Doesn't Sandra Bullock look mean here? I mean, she looks great, but menacing, like her movie, so I chose this still from Crash as a starter for my Academy Award show blog.

It snagged Best Picture, of course, but Brokeback Mountain should have won. However, I did really enjoy Crash, and one of the reasons why was this character, played by a dark and brooding Sandra Bullock--it's probably the best thing she's ever done, IMHO. She, Matt Dillon, Terance Howard, and the rest of the cast really saved this story. On the whole, this film was just a little too overstated for my taste. It has an important message, tolerance; but the films premise, that everyone is so disconnected that crashing into each other is the only way to make contact just didn't ring true for me--and I live and work in Southern California, where the film is set.

I believe Brokeback Mountain should have won over Crash, Munich, Good Night and Good Luck, and Capote because it has the most universal message, Love Reigns Supreme; and because the top-quality writing and acting made the subject matter both understandable and compelling to even the most homophobic moviegoer. Plus, Ang Lee proved his greatness as a Director by not getting in the way of the script. He could easily have chosen to dumb the story down to make it more TV-ish , and therefore less controversial, but he didn't, and the movie is the better for it. Brokeback Mountain will endure far beyond it's four fellow Best Picture nominees, great as they all were, and long after its controversy has subsided.

Capote was a sentimental favorite for me because Truman is my all-time favorite writer. I really appreciated the way the film didn't try to tell his entire story, like so many bio pics do. Focusing on just six years of the author's life, the viewer gets a crystal clear picture of what writing this best seller was like for Truman. Philip Seymour Hoffman pretty much nailed the part. But I like everything he does, especially his take on Lester Bangs in Almost Famous, and his standout supporting roles in Boogie Nights, Magnolia, and Red Dragon. Even that crazy guy in Along Came Polly who has to leave the swanky art gallery party because he "sh-arted" is fun to watch. Other favorite films he's in are Happiness, Love Liza, and Flawless.

Munich blew my mind because it managed to balance fiction and reality so well. Some critics and viewers thought (think) the two simply don't mix, but I disagree. As films, I think Munich, JFK, and even Capote, all tell important and compelling stories--without ever demanding that the viewer except them as absolute fact.

Good Night and Good Luck has perhaps the most immediate impact, because, as Edward R. Murrow himself says in the film, how can we excpect to find truth abroad when we can't even find it at home.

See ya. -SSS

For the past eight years or so, I've been burning all my precious vinyl records onto CD. Some I transfer as is, with no major editing or song re-arrangement; others get major editing, or have choice songs selected for compilation. Now, with the Beatles, I haven't had to do any editing at all. I'm a huge Beatles fan and I love listening to all their records from start to finish. However, the White Album is the one Beatles disk that has always frustrated me a little. Certainly it qualifies as their most diverse collection of songs, but instead of gelling into a cohesive whole, these songs seem to want to get away from each other. And the anti-climatic finale nearly spoils the whole project.

Granted, to most Beatles fans the sprawling nature of the record, its everything-and-the-kitchen-sink sonic bombast, is the key to its appeal--and for me, too. But it contains a couple of burdensome tracks that, for this fan, keeps the record from reaching its highest ground; and once I decided to transfer it to CD, I took a close listen and made the unthinkable decision, to edit, a Beatles record.

During the selection process, I imagined myself a critical and caring producer, like George Martin, putting his foot down and trimming the set-list without any personal input from the band. My only real constraint: the 80 minutes of a blank CD. 


I'll start with Side One. This, along with side Three, is one of the stronger sides. But in an effort to pick up the pace a little I removed Glass Onion, John's little tease to all those deranged "message" fans out there: it was cute at first, but as satire-songs go, this one just doesn't have enough bite to keep it interesting; and Wild Honey Pie, Paul's lumbering, multi-tracked solo vocal of just one repeated line, "Honey Pie" until, about 100 seconds later, he caterwauls, I Love You! Of the two songs with Honey Pie in their title, this is the lesser of the pair: CUT.

On to Side Two. This, along with side Four, is one of the weaker sides. I kept the first five tracks intact, although Piggies and Rocky Raccoon are definitely borderline. The last three are (were) Why Don't We Do It In The Road, a pointless song sung with great gusto by Paul--however, in this case, his conviction alone ain't enough to save it; I Will, a very polished Paul-on-guitar workout--this one just pales in comparison to his others, like Blackbird and Mother Nature's Son; and Julia, John's elegy to his mother--it's a nice song, but I feel that John, like Paul, has similar songs on this record done better, such as Dear Prudence, Revolution and Cry Baby Cry: CUT.

Side Three is easily my favorite side, and the one I feel the other sides should aspire to. I kept everything here but Long, Long, Long, the side closer. This is one of George's songs. It's a slow, tuneless dirge that just gets more annoying with every listen, and it's a serious buzz-kill after Helter Skelter: CUT.

I call Side Four one of the weaker sides for one strong reason, Revolution 9. Now, it's not that I don't like this particular sonic pastiche, it's just that this song is much closer to the conceptual recordings that John and Yoko were creating together, like Two Virgins and Life with the Lions, and has little connection to anything else heard on the White album. To me, its inclusion brings the entire proceedings to a screeching halt: CUT.

With over 8 minutes of side four now gone, I felt this was the perfect spot to re-introduce Hey Jude, a song recorded during the White Album sessions, but pulled early for single release. What this did, in effect, was relegate Hey Jude to inclusion on countless Bealtes compilations--and that's pretty much the only place one can find it now. As I don't like compilations, especially Beatles compilations, this song plays much better for me surrounded by the other material written and recorded with it during the summer and fall of 1968: ADD. I didn't cut Good Night, but I thought about it. It's just that I still like this song and Ringo's guileless vocal delivery.
Well, there it is folks. Steve's brutal, but well intended, edit of the White Album. Listening back to the set now, I'm amazed at how well it works. To me, this version is far less patchy than the original, and has the added bonus of a true Beatles classic as its grand-finale (a la Tomorrow Never Knows from Revolver and A Day In The Life from Sgt. Peppers).

If I cut one of your favorite songs, I'm sorry. If I kept one you don't like, edit the damn thing yourself.

-SSS ;-)

p.s. George Martin thought The White Album should have been released as a single album, not a double. Now that would be a challenge. Which songs would you cut?


Update 5/27/12.   I'm leaving Side 1 intact, no cuts; Side 2 get Julia back minus Rocky Raccoon; Side 3's edit stays the same; Side 4's edit stays the same.   -SSS