This is a great post Colin. It felt like two friends catching up and sharing the stuff we’ve been into lately.
Also if you feel like going way back into your song catalogue and dusting off Valerie Plame for the Nashville show... I know one fan who would appreciate it and he’ll be in the front row...
Loved this post! I am so happy (though not very surprised) that our person Venn diagrams intersect in many ways. The many late 70s/ early 80s movies on HBO have burned themselves into my brain. I have seen Excalibur probably 20 times along with Xanadu, The Sgt Pepper movie and the many other strange and wonderful movies played ad nauseum at the time. Lol. And while I am sad you aren’t a huge Prince fan (he’s my #1) I’m glad your sister was a channel to his genius. And I wore out every Smiths cassette I owned in the 80s but never really knew about the connection to A Taste of Honey (which I haven’t seen). Thank you for sharing!!!
Wow, The Beths! Thanks Colin! What you said about the The Beths song reminded me of a lyric by Kevin Ayers on his criminally forgotten 1970 LP Shooting at the Moon. From "Rheinhardt and Geraldine" ..."There's nothing new around the sun
Everything you think of has been done;
All been done before your time;
Sometime or another
By someone and his brother"
John Boorman directed "Deliverance" in 1972 and I think it is one of the greatest films EVER! He was close friends with Lee Marvin and did a couple of films with him, "Point Blank" and "Hell in the Pacific" that need to be seen.
Can't wait for the Mountain Winery show on August 8, after Jim Gaffigan on the 7th and before The Yacht Rock Revue on the 10th .
“That’s from a Smiths song!” Reminded me of when my first (and current) wife pointed out that “Bachelor and the Bride” was her favorite Duchamp piece. Her tastes are generally too low-brow to appreciate the likes of Morrissey or Decemberists, but this realization provoked another listen. Hooray for artful homages.
This is wild, as I literally JUST put Excalibur on hold at the Vancouver library so I can watch it again. I just re-watched RETURN TO OZ (and reviewed it on my own Substack 'in and out of weeks') which stars Nicol Williamson, and was reminded he played Merlin.
Have you seen THE KID WHO WOULD BE KING? It's a great take on the Arthurian legend for kids.
I think K-hole is the correct of the two, short for ketamine. I discovered The Beths a couple years back and everything they’ve done is great, so stripped down but novel all at once
Excalibur was such a classic. Have you guys ever seen the wonderful short film that was sort of a prototype for Excalibur? Black Angel was created as a short movie (1980) to be shown before Empire Strikes Back in Europe. It certainly has that feel. You can see it free on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5L8pHKP-vv4&t=1486s
Oh my god, that The Beths song is incredible! Thank you, I hadn't heard it yet. Now I"m recommending it others which is somewhat out of character. It's that good!
This is a great post Colin. It felt like two friends catching up and sharing the stuff we’ve been into lately.
Also if you feel like going way back into your song catalogue and dusting off Valerie Plame for the Nashville show... I know one fan who would appreciate it and he’ll be in the front row...
Loved this post! I am so happy (though not very surprised) that our person Venn diagrams intersect in many ways. The many late 70s/ early 80s movies on HBO have burned themselves into my brain. I have seen Excalibur probably 20 times along with Xanadu, The Sgt Pepper movie and the many other strange and wonderful movies played ad nauseum at the time. Lol. And while I am sad you aren’t a huge Prince fan (he’s my #1) I’m glad your sister was a channel to his genius. And I wore out every Smiths cassette I owned in the 80s but never really knew about the connection to A Taste of Honey (which I haven’t seen). Thank you for sharing!!!
Camelot, tis such a silly place. 😉
Thanks for the fun catch up today. Can’t wait to see you guys in August!
Wow, The Beths! Thanks Colin! What you said about the The Beths song reminded me of a lyric by Kevin Ayers on his criminally forgotten 1970 LP Shooting at the Moon. From "Rheinhardt and Geraldine" ..."There's nothing new around the sun
Everything you think of has been done;
All been done before your time;
Sometime or another
By someone and his brother"
John Boorman directed "Deliverance" in 1972 and I think it is one of the greatest films EVER! He was close friends with Lee Marvin and did a couple of films with him, "Point Blank" and "Hell in the Pacific" that need to be seen.
Can't wait for the Mountain Winery show on August 8, after Jim Gaffigan on the 7th and before The Yacht Rock Revue on the 10th .
Thank you as always for the recommendations and your insight. CanNot wait to see you all at The Kettlehouse! Be safe on your travels.
“That’s from a Smiths song!” Reminded me of when my first (and current) wife pointed out that “Bachelor and the Bride” was her favorite Duchamp piece. Her tastes are generally too low-brow to appreciate the likes of Morrissey or Decemberists, but this realization provoked another listen. Hooray for artful homages.
This is wild, as I literally JUST put Excalibur on hold at the Vancouver library so I can watch it again. I just re-watched RETURN TO OZ (and reviewed it on my own Substack 'in and out of weeks') which stars Nicol Williamson, and was reminded he played Merlin.
Have you seen THE KID WHO WOULD BE KING? It's a great take on the Arthurian legend for kids.
Enjoyed The Beths song. I’m stuck in Alice Boman land right now.
Excalibur and Conan the Barbarian, over and over again. Always a disappointment when Beastmaster was on instead, or Conan the Destroyer, ugh.
Excited to see you guys in KC on the 13th!!
I’ve often wondered when we will hit a wall with the whole “Melodies to be used and songs to be sung” thing myself.
Love the vocals on that Beths song! Thanks for sharing
If you’re into Purple Rain, you’ll enjoy the coverage by the Portland Cello Project that’s touring around. :)
I think K-hole is the correct of the two, short for ketamine. I discovered The Beths a couple years back and everything they’ve done is great, so stripped down but novel all at once
Excalibur was such a classic. Have you guys ever seen the wonderful short film that was sort of a prototype for Excalibur? Black Angel was created as a short movie (1980) to be shown before Empire Strikes Back in Europe. It certainly has that feel. You can see it free on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5L8pHKP-vv4&t=1486s
I am also a big fan of The Beths. Just bought the Wet Leg CD after YouTube music got me hooked on a couple of songs.
Oh my god, that The Beths song is incredible! Thank you, I hadn't heard it yet. Now I"m recommending it others which is somewhat out of character. It's that good!
What are your thoughts on Parsifal? Is he a legit knight of the Table Round and Grail King or just some goose who fails upward?
Also, are you familiar with Tolkien's Arthurian stuff (and if so, worth it?)?
"Silence is Golden"! Blamo! Yowza! What a keeper!