After a bit of a hiatus, 4-times-in-a-row “best dramatic series” winner Mad Men has returned to AMC. Within five episodes this show has put nearly every other dramatic series to shame with its seemingly boundless creativity and enormous entertainment value. Adult themes, unpredictable plot twists, and superb acting work in perfectly balanced harmony to create…
Essentially borrowing the format of the “Classic Albums” series, Eagle Vision and Kayos Productions has just released the excellent Pink Floyd – The Story of WIsh You Were Here on DVD. Packed with new interviews of the three surviving Floyds (and some old ones with the departed keyboardist Richard Wright) this outstanding documentary sheds light on the…
Cleveland (December 7, 2011) – Today, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame announces its inductees for 2012. The inductees are: Performer Category: · Beastie Boys · Donovan · Guns N’ Roses · Laura Nyro · Red Hot Chili Peppers · The Small Faces/The Faces Early Influence: · Freddie King Ahmet Ertegun (nonperformer) Award: ·…
Sports have provided an endless wellspring for metaphors about life in print and on video. Winning and loosing, the value of hard work, how teamwork makes everyone better, and how luck plays a role in just about everything – are the stuff of sports and life. Sports dramas when well executed do a crazy thing;…
Beatles Rock Band – A Review I hate to admit, but I was one of those idiots who pre-ordered the Beatles Rock Band so I would have it the first day. Not sure what the real urgency was, but apparently, about 700,000 others made a similar decision to be sure they added this much-ballyhooed…
Seasons 1 – 6 of The Gilmore Girls was something close to TV perfection. Each episode served up likeable characters delivering hilarious obscure-reference-peppered dialogue at a “Bringing Up Baby” breakneck pace. Viewers had to pay close attention with a cultural dictionary by their side not laughing over the lines making fun of Charlie Rose impacting…
Great end of the year for movies. In mid December, you could stumble into a mall multiplex, pick any theater at random, and you would have a very good chance of seeing a great movie. It was that good for a couple of weeks in 2012. 2012 produced a half-dozen simply outstanding films and at…
From “Somewhere over the Rainbow” on Hollywood learned that the right song at the right time can take a film places images and dialog could not do on its own. Try not to think about bicycles when you hear “Raindrops Keep Falling on My Head”. It’s impossible if you saw Butch Cassidy and the Sundance…
Top 5 Debut Albums/CD’s of All Time There have been some auspicious debuts in Rock and Roll. These have to rank near the very top. Not necessarily my favorite records of all time. These are not desert island discs -at least for me. All have been highly influential and feature great songwriting. The main…