Street Sweeper Social Club - Street Sweeper Social Club

From the first strummed notes on “Fight! Smash! Win” that begins Street Sweeper Social Club’s 39-minute debut it’s clear Nightwatchman Tom Morello is back at his day job bringing his trademark funk/rock, electric guitar-fueled rage to the masses. Boots Riley, formerly of Oakland’s political hip-hop band The Coup, is Morello’s co-conspirator, singing and co-writing all songs. Galactic’s Stanton Moore joins them on drums and Morello plays bass as well.

It’s impossible for Morello to plug in and lay down blistering guitar licks under political raps, which he refers to in interviews as “revolutionary party jams,” and not have it compared to his former band Rage Against The Machine. The topics and subjects naturally come from the left, but Riley doesn’t sing/rap with the level of anger that Zack de la Rocha used to furiously purge from his system. Nor does he write lyrics as well and this is where the album comes up short because it doesn’t seem to have any serious direction for the anger to head.

“100 Little Curses” has funny rhymes with its amusing castigation against the rich, but it’s just a wish list of potential bad things happenings, and doesn’t really get into why it’s bad for someone to rich. “The Oath” finds Morello laying down a sweet groove and Riley’s rhymes flow over it, but the song stumbles hard with its dopey chorus, as he constantly repeats “Muthafuckas!” too often throughout. “Promenade” is “a new kinda squaredance rap” supported by a fat bass and angelic background vocals, but talk of the FBI dying or us is likely a choice I doubt the vast majority of listeners will have to make.

That said, there are plenty of some good rhymes, certainly the partying college crowd will enjoy “stoner throw your flickers up/…drunks throw your liquor up.” And on “Clap For The Killers” Riley talks about who the real criminals are and “they ain’t on TV getting arrested” and Scorsese’s “lens never looks at” them, but these moments are too few and far between.

Morello’s the true standout. His guitar on “Clap” has sweet, heavy sound that is slightly distorted. On the bridge of “Somewhere In The World It’s Midnight” he makes the strings sing and squeal. “Megablast” finds him putting the effects peddles to good use as the guitar sound changes throughout. The album closes with one of the better tracks. “Nobody Moves Til We Say Go.” It has an awesome heavy bass line driving the song and a great shout-along chorus, perfect for bouncing to at concerts. He continues to be one of this era’s outstanding guitarists and his fans will be ecstatic to hear his much welcomed return to form.

Morello told The Onion, “We’re there to feed the poor, fight the power, and rock the fuck out.” On the latter, they are a great success, making an album worth hearing for the music but not for listening to the lyrics. Play it loud and make sure if you don’t have room to get up and dance, you at least have room to bob your head.

BRUNO (2009)

Sacha Baron Cohen returns to the big screen portraying the title character, an ultrahomosexual Austrian fashion reporter, who fans will know from his two television series, both named Da Ali G Show. His material works best when it surprises the audience, which is why it was so disappointing and rather ignorant when so many entertainment outlets constantly revealed “news” about where the crew was working during production. With so much spoiled already, this review will do its best to give as few specifics as possible.

The basic premise of the film is Brüno comes to America to become world famous, a goal of many who have come to this country, so he attempts to follow in the footsteps of some celebrities who have made the big time. That façade allows for a number of ridiculous situations, several of which it’s hard to believe didn’t end in serious injury applied by those who appear in these extremely candid camera moments.

Brüno finds Cohen continuing to dabble in what I dubbed in my Borat review as Jackass Comedy. He is fearless as a performer. His stunts and interaction with the unsuspecting simultaneously appear ingenious and idiotic, creating tension as the audience waits to see what happens next. While his peers will likely never recognize him, it’s amazing to watch an actor commit to a character so completely and never break, including when it appears he is getting seriously smacked around.

However in comparison to Borat, Brüno has less social commentary and many times is outrageous just to be outrageous. I found the film funny over the course of its brief 83-minute run time, though I didn't laugh as often or as intensely, and there were occasions I wondered what the gag was exactly. People are absolutely entitled to be uncomfortable with homosexuality or male frontal nudity, especially when it is unexpected and forced upon them. After all, it is perfectly reasonable for a woman to not want to be hit on by a man, so what exactly is to be laughed at when a straight man has the same reaction to another man? Especially when the issue is pressed and responses of “no” and “stop” are ignored.

Anyone uncomfortable or uncertain about anything mentioned above should definitely pass on this film. Anyone curious, or even bi-curious, will have their tolerance tested quickly and often. In one of the early scenes, a session between Brüno and his midget Filipino boyfriend Diesel will serve as a litmus test.

With all that takes place in Brüno, I am surprised it is rated R. The MPAA awarded it an NC-17 when it was first submitted, and I am unclear how this version didn’t receive one as well. However, the most shocking moments, which barely rate a PG, occur when Brüno interviews stage parents about their children. It’s by far the most offensive sequence in the film.

Ray Charles - Modern Sounds in Country & Westen Music, Volumes 1 & 2

Forty-seven years ago, in the middle of African-American Civil Rights Movement, Ray Charles created the landmark album Modern Sounds in Country and Western. The liner notes reveal he began the project by asking record label executive Sid Feller “for top country and western hits of the [previous] twenty years.” Ray’s interpretations of these songs revealed a common humanity between the races and supported his thesis that if “you take country music, you take black music, you got the same goddamn thing exactly.”

After having previously brought together the sacred and profane with his combining of gospel and rhythm & blues, eventually labeled as soul music, Modern Sounds is just as dramatic a synthesis, intentional or not, that challenged the way people thought about music and each other. The love songs Ray performs tell tales universally identifiable, as common in country music as they are in the blues, which is why both blacks and whites embraced it. Ray not only gained white listeners without alienating his black audience, but he brought the country-music genre to the attention of pop-music watchers. In an interview for Country Music Television, Willie Nelson said Modern Sounds was so influential it “did more for country music than any one artist has ever done.”

The critically acclaimed album was number one on the Pop Albums charts for 14 weeks. It spawned the Grammy Award-winning “I Can't Stop Loving You,” which topped the Pop Singles, Black Singles, and Easy Listening charts to the surprise of Feller who buried it as the second-to-last song because he thought it was the album’s weakest track. Three other singles were also released: “Born to Lose,” “You Don't Know Me,” and “Careless Love.”

The great success quickly led to Volume 2, released six months later. The arrangements on both albums find Ray either backed by a big band and the Raelettes or an orchestra and choir. On Volume 1, the first 12 tracks here, the sequence alternates. It opens with an up-tempo, big band rendition of “Bye Bye Love,” a previous hit for The Everly Brothers, and then presents the woeful “You Don't Know Me,” preparing the listener for the two contrasting styles. On Volume 2, the final 12 tracks here, the original release took the LP format into consideration and presented the big band numbers on Side One with Side Two featuring the orchestra and the Jack Halloran Singers.

Ray’s vocals are very evocative and his piano playing augments the mood throughout. He even delivers an original song, “Careless Love,” which seamlessly fits alongside his renditions of Hank Williams and Don Gibson songs. Other standout performances include tenor saxophone solos by Don Wilkerson (“Half As Much”) and David “Fathead” Newman (“Just A Little Lovin’”), and featured Raelette Margie Hendrix sharing the spotlight on Jimmie Davis’ “You Are My Sunshine.”

While the historical context is not evident solely from listening to them, both volumes of Modern Sounds in Country and Western are compelling. The way Ray adapts the work of others and makes them his own (Williams’ “Your Cheating Heart” is barely recognizable) clearly demonstrates how he earned the nickname “Genius.”

Clifford Brown Sonny Rollins Max Roach Quintet - Complete Studio Recordings

Although trumpeter Clifford Brown, saxophonist Sonny Rollins, and drummer Max Roach did play together within quintets, this shared billing is a marketing idea by the Essential Jazz Classics label evidenced by the fact that the two albums making up Complete Studio Recordings are previous releases from 1956 identified as Clifford Brown and Max Roach - At Basin Street and Sonny Rollins - Plus Four. Also, misleading is the word “complete” because the back of the CD makes clear these are actually “The Master Takes,” so the four bonus tracks that appeared on the 2002 release of At Basin Street aren’t offered. However, don’t let the taint of commercialism sway you because if you don’t have them, these two hard bop albums are worthy of being identified as Essential Jazz Classics and of a spot in your music library.

Joined by Richie Powell on piano and George Morrow on bass, the five men would only enter the recording studio three times as a unit. There were two sessions for At Basin Street in New York on January 4 and February 16, 1956, then one a month later on March 22, 1956 for Plus Four. Tragically on June 26, Brown and Powell would lose their lives prematurely at the ages of 25 and 24 in a car accident en route to a gig in Chicago, along with Powell’s wife Nancy, who was driving.

Although CSR changes the order the tracks appeared on the original albums, the first nine are all from At Basin Street. Naturally, since the quintet is named after them, Brown and Roach have a dominating presence in each song, but the other three demonstrate their talents, particularly Rollins and Powell who take their leads between them.

The horns on “Gertrude’s Bounce” as the song opens and closes bring to mind Christmas. Everyone but Morrow gets a go to take the reins and lead on this opening track. “Step Lightly (Junior’s Arrival)” has a cool beat that swings slowly and effortlessly. “Powell’s Prances” takes off on a tear with Brown almost sounding like a bumblebee as he soars. Rollins replaces him and keeps the pace humming before Powell steps up. Roach delivers a solo before the band returns to finish off song.

The longest piece at just over nine minutes, “I’ll Remember April” finds the men really stretching out, especially a fantastic display by Roach in arguably his best solo of the entire set. When the band returns, Brown and Rollins trade off back and forth. Powell’s “Time” is a somber piece and audibly reflects his intention of “the time a man spends just sitting in jail, wondering when he’s going to get out.”

“The Scene Is Clean” finds the order slightly altered from the previous tracks as Rollins takes the first lead before Brown. The mood created from the quick tempo on their rendition of Cole Porter’s “What Is This Thing Called Love?” suggests only the positive aspects of the emotion. Morrow finally gets a bit of the spotlight, albeit brief.

The last five numbers are from Plus Four and not surprisingly the five men and the compositions sound very similar to their work in the Brown-Roach quintet. “I Feel A Song Coming” is a quick, uptempo song. The two Rollins compositions are “Pent-Up House” and “Valse Hot.” The first is almost nine minutes and features a longer passage with Rollins in the lead. After Brown takes the reins, Rollins and Brown return to alternate exchanges with Roach before giving way to his solo. The band returns, closing out the song repeating the chorus. “Valse Hot” is a waltz with Rollins getting the first lead. “Count Your Blessings” is listed as a bonus track for CSR because Brown doesn’t appear on it, which creates some separation in my ear from the Brown-Roach quintet.

The brilliance of Complete Studio Recordings is that even after more than 50 years the music sounds fresh and modern with every listen.

JOHN ADAMS (Blu-ray)

Based on David McCullough’s Pulitzer Prize-winning book, the seven-part HBO miniseries John Adams is a fascinating look at the Founding Father and second President of the United States. More than just a history lesson of milestones in his life, the story also tells a love triangle between Adams (Paul Giamatti), his wife Abigail (Laura Linney), and the principles that shaped the country he would help create.

The series opens in 1770 on the night of the Boston Massacre, which epitomized the high tensions between the colonists and the British. John reluctantly defends the British soldiers because he believes every man deserves representation in a free society. The love and respect he and Abigail have for each other is evident as he asks her advice regarding his closing arguments. John is approached about running for office, but declines. However, he is compelled to become more involved in politics when he sees a mob tar and feather a British sailor in the streets.

Part Two opens with the First Continental Congress in Philadelphia as the representatives work to devise a unified course of action. Here, Adams crosses paths with Benjamin Franklin (Tom Wilkinson), George Washington (David Morse), and Thomas Jefferson (Stephen Dillane), and he is instrumental in getting the Congress to sign on to the Declaration of Independence. Back in Massachusetts, his family deals with small pox.

Part Three finds Adams traveling Europe seeking aid for the Revolutionary War efforts. Years before France’s revolution, the ruling class is decadent. Franklin immerses himself in the lifestyle while John remains resolute about his purpose and rigid in his behavior, which causes the French to request he leave. He then approaches the Dutch for help. His teenage son John Quincy heads to Russia as a secretary for Francis Dana, the American envoy to Russia.

The Revolutionary War ends in Part Four. John heads to Paris for signing of the peace treaty, and calls for Abigail, who he hasn’t seen in five years, to join him. John is made Ambassador to the United Kingdom, and soon after returning to America is elected the country’s first Vice President because he came in second behind George Washington for President.

Part Five reveals John frustrated in the mostly powerless position as Vice President. He presides over the Senate, but only casts a vote during a tie. Washington does not include John in his Cabinet, but later seeks his counsel as the both France and England struggle to bring the new nation into their conflict. The Adams’ children are grown up and beginning to form their lives. The episode concludes with John’s inauguration as President of the United States.

John’s one Presidential term is explored in Part Six. He finds himself at odds and in between the political struggles of Vice President Jefferson and former Treasury secretary/Federalist Party leader Alexander Hamilton, both of whom worked to undermine his and his re-election bid. John signed the controversial Alien and Sedition Acts and kept the country out of an all-out war with France.

John’s retirement and remaining years up to 1826 are covered in the final part. He loses his wife and daughter, sees his son John Quincy elected President, and through correspondence repairs his friendship with Jefferson. The men would die hours apart on July 4th.

It’s easy to see why John Adams was showered with awards. History is brought to life by the amazing talents of the cast and crew. Giamatti creates a believable person, infused with passion and imperfections, intelligence and social awkwardness. He and Linney make the love between John and Abigail palpable in every scene. The production design team did marvelous work from the costumes and sets, and the make-up team did an excellent job aging the actors almost 60 years.

The series has one major flaw and it’s the overuse of the Dutch angle that distracted from the visual presentation of the story. I am surprised no one pulled director Tom Hooper and cinematographers Tak Fujimoto and Danny Cohen aside after seeing the rushes because it was more a distraction than anything else.

The video is presented in 1080p High Definition with an aspect ratio of 1.78:1. The ornate costumes and production design are vividly detailed and the textures can be clearly seen. Even hair strands on wigs are clearly delineated. The brightness of the colors is limited, mainly the outdoors scenes are where the hues would shine, but that stems from the source material. The red on the British uniforms stands out among the dark earth tones of the colonists, but they aren’t vivid enough to pop off the screen. Instead, they blend within the scene. In most scenes, the faces reveal pores and blemishes, but a couple of instances, it looks like they were smoothed over, possibly through DNR.

The audio is 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio. At the onset, the wind could be heard whipping though the through the rear speaker. The battle sequences fill the sound system sound, and the cannons pound through the subwoofer. Sounds like closing doors offscreen were placed well. The only issue is some of the whispering was hard to hear and required a louder volume.

Two HBO specials are included as Bonus Features. “Making John Adams” covers different aspects about the production, and “David McCullouh: Painting with Words” focuses on the book’s author.

“Facts Are A Stubborn Thing” and “Who’s Who In History” are two enhanced Blu-ray Features offer pop-up historical information, but they have to be selected together. Normally, I don’t want to be distracted when I watch a film, but for the most part I found these to be very helpful in informing what I was watching. However, some that foretold events that would later be seen in the miniseries could have been cut regardless of the fact that they are events hundreds years old.

While thoroughly engaging, the story of John Adams remains regrettably topical as people the world over continue working to remove the shackles of tyranny and oppression under which they live. While not everything presented is historically accurate, John Adams should engage the viewers and may drive them to history books. Not solely to verify what takes place on screen, but to learn the rich history of what has come before them.

My Breakfast with Blassie (Special Commerative Edition)

As the DVD begins, an old man with an unkempt beard gives a bizarre recitation of the FBI warning seen on all DVDs. It is later revealed in the extras to be Johnny Legend, who has been a rockabilly musician, a film producer, and a wrestling manager.

My Breakfast with Blassie spoofs Louie Malle’s classic filmed-conversation My Dinner with Andre. Here, Andy Kaufman, still in a neck brace after getting piledrived by Jerry “King” Lawler during his first wrestling match against a man, sits for breakfast at a downtown Hollywood Sambo’s with famed wrestler and self-proclaimed “King of Men” Freddie Blassie, who famously coined the term “pencil-neck geek.” Over the course of about an hour, they cover a number of subjects as they discuss fame, international travels, breakfast choices, hygiene, and dealing with fans.

They also interact with a pregnant Thai waitress, who worked in the restaurant; a group of female autograph seekers, including a young woman named Lynn, who Kaufman is very interested in; and an oddball, played by Kaufman’s off-screen cohort Bob Zmuda, who pulls things from his nose. They get slightly obnoxious arguing with the women, but it’s more silly than sexist, and is something both men did in their wrestling act.

Kaufman is funny when he throws his name and resume around, pointing out he’s Latka from Taxi to both impress and belittle people, another element taken from his wrestling persona. Blassie is consistently amusing, particularly his phrasing, and totally unpredictable throughout. He comes off so completely authentic at times I couldn’t tell if he was in on what was taking place, which makes perfect sense considering there is a performance component to wrestling. He reveals that while on the circuit, he was shot at by the KKK, had acid thrown on him, and was friends with Elvis.

The video quality is poor. It was shot on 3/4” videotape in the early ‘80s when the format was relatively new and certainly shows its age.

There is quite a bit of material in the Bonus Features. “Lost Footage: Andy in the Raw” presents almost 50 minutes of recently discovered footage, mainly taken from the single shot of Andy in the restaurant. “Bonus Footage: Blassie Graffiti” (15:31) is awesome, showing classic footage of Blassie in action. He’s hysterical and feisty in the newsreels, as he points out the local women are pigs that dress in potato sacks. The audience in that town must have been so enraged when they went to see him. Blassie is shown in the ring during a quick fight against The Hangman, losing his title to Rikidozan, in a cage match, and later in life performing a live rendition of his novelty song “Pencil-Neck Geek,” which was written by Legend.

“Home Movies: Legendary Graffiti” (18:16) presents footage of Legend at different wrestling gigs and interviews. During “Lunch with Lautrec: The Making of My Breakfast With Blassie,” filmmakers Legend and Linda Lautrec, who appeared as an autograph seeker, tell the tale of the video’s creation and the difficulties associated with it a few weeks before “Man on the Moon” opens. It is for the devoted fan, as it is one single take that runs 34:27.

There is also “Film Premiere Footage” (7:39) shot at the Nuart Theatre in Los Angeles. Legendary ring announcer Jimmy Lennon introduces the film. Harold Ramis is seen in the lobby where Eggos are served to audience members. Andy shows up with a mohawk in what would be his final public appearance. He would die in less than a year.

My Breakfast with Blassie is more performance art than comedy, which was typical for Kaufman. This is sure to be enjoyed by his fans, but it might be a long hour for those who don’t get him. Either way, it is undeniably memorable.

THE PINK PANTHER 2 (Blu-ray)

When I first heard that Steve Martin was taking over Peter Sellers’ iconic role as Inspector Clouseau in The Pink Panther (2006), I couldn’t believe it. Now, I don’t automatically discount the notion of remakes. After all, artists in the fields of theater and music frequently interpret other people’s works, and if it weren’t for remakes, the world of cinema would not have classics such as John Huston’s The Maltese Falcon or Victor Fleming’s The Wizard of Oz. Yet, there are some stories and performances so ingrained into pop culture that new enterprises seemed doomed to failure.

I skipped Martin’s first foray, having no interest in the idea and no longer trusting him as a film comedian. I heard nothing good about it, so I was even more surprised to hear there was a sequel, The Pink Panther 2, which I ignored in theaters for the same reasons. I decided to review the Blu-ray set, expecting to savage the film, for purely selfish reasons since it came with an extra disc filled with Pink Panther cartoons. To my delight and surprise, I enjoyed it and was reminded to try something before automatically condemning it.

The story tells the tale of the cat burglar known as the Tornado, who has stolen treasures from countries around the world. An international team of detectives (Andy Garcia, Alfred Molina, and Yuki Matsuzaki) is formed with France’s representative being Clouseau to the great chagrin of his superior, Chief Inspector Dreyfus (John Cleese taking over for Kevin Kline). Sonia Solandres (Aishwarya Rai), a writer about the Tornado’s exploits, also joins the team. Clouseau bumbles along, leaving a good wake of destruction and damage, yet solves the mystery in an admittedly convoluted manner.

Although definitely geared towards a young audience, The Pink Panther 2 is surprisingly funny with all its silliness, from exaggerated accents to elaborate slapstick. There’s a wonderful and possibly complicated bit involving the juggling of wine bottles I hope was real and not CGI augmented. As a fan of the Sellers films, I was glad to see a sequence that paid homage to the Clouseau/Kato fights.

The film is a throwback to early Hollywood comedies and is good for the whole family, except maybe teenagers who are too cool for anything. My 15-year-old niece Sobrino Mono, who had already seen the film gave me a one-word review, "retarded," and had no interest in seeing it again.  Ten-year-old nephew, Sobrino Poco Loco, found the film funny and thought it had a good story, particularly because he was able to solve the crime, which shows the film got him thinking.

The video is presented in 1.85:1. The high definition transfer showed fine details in the foreground, such as the texture of fabrics, but the cinematographer used a limited depth of field, causing most backgrounds to be slightly out of focus. The colors were bright and consistent although flesh tones leaned toward pink. Unfortunately, the green-screen effects, especially when driving or when the skyline was altered, were obvious and distracting.

The audio is available in English in 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio and 5.1 Dolby Digital. The dialogue is clear, including the exaggerated accents, and positioned in the center. The surrounds and subwoofer are put to serviceable use without being overdone, although they are not called to do a lot. Henry Mancini’s classic theme is a natural standout.

The Special Features include a Gag Reel, which was slightly over three minutes but not very funny; “Drama is Easy…Comedy Is Dangerous” (HD), a look at physical comedy and stunt work, “A Dream Team Like No Other” (HD) focused on the cast. There was also a trivia game: "Master Life – Global Crime Showdown!" The participants need to answer two out of three questions related to an item and location before moving on to the finale with questions about movie. There is also a digital copy of the movie.

Even people who dislike the movie surely can’t be dissatisfied with the standard DVD of Pink Panther cartoons. It is the first disc from The Pink Panther Classic Cartoon Collection and was also released as a single DVD entitled Vol. 1: Pranks in the Pink. In chronological order, it presents the first 27 Pink Panther cartoons, including “The Pink Phink,” Oscar-winner for Animated Short Subject. The creative team can be seen trying to get a handle on the character as the normally mute cat speaks in “Sink Pink” and “Pink Ice.” Although they started as theatrical cartoons, some have a laugh track from television airings, like “Pink Blueprint.”

The combination of material makes The Pink Panther 2 a good choice for the family.