"I Feel Alright Tonight"

Steve Earle (1996)

"I feel alright tonight!"

Katharine Hepburn, flying Howard's plane, "Howard, there's a rather alarming mountain heading our way."

(l to r) Howard Hughes (Leonardo DiCaprio), Hughes Press Agent Johnny Meyer (Adam Scott),

Errol Flynn (Jude Law) and Kathrarine Hepburn (Kate Blachett) 
at Hollywood's Coconut Grove circa 1927

Martin Scorsese's The Aviator (2004) is a real triumph from many perspectives, but Kate Blanchett's superb portrayal of Katharine Hepburn alone makes this a "must see" film for fans of early Hollywood.

Primarily, The Aviator is the story of the sides of Howard Hughes (Leonardo DiCaprio) we should know, and by and large, don't. Hughes started out as the renegade heir to the tool bit fortune behind the oil drill bit that revolutionized production in the Texas Boom era. Hughes takes his whiz kid business talent, considerable capital and fearless hubris to California, combining one passion, aviation, with a very expensive hobby, making films.

Hughes and Chief Lieutenant Noah Dietrich (John C. Reilly)

As aviation innovator, he helped steer the course of modern aviation. In making the films Hell's Angels (1930) (his aerial war epic), Scarface (1932) (his classic gangster film) and The Outlaw (1943) (his guilty pleasure effort), Hughes showed Hollywood and the Breen Office that he wouldn't be intimidated.

Though not understood at the time, all Hughes' manic bluster -- thrown primarily at commercial aviation, with plenty left for Hollywood and his splashy love life -- would ultimately cost the mogul his sanity. As he became more accomplished -- and challenged -- a combination of obsessive compulsive disorder with paranoiac fear of disease crippled Hughes' interpersonal and home life.


The hand of director Scorsese is easy to see in the attention to detail and quality of the production. Take this montage of flying sequences from the film set to a great piece of music,

Between the Roaring Twenties and the post-war 40s, Hughes helped shaped the direction and look of modern aviation. And the story well told makes one hell of a ride on film.

Kathrarine Hepburn (Kate Blachett)

Hughes defending himself before a Senate committee accusing him of being a war profiteer
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"The Hustler" (1961, dir. Robert Rossen): "The Ability of Character to Triumph Over Talent"

Jackie Gleason and Paul Newman lag for the break in The Hustler

Paul Newman and Piper Laurie Share a Cigarette,

as well as Their Hopes and Insecurities

O so much more than a fine film about the life of a professional pool hustler who wants to prove he's the best player Straight pool player there ever was, Robert Rossen's film also explores the fragile, easily shatterable, relationship between Fast Eddie Nelson (Newman) and the woman he becomes involved with, Sarah (Piper Laurie). This relationship is further strained when professional gambler Bert Gordon (George C. Scott) enters the picture, taking over as the quite Machiavellian manager for Fast Eddie. To reveal more of the plot here would simply spoil the subtle and powerful developments throughout this fine drama, based on Sidney Carroll's 1959 novel of the same name.

(left to right) George C. Scott and Paul Newman

Jackie Gleason's performance as "Minnesota Fats", the Man, the best there is in the game, is truly inspiring. So much so that as a youngster growing up the 60's, I thought, incorrectly, that "Minnesota Fats" was in fact the best pool player in world. I learned recently that, at that time, another player was ranked number one back then. A heavy set fellow by another name, adopted the name "Minnesota Fats" to embellish his own reputation, drawing of Gleason's stellar performance here. And the trick worked.

But that alludes to the most important aspects of competitive sports, making the other player or team think you are the best, as well as having the well-honed skill to back that up. What makes this film even more engrossing than a good sports drama is the tragic psychological triangle that develops when the Newman/Laurie couple encounter George C. Scott's tragic meddling in both their lives. But as I note in the title of this post, character, strength of will, ultimately prevail.

Rossen's film is not only a great sports drama, but also an exploration of human frailty and the ultimate survival of those strong enough to weather the storm of life.

(Note: Check out part of the soundtrack, with more great stills from the film, in the jukebox atop the left column.)

"What Do You Think We Were Doing Out There, Mrs. Fellows, Spawning?": Tennessee's The Night of the Iguana (1961, play, Tennessee Williams; 1962)

Poster and Cover of MGM Promotional Booklet

I re-watched John Huston's film of Tennessee Williams' play The Night of the Iguana one afternoon recently. Tennessee Williams' poetry washed over me -- delightful as the gentle "Indian Summer" shower that starting during the film. I had to pause the film to enjoy the music of the much-needed rain, then on my way back in the apartment, stopped at the computer to jot down these lines.

The post title comes from a confrontation at the beach between disgraced minister T. Lawrence Shannon (Richard Burton) and Ms. Fellows (Sue Lyon). A young girl on the tour of the Pacific coast of Mexico Rev. Shannon follows him into the water when he escaping the group and taking a much needed swim. Shannon's remark about spawning made me bust out laughing.

There's much to come, and I'm going back to my Tennessee Williams / John Huston gem now, but trust me. You won't be sorry if you give this classic a chance. Right now, I feel like I'm getting my own private showing of the film, and the gentle rain is turning this into one fine afternoon.

Deborah Kerr and Ava Gardner have established their characters now. Ava, a fishing widow now running her Mexico resort hotel with her "night-swimming" dancing, simple, obedient young men. Maxine keeps her young men around as told off butch spinster Ms. Fellows after Fellows has Rev. Shannon fired from his last chance at a meaningul existence before what's left of his nerves and restraint shatter.

Mr. Shannon continues his fall as Deborah Kerr steps in both as chef to the closed-for-the-season tourist hotel as well as therapist to the Reverend as he abandons his anxiety about being fired and steers toward the often lethal combination of rum cocoas and suicidal ideation.

All that, the fate of the Reverend Dr. T. Lawrence Shanning hanging in the balance -- whether to crack or pull himself together with the help of the world's oldest practicing poet and a woman who is clearly not in command of her carnal desires, or take that long westward swim from the beach just south of Puerta Viarta, Mexico. Williams brings his poem to a close with Burton and Miss Jelkes playing God and cutting the at-the-end-of-his rope iguana free.

Don't Sell My Culture!

One of the things that drives me crazy is important rock songs showing up in TV commercials. I went through the roof in '87 when the classic Beatles song Revolution turned up in a Nike commercial. I have not and will not buy another Nike product, ever. And it's not just me; George Harrison spoke on this issue in October of '87 with more authority than I ever could:

If it's allowed to happen, every Beatles song ever recorded is going to be advertising women's underwear and sausages. We've got to put a stop to it in order to set a precedent. Otherwise it's going to be a free-for-all. It's one thing when you're dead, but we're still around! They don't have any respect for the fact that we wrote and recorded those songs, and it was our lives. (George Harrison, as quoted in J. Doyle, 2009)

And the free-for-all George predicted is upon us. I've been gritting my teeth for years as the practice of using classic popular songs in commercials has somehow become acceptable. Well, it's not acceptable to me. So before you stumble across a new commercial that has me cursing at the TV screen now and again, here's a chance to listen to another classic, from another era, that is being transformed into a lame product endorsement. This is the single that lead me to buy the monumental first Pretenders album. Here's their break-out single (with its old-school video), Brass in Pocket (1979). Revolution survived, but it's a truly timeless song. The jury is still out on whether Brass in Pocket can survive.

Inside an Artist's Overwrought Soul: "Hearts of Darkness: A Filmmaker's Apocalypse" (1991)

Francis Ford Coppola in the Philippine Jungle Shooting
Apocalypse Now (circa 1976)

Francis' wife Eleanor Coppola co-directed and narrated this examination of the literally maddening process of her husband Francis making his modern adaption of Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness (1902), the Viet Nam war epic Apocalypse Now (1979). The result is this excellent complementary documentary to the film, Hearts of Darkness: A Filmmaker's Apocalypse (1991).

A unique, gripping look at a film director as artist working under the most extreme conditions imaginable -- conditions that drive him to the edge of insanity. The project: film, in the Philippines, the definitive Viet Nam war film -- using Conrad's classic novella for the structure and certain themes of the story. (Filming Heart of Darkness is a project Orson Welles attempted on a smaller scale but could not get made. Welles then went on to make Citizen Kane instead.)

The documentary also gives us an look behind the scenes at more than one member of the production being pushed beyond their limits. Just one example of the challenges Francis Coppola met to get this film made was directing a troubled Dennis Hopper (see clip below). Such challenges came by the dozens and pushed Coppola to the brink -- and to new heights of creativity.

It's been my belief for a long time that the better we understand our (i.e. the U.S.) role in Viet Nam, the better we understand ourselves. Both the film and also this complimentary documentary help. As a little something extra, Francis and Eleanor add a fine commentary on the documentary.

I can't wait to see Apocalypse Now Redux (2001) again soon.

A Taste of That Old Wine Will Cost You: Update on Exile Outtakes' Release

Update: 28 April 2010

Below I wrote about the impending May 18th release of outtake tracks from the Exile on Main St sessions. While visiting Amazon.com last night to do some research I discovered how the outtake tracks are being marketed. Along with alternate takes of tracks that made the original album (e.g. an alternate version of Soul Survivor), the previously unreleased material is being sold separately from the remastered original album.

You can check out the track listing on the 2010 Deluxe Edition "bonus" CD here.

Sir Mick Jagger and Keith Richards didn't get to be the two richest men in rock n' roll by accident. Hell, they were tax exiles in France when they made the record.

Gonzo: The Life and Work of Dr. Hunter S. Thompson

*****
*****

Alex Gibney's 2008 documentary film Gonzo examines the on-the-edge life and best journalistic work of Hunter S. Thompson, one of the greatest writing talents produced by the youth culture in the U.S. of the 1960s and early '70s. Focusing on Thompson's experience of and coverage of "the death of the American dream," the film is rich in essential background details. Through archival footage and audio recordings of Thompson in action; interviews with the people who were there; readings of his work by Thompson himself, friends, and quite powerfully by narrator Johnny Depp; a perfect soundtrack; right down to discussion of Thompson's suicide and its aftermath -- Gonzo tells Thompson's tale as thoroughly as I've seen it told.

Also examined is Thompson's Gonzo reporting, based on

William Faulkner's idea that "fiction is often the best fact." While the things that Thompson wrote about are basically true, he used satirical devices to drive his points home. (Wikipedia contributors, Gonzo Journalism.)

Material on the writing of all his major books (Hell's Angels: A Strange and Terrible Saga (1966), Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas: A Savage Journey to the Heart of the American Dream (1971)*, Fear and Loathing: On the Campaign Trail '72 (1973)) is included.

Gonzo gives us Thompson's riding with the California Hell's Angels (complete with a consensual gang bang he witnesses), psychedelic San Francisco in the early 1960s, Richard Nixon ("the werewolf within us"), '71 in Vegas ("the final nail in the coffin of the sixties"), the 1972 McGovern campaign trail crumbling into Machiavellian politics -- all undergirded by the moral imperative of opposing the war in Southeast Asia. All but the Hell's Angels book are gonzo journalism: Thompson's talent filtered through a whiskey, pharmaceutical and general "pushing the edge" subjective lens.

Gonzo also covers Thompson the man: his life, his passions, obsessions, his beautiful and ugly sides. We see Hunter set against the backdrop of his times, from the sixties to the 2001 destruction of the World Trade Center and the ongoing wars in Afghanistan and Iraq that followed.

And in the end, we see Thompson unraveling toward a much anticipated suicide. As with any suicide, we see the immediate loss the act brings to friends, family and admirers. Yet another aspect of his suicide is highlighted: Hunter the man released from the burden of the gonzo character he became. To paraphrase Thompson, the gonzo journalistic myth surrounding him would now be free to run where it may. The bottom line for me is that we lost a uniquely talented voice that provided a hopeful but correctly disillusioned view of America. (Note: Hunter Thompson shot himself in 2005 -- a time when the Bush administration was in full swing.)

Gonzo details the life and times of an uncommon, nontraditional voice in American journalism. That voice still rings loud and true today. This documentary film brings into high relief just how much we need such a voice.
_________________
*For a discussion of Terry Gilliam's 1998 film of Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, see my 2008 post For the '60's Counterculture, the Road Didn't Go on Forever).

Rolling Stones - Honky Tonk Woman (Live in Hyde Park 1969)

This YouTube clip is as flawed as the original gig was. But the little glimpse we get of the Stones doing this famous free concert in London in 1969 is worth overlooking those flaws.

Some great clips of the band and the crowd and, most importantly, Mick Taylor -- who had about 12 hours to get ready for the show -- in action with the best Stones lineup ever.

The rock history is of vast importance -- so soak it up Ladies and Gentlemen: The Rolling Stones.

Great Art: Getting It Paid For, and Finished! -- "The Agony and the Ecstasy"

The Agony and the Ecstasy
(1965; directed by Sir Carol Reed)

I recently spoke to several of my friends, one a film buff and the others folks who would love the story told here, and none of them had seen this film, much less read the book. Given what I knew about who I was talkin' to, I was quite surprised.

The Agony and the Ecstasy is based on one segment of Irving Stone's biographical novel of the same name. This superb film tells the story of the tumultuous relationship between Michelangelo Buonarroti and Pope Julius II over the painting of the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel in the Vatican.

I have to admit, seeing Rex Harrison in a role where he quite effectively, as Pope Julius to Heston's Michelangelo, puts Charlton Heston in his place is, well, delicious. Heston was playing so many God-like roles in those days, it's good to see someone with the authority to put such a gigantic screen presence in his place.

But more importantly, the history of the now renovated Sistine Chapel ceiling, one of the greatest art accomplishments of the Italian Renaissance, is fundamentally important. It gives the viewer substantial insight into the ever difficult relationship between a great artist and a patron he (or she) must rely on to continue working.

In short, see this film. It is an essential for anyone interested in the nuts and bolts of how great art gets made.

Music of the '80s that Matters: The Cure's "Just Like Heaven"

Robert Smith was the David Bowie (Ziggy-era) for young women of the 1980's.

His band The Cure cut across so many, dare I say tragically hip, elements of youth culture at that time. Moreover, their influence persists, long after the Goth fad that deified them.

They make the cut. You are a keystroke away from seeing the video of The Cure's iconic "Just Like Heaven". This band, because of Robert Smith, will still matter in 30 years and as usual, it is the timeless nature of their best music that sustains their importance.

If you are over 45, hitting the video link below is something important. For those who want to relive this moment, follow this video link and check it out.

Not only is it just like heaven, but "Every Little Thing ..." The Cure do here "... Is Magic".

Martin Scorsese 'Shines a Light' on The World's Most Once-Dangerous Band That's Still Around

"Champagne and Reefer" ( -- McKinley Morganfield) (featuring Buddy Guy)

'This Will Be the Only Scorsese Movie Without Gimme Shelter in the Sountrack'
( -- quip by Sir Mick Jagger regarding Shine a Light (film))

Sometimes, for this wanna-be professor of rock film, the ironies the Rolling Stones have amassed in their 45 year-and-going-strong run are almost overwhelming. In the interest of full disclosure, I have been a Stones fan for 35 years and have studied Scorsese's work for a quarter century. Now, instantly transforming myself from fan to critic, I gotta try to "... stick my knife right down [their] throat, and baby, and it hurts!"

Shine a Light (2008, film) slams me with responsibility I don't want. I just wanna enjoy the film. But my gosh darn "boy scout" ethics force me to muster whatever objectivity I can find in discussing this major rock film -- this collaboration by auteur Scorsese and these rock pioneers (and the cast of hundreds of technicians and musicians and inspirational artists that fuel their jets).

In a vain attempt to demonstrate some objectivity, I observe that Ms. Christina Aguilera wishes we saw her public persona as a street-wise tramp credible, but she has no business on this stage: she would run screaming from the 1968 Jagger dreamscape nightmare of an apartment Sir Mick creates in the edge-of-madness-and-joy anthem "Live With Me" -- fake-skank at it's worst. On the other hand, guest contributor here, the Paullinator (a real musician), loved her performance in the film -- c'est la vie! You gotta make your own call on this one, I got bigger fish to fry -- and (drumroll):

Top Five Rock Films of All Time (in order):

1. The Last Waltz
2. Gimme Shelter (documentary) (see Gold Coast Bluenote posts Part I and Part II)
3. Woodstock (Director's Cut)
4. Shine a Light
5. No Direction Home (documentary).

Honorable Mention: Festival Express, Hard Day's Night, This Is Spinal Tap, Rattle and Hum, High Fidelity

***********************************************************************

Shine a Light

(2008, film):
"Just as Long as the Guitars Play, He'll Steal Your Heart Away"

Scorsese does it again folks, and all the time battling the headwinds of Sir Mick's ego. Analysis: of those "top five films" above, three were made and one was edited in part (Woodstock) by Martin Scorsese -- this body of work on rock definitively demonstrates two things: Scorsese is the man when it comes to rock 'n' roll film making; second, the Scorsese-heavy top five list above demonstrates conclusively why it ain't "only rock and roll".
_______

Some Details:

• "Under My Thumb" is both the soundtrack and documentary theme of the first ten minutes of pre-show mania. From both a flatbed truck promoting the tour on the streets of Chicago, and in Scorsese's first soundtrack album cut, Marty and Co. turn the cleave lights on The Glimmer Twins doing their eternal rock n' roll machine.
  
• Jagger does his prima donna routine in front of, and at, Marty, putting his hubris on display so Marty can call him on it. Who's under whose thumb, anyway? Revealingly, Jagger is relentless doing his job, and Marty's patience appears boundless.
• Almost everything here is the best live versions of these particular songs in films (I've been studying the old Stones concert movies and original studio tracks), e.g. Jumpin' Jack Flash (see below), Shattered (only better live when I saw them in '78), All Down the Line (Ronnie finally gets a chance to strut his stuff), Loving Cup (first time in film set list), and Just My Imagination (the horn arrangement makes it transcendent).
  
• The "wave-riff" Keef and Mick Taylor weave in the studio version of Tumblin' Dice on Exile on Main Street is unsurpassable. Word up. Even here, the Exile original remains the definitive version of this classic. But here, with Ronnie on fire, Darryl Jones rolling the bass riff even better than Bill Wyman's effort on the original -- add Scorsese icing this cake with his choreographed editing, and this, mates, is the best Tumblin' Dice can be captured live.
• Shine a Light shows a whole new Keef -- the happy ole man whose "Glad to be Here, Glad to Be Anywhere!" Mick Taylor and Brian Jones are unknown to most folks under 50, except, of course, my Godson "Captain Happy" (I am so proud of him!). Captain Happy gave me the inside scoop on Jack White, guest guitarist and duet vocalist on "Loving Cup": that would be Jack White of The White Stripes (Grammy winners for their last three albums, each record winning the Grammy for Best Alternative Music Album (source: Wikipedia contributors)). White is letter perfect singing this duet of acoustic rock poetry with Jagger, with a smile on White's face showing he is realizing the dream of a lifetime. And his performance shows it -- he stands toe to toe with Jagger every note of the way through yet another Exile on Main Street deep album cut cover. (Capt. Happy reports further that he really liked The White Stripes' album Elephant.) (Anyone who thinks I digress here, just check out all the talent the Stones have toured with over the past four decades, bringing forgotten superstars and rising talent to their audiences. If the Stones are guilty of being a little too capitalist, they are all about promoting music their audience needs to hear.)
• Jumpin' Jack Flash starts the set with Scorsese directing on the fly -- he gets the set list about two seconds before Keith hits the first chord, and Scorsese elegantly captures Keith flying across the stage getting the festivities under way. (I just bought the "Though the Past, Darkly" CD and have been listening to the original, all of it, for a comparison. They were a much more dangerous band back then. Now, it's really only rock and rock, great as it is. Back then it was still a revolution in our minds.)
• You may notice that you never see anything but the entire Beacon Theatre stage lit perfectly throughout the film. As with the "Last Waltz" lighting, that is Scorsese at work. He is obsessive about his lighting, only stopping short of burning Jagger to get a particular lighting effect. "We want the effect, but we can't burn Mick Jagger," Scorsese quips to his lighting technician in the opening pre-concert segment of the film. Though the lighting in "Last Waltz" is superb, the lighting of the theatre here is perfect. You don't always notice, but it is always right. Again, Scorsese sets a new standard for the rock film genre.
  
• DO NOT see "Shine a Light" in IMAX. Bent Guitar necks, wrinkles 8 inches long, grainy archival footage, flash editing by Scorsese that works fine in other formats -- just skip the IMAX.
• For Stones addicts -- buy the DVD with the baby food money, NOW. Not tomorrow, now.
• Across the Rest of the Universe -- see this film; its high point is in the clip above. Covering Muddy Waters' "Champagne and Reefer" with the Stones, Buddy Guy's lead breaks add a Chicago blues meltdown -- dude, Buddy burns the silver screen down. Jagger takes his harp playing to new heights because Buddy is staring him down: "Go on man, show me your stuff." A rare role for Keith emerges as he doesn't have to front the guitar work and gets to play fills, completely entranced by Guy's mojo. Keith then follows an old tradition of giving a guest performer your guitar if the guest artist tears up the main act's stage. This operatic moment closes with Guy humbly walking off stage, smiling, and all the while Scorsese and his boom mikes catching every detail. This is truly a performance for the ages.

"Shine a Light" will be the definitive document on a remarkable band. Hats off to Martin Scorsese, The Glimmer Twins, and both of their teams here. This film rewrites the book on how to make a rock n' roll concert movie.

Epigram: I can't get out without mentioning the last bit of Scorsese magic -- it's the closing steady-cam shot of the film, and just remember "Up, Up!"

"World Leader Pretend", R.E.M. (live, with new opening, 1989)

More Music of the Eighties that Matters:

"We Can Be Heroes, Just for One Day"

**

Original Video (partial), Studio Version of Heroes recorded in Berlin (1977)

Here, with Brian Eno co-producing, Tony Visconti producing and engineering, and Bowie doing his thing with an East Berlin Guard Tower in the studio window bringing the Cold War Berlin tension right into the tracks, The Artist formerly know as David Jones recreates the audio universe.

The touring band hit Baton Rouge with this riff live and washed the town into the river -- I'm still swimming towards the top to get some fresh air.

Essential with a bullet.

Yo! China -- Either Lay Off Tibet or ....!

I "Not Ready to Make Nice" Either, Ms. Natalie.

See my contemporaneous discussion of this event at: The 2007 Grammy Awards: Reflections

Absolutely Essential American Cosmic History

Joseph Conrad: "The Horror, the Horror!"

Our New Jukebox - Front and Center for a Few Days

A good deal of this music is here because dear friends have helped me rebuild my collection. I cannot thank them enough. Underlying software platform and server space provided courtesy of Kevin and all the fine folks at Golden Age of Hollywood. Moreover, the members at GAOH have built jukeboxes of their own that cover everything you could want in an eclectic on demand collection. It will blow your mind.

Thanks to all you swingin' cats!

Good Morning, Internet!

Legendary Disk Jockey Wolfman Jack

{Different station, a digital world now; 12:11 am, any night you're listening:}

Yes, dudes and dudettes, this is the Sandman here introducing the new Gold Coast Bluenote jukebox. Tired of reading that Paco dude go on and on as he learns to write? Just check out our new expanded left column: there you will find the greatest little jukebox in the world. To get your mojo workin' this morning let's start with a blast from the past -- the ever sensual Miss Dusty Springfield leading you right down the path to solace and destruction, with "Breakfast in Bed," from her Ultimate Collection.

"Hoo-wah!"

Note: This jukebox is made possible by the software engineer and fine folks over at The Golden Age of Hollywood.

Pop Quiz

Carly Simon, You're So Vain, (1972) (studio version)

Who is the famous, vain, background vocalist who just won't stay buried in the mix? (If you don't already know, listen carefully now -- he kicks in on the second chorus.)

Who is the song actually about?

For the answer to the first question, and the never ending search for the answer to the second, click here.