Subterranean Homesick Blues (1965) – Bob Dylan

Posted on December 7, 2024 by observationblogger — 9 Comments

Subterranean Homesick Blues is the pinnacle as far as counter-establishment songs are concerned. A lot of people think that this masterpiece may well have been the first ever song which exhibited predominant features of the rap genre including the following:
– Dylan’s rhythmic spoken delivery set to a consistent beat or rhythm,
– How it features an ‘improvisational feel’, clever wordplay, cultural references, and a stream-of-consciousness style, elements that are central to many rap lyrics, and
– social and political commentary, and Dylan’s song, though humorous and absurdist, touches on contemporary issues and critiques, similar to how many rap songs address societal themes.
Subterranean Homesick Blues is in my top 10 Bob Dylan songs from this decade’s output.

The title for the song refers to a nostalgia for the Beat generation. In 1958, Jack Kerouac wrote The Subterraneans – a semi-autobiographical work documenting the lives of urban youth in the Beat generation. For this, the contemporaneous Beat poet Allen Ginsberg referred to the beat poets as “Subterraneans” to highlight the underground nature of their illicit activities. The documentary about Dylan’s 1965 England Tour, Don’t Look Back, opens with the music video below for the song where Allen Ginsberg can be seen standing in the background.

[Verse 1]
Johnny’s in the basement, mixin’ up the medicine
I’m on the pavement, thinkin’ about the government
The man in a trench coat, badge out, laid off
Says he’s got a bad cough, wants to get it paid off
Look out kid, it’s somethin’ you did
God knows when, but you’re doin’ it again
You better duck down the alleyway, looking for a new friend
The man in the coon-skin cap in a pig pen
Wants 11 dollar bills – you only got 10

[Verse 2]
Maggie comes fleet foot, face full of black soot
Talkin’ that the heat put plants in the bed, but
Phone’s tapped anyway
Maggie says the many say
They must bust in early May
Orders from the D.A
Look out kid, don’t matter what you did
Walk on your tip toes, don’t tie no bows
Better stay away from those that carry around a fire hose
Keep a clean nose, watch the plainclothes
You don’t need a weather man to know which way the wind blows

[Verse 3]
Oh, get sick, get well, hang around a ink well
Hang bail, hard to tell if anything is gonna sell
Try hard, get barred, get back, ride rail
Get jailed, jump bail, join the Army if you fail
Look out kid, you’re gonna get hit
By losers, cheaters, six-time users
Hanging ’round the theaters
Girl by the whirlpool’s looking for a new fool
Don’t follow leaders, a-watch the parking meters

[Verse 4]
Oh, get born, keep warm
Short pants, romance
Learn to dance, get dressed
Get blessed, try to be a success
Please her, please him, buy gifts
Don’t steal, don’t lift
20 years of schoolin’ and they put you on the day shift
Look out kid, they keep it all hid
Better jump down a manhole, light yourself a candle
Don’t wear sandals, try to avoid the scandals
Don’t want to be a bum, you better chew gum
The pump don’t work ’cause the vandals took the handles

Subterranean Homesick Blues was recorded on January 14, 1965, and released as a single by Columbia Records. It is the first track on the album Bringing It All Back Home, released some two weeks later. It was Dylan’s first Top 40 hit in the United States, peaking at number 39 on the Billboard. It also entered the Top 10 of the UK Singles Chart. It is ranked 187th on Rolling Stone’s 500 Greatest Songs of All Time list. John Lennon was reported to find the song so captivating that he did not know how he would be able to write a song that could compete with it.

One of Dylan’s first electric recordings, Subterranean Homesick Blues is also notable for its innovative music video which is often considered one of the earliest examples of a promotional video, and holds a significant place in cultural history. This low-budget, minimalist approach influenced countless musicians and directors, showing that storytelling and creativity could trump flashy production. I recently wrote how the Argentine Rock singer songwriter Andres Calamaro in his fantastic song – Te Quiero Igual (I Love You Just the Same) did a pretty sweet Bob Dylan tribute using the signage imagery in his own video.
The cue cards were written by Donovan, Allen Ginsberg, Bob Neuwirth and Dylan himself. The clip was shot in an alley close to the Savoy Hotel in London. The Savoy Hotel has retained much of its exterior as it was in 1965, and the alley used in the film has been identified as the Savoy Steps.

References:
1. Subterranean Homesick Blues – Wikipedia
2. Subterranean Homesick Blues – Genius

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Stumble Away (2003) – David Bridie

Posted on December 6, 2024 by observationblogger — 2 Comments

Stumble Away is the closing track on David Bridie’s 2003 album – Hotel Radio (see inset). It’s almost certain you haven’t heard of this 2003 record unless you had read my previous song articles. There isn’t even a wiki page about Hotel Radio, but it remains one of my favourite Australian records by one of my favourite Australian singer – songwriters. Suffice to say, David Bridie as both a solo act; and founder, composer and front man of the group My Friend the Chocolate Cake is one of the most prolific artists on my blog. 

Bridie lived in the inner North suburbs of Melbourne where I also lived from 2005 – 2009. I saw him live on numerous occasions. In 2021 he moved to an off-grid property close to the Otway National Park on Victoria’s Shipwreck Coast. Bridie balanced his career as a live musician with the composition of soundtrack music, with credits for over 16 feature films. He is also a seven time ARIA award winning composer and has enjoyed a distinguished career as one of Australia’s most innovative musicians. 

Bridie’s music is undeniably atmospheric, and Stumble Away is no exception. He delves into the art form of sonic texture. It’s a deeply introspective and melancholic piece that resonates with my musical sensibilities in a way few other tracks can. Moreover, I’ve always considered David Bridie as musically Australia’s best kept secret and it looks like it is going to stay that way with today’s featured track having amassed 11 views in the video below.

Would you like to run faster
But you know there’s no way
There’s only enthusiasts anywhere today
And should the hope ’round the corner
Prove quite a surprise
There’s a man with a card saying
“Don’t be sick, don’t be old, don’t be ordinary, otherwise”
I don’t feel so good today, Well I fall down
It pays to keep your eyes open
Read beneath what they say
This is all one great big lie
Just like Australia day
And the crowd are out watching
The fireworks in the rain
They all do nothing, say nothing
Silence is lying
I don’t feel so good today, then I fall down
Then I stumble away, stumble away
I wish that I may, and I wish you don’t mind
Keep my head and my nerve if the fight is a good fight
Should the hope round the corner prove quite a surprise
And there’s a man with a card saying
“don’t be sick, don’t be old, don’t be ordinary
Otherwise…”
I don’t feel so good today, then I fall down slowly
Then stumble away, stumble away, stumble away

References:
1. David Bridie – Wikipedia

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Stuck on You (1984) – Lionel Richie

Posted on December 5, 2024 by observationblogger — 5 Comments

Stuck on You is just a beautifully conceived and executed love ballad. It sounds on the surface simple and conventional, but it is deceptively well crafted and contains fantastic songwriting with a country flavour distinct from his previous R&B. My appreciation of it has only grown over the years despite having heard it ten’s of times. Quality music like this never gets old. It’s also a time capsule possessing the best of the balladry and soft-rock music from that era with a gentle dose of country – ‘Guess I’m on My Way / Mighty glad you stayed‘ for good measure.
In 1980, he wrote and produced the US No 1 single Lady for Kenny Rogers. Kenny even said Lionel Richie is a country artist with a soul backdrop.
Stuck on You is the third song to feature here after his previous entries Hello and Endless Love (Ft. Diana Ross). The latter remains in the top 20 bestselling singles of all time, and the biggest career hit for both artists.

The following contain extracts from the two Wikipedia references below:
Stuck on You was the fourth single released from Lionel Richie second studio album, Can’t Slow Down, released in June 1984, by Motown. In the US and the UK, it peaked at number three and number 12, respectively. It was also his country debut peaking at number 24 on the country chart.

Born Lionel Brockman Richie Jr. in 1949, Richie rose to fame in the 1970s as a songwriter and the co-lead singer of the Motown group Commodores; writing and recording the hit singles Easy, Sail On, Three Times a Lady and Still with the group before his departure. After spawning the number one singles All Night Long (All Night) and Hello, he co-wrote the 1985 charity single We Are the World with Michael Jackson, which sold over 20 million copies. His third album, Dancing on the Ceiling (1986), spawned the number one single Say You, Say Me.

[Verse 1]
Stuck on you
I’ve got this feeling down deep in my soul that I just can’t lose
Guess I’m on my way
Needed a friend
And the way I feel now, I guess I’ll be with you ’til the end
Guess I’m on my way
Mighty glad you stayed

[Verse 2]
I’m stuck on you
Been a fool too long, I guess it’s time for me to come on home
Guess I’m on my way
So hard to see
That a woman like you could wait around for a man like me
Guess I’m on my way
Mighty glad you stayed

[Bridge]
Oh, I’m leaving on that midnight train tomorrow
And I know just where I’m going
I’ve packed up my troubles and I’ve thrown them all away
‘Cause this time, little darling
I’m coming home to stay

[Verse 3]
I’m stuck on you
I’ve got this feeling down deep in my soul that I just can’t lose
Guess I’m on my way
I needed a friend
And the way I feel now, I guess I’ll be with you ’til the end
Guess I’m on my way
I’m mighty glad you stayed

References:
1. Stuck on You (Lionel Richie song) – Wikipedia
2. Lionel Richie – Wikipedia

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Strangers When We Meet (1995) – David Bowie

Posted on December 4, 2024 by observationblogger — 5 Comments

Strangers When We Meet is recognised as one of Bowie’s very best late period songs, some even arguing it is of equal stature to his 70s classics. Since it wasn’t a mainstream hit, it certainly seems one of his most underrated songs. The song is so passive aggressive but I like it a lot, and the singing and instrumentation is anything but conventional. Derrr. Bowie.
Strangers When We Meet grows more captivating with repeated listens—it’s an acquired taste, much like many of Bowie’s works have been for me. Despite already featuring his music here six times, I still feel like I’m just scratching the surface of his vast and eclectic discography.

Strangers When We Meet is the nineteenth and final track from David Bowie’s twentieth album, Outside. It was originally recorded for his 1993 album The Buddha of Suburbia, but he re-recorded it in 1995 for Outside. Wikipedia states that both biographers Nicholas Pegg and Chris O’Leary agree that the song seemed out-of-place on Outsiders: ‘Strangers When We Meet’ seems even more incongruous, resolving all the album’s angst and black comedy in a soothing slice of conventional pop“. The 1995 rerecording of the song appeared on the Best of Bowie DVD (2002).

Regarding the various interpretations surrounding Strangers When We Meet, John Rafferty at Quora did a sterling job laying it all out. I have presented below an abridged version of the three prevailing interpretations associated with the song. I would definitely recommend viewing his response in full if the following sparks your interest:

1. The most obvious interpretation is that it’s about his ex wife Angie Bowie. There is reference to ‘cold tired fingers tapping out your memories’ which is perhaps an allusion to Angie Bowie’s kiss and tell memoir ‘Backstage Passes’ which she published in 1993, the same year that Bowie wrote the song…. 

2. The song could be about any illicit love affair which has run its course. There is an old movie called Strangers When we Meet about an architect having an affair with a married woman which the song title probably comes from. The protagonist in the song is at first ‘bewildered’ and ‘resentful’ that they are strangers when they meet. Illicit lovers often have to pretend they have never met in social situations when in reality they are secretly intimate and this can frustrate people in that situation.

3. Given all of that, it’s not beyond the realms of possibility that Bowie is singing about himself and he has become a completely different person from the one he was in the early 70s. The David Bowie of Angie’s memoirs is an unrecognisably different character from the stable and happy person he has become, as a newly married man (to his second wife Iman) freed from the paranoia and melancholy of his earlier life.

[Verse 1]
All our friends
Now seem so thin and frail
Slinky secrets
Hotter than the sun
No peachy prayers
No trendy réchauffé
I’m with you
So I can’t go on

[Chorus]
All my violence raining tears upon the sheets
I’m bewildered, for we’re strangers when we meet

[Verse 2]
Blank screen TV
Preening ourselves in the snow
Forget my name
But I’m over you
Blended sunrise
And it’s a dying world
Humming Rheingold
We scavenge up our clothes

[Verse 3]
Cold tired fingers
Tapping out your memories
Halfway sadness
Dazzled by the new
Your embrace
It was all that I feared
That whirling room
We trade by vendu

Steely resolve is falling from me
My poor soul, poor bruised passivity
All your regrets ran rough-shod over me
I’m so glad that we’re strangers when we meet
I’m so thankful, that we’re strangers when we meet
I’m in clover, for we’re strangers when we meet
Heel head over, but we’re strangers when we meet

References:
1. Strangers When We Meet (David Bowie song) – Wikipedia
2. What is the meaning song Strangers When We Meet by David Bowie? – Quora

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Crocodile Rock (1972) – Elton John

Posted on December 3, 2024 by observationblogger — 4 Comments

Crocodile Rock was one of the first songs I remember grooving to and letting loose on the living room floor during my youth. So many here will have such fond memories of this song as well, such was its immense popularity. I was fascinated by it and just like how it is depicted in the Rocketman scene I felt I was levitating when he launched into Laa, la-la-la-la-laa. I don’t know how many times I put the needle down on the Elton John’s Greatest Hits record, but it was a lot. We had one of those old wooden turntables which looks like a dresser, and I remember sitting at the front of the fireplace and listening to it. My awe for Crocodile Rock is not the same now as it once was, but how can one not be struck by what it achieved and its impact on contemporary pop/rock music.

On a more sombre note, this post is in part a tribute and show of support to Elton John after it was revealed yesterday that he is unable to watch own musical’ after eyesight loss. It is said in the BBC article he had been struggling with his eyesight since getting an infection in his right eye in July.

Crocodile Rock was Elton John’s first US No 1 single and stayed there for 3 weeks. Pre-released for his forthcoming 1973 album Don’t Shoot Me I’m Only the Piano Player it eventually was certified Platinum. It was inspired by the Australian band Daddy Cool’s Eagle Rock which was the most successful Australian single of the early 1970s. Crocodile Rock comments on rock’s evolution over time. It includes a lyrical reference to the 1950s hit record Rock Around the Clock by Bill Haley and his Comets (“While the other kids were rocking around the clock…“).

Taupin stated in an Esquire magazine interview that Crocodile Rock was a funny song in that he did not mind creating it, but it would not be something he would listen to.  Also John said, “I wanted it to be a record about all the things I grew up with. Of course it’s a rip-off, it’s derivative in every sense of the word.” In 2021, John revealed that Crocodile Rock was “written as a kind of joke” and that he does not enjoy playing the song any more.

[Verse 1]
I remember when rock was young
Me and Susie had so much fun
Holding hands and skimming stones
Had an old gold Chevy and a place of my own
But the biggest kick I ever got
Was doing a thing called the Crocodile Rock
While the other kids were rocking ’round the clock
We were hopping and bopping to the Crocodile Rock

[Chorus]
Well, Crocodile Rocking is something shocking
When your feet just can’t keep still
I never knew me a better time, and I guess I never will
Oh, lawdy mama, those Friday nights
When Susie wore her dresses tight
And the Crocodile Rocking was out of sight

[Post-Chorus]
Laa, la-la-la-la-laa
La-la-la-la-laa
La-la-la-la-laa

[Verse 2]
But the years went by and the rock just died
Susie went and left us for some foreign guy
Long nights crying by the record machine
Dreaming of my Chevy and my old blue jeans
But they’ll never kill the thrills we’ve got
Burning up to the Crocodile Rock
Learning fast as the weeks went past
We really thought the Crocodile Rock would last

References:
1. Crocodile Rock – Wikipedia

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Streets Of Your Town (1988) – The Go-Betweens

Posted on December 2, 2024 by observationblogger — 4 Comments

The quintessential Australian indie pop sound is back. Streets Of Your Town is the eleventh song to be presented here from The Go-Betweens and it might well be the one that most nearly caught them stardom. Despite the lukewarm reception upon release, its recognition in Australian culture over time has been nothing short of profound.
It was written in Sydney shortly before the recording of the Go-Betweens’ sixth album, 16 Lovers Lane, in 1988. Grant McLennan (centre of top photo) was in a relationship with multi-instrumentalist Amanda Brown (to the right) when he wrote it. It was unusual that the band’s co-founder, Robert Forster (back and left), had not heard the song before it was brought to the group.

Amanda recalled how when she living with Grant in Bondi Junction, Sydney that the song was written very quickly in their sunny top-floor flat. She further mentioned: ‘It was written in, I would say, 10 minutes. I was singing along and I sung that ‘shine’ line, which is like the call and response answer in the verses, and that’s pretty much it – that’s how it came about. And I don’t collect any songwriting royalties for that song, because that was a condition of my joining the band‘.

Robert Forster (singer-songwriter, guitarist, band co-founder): “The fact that I hadn’t heard the song, it did miff me … Every other song from every other album that we’d done before that, and every album that we did after, I knew all the songs that Grant had. This was the one song that I didn’t. But a week later it was fine. That was the thing with Grant and I, we didn’t yell and scream at each other. There’s things that I did to him that he must have just had to swallow, too.”

Despite the song being written in Sydney it has been identified with Brisbane, and was named in the article below as the Brisbane poll winner for top song and consider the band formed in Brisbane in 1977. Also The Go Between Bridge, spanning the Brisbane river, is named after the group.

Lindy Morrison (Drums): “I always thought it (Streets of Your Town) was about Brisbane, because of the buildings being torn down; the nostalgia expressed for a town that once was. The most important thing I want to say is that Brisbane took it on as their own, so the Brisbane community grabbed it and ran with it…”

The single reached No 68 in Australia and peaked at No 30 In New Zealand.

McLennan said of writing the song, “I was listening to ‘Under the Milky Way’ and I was just working it out–cause I’m a big fan of The Church. And that afternoon I came up with a chord progression and a chorus.”
Forster later said, “This was obviously the most commercial thing we’d ever done, and it came out around October ’88, which caught the summer here. It was re-released in summer and it sat fantastically on Australian summer radio and then it sat well on English summer radio. We were walking around Soho and we’d hear it on the radio, every jean shop and café.

For further information, I point you to this neat documentary about the making of the album 16 Lovers Lane. Another great song from that record Quiet Heart featured here this year.

[Chorus]
Round and round, up and down
Through the streets of your town
Everyday I make my way
Through the streets of your town

[Verse 1]
And don’t the sun look good today? (Shine)
But the rain is on its way (Shine)
Watch the butcher shine his knives (Shine)
And this town is full of battered wives

[Verse 2]
And I ride your river under the bridge (Shine)
And I take your boat out to the ridge (Shine)
‘Cos I love that engine roar (Shine)
But I still don’t know what I’m here for

[Bridge]
They shut it down
They closed it down
They shut it down
They pulled it down

References:
1. ‘It’s a widely misunderstood song’: how the Go-Betweens made Streets of Your Town – The Guardian
2. Streets of Your Town – Wikipedia

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Streets of Philadelphia (1994) – Bruce Springsteen

Posted on December 1, 2024 by observationblogger — 13 Comments

Streets of Philadelphia by Bruce Springsteen and sister song Philadelphia by Neil Young are from the Jonathan Demme movie of the same name. Bruce Springsteen won best original song at the 1994 Academy Awards while Neil Young was nominated. Both are exemplary ‘atmospheric’ compositions and showcase the unique musical talents of each. Streets of Philadelphia was a huge hit of course and my first encounter with the music from the film.

– Philadelphia (1993) – Neil Young (Observation Blogger)

Today’s featured track Streets of Philadelphia was recorded during August 1993, at Springsteen’s home studio in Beverly Hills, California, after a personal request by Director Jonathan Demme. It was written and performed for the 1993 film Philadelphia, starring Tom Hanks, an early mainstream film dealing with HIV/AIDS. The video was shot in December, with Springsteen singing a live vocal, as he walked the streets of Philadelphia.

Streets of Philadelphia won the 66th Oscar Award in 1994 for Best Original Song as well as four Grammys: Song of the Year, Best Rock Song, Best Solo Rock Vocal Performance, and Best Song Written for Motion Picture or Television. In the United States, the single peaked at No. 9 on the Billboard, becoming Springsteen’s 12th and latest top-10 hit. It topped the singles charts in Austria, Canada, France, Germany, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, and Norway.

[Verse 1]
I was bruised and battered, I couldn’t tell what I felt
I was unrecognizable to myself
Saw my reflection in a window and didn’t know my own face
Oh, brother, are you gonna leave me wastin’ away

[Chorus]
On the streets of Philadelphia?

[Verse 2]
I walked the avenue ’til my legs felt like stone
I heard the voices of friends vanished and gone
At night I could hear the blood in my veins
Just as black and whispering as the rain

[Chorus]
On the streets of Philadelphia

[Post-Chorus]
Ain’t no angel gonna greet me
It’s just you and I, my friend
And my clothes don’t fit me no more
I walked a thousand miles just to slip this skin

[Verse 3]
The night has fallen, I’m lyin’ awake
I can feel myself fading away
So receive me, brother, with your faithless kiss
Or will we leave each other alone like this
[Chorus]
On the streets of Philadelphia?

The following information includes mainly extracts from the Wikipedia reference at the end of this post:

In early 1993, Philadelphia director Jonathan Demme asked Springsteen to write a song for his film, adding “I want it to play in the malls.” Springsteen replied, “Well, I’m interested, so I’d like to come up with a song for you. If you give me some time, I’ll see, but I can’t promise.” Springsteen recalled adding, “I’m not very good at scores.”

It’s interesting to note here that Bruce Springsteen wrote the title song for the movie – The Wrestler (2008) which I reviewed back in 2022. Springsteen gave them the song for no fee. The song was widely expected to receive a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Original Song where Springsteen would perform it on the awards show, but in what Rolling Stone termed “shocking news”, it was denied a nomination when the Academy nominated only three songs in the category rather than the usual five.

The accompanying music video for Streets of Philadelphia was directed by Jonathan Demme and his nephew Ted Demme in December 1993, and begins by showing Springsteen walking along desolate city streets, followed by a bustling park and schoolyard, interspersed with footage from the film. 

The vocal track for the video was recorded live with a hidden microphone, to a pre-recorded instrumental track. This technique, appropriate for emotionally intense songs for which conventional video lip-syncing would seem especially false. Springsteen initially did this in his 1987 Brilliant Disguise video, singing the song directly into the camera as he sits on the edge of his chair on a Sandy Hook, New Jersey sound stage.

References:
1. Streets of Philadelphia – Wikipedia

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Strawberry Blonde (1997) – Ron Sexsmith

Posted on November 30, 2024 by observationblogger — 26 Comments

My friend Ron told me about this Canadian singer-songwriter Ron Sexsmith from St. Catharines, Ontario. I listened to this song and it’s a beautifully written song. His name seemed familiar and there is a good reason for that. My friend Randy from MostlyMusicCovers covered him this past June. I’m not sure why I didn’t look at him more then.

‘This song was released on his Other Songs album released in 1997. The album won a Juno Award for Roots & Traditional Album of the Year in 1998‘.

– Max at PowerPop (Ron Sexsmith – Strawberry Blonde)

Last year my friend Max at PowerPop published an article about this beautiful song from Ron Sexsmith. Another song by Ron called Right Down the Line by Gerry Rafferty featured here in June this year. From the scant that I have heard, I have enjoyed Ron Sexsmith’s music especially his covers of Bob Dylan’s tunes. There was a comment in Max’s article from Obbverse which aligns with my sentiments about today’s featured track Strawberry Blonde:

This kind of song is what a songwriter strives for- good melody, good lyrics, good voice and they all gell together to make something beautiful. And in context, what a perfect title.

Now here’s more from Max’s article:

This song came about when he (Ron Sexsmith) was at a playground with his young son and he observed a little girl being looked after by her grandmother because her mom was in rehab. The mix of innocence of the little girl and the problem of drug addiction of her mom played into this song.

She was not the girl next door
But the girl from ’round the corner
It was at the tail end of grade four
When she came to school one morning

And all eyes were upon her as she took her seat
Her name was Amanda with pretty eyes of green
And hair of blonde, strawberry blonde

Springtime and dandelions
And summer ’round the corner
Was at the tail end of age nine
With a million dreams before her

She lived with her mother in an old decrepit house
If there was trouble she kept it to herself
All summer long, the strawberry blonde

And by her face there was no way to tell
It seemed like all was well in her world
But the neighbors said

Her mother had lost her will
To gin and sleeping pills
It was no life for a little girl

Still I see her face framed in blue sky
At the top of a slide coming down
And when the sirens wailed
(Her mother had failed to rise)

All the neighbors stood outside
As Amanda just stared at the ground

Time flies and years are piled
I’d forgotten all about her
When I saw her down the aisle
Of a streetcar with her daughter

Then I heard Amanda say as she got up
“C’mon, Samantha, girl, this is our stop”
And they were gone, two strawberry blondes

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The Heist of the Century (2020) – Ariel Winograd (Friday’s Finest)

Posted on November 29, 2024 by observationblogger — Leave a comment

I just finished watching on cable this very intriguing and enjoyable Argentine movie called The Heist of the Century (ESP. El Robo del Siglo). Typical police thrillers aren’t usually my cup of tea, but I have to make an exception for this one. Its unique blend of quirkiness, sharp humor, and the undeniable chemistry between these iconic actors of Argentine cinema make it a standout. It’s based on real events of a bank heist which occurred in Buenos Aires in 2006 and appears a faithful and consistent retelling of the actual incident. Three of the principal protagonists in The Heist of the Century also featured in one of my favourite Latin American movies – The Secret in Their Eyes (2009) which I reviewed in 2019.

Storyline:

The film is based on a true story, the robbery of the Banco Río branch in the Buenos Aires town of Acassuso on Friday, January 13, 2006, which was robbed by a gang of six robbers armed with replicas of real weapons. They took 23 hostages and took approximately 19 million dollars from 147 safe deposit boxes.

This is undoubtedly one of those movies that’s best experienced with minimal prior knowledge of its coordination, events, and outcomes – just as I had the privilege of doing. It’s simply a funny way of representing what is considered one of the most ingenious robberies in the history of Argentina. I was certainly impressed by their ‘smarts’, attention to detail and laborious creativity to achieve near as possible the perfect large scale robbery.

The characters felt authentic, cunning but also likeable despite their despicable objective. Really imagine if your mad but smart left-field uncle decided to concoct a crazy plan with his mates to rob a bank and that is pretty much what this is, except ‘real’. I’m sure those who have been effected by a bank robbery don’t see the funny side at all. But there is one scene during their heist where a sequestered mobile phone from one of the hostages keeps ringing and the elderly owner declares its her mobile phone and the attention is due to it being her birthday. The priceless reaction of the robbers to this news and how the leader scolds one of the hostages for not singing ‘Happy Birthday’ with more gusto is one for the movie annals. I relayed it at the end of the post, but unfortunately I couldn’t find a translated version, but gather you’ll get the gist and find it worth your while.

This film is a throwback to films I can remember stemming from the 70s & 80s, of a bank heist including Pacino’s Dog Day Afternoon. The Heist of the Century does comedy and crime so well together. It’s a very fine movie, and I loved the actors as much as the comedy and it’s one you’ll enjoy although may leave an unsavoury taste in the mouth. If you can get past that, then you might enjoy it as much as I did.

References:
1. El robo del siglo (película de 2020) – Wikipedia
2. The Heist of the Century (2020) – IMDB

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Posted in Movies and TV

Strange Weather (2023) – Luke Sital-Singh

Posted on November 26, 2024 by observationblogger — 2 Comments

I’ve since learnt that it takes skill and often a little bit of courage to keep things bare, leaving things so exposed and raw. There’s an honesty to that that I love. 
– Luke Sital-Singh

I believe I found today’s featured song Strange Weather when I presented a song cowritten by Luke Sital-Singh and Christina Perri in May this year called Rather Be. When I heard the lyrics, I thought Strange Weather was a reflection on the Pandemic and sure enough Sital-Singh stated ‘…everything was strange after the Pandemic. ‘Strange Weather’ was a summary of the EP and how I felt in general.

This gentle song is a restrained and sombre number. It was the lead single and title track from L.A. based singer-songwriter, producer Luke Sital-Singh’s 2023 EP. The arrangement effectively enhances the song’s mood and energy with a soothing percussive quality and growing intensity, guitar rhythms, subtle drumming, and layers of sound building that pairs well with Luke’s gentle, melodic vocals.

[Verse 1]
The moon is letting go
Of everything I know tonight
The hours turn to days
The sky is out of phase
Are we alright?

[Pre-Chorus]
Overcrowded ghost town
Sun behind a dark cloud
All my favourite spots have closed down
Nowhere to go now

[Chorus]
Strange weather
Strange weather

[Verse 2]
It seems like yesterday
I could simply drift away from all this
Now I’m not so sure
About anything anymore
If I’m honest

[Pre-Chorus]
Am I out of my mind?
Is it a matter of time?

[Chorus]
Strange weather
Strange weather
Oh, strange weather
Is it gonna go on and on forever?

References:
1. Luke Sital-Singh and the pure beauty and melancholia of “Strange Weather” – American Pancake
2. Folk music biggie Luke Sital-Singh on the cuppa and curries that drive him – The Telegraph Online

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Posted in Music

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