The Good Die Young is an odd little heist film. It spends more time developing its characters – four men who are not career criminals, and their wives – than it does with the heister (or its preparation, or what happens after.)
As a character study, it is pretty interesting. The acting is good (Gloria Grahame is in it and you can never go wrong with Gloria Grahame). But it lacks that certain something that makes a film great.
You can read my full review here.
Allman Brothers Band
Bell Auditorium
Augusta, GA
11/18/1981
Source: analog SBD recording > ? > CD-R > EAC > FLAC
Remastered by Mr. Sifter, July 2024. Some songs have incomplete intros/outros, and “Southbound” has a cut in the middle. Not anyone’s favorite era but an overlooked era, with full 5 songs off ‘Brothers Of The Road,’ an album they’d never return to again after the tour ended a couple months later.
Speed corrected to the correct pitch using Audacity,
Clearly a few generations from the master, removed some of the gratuitous hiss and attempted to EQ some details out of the lows and mids to at least give this short-lived lineup a fair shake here.
Thx to Sean Gleason for his original 2012 upload.
Veronica Lake and Alan Ladd made four films together. Three of them – This Gun For Hire, The Glass Key, & The Blue Dahlia are terrific film noirs. Their final film together Saigon is a bit of a dud. It isn’t a film noir but an exotic post-war picture. They made a lot of those during and just after World War II where they put American characters in exotic locales (but still shot them in California sound stages) and gave the locals quite a thrill.
Some of them (including my favorite film of all time, Casablanca) are quite good, others, like Saigon just never really go anywhere. You can read my full review here.
Jean-Paul Belmondo was one of my favorite French actors. He made some great films including Breathless from director Jean Luc Godard, Le Doulous from Jean-Pierre Melville, and Mississippi Mermaid from Francois Truffaut (if you are keeping count those are three great films from three of the greatest French directors ever). But even when he made not-so-great films from not-so-great directors Belmondo elevated the material. He was so charming, so full of life his mere presence made a film better.
Such is the case with The Burglars. It is a fairly average heist film, but Belmondo is wonderful and that makes it worth watching. You can read my full review here.
I’m trying to figure out ways to make this site more interesting now that the music has gone away. Right now I’m mostly thinking about getting back to some basic things I used to do. Like the Pick of the Week. I’ve continued writing about it for Cinema Sentries, but only every other week (another guy does the off weeks for me) but I’ve gotten remiss about posting those here. I want to get better at that and I want to keep writing my picks here on those off weeks.
And here we go.
I remember watching Mad Max: Fury Road in the theater. I know I’d previously watched Mad Max: Beyond Thunderdome when I was a kid. I might have seen the other two back then but I had no memory of it. Point being the Mad Max series wasn’t something I was particularly interested in. But I took my wife to see Fury Road because it was getting mad reviews and it looked fun.
Somewhere in the middle of it, probably about the time that dude strapped to the front of a truck playing a guitar that breathed fire, I turned to my wife and said something like “You have to embrace the ridiculousness.”
And you do. These films aren’t something you intellectually dissect. They are utterly ridiculous films, but they are so much fun, they are so brilliantly, and technically filmed, the silly bits don’t matter.
Fury Road has become one of my favorite films.
I meant to see Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga in the theater, but as these things happen, I never made it. It is a film designed to be seen on the biggest screen. But I guess a 4K UHD disk on my large television will have to suffice.
Like all major releases these days Furiosa comes in a variety of packages with a variety of special features. So choose wisely.
Also out this week that looks interesting:
Bob Le Flambeur: Jean Pierre-Melville’s classic film involves an aging gangster going after one last score.
Demons & Demons 2: Lamberto Bava’s nuts-o horror films are getting a nice 4K release. You can read my full review here.
Dick Tracy RKO Collection: The classic comic strip character was adapted in the 1940s by RKO. Four of those films fill out this nice-looking boxed set.
Top Line (AKA Alien Terminator): Franco Nero stars in this goofy-sounding film about a man who discovers a UFO in the Columbian jungle and when he tells people about it, he gets hunted by the FBI, the KGB, the Mob, Nazis, and everybody else.
The Last Emperor: Criterion is giving Bernardo Bertolucci’s epic drama the 4K treatment. It follows the life of Emperor Pu Yi, the last emperor of China whose life followed the country during some dramatic changes.
The Bikeriders: Jodie Comer, Austin Butler, Tom Hardy, and Michael Shannon star in this film about a biker gang and its changing loyalties.
If: Animated film about a young girl who can see everybody’s imaginary friends after they grow up and get real friends.
When Titans Ruled the Earth: Arrow Video has boxed up Clash of the Titans and Wrath of the Titans into a nice-looking package.
Pink Floyd
1977-02-18
Oude Ahoy-Hallen
Rotterdam, The Netherlands (2nd night)
DISC ONE
01 Sheep 11.35
02 Pigs On The Wing (part 1) 01.53
03 Dogs (cut near the and “who was…”) 16.19
04 Pigs On The Wing (part 2) 02.17
05 Pigs (Three Different Ones) 18.11
DISC TWO
01 Shine On You Crazy Diamond (parts I – V) 13.55
02 Welcome To The Machine 08.09
03 Have A Cigar 05.14
04 Wish You Were Here 06.10
05 Shine On You Crazy Diamond (parts VI – IX) 17.58
06 Money
Tom Waits
Kongressehalle
Frankfurt – DE
12-11-1985
This is yet another one of the rare shows that you often hear about but never find anywhere.(courtesy of M.R. archive) ;O)
Thank you very much to my good friend the Italian gentleman Mauro Verona for sharing this gem. :o)
Quality : B
Lineage :
Source: Audience > unknown generation cassette
Wav > WavePad Sound Editor > Flac
Artwork included.
Tracklist:
Rare double LP set recorded Live at Kongresshalle Frankfurt, Germany, 12 November 1985 (audience recording).
Released in Germany as a bootleg called “I Sing You Under The Table”, possibly 1986.
Numbered edition of 333 copies (33 on red/blue vinyl).
Gatefold cover, handmade silk-screen printing!
Each label is custom-stamped with a different stamp.
Also, Side 1 is backed with side 3 and side 2 backed with side 4.
The track listed on the bootleg coverart as Part Of The Act is actually the first 20 seconds of Ruby’s Arms,
which suddenly stops due to a microphone feedback, after which and Tom goes into
some impromptu piano playing and storytelling.
Take Care Of All My Children is listed as I’m Goin’ To See My Lord.
Tom Waits
Minneapolis, MN USA
Orpheum Theater
1 November 1987
stereo audience recording
(01:45:20)
CONTRAST CLAUSE:
Another recording of this performance – made by a different taper and recorded with different equipment – is running here:
http://www.dimeadozen.org/torrents-details.php?id=573197
cassette side A (30:17.62):
A01. Intro / piano roll: Atmosphere; Rachmaninov 2nd Piano Concerto (00:16.08)
A02. Hang On St. Christopher (02:39.44)
A03. 16 Shells From a Thirty Ought Six (04:08.64)
A04. Down In The Hole (06:21.04)
A05. Gun Street Girl (04:30.44)
A06. comments (used erotica) / introduction (wolf boy) (02:10.49)
A07. Cold Cold Ground (03:23.41)
A08. Yesterday Is Here (02:36.61)
A09. Telephone Call From Istanbul (04:10.47)
cassette side B (28:58.30):
B01. Straight To The Top (Vegas) (09:02.43)
B02. comments (shoes / fashion) / boiler room (02:06.72)
B03. I Wish I Was In New Orleans (04:07.22)
B04. comments (Bob’s airport / 4H Club) (01:02.28)
B05. Christmas Card From A Hooker In Minneapolis (04:31.22)
B06. Jitterbug Boy > Johnsburg Illinois > Jitterbug Boy (04:51.24)
B07. Frank’s Wild Years (03:16.44)
cassette side C (26:03.49):
C01. comments (doctor) (00:35.53)
C02. Innocent When You Dream (04:56.59)
C03. Midtown (instrumental) (01:26.26)
C04. Underground (02:28.68)
C05. Clap Hands (04:41.22)
C06. comments (bad days) (00:56.19)
C07. More Than Rain (03:05.48)
C08. Singapore (02:45.00)
C09. introduction: Rain Dogs (00:43.53)
C10. Rain Dogs (03:28.30)
[end of main set]
cassette side D (20:56.44):
encore:
D01. comments (trouble light) (00:31.60)
D02. Papa’s Got A Brand New Bag James Brown
D03. 9th & Hennepin (04:03.30)
D04. Blind Love (04:36.09)
D05. band introductions (02:25.35)
D06. Walking Spanish (04:02.38)
D07. Straight To The Top (02:50.17)
voice, guitar, piano, bullhorn, space gun: Tom Waits
personnel – introduced as “The Mighty Flourescents”:
all saxophones, baritone horn, marimba: Ralph Carney
upright bass, Vox electric: Greg Cohen
guitar, banjo, trumpet: Marc Ribot
drums, percussion: Michael Blair
accordion, keyboard: Willie “The Squeeze” Schwarz
Digitizing notes [J-dot; 2016]:
source [1987]:
1st-gen. copies of master cassettes [2 Maxell XL-II-S C-60 (High Bias)]
lineage [1987]:
Sony D-6 portable stereo recording cassette deck / unknown mic > master cassettes (2 C-90 cassettes) > 1st-gen. copies of master cassettes [fade-in/out applied during transfer; possibly some minor EQ (?); level adjustment (applause; stereo imaging / balance)] >
lineage [2016]:
Nakamichi LX-3 cassette deck [Azimuth adjustment applied to playback head] > Edirol R-04 [RCA/analog in; 24-bit/48kHz transfer (.wav)] > PC [via USB] > CD Wave Editor [Version 1.98; Windows Build Number: 0000.23F0] (sector boundary tracking) > Trader’s Little Helper [Version 2.7.0; Build 172] (Level 8 .wav > .flac conversion)
[additional notes from J. : 2016]:
The source for this version was made from my own re-compiled 1st-gen master tapes, shortly after the concert. As with so many live tapes I made back then, I would often consolidate segments from multiple cassettes onto one tape, applying fade-ins, fade-outs, and occasionally, some equalization in the process. If only I still had those original tapes!
Working on the “Mr. Smith” recording of this performance got me a bit excited. Nearly thirty years later, it was the first time I had seen another source for that show other than my own, and I held my breath, in the hopes that the other taper might have caught the last three songs which I missed, due to failing batteries. Alas, it was not to be the case, after all. Still, it provided the incentive for me to revisit my own recording; and I was curious how it would fare on one of the NAK decks I had picked up recently. I was nearly certain that I had already digitized this in the past, but after a good bit of research, there was no evidence of having actually done so. If it’s true that I never actually got around to it before, than this might possibly be the first digitized version from this source recording, unless someone can prove otherwise.
As this particular recording has long been one of my absolute favorites, it’s kind of ironic that at the time, I wasn’t even remotely a fan, but the young woman I was fond of at the time was a huge fan, so naturally I didn’t waste any time getting tickets, and was lucky enough to score some tickets in the fifth row (which as it turned out, did wonders for the quality of the recording). If I had been indifferent about the show when I walked into the venue, that feeling was completely gone by the end of the show; it was one of the few performances I can say was truly memorable.
For reasons I will never know, my batteries – which were brand new right before the show – chose to stop working as Waits returned to stage and began singing “Time”. I tried starting the deck again, but I could see the battery light had lost its’ glow, and I kind of knew it was a lost cause. He followed that with “Train Song”, which was also not recorded, and then left the stage again, to return a few minutes later for one final encore. I believe I was actually fighting back tears when the first notes of “Tom Traubert’s Blues” began, and I realized I was not going to be able to convince my tape deck to record one more note.
Once outside, we decided to loiter in the parking lot behind the venue, where the tour bus was parked. I hadn’t realized that the wall I was leaning on while lighting my cigarette was in fact a door, until it suddenly jerked open and nearly knocked me to the ground. “Oh! Sorry, man!”, I heard a familiar voice exclaim, as a spritely fellow quickly reached out to help me back on my feet; and once I was upright, the voice quipped, “Hey, can I get a light from you?” Of course, I immediately recognized him as the same character I had just spent the past two hours watching on stage. My friend and I chatted with him for a few minutes about nothing in particular, before others started to congregate in the lot, and we knew it was time to say goodbye. I know I silently cursed the batteries in my deck for not working, since it was still strapped under my jacket, and it would have been fun to have recorded our meaningless little chat.
Four days later, recording for “Big Time” began, on November 5, 6, 7, 8, 9. When that concert film came out, I honestly felt that I had a recording that better captured the energy of Tom Waits in performance mode, but I suppose every taper must think that about at least one of their own recordings. It’s all good, as the kids like to say.
“I Wish I Was In New Orleans” and “9th & Hennepin” are complete on this recording.
This recording is incomplete.
Songs missing:
Time
Train Song
Tom Traubert’s Blues
additional notes [01001010; 2016]:
J. was pretty sure that he had digitized this before and that it had been on the DIME tracker, but we couldn’t find any notes in the physical archives, and there doesn’t seem to be any mention of it in the DIME-bot-list. If anyone can confirm that it was shared digitally, please let us know! In any case, this sounds pretty good – enjoy!
The “Sonic Archives” Tapes.
Made available to the world through the collaborative resources of these people:
Recorded [1987]; digitized [2016]; technical notes [2016] by J. Free [sonicarchives.com]
Uploaded; additional comments: 01001010
Dedicated to tapesfor2, who had this to say about my efforts to preserve the Sonic Archives tape collection:
“You shouldn’t have. His recordings were at ‘best’ personal souvenirs. They were not quality recordings. They should not be shared. Those tapes belong on a waste dump.”
Robert Ryan was made to play tough guys and villains. He just had that look about him. In Act of Violence, he plays a guy who is menacing another man played by Van Heflin. At first, Ryan’s character seems like a villain, he’s stalking Heflin’s character for no apparent reason. Heflin’s character seems like good guy, he’s helped the community and has an ice wife (played by a young Janet Leigh). We’ve seen that sort of thing a million times in movies.
But this film has something else in mind. Ryan’s character is more complex, he’s more justified in his acts of terror. While the seemingly nice guy Heflin is playing has a dark past.
It is a terrifical little crackerjack film noir and you can read my full review here.
For a long time, I would have said Hamlet was my favorite Shakespearean play. It’s got some of the best lines, it has a powerhouse performance at its center, and it has one gnarly finale. But somewhere along the line, I’ve come to love Macbeth more. It has some great lines as well, but I find the storyline more nuanced and satisfying.
I’ve seen (and reviewed) multiple cinematic adaptations and I recently got to watch a Blu-ray of Orson Welles’ take on the Scottish Play. He filmed it on a shoestring budget and it more or less bombed at the box office and is generally considered one of his lesser efforts. I thought it was better than its reputation, but still not my favorite adaptation of the play.
You can read my full review here.
themidnightcafe.org 