SUNDAY MORNING TUNEAGE
PJ HARVEY - THE DESPERATE KINGDOM OF LOVE. Off the 2004 album, "Uh Huh Her" - this is the rare PJ Harvey album and especially this song that shows off a relatively tender side of Miss Harvey. This album might not have the anger and energy of her first albums. But I think it's some of the best songwriting she's ever done. And it's a very underrated album. This song perfectly describes that out of love feeling - "there's another who looks from behind your eyes."
DORIS DAY - TOYLAND. It's a little early for Christmas music. But we're almost halfway to the point. Not sure yet if this year will be one that I'll be into Christmas music as early as usual. We'll see when it gets here. But it's nice to hear Doris Day's voice this morning and this 1964 tune is a reasonable song that is almost not even too Christmas-y despite being about toys. Happy that this one came up this morning.
SOS BAND - JUST BE GOOD TO ME. This 1983 single is one of the first times I remember hearing about Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis producing a song. This is the 12" version that does have nine good minutes of dance funk. Fun song that hints at some of the Janet Jackson dance tunes. I don't know why this doesn't get played much anymore.
SOMETHING RANDOM . . . Something a little light with exercise ball falls . . . and the trailer for a Korean film - PIETA
QUICK LIST (a random, uninformed list off the top of Shawn's head)
BEST DOCUMENTARIES OF THE 1990'S
10. MADONNA: TRUTH OR DARE (1991) Not the best music doc that you'll see. But I've grown to like this film as quite the time piece for the early 90s.
9. HOOP DREAMS (1994) Following two inner-city Chicago youths trying to follow their dreams was one of my favorite films at the time. Over the years, there's a manipulation to the emotions of the stories that tires me out. And knowing the lack of future success for the two kind of tempers the excitement of the story. Still, it's another great story of pursuing your dreams.
8. HEART OF DARKNESS: A FILMMAKER'S APOCALYPSE (1991) What would usually be an extra on a DVD or Blu-ray turns into a movie that reveals more about Francis Ford Coppola and the heart of an artist trying to make a movie more than a film about making a film. There feels like raw emotion from the director here that you don't see in other docs.
7. PARIS IS BURNING (1990) The decade got off to a strong doc start with a film that's about the drag and transexual scene in New York City in the late 70s and through the 80s. It's fun and educational and feels like it sets the tone for TV shows and channels to come the next twenty years.
6. WHEN WE WERE KINGS (1996) The story of the Ali-Foreman fight in 1974 is the story of two men at crossroads in their lives, it's the story of a country trying to get out from under oppression, it's the story of celebration of African culture when the eyes of the world were on it. You probably need to at least half enjoying boxing to get this but it's still a fascinating story.
5. MR. DEATH: THE RISE & FALL OF FRED A LEUCHTER, JR. (1999) Errol Morris has a knack for picking interesting subjects. Fred Leuchter is the perfect example because he's a character the lead an interesting life on the fringes of civilization. Fascinating story of a man involved in execution technology and the as a reluctant supporter of Holocaust Denial.
4. AMERICAN MOVIE (1999) As the decade came to an end - the genre had come a long way in ten years. This film showed the future of combining interesting subjects and crazy topics. A movie like this seems to border on fictional. But you might not see a better movie on the pursuit of the "American Dream".
3. FAST, CHEAP AND OUT OF CONTROL (1997) Another Errol Morris film that takes a slightly different look at the world. Instead of just one subject for the film - he tells the stories of four different odd, interesting folks - a topiary gardner, robot designer, naked mole rat specialist and wild animal trainer. As he tells these stories, he also uses lots of fun extraneous footage. It's a fun new way to tell these stories, which is what the 90s seemed to be about.
2. CRUMB (1994) If you love comics, then this is a must see. If you like interesting people, then this is a must see. There's so much more than just a movie about a comic artist here. It's about family and it's about art. I've watched this film over a dozen times and I still come away with something new each time.
1. PARADISE LOST: THE CHILD MURDERS AT ROBIN HOOD HILLS (1996) Still a chilling film. The best documentaries seem to present the subject and let the viewers make their own conclusions. This film may not be completely fair and balanced but there's plenty of room for discussion when it's over. The power of this film? There's at least two sequels and we really still don't seem to be at the end of the story.
The sheer number of documentaries this decade made it list worthy. There was an explosion in the genre that coincided with the extra attention being paid to American Independent films. And it was aided by the expansion of cable outlets and video stores (like Gen X). There are lots of good films that didn't make this list like 4 LITTLE GIRLS, HANDS ON A HARD BODY, KURT & COURTNEY and MICROCOSMOS. What a great decade for documentaries. Left off the list are some of the great TV documentaries of all-time - BASEBALL, CIVIL WAR and BEATLES ANTHOLOGY. The most over-rated? BROTHER'S KEEPER isn't as interesting as people will tell you. And the Hughe's Brothers' AMERICAN PIMP should have been much, much better.
9. HOOP DREAMS (1994) Following two inner-city Chicago youths trying to follow their dreams was one of my favorite films at the time. Over the years, there's a manipulation to the emotions of the stories that tires me out. And knowing the lack of future success for the two kind of tempers the excitement of the story. Still, it's another great story of pursuing your dreams.
8. HEART OF DARKNESS: A FILMMAKER'S APOCALYPSE (1991) What would usually be an extra on a DVD or Blu-ray turns into a movie that reveals more about Francis Ford Coppola and the heart of an artist trying to make a movie more than a film about making a film. There feels like raw emotion from the director here that you don't see in other docs.
7. PARIS IS BURNING (1990) The decade got off to a strong doc start with a film that's about the drag and transexual scene in New York City in the late 70s and through the 80s. It's fun and educational and feels like it sets the tone for TV shows and channels to come the next twenty years.
6. WHEN WE WERE KINGS (1996) The story of the Ali-Foreman fight in 1974 is the story of two men at crossroads in their lives, it's the story of a country trying to get out from under oppression, it's the story of celebration of African culture when the eyes of the world were on it. You probably need to at least half enjoying boxing to get this but it's still a fascinating story.
5. MR. DEATH: THE RISE & FALL OF FRED A LEUCHTER, JR. (1999) Errol Morris has a knack for picking interesting subjects. Fred Leuchter is the perfect example because he's a character the lead an interesting life on the fringes of civilization. Fascinating story of a man involved in execution technology and the as a reluctant supporter of Holocaust Denial.
4. AMERICAN MOVIE (1999) As the decade came to an end - the genre had come a long way in ten years. This film showed the future of combining interesting subjects and crazy topics. A movie like this seems to border on fictional. But you might not see a better movie on the pursuit of the "American Dream".
3. FAST, CHEAP AND OUT OF CONTROL (1997) Another Errol Morris film that takes a slightly different look at the world. Instead of just one subject for the film - he tells the stories of four different odd, interesting folks - a topiary gardner, robot designer, naked mole rat specialist and wild animal trainer. As he tells these stories, he also uses lots of fun extraneous footage. It's a fun new way to tell these stories, which is what the 90s seemed to be about.
2. CRUMB (1994) If you love comics, then this is a must see. If you like interesting people, then this is a must see. There's so much more than just a movie about a comic artist here. It's about family and it's about art. I've watched this film over a dozen times and I still come away with something new each time.
1. PARADISE LOST: THE CHILD MURDERS AT ROBIN HOOD HILLS (1996) Still a chilling film. The best documentaries seem to present the subject and let the viewers make their own conclusions. This film may not be completely fair and balanced but there's plenty of room for discussion when it's over. The power of this film? There's at least two sequels and we really still don't seem to be at the end of the story.
The sheer number of documentaries this decade made it list worthy. There was an explosion in the genre that coincided with the extra attention being paid to American Independent films. And it was aided by the expansion of cable outlets and video stores (like Gen X). There are lots of good films that didn't make this list like 4 LITTLE GIRLS, HANDS ON A HARD BODY, KURT & COURTNEY and MICROCOSMOS. What a great decade for documentaries. Left off the list are some of the great TV documentaries of all-time - BASEBALL, CIVIL WAR and BEATLES ANTHOLOGY. The most over-rated? BROTHER'S KEEPER isn't as interesting as people will tell you. And the Hughe's Brothers' AMERICAN PIMP should have been much, much better.
NETFLIX PLAY NOW OF THE WEEK . . . you can never go wrong with an Audrey Hepburn rainy day movie but it's been forever since ROMAN HOLIDAY was on Instant Watch . . . if you want creepy, PET SEMETARY and CARRIE will make a good double feature . . . and with all the Cartoon Network shows now on Netflix - my starting suggestions would be to go through DEXTER'S LABORATORY and POWERPUFF GIRLS . . .
Shawn's fave movies according to FLICKCHART
#25 - Frosty The Snowman
#310 - Almost Famous
#422 - Scott Pilgrim vs. the World
#25 - Frosty The Snowman
#310 - Almost Famous
#422 - Scott Pilgrim vs. the World
RANDOM PROJECT UPDATE - The SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE project. For the first time this year, I got back on this project for a little bit this last week. And I still love these old episodes (still on the 2nd season) because there is a combination of actors and musical artists that were huge risks for the network at the time. Just finished an episode with a very young Candice Bergen - she has the most flaws of any host up to this point and then the musical intrigue of Frank Zappa doing "The Purple Lagoon" and "I'm The Slime". I can't imagine the current SNL putting on such a counterculture artist or taking a chance on such an unproven actress. Next up - the first appearance of Bill Murray.
SHAWN'S TOP ALBUMS OF ALL-TIME (a tribute to the art of the album)
#41 Beatles - Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (1967)
A year after "Revolver", the Beatle's pushed music forward another huge step - this was like five years of steps all at once. I know that there will be some questioning putting this album at #41 since it ranks so high on so many other lists by professionals. I think it's here because, while I recognize the greatness, I came to this group of songs rather late in my Beatles' fandom. I was first introduced to the first half of their albums and then spent lots of time with Abbey Road. The evolution of the band was more than I can remember for any band. Most of it came from the progression that each member made on their own before coming back together - George making a huge impact with his trip to India, John with his work on film, Paul working with George Martin and Ringo maturing as a husband and father. And yet the strongest songs for me are the ones that come from their childhood memories - "Penny Lane", "When I'm Sixty-Four" and "Strawberry Fields Forever". This is an album I could write a whole blog on but for the benefit of Mr. Kite, I'll just leave it that the musical brilliance of this album is unquestioned, it's just what it meant to me that keeps it down.
"Within You, Without You" - George Harrison rules here . . .
"She's Leaving Home"
"When I'm Sixty-Four"
A year after "Revolver", the Beatle's pushed music forward another huge step - this was like five years of steps all at once. I know that there will be some questioning putting this album at #41 since it ranks so high on so many other lists by professionals. I think it's here because, while I recognize the greatness, I came to this group of songs rather late in my Beatles' fandom. I was first introduced to the first half of their albums and then spent lots of time with Abbey Road. The evolution of the band was more than I can remember for any band. Most of it came from the progression that each member made on their own before coming back together - George making a huge impact with his trip to India, John with his work on film, Paul working with George Martin and Ringo maturing as a husband and father. And yet the strongest songs for me are the ones that come from their childhood memories - "Penny Lane", "When I'm Sixty-Four" and "Strawberry Fields Forever". This is an album I could write a whole blog on but for the benefit of Mr. Kite, I'll just leave it that the musical brilliance of this album is unquestioned, it's just what it meant to me that keeps it down.
"Within You, Without You" - George Harrison rules here . . .
"She's Leaving Home"
"When I'm Sixty-Four"
Previous Rankings
#42 - Prince - 1999 (1982)
#43 - James Brown - The Payback (1973)
#44 - Black Sabbath - Paranoid (1970)
#45 - The B-52's - The B-52's (1979)
#45 - The B-52's - The B-52's (1979)
#46 - Pink Floyd - The Wall (1979)
THIS WEEK IN TELEVISION
MONDAY
BATES MOTEL (A&E) Still haven't watched but after examining the commercials a few times - finally dawned on me that Norman is the lead from CHARLIE AND THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY. And it turns out he was a good friend of Daniel Radcliffe before they both started acting.
NCAA BASKETBALL CHAMPIONSHIP (CBS) Just sayin'. Go Blue!!!
BATES MOTEL (A&E) Still haven't watched but after examining the commercials a few times - finally dawned on me that Norman is the lead from CHARLIE AND THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY. And it turns out he was a good friend of Daniel Radcliffe before they both started acting.
NCAA BASKETBALL CHAMPIONSHIP (CBS) Just sayin'. Go Blue!!!
TUESDAY
THE MINDY PROJECT (FOX) I think the show has found a good pace towards the end of this season. It's got some momentum towards a second season. I particularly like Morgan Tookers (Ike Barinholtz) - his run as the rival pitcher on "Eastbound & Down" was equally awesome.
COUGAR TOWN (TBS) This show was on for a whole season? Talk about under the radar. And it seems that it's coming back for another season.
WEDNESDAY
SPIES OF WARSAW (BBC) Haven't watched the first episode yet but I'm excited to see the Tenth Doctor in pictures of the 50th Doctor Who Anniversary script read and in ads for "Broadchurch" coming later this year.
SURVIVOR: CARAMOAN (CBS) You just can't have so many returning "favorites" in a season - the advantage is too huge. That said - how has Phillip lasted this long??? The man is ridiculous - don't they all see it?
THURSDAY
ARCHER (FX) Another fine season of this animation comes to an end with another crossover into "Sealab 2021" territory as ISIS battles Captain Murphy again.
THE OFFICE (NBC) I keep thinking that the season and series has ended. It constantly has that beat at the end of episodes like we've already said goodbyes but it's still getting it's coat on and waiting for the car to be warm enough to leave. Roseanne Barr stops in tonight - that seems like a good ending note.
FRIDAY
SO PROUDLY WE HAIL! (TCM) A fun story of army nurses in the Philippines in WWII. Starring the beautiful ladies of the mid-1940s - Claudette Colbert and Veronica Lake.
SPARTACUS: WAR OF THE DAMNED (STARZ) This saga ends tonight without me watching even one episode. But after sitting in a panel at last year's Comic Con - I admire the loyalty of the fans of this show.
SATURDAY
LOUIS C.K.: OH MY GOD (HBO) New material!!!
DOCTOR WHO (BBC) Quite a few important developments last episode. I won't ruin it but I think this half of the season is off to a great start and tonight there is trouble with a nuclear sub.
SUNDAY
GAME OF THRONES and VEEP (HBO) How is this channel not worth the monthly fee? So glad to have GOT back last week - it felt like home again. And the return of Veep is equally exciting.
THE '80s (NAT GEO) A six part documentary on the decade that made me who I am today. Not just VH-1 type "I Love The 80s" show but a little more, like you'd expect from Nat Geo.
AND NOW A WORD FROM OUR SPONSOR . . . long a fan of all Jack In The Box ads. What's better than Meat Riot doing Hot Mess . . .
This Jack In Th eBox ad for their breakfast is awesome because of the squirrel flipping the guy off . . .
And a close 2nd to Jack In the Box for fast food ads are Sonic ads. Last Summer they reinvented the hot dog with the wholly guacamole dog and the chili cheese fritos dog. What will they think of this summer???
"What do I do when my love is away
Does it worry you to be alone?
How do I feel by the end of the day
Are you sad because you're on your own?"
With a little help from your friends. Stay hard.
This Jack In Th eBox ad for their breakfast is awesome because of the squirrel flipping the guy off . . .
And a close 2nd to Jack In the Box for fast food ads are Sonic ads. Last Summer they reinvented the hot dog with the wholly guacamole dog and the chili cheese fritos dog. What will they think of this summer???
"What do I do when my love is away
Does it worry you to be alone?
How do I feel by the end of the day
Are you sad because you're on your own?"
With a little help from your friends. Stay hard.
sb
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