2009, where did you go? God, I'm glad you're over.
I was tested, I was burned, I fought back, I held steady, and I learned how to play barre chords. All in all, a strange year for a man like me, a man of integrity. Here's a rather unwieldy recap:
Books I finally read
Siddhartha (Herman Hesse, 1922)
The Big Sleep (Raymond Chandler, 1939)
The Love Of The Last Tycoon (F. Scott Fitzgerald, 1941)
Casino Royale (Ian Fleming, 1953)
A Kiss Before Dying (and) Rosemary's Baby (Ira Levin, 1953, 1967)
Franny And Zooey (J.D. Salinger, 1961)
Raising Kane (Pauline Kael, 1971)
Our Lady Of Darkness (Fritz Leiber, 1977)
Tales Of The City (Armistead Mauphin, 1978)
The Hellbound Heart (Clive Barker, 1986)
High Fidelity (Nick Hornby, 1995)
4 disappointments: an album, a book, a movie, and a song -- in chronological order
Nickelodeon (Peter Bogdanovich, 1976)
Snuff (Chuck Palahniuk, 2008)
Embryonic (The Flaming Lips, 2009)
just about any current U2
4 favorites: an album, a book, a movie, and a song -- in chronological order
"Sweet Hitch-Hiker" (Creedence Clearwater Revival, 1972): One-dimensional, but one of the most kick-ass licks in Creedence history. Can't believe I didn't hear it until '09.
Inspiration Information (Shuggie Otis, 1974)
Cutter And Bone (Ivan Passer, 1981): A little-seen character study that bowled me over.
Red Dragon (Thomas Harris, 1981): The most disturbing thriller I've read in years. Beautifully written and plotted.
Careers
Truman Capote (Answered Prayers, Music For Chameleons)
Trevor Horn, the early years
Jean-Pierre Melville (Army Of Shadows, Le Cercle Rouge)
Stevie Wonder in the '70s
Instrumentals
"Hip Hug Her" (Booker T. & The M.G.s, 1967)
"Freedom Flight" (Shuggie Otis, 1971)
"Summer Madness" (Kool And The Gang, 1974)
"The Falls" (Ennio Morricone, 1986)
"Ecstasy Symphony" (Spacemen 3, 1987/2003)
Songs, turned up to 11
"Sky Pilot" (The Animals, 1968)
"The Soft Parade" (The Doors, 1969)
"Cock In My Pocket" (Stooges boot, 1973)
"She Creatures Of The Hollywood Hills" (Stooges boot, 1973)
"Love Is Coming Down" (The Who, 1978)
"Love Song" (Simple Minds, 1981)
"Mirrorball" (Everything But The Girl, 1996)
"What It Feels Like For A Girl" (Madonna, 2001 -- the Above & Beyond mix)
"Give It 2 Me" (Madonna, 2008)
"Also Frightened" (Animal Collective, 2009)
"Glass" (Julian Casablancas, 2009)
New movies
Since movie-going has become a drag, I wait to rent most new films, which means I don't have a list of faves this year. Only two "mindless" entertainments grabbed me -- Inglorious Basterds and Star Trek. I still have to see Avatar, Fantastic Mr. Fox, and a few others. We'll see how it goes. In fact, I may update this paragraph later.
New music
Any major dude knows a ton of music is released each week. I can't keep up, nor do I care. Usually I don't go to the clubs or listen to FM radio, and (as a matter of capitalist principle) I try not to use P2P programs anymore. Where there's consensus, I do my due diligence and seek the sounds out, but I wait to form an opinion. Now that I have almost no discretionary income, it takes me longer. In 2009, ambition, money and time worked against me. Next year I'll do a best-of for the decade.
"Duh"
All of us have addictions that are bad.
As crap as you think you have it, it's not even half as bad as what someone else is going through.
I compete only with myself.
It almost doesn't matter what side they're on. Politicians are politicians.
Not all fights are worth fighting; the choice to disengage is not necessarily a weak or stupid one.
Column
Peggy Noonan in The Wall Street Journal.
Event
A toss between seeing the Pixies live or vacationing in Monterey.
Web site
http://www.filmref.com/index.html.
contact the author - 2009-12-18 - 15:06:50 PST
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