing to show how they feel.
"People don't just break out randomly into song," is the anti-musical sentiment I've had to contend against for so long. And there's a nugget of truth to that, because most people don't. But the feelings that drive and saturate any music exist within us whether we choose to let feeling erupt from us or not.
This may be why I was first drawn to the darker songs in all musicals like "Tango. My favorite track from Chicago is the self-loathing anthem "Mr. Cellophane" Another track responsible was "I've Seen It All" from Dancer in the Dark. Sadness and inner pain made more sense to be set to music at first. As I came to watch and dissect more musicals (My film class on musicals in college turned out to be one of my favorites) I came to appreciate all aspects of the art form.
I discovered gems like Rent, Mamma Mia!, and Sweeney Todd after college, and loved them.
So I'll guess that the melancholy that eloquently shattered the screen and my senses in "Tango de Roxanne" is responsible for a deep-seeded appreciation of the musical genre. They're a tough sell to much of the movie-going public, but feel renewed with each big studio production that makes it to theater (Even if they make to listen to the terrible vocal stylings of Pierce Brosnan sometimes...for every actor who can't sing there are several that can and thank God they still do.)
Friday, November 14, 2008
my songbook pt. 4
For this installment I'd like to examine someone I consider to be one of the best contemporary female vocalists around...Imogen Heap and her song "Hide and Seek"
My introduction to Imogen Heap was in one of the huge center's to my geekdom in my senior year of college. After my laptop and DVD collection were stolen from my room one fateful Christmas break, I was forced to purchase a new laptop, and I was wooed into the world of Apple, by my friend Ozzie. After having a such a horrible time with my Gateway laptop, my G4 Powerbook was a godsend.
I began to stockpile movie trailers from the Apple website. One of the most impressive was the initial teaser trailer for Zach Braff's indie darling Garden State. With my filmic eye at its zenith from all of my film studies classics, I was wowed by this wordless film trailer that relied solely on its impressive film shots and the haunting Frou Frou track "Let Go." Ozzie laughed in my face when I informed him what I had discovered about Frou Frou following the viewing of the trailer. He informed me that he was aware of the artist before seeing the trailer and geeked out when he heard the song in the theater. He had a play count for "Let Go" in his iTunes over a hundred.
I've largely championed Garden State as being one of my favorite films, but its trendiness has softened some of its largess in my minds eye in the years following its release. Much of its hipness has turned sour due to cliche. More than any of the awards it garnered; I was most satisfied with its Grammy win for Soundtrack Compilation, and I felt that the Frou Frou track had much to do with that.
Zach's music choices were eye-opening to me. I was introduced to artists like The Shins, Zero 7, Iron & Wine, Remy Zero; and I was forced to take a second look at artists like Coldplay and Colin Hay. As I entrenched myself in the films songs I noticed a glaring ommission in the film soundtrack (much like in Dazed and Confused with "Hurricane"). Alexi Murdoch's "Orange Sky" which played over the hamster Jelly's funeral was nowhere to be found. I quickly found that the song was a part of first soundtrack compilation for the TV show "The O.C.", and therefore couldn't be legally included in the Garden State soundtrack.
I had avoided "The O.C." like the plague because it was so immensely popular. But this was now two songs on that first compilation that I really dug (The first being "The Way We Get By" by Spoon, that I had on a mix CD) so I decided to seek out the rest of the compilation. And thus the hook was set, and I was slowly drawn into a cheesy teen soap opera.
I was able to justify my dedication to the show because of the music (damn you Stephanie Savage, Josh Schwartz, and Alexandra Patsavas). In the second season they introduced a live music venue called The Bait Shop, where they were able to showcase up and coming artists. Here I was introduced to Modest Mouse, Death Cab for Cutie, The Killers,
Another big player in the second season was none other than Imogen Heap. No longer a part of Frou Frou, her song "Goodnight and Go" was featured early on the show, and garnered a fair bit of mainstream play following the show's airing. Then her song "Hide and Seek" became the centerpiece of the Season 2 season finale, first backing the funeral, and then being called back for the show's cliffhanger open-mouth ending.
They say that imitation is the most sincere form of flattery...and there's no better example than the SNL spoof of that very scene. Because I was such a fan of the show the "Dear Sister" digital short made me laugh out loud.
This track cuts me to my core. Imogen's voice by itself is spectacular. The harmonized vocals seem to be the only thing with which you could logically pair it. This haunting song rises and falls beautifully. I used to associate synthesizers and harmonizers with soulless house music, but this song broke down those prejudices.
But what's most amazing is that Heap produced this whole album "Speak for Yourself" by herself. Dissatisfied with how the previous Frou Frou album was mishandled; she took matters into her own hands, and the result is earth-shattering.
Of course then Zach Braff chose to include "Hide and Seek" in the soundtrack for his next film "The Last Kiss." The film came out two years after the songs release, and it had been almost played to death. While the music on the compilation was stellar again, I was disappointed to be familar with the majority of the artists already. Coldplay, Cary Brothers, Remy Zero, Imogen all made their second Braff appearances. But again there were some musician revelations
Snow Patrol - Chocolate -- the song featured in the trailer...almost engineered to feature heavily in a romantic movie; I've since latched tightly to Snow Patrol
Fiona Apple - Paper Bag -- revitalized an interest in someone I dismissed as a one-hit wonder (when I saw her at Vegoose in 2006 she killed it; a much better perfomer live)
Joshua Radin & Schuyler Fisk - Paperweight -- Radin I knew through following my Braff appreciation to Scrubs; the real revelation was Fisk, who I remembered vaguely as Sissy Spacek's daughter who was in that terrible Orange County movie with Tom Hanks son. Being the daughter of The Coal Miner's Daughter, the fact she can belt out a tune comes as no surprise, her being a darling redhead is just icing. I've constantly sought out any and all of her music since. She's currently working on her first album, and her singing has appeared in two other films I'm Reed Fish an Penelope)
So the cycle continues...Thanks Imogen I await your new album as well as Schuyler's first.
My introduction to Imogen Heap was in one of the huge center's to my geekdom in my senior year of college. After my laptop and DVD collection were stolen from my room one fateful Christmas break, I was forced to purchase a new laptop, and I was wooed into the world of Apple, by my friend Ozzie. After having a such a horrible time with my Gateway laptop, my G4 Powerbook was a godsend.
I began to stockpile movie trailers from the Apple website. One of the most impressive was the initial teaser trailer for Zach Braff's indie darling Garden State. With my filmic eye at its zenith from all of my film studies classics, I was wowed by this wordless film trailer that relied solely on its impressive film shots and the haunting Frou Frou track "Let Go." Ozzie laughed in my face when I informed him what I had discovered about Frou Frou following the viewing of the trailer. He informed me that he was aware of the artist before seeing the trailer and geeked out when he heard the song in the theater. He had a play count for "Let Go" in his iTunes over a hundred.
I've largely championed Garden State as being one of my favorite films, but its trendiness has softened some of its largess in my minds eye in the years following its release. Much of its hipness has turned sour due to cliche. More than any of the awards it garnered; I was most satisfied with its Grammy win for Soundtrack Compilation, and I felt that the Frou Frou track had much to do with that.
Zach's music choices were eye-opening to me. I was introduced to artists like The Shins, Zero 7, Iron & Wine, Remy Zero; and I was forced to take a second look at artists like Coldplay and Colin Hay. As I entrenched myself in the films songs I noticed a glaring ommission in the film soundtrack (much like in Dazed and Confused with "Hurricane"). Alexi Murdoch's "Orange Sky" which played over the hamster Jelly's funeral was nowhere to be found. I quickly found that the song was a part of first soundtrack compilation for the TV show "The O.C.", and therefore couldn't be legally included in the Garden State soundtrack.
I had avoided "The O.C." like the plague because it was so immensely popular. But this was now two songs on that first compilation that I really dug (The first being "The Way We Get By" by Spoon, that I had on a mix CD) so I decided to seek out the rest of the compilation. And thus the hook was set, and I was slowly drawn into a cheesy teen soap opera.
I was able to justify my dedication to the show because of the music (damn you Stephanie Savage, Josh Schwartz, and Alexandra Patsavas). In the second season they introduced a live music venue called The Bait Shop, where they were able to showcase up and coming artists. Here I was introduced to Modest Mouse, Death Cab for Cutie, The Killers,
Another big player in the second season was none other than Imogen Heap. No longer a part of Frou Frou, her song "Goodnight and Go" was featured early on the show, and garnered a fair bit of mainstream play following the show's airing. Then her song "Hide and Seek" became the centerpiece of the Season 2 season finale, first backing the funeral, and then being called back for the show's cliffhanger open-mouth ending.
They say that imitation is the most sincere form of flattery...and there's no better example than the SNL spoof of that very scene. Because I was such a fan of the show the "Dear Sister" digital short made me laugh out loud.
This track cuts me to my core. Imogen's voice by itself is spectacular. The harmonized vocals seem to be the only thing with which you could logically pair it. This haunting song rises and falls beautifully. I used to associate synthesizers and harmonizers with soulless house music, but this song broke down those prejudices.
But what's most amazing is that Heap produced this whole album "Speak for Yourself" by herself. Dissatisfied with how the previous Frou Frou album was mishandled; she took matters into her own hands, and the result is earth-shattering.
Of course then Zach Braff chose to include "Hide and Seek" in the soundtrack for his next film "The Last Kiss." The film came out two years after the songs release, and it had been almost played to death. While the music on the compilation was stellar again, I was disappointed to be familar with the majority of the artists already. Coldplay, Cary Brothers, Remy Zero, Imogen all made their second Braff appearances. But again there were some musician revelations
Snow Patrol - Chocolate -- the song featured in the trailer...almost engineered to feature heavily in a romantic movie; I've since latched tightly to Snow Patrol
Fiona Apple - Paper Bag -- revitalized an interest in someone I dismissed as a one-hit wonder (when I saw her at Vegoose in 2006 she killed it; a much better perfomer live)
Joshua Radin & Schuyler Fisk - Paperweight -- Radin I knew through following my Braff appreciation to Scrubs; the real revelation was Fisk, who I remembered vaguely as Sissy Spacek's daughter who was in that terrible Orange County movie with Tom Hanks son. Being the daughter of The Coal Miner's Daughter, the fact she can belt out a tune comes as no surprise, her being a darling redhead is just icing. I've constantly sought out any and all of her music since. She's currently working on her first album, and her singing has appeared in two other films I'm Reed Fish an Penelope)
So the cycle continues...Thanks Imogen I await your new album as well as Schuyler's first.
Tuesday, November 4, 2008
my songbook, pt. 3
Song #3 makes me a little bit embarrassed, but it represents an important step in my musical journey.
"Callin' Baton Rouge" -- Garth Brooks
When I was younger I would take great pleasure in ragging on my father for his affinity for some country music. He would put on his Tractors CD, and I would roll my eyes as he would bop along with "Baby Likes to Rock It."
It seemed that country music was destined to be shunned forever after it wasn't included in my "high school classic rock musical epiphany." This epiphany was almost single handedly engineered by Geoff Carson, who amassed a nice CD collection by preying on impressionable freshman such of myself, and gently coercing us into joining the BMG music service. Forced to choose 12 CDs at once, broke down my popular music-centric music tastes into the wonderful realms of classic rock. However the walls of ignorance against country music remained high and mighty.
The first concession I would make would be a few years later, in one of many late night discussions with one Oswald Cuervo. My junior year of high school, we logged some several hundred hours of reflection late night on Baum corridor. I've yet to replicate the frequency and depth of our interchanges. No matter what shenanigans we got into we found time for some chatting. Now that he works on the west coast for the other networking giant Facebook, I've all but completely lost touch.
However I digress...one night we discussed music, and I shared my current interest in one Bob Dylan. I was currently listening to his third Greatest Hits compilaton, almost solely for the inclusion of the song Hurricane. Everytime I heard the nearly nine minute song, I was reminded of the scene in Dazed and Confused were Wooderson, Pink, and Mitch walk through the Emporium, and this song backs their slow-motion stroll. Of all the great music in this film, this was my favorite, and yet it was not included on either of the two soundtracks released.
Some of my favorite parts of the song were the violin solos, and Ozzie had recently acquired an electric violin. He fooled around with it in a band (they couldn't decide on a name so they became known as TBA) that won our school talent show. They had huge sound issues and played only DMB cover songs. (Ozzie would go on to play in a band called Mojo Train at college). But that one night Ozzie plugged his violin into my CD player, and riffed along with "Hurricane." I think at that moment I decided that I really dug the violin in a non-classical music sense. So I was prepared to enjoy a bluegrass fiddle. So I was willing to admit I like the song "The Devil Went Down to Georgia"
...
Cut to college...In a whirlwind of events beginning my second semester freshman year, I had gone against my better judgement and joined a fraternity. Not just any frat mind you, but the bastion of Southern Gentlemen, the Kappa Alpha Order. (How I allowed myself to believe that Southern Gentlemen was the proper description for what were actually Good Ole Boys is still baffling to me).
Now these brothers of mine were mostly from Texas and Alabama, and therefore were raised with a healthy dose of country music. Every Friday we would have kegs at the landfill we called our frat house (lovingly termed the KA Mansion). The archaic sound system would blast a mixture of classic rock and country music. As a lowly pledge I had no input into the DJ choices, so I had little recourse but to withstand this barrage of country. Needless to say I lost this war of attrition, much like my friend from high school Birdsey had continually hammered me with his bootleg Phish concert tapes until I actually dug them.
My concessions for country music started small. After hearing Pat Green and Robert Earl Keen so many times, I could barely classify them as country so I began to allow that I enjoyed "Texas country" because the line between Texas country and rock wasn't well defined in my mind. Cory Morrow,
And slowly the other songs that I heard every Friday stopped grating against my eardrums. And late one night when I heard myself belting out the words to "Callin' Baton Rouge" There was now no mistaking it. I knew all the words to a Garth Brooks song. Chris Gaines himself. All the words. Even several cups of keg beer deep. Needless to say...I was a little shocked.
As I came to terms with my light appreciation of country music, I started to explore more and more. This includes finding contemporary gems like Alison Krauss, and fully exploring the catalogs of legends like Johnny Cash. All thanks to Mr. "Friends in Low Places" Brooks.
I can now ridicule with a clean conscience all those lazy people who, when asked to list their favorite bands simply write "anything but country"
You're clearly missing the boat.
"Callin' Baton Rouge" -- Garth Brooks
When I was younger I would take great pleasure in ragging on my father for his affinity for some country music. He would put on his Tractors CD, and I would roll my eyes as he would bop along with "Baby Likes to Rock It."
It seemed that country music was destined to be shunned forever after it wasn't included in my "high school classic rock musical epiphany." This epiphany was almost single handedly engineered by Geoff Carson, who amassed a nice CD collection by preying on impressionable freshman such of myself, and gently coercing us into joining the BMG music service. Forced to choose 12 CDs at once, broke down my popular music-centric music tastes into the wonderful realms of classic rock. However the walls of ignorance against country music remained high and mighty.
The first concession I would make would be a few years later, in one of many late night discussions with one Oswald Cuervo. My junior year of high school, we logged some several hundred hours of reflection late night on Baum corridor. I've yet to replicate the frequency and depth of our interchanges. No matter what shenanigans we got into we found time for some chatting. Now that he works on the west coast for the other networking giant Facebook, I've all but completely lost touch.
However I digress...one night we discussed music, and I shared my current interest in one Bob Dylan. I was currently listening to his third Greatest Hits compilaton, almost solely for the inclusion of the song Hurricane. Everytime I heard the nearly nine minute song, I was reminded of the scene in Dazed and Confused were Wooderson, Pink, and Mitch walk through the Emporium, and this song backs their slow-motion stroll. Of all the great music in this film, this was my favorite, and yet it was not included on either of the two soundtracks released.
Some of my favorite parts of the song were the violin solos, and Ozzie had recently acquired an electric violin. He fooled around with it in a band (they couldn't decide on a name so they became known as TBA) that won our school talent show. They had huge sound issues and played only DMB cover songs. (Ozzie would go on to play in a band called Mojo Train at college). But that one night Ozzie plugged his violin into my CD player, and riffed along with "Hurricane." I think at that moment I decided that I really dug the violin in a non-classical music sense. So I was prepared to enjoy a bluegrass fiddle. So I was willing to admit I like the song "The Devil Went Down to Georgia"
...
Cut to college...In a whirlwind of events beginning my second semester freshman year, I had gone against my better judgement and joined a fraternity. Not just any frat mind you, but the bastion of Southern Gentlemen, the Kappa Alpha Order. (How I allowed myself to believe that Southern Gentlemen was the proper description for what were actually Good Ole Boys is still baffling to me).
Now these brothers of mine were mostly from Texas and Alabama, and therefore were raised with a healthy dose of country music. Every Friday we would have kegs at the landfill we called our frat house (lovingly termed the KA Mansion). The archaic sound system would blast a mixture of classic rock and country music. As a lowly pledge I had no input into the DJ choices, so I had little recourse but to withstand this barrage of country. Needless to say I lost this war of attrition, much like my friend from high school Birdsey had continually hammered me with his bootleg Phish concert tapes until I actually dug them.
My concessions for country music started small. After hearing Pat Green and Robert Earl Keen so many times, I could barely classify them as country so I began to allow that I enjoyed "Texas country" because the line between Texas country and rock wasn't well defined in my mind. Cory Morrow,
And slowly the other songs that I heard every Friday stopped grating against my eardrums. And late one night when I heard myself belting out the words to "Callin' Baton Rouge" There was now no mistaking it. I knew all the words to a Garth Brooks song. Chris Gaines himself. All the words. Even several cups of keg beer deep. Needless to say...I was a little shocked.
As I came to terms with my light appreciation of country music, I started to explore more and more. This includes finding contemporary gems like Alison Krauss, and fully exploring the catalogs of legends like Johnny Cash. All thanks to Mr. "Friends in Low Places" Brooks.
I can now ridicule with a clean conscience all those lazy people who, when asked to list their favorite bands simply write "anything but country"
You're clearly missing the boat.
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