I'm wary of Michael Moore, but I want to see FARENHEIT 9/11 for myself. Hitchens is a pretty persuasive hatchet job, but Rosenbaum is generally worhtwhile, so perhaps it's somehow redemptive for Moore in the way that Iowa's victory was redemptive for Kerry. I do think it's telling that we're … [Read more...]
Archives for June 2004
REASONS TO BE CHEERFUL
Today in Harvard Square, I saw someone wearing a Leon Fleisher t-shirt. … [Read more...]
OUT OF EAR’S REACH: Visions of Spam
An ambitious scholarly treatment of Dylan puts his lyrics beneath the microscope. By Tim Riley Posted on Slate, Monday, June 21, 2004 Cherish the cultural moment: Just as Bob Dylan sells his soul for a Victoria's Secret Venetian holiday, the academy ushers him into the Great Hall of Poets. With … [Read more...]
Rock Star Role Models Win New Fans
Thu Jun 17, 2004 10:00 AM ET By Jill Serjeant LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Hip-swiveling Elvis, womanizer Mick Jagger and "Material Girl" Madonna may be some of rock 'n' roll's greatest musical icons but as positive role models, they've yet to win many fans. Think again, argues rock critic Tim Riley. … [Read more...]
CAKE OR DEATH: Hot Rhetoric and Slick Licks
Current Ellen Willis clips. We're not worthy. VERBAL HOOKS WITH SWING Sam Phillips A BOOT AND A SHOE (Nonesuch) Song title that lives up to its lyric: "I Dreamed That I Stopped Dreaming" Lyric: "When noone's listening I have so much to say..." from "How to Quit" KETCHUP The Raveonettes CHAIN GANG … [Read more...]
UNDERMINDING PHISH: Will 311 Benefit?
My Phish piece aired today. A lot of what I say could be applied to the Paradise show I saw 1989 when I covered them for the Phoenix. … [Read more...]
SEE THAT MY STAR IS KEPT CLEAN: Carson, Gore, Ray
Tom Carson is predictably, astutely hilarious in his Voice obit:...Reaganism had beauty. Even if you knew better, it was seductive. The best description, or possibly just evidence, I know is the oddly forgotten Talking Heads song "Road to Nowhere," from 1985's Americana-flavored Little Creatures. A … [Read more...]
EVEN RUSSERT BUCKLED
MORE ON COVERS: Deluged With Responses
Thank you to Tom Wilk and Doug Jones, who wrote in jogging my sieve of a memory: added John Fogerty's BLUE RIDGE RANGERS below. Does it strike anyone else what a good year 1973 was for covers? And as if to bless all this cosmic meandering, the Los Lobos record, THE RIDE, just came, and it's like a … [Read more...]
FEVER’S PROGRESS: Plus Cover Poetry
"Missing the Point" No. 3 on Austin's Book People New and Noteworthy page. Keep track. ART OF COVERS Ever since David Byrne's BELEZA TROPICALE (1989) compilation, I've followed Bahia's Caetano Veloso, even wrote up his Knopf autobiography for Boston Review, a piece that never ran. One of the … [Read more...]
TIE ME UP: That’s What Blogs Are For
Like everybody else, I'm fascinated by Tony Hendra's conversion buzz, but suspicious of Andrew Sullivan. While gay, and a semi-reformed neo-con (the gay marriage thing had him recanting Bush fever), Sullivan remains, after all, a Catholic. (One wonders what it might take for him to recant THAT … [Read more...]
DORFMAN’S CAUTIONARY: Mea Krappa Culpa
From: Jonathan Dorfman Sent: Thursday, June 03, 2004 12:02 PM To: 'triley@artsjournal.com' Subject: A few words Tim: Hope you/kids/Sara are well. Love to get together soon. Congratulations on the book: I’m sure that future comments will differ from those Grace Slick! Screw Publisher’s Weekly! … [Read more...]
PUBLISHER’S WEEKLY: Subtext Withheld
Fever: How Rock & Roll Transformed Gender in America Riley, Tim ISBN: 0-31-228611-2 St. Martin's Press Hardcover $24.95 2004/06 When Elvis walked onstage and sang "Love Me Tender" or "Hound Dog," he changed and challenged more than just popular music. According to Riley, his gyrating hips and his … [Read more...]