Category: Uncategorized

Fargo (1996)

bluray

I’ve talked before about how I went to see Fargo in the theater when it first came out. About how I went in blind, knowing nothing about it, and came out loving it. I saw it three times in the theater, bringing new friends each time.

When it came out on VHS I remember my local video store had this big cardboard cutout of the film. It had a tag, or maybe a critic quote on it stating that it was a really good thriller or some such thing. I remember being surprised because I thought of it as a comedy – a dark, pitch-black comedy, but a comedy nonetheless.

Of course, it has thriller elements, and that probably is its biggest genre. But I realize that the Coen Brothers have a warped sense of humor, one that perfectly fits mine.

I love that movie, and I still think it is hilarious. I picked up a Blu-ray of the film in 2014 and wrote a review for Cinema Sentries.

Bela Fleck – San Luis Obispo, CA (05/10/98)

Bela Fleck & The Flecktones
5/10/98
Cuesta College Auditorium
San Luis Obispo, CA

Nakamichi CM-300s w/CP-1 Cardioid Capsules (On T-Bar)->Sony TCD-D7,(7th Row Center)
DAT Master Transferred: Tascam DA-30 >HHb CDR 800 PRO Via Analog i/o,
CD Masters >FLAC (Level 8) Via xACT 2.35
FLAC Tags Via xACT 2.48
(Recorded, Transferred, FLAC’d, Tagged, & Front-Cover Artwork By OldNeumanntapr)

Disc I:

  1. Intro
  2. Zenergy
  3. Labyrinth
  4. Almost 12
  5. Huckleberry Row
  6. My Life *
  7. Throwdown At The Hoedown
  8. Futureman Solo
  9. Big Country

Disc II:

  1. Commonality
  2. Communication (no lyrics)
  3. Flight Of The Cosmic Hippo
  4. Sleeping Dogs Lie (Bela Solo)
  5. Shanti ~
  6. Over The Wall ~

Encore:

  1. Sinister Minister

~ Acoustic tracks, Vic on Cello & Futch on percussion box

OldNeumanntapr Notes:
Taping was allowed at this show but I asked not to bring in my microphone stand, so the Nakamichi’s had to go on a T-Bar and be hand held throughout the show. The old Cuesta College Auditorium had such great acoustics, having been built on the old campus during World War Two.
Sadly, it was deemed not to be worth retrofitting for earthquake standards and is slowly falling into decay. I included a photo that i took of the building in 2018.

Do NOT Convert To MP3.
Enjoy! Share freely, don’t sell, play nice, don’t run with scissors, etc. 😉

Master of the House (1925)

blu cover

I wrote my review of Carl Theodore Dreyer’s Master of the House in 2014. I admitted then that I had not seen many silent films and struggled with how to watch them. I’ve seen quite a few more now, but I still struggle with them.

When the story is full of excitement and intrigue, and when the camera is used in interesting ways, I can get into a silent film. But when it is more of a family drama, and when the camera stays pretty static my mind tends to drift.

Dreyer uses his camera well, and the set design is impeccable, but I found the story rather dull and struggled to get through it. You can read my full review here.

Superman: The Silver Age Newspaper Dailies, Volume 2: 1961-1963

comics

The thing about writing for Cinema Sentries is that you sometimes get access to oddball things besides Blu-rays. They’ve connected with the Library of American Comics who put out these really beautiful hardback books of old comic strips and the like. Sometimes I ask for a copy and then review it.

I’ve never read much of Superman in the comics. He’s not a character that interests me all that much. But I found this collection of newspaper comic strips of his to be quite fun. Silly, and ridiculous, but fun.

You can read my full review here.

Edge of the City (1957)

poster

Sidney Poitier was one of the first African American actors to become a true Hollywood star. He was the first to win an Oscar for acting. He led the way for countless African American stars to follow.

John Cassavetes was a pioneer of American independent cinema. He wrote, directed, produced, and financed several important films through the 1970s.

These two trailblazers teamed up for Edge of the City in 1957 to fantastic results.

Axel North (Cassavetes) is a drifter with a shady past. Early in the film, we see him call his parents, but he doesn’t speak, he just listens to them call out to him in anguish and anger.

He gets a job on the docks (the literal edge of the city) in New York. He gets the job by using Charlie Malick (Jack Warden) as a reference. He doesn’t really know Charlie but he’s heard using his name can secure him the job. Charlie is a chiseler and forces Axel to give him part of his hourly wages in order to keep the job.

Quicky he meets Tommy Tyler (Poitier) a charming, intelligent, kind man. They become fast friends. It is here that the film excels. We watch the two as they hang out and talk, as they laugh and dream. Axel comes over and meets Tommy’s equally charming wife (Ruby Dee) and young son. Tommy sets Axel up with a mousy but sweet girl (Kathleen Maguire).

For a while, it is a hang-out movie and it is a joy to watch. The difference between these two men – one black, one white – is there but it isn’t highlighted. They are constantly hassled by racists or anything. They are just two guys who get along together.

The antagonist is Charlie. He doesn’t like Tommy, he is prejudiced against him. He doesn’t like his friendship with Axel. He certainly doesn’t like that Axel is learning to stand up for himself and pushes back against his need to give Charlie some of his wages.

This is the film at its weakest. Tension grows between the two men which eventually leads to violence. It grows naturally and still works within the film, but I much preferred these two friends just hanging out.

Regardless Edge of the City is a great film. I highly recommend it.

Bridge School Benefit – Mountain View, CA (11/02/91)

Bridge School Benefit
11/02/91
Shoreline Amphitheatre
Mountain View, CA
Bridge School Benefit #5

Nakamichi CM-300’s w/CP-1s >Sony WM-D6C Cassette Master (Lawn) >CDR >FLAC
XLIIS Masters Transferred: Sony TC-D5M >HHb CDR 800 PRO Via Analog i/o
CD Masters >Audacity (Minor Edits: Remove Tape Flips, Loud Hand Claps, And Cable Noise) >FLAC (Level 8) + Tags Via xACT 2.47

Recorded, Transferred, FLAC’d, Tagged, & Front-Cover Artwork By OldNeumanntapr
2016 Remaster!

Sonic Youth Set NOT Recorded!

Disc I:
Neil Young w/ Nicolette Larson:

  1. Forever Young

Larry Keegan w/ Gene LaFond:

  1. Ain’t Got The Blues
  2. Wheelchair Blues

Intro by Neil Young
John Lee Hooker w/ Roy Rogers:

  1. Crawlin’ Kingsnake
  2. Hobo Blues
  3. Ride Johnny Ride

Don Henley:

  1. The End Of The Innocence
  2. River
  3. Heart Of The Matter
  4. Come Rain Or Come Shine
  5. Best Of My Love

Disc II:
Nils Lofgren:

  1. Blue Skies
  2. Sticks And Stones
  3. Big Tears Fall
  4. Believe (w/ Neil Young)
  5. Just A Little

Intro by Neil Young
Tracy Chapman:

  1. Crossroads
  2. Bang Bang Bang
  3. Mountains Of Things
  4. Short Supply
  5. The Love That You Had
  6. Amazing Grace (dedicated to Bill Graham)

Disc III:
Willie Nelson:

  1. Valentine
  2. Times Slip Away
  3. Crazy
  4. Night Life
  5. Mamas, Don’t Let Your Baby Grow Up To Be Cowboy
  6. On The Road Again
  7. Blue Eyes Cryin’ In The Rain

Neil Young w/ The Stray Gators:

  1. Long May You Run
  2. Birds
  3. Harvest Moon
  4. From Hank To Hendrix
  5. Comes A Time

Finale:
Neil Young w/ The Stray Gators (all)

  1. Forever Young
  2. Greensleeves (a tribute to Bill Graham) Outro

OldNeumanntapr Notes-
This was my first Bridge School Benefit and I was so glad to be there. I’ve seen/recorded four Bridge School Benefits and this one was my favorite. I don’t know if it was the band line up, or because it my first Bridge show, or if it was because of Bill Graham’s recent passing, but there was a lot of energy in the air. I really wanted to record a Bridge show, after having obtained 1st generation cassettes of the 1989 show. I believe that this is the first time that I recorded Neil Young. My friends Dave, Brian, and Rick met up with my ex wife and me at the show. They had reserved seats, while I wanted to be near the repeater speakers on the lawn to record. Dave told me that, though there was a pat down search getting into Shoreline, they would allow you to bring in food. I had the idea to take a small box of saltine crackers and hollow it out. I cut down the cellophane wrappers and only left about 15 crackers in each wrapper. My D6 fit perfectly inside the box, and I left it open with the remaining crackers exposed. We brought in a small tupperware of sliced cheese and cold cuts, and some sealed bottled water. I had a canvas bag with a solid sturdy bottom to hold everything. I took the microphones and custom XLR >RCA shortened cables and used a velcro Ace Bandage to conceal them on my body. Fortunately, being November, we had heavy coats that further concealed the gear. (It was really cold up on that lawn in November!) I opened the bag when we went through security, being careful to not let the gate people notice the added weight of the recorder inside, and we went in without a hitch. I ran the Nakamichi microphones in a Levi jacket, with holes sewn into the front two pockets so the capsules would protrude. I used hollowed out 35 mm film can lids to go over the microphone bodies to keep them from falling through the bottom of the pockets. As long as I stood near the repeater speakers it worked really well. I also had long hair that I wore down to further conceal the microphones. The recorder went into a hip pack so I was totally self contained. This was a really emotional weekend, with the recent death of Bill Graham. Tracy Chapman dedicated ‘Amazing Grace’ to Bill during her set. Nils Lofgren, who played the most touching set of any Bridge set I ever saw, made repeated references to Bill and told a story of getting caught by Graham trying to sneak into the Fillmore East. Nils Lofgren’s song ‘Big Tears Fall’ was very powerful. Nils asked the crowd if there were any parents in the crowd, and I remember thinking of our daughter Lucy, who was born in May of ’91 and was at home with Nikki’s folks while we went to the shows. I had just recorded two very emotional Grateful Dead shows at the Oakland Coliseum on October 27 and October 31. The 10/27/91 show was the first Dead show after Bill’s helicopter crash, (They opened with Bill’s favorite Dead song ’Sugar Magnolia’), and the Halloween show featured Ken Kesey as a special guest. After the Bridge School Benefit show, Nikki and I drove my ’67 VW camper bus to Atherton where we parked in front of my friend Karl’s friend’s parent’s house. Sunday morning we got up early and drove to Golden Gate Park to record the Bill Graham Benefit, which was another emotional all day event. It was billed as ‘Laughter, Love, And Music’. It was quite the weekend. I heard later that Dave, who didn’t stay overnight to see the Sunday Bill Graham memorial concert, ran out of gas driving his friends home in the middle of the night near Santa Margarita, CA.

Do NOT Convert To MP3.
Enjoy! Share freely, don’t sell, play nice, don’t run with scissors, etc. 😉

The Fantastic Mr. Fox (2008)

bluera

I have sort of a love/hate relationship with Wes Anderson. It is mostly love these days as I think he has grown as a filmmaker, but there was a period in the mid-2000s when I worried he was going to become a director who was more style than substance.

The two films that caused this worry were The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou and The Darjeeling Limited. Upon initial viewings I was unimpressed. They were very clever and stylish, but their stories left something to be desired. Or so I felt back then. I’ve since revisited and reassessed, but at the time I was disappointed with them.

With The Royal Tennenbaums and Rushmore he had become one of my favorite directors and so that disappointment was huge.

Then came The Fantastic Mr. Fox. It was magnificent. It is a stop-motion film based on the Roald Dahl story and both the story and the animation fit Anderson’s sensibilities to a “T.” It is clever and funny, beautiful, and a wee bit touching.

The Criterion Collection put out a magnificent version of it on home video a few years back and you can read my review here.

Blues Traveler – Santa Barbara, CA (07/18/92)

Blues Traveler
July 18th, 1992
Santa Barbara County Bowl
Santa Barbara, CA

Master:
Nakamichi CM-300s/cp1’s on T-bar >Sony WM-D6C>Cass(m) >HHb CDR 800
Recorded from the 8th row, left-hand side.

Recorded & Transferred By OldNeumanntapr
FLAC’d By Dave Mallick
FLAC Tags + Front-Cover Artwork By OldNeumanntapr

Conversion:
XLIIS Cass Master Transferred: Sony TC-D5M >HHb CDR 800,
CD > xACT 1.69 >FLAC
FLAC Tags Via xACT 2.53

  1. 100 Years [04:45.24]
  2. Should I Stay Or Should I Go? [08:14.31]
  3. Crash Burn > [03:45.15]
  4. Dropping Some NYC [03:56.43]
  5. What’s For Breakfast [04:44.44]
  6. Ivory Tusk [06:37.67]
  7. Crystal Flame [12:36.36]
  8. Sweet Talking Hippie [13:53.38]
  9. Johnny B. Goode [03:24.41]
    Total: [61:58.39]

Notes:

Apparent tape stoppage between tracks 6 and 7, flip between tracks 7 and 8.

Taper Notes-
This was the second time that I saw Blues Traveler. They are a good band and a great opening act! (They opened for the Allman Brothers Band.) Not many tapers at the Bowl, from what I remember. I was one of the closest to the stage, in the 8th row.

Do NOT Convert To MP3.
Enjoy! Share freely, don’t sell, play nice, don’t run with scissors, etc. 😉