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ALBUMS: Elton John/Leon Russell, Robert Plant, Bob Dylan and Ray Charles

10/30/2010

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ELTON JOHN AND LEON RUSSELL’S “THE UNION” (Decca/Rocket)

√ Bob Certified

This unexpected teaming of these piano men has a lot more going for it than good karma, though the back story is heartwarming. Recalling how much Russell’s music influenced him 40 years ago, John phoned his hero and suggested they make an album together. Considering Russell had been toiling in relative obscurity for decades, it was an especially sweet, thoughtful gesture. Rather than take the easy way out by replaying some of their old hits, John and Russell concentrated on new songs. They also had two great allies—tasteful, imaginative T Bone Burnett to produce the album and longtime songwriting partner Bernie Taupin to write lyrics for most of the 14 tunes. In such standouts as the evocative “Eight Hundred Dollar Shoes” and the potential standard “When Love Is Dying,” John and Taupin reflect the innocence and craft of their 1970s work. But things also work well when John and Russell team up as writers on one tune and Taupin and Russell join forces on another (the gem “I Should Have Sent Roses”). John even lets Russell have the spotlight to himself on the closing “In the Hands of Angels,” and the bearded wonder from Oklahoma comes through marvelously. Russell once stood at the very center of rock ‘n’ roll, whether as ringmaster on the “Mad Dogs and Englishmen” tour or on his own albums. “The Union” puts the spotlight back on him. But the album, too, reminds us that Elton is more than a flashy superstar. He and Taupin are superb pop-rock forces.

 

ROBERT PLANT’S “BAND OF JOY” (Rounder)

No magic this time.

The album opens with more of the rootsy, haunting, country-blues feel that highlighted Plant’s spectacular “Raising Sand,” but Plant didn’t have two key people with him in this studio this time: producer T Bone Burnett and vocal partner Alison Krauss. Plant c0-produced the album with guitarist-songwriter Buddy Miller and enlisted the services of vocalist Patty Griffin, but the difference is enormous. “Band of Joy” is pleasing, but it lacks the musical risks and bold vision that made “Raising Sand” one of the highlights of the decade. Everything here stays too much within Plant’s comfortable musical boundaries.

 

BOB DYLAN’S “THE BOOTLEG SERIES VOLUME 9—THE WITMARK DEMOS: 1962-1964” (Columbia)

√ Bob Certified

Dylan was 2o when he started recording these demo versions of his early songs in January of 1962. By the time he recorded the last of the 47 tunes in 1964, rock ‘n’ roll (and pop culture) would never be the same. It’s chilling to play the two discs and imagine yourself sitting in the studio with Dylan, hearing him (accompanied only by his acoustic guitar, harmonica and sometimes piano) move from one creative breakthrough to another—from “Blowin’ in the Wind” to “A Hard Rain’s A-Gonna Fall” and “Tomorrow Is a Long Time,”
“Masters of War” and “Don’t Think Twice, It’s All Right,” “Girl From the North Country” and “Mr. Tambourine Man.” Dare we say, priceless?


 

RAY CHARLES’ “THE UNDISCOVERED MASTERS—RARE GENIUS” (Concord)

Modest offerings

The main interest in this collection of previously unreleased recordings is a track in which the soul music great backs Johnny Cash vocally on a version of Kris Kristofferson’s “Why Me Lord?” The duet was recorded in 1981 for a Cash album, but wasn’t included on the eventual release. The remaining nine selections come from demos or previously released material dating back to the 1970s. Some of the tunes are familiar, including the energetic “Wheel of Fortune,” a hit for Kay Starr in the 1950s, and the gentle folk-country “A Little Bitty Tear,” a hit for Burl Ives in the 1960s. But little has the feel of classic Ray Charles.

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MOVIES: "My Dog Tulip," "Secretariat" and "Hereafter"

10/29/2010

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MY DOG TULIP

Disappointing dog story

   My wife and I are serious dog lovers (we have an English bulldog named Oliver Hardy and a boxer named Katharine Hepburn), so we couldn’t resist seeing this adult-aimed animated feature based on a book by English man of letters J.R. Ackerley. After about 20 minutes, however, I realized that while there must be 1,000 great dog stories, this is one I don’t care about.  I admired the animation and some of the philosophical asides in the tale about a man and his 15-year devotion to his equally devoted German shepherd. Mostly, however, I was eager for the film—with its emphasis on the dog’s bowel and mating attempts—to end so we could get home to our own four-leggeds.

 

SECRETARIAT

Great horse, conventional film

    Some people—including the film-makers—feel that Secretariat was the greatest race horse ever and you can’t resist pulling for Big Red as he goes after racing’s celebrated triple crown.  Beyond the basic lure of the Secretariat legend, however, the film itself is corny and conventional. To give the audience someone to root against (it’s hard to make a rival horse a villain), the film-makers devote far too much footage to the rival horse’s arrogant, obnoxious owner. The film does come alive when John Malkovich steps in as a colorful, eccentric horse trainer, but neither he nor the Secretariat story is enough get the film even close to the winner’s circle.

 

HEREAFTER

Eastwood disappoints--again

   Going against the odds by moving successfully from TV to films and from acting to direction, Clint Eastwood has had a remarkable career, but he is on a losing streak. Except for showcasing the exquisite Cecile De France and a spectacular opening tsunami scene, there is little to recommend this dreary effort. It is the latest step in the “un-doing” of his credibility. “Hereafter” is unfocused, “Invictus” was undramatic and “Changeling” was unwatchable.

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MOVIES: "It's a Funny Kind of Story" and "You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger"

10/18/2010

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IT’S A FUNNY KIND OF STORY

√ BOB CERTIFIED

There is much to like and admire about this feel-good story about a teen-ager who is so alarmed by his lingering depression that he checks himself into a Brooklyn hospital psych ward. This isn’t a “big” film and it’s all the better for it. First, the writing-direction team of Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck never let the temperature of the comedy/drama get much beyond a simmer; by wisely avoiding dramatic or comedic explosions, they keep the movie intimate, sweet and engaging. As the troubled teen, Keir Gilchrist maneuvers the entire 90 or so minutes with a convincing reserve.  But the marvel of the film is Zach Galifianakis, whose film-stealing performance was as memorable as Jack Black’s splash in “High Fidelity.” While Black, however, soon became so self-conscious on the screen that he lost his early charm, Zach keeps getting better. He was sensational in his small role in the under-rated comedy “Dinner for Schmucks” and here he tops everything he’s done by far in a role that combines both low-key comedy (not the over the top style of the earlier films) and dramatic moments that require considerable vulnerability and depth. If he can avoid Black’s tendency to constantly repeat himself, Zach may turn out to be one of the cinematic wonders of the new decade.

 

YOU WILL MEET A TALL DARK STRANGER

Promising start turns lazy

Watching the latest Woody Allen movie (he just writes and directs, doesn’t act) feels a lot like having lunch with an old friend who is a wonderful storyteller. The characters are universal, yet eccentric (from Anthony Hopkins in late-life crisis to Naomi Watts in mid-life crisis) and it’s fun as Allen introduces us to them in moments of turmoil. But gradually you realize that this is all too easy; Allen probably made the whole thing up on the way to the lunch. The characters end up on such familiar paths that they almost seem to have been abandoned by the film-maker. The visit with the old friend turns out to be pleasant, but nothing even remotely memorable. You look forward to the next lunch, but hope he has something a little revealing to say.

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"The Town"

10/13/2010

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THE TOWN

Good, but very familiar

    There have probably been 30,000 movie westerns, so Ben Affleck probably thought there was room left for the 8,000th or so heist film. While he makes does a first-rate job as an actor and director in this gritty tale of love and loyalty and self-destruction in a gritty Boston neighborhood, the familiarity of the plot points limit this to a minor, but entertaining work. One problem at the heart of the film is when  Affleck, as the familiar criminal with a heart, not only sweeps an unlikely subject off her feet (as part of a plot to make sure the bank heist didn’t have one big loose end) but then loses his heart to her. And someone should have told Affleck that one of the film’s shoot-out scenes (with the loudest assault rifles you can imagine) is simply over the top. Nice, nice, nice touches--but well short of being great.

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Movies: "Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps" and "Catfish"

10/4/2010

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WALL STREET:  MONEY NEVER SLEEPS

But the film may put you to sleep.

      This sequel appears to have been ill-conceived from the start. Obviously motivated by ego and greed himself, Stone thought the timing was right for another look at the bankrupt philosophical aspects of the financial world that he captured so memorably the first time around. Stone has some capable stars in Michael Douglas and Carey Mulligan. But as soon as Gordon Gekko’s character steps from prison, the film feels contrived and the sub-theme of Gekko’s estranged daughter involved with someone who becomes obsessed with the discredited financier is a major misstep. Think of the entire picture (including the unexpressive Shia LaBeof casting) as a stock market ticker where every new development in the film sends the stock price down. Avoid.

CATFISH

Major disappointment.

     After reading a glowing review of the film that said “Catfish” is best enjoyed if you don’t know anything about it beforehand, I went into the theater knowing only that it involved some guys who met some people on the Internet and went to see them in person. Though I think the review said the film was a documentary, I couldn’t tell in the opening minutes of “Catfish” whether it was a real documentary or a take-off on one. At any rate, the film-makers are so self-absorbed and silly that you can’t take their journey seriously. The one thing you do know is that the people they eventually meet will be totally different from their Facebook profile. So, it’s no surprise when they do knock on the family’s door in the Midwest. It’s not fair to tell you about the family, but this much is fair to say: the film doesn’t get any better. Walking out of the theater, I didn’t’ just feel disappointed, but annoyed. However serious the intentions of the film-makers, “Catfish” is so clumsily put together that it feels disingenuous.


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    Robert Hilburn

         I was pop music critic and pop music editor of the Los Angeles Times from 1970 through 2005, and am writing books.  A memoir, "Corn Flakes with John Lennon" was published last fall.  The paperback is due in October.  I am now working on a biography.
    Photo by Jeff Amlotte, copyright 2009.

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