Last night I watched another of the musical videotapes I made in the '80's. What made this one special was the inclusion of several clips from the best music series ever, hosted by saxophonist David Sanborn. It ran for about a year on NBC at 12:30 AM Monday morning. It presented such diverse styles and genres: Ruth Brown, Leonard Cohen, Lou Reed, Sonny Rollins, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Red Hot Chili Peppers. I can't wait to see who's on the next tape. And there are now clips available at youtube. Although it's difficult to pick a highlight among great artists, I am floored every time I see Jeff Healy perform. Healy is an example to hold up to anyone who thinks the odds are stacked against one. Born in Toronto, adopted as an infant by a fireman, he lost his eyes to cancer at eight months. He started playing guitar at three. Unfortunately, he was taken by cancer at 41. In between, he kicked major ass. Marvel at his incredible performance of See the Light (writers love irony), backed by the wonderful house drummer and bassist, and a New Orleans pianist, here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ikHI7_PMFNc
I had only one sale today, a DVD of one of my all-time favorite movies, The Dirty Dozen, starring Lee Marvin and an incredible supporting cast. Most critics trashed it upon its release in 1967. Sometimes they forget that there is a difference between movies and film, just as there is between rock n roll and Cole Porter, and that there is no reason an audience can't appreciate each. The Dirty Dozen is vile, vulgar and ludicrous, but great fun, directed by Robert Aldrich with brio. It was enormously popular and has grown in stature among critics through the years. I doubt it would have been as successful had it been released in the modern era, where action is required from start to finish. There is basically no action until the last 20 minutes, when all hell breaks loose, but it is never boring because of its wonderful humor, character development and performances. Telly Savalas steals many scenes as Maggot, a bigoted redneck who, justifying his murder of a woman, says: "The Lawd told me to chastise her." Nunally Johnson and Lukas Heller adapted the screenplay from the novel by E. M. Nathanson. It is not based on fact, although a group called The Filthy 15, none of whom were convicts, was the inspiration for the book.
I thank Steve, employee of Coney Island Hospital, for buying it. Thanks also to Moses, who donated a slew of children's books.
Read Vic's stories, free: http://members.tripod.com/vic_fortezza/Literature/
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