Monthly Archives: March 2011

21 By Adele


Adele’s previous CD, 19, knocked me out a couple years ago. Adele is a British soul music singer who can power through a song like Aretha Franklin or Dionne Warwick. Adele is only 21 (hence the title), but she has the chops to belt out a song like “Rolling in the Deep” (see video below). If you love soul music, you’re going to love Adele and 21. And, if you love 21 you might consider listening to Adele’s first CD, 19. I’ll be listening to Adele’s music when she brings out her future CD, 42 (the answer to everything). GRADE: A
TRACK LIST
1 Rolling in the Deep 3:48
2 Rumour Has It 3:43
3 Turning Tables 4:10
4 Don’t You Remember 4:03
5 Set Fire to the Rain 4:01
6 He Won’t Go 4:37
7 Take It All 3:48
8 I’ll Be Waiting 4:01
9 One and Only 5:48
10 Lovesong 5:16
11 Someone Like You 4:45

MY HEROES #3: THE FACELESS 50

They are the “Faceless 50,” the unnamed operators who decided to stay at the Fukushima Nuclear Power Station and try to prevent a melt-down. They volunteered to pump seawater on the exposed nuclear fuel rods in hopes of cooling them enough to prevent a disaster. If the fuel rods melt down, the result would throw thousands of tons of radioactive dust into the air and produce a ecological catastrophe. Remaining that close to the leaking reactors and the heightened radiation means the Faceless 50 are risking their lives. Like the esprit de corps found among firefighters, police, and military units, these operators feel a sense of loyalty and comaraderie to stay at their posts until the crisis is resolved. I admire their dedication and selfless sacrifice.

SATORI By Don Winslow

Bill Crider recommended Don Winslow’s work to me years ago. And I dutifully bought Don Winslow’s books. But I hadn’t gotten around to reading one until now. Yesterday, I reviewed Shibumi, a thriller by Trevanian written in 1979. Now, 32 years later, Don Winslow creates an exciting prequel that begins in Japan in 1951. Trevanian’s super assassin, Nicholai Hel, agrees to a deal that will get him out of an American-run prison where he’s being held. The CIA requires Hel to acquire a new face and identity and then to carry out a secret mission to assassinate Soviet commissioner Yuri Voroshenin in China. Hel disguises himself as Michel Guibert, a French arms dealer. I liked the way Winslow develops Hel’s mixed heritage: son of an aristocratic Russian mother and a surrogate Japanese father and mentor. You don’t really need to read Trevanian’s Shibumi to enjoy Satori. Within the parameters of Trevanian’s template, I thought Winslow’s just published prequel was an entertaining, suspenseful novel. GRADE: B+

FORGOTTEN BOOKS #107: SHIBUMI By Trevanian

Shibumi was published in 1979 and features a cabal of sinister corporations (which makes it relevant today). Written by “Trevanian,” a pseudonym of Rodney William Whitaker (an academic who remained mysterious for most of his writing career), Shibumi is the kind of suspenseful thriller that engages you and won’t let you go until the last page. Shibumi is set in the 1970s. The plot of the novel revolves around the struggle between the “Mother Company” (a group of energy companies who secretly controls the world) and an assassin, Nicholaï Hel. Like most of the Trevanian novels, questions of identity, conspiracy, and secrecy swirl together. If you enjoy suspenseful fiction with plenty of action, Shibumi will delight you. I’ve enjoyed all the Trevanian novels and can recommend all of them. Tomorrow, I’ll review the new Don Winslow novel, Satori, which is the just published prequel to Shibumi (after 32 years!) featuring the back story to super-assassin, Nicholai Hel. Stop by tomorrow and check out the review.

Next Friday, FORGOTTEN BOOKS will be hosted by the improvisatory and impulsive Todd Mason. And, the week after that, Patti Abbott (Queen of Forgotten Books) will return to reign over the reviews of works that don’t deserve oblivion. Here’s the list of this week’s FFB contributors:
Gerald Saylor
Elizabeth Foxwell
Yvette Banek
Joe Barone
Paul Bishop
Bill Crider
Scott Cupp
Martin Edwards
Ed Gorman
Glen Harper
Jerry House
Randy Johnson
B.V. Lawson
Evan Lewis
Steve Lewis
Julia Madeleine
Todd Mason
John Norris
Juri Nummelin
Richard Pangborn
James Reasoner
Richard Robinson
Ron Scheer
Kerrie Smith
Kevin Tipple
David Rachels
Eric

INSIDE JOB [WINNER OF THE 2011 OSCAR FOR BEST DOCUMENTARY]


Back in December 2010, I picked Inside Job as my favorite documentary of the year. Director Charles Ferguson, with Matt Damon narrating, manages the impossible: clearly describing how the global financial melt-down occurred. It cost $20 trillion dollars and caused millions of people to lose their jobs, their houses, and their life-styles. You would think that Congress and the President would fix the problems that created so much destruction. But you would be wrong. It can all happen again. Corrupt politics, corrupt business practices, corrupt credit rating agencies still conduct business pretty much as usual. You can’t watch Inside Job without getting angry. No one has been held accountable. GRADE: A+

CONVERSATIONS WITH SCORSESE By Richard Schickel


Every fan of movies should have a copy of Conversations with Scorsese on their bookshelf. Through a series of interviews, Schickel and Scorsese manage to explore the details of each of Scorsese’s films: from classics like Taxi Driver and Raging Bull to not-quite-successful movies like Shutter Island. In addition, Conversations with Scorsese can be read as a verbal autobiography as Scorsese talks about his childhood and the motives that led him into film making. Both Schickel and Scorsese love movies so many of the conversations center around the classic films they both love. These discussions analyzing great movies can be read as both a film history and an education in film criticism. Conversations with Scorsese is one of those books you’ll return to again and again. There’s wonder on every page! GRADE: A

ANDRE WATTS (Liszt Recital)

Andre Watts, a virtuoso piano player, brought Liszt to life beautifully in an all Liszt recital last night. This was Andre Watt’s third try to perform this concert. The first two attempts were canceled because he was ill for the first date and had fallen just before the second date. But last night, Watts showed up in fine form. From quiet, moody, dark passages to loud, sunny, bright ones, Watts plays in an effortless flowing style with precise and graceful dynamic ranges and transitions. Most notably, Watts separates notes and chords even in Liszt’s busiest, fastest passages. If Andre Watts performs in your neighborhood, you should make an effort to listen to this gifted pianist. GRADE: A-
PROGRAM
Un sospiro, for piano in D flat major (Grande études de concert No. 3)
Les Jeux d’eau al la Villa d’ Este
Sonata in B minor
INTERMISSION
Bagatelle ohne Tonart
Six Grand Etudes after Paganini: No.5, La Chasse
Transcendental Etude No. 10 in F minor
Hungarian Rhapsody No.13 in A minor

THE ADJUSTMENT BUREAU


The Adjustment Bureau is based on a Philip K. Dick story, “Adjustment Team.” The role Emily Blunt plays in the movie doesn’t exist in the short story. The movie hinges on whether you buy the chemistry between Matt Damon, a rising politician, and Emily Blunt’s dancer character. I bought it Big Time. The premise is that our lives are guided by a Grand Plan devised by “The Chairman.” We humans don’t realize our lives are being “guided.” When there are derivations from the Plan, the Adjustment Bureau makes the necessary changes to resolve the “ripples” and bring events back into balance in accordance with the Plan. Questions of Free Will and Choice are raised. Yes, some of the movie is silly. The last 20 minutes of the movie is one long chase scene where the Adjustment Bureau attempts to keep Matt Damon and Emily Blunt apart. Diane didn’t figure out how the movie would end, but I did. GRADE: B+

WELDER By Elizabeth Cook


Elizabeth Cook sings with great energy and intelligence. You have to listen to her songs a few times before you “get” them. I prefer Cook’s ballads like “Mama’s Funeral” but you may prefer more romantic songs like “Girlfriend Tonight” which I’m posting the video to below. Check it out and see if you enjoy Cook’s unique approach to her material. Like most CDs produced by Don Was, this album sounds great. GRADE: B+
TRACK LIST
1. All The Time 2:53
2. El Camino 2:43
3. Not California 3:52
4. Heroin Addict Sister 4:01
5. Yes To Booty 2:05
6. Blackland Farmer 2:35
7. Girlfriend Tonite 3:09
8. Rock N Roll Man 3:12
9. Mama’s Funeral 4:00
10. I’m Beginning To Forget 3:08
11. Snake In The Bed 2:05
12. Follow You Like Smoke 3:35
13. I’ll Never Know 2:51
14. Til Then