Stu’s Reviews – Page 49

Stu’s Reviews #366- Album – “Doc and Dawg Live at Acoustic Stage”

Genre: Album

Grade: A

Notable People: Doc Watson and David Grisman

Title: Doc and Dawg Live at Acoustic Stage

Review: Got this for Christmas from The Nave….and it’s a stunner. The incomparable Doc Watson on guitar and the brilliant mandolin musings from the legendary David Grisman -captured live in 1997. Doc sits in for the usual Dawg pairing with Jerry Garcia, and takes it to another level. Joined by local NC fab flat picker Jack Lawrence and then for a magnificent set of acoustic blues by Docs late grandson, Richard…who was the last of the line of fabled Watson guitarists along with Doc and Merle, who had died tragically a few years earlier in a tractor accident. All gone now, except, foe the Dawg…but this music is timeless, and Doc’s between-songs patter is worth the price of admission alone. It’s quite a bar for any aspiring picker to live up to. Magnificent.

Stu’s Reviews #365- Album – “Jubilation” -THE Band

Genre: Album

Grade: B+

Notable People: THE Band-and guests

Title: Jubilation

Review: Some days are better than others….last week was reading the most recent issue of Rolling Stone, and came across a spread on the Band’s full music catalog with blurbs abut each album. Lo, and behold, I discovered (incredibly) an album I did not have or even had heard of. On to Amazon. What a treat…the last of the original group on the last of its original studio recordings in 1998. Richard Manual was long dead, and Robby Robertson was hanging in LA snorting coke with Martin Scorsese….but Levon, Rick and Garth were carrying on with the almost-Robby, Jim Wieder on guitar and several other Woodstock mainstays. Adam Hurwitz of the Beastie boys produced the album and got Eric Clapton and John Hiatt to come along. It’s nothing ground breaking, but Levon’s drumming and singing don’t miss a beat, Rick’s
voice is a bit frayed , but still heartbreaking and Garth is really out front on accordion, keyboards and horns. This made me tremble -felt like a very old friend has returned form far away. Too good to be true for any real fan.

Stu’s Reviews #364- Book – “Crooked Man” -Tony Dunbar

Genre: Book

Grade: B+

Notable People: Tony Dunbar

Title: Crooked Man

Review: Got new one! My friend, The Nave, referred this series to me as he knows of my lust for all things N’Awlins. Dunbar has created a classic Big Easy shyster, Tubby Dubonnet (you gotta love that, right)…and he is a pretty interesting character. I cannot really say the first book is all that well written (though I started the second and it seems quite an improvement)….but the characters are appropriately sleazy for the environment, the story is rich….and well…it’s N‘Awlins- and Dunbar clearly loves and portrays his home very, very well. It’s definitely got the vibe of this unforgettable place for anyone who has spent considerable time there…and has a rich look at its filthy history to boot. Definitely going to play this series out.

Stu’s Reviews #363- Film – “Vice”

Genre: Film

Grade: A-/B+

Notable People: Christian Bale, Amy Adams, Steve Carell, Sam Rockford, Directed by: Adam McKay

Title: Vice

Review: Well…this is must see for the times we live in. Extraordinary portrayal of the puppet master who controlled the word (along with Karl Rove) during the “W” years. McKay is very slyly funny in all the right places…especially in presenting W Bush (whom he created the character on SNL for along with his partner, Will Ferrell). The cast is superb: Carell really edgy as Rumsfeld, Adams really intense as Mrs. Cheney and Rockwell as Bush an absolute hoot….but the show stealer is clearly Bale-who is beyond unrecognizable as the cautious, restrained and conniving Dick Cheney. This is a really disturbing portrait. I found the film dragging in places and the “over-narration” bit did not do much for me….but if you want to see where our current cesspool came from, you gotta see it.

Stu’s Reviews #362- Book – “Massacre Pond”

Genre: Book

Grade: A-

Notable People: Paul Doiron

Title: Massacre Pond

Review: This guy and this series have really grown on me. Was not sue aft edit one that I would continue, but they have gotten better and better. Doiron’s Mike Bowditch is the complicated Maine Game Warden who finds more trouble than one can imagine in the woods of remote Maine. Bowditch is a conflicted character sounded by people who want to see him fail; he has a unique family history in Maine and keeps getting sent further into the boonies. The supporting characters are marvelous and Doiron’s knowledge of remote Maine is impressive (he is the publisher and editor of “Down East” magazine there). This is by far his best story yet….and it’s a barnburner.

Stu’s Reviews #361- “Film” – “The Favourite”

Genre: Film

Grade: B+

Notable People: Olivia Colman, Emma Stone, Rachel Weisz

Title: The Favourite

Review: Very dark comedy-drama film surrounding the reign of Queen Anne (An excellent Colman, known for her turn in the BBC/Netflix TV drama, Broadchurch) of England in the early 18th century. Magnificent cinematography and period costumes set the tone for the disturbing look on two extraordinarily manipulative woman vying for the ear, affection and power of the mercurial and sickly Queen. Stone and Weisz are both riveting in their conniving and seductive roles. Not a very flattering portrait of the men of the Court, who are pawns of the women’s power plays and seductiveness. Dragged a bit with a certain level of predictability but the acting is top notch and the story compelling.

Stu’s Reviews #360- “Book” – “Lethal White”- Robert Galbraith

Genre: Book

Grade: A-

Notable People: Robert Galbraith

Title: Lethal White

Review: JK Rowland is an excellent writer-as any fan of Harry Potter can attest. In this strange evolution, she turns her attention to her pseudonym as Mr. Galbraith……where she has written her fourth in the Cormoran Strike series. Strike is a large, one-legged and moody Afghan war veteran trying take to make is as private dick in London. This book is her most significant effort yet..delving way into the startlingly longing subconscious’ of her two main characters: Strike and his erstwhile partner, the lovely and troubled Robin Endicott. The story itself is a barn burner and the settings and characters are well thought out and presented. If you like London, this is a canvas of the city. These books are well worth the time, though at almost 700 pages, I thought this one a bit of an investment.

Stu’s Reviews #359- “Film” – “The Mule”

Genre: Film

Grade: A-/B+

Notable People: Clint Eastwood, Dianne Wiest, Bradley Cooper, Lawrence Fishburne, Andy Garcia,

Directed by: Eastwood

Title: The Mule

Review: At this stage of his life, Eastwood makes must-see films. This is not a great film, but he is worth seeing it for. Does his usual job of well nuanced directing and telling a compelling story….with a few too many conveniences. But…Clint….really stretches himself. Probably speaks more in first 20 minutes of this film, than he has spoken in any entire film before now. He’s a bit naïve, kind of silly and whimsical….none of the things you expect with Eastwood. It is quite a performance. The supporting cat is good, and the story is just this side of believable (thug “based” on a true tale) . This is a good Christmas movie.

Stu’s Reviews #358- “Book” – “Cactus Heart” – Jon Talton

Genre: Book

Grade: A-

Notable People: Jon Talton

Title: Cactus Heart

Review: After four installments in his very fine David Mapstone series, Talton wrote a prequel, going back to the chaos of 1999 and the Y2K drama. This book provides a nice backdrop and history to the current in- progress series. As usual, Talton is focused on the criminal urbanization of the desert and Phoenix’s growth from sleepy 1950s hamlet to mega-giant snowbird fancy and developers’ dream. This one tells the story of a 60 year old murder (Mapstone is the erstwhile Deputy Sheriff in Maricopa County, who is also a PhD historian and works on very cold cases) of twin grandsons of one of the founding giants of Arizona. As usual the twist and turns are fabulous, the characters larger than life and the sex scenes are pretty dam vivid (the history Shamus is apparently a reluctant chic magnet). These books have steadily grown on me and I eagerly anticipate the next adventure.

Stu’s Reviews #357- “Book” – “Misery Bay” – Steve Hamilton

Genre: Book

Grade: A-

Notable People: Steve Hamilton

Title: Misery Bay

Review: this is the sixth in Hamilton’s very fine Alex McKnight series. Back up in Michigan’s wild Upper Peninsula on the shores of Lake Superior where our retired Detroit cop hero’s quiet life as a cabin renter turns haywire with a the next set of mysterious deaths. This one is as convoluted and harrowing as it gets, with story that takes three quarters of the book to unfold. Went a bit long for my tastes, but the setting and the characters are superb and the details are amazing. Reading this will make you feel like you live in a comparative tropical climate. Hamilton is as good as it gets with the cornet crop of this genre.