Natalie Merchant – London, England (03/25/88)

Natalie Merchant
Donmar Warehouse
London, England
March 25, 1988
(opening for Tracy Chapman)

Source: aud > ? > CD received in trade > extracted via iTunes > FLAC

Sound quality: B / B+

Tracklist:

  1. A Campfire Song
  2. Gun Shy
  3. Everyone a Puzzle Lover
  4. Don’t Talk
  5. The Painted Desert
  6. Lilydale
  7. What’s the Matter Here?
  8. Maddox Table
  9. Verdi Cries
  10. Like the Weather
  11. After Talking To Myself (unreleased)
  12. Where the Soul Never Dies (with Tracy Chapman)

Notes:

This was Natalie’s second-ever solo performance (she also performed at this same location on the previous day), serving as the opening act for Tracy Chapman. Most songs are Natalie performing entirely alone, accompanying herself on piano, although there is cello on at least one song and possibly some limited acoustic guitar on another. Tracy Chapman performs with Natalie
on the final track.

This recording is interesting not only for the rare solo performances of older songs, such as “Everyone a Puzzle Lover”, “Lilydale”, and “Maddox Table”, but also for the unreleased song “After Talking to Myself”. There is at least one other recording of Natalie performing a partial version of that song, and it is available on the Chicago 4/14/88 recording (uploaded separately).

The Movie Journal: 2024

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I watched 32 movies in December. 22 of them were new to me. 15 were made before I was born.

That’s all I’ll say about December because this is mostly going to be a year in review.

I watched 471 movies in 2024. That’s an average of 39.2 per month or 9 per week. 360 of them were new to me. For the first time since 2019 the number of movies I watched in a year was less than the previous year. I watched an astonishing 529 movies in 2023. I don’t know if I’ll ever beat that record. 471 movies is a lot so you might not believe me when I say I intentionally slowed my watching down a bit last year. I made an effort to do a little more reading and watch some television shows.

My wife and I like watching TV on weekday evenings. We try to find one or two shows we can enjoy and watch together. This year we watched our way through Remington Steele and started watching Moonlighting. We also started Twin Peaks for like the third time. Maybe this time we’ll actually make it through (we like the show, but for some reason, we’ve always gotten distracted and paused it for a long time, and it is a show you really need to have fresh on your mind).

Anyway, I definitely slowed my movie-watching down just a little bit.

I kept up several monthly themes from the previous years, dropped a few, and added several new ones. I still very much like doing these movie themes. I still say it helps me focus my movie viewing and my writing. Though some themes work better than others.

I did not watch enough movies that were made in 2024 to do any type of Top 10 list but I wanted to mention a few of my favorites.

Rebel Ridge: Jeremy Saulnier’s film plays like an update of Rambo: First Blood with less over-the-top action but a terrific central performance from Aaron Pierre. Saulnier has solidified himself as one of our best genre directors and he gets top marks from me here.

Love Lies Bleeding: I love that Kristen Stewart has carved out such an idiosyncratic career after making those Twilight films. Here she plays a reclusive gym manager who falls in love with a bodybuilder and finds herself involved with some rough gangsters. It is a terrific little thriller and it takes some unexpected turns.

Thelma: June Squibb had a long career as a wonderful character actress and this was one of the last films she made before she passed and one of the few in which she got a starring role. She’s perfect as an elderly woman who gets scammed out of some money through a telephone call and decides to take matters into her own hands.

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Classic Doctor Who dominated my most-watched actors categories for most of the year and it is they who remain at the top here at the end. The only change from last month is that Barbara Stanwyck slipped into a tie for fifth place with seven films watched.

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Terence Fisher rose to the top of the directors list many months ago and he managed to stay there. He directed many of the Hammer Horror films and I watched a lot of those with my wife on Friday nights. Dario Argento bumped himself to third place mostly on the heels of me watching and reviewing a collection of his made-for-TV movies.

Overall it was a very good year in movie watching. I hope to do more movie writing in the coming year and do a better job of linking to Cinema Sentries when I review something for them. Either way here’s to another great year of movie watching.

Various Artists – Nobody Sings Dylan Like Dylan, Vol. 26

Various Artists
Nobody Sings Dylan Like Dylan, Vol. 26: Festivus Was Over, the Boys Were All Plannin’ For a Fall – Various Artists MODIFIED

Happy Festivus everyone! Gather round the Festivus Pole and we’ll have the Airing of Grievances, Feats of Strength, and maybe even a Festivus Miracle. We’ve got NSD debuts by Jackson Browne, Los Lobos and The Ramones, among others. We’ve got The Roots’s epic version of “Masters of War.” And we’ve got “the only known Bob Dylan Christmas song.”

As always, thanks to the tapers, the original uploaders, the nice folks who’ve sent me recordings (especially Ramone-master Gaston, who responded to my plea for “My Back Pages”), the fine artists who’ve created cover artwork, and especially the performers and composer. Due to the many different sources, I am not including lineages. I have done nothing to the original files but normalize the levels and fade in and out on each track (using Cool Edit). If you’ve got something good, PM me. More volumes will follow in 2008.

Enjoy!

01 Desolation Row – Jackson Browne (Dec 15, 2007, Asheville Civic Center, Asheville, NC)
02 Outlaw Blues – Dream Syndicate (Sep 5, 1982, KPFK, Los Angeles, CA)
03 Don’t Think Twice, It’s Alright – Bryan Ferry (Nov 22, 2002, Warfield Theatre, San Francisco, CA)
04 Clothesline Saga – The Roches (Oct 19, 2007, Kent Stage, Kent, OH)
05 Went to See the Gypsy – Martha Scanlon (Oct 29, 2007, Folkscene, Los Angeles, CA)
06 Senor – Richard Shindell (Sep 4, 2007, La Pomme d’Eve, Paris)
*07 [DELETED DUE TO VHS RELEASE] Property of Jesus – The Pretenders (Feb 1986, Royal Albert Hall, London)
08 Tryin’ to Get to Heaven Before They Close the Door – Peter Rowan (Sep 25, 1999, Freight and Salvage, Berkeley, CA)
09 Highway 61 Revisited – Los Lobos with Dave Alvin and John Doe (Oct 6, 2007, Hardly Strictly Bluegrass Festival, San Francisco, CA)
10 Meet Me in the Morning – Sloan Wainwright (Sep 8, 2007, Levin Music Performance Studio, Chicago, IL)
11 Tonight I’ll Be Staying Here with You – The Jayhawks (Oct 21, 1995, The Troubadour, Los Angeles, CA)
12 Buckets of Rain – Martin Simpson (Jul 28, 2007, Cherry Hinton Hall, Cambridge, UK)
13 Farewell Angelina – Watkins Family Hour (May 8, 2004, Largo, Los Angeles, CA)
14 Just Like Tom Thumb’s Blues – Georgia Satellites (Feb 22, 1987, The Ritz, New York)
15 My Back Pages – The Ramones (Sep 25, 1994, London, England)
16 Masters of War – The Roots (Nov 15, 2007, Wiltern Theatre, Los Angeles, CA)

Various Artists – Nobody Sings Dylan Like Dylan, Vol. 25

Various Artists
Nobody Sings Dylan Like Dylan, Vol. 25 – You Can Always Come Back, But You Can’t Come Back All the Way

To those of you who wanted more NSD, here you go. For those who didn’t, why are you reading this? Big thanks to Sherm, who got in touch out of the blue with “Things Have Changed,” inspiring me to compile another volume.

As always, thanks to the tapers, the original uploaders, the nice folks who’ve sent me recordings, the fine artists who’ve created cover artwork, and especially the performers and composer. Due to the many different sources, I am not including lineages. I have done nothing to the original files but normalize the levels and fade in and out on each track (using Cool Edit). If you’ve got something good, PM me. I suspect more volumes will follow, albeit infrequently.

Enjoy!

01 Things Have Changed – Waylon Jennings (Sep 23, 2000, Lanierland Music Park, Cumming, Georgia)
02 Tangled Up in Blue – T Bone Burnett (Feb 24, 1994, KPFA Studios, Berkeley, CA)
03 You Ain’t Going Nowhere – Steve Wynn, Robert Fisher, Deanna Varagona and Walter Salas-Humara (Jul 5, 2002, The Borderline, London, England)
04 Legionnaire’s Disease – Delta Cross Band (Jun 24, 1980, Tonkraft, Sweden)
05 Ye Playboys and Playgirls – The Jayhawks (Feb 21, 1985, 7th Street Entry, Minneapolis, MN)
06 A Hard Rain’s A-Gonna Fall – Uncle Tupelo (Aug 25, 1989, Cicero’s, St. Louis, MO)
07 Mississippi – The Dixie Chicks (July 29, 2006, TD Banknorth Garden, Boston,MA)
08 Forever Young – Watkins Family Hour with Benmont Tench (Mar 22, 2007, Largo, Los Angeles, CA)
09 Percy’s Song – Arlo Guthrie (Dec 3, 1998, The Ark, Ann Arbor, MI)
10 George Jackson/ I Shall Be Released – Joan Baez (May 21, 1977, Orpheum, Boston, MA)
11 Lay Lady Lay – Cassandra Wilson (Jun 30, 2003, Sala Kongresowa, Warsaw, Poland)
12 I’ll Be Your Baby Tonight – Curtis Stigers (Jul 16, 2007, BBC Jazz Awards, Mermaid Theatre, London, England)
13 Knockin’ On Heaven’s Door – Jerry Garcia Band with Clarence Clemons (Sep 10, 1989, Great Woods, Mansfield, MA)
14 Death is Not the End – The Waterboys (May 4, 1986, Golddigger’s, Chippenham, England)

Fleetwood Mac – Pittsburgh, PA (03/01/09)

Fleetwood Mac
20090301
Pittsburgh, PA
Mellon Arena

Source: Audience
Lineage: CA-14 cardioid (inside of Kangol hat) > CA UGLY Pre [+20db] > Edirol R-09 [WAV 24bit/44.1kHz] > PC > Editing/Tracking > Dither to 16bit > FLAC
Quality: 10 (9.5+)
Comments:
Notes:

Set 1:

  1. crowd noise 01:50
  2. Monday Morning 03:03
  3. The Chain 05:00
  4. Dreams 05:55
  5. I Know I’m Not Wrong 04:19
  6. Gypsy 04:58
  7. Go Insane 03:51
  8. Rhiannon 05:39
  9. Second Hand News 04:12
  10. Tusk 04:44
  11. Sara 08:04
  12. Big Love 03:36
  13. Landslide 04:55
  14. Never Going Back Again 03:57
  15. Storms 07:12
  16. Say You Love Me 05:06
  17. Gold Dust Woman 06:58
  18. Oh Well 03:52
  19. I’m So Afraid 09:40
  20. Stand Back 05:09
  21. Go Your Own Way 09:25
    Encore:
  22. World Turning 09:45
  23. Don’t Stop 06:36
  24. Silver Springs 07:08
    __
    02:14:54

Various Artists – Nobody Sings Dylan Like Dylan, Vol. 24

Various Artists
Nobody Sings Dylan Like Dylan, Vol. 24: Oh Mama, Can This Really Be the End?

Welcome back friends. This may or may not be the last in the series–there’s plenty more in the archives, but frankly I am having trouble keeping track of what I’ve already used. (If anyone has a breakdown by song and/or artist, please let me know!) With the end perhaps upon me, I’ve included a lot of things I’ve been saving, including six songs that are new to the series.

As always, thanks to the tapers, the original uploaders, the nice folks who’ve sent me recordings, the fine artists who’ve created cover artwork, and especially the performers and composer. (If you’ve sent me something that hasn’t been included yet, sorry–if I do more of these later, I’ll try to get your songs in!) Due to the many different sources, I am not including lineages. I have done nothing to the original files but normalize the levels and fade in and out on each track (using Cool Edit). If you’ve got something good, I’d still love to get it, so PM me. If/when I get enough great stuff, I’ll be back.

Finally, for those of you who like Leonard Cohen or the Beatles, I’m going to put together some cover compilations of their songs. If you’ve got anything that might fit, I’d love to hear from you via PM.

Enjoy!

01 One More Night – Elana James (May 30, 2007, Club Passim, Cambridge, MA)
02 To Be Alone with You – Steve Gibbons Band (SWF3 Festival, November 2, 1981)
03 Is Your Love in Vain – Steve Kilbey (Oct 29, 2006, Phoenix Community Reserve, East Malvern, Melbourne, Aus)
04 Lo and Behold – Robyn Hitchcock and the Nashville Crawdads (Mar 18, 2007, Belcourt Thetre, Nashville, TN)
05 Blind Willie McTell – Steve Wynn and John Wesley Harding (Feb 8 1998, Den Bosch, Netherlands)
06 Clean Cut Kid – The Textones (Nov 20, 1987, Catalyst, Santa Cruz, CA)
07 Gates of Eden – Bryan Ferry (Apr 2, 2007, Tempodrom, Berlin, Ger)
08 Blowin’ in the Wind – Joe Ely (Dec 31, 1990, Austin Coliseum, Austin, TX)
09 License to Kill – Roseanne Cash Apr 6, 2003, Mountain Stage, Cultural Center Auditorium, Charleston, WV)
10 Slow Train Coming – North Mississippi All Stars (May 11, 2007, WorkPlay Sound Stage, Birmingham, AL)
11 When the Night Comes Falling From the Sky – Jeff Healy Band (Apr 30, 1989, PC 69, Bielefeld, Ger)
12 All Along the Watchtower – Neil Young, Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band (Oct 5, 2004, Xcel Energy Center, St. Paul, MN)
13 Masters of War – Ben Harper and Tom Morello (Jun 9, 2007, Harrah’s Casino, Council Bluffs, IA)
14 Dark Eyes – Warren Zevon (Mar 4, 2000, Park West, Chicago, IL)

Various Artists – Nobody Sings Dylan Like Dylan, Vol. 23

Various Artists
Nobody Sings Dylan Like Dylan, Vol. 23 – Buried in the Rocks

For anyone who found NSD 22 a little slow, this one should make up for it. There are some notes on performers at the bottom. As always, thanks to the tapers, the original uploaders, the folks who’ve sent me recordings, the fine artists who’ve created cover artwork, and especially the performers and composer. Due to the many different sources, I am not including lineages. I have done nothing to the original files but normalize the levels and fade in and out on each track (using Cool Edit). Please keep the suggestions and files coming–if you’ve got something good, PM me.

Enjoy!

01 Maggie’s Farm – Tin Machine * (Jun 25, 1989, La Cigale, Paris, France)
02 Changing of the Guard – Patti Smith (Apr 18, 2007, Hiro Ballroom, New York, NY)
03 Everything is Broken – Kenny Wayne Shepard (Apr 21, 2007, Borgata Casino & Spa,
Atlantic City, NJ)

04 Subterranean Homesick Blues – Mitch Ryder and Engerling (Oct 2, 2002, Sinkkasten, Frankfurt, Germany)
05 Highway 61 Revisited – Bruce Springsteen and Wolfgang Niedecken (Jul 9, 1995, Cafe Eckstein, Berlin, Germany)
06 Ballad of a Thin Man – Robyn Hitchcock (Nov 25, 2006, Crocodile Cafe, Seattle, WA)
07 Leopard Skin Pillbox Hat – Frogwings ** (Dec 14, 1997, Paradise Rock Clu, Boston, MA)
08 Seven Days – New Barbarians *** (Apr 13, 1979, Rehearsal Studio, Culver City, CA)
09 Watching the River Flow – Steve Gibbons Band (Oct 5, 1974, BRMB Radio Sessions, Incognito Club, Birmingham, England)
10 Father of Night – Manfred Mann’s Earth Band (Sep 23, 1974, Radiohuset Studio 4, Stockholm, Sweden)
11 All Along the Watchtower – Dave Mason (Jan 27, 2007, Scottish Rite Auditorium, Collingswood, NJ)
12 Hurricane – Phil Lesh and Friends **** (Nov 26, 2005, Chicago Theater, Chicago, IL)
13 Rainy Day Women #12 & 35 – Eric Clapton and Band du Lac * (May 20, 2006, Highclere Castle, Hampshire, England)

*David Bowie band
** featuring Derek Trucks and Jimmy Herring
*** Keith Richards and Ron Wood
**** featuring Chris Robinson on vocals
* featuring Andy Fairweather Low and Paul Carrack

Various Artists – Nobody Sings Dylan Like Dylan, Vol. 22

Various Artists
Nobody Sings Dylan Like Dylan, Vol. 22: A Thousand Miles Behind

It’s been four weeks since the last edition of NSD, but the delay has certainly not been due to any lack of good material. We’ve got 22 new tracks for Volume 22, including 15 new artists and six new songs to the NSD canon. But what truly distinguishes this installment is the intentional absence of both “All Along the Watchtower” and “Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door,” which must be the most covered Dylan songs around. Chances are they’ll be back next time.

Many of Volume 22’s performers may not be familiar at first glance (some because their names are usually hidden behind those of their bands), but they are all featured in the All Music Guide (allmusic.com), and I encourage you to look them up there. Of particular note is the Alpha Band cover of “You Angel You”–for those of you unfamiliar with these guys, they are Rolling Thunder Revue veterans T Bone Burnett, Steven Soles and David Mansfield. Also noteworthy are Robyn Hitchcock’s backing band, the Nashville Crawdads, who include Peter Buck, Gillian Welch, David Rawlings and John Paul Jones.

As always, thanks to the tapers, the original uploaders, the folks who’ve sent me recordings, the fine artists who’ve created cover artwork, and especially the performers and composer. Due to the many different sources, I am not including lineages. I have done nothing to the original files but normalize the levels and fade in and out on each track (using Cool Edit). Please keep the suggestions and files coming–if you’ve got something good, PM me.

Enjoy!

01 Ye Playboys and Playgirls – Dave Sharp and The Acoustic Terrorists (Aug 31, 1992, Greenbelt Festival, Castle Ashby, Northamptonshire, UK)
02 Maggie’s Farm – Mike Seeger with Retrograss (Jul 30, 2000, Planet Bluegrass Ranch,
Lyons, CO
)03 I’ll Be Your Baby Tonight – Rita Coolidge and Kris Kristofferson (Apr 22, 1973, Record Plant, Sausalito, CA)
04 Tonight I’ll Be Staying Here With You – Caitlin Cary & Thad Cockrell (Jun 22,2005, The Garage, Winston-Salem, NC)
05 Oh Sister – Andrew Bird (Mar 21, 2007, Crawdaddy, Dublin, Ireland)
06 Silvio – Amy Rigby (Jun 2004, Roots On the River, Bellows Falls, VT)
07 One Too Many Mornings – Jay Bennett and Edward Church (Aug 14, 2002, Tractor Tavern, Seattle, WA)
08 Tomorrow is a Long Time – Chris Hillman, Bernie Leadon & Al Perkins (Jan 12, 1984, Rockefellers, Houston, TX)
09 When I Paint My Masterpiece – Tim and Mollie O’Brien (Apr 27, 1996, Merle Watson Memorial Bluegrass Festival, North Wilkesboro, NC)
10 Tiny Montgomery – Robyn Hitchcock and the Nashville Crawdads (Mar 18, 2007, Belcourt Theatre, Nashville, TN)
11 I Dreamed I Saw St. Augustine – Thea Gilmore (Jul 2, 2002, Telford’s Warehouse, Chester, England)
12 You Angel You – Alpha Band (Dec 6, 1976, Paul’s Mall, Boston, MA)
13 Buckets of Rain – Jimmy LaFave (Sep 15, 2000, Ted’s Wrecking Yard, Toronto, Canada)
14 Up to Me – Moshav (Mar 19, 2007, World Cafe, Philadeplphia, PA)
15 I Threw It All Away – Jeff Tweedy (Oct 21, 1999, Lounge Ax, Chicago, IL)
16 If You See Her Say Hello – Elliott Murphy (Jun 4, 2002, Libreria Feltrinelli, Milan, Italy)
17 Sign on the Window – Circle Sound (Mar 17, 2007, Irving Plaza, New York, NY)
18 The Man in Me – David Bazan (Feb 17, 2007, Sweet Briar College, Sweet Briar, VA)
19 Make You Feel My Love – Mary Black (Jul3, 2006, Dublin Olympia Theatre, Dublin, Ireland)
20 Ring Them Bells – Ron Sexsmith (Jul 10, 2004, Jarhunderthalle, Bochum, Germany)
21 I Shall Be Released – John Doe, Kristin Hersh, and Grant Lee Phillips (Sep 19, 2002, Cat’s Cradle Carrboro, NC)
22 Blowin’ in the Wind – Bill Morrissey, Carol Noonan and Peter Heimlich (Dec 17, 2002, Barnstormers Theater, Tamworth, NH)

Various Artists – Nobody Sings Dylan Like Dylan, Vol. 21

Various Artists
Nobody Sings Dylan Like Dylan, Vol. 21: They’ll Stone You When You’re Playing Your Guitar

As you’ve probably guessed from its title, this volume features some great guitar players spinning their magic on Bob’s tunes.

01 Rainy Day Women (instrumental) – Phil Lesh and Friends with Warren Haynes and Jimmy Herring (Apr 20, 2001, Independence Hall Cricket Arena, Charlotte, NC)
02 Highway 61 Revisited – Johnny Winter (Jul 27, 1980, Blues ‘N’ Tattoo, New York, NY)
03 Quinn the Eskimo – Manfred Mann’s Earth Band (1970, Paris Theatre, London, England)
04 Going Going Gone – Richard Hell with Robert Quine (Jul 14, 1982, Old Waldorf, San Francisco, CA)
05 Don’t Ya Tell Henry – The Band (Aug 17, 1969, Woodstock, Bethel, NY)
06 Queen Jane Approximately – Grateful Dead(Oct 8, 1989, Hampton Coliseum, Hampton, VA)
07 Watching the River Flow – Joe Cocker and Eric Clapton (NOV 28, 1983, ARMS Benefit, Reunion Arena, Dallas, TX)
08 Just Like Tom Thumb’s Blues – Bill Kirchen (Aug 7, 2005, Rancho Nicasio Nicasio, CA)
09 Can You Please Crawl Out Your Window? – Jimi Hendrix (May 5, 1968, Fillmore East, New York, NY)
10 Isis – Derek Trucks Band (Dec 31, 2003, Visulite Theater, Charlotte, NC)
11 This Wheel’s On Fire – The Black crowes (May 13th, 2006, Labatt Centre, London, ON)
12 One More Cup of Coffee – Chris Duarte (Feb 3,2007, Mexicali Blues, Teaneck, NJ)
13 Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door – Guns N’ Roses (Dec 19, 1987, Madison, WI)
14 All Along the Watchtower – Night of the Guitars with Randy California, Robby Krieger, and Phil Manzanera (Apr 30, 1989, Stadthalle, Heidelberg, Germany)

The Friday Night Horror Movie: The Last Matinee (2020)

the last matinee poster

In an old movie theater in Uraguay, a group of horror movie archetypes watch a low-budget horror movie whilst a black-gloved killer slashes them in incredibly gory ways.

The Last Matinee takes its influences from such art-house films as Goodbye Dragon Inn and Cinema Paradisio and the stylish Gialli of guys like Dario Argento and Mario Bava.

It looks great. Director Maximiliano Contenti and cinematographer Benjamín Silva make great use of the cinema’s lighting. The movie screen glows on the audience’s faces, while an usher beams his flashlight across the room. In other spaces, neon signs and popcorn machines add ambient light. The camera moves fluidly across these interesting closed spaces.

The main set consists of the movie auditorium. It is an old theater with a huge seating space and a large balcony. It is the kind of theater I wish still existed instead of the generic multi-plexes we’ve had for decades. In addition to this is the projection room, a dirty old bathroom, and lots of long hallways. The film makes great use of its single-setting.

Once it gets going it is great fun with the killer getting in some gruesome kills with stylish gore. But boy does it ever take its time getting there. It is a good hour before anything happens. Until then we spend time developing the characters.

The characters are your basic slasher film stock characters. There is the horny couple, the little kid, the old man, the punk teens, and our nice final girl.

I appreciate that the film fleshes these characters out a bit. I’ve seen slashers where the characters were nothing but cannon, er knife fodder, and that gets boring. If we don’t care about the characters just a little bit then the film becomes nothing but an exercise in gore effects.

But here we spend a little too much time developing them only to watch them get slashed and stabbed before the credits roll. Those early scenes have style, but not much else. But once the killer lets loose in that last half hour it turns into something quite fun.