Thought I’d post a couple photos I took this morning in the ‘hood. They’re not quite wonder-ful, but they are snowy. What a fun weekend this is going to be, digging out my car tomorrow (finally) and seeing a lot of this snow get washed away on Sunday when it rains.
All those self-important musical bio-pics — like Walk the Line and Ray — were due for some mockery, but they don’t quite get the ribbing they deserve in Walk Hard.
While the film does make fun of many of the conventions of the genre, it’s more of an affectionate tribute than a satire, and that, ultimately, makes the film less impressive. Continue reading
Not sure how many of you folks missed the memo or something, but apparently, Hanukkah is now nine days long. Thanks, Bill-o.
They say that yesterday, Monday, was the Post Office’s busiest day of the year. So I figured it was a good time to share some Christmas card fun facts, courtesy of the kind folks at American Greetings, who sent me a press kit of facts, tips and other stuff (way back in August) related to card-sending and other holiday trends. Here are some of the more interesting factoids:
* More than twice as many cards and letters are processed on December 17 than on any other day of the year. USPS employees predicted they would process 900 million pieces of mail on that one day alone. Also, apparently, 900 million pieces of mail is enough to circle the globe six times.
* According to the Greeting Card Association, Americans will send nearly two billion Christmas cards this year. No surprise, Christmas is the top card-sending occasion in the U.S.
* Also according to the GCA, more than half of all people who buy cards will send up to 25 of them, but nearly 15 percent will send more than 50.
It’s that kind of lazy Sunday here in Brookline. I slept in, I’ve made some French Toast, I’m watching the Patriots beat up on the Jets (again), I’ve done some apartment cleaning, I’m avoiding cleaning off my car because there’s no real need for me to drive anywhere for at least five days, I’ve got a couple new DVDs to watch after the football game, I called some friends to catch up, I’m debating baking a cake, the bed’s not made, I haven’t showered … and it’s good that I did my laundry yesterday so I don’t have to fight for the machines today, which means I don’t have to leave my apartment at all, and life is pretty good. This was a well-timed snow — or rain or sleet or whatever it’s doing outside — day.
(And btw, that photo came from Boston.com, though I sort of wish I had taken it.)
When I Am Legend begins, we’re listening to a sports reporter say that the American League team in New York, of course, is the best and that they will play the Chicago Cubs in the World Series.
So you know right off the bat that this film is a fantasy and you shouldn’t take any of it seriously.
Then Emma Thompson appears on screen playing a doctor who has found a cure for cancer simply by reorganizing the structure of the measles virus.
Cut to three years later and the entire city of New York (and, apparently, the entire planet) has been totally wiped out by this “cure,” except for virologist (and of course he’s a virologist) Robert Neville (Will Smith) and plenty of animals.
Oh, and the zombies.
Lots of rabid zombies — the folks who had been affected by the cure and now only come out at night and are out for blood.
We don’t quite know how Neville managed to be the only one to survive, but somehow over the years he has figured out the zombies’ behavior and has made a life — albeit a lonely, solitary one — for himself. Continue reading
As Hanukkah comes to a close, I thought I’d mention this crazy story in the Jerusalem Post about a group calling itself Green Hanukkia that tried (I hope unsuccessfully) to get Jews around the world to light at least one less candle this year in support of the environment. According to the group, every candle that burns completely produces 15 grams of carbon dioxide. They estimate that if an estimated one million Israeli households light for eight days, it would do significant damage to the atmosphere. Given that the holiday ends tonight at sundown and there are no more candles left to light, I suppose this is a moot issue. But considering that the point of the holiday — one of them, anyway — is to celebrate eight days and nights of light, how do you really justify not lighting candles one night? Doesn’t that contradict the idea of the holiday? It’s not the same thing as using fewer lights on a Christmas tree. If he was Jewish, Bill O’Reilly would never stand for this ‘Attack on Hanukkah’ — especially in light of “the ham incident.” So, I found this idea kinda silly and I wanted to share the story with anyone who would be interested in reading about it. (Oh, and if you don’t know, Hanukkia is another word for menorah.)
If you ask me, the really sad thing about the fact that the writers’ strike is likely to last “well into next year” is that we’re being denied some great Christmas episodes of TV. This is the time of year when the writers seem to pull out all the stops and do their best work. Case in point: The Office, which would likely not be as popular as it is were it not for that utterly classic Christmas episode in 2005 (you know, the one with the secret Santa game). Last year’s holiday episode, with the dueling parties, was one of the better ones of the year as well. And of course, last year’s Christmas episode of Studio 60 was, I think, one of the finest episodes of any show all season. Most criminal of all is the fact that if the strike doesn’t end soon, then it’s unlikely Darlene Love will be making her annual appearance on Late Show with David Letterman to sing “Christmas (Baby Please Come Home).” Oh, I’m sure Dave will show a rerun of an earlier appearance, but there’s something nice about holiday traditions and things you can look forward to. At least 30 Rock has what looks like a good holiday episode scheduled for Thursday. Still, I’m resigned to the fact that there’ll be a void in my holiday season this year, and I just wanted to say I think it sucks.
Every year without fail, someone who receives my annual Very Marty Xmas mix says to me, “Hey, where’s [fill in the blank]?”
That blank can be filled by your choice of Bruce Springsteen’s “Santa Claus Is Coming to Town” or Band Aid’s “Do They Know It’s Christmas” or the Waitresses’ “Christmas Wrapping” or any other favorite tune.
And the simple answer is always that all those classics had already appeared on my mix, back in 2000 or 2001.
In 2005, I toyed with the idea of creating a “best of the box” mix of my favorite tunes, ones that had previously appeared on my mixes, but this year I actually compiled one. Continue reading
As the great John Lennon once sang, “And so this is Christmas.” At long last — and ahead of schedule — here is the track listing for A Very Marty Xmas 2007. I spent a bit of time revisiting my older mixes this year, and after re-listening to last year’s mix, I decided to err on the side of festivity and jolly-tude when deciding what to include on the ’07 edition. As a result, some folks (like Harry Connick Jr.) had to take a year off. But I think this is a mix that will definitely stand the test of time, just like 2004 and 2005’s have. And I love some of the new stuff I discovered, like Mindy Smith’s “Santa Will Find You,” a hopeful tune that’ll appeal to kids of all ages. And of course, how great is this live version of Darlene Love doing “Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)” on The Late Show with David Letterman? So anyway, without further ado, here we go:
KT Tunstall — Sleigh Ride
Kay Starr — (Everybody’s Waitin’ For) The Man with the Bag
Johnny Mercer with the Pied Pipers — Santa Claus Is Comin’ to Town (Q-Burns Abstract Message Remix)
The Pogues with Kirsty MacColl — Fairytale of New York
Hello Saferide — iPod Xmas
Pearl Jam — Someday at Christmas
Peggy Lee — Happy Holiday
Darlene Love — Christmas (Baby Please Come Home) (live on The Late Show with David Letterman)
Clyde McPhatter & The Drifters — White Christmas
Colbie Caillat — Mistletoe
Carnie and Wendy Wilson — Hey Santa
Mindy Smith — Santa Will Find You
Guster — Donde Esta Santa Claus?
Eels — Everything’s Gonna Be Cool This Christmas
Bon Jovi — I Wish Everyday Could Be Like Christmas
Heritage Hall Jazz Band with Gregg Stafford — Silver Bells
The Chipmunks (with David Seville) — We Wish You a Merry Christmas
The LeeVees — How Do You Spell Chunnukkahh?
James Taylor — Jingle Bells
Brian Wilson — Deck the Halls
Mighty Mighty Bosstones — Xmas Time (It Sure Doesn’t Feel Like It)
Teddy Geiger — All I Want for Christmas Is You
Fiona Apple — Frosty the Snowman
Rufus Wainwright — What Are You Doing New Year’s Eve?
Good stuff. Copies are still on their way to some of my readers, but if you’d like to compile your own copy of this mix, most of these tracks can be found by going to the Hype Machine. And don’t you fret: I still have hundreds more tracks in my collection that have yet to appear on a mix, so yes, Virginia, there will be a Very Marty Xmas 2008. Stay tuned. Until then, happy holidays everybody!
Martin's Musings 