Hey boys, the trombonist sounds very hip, but sadly is not the day that I've targeted....I was planning on May 28th. And May 14th is the day of Joe Lovano, n'est ce pas Derek? Let's see if we can find something equally groovy for the 28th (not to suggest you shouldn't go see Billy Carn on the 14th). Re pick 5, I like the Vengerov/Shostakovich night, also liked the so far unmentioned Shosto night with the two cello concertos (which are beautiful) and the eleventh symphony - which is dark and dramatic, Feb 15 and 16. Also interested in the John Adams and the new music on that bill. The April 6th Hungarian night with Kodaly, Liszt, and Bartok looks pretty great too.

Stuart I'm in for the pick-5 series for next season's TSO schedule. I've got their new program in front of me and the following would be my picks. Maybe we can discuss it over a beer or two in the next few weeks. Brian maybe you can pick a few from these.

October 5 or 7 - Kissin playing the complete Beethoven piano concerto cycle over two nights. I would be up for either night or even both.

November 30 or December 3 - Stephen Hough playing the Brahms 2nd piano concerto with Strauss' Don Quixote

March 30 - the Modern Soundscapes show you mentioned that contains the John Adams piece.

May 5 - Simon Trpceski playing Tchaikovsky's piano concerto no.1 with the 1st Sibelius symphony

June 1 or 3 - Shostakovich's violin concerto no.1 (Vengerov) or no. 2 (Janine Jansen) with his symphony no. 10

For the life of me I just know that I have something going on Saturday May 14 but I'll be damned if I can remember what it is, so let's say I'm free that night and you jazzbos are up for a night at the Rex there is a quintet being led by William Carn on trombone, that I'd very much like to see. Here's a review of their new disc from the Star several weeks back:.

WILLIAM CARN
Other Stories (Indie)
Trombonist William Carn is a charter member of the impressive new generation of players that is making an impact in these parts. You'll hear why on his debut CD, recorded in August, which shows off imaginative composing abilities as well as his bright, open playing and appealing, polished tones. Carn wrote all nine tunes here, and his top-bracket band revels in music that signals a keen ear for lyrical melody and creative harmony. With saxophonist Kelly Jefferson there's a powerful front line and since Juno winner David Braid is on piano, you know you're in for a good time. Kieran Overs on bass and drummer Anthony Michelli provide the pulse, the bassman turning in strong solos, too. All the bandsmen stretch and there's good rapport between them and the composing contrasts are well illuminated. Appealing tracks: "Malice," "Time Flies" plus the duo of "Ghosts" and "Ghosts 11."

i apoggelize for the spelling, Ill have to use a spellcheckkque...
Brian - I havent seen live music since M Ward a month ago....Ill go see anyone , even your little sister "in braces and boots "(sorry.. Elton John quotes have no place here I know...)Derek, and I had been bemoaning this and since there are no rock/pop acts that we really dig at the clubs now (cept Arcade fire ) maybe the Rex in the next week or so is just the ticket....Maybe Brian or Derek (the experts) can make a pick and we can consider this a warm up to the JAzz festival...Weeknights after 9pm are fine w me as well as the weekends...
s

Count me in for a couple of nights of the classical - particularly the (more) modern stuff if it interests you. My man Dmitri would be right at the top of the list - John Adams as well. I won't do a full pick 5 this year as I will undoubtedly be in "Holy Fuck we have two kids!" mode for a little while in the fall (and through to about 2009 conservatively).

Which jazz are you in for Stu? Joe Lovano? I might be up for a night at the Rex in late May (just before my week-long study blitz).

Stuart, your spelling is atrocious. I thought Architects were the equivalent of modern Renaissance Men? I guess not. Maybe it's Bankers.

Don't know BJM, though I heard them about a bit in Winterbottom's "Nine Songs", where other types of BJ's were also featured. They sounded pretty good if a tad irrelevant.

I'm such a loser - I actually checked out the hyacinth and crocus sites.... anyone else? 'fess up.

Re Archer Prewitt, Marc, it's very solid singer/songwriter stuff, doesn't have the "vibe" element of the Sea and Cake. Reminds me about of Paul Kelly, a fave Aussie s/s of mine who was around from about 1985 - 1995. here's a link to him (Kelly, that is) on allmusic if you're interested.
http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=11:9yen97l7krat

The CD I forgot to bring which I think a number of you might like is The Earlies, which is a trendy-ish mix of organic and synthetic sounds, with an overriding dreamy melodic quality to it.
Here's a link. Note: I suck at this linking stuff.
http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/record-reviews/e/earlies/these-were-the-earlies.shtml

Funny you should mention the Blow Monkeys, Derek. My parents recently cleaned out their basement and unearthed some hidden vinyl gems of mine from the mid-80s, among them the 12" singles for 'Digging Your Scene' and 'It Doesn't Have to Be that Way', both of which look as though they've been played a sum total of once each. I just downloaded the Labrador tracks so will listen to them on the journey home this afternoon and leave my feedback here soon.

Thanks for the BJM suggestions, Stuart. I managed to snag most of their back catalogue from their website, yesterday (kudos to Derek for spotting this) and listened to most of Take it from the Man! on my walk into work this morning (good morning for a long walk--just enough chill in the air to stave off perspiration but i digress...) . Think this album would be great to listen to on a Sunday afternoon (sorry Bri, I know you're all about Sunday morning tunes this days) in the dog days of summer, perhaps sitting on a back deck, drinking beer, think 'Between the Buttons' and 'Their Satanic Majesties Request' for Stones' influence placemarkers. Digging this scene for sure.

Any date in June is probably out for me as we're off to Paris for two weeks in mid-June and I'm gonna be in southern California at the very end of the month for a conference. July will probably be better as my travelling ratchets down a few notches in the summer months.

Also count me in for the jazz Derek....

Thanks for the tips and a cd club at your place in the hot weather (hopefully to come) would be great. You once mused about soon having the technology to do so up on the roof deck, which would be even greater.....
The new TSO schedule is out for next year and there are a number of things Im interested in. Sibelius Violin Concerto, Shostakovitch piano, cello and violin concertos, some John Adams, Lists piano concerto... Yvette and I are going to be going for the nose bleed seats this year. I didnt mind Brians seats at all, and as much as we found great seats closer this year, we are doing the spent too much money on the house penance.
Anyone interested in any of the above let me know and we can coordinate. You can do a pick 5 of your own choice which seems best to me. Im also open to other sugesstions....
s

Stuart, far be it from me to leave you hanging once again.

It's my day off today (yeah you prats probably think that's everyday for me) and I headed over to the small record store on McCaul Street called Penguin Music. My main reason for heading there was they are the only store in the city that I've seen carrying the Aussie band the Lucksmiths new CD. I picked up their last disc while down under a few years ago and I might have even played it at a CD club in the distant past.

The guy behind the desk was right into the band and said the new disc was fab. After flattering me on my choice he then proceeded, like all good salesmen, to try and sell me something else. He pulled off the shelf a disc by a Danish band called Labrador and said I should give it a listen on the deck. Having nothing else to do I listened to 4 or 5 tracks. Good disc, if a bit on the sweet side. If you like Camera Obscura, the Blow Monkeys, Stereolab etc, check out the band's website at:

http://www.labrador.dk/

Kyle I'm thinking you'll like these guys and perhaps Stuart. Brian and Marc check it out regardless.

One other note. I picked up the Jazz festival program today and I'd recommend that we check out (for those available) David Murray and the Gwo-Ka Masters. It's a free event on Friday June 24 at 4pm. Bit of a crappy time slot but hey it's free and their disc of last year is incredibly funky.

Another CD club in June suits me fine. I might even host if it forces me to stick around until the end of the night.

Well I guess Im greatfull that there was a bit of a rant at Kyles , since it has jump started the metabeats site again. I cant tell you how sick I was at seeing my last blog everytime I checked for signs of life. ( now that Ive said that Im sure no one will wright another blog for some time and I will be fated to live thru this again..)

Re BJM I have a couple discs. "their satanic majesties 2nd request" , which is pretty good stoner stonesesque (but more fucked with) messy rock. I prefer their more recent disc however, "and this is our music" which I find less repetitive and tighter....but along the same lines. YOu could also consider a recent 2 disc compilation. I dont think they merrit more then 1 or 2 discs or a couple dozen ripped tracks...but they are pretty great when you are in the mood for it.
s

With respect to the BJM if you head to their website they have made available almost their entire back catalogue on-line. They've had it there for more than a year so I don't think they'll be disappearing any time soon. Like their tunes a lot.

http://www.brianjonestownmassacre.com/mp3.php

The Beethoven/Schubert disc is indeed mine as I have the sleeve with no CD. I'm hoping that someone has the Rattle Sinfonietta CD as I don't seem to have it. It's not due back at the library for a few weeks.

I'm sure we played more and I just got lazy about keeping track. Two housekeeping notes: I have a library cd case for the classical piece (Sinfonietta) by Janacek and also a Beethoven/Schubert disc w/out the case. I think these are both yours, Derek but I could be wrong. Let me know as I'm sure the library disc needs to get back sometime soon.

Also, I've learned through my wife that the flower pot on our kitchen counter was indeed a hiacynth, as Marc had skillfully noted, and not a crocus, as Derek and I claimed. These links should put everyone's minds at ease:

Hyacinth
Crocus

We watched 'Dig!' this weekend, a documentary about the Dandy Warhols and Brian Jonestown Massacre. Even if you're not a big fan of either band, I think you'll find it fascinating to watch how two sets of musicians grapple with questions of creative integrity, what it means to be successful, and how to navigate the pitfalls of the music industry. And man, do they ever make different choices. Rent it so we can discuss it further (here or over beers).

I was unfamiliar with the music of BJM prior to seeing 'Dig!' but will soon be picking up some of their stuff. Kind of a layered, psychedelic jangly pop sound that seems to channel a late 60s vibe while still sounding quite new. Most of their catalogue is available at emusic.com so I will probably download it once my monthly alottment refreshes. Anyone own any? Thoughts, opinions, rants?

Personally i think a little hissyfit is a fine way to end off an evening of drinkin'!

Brian, as for the territory covered in the session, i have to agree with you...all i can say is i'm glad i managed to make it through MY stack! May i suggest that we try and ramp up the frequency of meetings just a touch. Since it seems to take three to four months to plan one, maybe we should start planning now. I personally would not be opposed to meeting in the end of June. Summer always seems to be so hard to get everyone together and then the next thing you know...

...and no one got around to playing this Archer Prewit two of you were going on about a few months ago...is it a must have?

Personally i think a little hissyfit is a fine way to end off an evening of drinkin'!

Brian, as for the territory covered in the session, i have to agree with you...all i can say is i'm glad i managed to make it through MY stack! May i suggest that we try and ramp up the frequency of meetings just a touch. Since it seems to take three to four months to plan one, maybe we should start planning now. I personally would not be opposed to meeting in the end of June. Summer always seems to be so hard to get everyone together and then the next thing you know...

...and no one got around to playing this Archer Prewit two of you were going on about a few months ago...is it a must have?

No probs Derek. Booze, movies, and music, sometimes a lethal combination. It's certainly made me want to see Vera Drake (though possibly not talk about it in a public forum).

Kyle, I can't quite believe we only did three rounds each, but I guess we did get a late start. Does make me wonder why I brought about 15 disks. Hmmmm...maybe it's time I started a CD club in which I'm the only member.

Thanks again for hosting. Look forward to the next one.

As far as omissions go you failed to berate me for behaving like an ass last night. My apologies to one and all (esp. Kyle) for leaving in such an unruly fashion. Perhaps the book club will be jealous when they hear how passionate our discussions can become when it involves music and other artistic matters.

Thanks to all for coming out last night. Here is the unofficial list of what was brought/played:

Brian

Micah P. Hilson and the Gospel of Progress - Micah P. Hinson
Black Mountain – Black Mountain
Colin Blundstone – One Year

Derek

ta del lugat - Dungen
Lennie Tristano/The New Tristano – Lennie Tristano
Thunder, Lightning, Strike - The Go Team

Kyle

The Grind Date – De La Soul
Bright Eyes – Digital Ash & Wide Awake It’s Morning
Wheedle’s Groove – The best of Seattle Soul Funk 1965-75
Mercury Rev/The Decemberists

Marc

Jeen O'brien "can't get it out of my head"

Stuart

I am a bird now - Anthony & the Johnsons
The Very Best of – Maria Callas
The Man Comes Around – Johnny Cash

Let me know if there are any mistakes/omissions.

Well, I seem to be able to access metabeats again, so I offer the following observations: Arcade Fire has somehow grabbed the cover of Time magazine. Inside is a whole section on the Canadian "Indie" scene. This coming after the Sunday NY Times articles seems pretty impressive. The question that remains is whether all this pproves to be the "kiss of death" to them or whether a great band like this can actually become commercially sucessfull when it gets its due exposure. I had the startling discovery last week of switching thru radio stations on the car and hearing the Arcade Fire on (you wont believe this) Chum FM .......
I suspect all these things are just abberations and the likes of Brian Adams will still rule the airwaves. Still it makes you hope.....
yours truly
the over the top optomist

April 14 works for me.

any resolution on a date for the cd club happening behind the scenes, or are we looking at booking something in late june? (2006) ...like i said, i'm good for just about any date

She was also in China Moon, another moody (if predictable) thriller with Ed Harris which I enjoyed. She was a good tragic figure for a few years. And beyooteeful too. I saw Blink about ten years ago - loved the mood of the piece, and the music, and made a point of buying the soundtrack (which I never do), and then one of the Drovers records. I'll dig the CD's out...play it for you at the CD club.

And kudos to you for the City Girl choice - a great song. I've only started listening to it in the last month or so, but love it.

Re Gian's latest list - I took a look, and am, not surprisingly, not impressed. The overlap with the as yet unpublished (also undecided, unconsidered, and unexistent) BD 50 are 4 strong winds, Heart of Gold, Suzanne, The Weight, Universal Soldier, Echo Beach, Rise Up, and definitely Coax Me. A number of other goodies on the CBC list but not good enough for my Top 50. Hey, they had a chance to put on Pagliaro and they blew it.

What ever happened to Madeleine Stowe? She was in some decent films in the early '90s...Short Cuts, Last of the Moochachas (okay, Mohicans, but Sarah prefers pronouncing it thusly so I follow), 12 Monkeys....and then just sort of disappeared. I enjoyed 'Blink' (though the best blind woman thriller has to go to 'Wait Until Dark' w/ Audrey Hepburn) but I don't remember the song at all. Did you see it recently? Do you own the album? If so, I'd like to hear it again.

And one more movie song - from the little-seen but quite excellent thriller "Blink" (1994 - Michael Apted...great rental), there are three memorable songs by Chicago based Celtic rockers "The Drovers", who appear in the film as well. Each of them is good in its own way, though my fave is the opener "The Boys and the Babies", energetic trad-Celtic beat mixed with an angsty-punk vocal, and a rollicking trombone to carry it along. And it didn't hurt to have a beautiful, blind (well, not really) Madeleine Stowe playing violin in the band. Ar.

'Play Misty for Me'! What a great film, and a sad reminder that I still do not own a cool black convertible porsche like mr. eastwood drives through monterey in that flick. Great song as well.

A more recent film that I forgot to mention was 'Lost in Translation', which featured 'City Girl' by Kevin Shields of My Bloody Valentine (as well as some older gems from MBV and Jesus & Mary Chain).

On a purely administrative note, I have to change the next music club date from april 7th to, well can we do the following thursday, april 14th? I'm hoping that won't be too big of a problem for everyone.

Also, I didn't get a chance to listen to it all over the weekend but I thought I'd invite your comments on CBC's 50 Tracks . Here's the twist: Though no doubt there will be much teeth-gnashing and the urge to lambast Jian et al for what is clearly a flawed list, I'm asking you to point out the tracks you thought were good picks.

Thanks for the tips Brian,
I do have most of the Parsons, Byrds stuff, but Ill check out the other stuff (i,ve read numerous refs to the New riders)
s

Another quick thought on movie songs - Roberta Flack's "First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" from Play Misty For Me.

Interesting that you should mention Gene Clark, because I've been going through a small GC phase recently myself - though just from Kazaa downloads so it's a bit hit and miss. Re second tier artists / records, I do like a lot of it, but I've always assumed that you knew all of the same music. I'll pretend for now that you don't.....Some of the thoughts that come into my head are: start with the Byrds. Certainly "Sweetheart of the Rodeo", the first album on which Gram Parsons joined in, and then get your hands on "Ballad of Easy Rider" if you haven't already - it's a beautiful country rock record. Their reunion record from 1973 (cleverly entitled "The Byrds") is not nearly as good but has a few gorgeous folk/country rock (FCR from this point forward) tracks, particularly two Gene Clark numbers ("Changing Heart" and "Full Circle").

If you haven't worked over the early Grateful Dead records you should - I'm sure you have...but Workingman's Dead and American Beauty are quintessential. A lot of my other fave FCR artists come out of that San Francisco scene. New Riders of the Purple Sage made some very appealing FCR in the early seventies - I own two albums, the first one and the "Panama Red" one, and they're both very engaging and well worth a listen. Loved Moby Grape, and although it's not as purely country as Gene Clark etc, a lot of it is very bluesy-country and fits the bill. I have a great box set that I can lend you. I know you know all the Springfield stuff but for those following along at home it's all excellent. Another record (well, records) I would highly recommend is the Beau Brummels "Bradley's Barn", as well as its predecessor "Triangle", from '67 or so. The BB's are best known these days for some light pop around 1964 ("Laugh Laugh" and others), but they made two great country-rock records a few years later. The Youngbloods (you know "Get Together") also made a couple of very nice FCR records in the late sixties as well.

Re Stills etc, his work with Manassas is really very good, particularly the first record (there are two I think). And re solo records, I picked up some related stuff last year - the first solos for David Crosby (If I could Only Remember My Name) and Roger McGuinn (self-titled) and they were both very very good. Not FCR strictly speaking but diverse and interesting.

Enough for now...Any that you want to mention?

Okay, I cringed but I kept on reading, and then I thought I should write something, lest your post be greeted with that horrible wall of silence we've all experienced from time to time on this blog. Though I'm not a great fan of country rock, I'm open minded and in possession of a turntable so I encourage you to bring some Gene Clark and Steven Stills to the next cd/music club, Stuart.

I asked for submissions for music from films and then quietly buggered off for the rest of the week, which I will blame as always on my hectic travel sched. Since I'm back in the office for the rest of the month, I have no such excuse for the next week or so.

There are probably some good all time greats like Mrs. Robinson or Night Fever that I could mention but these seem a little obvious so I'll go with some more recent choices:

-Jaan Pehechaan Ho - Mohammed Rafi (‘Ghost World’) - great way to start off a film and set the tone
-Trees Lounge – Hayden (‘Trees Lounge’) - while it appeared only at the end, it seemed to sum up the general feeling of the film and the slack desperation of Steve Buscemi's character
-Fight the Power – Public Enemy (‘Do the Right Thing’) - again, an opening credits sequence, set to a young woman dancing, signaled the forthcoming bombastic and righteous storyline to follow
-Miss Misery - Elliot Smith ('Good Will Hunting') - there were a few more of his tracks sprinkled throughout the film but this was the one that was nominated for an award and was consistent with the turmoil and tension between Matt Damon and Minnie Driver's characters (how do we keep working this woman into the blog....)

Gotta say I love the Lulu pick, would agree that most of the Tarantino soundtracks are solid and that there's a big difference between a song that is tacked onto the soundtrack (ie. U2's "Hold Me Thrill Me Kiss Me Kill Me" from Batman Forever, which is a decent enough song, but had nothing to do with the movie--not that its inclusion would have improved the film as a whole) and one that enhances the scene in which it plays (ie. the original music by György Ligeti and Jocelyn Pook in the underappreciated 'Eyes Wide Shut', without which, the nerve-wracking creepiness in almost every scene wouldn't have been half as palpable).

This will only be of interest to some of you, however, I have found myself listening to a Gene Clark cd I bought a few years ago and loving it to death. Its called white light. Clark is ex Byrds and has been a principle guy in the early country rock, (if you just cringed stop reading here),a founder some think. I have also been listening to Steven stills first record (self titled) which I picked up last winter ($5 for an old LP), and loving it too. Stills is not unrelated to this whole genre perhaps coming more from the folk point of view , but also county influenced. In short, I was wondering if any of you had any recommendations for this second tier level of artists in this genre (ie crosby, nash, messina, other ex birds, etc ) . I think the public has missed out on some truly great stuff..... ( I realise this blog will probably be greeted by a great wall of silence and thats Ok..)

Or Clint Eastwood's score for Million Dollar baby. (Yes, he composed it. The man is a genius. But I digress.)

I assumed Kyle was looking for songs that were written for the movie, and not necessarily Oscar candidates or winners, thank God...so my first few choices, more to follow, were:

(1) To Sir With Love - Lulu
(2) Alfie - Cilla Black (c. Burt Bacharach)
(3) Georgy Girl - The New Seekers

All set in swinging London in the sixties. Obviously a fave period of mine.

There aren't too many films where I can recall an original song being a big part of my enjoyment of the film. The music that tends to make an impact with me is incidental music scored for the entire film such as Jon Brion's "Punch Drunk Love", Thomas Newman's "American Beauty" or Yann Tiersen's "Amelie" to name 3 recent examples. Songs that register with me tend to be older tracks that have been used in scenes where they make perfect sense as opposed to being tacked on to add some extra value to the CD that accompanies the film. So with that in mind some of my favourite movie/song moments are:

"Son of a Preacher Man" - Pulp Fiction
"Stuck in the Middle With You" - Reservoir Dogs
"Lust for Life" - Trainspotting
"Sing Sing Sing" - Bright Young Things
"Moon River" - Breakfast at Tiffany's"
"Everything You Do is a Balloon" - Morvern Callar


And one that still resonates to this day "Man in Motion" from St. Elmo's Fire.

Kyle do the songs have to have been Oscar winners (dammit! theres always somethin about me and rules....)IF so I can only think of one song in my lifetime that I thought worthy, and believe it or not its Philadelphia by Springsteen. This song is unlike pretty much anything he has ever done and tied in beautifully with the film itself. It supported the movie rather then being a distraction from it. The film I thought was the first and last really good film Hanks has ever done. Ive never understood his appeal at all. This film runs the risk of being shot down for sentimentalising such a serious topic (AIDS) however I bought into it completly and the film and song have remained forever linked since, which is I guess the whole point of an "oscar" song....hold on.... i think our boy elliott smith had an oscar song with miss misery? ....also....I think Shaft- Issac Hayes was an oscar winner , and aside from political correctness issues ....man that song still knocks my socks off.
s

Bah humbug. I think the difference between our opinions starts a lot further back than this particular film - it's about the American film tradition. The whole aesthetic in fact. Your reference to Hallmark Movie of the week is quite appropriate - but only in that light. It's naturally naive, cliched-sounding at times, but when done well, which this was, it can still resonate. It's a style I can enjoy - a similar film that comes to mind in tone and allegorical style is Shawshank Redemption, love it or hate it (I actually didn't like it that much). Anyway, gotta say I found MDB very moving, which means I had fun, and you didn't. So nah nah nah nah nah. Guess I'm just a softy.

Sorry to harp on about movies but MDB was as riveting as any other Sunday night Hallmark movie of the week, which is to say not at all. Some of the scenes previously mentioned were cringe inducingly bad. And apart from these scenes what did we have but more Rocky'esque scenes of hyper-speed boxing and wise tired old words exchanged by Clint and Morgan. I didn't buy into it one bit. About as moving and relevant as "The Other Side of the Mountain".

Great idea for a list....I'm on it. I'll start with the sixties.

Re MDB...you say contrvied, I say thematically consistent. Not to say that there weren't a few trite moments (you've identified the worst of them, though I don't agree about the "MF beating the shit out of the punk"), but I found the mood to be brilliantly evoked, the inevitable sadness profound, and the build up to a few critical moments agonizingly well done.

way to embrace your inner youth, bri, or alternatively, your dirty old man's penchant for the young and nubile (welcome to the club).

have to say though, that i wasn't as impressed with either 'million dollar baby' or clint's performance. to me, it seemed like more of a showcase for his teeth-gritting, lone wolf tough guy act more than anything, and found the story as a whole a little too contrived, especially with its moments of catharsis (morgan freeman punching the lippy boxer, hilary swank telling off her greedy mother). i'll grant you hillary swank's oscar worthy performance, though i always find her equine features a tad unsettling.

never saw 'the aviator' or 'ray', mostly because i find biopics tiresome...they all seem to follow the same narrative arc (obscure guy shocks the system, rises to fame, runs into problems, has fight with wife who breaks an item of furniture, finds redemption). all more or less variations on the story of christ, i guess. never saw the mel gibson movie either, a recut version of which was recently re-released. not sure if i'm into prolonged scenes of torture without any kind of self-referential tarantino-esque humour accompanying it.

since we're on the topic of movies, and since i mentioned some of the other films that were nominated for oscars this year, and since this is a music blog and since we've been without a list query for awhile and since...okay okay i'll get to the point. the 'best original song' category always causes me to gnash my teeth and wail because of the piss poor quality of the nominees year in year out. but clearly, there have been some great songs from great films and not so great films so i ask you, what are your top 5 songs from a film, alltime?

Yeah!! What? Oh right, Minnie Driver. Getting on a bit on wouldn't you say...why, she must be mid-thirties?? At least. Wow.

re Shins, I'll still go. Love hanging out with the OC gang. Such nice skin.

And very belatedly, I saw "Million Dollar Baby" on the weekend and thought it was very (surprisingly) strong. Very American cinematic, with a powerful, operatic sort of a script. Clint was outstanding in it - and I don't use that term lightly, he's a fucking terrible actor most of the time...and I'm a fan anyway - and Hillary was even better. Amazing range she has...she gets my nod (well, this week wnyway) for best female actor working today (sorry Derek, I like Samantha Morton too).

Derek maybe you can splain the Ms Driver thang. I saw a picture of what I took to be the actress in Now claiming her band was coming to the Drake as you mention. Is this really the actress, if so does she have any merit other then her beauty )Not that theres anything wrong with going to the Drake for that reason alone...)

didn't realize it was an all-ages gig. maybe you can get minnie to belt out 'kissing the lipless' or better yet [insert joke about kissing her].

Since we're doing lists these days:

#1 - I just read the bleedin' listing last night
#2 - Yes its a good album (maybe two?) but $21??
#3 - Going to concerts south of the Gardiner is just so 90's
#4 - It's an all ages show which means it will be full of kids who just dig them because they heard them on the O.C.
#5 - I'm saving my money to see the divine Ms. Driver at Lee's a week later

okay, since my last post seemed to slam the doors shut on any conversation, let me pose this question:

how come no one told me that the shins were coming on april 17th?

my excuse for not knowing is that i'm never in the effing country. what are your excuses?

now that the smoke has cleared, let me chime in to say:

1) Thursday April 7th is a go for the next cd club meeting at my place, directions to follow as we approach that date
2) i'm in for the spinatra or whatever the hell was suggested, unjustly or otherwise, by mr. doyle (will follow up the link and spelling in due course, bri)
3) i don't mind if stuart picks the next classical piece and in fact will happily grant him my turn in the rotation as well
4) marc, you're this close to having your blogging priviledges suspended if you keep clicking the publish post button everytime your screen doesn't load
5) actually, i don't have a fifth point but thought there should be one anyway

am in seattle for the next couple of days and may try to see m.i.a. tonight, if they still have tickets available. will be away for the bclub on wednesday so have fun at bettys and enjoy the wings you bastages who will be in attendance.

Hey marc, at least you didnt get dissed 4 times in a row. I thought you were just trying to really make your point.... OK Apologies to Brian, I didnt realize Derek picked the last one. Never-the-less I'd like a shot at picking the next one after Janacek , if thats OK w you Brian, Ill probably need the next 3 months anyway just to find something you guys dont have already....
yours humbly (and suitably chastised!)
s

OK boys, the 7th is officially fine for me. We haven't got the go ahead from our host yet, so I'm assuming it's tentative for now.

As for classical selection, Stuart, stop trying to control everybody.

...and apparently i have a propensity for repeating myself!...not exactly sure how that happened; repeatedly said it could not publish and then went ahead and posted them anyway...boy do i i feel silly!

Stuart's propensity for rule making must be a backlash to the Ontario Building Code compliance examinations he is being forced to write...so Stuart, what's the setback from the sidewall to the lot line on your proposed classical music survey?

Stuart's propensity for rule making must be a backlash to the Ontario Building Code compliance examinations he is being forced to write...so Stuart, what's the setback from the sidewall to the lot line on your proposed classical music survey?

Stuart's propensity for rule making must be a backlash to the Ontario Building Code compliance examinations he is being forced to write...so Stuart, what's the setback from the sidewall to the lot line on your proposed classical music survey?

Stuart's propensity for rule making must be a backlash reaction to the exams he is writing for Ontario Building Code compliance...it's all about the rules you see!...so Stuart, what's the setback from the side wall to the lot line on that classical music survey?

First things first. Yes Stuart you are out of your fuckin mind. Secondly I would normally be the last guy to come to Brian's defence (after all he is indefensible) but he did not select the classical music piece that we listened to several months back. The Honneger was selected by yours truly.

Janacek sounds good to me.

Count me in for the janecek but.....I beleive this makes 2 choices in a row for you brian, and as I am a democratically minded fellow (unlike your passive fascist character)......for the next time...... I vote for a rotation on this classical music survey that we are doing.
I realise Brian and Derek have large amounts of classical so they or anyone may veto suggestions that are not new or interesting. I know I know rules again......
what do you guys think? am I out of my f...mind?
s

Here's a link to a description of the Sinfonietta if you're interested.
http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=42:29360~T1

Archer Who?

OK, you smug bastard (sorry, lovely smug bastard), you got one of 'em. But there are many many more than that. Well, five. Anyway, I think you need to hustle out and buy a few new ones to keep up.

Is everyone on board for the Janacek?

It's just possible that the 7th is less than perfect for me. Given Stu's issues we might have to move it to the next week (I've got my M-I-L visiting from Oz that week). I'll confirm the date later today.

The 7th is OK for me, but not sooner as I am studying for an exam which takes place on the afternoon of the 7th. ( I will be in the mood for drinking after this so dont count on any usefull dissertations on music .....like I usually provide??)
s

guy, guys!...where's the love...show a bit of da' love!

Hey buddy bring it on!! Hopefully you've got more than the latest Archer Prewitt in your arsenal. Sign me up for the 7th.

once again, at the risk of sounding like nothing ever happens in my life, yeah the 7th is fine for m, as are any of the 4th through 8th...from now on you might just want to assume that i can make it...how sad is that!

Oh for the love of Pete how many tickets can one man have?? Time you settled down like the rest of us and snoozed on the couch in the evenings. Highly recommended. I'm a little sleepy now come to think of it.

I just had a successful Soundscapes outing and am feeling the need to duke it out with Derek manna a manno - number, quality, variety, I got it all.

So, reluctantly, and with the full undertsanding that multiple beers will be bought by the Scotch Man at the next opportunity for his lack of consideration, I suggest we look at the week of April 4 - 8. How about Thursday the seventh?

Sorry to put a spanner in the works boys but I wont be able to attend a CD club prior to April 3. Feel free to go ahead without me although I know that the music I planned to bring kicks ass. Well it's better than the new Jennifer Lopez album at any rate.

Precious little purchased by me in the past couple of months, Kylie. I need the excuse of the CD Club to go and lighten my wallet a little bit. Definitely a few things I'm curious about right now. I'd tell you but.....

i may scoff, scorn, or mock and i frequently deride but i never sneer, stuart.

and i'm in for april 1st. we can have the meeting at my place, say around 7:30pm. i'll email the details as we get closer to the date. i'm also fine with Janacek's Sinfonietta (thank god for copy&pasting functionality--you typed that, bri?)

anyone pick up any interesting music lately, apart from obvious solo projects from lead singers of bands that were cool 16 years ago (note to sw: this officially qualifies as a 'dig')?

'the digital urn for a digital age' or whatever its called by bright eyes is decent but doesn't exactly rock my work. i'm told the more acoustic release is better. is this true? i'm enjoying the latest 'stars' disc. also, anyone catch the new beck tunes on 'the oc' hier soir?

Frankly,
I am just so happy not to have Kyles sneering email to me (on Ian Brown), everytime I check for life on metabeats that .... Ill agree to anything. April 1 is fine for me....

April 1st???????...are you trying to pull a fast one on me?...ok, the 1st will do just fine. I think i have to get a life...Evidently i do not have enough scheduling conflicts.

How's the 1st for everyone?

No can do on the 31st I'm afraid. I have tickets for a show that night. And the 30th if I'm not mistaken.

I'm good for the 31st.

OK boys, seriously...I know we're capable of this......when's the CD club? I'll throw out a date to get the ball rolling. Thursday March 31st?

Going to hit the shops tomorrow to buy "CD Club music".

Are we going to try a classical piece again this time? If so, I nominate Janacek's Sinfonietta.

Ian Brown reminds you of Oasis?! No, no no no no! Oasis reminds you of the Stone Roses!!!

Sorry to italicize there, Stuart but you had it coming... I'm not sure any band ever lives up to the hype but the first Stone Roses album is at the very least, one of the better pop releases in the last 20 years. Revisit it. Now!

Also, my apologies for my recent absence from the blogosphere and my non-committal on a cd club date but 1) I've been really busy with work and travelling like crazy 2) i have been itching and scratching for the past 6 days due to an unforeseen and wholly irritating allergic reaction I'm having due to, what is presumed at this point but cannot definitively blamed on, new fabric softener sheets, and 3) i'm waiting to hear back from some clients before i can firm up my schedule for the end of march. Are there any dates the week of March 28 to April 1st that won't work for any of you?

Regarding the NYT Magazine article and the quote that you posted, Derek...

It's a rule of thumb that marketing people are completely full of shit but in this case, I think Ms. Fishman has her head completely up her ass. While I don't dispute the usefulness of demographic segmentation, attributing the lack of enthusiasm for a Motley Crue revival among my cohert to bad parenting and schooling is a bit much. I'd like to think it's because generationally, we're less lame than the Boomers, whose endless evocations of Woodstock and 60s nostaglia become more grating with each 'For What it's Worth' soundtracked, 'bombs dropping on Vietnam and prostesters putting flowers in gun' montage that crops up on tv every other week.

But I think the main reason for the low attendance at these nostalgic tours is mainly a numbers game. There are a lot more Boomers than GenXers so the market is just smaller for the kind of self-absorbed, remember-when-we-were-cool navel-gazing that would precipitate the purchase of a Billy Idol revival ticket.

On another note, has anybody heard any music from a NY band called, "Brazilian Girls"? I almost picked up the disc a few weeks ago after listening to a few tracks and reading a lot of hype but was put off by the cd cover. Is this wrong? Am I shallow? You can see what I mean here. You can listen to them here.

Hope to have some dates suggested soon.

Bill bought a cd into work recently that his university girls have been listening to.-Ian Brown -solarized. ( popular with the kids). I dig it baby, sort of like Oasis but less formulaic at least to my mind. Also a bit seventies influenced, which is never a bad thing for me.
I checked out some of his other albums on allmusic and found him to be the singer of stone roses, which is odd, because as much as I have tried ( and I have put some serious effort into it) I just dont get what all the fuss is about the stone roses.
Maybe some of you could let me know how his work with them is so much better ( as I predict will be your response) then his latter solo stuff. or if you like his solo stuff, what is good?

Perhaps Kyle was just kidding about the next CD club or maybe he's just tongue tied as a result of his Downy induced affliction. At any rate I just hate to see Stuart left dangling in the breeze twice over and I am long overdue to post something.

In catching up on my Sunday NY times reading I came across an article from 2 weeks ago that dealt with the resurgence(?) of 80's bands and their music. Can't actually say that the re-emergence of Tears for Fears, Billy Idol and Motley Crue is taking up much of my headspace but that was partially the gist of the article. One particular segment in the article did stand out for me and that was only because I thought it was entirely ridiculous. I will lay it out here for your edification and comments.

The woman quoted below is speaking in regards to 30 somethings not turning up in droves for the new work put out by these aging musicians.

According to Ann Fishman, president of Generational Targeted Marketing, the problem's not with the music, it's with the memories. The fans from Generation X, she says, "are not particularly grounded in their youth."

"Would you be grounded in something where you had divorced parents, poor schooling?" she asks. "We presume nostalgia is a great selling tool. It is to the baby boomers. It's not to Gen X. The history of their youth has forced them to grow up more quickly. Nostalgia is not necessarily something that's going to move them ahead. They enjoy the music of their youth but it's not a need."

What is this woman talking about? Normally I'd just read right through paragraphs like these without a second thought but I just couldn't ignore the ramblings presented here. The only thing I partially agree with is the last sentence. Yes the music of my youth (for me 1976-1983) was enjoyable but probably not a necessity at this stage of my life. But isn't that true of most intelligent, maturing, and responsive music lovers?

I also did not realize that a fine education and a solid family life were the keys to my subsequent realization that "Pass the Dutchie" was indeed a musical milestone.

And finally weren't we always being told that for Gen X'ers growing up was the last thing on our rather empty agenda? Weren't we the group that was happily postponing all the pleasures that come with responsible adult life? Apparently we were mislead.

I guess that was a real conversation stopper.....

name your date....
s

Kylie - I'm good for late March / early April. Let the buying frenzy begin.

re: Bright Eyes. I bought Sarah one of the discs last weekend, the more acoustic of the two, "I'm Wide Awake, it's Morning" but haven't listened to it yet. I saw the 'Digital Ash in a Digital Urn' on sale for $9.95 US yesterday so I might as well pick it up and we can all have a listen at the next cd club. You're welcome to rip the tracks off either disc to check it out.

I'm not around much these next few weeks (and am fact, not around at present) but would like to host a cd club towards the end of March. Are there any dates that would not work for anyone, say the weeks of March 20 to April 1?

I knew you'd be all over that one Stu. I also love Pag's "Some Sing Some Dance". Didn't you say you had a disk (or a few) of 70's tracks that you were playing at the office? I might be ready for that.

Brian. one of my favorite singles " lovin you aint so easy, I ,in fact, have the album. Which also has the great track "rainshowers" you know "rain-rain-rain showwwers.....I previewed Bright eyes at soundscapes and Ill pass, way too sweet for me (which is saying something!)
s

Oh sure, why not? Not like me to turn down an offer to buy a disk, even something that strikes me as puerile. I'm in.

Can't say how the music is, having not heard any of it yet but on several occasions on the weekend I had both discs in my grubby little mitts and just couldn't pull the trigger. I just didn't want to feel like I was succumbing to the tidal wave of hype that has surrounded these records.

Having said that I'm still extremely curious and if anyone wants to go halvsies on the discs that would work for me. That way I just pay for one but get to rip and listen to both of them. Let me know if anyone is interested in said arrangement.

I downloaded a few Bright Eyes' tracks on the weekend - I can only ignore the critical groundswell for so long - and it sounded to me like over-earnest cutsie crap. This based on about five minutes combined listening, mind you. Before I write it off and move onto the next flavour of the month, is anybody listening to and liking it? And if so, which songs?

Thanks for the tip Stu, but much as I love Soundscapes it's not in my nature to order/wait for music I'm interested in to save a few bucks. I just don't have it in me. Kind of like the way I drink beer.

Kyle, re fave Canadian tracks - interesting time to be choosing since CBC/Gomeshi are re-visiting the 50 tracks concept with a Canadian skew.

Thinking of songs that have slid into relative obscurity....

One I've always liked (strong childhood/nostalgia element) is "Me, You, and Mexico", by Edward Bear (1969) - you guys will likely think that is shit - and (this was played by Jay Ferguson on last week's Gomesh-orama and gave me chills I remembered and loved it so much) "Lovin' you Ain't Easy" by Michel Pagliaro. Gorgeous.

Couple of comments,
1) Soundscapes has proven to be the cheapest by far for classical recordings. I picked up Beethovens cello/piano sonatas by Perenyi for $35 there, vs $6 and $10 more at sams and HMV, I ordered the new Berg/ Britten violin concertos that were $26 and $28 at sams and HMV and it was only $19.99 at soundscapes (it took 3 weeks to arrive). Greg sais he can get pretty much anything we want as long as we dont mind the wait.
2) Kyle - I too am truly lovin that Kos cd , it has been constantly getting play at our office. Anyone half way interedted in this stuff should pick it up.

My Favourite Canadian Albums of the Past 20 Years:

- Labour Day – Spirit of the West
- Harvest Moon – Neil Young –
- Twice Removed – Sloan
- Poses – Rufus Wainwright
- The Electric Version – The New Pornographers
- Everything I Long For – Hayden
- You Forgot it in People -- Broken Social Scene

I didn’t include the Arcade Fire or K-Os because they’re still kind of new and I’m not sure if I’ll be as gaga a year from now as I am presently.

There are some glaring omissions. I’m not a big fan of the Rheostatics, Rush, or Alanis Morissette so my list is far from quintessential. I’m probably more familiar with songs from the 70s than complete albums so I’d be willing to scrape my memory glands for a list of the greatest Canadian ditties. What are the best/your favourite Canadian tracks of all time?

Sorry Destroyer record listed below is Streethawk a seduction....I really should proof read...
s

I would agree with the Band, Sloans' twice removed, Neils Harvest, Daniels' Acadie as all faves of mine and I'd add in no particular order:
1) Neil Yonge's - On the Beach (side 2 being my favorite single LP side period)
2)Gord Lightfoots - Summerside of life (side 1 being my favorite single LP side period)
3) Joni Mitchels Ladies of the canyon ( the perfect rainy day record)
4) L. Cohens -Songs of ...( the perfect late nite by yourself and a little wasted)
5) Bruce Cochburn- Stealing Fire.. (still hangs together really well notwithstanding that 80's production)
6)Spirit of the West- (Faithlift) (perfect mix of celtic and alt rock)
7)Blue Rodeo- 5 days in July (Keelers depiction of standing under that streetlight as the snow falls after you have fucked up has to be the quintesential depiction of the canadian moment, (mine repeatedly anyways))
8)Lowest of the low- Shakepere- ( to make you forget what you fucked up - see item 7 above)
9)Destroyer- Bejars glam rock twisted lyrics opus that has melody and musical twists that never tire from repeated listens)
10)Neils -Rust never sleeps ( for making me survive my youth)

Some excellent choices Marc. I love that Art Bergman record, and the previous one (with "Empty House" on it). I also liked the Inbreds "Winning Hearts" record - it might make my top ten - and was a pretty big fan of the Doughboys' "Crush" before it went multi platinum and got played every thirty seconds for two years, and the Guess Who's "Canned Wheat shouldn't be wholly ignored (thought go ahead if you want to). Also Hardship Post's "Somebody Spoke" was a fave of mine for about six months in the mid nineties.

Stuart, did you want to extol the virtues of Canadian folk? You're a little more sensitive than I.

Top 10 Canadian albums in no particular order

Neil Young – Decade, I know, that’s cheatin’ but as you say, an argument can be made for the top 5 albums being all Neil so here we have 6 solid sides all in one package…with a poster to boot!

Joni Mitchell – Court and Spark, I have only recently picked up Blue and it may well overtake c & b as my fav. Joni. It’s interesting that my first two picks transplanted themselves to places other than Canada.

Tragically Hip – Up To Here, the band still young and edgy…and so quintessentially Canadian

Art Bergman – Sexual Roulette, so dark and angry and largely overlooked

Blue Rodeo – Outskirts, was this album the birth of a new Canadian music scene?

Daniel Lanois – Acadie, brings a modern edge and interpretation to very strong folk (French) roots…haunting at times

Robbie Robertson – solo debut, admittedly not very Canadian sounding at times

Leonard Cohen – The Future (1992) nobody says “get naked” like Lenny. I find this work to strongest when listened to with an understanding of his earlier writings. Here we have a great artist with a very respectable end to his career.

Arcade Fire – Funeral …I know, I know, it’s far to early to be calling this one of the all time great pop/rock albums but it’s a great representation of what great things might be on the horizon for mod. Rock

Broken Social Scene – You Forgot it in People, Again it’s a little preme to be calling it a classic but I still love it.

There you have it. Not a bad representation of 4 decades in CDN rock

People, people, people. Four days without a blog. Four lonely days. Quiet and lonely. Four. I'll be fine.

OK, re the much ballyhooed Brian Doyle Best Canadian albums of all time...was that my imagination or did I hear a collective gasp of excitement?

Here they are:

1 - Harvest - Neil Young. I expounded on this at the Vino Espanol Noce but am prepared to argue it again. But it's obvious, so figure it out. A case could be made for the top five all being Neil Young.

2 - Sloan - Twice Removed. Best Sloan album by far if you ask me (didn't you?). How is it they've become (almost) a parody of themselves?

3 - Circle C - Great eponymous angst-rock album from Vancouver-based group in the early nineties. Only album they released and you'll likely never find it anywhere (helpful eh?) - I'll bring it along to the next music club.

4 - The Band - Music From Big Pink. Phenomenal songs from start to finish, and played with a beautiful looseness that has inspired musicians ever since.

5 - Hayden - Skyscraper National Park. My favourite album of his - I love this guy - though I think a compilation of his best songs is better than any one album, unlike some artists.

Done for now.....and expecting this to generate some excitement.

In the unlikely event that nobody cares, perhaps I can entice you to consider (and blog on) the Best English albums of all time. Or is that the same as the best albums of all time?

No wait, Dylan's a Yank. And REM. And Nirvana. The Pixies too. Somebody stop me....

Great post Marc. And Stuart, that's a nice shirt, it brings out the colour in your nipples.

It's true that there's a little bit of spoiled childness lurking behind the lamentation that an artist can't consistently produce stellar work. Okay, you won the Nobel Prize for literature, went into hiding to avoid death threats that were a reaction to your art, and continued to write moving fiction that seamlessly melds Eastern and Western storytelling traditions with humour and candor but...what have you done for me lately, Mr. Rushdie?

You asked, “What gives us the right to expect intellectual immortality of them when we so often dream of not having to work so hard at what it is we do? “ and you’re right, it is unfair. But I guess because I find what a musician, visual artist, or writer does is far more interesting than what I do, I expect a little more. There's also a precedent that the artist sets with his baby.

I have to back up Stuart's critique of your claim that art was never about wealth. Were it not for the patronage of some very wealthy people, there would be precious few paintings hanging in the great galleries of the world. Agree that any worthwhile artistic effort is not going to be motivated by commercial concerns but the impact of money, and the realization by some that compromising one's standards may lead to an increase in sales (hello Treble Charger, Liz Phair) is a very real phenomenom. What I find most frustrating is the lack of commercial success of really great bands relative to the success of the countless braying jackasses (Simpson sisters, minute 14 just ticked by) whom I am subjected to every time I open a paper, turn on a radio, or turn on a television.

All this talk of JS gets me thinking not about Johann Sebastian but Jeremy Sandell...how come he never posts? Gotta send him another invite.

Thanks for the jazz lists, Brian and Derek. I had that Mobley disc in my hand a few weeks ago and decided not to buy it, for no reason in particular. Clearly, that was an idiotic decision that should be rectified in the near future.

Hope to see you all very soon, white teeth stained pink by multiple glasses of Spanish red.

I think you are right Stu, when you say that you can't point to any one condition that will produce great art...if you could then we would probably loose much of the mystique and wonderment that surrounds it; maybe we would all be creating it if one would identify that magic touch.

...and you are right about the socio eco comment, there are countless examples when you start to think about it.

Interesting, when you start to think the pressures of producing "the next great piece of art" and relating that to the pressures of producing art when you are the progeny of a great artist...Jacob Dylan, Sofia Copola, any one of a given Bach's etc. ...just try and be true to yourself!!! ...yeah right.

Phew, lots of great points marc, I dont know how you guys can put such effort into blogging, I seem to find it hard to focus on just reading these lengthy dissertations. ( since no one has replied to marc yet I think I am not alone???)That said, a few things filtered through my addled brain, reading this marc, ...there is a new controversial book out about the history of western music, ( I may have mentioned this to some of you so forgive my repetition), and in it, ( having only read the book review and forgetting the authors name),it purports to draw a strong link between the artist and their socio economic context. For example , contrary to a point of marcs', some famous artists like Chopin, were wealthy and catered to from birth and lived in what we would consider stardom from inception, yet he still produced this great body of work. Just goes to show that there are holes in all our theries and that you cant pin down artistic impulses to any one set of rules. I do believe hartily with marc that we expect far too much from our artists and I think that was the thrust of my first reaction to Brians original comment, ( marc expressed it much more eloquently)...
s

Once again, long overdue…

Three billion monkeys stroking away at their keyboards… is it any wonder that some of them are going to come up with a few great ideas now and then?

I have been thinking long and hard on this topic, and the more I reflect upon it, the more closely I relate it to our society as a whole. How different is the plight of the artist from the struggles of the banker, the politician, the scientist or the schoolteacher. We all have moments of relative greatness and moments we would rather have wiped from our hard drives. Why is it we have come to expect so much from artists?…so much from people?…so much more than we might be willing to give of ourselves. What gives us the right to expect intellectual immortality of them when we so often dream of not having to work so hard at what it is we do?

The late 20th century has brought us an unprecedented access to and inundation of media and entertainment that has warped (or simply changed) our perspective on pop culture and art… and where do we draw the line between art and pop culture. One must be careful not to confuse one for the other. They are neither mutually exclusive nor one in the same and sometimes when we refer to artists I think we should be referring to pop culturists. The line draw between the two is grey, fuzzy and fraught with interpretation.

Never before has society had access to and consumed so much media…of all sorts. We gobble it up. We consume so much of it that some of us have to leave it unwrapped on our shelves for a time when we have room to digest more!!! Would you like to supersize that sir? Through all the belly aching of the record companies and the entertainment industry, unit sales for cd’s have risen once again to outstrip the growth rate of our GDP. More music than ever with ever less to be said…so it would seem. One of the more ironic tales I have heard, is of how The Wallflowers firs Album grossed more to Jacob Dylan than all of Bob’s albums had combined to that point in time. Hard to comprehend.


It is interesting when one compares art and artists of the time before the advent of mass media with those of the 20th century. I think that many of what we deem to be great artists, were, ahead of their time, unnoticed in their time, excommunicated by the church, starving, prone to cutting of their ears, and none were as rich as the richest have become today! Art was never about wealth. It was something that had to be done in spite of its financial shortcomings and lack of recognition. A hardship that had to be endured and that informed the work. Something that came from the heart. The ability to create art is a luxury and a self indulgence and yet people have come to complain about how hard it is to make a living as an artist. Supply and demand baby! If you can’t make a living at it, you ain’t no good at it! Give it up and get a real job!…sorry I don’t really believe that, but there are far too many people who feel that it is within their right to make a living as an artist. Truly great art is seems to bear little relation to its value.

Art is a tapestry…a time and place cross with a mind that expresses a new and significant idea…the threads are woven together to form a fabric that is a critical reflection of society. Time and place make ideas significant, without them, provocative concepts become meaningless. The fabric of the tapestry is delicate and forever in flux. Work created yesterday can be relevant and brilliant but meaningless and insignificant if created tomorrow. The interesting thing is that great works of art usually remain great maintain their significance over time.

Someone mentioned Louis Armstrong, and he was without a doubt, one of the key figures in defining modern jazz. You work a theme through for a few decades and that becomes who you are…what you play…it is part of your core value…the way you play your music….what did you want him to do next? invent jazz-fusion?

The problem is that we are all a product of a time and a place …a great artist makes a statement about the world in which they live… the world changes, in part due to the contribution that the artist made and the statement becomes valuable and viewed for its value in changing society. An artist can only explore an avenue so far. At a certain point the artist needs to redefine himself. The better the artist, the more readily the artist can redefine themselves. In our day and age, change seems to be occurring on a logarithmic curve . Through sexual revolutions , cultural revolutions and technological revolutions, an artists world changes but the artists core values can no longer change the world since the world has changed around them. Compounding this problem, the lives we live are becoming longer and longer and it becomes more difficult to live out a lifetime of creativity when so much change occurs though our lives. People are still alive who saw the birth of the automobile, flight, the radio and the telephone, the world at war (twice) space travel and the computer…what changes did J.S. Bach see in his 65 years on earth…probably seemed like a lot to him…what changes will your children see in the years to come? And speaking of J.S….there is a very good example of someone whose artistic contribution was largely written off for about a century…how did that happen…who has been overlooked within our generation?



As we grow older our bodies and souls change and our core value change. Things that were important to us when we young (like getting laid in the back of Dodge) seem to be replaced with more meaningful pursuits (like getting laid in the back of our X5 or Land Cruiser). You need to grow and change as an artist as the values in your life change but it might well be that you are not able to successfully translate your matured values into art. Maybe the matured you does not care at all about anything…you are numbed by the existence of your success. It is an impossibility to isolate yourself from the reactions to your art, be they monetary or critical.


Geniuses are hard to come by but we have come to look for them all around us…the next big thing. Through the escalating changes in the world we seem to reject and accept icons of pop culture and art and discard them with ever increasing rapidity.

Art is never something we do in isolation. We draw from those around us whether they be lovers, family, friends, partners or collaborators. Would U2 be what they are without Lylywhite, Eno or Lanois? The dynamics of these relationships are always in flux and that will invariably affect the quality and content of our work. I think that we can never underestimate the contribution that others make in the support of the artist; after all, if the there ain’t no audience there just ain’t no show!

The flow of an artistic career has much to do with the discipline in question and the way it changes in society. Musical pop stars seem to reach their pinnacle shortly after puberty these days while the saying still goes that you are not an Architect until you are 40! (and yes I believe that good architects are artist, as few and far between as they may be)…..(but in this I have experience…I might hazard to say, that an architect is only as good as their client)….hmmm, if the there ain’t no audience there just ain’t no show! Language and the stories that are told in print seem to change at a much slower pace than film or music that seem to be much more affected by progresses in technologies and are so much more quickly digested by pop culture and run quickly through change. This might have a lot to do with the way that the product it consumed. Good books tend to be consumed slowly, sit on shelves and are borrowed from libraries and are around for a lifetime while movies are publicized to death, are run for a few weeks and then go to dvd where they are once again publicized to death, consumed and put in the delete bin. It is no wonder that the career of a writer can be so much more enduring than that of a musical pop star (artist) or film maker?…or can it?

What are you going to do to change the world?

I was kinda wonderin' what happened to Wayne. I would put most of the discs I own by him up on anyone's top jazz albums list. Besides "Speak no Evil" I would throw in "JuJu", "Night Dreamer" and "Adam's Apple".

Some of my other faves:

Ben Webster - Soulmates (Webster on sax is smooth as silk and his classic rendition of "Chelsea Bridge", unfortunately not on this disc, is one of my favourite all time jazz numbers)

Sonny Rollins - Tenor Madness - this disc features the two sax giants of the era, Rollins and Coltrane in 1956, on the first track. Along with Coltrane the other 3 players on this disc make up Miles Davis' quintet of that era which leads me to my next choice(s),

Miles Davis - with Red Garland on piano, Paul Chambers on bass, Philly Joe Jones on the skins and Coltrane and Davis any one of the 4 albums, from 1956 "Cookin", "Relaxin", "Steamin" or "Workin" make for extremely listenable and pure pleasure jazz.

J.J. Johnson - Proof Positive - if you're going to have one "trombone" jazz disc in your collection and everyone should have at least one, you can't go wrong with this beauty featuring the highly underrated Harold Mabern on piano.

Stan Getz - Focus - a jazz album from 1961 featuring violins, viola and cello along with the cool sound of Getz on sax. Unlike some of the more saccharine classical string-jazz efforts this one has a definite edge and is great meditative music.

Joe Henderson - Inner Urge - as Brian mentioned one of several that you could pick from his large body of work

Eric Dolphy - Out to Lunch - certainly far more "out" than pretty much anything else on this list but while it might send your granny running for the earplugs its a good start in to the more adventurous side of jazz. The combination of sweet and sour on the first track "Hat and Beard" is pretty much how I picture the jazz scence of the early 60's. One of those album openers that never tires.

Freddie Hubbard - The Body & the Soul - hate to go on about album openers but "Body and Soul" with Dolphy on flute and Hubbard on trumpet is a killer smooth jazz track as is "Dedicated to You". The ladies will be sure to love them. If you dig Freddie on this album seek out some Clifford Brown.

John Coltrane - "Giant Steps" but again there are very few of his that wouldn't make the list.

And I suppose if picking an album featuring piano any of three by McCoy Tyner - Inception, The Real McCoy or Supertrios.

Forgot one that I love as much or more than any others on that list - Wayne Shorter's "Speak No Evil" (1964). Magic.

I'll start with a list of my most listened to jazz music. This isn't the best, most significant yadds yadda list, but jazz being as musically "out" as it sometimes is, some of the the really important stuff can be harder on the ears, and doesn't get the late-night spins. And some of the below-noted is the best of the best. It's worth mentioning that I prefer the jazz era from about 1952 to 1966 - a great period for sure, but many think jazz was already dying by then, along with the original be-boppers like Parker, Powell, etc. Me, I think it's the best combination of groovy beats, true musical expression outside the first wave of bop (which at times has a sort of "look at me I'm playing a flat fifth and sharp ninth back-to-back" bravado quality to it), and some incredible experimentation and re-thinking of form. Though, as I say, none of the stuff I'll list is could be described as hard listenining (so, no Shepp, Coleman, Bley e.g.).

I poked around my collection and came up with ten. OK, fourteen. In no order they are:

vocal
Sarah Vaughan - with Clifford Brown (1954) (this one is a must have)
Anita O'Day - Anita Sings the Most (1956)
Helen Merrill - Dream of You (1956)

instrumental
Miles Davis - Kind of Blue (1959)
Bill Evans - Interplay (1962) ....this was a tough choice. He is my favourite jazz man of all, but this record is unusual in that he's playing with a guitar player (Jim Hall) and trumpeter (Freddie Hubbard), whereas he typically led a trio. His trio stuff is gorgeous and equally (probably more) essential, particularly Portrait in Jazz, Explorations, and Live at the Village Vanguard, thought it all has some quality to it, but this was the first Evans disk I fell in love with, and I think for a newcomer to jazz the extra instrumentation adds melody and life.
Hank Mobley - No Room for Squares (1963). I'm a huge fan of this guy's catchy hard bop (blues-based jazz), though he's considered a bit of a non-innovator. He has about five records that are all mighty fine.
Charlie Parker - Bird's Best Bop on Verve (1951 - 53)
Charles Mingus - Ah Um (1959) - so much soul, guts, and energy, and beautiful composition.
Bud Powell - The Best of Bud Powell on Verve (1950 - 55). My second favourite pianist after Evans, though utterly different....flamboyant, bold be-bop.
Lee Morgan - Search for the New Land (1964)
Chet Baker - The Best of Chet Sings (1952-53) - no better choice if you're trying to get a girl to...oh right, we're all married. Despite the cliche, this is some of my favourite music.
Joe Lovan0 - From the Soul (1991) - my favourite "modern" jazz tenor man...though even Joe's gotta be in his mid-fifties by now.
David Murray Quartet - Body and Soul (1993) - my other contemp fave, this album is the hardest thing on the list, though it's really not that tough - angst, energy, and creativity combined into amazing soundscape.
Joe Henderson - In and Out (1964) Could have chosen any of his from this period...he was teaming with trumpeter Kenny Dorham.
Coltrane - Africa Brass Sessions (1961) . Same story, pick a Coltrane record and you're likely fine, though careful with anything from 1965 onwards (unless you want to clear Sarah out of the house). I love the huge passionate cacophany of this record, played with a horn section arranged by Eric Dolphy, consisting of, among other things, nine French horns.

That'll do for now. Top 50 would have been easier....lots of gaps which I'll let the other guys fill if they're so inclined.

And as for writing on other subjects, that'll have to wait for another night.

Maybe "Best Canadian records" isn't hat inspiring after all. (No, goddamn it, I will blog on this tomorrow).

Stu, Feb 27 at the El Mo sounds cool. And I'm going to be at The Shoe this coming Monday (31st) to see a neighbour's nephew's band play a little showcase if anyone's looking for an excuse for a beer.

Excellent points, Kyle
My comment on Jaggers , was meant to say that he is an exception for producing great work ( along w Richards, Jones , Taylor etc) for a long 15 to 20 years. The last 5 from the early eighties are not great but still good. This is an exception to the 3 albums and your out rule. I think all this discussion warrents drinks and I know M. Ward is playing the elmo on the 27th of February, any takers????

Kylie, a most excellent answer, and I agree that the temptation is to make some bland generalization about the nature of art and artists irrespective of media. Which of course, is what I was trying to do....and in fact, I am still planning to do so when I write on this later tonight.

Also, have been giving some thought to your jazz CD question, and to my roundly ignored best Canadian album question (I wonder, what if I'd said best English...), and will post on them tonight too. Most happy to hear that you are contemplating entering the murky, annoyingly pedantic and yet damned rewarding world of jazz appreciation. Between me, Derek, Stuart, and Marc we should be able to get you started.

Clearly I haven't kept my resolution pertaining to the close editing of blog posts. I'll complete my response to Derek here:

As much as I grumble about the ubiquity of such appalling untalented and bland celebrities like Ashlee Simpson, or the lack of any decent radio station in this city, at least I have access to resources like the internet and live in a city that offers a variety of cultural options. With very little ease or expense, I can usually find interesting music, books or films. I'm not sure if this was possible even 10 years ago.

Sorry for the delay in responding but it's been a pretty hectic week and hey, you've bitten off quite a bit here with your questions, Brian. I'll attempt to do them justice.

Several times this past week I've found myself typing a response, definitively answering one question only to find myself coming up with a stream of examples that immediately contradict my own claims. For example, to your first question,

"Why (or whether you agree) there appears to be a tendency in the "modern" world towards unfinished artistic careers?"

I've come around to the view that it's difficult to come up with an answer that covers all the different forms of media you referenced.

When it comes to popular music, I agree that there is definitely a tendency towards an 'unfinished career'. I think this is because pop musicians 1) really only have a handful of really good releases in them at best (the '3 albums and you're out rule') and 2) are at their creative peak when they are young, fairly ignorant of past trends and influences (and therefore more risk-taking and less contrived), and can honestly articulate the frustration, anger, and impatience with the world that is inherent in youth. That's not to say that someone over the age of 40 can't release a good pop album, it's just they probably would have released a better one in their youth.

I won't comment on classical or jazz musicians because I just don't know enough about either genre to make any intelligent contribution. [And to those who would suggest that I am equally out of my depth when it comes to pop music, my advice is that you attempt the anatomically impossible and let me define my own parameters of self-deprecation].

With literature, I think some authors actually produce work that gets better with age, or at the very least go through a middle-years slump that is overshadowed by later, more impressive work. Philip Roth may be best known for 'Portnoy's Complaint' but some of his recent work is excellent and I think John LeCarre's last two novels are better than anything he wrote in the past. While I'm the first to bemoan the recent efforts of perennial favourites like DeLillo and Rushdie, I still think they will surprise with better efforts in the future. Again, there may be a finite number of artistic points/statements about the state of humanity/reflections on socio-political-cultural phenomena that each writer can make before he or she runs out of steam. But age can bring perspective and there are probably countless other modern examples of writers whose crowning glory was achieved in their later years; okay, this is a bit of a copout for not providing examples here but I'm pressing on cause there's still a lot of ground to cover.

When it comes to filmmakers...well, let me answer here by referring to one of your other questions, namely,

Is it the necessary balance between money and art?

Here I think is a medium most affected by the demands of commerce and where money plays the biggest role in determining or denying artistic legacy.

Some very actors and directors consistently make great choices but along the way, all seem to make some really big stinkers (ie. recent Coen Brothers, Julianne Moore, Ben Kingsley) in the name of the almighty buck. Other directors attempt to keep making great films but no longer have anything relevant to say anymore, perhaps because the've said all they really wanted to say in the first place (ie. Oliver Stone, Hal Hartley, Whit Stillman, David Mamet). Others may have reached their apex years ago, still strike out occassionally but still hit a home run every once in awhile (ie. Spike Lee, Robert Altman, Woody Allen...okay maybe he should be in the Oliver Stone category...). And still others consistently churn out thought-provoking, intelligent work (ie. Mike Leigh, Michael Winterbottom, Pedro Almodovar).

What separates this latter group from the former groups mentioned? Is it a singular artistic vision or the inner strength required to resist materialistic overtures from Hollywood?

I remember a Q&A at the Festival a few year's back where Gary Oldman was answering questions about his very personal and difficult film "Nil By Mouth". He stated bluntly that he takes on roles in such unspectacular fare as 'Air Force One' and 'Lost in Space' so that he can raise enough cash to work on projects that he truly cares about. I'm sure he's not the only one cashing in from time to time, for noble reasons or not, but his revelation speaks to the reality that 1) putting together a film requires a hell of a lot more money and collaboration that most other artistic endeavours, certainly more than recording an album or writing a book, and 2) the temptation for to abandon their quest to push the boundaries of the medium in order to make more sellable fare is so great that only a select few artists are willing or able to resist.

So to summarize my answers:

Pop Music=small time window in which to express a limited amount of artistic energy
Fiction/Literature=disagree, art may improve with age
Jazz/Classical=i am a moron, requiring the purchase of a 'dummies' book or enrollment in a proper finishing school
Film=$$$$

To your question,
Are we too close to these events to see how history will judge them?

Pop Music=No.
Fiction/Literature=Yes
Jazz/Classical=i am a moron, requiring the purchase of a 'dummies' book or enrollment in a proper finishing school
Film=Let's discuss the next time we all have a pint in our hands

Derek, you asked,

"At a time when we have available to us more forms of entertainment than could ever have been imagined 100 years ago are we suffering because of this surfeit?"

I'm not sure that we are suffering any worse than anyone would have 100 or even 10 years ago. I think there's always been a tendency towards mediocrity in the mainstream. As much as I grumble about the ubiquity of such appalling untalented and bland celebrities like Ashlee Simpson, or the lack of any decent radio station in this city, at least I have access
I don't know if that was always the case.

Stuart, while I applaud your concession that Tony Bennett, while possessing the charisma and the pipes to do that one trick really well, isn’t still producing great work, I question your assertion that Mick Jagger is still producing great work. I think the Stones are one of the best examples of a group that 1) hasn’t produced a decent record in almost 25 years (1981’s Tattoo You was probably the last to qualify) and 2) should channel any artistic impulses into what they still do well, namely banging hot young women. And with the exceptions of a couple of non-terrible singles, the bulk of Mick’s solo/duo projects are egregiously pathetic ('Dancing in the Streets' w/ David Bowie and 'State of Shock' with Michael Jackson are two cringe-worthy examples). If you think Mick’s Golden Globe win this week bolsters your case, I’d say you only have to look at the list of recent winners (schmaltzy dreck from Sting, Elton, and Celine) to see what a non-achievement this really is.

Marc, every time I take the subway, I have to fight the urge to belt out 'I'm waiting on a subway line/I'm waiting for a train to arrive' from the Walkmen's 'Thinking of a Dream I Had'. I love the sort of rambling intensity in his voice and the swirling guitars. Very suited to standing on a platform in these frigid days.

Okay, enough rambling of my own for now.

What top 5 or 10 jazz albums should I rush out and buy immediately?

Well, I for one am breathing a little more easily. Thanks Marc. And yes, it hadn't escaped my notice how your top five are all rock or kind-of rock records. Interesting evolution on your part.

I will await Kyle's reply to my note of a few days ago (since he promised that one was forthcoming when we bumped into each other at Dora's the other night) before re-jumping in with my somewhat nebulous take on artistic longevity.

(Though I will say that Derek's note had me one step from suicide, or the 2005 equivalent - channel surfing - until, incredibly, I found God, in the form of the SI Swimsuit Model Search. TV, at least, continues to shoot for the stars.)

I know, I know…you have all been waiting with baited breath for the release of my list of top 5 albums of 2005…anxiously wondering what pearls I’ve had squirreled away in the piles of walnut dust in my shop. Well I am sorry to disappoint, but there is nothing new for you boyz on my list but what is a surprise (at least to me), is what I find I have been drawn to most over the past year and can’t get out of the cd player

Top 5 in no particular order…and you’re lucky I managed to actually nail down five!

Arcade Fire – Funeral
Interpol – Antics
Walkmen – Bows and Arrows
Wilco – a ghost is born
Jolie Holland – Escondida
What I find interesting about my top five is that amongst them, there is not a single album that falls into a jazz/afro/electo/latin/dancey slots that got me off in the past number of years. With the exception of Holland, it’s all music in the straight up, pop/rock genre.
The other thing that I find interesting about several of the choices, is that they follow albums that were considered by many, to be stronger. I came to know Interpol, Walkmen and Wilco recently and revisited earlier works only after falling in love with their current releases.
I think that this resonates with the discourse on the blog (which I must admit I find very provocative) in that our perceptions of an artist’s work can’t help but be altered by our understanding or familiarity with their other works. Is it possible for me to hear a ghost is born in the same light as someone who has grown up with Summerteeth or Yankee Foxtrot? (two albums with which I was wholly unfamiliar) Is my perception of Ghost intrinsically different from yours because I was never a fan of theirs before? In any case, The direction that Wilco has gone with Ghost grabs me in a way that Wilco’s work never has before…have I simply entered a new headspace…was Wilco waiting for me to come to them or was I waiting for Wilco to change? I love the album with the exception of all the wanking of the last ten minutes….it’s all been done before and what ever you’re trying to say is either lost on me or empty…and no “you will never hear this song on the radio”!
Interpol’s – Antics? Super strong follow up to their debut…stronger still. The problem with it is that it may be seen by some as “more of the same” after their stellar freshman release. At a session of the cd club a while ago, someone, I think it was Brian, said, and I paraphrase, “if you own one of their albums do you really need to go out and buy another….it’s good music, but is it not just more of the same?…am I really gaining something from this album that was missing in my first experience?” If you ain’t got any Interpol, make it Antics. Antics outshines in its energy, dynamics and production.
Arcade Fire…didn’t see the show at the beginning of the summer so I could not be disappointed by the lack of energy captured on the album as I have heard some were. Again, it’s all about expectations. To my ears the sound is fresh, creative and full of the stuff of life.
The Walkmen?…all I want to know is what’s in it for me?
Jolie…a warm breeze…a swing on the veranda…the scent of magnolia…oh! for an afternoon to do nothing!
…and I gotta say that I’m not hugely disappointed with the year in music…I’ll grant you there was no Nevermind or London Calling