SOUNDTRACK: TINDERSTICKS-Donkeys 92-97 (1998).
Donkeys is a collection of singles, rarities and unreleased recordings. It came out just before Simple Pleasure, and has tracks from the era of the first four discs.
With the reissue of those first four discs (and all the bonus tracks therein) and the Greatest Hits collection, it’s not really necessary to get this for these rare tracks. (I admit that I haven’t actually checked to see if all of the tracks here are now available elsewhere…there seems to be a number of different mixes and versions of songs, so I’ll let someone else do the legwork).
However, if you’re disinclined to get the reissued discs for whatever reason, this is a great collection of songs that are worth having for any Tindersticks fan. And, interestingly, it works quite well as an introduction for the newbie: it features several of the most accessible songs from the first few discs. But, for fans, the highlights include their great cover of “I’ve Been Loving You Too Long.” Also “Plus de Liaisons” a French version of “No More Affairs.” It also has the fabulous duet with Isabella Rossilini (“A Marriage Made in Heaven”) and another version of “For Those” (I’m not entirely sure how many versions of that song exist, but there’s got to be about 3 or 4.
This disc is probably easy to track down cheaply since all the tracks are available elsewhere now (although my copy came from my friend Lar and has the Euro symbol on the Used sticker to prove it). Or, maybe it’s now totally rare and out of print and is hugely expensive. Either way, it’s still a great collection of tracks.
[READ: November 5, 2009] “Too Much Happiness”
It’s a little lame to lump these two pieces together, but the Charles Foran article isn’t something I would review on its own. Nevertheless, it is a very interesting look at Alice Munro’s hometown, and the Self-Guided Tour of Points of Interest in the Town of Wingham Relating to Alice Munro sounds like a fun thing to do if you’re in Ontario. (Even if Munro herself is never actually there).
But onto Munro’s story.
I’ve only read a few stories by Alice Munro (they’ve all been reviewed here). And yet, I’ve come to think of her as writing a certain type of story. And this one does not conform to any of my notions of a Munro story.
First, it’s rather long. Second, it’s not set in Canada. And third, it’s a historical piece about a real person. There’s an author’s note at the end of the story which informs us that she learned about Sophia Kovalesky when she was looking up something else in the Encyclopedia Britannica (which I find charming in and of itself). So, all of this seems to be something of a departure for her (at least from what I’ve read). (more…)
I Just Read About That... 