Ok. Crazy weather here. Was in the high 70's yesterday and now it's about to snow. Cold and windy out. Here's a little music to warm you for the night. Billie Holiday, doing what she does best, singing sophisticated, sultry, jazz music with her darkly beautiful voice that warms your soul to no end, filling you with sorrow and joy. Here's a few from "Billie's Best", one of my all time favorite albums.
The Rolling Stones. I just have a weakness for their late 1960's through early 1970's material. There's something about their adrenaline fueled, smoke filled bar room, blues driven sound that I can't get enough of. Here's "Gimmie Shelter" from 1969s "Let It Bleed", and 'Sympathy for the Devil" from 1968"s 'Beggar's Banquet". Crank it up loud.
I've always been a huge fan of John Waters. I love all of his movies except "Crybaby". My favorite of his has got to be "Multiple Maniacs" from the late 1960's in black & white. Everyone out there has seen some John Waters, right? If not, you are in for a treat! Overly melodramatic situations, ridiculous dialogue, trashy sets, outrageous sexual situations, and a perverse obsession with exploitation and B-cinema is what John Waters is all about.
Anyway, I was at my local video rental store a while back and I picked up "A Dirty Shame". This movie came out in 2004, but for some reason, I never got around to seeing it. Maybe I was scared it would not be good, I don't know. "Pecker" and "Cecil B. Demented", his previous two films were both incredible. So I picked it up and now I'm kicking myself for waiting so long to see it. I had no choice but to rent the R version but as soon as I get the money I'm going to buy the NC-17 version. "A Dirty Shame" is absolutely hilarious. Sometimes it verges on the ridiculous, almost over the top. But that is ok. John Waters isn't known for his subtlety. He makes movies that shock you and make you laugh at loud until it hurts.
The movie is about a housewife Sylvia, played by Tracey Ullman, that is uptight about sex. Many people in her community also feel the same way. They are outraged at all the perversion and depravity that is invading their neighborhood, such as The Three Bears, three huge, hairy gay guys that run around in their underwear and love to cuddle. Ullman's character has a daughter, Ursula Udders, a topless dancer with jugs just as big as Chesty Morgan's, who is a sex addict. Anyway the decent people in the community band together, brand themselves 'Neuters", and start a crusade against the perverts.
But something happens to Sylvia. She gets a severe blow on the head and is knocked unconscious. When she wakes up, she finds herself in a tow truck with a guy called Ray Ray. He runs a towing service. He is also a sexual healer. You see, when you get accidentally knocked in the head, it awakens your libido. Sylvia wakes up horny as hell, and Ray Ray gives her oral sex to heal her. Well, it turns out that Ray Ray runs a little cult of sex addicts. Sylvia is the twelfth member, the twelfth apostle, if you will. Her induction is supposed to bring the coming of the sexurrrection, a new, most powerful sex act that has never been performed before. What is this sex act? And what will the neuters do once they catch wind of Ray Ray's antics? You must watch this movie to find out. The ending is just too much.....Tracey Ullman's performance as Sylvia is magnificent. She should have won an award for this movie. "A Dirty Shame" is not perfect, but it is extremely entertaining and well worth your time. Highly recommended.
When, oh when is a new John Waters movie coming out? I can't wait to see what he has in store for us next.
"Fresh Fruit for Rotting Vegetables"(1980) was The Dead Kennedy's first and strongest release. Their sound is like a bizarre, psychedelic punk rock cross between Elvis and The Beach Boys. Lead singer Jello Biafra's vocals take a little time to get used to, but they suit the mind bending guitar playing of East Bay Ray perfectly. The lyrics on this album are not nearly as political as on their later efforts, but politics is always a part of their subject matter. The lyrics are joyfully irresponsible and shocking and the songs are catchy and instantly accessible. This one of the best and most addictive punk rock albums ever made. Here's "Let's Lynch the Landlord" and the classic 'Holiday in Cambodia", two of my favorite tracks.
The Crawdaddys were a band from California fronted by Steve Potterfand and Ron Silva that came out in the late 1970's. They specialized in playing scorching 1950's R&B and blues with a 1960's garage punk aesthetic. Their sound does not fit their time. Their music is blazing, energetic, soulful, yet straightforward and unprententious. They remind me a bit of The Yardbirds, but they really have their own sound that is instantly recognizable. Check out their album "The Crawdaddy Expreess". You can listen to many full tracks from it here. A few of my favorites are 'Rainin' In My Heart" and "Crawdaddy Express". HIghly recommended.
The Sonics are an insanely heavy and loud 1960's garage rock band whose peak was around 1965/1966. Their music is fast, intense, and amped up to the point of horrifying distortion. The Sonics have a ferocious, untouchable energy, predating punk by many years. Picture Little Richard even more hopped up than he already is with guitars amplified until your ears bleed with hooks so irresistible you have to keep coming back for more...this is The Sonics. Joyfully and mindlessly intense and brutal 1960's punk. Some of their best songs are "Strychnine", "The Witch", and 'Psycho". The two albums pictured above, "Here Are the Soinics" and "Boom" I highly recommend. Listen to the three songs below, and if you like what you hear hunt down these two albums. They aren't too hard to find.
