Feeds:
Posts
Comments

Archive for the ‘Pat Benatar’ Category

Greg Rucka, Matthew Southworth–Stumptown: Volume 1: The Case of the Girl Who Took Her Shampoo (but Left her Mini) (2017)

Posted in Air Supply, Asia, Blondie, Blue Shoes, Captain & Tennille, Chaka Khan, Cobie Smulders, Cole Sibus, Cyndi Lauper, Elton John, Eurhythmics, Graphic Novel, Greg Rucka, Hall & Oates, Jake Johnson, Kiss, Matthew Southworth, Micharl Ealy, Missing Persons, Native Americans, Neil Diamond, Oni Press, Pat Benatar, Pearl Jam, Player, Simplistics, Snap, Stumptown, Tantoo Cardinal, The O'Jays, The Pretenders, Tiffany, Violence, Wilson Phillips, XTC on March 24, 2020| Leave a Comment »

SOUNDTRACK: STUMPTOWN: Dex’s Mixtape (2020)

One of the fun things about Stumptown is Dex’s car–an old beat up Ford that she loves.

It has a cassette stuck in the player and the player goes on and off seemingly at will.  I don’t think the show has explored all of the music on the tape yet, but it keep the soundtrack squarely in the 1980s.

This Spotify playlist has 90 minutes worth of music that could easily fit on the cassette in the car.

The only discrepancy I have it is that “Yellow Ledbetter” from Pearl Jam didn’t come out until 1992.  We haven’t heard it in the car yet, although we have heard it in her house, so we’ll just consider that song a bonus cut.

Here’s the track list

  • SIMPLISTICS-Heat of the Night
  • BLONDIE-Heart of Glass
  • ELTON JOHN, KIKI DEE-Don’t Go Breaking My Heart
  • TIFFANY-I Think We’re Alone Now
  • BLUE SHOES-Hey
  • NEIL DIAMOND-Sweet Caroline
  • THE O’JAYS-Love Train
  • ASIA-Heat of the Moment
  • CAPTAIN & TENNILLE-Love Will Keep Up Together
  • PRETENDERS-Brass In Pocket
  • HALL & OATES-Private Eyes
  • CHAKA KHAN-I’m Every Woman
  • KISS-I Was Made for Lovin’ You
  • SNAP-Power
  • AIR SUPPLY-All Out of Love
  • PAT BENATAR-We Belong
  • PLAYER-Baby Come Back
  • EURHYTHMICS-Sisters Are Doin’ It For Themselves
  • CYNDI LAUPER-Girls Just Want to Have Fun
  • MISSING PERSONS-Walking In L.A.
  • WILSON PHILLIPS-Hold On
  • XTC-Dear God
  • PEARL JAM-Yellow Ledbetter (1992)

What’s great about the soundtrack is that the rest of the show is contemporary and very cool, with some really good song choices.  But I love that they can have this unexpected throwback musical story running through as a commentary.

[READ: March 20, 2020] Stumptown Volume 1

I had heard promising reviews of a new show called Stumptown.  It is based on this graphic novel series from Greg Rucka (who has written some amazing books over the years).  When I saw that the graphic novels were still available (possibly with new covers–the publishing history is a little confusing), I knew I had to check it out.

I have since watched most of the episodes (I’m a little behind) and I am hooked.

This book is more or less the start of the first episode of the show, but the show has changed things (and basically made the ending very different).

But before I get to the story I want to comment on Matthew Southworth’s drawings which are really terrific.  His style is realistic but rough around the edges which works perfectly for this storyline.  There’s a lot of impressionistic moments where you can feel the person moving (or being moved) without the need for action lines.  Also, the casting of the show was really perfect.  Cobie Smulders is a dead ringer for Dex Parios in the book and Cole Sibus is amazingly cast as Ansel (Southworth does a great job showing Ansel’s Down Syndrome).  Cole Sibus is really outstanding in the role–his comic timing is excellent.  The only character who looks nothing like the book is Jake Johnson as Grey.  However, Jake Johnson is awesome and he is absolutely perfect for the role–I feel like he’s far more interesting than the comic book character (although in fairness, Grey doesn’t have that much to do in the book). (more…)

Read Full Post »

Colin Meloy (with illustrations by Carson Ellis)–Wildwood Imperium (2014)

Posted in Adventure, Animals, Big Books, Carson Ellis, Children's Books, Culture Shock, Death, Fantasy, Fast Times at Ridgemont High, Fears, Magic, Neil Giraldo, Pat Benatar, Rats, Tiny Desk Concert, Trees, Trilogy, Violence, War, Witches on September 11, 2016| Leave a Comment »

imperiumSOUNDTRACK: PAT BENATAR & NEIL GIRALDO-Tiny Desk Concert #407 (November 24, 2014).

benatarI never liked Pat Benatar.  Back in the day she was all over MTV (and even in Fast Time at Ridgemont High) and I just didn’t like her.  I’m not sure why, although I was particularly bitter about “Hell is for Children” (being a child myself).  Of course, I still know all of her singles really well.

But I haven’t thought about her in probably a decade.  And then  around 2014 that she was playing with Neil Giraldo in some kind of acoustic tour.  I recognized his name but didn’t know they were married or anything like that.

And so here they are doing a Tiny Desk Concert–all acoustic–with him playing guitar and contributing backing vocals.  Over the decades, Benatar’s voice has changed a bit–she sounds gruffer and it really suits her. (more…)

Read Full Post »

Gravity’s Rainbow–final thoughts

Posted in Funny (ha ha), Funny (strange), Huh?, Pat Benatar, Sex, The New York Times, Thomas Pynchon, Violence on May 14, 2012| 2 Comments »

SOUNDTRACK: PET BENATAR-Gravity’s Rainbow (1993).

During the early 80s, I liked Pet Benatar well enough.  Her songs were catchy and easy to sing along to and she was ll over MTV.  So maybe I didn’t “like” her so much as I couldn’t escape her.  It bothered me that she was preposterously skinny, and I didn’t like the way she moved in her videos, but I could still rock out.  Then she did “Hell is for Children” and it rubbed me the wrong way (I was 14 and easily offended).  So I have more or less disliked her ever since—based on nothing really.

When searching for images of Gravity’s Rainbow, well, this one comes up a lot.  I didn’t want to listen to it.  I really didn’t.  But I felt I would be remiss if I left any avenue of GR unturned.  What if it offered some kind of insight?

Well, it doesn’t.  It’s offers 40 minutes of bland arena rock.  There was a drum sound I liked on one of the tracks, but mostly it’s Benatar trying too hard.  Or maybe that’s how she always sings, I don’t know.  The titles suggest that maybe they have something tenuously related to the book.  But they could also just be generic rock angst.  I’m not willing to find out.  Read the book, it’s more enjoyable.

[MULLED: Week of May 7] Gravity’s Rainbow

After these big, time-consuming novels, I like to take a week and mull.  And, quite often, I’ll read what other people have said about the book to see if I can get everything straight in my head.

I was just reading back to my re-assessment of 2666 at the end of the read—wow, I pondered a lot for that one.  But I find that for Gravity’s Rainbow, I don’t really have a lot to update or think about.  Even though it was difficult in some senses, it doesn’t seem like it was the kind of difficult that could resolve itself after thinking about it.

The thread at Infinite Zombies has been helpful with ideas and opinions, but there also didn’t seem to be any major revelations that made me rethink what I was confused about.

I enjoyed the review of the book in The New York Times, mostly because it was written at the time of the book’s publication.  It offers a few insights that I simply wouldn’t have in 2012. And I believe he even gets a fact or two incorrect. (more…)

Read Full Post »