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Taco versus Grilled Cheese

Thursday, March 01, 2007

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David Bowie - "Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars" (RCA, 1983) [Key tracks: the farewell speech]
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"So I cried for all the others till the day was nearly through, for I realized that God's a young man too."
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In honor of my friend Megan, who just recently saw a movie with subtitles, and the rest of you who may ignore classics and foreign films, I present a mini movie review before the record review! Today being a snow-day, I was over joyed to see that Turner Classic Movies was showing good films! One of my all time favorites, "Divorce Italian Style" was on. It is a classic comedy, filled with the sort of introspection and fantasy that all middle aged married men can relate with. Everything about the movie is impeccable... the acting, the characters, the plot, the settings, the way the shots were set up... everything. In short, it is about a man who covets a young woman (ala Bathsheba), and begins to hate his own wife (at times painted as an unknowing victim of male wanderlust, at other times a relentless harpy). During these time, he fantasizes about the many ways he can get out of the marriage since divorce is not an option in old-world Italy... murder, accidentally falling in quick sand, being launched to the moon in a rocket... hilarious stuff. This is a great "gateway" movie to get you hooked on foreign film... and it has a great lesson about fidelity as well. Also noteworthy is its incorporation of Fellini's masterpiece "La Dulce Vida" into its plot. Add this to your Netflix list and you will not be sorry.
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I don't have much to say about the music on the LP, but rather the story behind it, David Bowie had created some personas during his career; role playing as characters was part of his charm. This creation, this Ziggy Stardust ultimately took on a life of its own. The fans immediately fed back into the mythos what Bowie had created, making him a rock and roll messiah... and David himself was sucked into the fantasy, and he needed out before it destroyed him. So at this concert, unknown to even his band, he announced it was the last show he would play. We all know he didn't "quit" for long, but he definitely put Ziggy to rest for good. This LP was recorded in 1973, and filmed, but the album was not released until 1983. The LP pictured is one of the 2003 limited edition pressings which improved the sound and lengthened the set list to include all of the songs and announcements. You can hear the audience collectively gasp and moan when David makes his surprise announcement. A great piece of rock and roll history. The music, by the way, is probably one of the most fun Bowie experiences... a quick vamp through some of his most iconoclastic work, including a tarty cover of "Let's Spend the Night Together." Bowie at his prime, and a beautiful collectible for any record collector.
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That's it for today, no 3rd paragraph. Its hard to type about music/life when you watch Italian movies about infidelity and lust all morning while your wife may or may not be stuck at work (thanks to the snow)! Makes me wanna start "drunk" dialing my female classmates... and I can blame it on the snow and the cinema. Salut!
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Horns up, and drive safe...

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