If you love films and like to wake up in the most beautiful setting imaginable, otherwise known as the "American Riviera", the Santa Barbara International Film Festival is where you should be January 27th-February 7th, atleast that is where you will find me! This year is the 30th Anniversary of the Festival, as always, set in the actual birthplace of American cinema where the heart of film in this country began beating before the industry moved a little further down the coast. Every venue, where films representing 54 countries will be seen, is seeped in film lore, whether it be silent film, Charlie Chaplin, Mary Pickford, "old Hollywood", just know there is a story there. So as we wind our way through, that is if you are coming along with me to take in the 23 World and 53 U.S. premieres, a range of genres and subject matter, panels of talented artists in the industry, Awards and Tributes, just keep remembering, this is the soil where our country's movie industry began! The Santa Barbara International Film Festival is the Reel Deal.




For those of us lucky enough to be a part of the Santa Barbara Cinema Society and/or to have purchased a SBIFF Platinum pass, the Kick-Off to the Festival began last Saturday at 11:00 a.m. at the Riviera Theatre with a screening of "Nightcrawler," the film written and directed by Dan Gilroy, set in Los Angeles. Mr. Gilroy is nominated for an Oscar in the original screenplay category this year for this picture. The screening was followed by a discussion led by the incomparable Roger Durling, the Executive Director of the Festival and the Cinema Society. "Nightcrawler was one of my favorite films from last year," Roger opened with. "The film made an incredible commentary about today's society. The character, Lou Bloom, (played by Jake Gyllenhaal) reminds me of Travis Bickle in 'Taxi Driver'."

In the discussion, Roger's first question to Mr. Gilroy was, "What inspired the film?" Gilroy said that he was influenced by seeing Weegee's graphic crime photos of the forties and interested about the intersection of art and commerce. He learned about "stringers," those nightcrawlers who chase sensational stories for newscasts and papers. Gilroy said that he didn't want to make a "message film" but that he did want to say something. He was nostalgic for the movies coming out of the 70's post Vietnam War when filmmakers were trying to make sense of things and speak to that. He sees that period of filmmaking as being very different from today's film environment which is "so commercially driven." "Nightcrawler" is a reaction to that.

Gilroy said originally he wanted to create a character that was a hero. "I tried many times, kept trying to plug in a hero and it didn't work," saying it is tough to write "a message" film. "I wrote it to be entertaining and engaging." Gilroy focused on a person who is struggling to have a successful business. "I did not want to judge the character. It was too reductive to have you think 'this is a psychopath'. Maybe the problem isn't Lou but the world that rewards Lou. I didn't want to make 'American Psycho.' Jake (playing the character, Lou) walks that line. What Jake is doing is a highwire act. If he goes one step he is a psychopath and the other it is a satire."

"The Lou's of the world today are winning, that is what is different. Sociopaths are often in positions of power and money. Hypercapitalism is the jungle today. The strong survive and the weak get killed. In terms of the 70's thing, I was consciously saying something. In the 70's if you didn't put out what you were saying, filmmakers would ask what are you doing? Now there is much more commercialism."

Tony Gilroy is married to Rene Russo who also stars in the film. Tony talked about her character which he wrote for the film. "Can't believe I gave her that name, 'Nina Romino'! There is an innocence to Lou, caught somewhere between autism and aspergers. Nina is desperate and works in a system reflective where all of us are needing to find jobs and keep jobs, making choices based on desperation. She needs that health insurance." When she and Lou get together "it is one bad person gets with another bad person and makes it exponentially worse." Incidentally, it was great for the audience to see Rene Russo in the film. People sitting near me in the screening were saying that afterwards. We want to see Rene in more films! She is so good in "Nightcrawler."




Roger asked about the cinematography. Tony talked about Robert Elswit, the cinematographer, and shooting Los Angeles with "an untamed energy to it. We were doing as much deep focus as possible." The film opens with a foreboding full moon and there are shots of coyotes in the film to further push that wildness.

Hearing from the Writer/Director of the film is always the greatest advantage. It keeps you thinking even more after watching the film about what went into making it and why the filmmaker made it.

Well, now it is time to head off to the official Opening Night Film Screening of "Desert Dancer" followed by the Gala at the Paseo Nuevo Shopping Center. I will let you know how it goes!


Photo credits: Sally Fay

"Don't leave me." "So sorry, it's over." "I think it's time that I should leave." "Will the last one out please shut the door?"

Tom DeLonge's so-called indefinite hiatus from Blink-182 may have come out of nowhere this week, but in retrospect, it looks like he and fellow founding member Mark Hoppus gave us years' worth of foreshadowing lyrics, not to mention an entire self-titled album chronicling the beginning, middle and end of a relationship. The public back-and-forth that has taken place between them since Sunday has been a lot of things -- acrimonious, confusing, childish (the latter being par for the course for guys who made a living acting like permanent teenagers) -- but for anyone who has followed the group since its late-1990s heyday, "surprising" is not among them.

There are a variety of reasons why the end was almost to be expected, but first, a quick history lesson: Though the duo had done moderately well in pop-punk-friendly Southern California in the mid-'90s, and later enjoyed huge mainstream success after adding drummer Travis Barker, Hoppus and DeLonge were unable to keep the band together, and in 2005 watched both the band and their personal relationship disintegrate so completely that they pulled out of an Indonesian tsunami benefit show, deciding that having to stand on the same stage was not worth helping raise money for disaster victims.

After all three had moved on to other projects and interests, they reunited in 2009 after Barker had narrowly escaped death in a plane crash. But the years since have been far from fruitful, yielding just over an album's worth of new songs that did not come close to recapturing the magic that put Blink-182 on the map to begin with. It now looks very possible that the trio has played together for the last time, as Hoppus and Barker have enlisted a guest guitarist to fill in on upcoming dates to which the band had already committed to play.

DeLonge's departure, as well as how abruptly it occurred (and how publicly it was announced by his scorned bandmates), may have seemed surprising, but in reality the latest Blink-182 hiatus was not hard to see coming. Here's why:

Money first, music second. The name Blink-182 is as much a commodity as it is a musical identity. Today, the band's official web site offers no news, no band-member bios, no music for sale; instead, the entire site is devoted to selling apparel and accessories emblazoned with the group's name and logo. A quick conclusion would be that perhaps these guys are at this point more about moving merch, and less about making music.

No new music. One possible reason why music isn't available on the site is because there hasn't been any for years. Though the band hyped up its 2009 return with an on-stage announcement at the Grammys and a full-blown tour, the years since have yielded only a mediocre full-length album (which Barker told Rolling Stone earlier this week that DeLonge "didn't even care about") and a self-produced five-song EP. In the same time period, Angels & Airwaves -- the band DeLonge started after Blink-182's initial demise a decade ago -- has released five studio albums and a couple of films, so it's not like the band members are out of ideas.

Separate lives in separate places. Hoppus admitted to Rolling Stone of himself and Barker, "I don't think either of us have spoken to Tom in person in months." The lack of communication between band members is startling to read about. It is, however, not surprising. Once the band got huge in the late 1990s, Hoppus packed up and moved to Hollywood, putting him and the others in different cities. Today he lives a full continent away, in London, with Barker in Los Angeles and DeLonge in San Diego. Hoppus says that, years removed from its last release, plans to record new music had not gotten beyond each member recording ideas and storing them on personal hard drives, to be shared whenever the three could finally get to the same place at the same time.

Too much time gone by. By the time that Barker's plane crash brought the trio back together, all had gone on to other high-profile projects. Despite his laughably bombastic claims that Angels & Airwaves would singlehandedly redefine rock music, DeLonge's follow-up act has maintained a fiercely loyal fan base for nearly a decade; Hoppus found a home hosting a program on the Fuse network; and Barker starred in his own MTV reality show. Trying to reunite three people who had not only gone their own ways, but found success after Blink-182, was doomed to fail. The band certainly had a financial incentive to tour, but after so much time apart, its members weren't going to be able to write music that sounded like Blink-182 anymore.

That ship has sailed. While fans have clamored to see the band play festivals and other one-off shows, there is simply not much interest in, or room for, new Blink-182 music in 2015. From its inception, anything other than a nostalgia-based second coming was going to be impossible in large part because a huge amount of its hit songs and videos were about being young, and it's hard to imagine three middle-age fathers still able to write snarky material about the prom and sneaking out of the house to meet girls.

Had the feud not been made so public this week, and had the three people involved actually spoken to each other instead of sending messages through reporters and social networks, we might be able to envision more material from Blink-182 in the future. It's hard to see it happening now, though.

Perhaps if they want to record new music, Hoppus and Barker should resurrect their own post-Blink-182 band, +44. If nothing else, it would give them an excuse to unearth their song "No It Isn't" and, in the process, have an all-new reason to sing the words, "Please understand, this isn't just 'goodbye,' this is 'I can't stand you.'"

In a paranormal event to rival the Philadelphia mass turbulence of 1947, and the Gozer the Gozerian attack on New York City in 1984, a new Ghostbusters film is arriving in theaters on July 22, 2016. And this time, the bustin' will come courtesy of a cast of four women comedians.

After an incredibly long development process, director Paul Feig confirmed the date and appeared to announce his cast of previous collaborators Melissa McCarthy (Bridesmaids, The Heat), Kristen Wiig (Bridesmaids) and Saturday Night Live castmates stars Kate McKinnon and Leslie Jones.

Although The Hollywood Reporter says the negotiations are "ongoing," this looks like a pretty done deal. Interestingly enough, both Wiig and McCarthy were two actors that original ghostbuster Bill Murray suggested for the job when asked by the Toronto Star last September (where he also suggested they all-female cast would have better outfits).

But if the female cast gets a thumbs-up from a ghostbuster, how does the idea strike a ghost hunter? I reached out to Amy Bruni, a paranormal investigator on Syfy's 10-year-old series Ghost Hunters to find out.

Debuting in 2005, Ghost Hunters introduced many reality-TV tropes surrounding the paranormal, and remains one of the most popular. Bruni retired from the show last year following six years and 112 episodes as one of the only female cast members, and is still listed as an active member of the series on its Syfy site. She has also been a longtime organizer of paranormal conventions and is the founder of the Strange Escapes event company.

Bruni joined me in the interview below to discuss what she's excited about, or concerned by, with the new cast of Ghostbusters. She also offers some advice on busting ghosts, and how to do deal with being women in a ghosty boys club.



What was your initial reaction when you heard there was going to be an all-female Ghostbusters cast?

I definitely thought it was a stunt. Then I thought about it more and realized it was perfect. There was really no way they could fill the shoes of the original cast, or re-cast them with younger actors because they were just too iconic.

Would you prefer seeing these women as characters existing in the same universe as the other Ghostbusters, or as original characters in an entirely fresh reboot?

I think what would work, and what is most believable, is if this cast is in the modern-day and that the past team still exists. Some crossover of characters would be amazing. I'd of course love to see some sort of dedication to Harold Ramis. [Ramis died Feb. 2014, and Bruni weighed in with Huffington Post with how his death impacted the paranormal community.]

What are you most excited to see from this new cast, and are you hoping for some paranormal investigative authenticity?

I think some people would be surprised to know how authentic the original Ghostbusters movies were when it came to ghostly legends and theories. It is also sort of like Star Trek in that some of the things they used actually sort of came into existence later. ("PKE" meters in Ghostbusters = our EMF meters.) I would love if they actually took some of the devices paranormal investigators use today and put them in the movie. Let's face it, things like the Spirit Box, the Ovilus, Thermal Imaging Cameras? That could all be comedy gold. We're very easy to make fun of.

As a paranormal investigator, how are women typically welcomed in the field? Is it an all boys club?

I would say the paranormal field strongly skews female. When you attend a paranormal convention, you've usually got 75 percent ladies to 25 percent men -- keep that in mind, all you single paranormal enthusiasts! However, on television, the field is strongly represented by men and frankly, it's just not accurate.

In the years since the first Ghostbusters, there have been a lot of paranormal reality shows about ghosts -- with your show arguably being the most successful one. Would you like to see that genre reflected in the movie?

I feel they have to address the paranormal reality craze because it has become such a game changer in the field. I would love to poke fun at the TV investigator versus the die-hard old-school investigators. And they can poke fun at our equipment, or the fact that we pretty much never find ghosts. Like I said, we're easily mocked and if you're going to embrace the paranormal field, you sort of have to be ready to be made fun of. A lot.

Are there any changes you'd like to see made to iconic Ghostbusters imagery or, conversely, anything you fear (like pink jumpsuits)?

I love the Ghostbusters imagery. One of the first teams I was on actually used an old ambulance as our gear truck -- mostly because it worked so well for storing everything. I'm sure the jumpsuits will get a bit of an update. I hope not pink! I mean, if we wanted to really mock the paranormal community, they could get matching t-shirts with a team acronym on them, right? [Bruni's investigative team on Ghost Hunters was The Atlantic Paranormal Society, or T.A.P.S.]

Do you know the work of these actors, and if so, what makes them suited for paranormal investigation?

I'm a huge Kristen Wiig fan and seeing her name is what really sold me on this idea. She has a dry comedic style that I think will work great. Also, if any of these ladies need to consult with a real life female paranormal investigator, I'm just saying, but I'm available!

What advice would you give to the women of Ghostbusters about entering the field of the paranormal?

Ladies, you've got big shoes to fill. Dan Aykroyd and Harold Ramis wrote the original Ghostbusters because Aykroyd has deep knowledge and respect for the paranormal, and it shows in the final product. Do your homework and joke about us, but get to know the reasons and theories behind our crazy hobby. I look forward to watching!

http://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/tommy-tune-attends-a-gala-benefit-concert-after-party-for-news-photo/183619720


As "Snowmageddon 2015," the overhyped snowstorm (at least in NYC) began to bear down on the city, my phone rang and I was greeted with, "Hello. This is Tommy Tune." We had originally planned to meet in person to discuss his City Center Encores! debut in the Gershwins' Lady, Be Good, but the city that never sleeps had decided to call it a day, taking shelter before the storm -- so our plans quickly changed.

"I had to walk home from where we rehearsed on 56th Street," the legendary performer and director explained, telling me he was unable to hail a cab. Perhaps best known for his mile-long legs that have helped him dance his way to nine TONY awards and a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, Tune had no reservations about putting them to good use, trekking home halfway across Manhattan.

This is a star who won't let age or ego get in the way of performing. "At this point in my life," Tune explained, "I'm 'the spirit of '76.'" A cunning double entendre, this phrase, taken from the American Revolution, stands for self-determination and individual liberty as well as Tune's birthday next month, when he will turn 76.

In an incredible career that has spanned 50 years, Tune has appeared in, directed or choreographed more than a dozen Broadway shows (including Seesaw, Nine, The Will Rogers Follies, My One and Only, and Grand Hotel), and received nine TONY awards and eight Drama Desk awards for his work.

Tune is also well known for his role as "Ambrose" in the film, Hello, Dolly! and starring opposite Twiggy in The Boy Friend. He has also made frequent guest appearances on many TV programs from the past like The Dean Martin Show, through today as Argyle Austero, the younger brother of wacky, but lovable, Lucille Austero (played with an artist's precision by Liza Minnelli) on the acclaimed series Arrested Development.



"It's very hard to find something I'm making a debut in," Tune explained. "This is my Encores! debut, and I'm excited about it." The first of fourteen Broadway shows by George and Ira Gershwin, "this show is so sweet," Tune said of Lady, Be Good. "It's 91 years old, so I checked with the oldest person I know, who is Carol Channing -- she's 94," he said with a wink I could almost see through the phone. "I said, tell me about Lady, Be Good... She said, [as he affected a dazzling Carol Channing impression], 'Well, I can't... I was only three years old at the time!'"

The show, which originally opened on December 1, 1924, ran for what at that time was an impressive 330 performances and starred Fred and Adele Astaire. It was a competitive season, with more than 225 productions opening that year, but Lady, Be Good proved to be great. It was a hit and went on to similar accolades in London. Fast forward to 2015 -- it has nearly been forgotten, but it is now being artfully brought back to life through the City Center Encores! series, known for resurrecting the discarded gems of American musical theater.



"We have the script, and we have the songs," Tune explained. "It's all being lovingly, authentically pieced together and reconstructed with such care," he continued, acknowledging the creative team and cast, including Director Mark Brokaw, Choreographer Randy Skinner and Music Director Rob Fisher.

The show focuses on a brother and sister who crash a garden party, but as is true in any madcap musical, it quickly draws together a tangled web of characters, including Mexican gangsters, crooked lawyers, wealthy socialites and a song-and-dance man possessed by a "fascinating rhythm," played by Tune. He will perform two specialty numbers, the Gershwin classics "Little Jazz Bird" and, of course, "Fascinating Rhythm." Of the latter he promised, "I dance up a storm. I'm dancing my little legs off in this number. [It's] really a whiz-bang version of it. It's really good."

In addition to his debut for City Center Encores!, Tune has been touring his symphony show as well as his cabaret performance, "Taps, Tunes and Tall Tales."

Realizing that he has earned his way into the history books of film, TV, music and theater, and he is now finding yet another opportunity to "debut" his talents, I asked Tune what else he's set his sights on to achieve. "I guess . . . pure happiness," he replied. "That would be a jolly good thing to have."

The City Center Encores! production of Lady, Be Good will run from February 4-8, 2015.

Steve Schonberg is the editor-in-chief of Center On The Aisle.

I make a point of knowing as little as possible about the films I see at the Sundance Film Festival (or any other film festival -- or just films in general, for that matter) before I see them because I want to see them with a blank slate.

As I set up my schedule for my days at the festival roughly a week before I leave (in long hand, on a legal pad), I'll skim the synopsis and credits in the catalog online deeply enough to decide whether to add the film to my schedule. Often as not, by the time I actually get to Park City, I couldn't tell you what any of the titles on my list are actually about.

Which, combined with the occasional audible at the line of scrimmage -- such as an added press screening of a movie I knew nothing about today and a paucity of anything else -- leads to some interesting scheduling surprises.

Such as today, my final day at Sundance: I wound up hitting the trifecta of addiction movies, with a side order of depression.

I also managed to miss the final film on my schedule when I went to the wrong theater at the wrong time. Hey, it's been a long week; the three films I saw today brought my total to 17 films in four days.

The least compelling of my addiction ménage a trois was Zipper, a film by Mora Stephens that starred Patrick Wilson. He plays Sam Ellis, the righteous, even self-righteous assistant state's attorney in an unspecified Southern city who is being mentioned for higher office. Just one problem: His frequent forays into Internet porn suddenly escalate to an insatiable appetite for high-priced escorts. And this guy is married to Lena Headey.

But the script by Stephens and Joel Viertel is overheated melodrama, aided and abetted by an incredibly on-the-nose score that feels like something out of a Douglas Sirk movie. Wilson, usually a nuanced actor, darts his eyes, wipes his anxious brow and does everything except pull at his collar ala Rodney Dangerfield, when the FBI turns out to be running an investigation into the escort services. Their sting seems bound to expose him, even as he's being mentioned seriously for a run at the U.S. Senate.

Wilson is wormy, and Headey ravenously eats him alive in every scene they share as his angry, smarter wife. Ray Winstone shows up as a national journalist who happens to be friends with Headey, and Richard Dreyfuss is on hand as a political fixer who bears more than a passing resemblance to Roger Ailes.

Eventually, Zipper cools down and gets to the point (about the hypocrisy that's frequently a part of holding public office), but that's long after the whole thing boils over into a sticky mess.

I Smile Back is a movie with the courage of its convictions -- and what darkly pessimistic convictions those are about the nature of addiction. They're embodied by Sarah Silverman as Laney, a Long Island housewife with two kids and bipolar disorder, which she self-medicates with liquor, cocaine, downers and men.


This commentary continues on my website.

Jude Law as a disgruntled submarine captain, who has been fired unjustly by a corporation and lost his beloved family tragically, is terrific in Black Sea. A good film. A must-see if you are a Jude Law fan.

The plot is simple, but the execution is masterful. A shady corporate 'suit' convinces Jude Law to take an old submarine to the Black Sea in search of an ancient submarine buried at the bottom of the ocean with gold bars from Nazi days and their WWII hidden treasures.

Law gathers together a crew of nine misfits who are told then can split the treasure evenly. Soon they realize that their shares will be bigger per man if the crew is smaller and murder ensues. Black Sea is reminiscent of Lillian Hellman's Ten Little Indians. The pace is gripping due to the Oscar-winning direction of Kevin Macdonald. And the cinematography keeps you on the edge of your popcorn as does the soundtrack. My neighbors shoulder was a bit sore when we left from my banging up against her from all those frightening moments. Gripping. This film is a thriller and then some. While one of the crew members says, "I'm claustrophobic," that feeling was not experienced in the viewing of the spectacular cowboys at sea film -- cowboys in a sense that these characters are each unique, unknown actors and yet charming in a raw, survival-of-the- fittest genre. Some parts of the dialogue are humorous such as the line that one of the seamen mutters when looking at an old submarine for hire: "Don't knock the old whores. They know more than the young'ns."

Scoot Mcnairy and Ben Mendelsohn are impressive, but then the entire cast is. If you want to forget the humdrum events in your life and want to escape into the mystery of the Black Sea, this film is for you. Ultimately Black Sea is about altruism at sea... Altruism anywhere is a refreshing message. So you won't be disappointed as our hero thinks about the other guys.

http://malloryhollywoodeast.blogspot.com/

By Nancy and James Chuda founders of LuxEcoLiving and Healthy Child Healthy World with contributions from environmentalist John Easterling

Photo Courtesy of PBS EARTH: A New Wild with Dr. M. Sanjayan

"Those who contemplate the beauty of the earth find reserves of strength that will endure as long as life lasts. There is something infinitely healing in the repeated refrains of nature -- the assurance that dawn comes after night, and spring after winter." ― Rachel Carson, Silent Spring

Hosted by Dr. M. Sanjayan, a brilliant conservation scientist, National Geographic Television (in association with Passion Planet) has produced its most important cinematic legacy. EARTH: A New Wild is to be savored and watched countless times. This epoch series brings new meaning to why we are alive and how precious our relationship is to nature. To embrace life on this planet you have to understand the symbiotic connectivity we share. All human beings derive sustenance, pleasure, curiosity, and well being from its very essence. Get ready for one of the greatest cinematic experiences.

PBS presents EARTH: A New Wild WATCH!

What we are missing is man's connection to nature. This spectacular series offers hope and optimism. No other nature series has captured conclusive scientific proof that co-existence between man, animal and earth is thriving. Dr. Sanjayan is more than a leading conservation scientist he is the conduit connecting us to more than probabilities about the regenerative abilities of resources once considered threatened by mankind. Instead, we learn the most fascinating conclusions to the delicate balance of man and nature. One is riveted by the brilliant photography of each of the five episodes and the fascinating people he discovers.

Behind the Scenes- the making of EARTH: A New Wild Director Nicholas Brown and Dr. Sanjayan and crew traveled to over 30 different countries and explored over 45 shoots to capture the explicit beauty and at times the solitary momentum of the wildest animals on the planet. See up-close a wide range of species from the giant pandas to humpback whales and African lions to Artic reindeer, where historic western customs of castration are still being practiced.

"Earth has entered a new epoch and we are now living on a planet where our impacts are felt everywhere " Dr. Sanjayan

Dr. Sanjayan with Waorani tribesman courtesy of PBS -Forests Episode

One of the episodes in the series explores the forests throughout the world and how in each location man's imprint is aiding and guiding nature by protecting her reserves and learning extremely beneficial and practical information from its caretakers. Sanjayan travels into the Amazon's "Intangible Zone" with a team of scientists who believe it could be the most bio-diverse place on earth. Despite being virtually "off the map" there are still people here: the Waorani, who are fierce defenders of the forest against outsiders. They help the scientists reveal the forest's deepest scientific secrets. My friend, John Easterling is a leading environmentalist who has spent over three decades in the Amazon Rainforest. He shares his insights as a visionary leader in eco-commerce having successfully developed a sustainable solution for its inhabitants. Having brought the life enhancing and healing properties of Rainforest plants to the world, he understands the unique symbiotic relationship between man and his habitat. From the Curanderos in the Highlands of the Peruvian Rainforest, John shares a wealth of knowledge that compliments why EARTH: A New Wild is so important. He agrees that the physical experience and photographic imprints Dr. Sanjayan shares in this series will resonate with a worldwide audience for years to come.

"From a wellness perspective almost a fourth of all pharmaceuticals are based on footprints of nature that come from the Amazon Rainforest." John Easterling.

The Challenge: To Nurture a New Perspective Between Humans and Wildlife

Throughout his global reconacence Dr. Sanjayan explores nature from a 21st-century perspective. Episodes of EARTH -- A NEW WILD include: HOME - which examines the relationship between humans and large animals. Special sequences include the internationally recognized behavioral scientist Jane Goodall in Tanzania. PLAINS - From the African plains to the American Midwest, this episode explores wild grasslands -- home to the greatest gathering places of animal life on the planet, yet among the most endangered places on Earth. FORESTS - Sanjayan travels deep into the western most Amazon to a place scientists believe may be the most bio-diverse on earth, still holding the secrets of un-contacted tribes. From here, he reveals a new understanding about humans' relationship with the forests of the world. OCEANS - introduces Jeremy Jackson, whose seminal paper "The Rise of Slime" dramatically changed the way scientists look at our relationship with the Earth's oceans. WATER - Sanjayan explores humankind's relationship with the Earth's most important resource, unraveling dramatic connections between the pulse of fresh water and the health of the planet.

"This series is a first for nature films; it turns the camera around and acknowledges that spectacular nature doesn't exist in isolation, that humans are part of the picture. In this way, we show viewers not only stunning, never before seen natural history but also discover extraordinary stories that challenge the very notion that humans are separate from nature, and how, in the new wild - humans and wildlife can - and must--- thrive together"

Thanks to Dr. Sanjayan's tireless dedication we have learned the importance of interdependence. If our planet's destiny can be reconceived it will depend on man's intuitive ingenuity to go viral and affect countless other human beings to do the same. EARTH: A New Wild proves that it can. Nancy Chuda

Editor's Notes: You can follow PBS on Twitter, and Facebook. Special thanks to John Easterling for his contributions.

Sundance Film Festival, Utah: It's complicated to be cool. That's one of the lessons I've learned from an eye-stuffing week of movie-watching at Robert Redford's 2015 Sundance Film Festival.

Everybody knows what Sundance is, more or less -- the nation's premiere independent film festival. But other than film industry insiders and Sundance groupies, almost nobody understands how to navigate the ticket thicket for the annual January film fest based in beautiful, ski-and-snowboard-friendly Park City, Utah.

And so, to share with other plebian, non-film industry folks what I've learned about sampling Sundance's extraordinary roster of indie films, panel discussions with story-tellers extraordinaire and related events, here's a non-insiders guide to getting tickets to the estimated 650 public screenings at the consummate insiders' event: the Sundance Film Festival.
The film "Brooklyn" premiered at Sundance 2015. Photo courtesy of Sundance Institute.



What the Sundance Film Festival is Not
The first thing to know, if you are member of the general public, is that unlike your local film festival, however hip or indie, the Sundance Film Festival is actually not built entirely for you, the consumer.

It's an elaborate viewing edifice designed to showcase carefully culled and curated films, documentaries, features and shorts to industry viewers.

This year, 118 full-length features are being shown, representing about three percent of the over four thousand films submitted. (Harvard's acceptance rate is higher.) The vast majority, 103 of the 2015 Sundance films being screened are world premieres. About half are the work of international filmmakers, and half are by Americans, transforming Sundance into a global event. The ten-day festival is where film distributors of all stripes view, discuss and most importantly make deals for the films you and I will see (or not) on TV, cable, online and in theaters large and small. It's also a proving ground for international films' distribution.

Sundance is like a huge slingshot, a launching pad for newly minted, independently created films to find their way to audiences.

Public's Demand for Film Tickets Outstrips Supply - Or Does It?
Sundance feels vast. It gobbles up much of Park City. Events are held in the public library, the high school auditorium and local commercial movie theaters. Restaurants, bars and even stores on historic Main Street are transformed into venues for invitation-only parties, media events and music cafes. The festival sprawls into Salt Lake City, a 45-minute drive away (where movies are shown at Salt Lake Community College's 1,100 seat Grand Theatre, among other venues) and Ogden, even further.

If Sundance is a buyers' market in terms of film distribution, it feels like a sellers' market in terms of getting tickets for screenings. Of a guestimated 100,000 festival tickets, a sizable number go to industry people, VIPs, sponsors and participating filmmakers. Both volunteers and locals (who understandably get miffed when unable to get tickets to a festival that brings 50,000 visitors to their village) have special purchasing options, too.

But, the public is welcome. Only "twenty percent of our attendees are press or industry folks; the other people are film fans or aspiring filmmakers," says Sundance ticket guru Linda Pfafflin. And, a publicist for global premiers told me that especially at premieres, "filmmakers love having "real people" in the audiences to see what reactions their work elicits," up close and personal.


8 Ticket Strategies for Sundance
Here are eight great ticket-buying strategies for Sundance.

I. Early Birds

1. Register in September. Utah is ski country, and the process (and process it is) of buying festival packages or passes resembles slow motion slaloming through gates; you go through one, and then another, in a 5-step, 5-month process before you're done:
• In September prior to the January festival, you register online.
• In October, around Columbus Day, you receive an email with your personal "timeslot" when you can log into the Sundance website to select your ticket package.
• Later in October, you log in and make a commitment to how much money you will spend (ranging from a few hundred bucks to over a thousand) for your tickets.
• In December, after the Festival has released the names of the films being shown, you'll get another email notification of another timeslot in January.
• In early January, you log in during your timeslot and make your film selection online. Whew.

Buyers aren't guaranteed availability of anything, from 10-movie packages to all-access passes, to scoring tickets to your favorite indie director's latest flick. And, the pecking order for "timeslots" is randomized by a computer.

2. Make a contribution. But money greases all wheels, and to get a jump on things, you can become a member of the nonprofit Sundance Institute, the lesser-known powerhouse parent of its more famous offspring, the film festival. A partially tax-deductible $2,500 contribution advances your place in the line for packages and tickets. But you'll still pay for the tickets.

3. Make friends with a local. Local residents have their own ticketing options, so if you are on good terms with your uncle in Park City and he isn't using all his tickets, maybe he'll share his with you.

4. Volunteer. If you have more time than money, think about volunteering. An immense logistical infrastructure at Sundance is aided by a smiling army of some 1,800 volunteers, from college kids to retirees, some of whom are rewarded access to films. Twice as many wanna-be volunteers apply as are accepted. Start early; applications are due mid-August.

Tips on Selecting Your Tickets:

• Allot a nice weekend in December or early January to study the Sundance schedule once it's released. Juggle a few factors: which films you'd like to see, the timing of the screenings (they run from early morning until midnight) and their locations. Transportation on festival shuttle buses is free, but despite the fun of standing cheek-by-jowl with other film enthusiasts, you won't want to arrive late to a film and get shut out.



• Pick lots of favorites prior to choosing your films online. As a rule of thumb, for every film you'd love to see, find one or even two acceptable alternatives. Films get booked up fast. Make sure you have a Plan B.



• Veteran Sundance volunteer Susan Lee Strauss shared some tips. Look for early morning screenings "because people party late at Sundance. A lot don't get up for the early movies." And, she adds, if your film of choice is playing at more than one location, put in your bid for the larger of the venues, namely Eccles, Marc and the library in Park City.



• If you want to have less competition for tickets, consider "doing" Sundance in Salt Lake City, where films in every category are played (though you'll have less choice) and where you can find cheaper accommodations and food, less winter weather and faster airport access.

II. Last Minute Purchasers
Individual tickets go on sale right before the Festival officially begins, in January. Day-of-show tickets in 2015 cost just $20. Waitlist tickets cost $15, and if you don't get in, you aren't charged. Selection is catch-as-catch-can.

5. Get same-day tickets. Same-day tickets become available at 8 AM. In 2015, one intrepid college student trekked at 5 AM to the Festival Center in downtown Park City only to discover he wasn't the first; the line-leaders had partied late and then napped in sleeping bags near the box office -- a chilly proposition at 7,000 feet.
6. Use the e-waitlist app. As of 2014, festival-goers may register online for a waitlist via smart phone or tablet. You have to wait on line at the theater to see if you make the cut. Cash only.
7. Work the lines. Ticketholder lines start forming 40 minutes before a screening. Just walk up and down the line, asking whether anyone has extra tickets.
8. Wait until the Festival's last weekend to see Sundance award winners. One local resident told me, "I just wait until the last minute and buy tickets to see the winners."

If this sounds complicated, well, it is. It pays to study up on the ticketing options and rules, spelled out on the Sundance website. For instance, there's a cheap ticket package for 18 to 25 year olds and another for Utah students. It's also crucial to read the small print about cancellations, ID requirements and other rules of the Sundance game. If someone is found scalping or making a profit on resold tickets, they'll be barred from getting tickets to future Sundance festivals, relegating them to a special circle of indie film lovers' hell.

Getting tickets to Sundance requires, well, work. It takes almost as much time and attention as planning a trip abroad. But is it worth it? Absolutely. And now excuse me, but I'm late for my 8 AM premiere.

My uncle killed by sniper in WW2. We were taught snipers were cowards. Will shoot u in the back. Snipers aren't heroes. And invaders r worse

Moore's tweet has been the focus of many headlines and a plethora of backlash. But, it highlights a subtle irony in American history that has often baffled me. When it comes to war, what is right and what is wrong? What is patriotic and what is excessive force?

While his comments are true in the fact that snipers were considered cowards in WWII, his timing to announce this on the opening day of American Sniper was not very bright. To compare Navy SEAL Chris Kyle to a sniper in the Second World War is un-American. Chris Kyle was a hero, both on and off the battlefield.

Hence the irony. What made Kyle a hero and German snipers cowards? Is it something as simple as selfish pride? Kyle was an American sniper killing our enemies, and German snipers were the enemy killing our troops. Could it be that black-and-white?

Was it the conflicts themselves that set the standards? WWII was perhaps the greatest cause the United States has ever had for going to war. The Axis forces were set to take over the entire world at the whim of a truly evil man -- Adolf Hitler. In that sense, you could argue that every soldier for that cause: snipers, foot soldiers, artillerymen, pilots, tank drivers, etc., were all A-holes.

Perspective plays a huge role in our opinions. It's human nature. During the Vietnam War, we were appalled at the guerilla warfare tactics of the Viet Cong. How dare they hide in the jungle and shoot at our troops like cowards. Seriously, how dare they?

We forget that it was us who practically invented guerilla warfare during the Revolutionary War. Facing a superior fighting force and outnumbered greatly, we did the only thing we could do to win. To steal a line from one of the most patriotic songs of all time: "We hide behind our cotton bales and didn't say a thing."

That's right; we chose to forego the "rules" of war. Instead of marching straight down the battlefield armed with muskets and bayonets, drummers and buglers stepping in stride, firing at each other like gentlemen, we hid and shot the enemy from cover. It was successful. We won. And we still revel in its heroism. Heck, you could even make a movie about it and call it The Patriot.

Another action taken by the enemy during the Vietnam War was the treatment of our POWs. Ignoring the Geneva Convention's rules for war, the Viet Cong tortured prisoners in several now infamous prison camps. If you ever want to know the horrific details of what those prisoners went through at places like the Hanoi Hilton, read Senator Jeremiah Denton's book, When Hell Was in Session.

We were so sickened at this gross miscarriage of justice and we were all sure of one thing: The United States of America would never ever participate in something so wrong. We would never disregard the rules set forth in the Geneva Convention and torture POWs.

Of course I'm being a tad sadistic here. It did happen and the argument still carries over as to whether or not we were right for doing it. In my mind, the only thing that can make it right is the fact that it was us doing it and not our enemy.

Which brings us back to the original question regarding Chris Kyle and the German snipers of WWII. Here are my thoughts:

Chris Kyle was a great American and a hero.

Clint Eastwood is a great movie maker and an American treasure.

Michael Moore is a great documentary maker and as American as anyone else. He just happened to stick his foot in his mouth like all of us are prone to do.

"Diversity is basically a description of independence. Diversity is what moves the ball for me, and I thought 'give people a chance that have different points of view. Let the audience decide whether they like it or not. But give those voices a chance to be seen and heard.'" -- Robert Redford, actor, director, and co-founder of Sundance Film Festival

Hosted by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, the 87th annual Academy Awards ceremony -- better known as the Oscars -- will either best be remembered for the uproar incited by this year's homogenous nominations, or as a seminal moment for change in the Academy's long, non-inclusive history.

For the first time since 1998, the stage has been set for our nation to celebrate its least diverse Oscars. In a year that saw Oscar-worthy turns from several actors of color, none were nominated in the acting categories, with all 20 acting nominations going to white actors. But the story doesn't end there. Not a single woman stood among the five directors and 14 screenwriters nominated in those categories.

In a nation where nearly 51 percent of the population is female, how can formidable directors like Ava DuVernay for Selma and Angelina Jolie for Unbroken find themselves on the cutting room floor of the nomination selection? In a nation where, according to a 2014 Pew Research Center survey, "Some 43 percent of Millennial adults are non-white, the highest share of any generation," how does the Academy's nominees not reflect Hollywood's audience base or the nation in which we live?

In response to the outcry surrounding this year's Oscar nominations, Cheryl Boone Isaacs, the first African American and third female president of the Academy, spoke to the Associated Press and pointed to progress in the Academy's efforts to reflect our nation's diverse, movie-going audience. She noted, "In the last two years, we've made greater strides than we ever have in the past toward becoming a more diverse and inclusive organization through admitting new members and more inclusive classes of members," adding, "I would love to see and look forward to see a greater cultural diversity among all our nominees in all of our categories." I share her vision, but the question remains of when those words will be put into a plan of action -- and championed by the broader industry.

A much-cited 2012 survey of the Academy by the Los Angeles Times demonstrates the crux of the problem. According to the survey, the estimated 7,000 Academy members are nearly 94 percent Caucasian, 77 percent male and have a median age of 62 -- hardly a representative reflection of the nation.

While my role is not to question the film credentials of the Academy's members, I do question the ability of such a homogenous body to reflect the perspectives, lives and stories of a diverse pool of moviemakers -- and moviegoers. I would also question the ability of the Academy to monitor itself and become a more inclusive body without the pressure of public scrutiny and advocacy.

Here are a few things to note about Academy membership: membership is "limited to film artists working in the production of theatrically-released motion pictures... The Academy's membership process is by sponsorship, not application. Candidates must be sponsored by two Academy members from the branch to which the candidate seeks admission. Additionally, Academy Award nominees are automatically considered for membership and do not require sponsors... The Board decides which individuals will receive invitations."

The Academy's membership requirements are both an indictment and call to action. When women and minorities are snubbed at the Oscars, it means much more than wounded gender or ethnic pride. It means that we, as a nation, have lost an opportunity to reflect our unique diversity via a medium that touches so many of our lives. It means we have lost another seat at the proverbial Oscar table.

This is about more than awards deferred; it is about dreams deferred. It is about the lack of racial and gender diversity we find both behind the screen and in front of it. It is about the inevitable way the Academy's membership roll directly influences who gets nominated and who wins.

What it is not about is an unfair advantage, but instead, a fair chance to have the work of a wider swath of our filmmakers, casts and crews considered. That must begin with a significant change in the composition of the Academy.

I would be remiss not to acknowledge the strides the Academy has begun to make to address its diversity issues. Hiring Boone Isaacs as its president was an important step on the road to diversifying, and her decision to remove a cap on the number of Academy members and push for Academy members to invite a more diverse pool of people to apply are the first of many important steps that must be taken on the journey towards inclusion. But more must be done.

Progress rarely comes as a result of being passive. I urge you to join me in efforts to ensure more inclusion in Hollywood so that we can look back on the 2015 Oscars as the catalyst that spurred action for much-needed industry reform.

Album: Reviver
Arist: The Torn Images
Style: Alternative Rock, Indie Rock
Released: November 19, 2014
Reviewed by: Christopher Zoukis and Randy Radic

The Torn Images recently released their first full-length album, Reviver, and is the follow-up to two previous extended play offerings. Formed circa 2012 in Fountain Valley, California, the band comprises Briand Arabaca, who performs lead vocals and guitar, Tyler De Young on drums, and session musicians Andy Hernandez and Jonathan O'Brien, taking on guitar and bass, respectively.

The band's primary influences appear to be Coldplay, Blur, and Nirvana, with an occasional shot of the Pixies. Like Nirvana, The Torn Images are dependent upon driving, fuzz-busting guitars. For example, the opening track "The Drifting" begins with thrumming guitars that presage a real rock-out. Unfortunately, the guitars just keep thrumming, along with the addition of drums and bass. There are very few chord changes and no discernible chorus. The effect is a dark onslaught on the listener's senses, pummelling the ears into submission without the respite of melodious interludes; it simply doesn't work.

Another track on the album, "Blind Fascination," resembles "The Drifting." Replete with the same driving guitars, pounding drums, and juvenile lyrics that might appeal to gum-snapping teenagers who equate loud, potent guitars with retro-vibe. But for anyone who remembers Nirvana, it is little more than contrived mimicry.

Luckily, there are two tracks on the album that save the day from complete and total aural disaster: "Life on a Standstill" and "World of Meaning." These songs demonstrate that the band is capable of composing and arranging music with a chorus and tempo changes. Ostensibly, embodying the influence of the 1980's New Romanticism. The lyrics are a cloying indication of the music's intended audience: teeny-bopping Valley Girls, but nevertheless, the music advances in a bouncy, happy manner, which indicates latent aptitude.

Briand Arabaca's vocals remain nearly unnoticeable throughout the album, and convey minimal emotion when perceptible. His range is severely limited and bereft of distinctiveness, reminding listeners of the Laocoon and His Sons, with the good priest contorted against the coils of common sense (and likewise the more erstwhile of listeners attempting to disengage themselves from him). Only in this case, it's a voice and not sea serpents from which extrication is sought.

Reviver lacks the ability to impress or captivate its audience. The album is besieged by insipid lyrics and poor arrangements. More than likely, the musicians have talent, but they need to refocus and re-direct.

When it came to creating authentic live entertainment for the Wizarding World of Harry Potter: Diagon Alley, the folks at Universal Orlando Entertainment really went by the book.

"Which book?" you ask. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets -- a single sentence from that 1998 J.K. Rowling novel, to be exact. As the Boy Who Lived is exploring the Burrow (i.e., the Weasley family home), he notices that "the old radio next to the sink had just announced that coming up was 'Witching Hour, with the popular singing sorceress Celestina Warbeck.'"

And with that one line of text, Universal Entertainment finally found a solution for a challenge that had been plaguing the Diagon Alley project, which was how to naturalistically add a live-entertainment element to this ambitious expansion of Universal Orlando's Wizarding World of Harry Potter.

"Whenever we're developing new lands for our theme parks, we always look for ways to turn streets into stages, give our guests the chance to come around a corner and suddenly stumble upon this seemingly spontaneous moment of entertainment," Michael Aiello, Director of Entertainment, Creative Development, for Universal Orlando Resort, explained during a recent interview. "That's why Jake and Elwood regularly roll through Universal Studios Florida in their Bluesmobile, so that the Blues Brothers can then be seen presenting a live street show out on our New York backlot. Or why the Whos carol around Seuss Landing whenever we're celebrating Grinchmas at Universal's Islands of Adventure."

But when it came to Diagon Alley, Aiello and the Universal Entertainment team were presented with a unique challenge. Given that this expansion of the Wizarding World was supposed to authentically recreate what had previously been seen in the Harry Potter films and described in J.K. Rowling's fiction, they were now dealing with a full-scale environment that was going to be so rich and hyper-detailed that it could potentially upstage any attempts at live entertainment.

"But once we came across that line in Chamber of Secrets, which revealed that Molly Weasley was a Celestina Warbeck fan, that was our get-out-of-jail-free card," Aiello continued. "Here was a character that J.K. herself had dreamed up, this famous singing sorceress. And wouldn't it make sense that, at some point in her fabled career, that Celestina would drop by Diagon Alley, the place where all of the witches and wizards of London went to do their shopping? So we took this idea to J.K., and she was so supportive of this idea that she actually provided us with the titles of several songs that Celestina could possibly perform while she was doing a live remote from Diagon Alley for the Wizarding Wireless Network."

Mind you, once Rowling had provided Aiello and the team with titles like "You Stole My Cauldron, but You Can't Have My Heart" and "Beat Back Those Bludgers, Boys, and Chuck That Quaffle Here," it was then up to Universal Entertainment to turn these Potter-centric concepts into musical numbers that singers could actually perform, which is why they then turned to Michael Weiner and Alan Zachary, the talented team behind Broadway's First Date.

"And from the moment we told Michael and Alan that J.K. saw Celestina as this Shirley Bassey-like performer who worked with three back-up singers, they immediately knew what to do with the songs for this character," Patrick Braillard, Diagon Alley's show director, recalled. "They wrote us these great jazz-fusion numbers that only a true diva like Lena Horne or Bette Midler could pull off, which is why, when people are wandering around Diagon Alley and then happen upon Celestina performing with her Banshees, they're completely blown away. This show just knocks their socks off."

Of course, if you're looking to wow an audience with a seemingly impromptu live show, you first need a proper stage for your performers to appear on, which is why, as Universal Creative was initially designing Diagon Alley, they deliberately created a corner in Carkitt Market where Celestina and her Banshees could make a dramatic entrance by coming down this long staircase.

"That space really serves this Wizarding Wireless Network broadcast well, which is kind of ironic, given that Celestina and her Banshees wasn't actually the first live show that Universal Entertainment wrote for Diagon Alley," Aiello said. "We had this concept that we'd originally pitched for Hogsmeade, one where we wanted to establish this troupe of tale tellers who would wander about the Wizarding World and tell Universal Orlando visitors about the Boy Who Lived. But since there were no characters like this in either the Potter books or movies, it just didn't seem authentic to go ahead with this particular entertainment idea, which is why this creative concept kind of fell off the table for Hogsmeade."

Ah, but all that changed in 2007 with the publication of The Tales of Beedle the Bard, for in the foreword of this collection of fairy tales from the wizarding world, Rowling revealed that there was a Wizarding Academy of Dramatic Arts.

"And once we came across that reference in Beedle the Bard, we were like, 'Aha! Let's latch onto that. Let's figure out how we can expand upon this idea and then somehow make it work for Diagon Alley,'" Michael continued. "And in the end, what we decided to do was invent this traveling troupe of players who had trained at the Wizarding Academy of Dramatic Arts who now do street theater. And to then connect this new piece of Diagon Alley entertainment with the book that had inspired it, we decided to have these traveling players perform selected stories from The Tales of Beedle the Bard, which is kind of the wizarding world's version of Grimm's fairy tales or Aesop's fables."

What made this particular entertainment concept somewhat hard to pull off was that most Universal Orlando visitors only knew The Tales of Beedle the Bard from the film Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (Part 1), which had featured a stylized animated version of one of this book's stories, "The Tale of the Three Brothers."

"And since -- whenever possible -- we want to create some sort of visual continuity between the Harry Potter films and our theme-park version of the wizarding world, we decided to have those visiting members of the Wizarding Academy of Dramatic Arts present a troubadour version of 'The Tale of the Three Brothers' using puppets that looked just like the animated characters had in Deathly Hallows (Part 1)," Aiello explained. "Thankfully, Michael Currey Design was up to the specific design challenges of this project. They created these terrific-looking, lightweight, hand-sculpted puppets that the performers could just pull out of a trunk and then manipulate right there in front of the audience."

And to insure that this group of traveling players would have a selection of tales to tell whenever they next appeared in Diagon Alley, Universal Entertainment decided to turn another story from The Tales of Beedle the Bard into a piece of street theater. And this performance piece, "The Fountain of Fair Fortune," also features some beautifully detailed, Michael Curry-designed puppets.

"This is what we've tried to do with the entire Wizarding World project: find these kernels of content that J.K. has written that we can then expand in full-sized pieces of entertainment that are just as rich and vivid as the fiction she created," Aiello concluded. "That, in a nutshell, is what I think the Universal difference is, that when we work with other people's intellectual property, we're just as passionate, enthusiastic and dedicated to these characters and their stories as the original creators are. Universal Orlando always strives to put these IPs we've been entrusted with in the best possible light."

And speaking of dedication: Tomorrow, the most dedicated Wizarding World fans in the world will be descending on Universal Orlando for the second annual Celebration of Harry Potter. Hosted by Universal Orlando Resort and Warner Bros., this three-day-long event will feature Q-and-A sessions with Robbie Coltrane (Rubeus Hagrid), Michael Gambon (Albus Dumbledore) and other stars of the Harry Potter films, not to mention a live dueling demonstration led by the world's only "wand combat" choreographer, Paul Harris, plus the Celebration of Harry Potter Expo, which features interactive exhibits from Warner Bros., Pottermore, Harry Potter: The Exhibition and Warner Bros. Studio Tour London, where Universal Orlando guests will then have the opportunity to try on the Sorting Hat.

But given that this will be the first time that many Harry Potter fans will have the chance to experience the Wizarding World of Harry Potter: Diagon Alley (which officially opened to the public back on July 8, 2014), just be aware that there will probably be record crowds in Carkitt Market all weekend long as these J.K. Rowling fans check out the live stage shows that Universal Entertainment built around Celestina Warbeck and her Banshees and the Wizarding Academy of Dramatic Arts.

(Photo by Jessica Lehrman)


It was with his first mixtape 1999 that Brooklyn's Joey Bada$$ (Jo-Vaughn Virginie Scott) emerged as a rapper birthed from the golden age of hip-hop. He was only 17 years old at the time of his debut mixtape, which includes tracks produced by MF Doom and Chuck Strangers, and yet fused within the musical DNA of the young artist were the same lyrical hues of an age ruled by the likes of Wyclef Jean and Buckshot.

With his first full length album B4.Da.$$ (Before the Money), Joey does not simply conjure the spirit of 1990s hip-hop, but finds that balance between those who came before him and those shaping the future of rap. During a time when so much of hip-hop is saturated with blatant sexual references, we have Joey whose album dropped on what is hard to believe is only his 20th birthday. The album permeates with an introspection and lyricism found in someone much older than Joey's 20 years. From the first beat, the album courses through the evolution of Joey's musical landscape, weaving across sounds evocative of those from the 90s to addressing issues such as class, race, wealth, childhood, and surviving America's current cultural state as a young black man. The track "Like Me" posthumously produced by J-Dilla is a smooth and lyrical track where Joey's masterful hold on words takes shape and reveals cynicism and contemplation: "It's like every step bring me close to destiny/ and every breath I get closer to the death of me/I'm just trying to carry out my own legacy/but the place I call home ain't letting me." The 17 tracks on the album reveal a multi-textured work that expands beyond the golden age as Joey births a new era of hip-hop.

J.L. Sirisuk: I'm sure you've had a long day.

Joey Bada$$: A very, very long day.

Sirisuk: What time did your day start?

Bada$$: When I woke up [laughs].

Sirisuk: You definitely were a product of the golden age of hip hop. Do you remember one of the very first records that caught your attention and that you just couldn't stop listening to?

Bada$$: Early B.I.G. records, early Tupac joints. Like "Juicy," "Hypnotized," Tupac's "Brenda's Got a Baby" and "Dear Mama."

Sirisuk: When did you start writing songs? Do you remember one of the first songs you ever wrote?

Bada$$: Yeah, I do but I don't want to share it with everyone [laughs].

Sirisuk: How old were you?

Bada$$: Probably about 6 or 7. I've been writing for over 10 years now.

Sirisuk: You just seem like an older soul. Like I said, it's as if that golden age birthed you.

Bada$$: Word. I mean this is like my third life [laughs].

Sirisuk: Do you have any idea what your other lives were like?

Bada$$: No,I have no idea but I'm very, very sure that this is my third time around.

Sirisuk: The third time's a charm, too.

Bada$$: Word up. Indeed it is.

Sirisuk: Since a lot of your lyrics are like poetry, who are some of the writers you've been reading?

Bada$$: It ranges. I'm getting more into different authors but I just pick up different books that attract me, period. I've read like two Deepak Chopras, I've read Rhonda Byrne's "The Secret." I'm not really too fond of the authors but the literature is a different story.

Sirisuk: What about philosophers? You recently mentioned you're reading philosophy.

Bada$$: I like Socrates and Sri Chinmoy Ghose, the Dalai Lama, and Ghandi.

Sirisuk: I really like how you think music should be inspirational in terms of the way it affects people. I want to talk about your new album. It really does show the sonic evolution you've taken.

Bada$$: I want my listeners to feel just like I did. I want them to feel the same way I did when I started growing up, when I decided I wanted to chase my dreams. You know that feeling, it's almost a feeling of invincibility, it's just like your confidence is so strong and you get the feeling of believing in yourself so much and so hard that you feel that you can do anything. For me, what the whole project is, it's a mind state. Ultimately, it's a mind state and it's that mind state of unlocking your infinite potential and realizing that you can do anything your heart desires. It's in that exact moment when you feel that hunger for it, to become a better person, to make change, that's what it represents. The music that's embodying it is the motivation. Ultimately, my goal is to get people up and start making changes and living life and following your dreams. Just get up and go get it no matter what it is.

Sirisuk: That's powerful, and I can feel that in the album. Also, I saw you on 4/20 at the smoker's club tour here in Brooklyn and I remember when you were on stage. You totally brought that energy. Do you ever get nervous before going on stage?

Bada$$: I don't ever get nervous. My form of getting nervous is actually taking a shit [laughs].

Sirisuk: [laughs].

Bada$$: Every time before I go on stage, if there's an ounce of nervousness in me, then it starts bubbling in my guts and I have to go to the restroom [laughs].

Sirisuk: You look completely happy when you're up there, you know. How do you feel when you're in front of everyone?

Bada$$: You have to understand that for us musicians, at least for the amount of us that really do this from our heart, that the ultimate dream is performing it. So when we finally get that chance to present and showcase our talent, it's like a dream come true and it's a very blissful moment for us. It's a whole adrenaline rush. I could crack my ankle, and then if I go on stage it will be painless. Like I won't feel anything until I come off it again.

Sirisuk: It's like you're reaching a state of mind when you're up there too. Did you write most of the album in different locations?

Bada$$: I mean most of it was definitely written in once place but it brings influences and energy from all over the world because in the midst of making this album I've been doing my traveling, I've been exploring things, finding different places and I bring that energy back home. I put it into the music, so definitely composed in one place in the city but the energy it brings is from London, from Australia to California to all over the world, you know.

Sirisuk: Who were you excited to work with on this album?

Bada$$: I was really excited to work with Hit-Boy. I was excited to work with everyone on the album. I purposely kept the amount of rappers that were featured low because there's not many people who I see on my level that I wanted to share this moment with.

Sirisuk: Within your life, who are some of the fundamental influences you've had?

Bada$$: Probably my mom. My mom influences me a lot. She's very smart so she pretty much molded who I am today. She didn't pretty much do it, she did just that [laughs].

Sirisuk: After you're away for so long and then come back to Brooklyn, what's one of the first things you like to do?

Bada$$: One of the first things I like to do is take a walk in the city. Just take a walk by myself listening to music, headphones on blast.




B4.Da.$$ is currently out via Cinematic Music Group. For more information on Joey, visit his Facebook page.

We are only a couple of weeks away from Valentine's Day. Or, to put it another way, there are only a couple of weeks until the... um... "steamy" 50 Shades of Grey movie comes out in theaters and a whole lot more people learn what the term BDSM means.

For some, this is exciting. For others, annoying or even a bit twisted. For us, it's a perfect excuse to share some of the steamiest photos you can find in the entire 500px Prime archive.

From bondage and cosplay imagery to sexy boudoir shots, this is NOT a photo collection for the faint of heart -- consider yourself warned... or titillated... we're not judging.













































Some of the very NSFW images in this collection have been stripped out to keep the post more Huff Po and work-friendly. To see the full collection, click here.

If you want to license any of these photos ahead of the big movie release, click on your favorites above. Or, if you're brave, you can just head over to 500px Prime and get creative with your search terms.

Before getting too far into my commentary on the much-discussed film American Sniper, I want to state that, yes, I have actually watched the film but not read the book. I won't say that I liked or loved it. It doesn't seem to be that kind of movie to me; if you did in fact like or love it, I have concerns about you.

The movie did, however, affect me deeply. It was brilliant in every aspect, but most importantly in its tone. The filmmakers simply did an amazing job of communicating the feel of not only being in Iraq, but also the psychological dislocation of coming back to the United States. It's an eerie feeling -- one that I've experienced on each of my three tours in varying degrees, and this movie captures it perfectly. I thought Bradley Cooper and Sienna Miller were brilliant, not because of who they were portraying, but because I believed they could have been any one of the many families I've seen throughout my time in the military.

Yet, half of talking about American Sniper is not with respect to the movie itself, but the man upon whom it (and the ensuing public debate) is focused. As for Chief Petty Officer Chris Kyle, I never knew him. In our great military family, folks tend to know one another through one or two degrees of separation, but the only similarities we share is that we both volunteered to serve and deploy for our country. Also that he is from Texas and I have, in fact, been to Texas. We probably both have stayed in a Holiday Inn Express at one point, but that's about it.

And now to address the various constituencies of American Sniper, all of whom managed to miss the themes in the movie.

First, to Michael Moore, Seth Rogan and others who seem to think that this movie glorifies war: Did we see the same movie? The movie shows, in excruciating accuracy, the challenges of our military families, the pain and pressure they deal with each and every day. Most importantly, the movie showed how hard it is for many of us to "come back" and be present. Even as I write this, I'm having a visceral reaction to my own returns, and the movie captured this with grace and genius. If this is "glory," it is hard to see how anyone could want it.

The sensitivity surrounding the movie seems absurd to me. I know many have brought up the book, but I want to emphasize since I did not read the book I can only comment on the movie. Furthermore, I should note that war is by its nature, a de-humanizing experience for all. I would not be surprised that someone heard or saw me say something I would be less than proud of. Many of the things veterans do, whether it's writing a book or a blog or getting a movie, are about going through a healing process (which I would assume was the experience of CPO Kyle). The bottom line though is that I do not remember any scene in this movie where CPO Kyle was thrilled about shooting anyone. In fact, I remember quite the opposite. I remember CPO Kyle never wanting to pull the trigger -- hoping, almost praying, that a child did not put him a position to have to pull the trigger. Given my own experiences of deciding whether or not to pull the trigger, I completely empathized with that scene; I even tensed up watching it -- reliving my own history over there.

I read Michael Moore's comments and explanation and have no problem saying that I've been a big fan of his work through the years. I even enjoyed watching Fahrenheit 9/11 during my second tour in Iraq. But Mr. Moore, you are not your father, and did not have his same experiences -- and when you act as though you did, you simply come off sounding silly. While I don't think you owe CPO Kyle's family an apology, I would argue that you owe one to all those who look to you to add something to the great debate in this country. Take care that you do not become that which you so rightly criticize: A hypocrite.

For the conservatives, the level of hatred and vitriol coming from many of you is ridiculous. If people do not agree with you -- even the dreaded, elitist Hollywood-liberal complex -- your beliefs are not under attack, nor thought of as less than legitimate. Writing off anyone who criticizes American Sniper as unpatriotic, un-American or worse, however, does in fact cheapen your view; it is reactionary and amateurish, as silly as Moore's warrantless bloviating. This movie was not the second coming, nor did it, in any way, make the Iraq War or the reasons we went into that conflict somehow "okay." This movie is not a broader commentary on the geopolitical context, nor does it justify and excuse the short-sighted decisions or patently incorrect world views of the people who propagated this war on the American and Iraqi people. It is simply the story of one warrior and his family, and the struggle to do the right thing.

I do not know what CPO Kyle was like as a man. I would imagine that he is much like the rest of us -- a little good, a little bad, both saint and sinner. He was also something more. What struck with me most from the movie was a sentiment -- echoed by those who knew him -- that he was not as much interested in the people he killed as he was by those he saved. If for no other reason, that is why you should consider Chris Kyle a hero, for he is certainly one of mine.

"THE EAGLE has no fear of adversity. We need to be like the eagle and have a fearless spirit of a conqueror" wrote Joyce Meyer.

LET'S reminisce back to last Sunday before the big snowstorm when everybody seemed to be out down and around Union Square. I was just strolling near my favorite book store, the incomparable Strand, and congratulating myself for living in such a divine place as Manhattan. (I know, I know, everybody now wants to live in Brooklyn or someplace else just out of NYC proper. Or they want to live so far up in the air in super expensive skyscrapers that they look down on the rest of the skyline. And a lot of them want to be sure and live far below 14th Street, down all the way to New York harbor. But 14th Street and environs is still daring enough for me.)

But I didn't know I was going to be talked into going to a movie at 13th and Broadway and it was a film I didn't particularly want to see -- 'Wild' with Reese Witherspoon. I finally gave in and I am so glad that I did. Nobody I can recall made it possible for me to see 'Wild,' early on. If they did I am sure that it was my personal prejudice against hiking deserts and climbing mountains and fording streams that made me ignore early screenings.

I knew just enough of the true story about the woman Reese was portraying to lessen my interest. I knew this was a brave -- or foolish -- female who had committed herself to a daunting physical endeavor in an effort to finally get over her mother's death -- and other issues. After seeing it, however, I knew my assumptions were wrong. It is a formidable story, with acting and directing that is mighty impressive. (Jean Marc-Vallee is the director.) Reese richly deserves her Oscar nomination. She has already won a Best Actress Oscar for her portrayal of June Carter Cash in 'Walk The Line,' which I felt was the complete melding of her previous strong-minded on-screen females. She does not play victims, women in jeopardy.

My one interview with Reese left me impressed. She projects a great deal of self-possession, a sense of knowing who and what she is, and what she wants. She was promoting the movie 'Vanity Fair' and when I said that I found her interpretation of heartless Becky Sharpe somewhat sympathetic, she wasn't flattered. So, she was in her element, as a woman battling the elements -- and her own personal weaknesses -- in 'Wild.'

This is more than the escapist or supernatural foolishness of so many movies. Don't miss 'Wild' like I almost did.

•MY LONGTIME friend Judith Ann Abrams is a good example of why some people, who are crazy, go into the theater business and will never give it up although the drama-comedy stuff usually gives them up!

Judy used to direct and produce for something her family dreamed up, 'Pixie Judy's Troupe,' working with children.

Now, she's still working with "children" -- the adult kind who invest and meddle with Broadway. But she is a real grown-up person who is actually making a living from this mysterious, appealing and horrible business. The other day, after she checked to be sure I had gotten Elaine Stritch's farewell gift of Bay's English Muffins -- they went to all her friends -- Judy came by to check on whether or not I was snow-bound. I knew Judy had worked with a lot of shows that had failed and recently, many that had succeeded. So I asked her, "Are you making a living from the theater?"

"Well," says Judy reflectively, "When in comes a nice hunk of change from something like the Broadway hit -- 'Kinky Boots' -- then the next thing you know the many producers are saying that they need more money for another production a'borning, or a new venue for maybe 'Kinky.' Or something else entirely. So one never knows if shows really turn a profit, or it's all just a money pit! But I love working with my favorite producer, Daryl Roth, and I trust her with my whole heart!" (Ms. Roth is the blonde bombshell who backed Nora and Delia Ephron's little play about fashion and what we all wore. And many other hits.)

Judy went on to praise the legendary Chita Rivera, who is opening in the long-awaited musical version of "The Visit," with music by John Kander and the late Fred Ebb. 'The Visit' opens April 23rd at the Lyceum Theater, with a book by the busy playwright Terrence McNally.

• Friend Judy also has a hand in the incomparable Tyne Daly's opening at the Brooks Atkinson Theater on April 14. Again, Judy is working with Daryl and this musical has the whimsical title of 'It Shoulda Been You.' The star, Tyne can do no wrong in my book.

She was the young partner of Clint Eastwood, killed off in one of his early "Make my day!" films ... She hit the big-time in TV's 'Çagney and Lacey' (with Sharon Gless) and went on to distinguish herself on Broadway in an acclaimed revival of 'Gypsy,' where she sang the hell out of the Mama Rose character. She was also a surprisingly effective Maria Callas in 'Master Class.' Critics and the public have loved Tyne ever since she embraced the theater and came back "home." (She began her career acting in stock in New York, and made her Broadway debut in 1967. Tyne was born in Wisconsin, but New York claims her!)

•Judy then handed me a bottle of champagne. (Now that's the kind of drop-in I like.) Oh, yes, and I almost forgot that Judy has associations with 'Matilda' and 'It's Only a Play,' now offering Broadway the talents of Martin Short, knocking them dead as usual.

Here's a nice P.S. Judy will be going to London for the openings of 'Dirty Rotten Scoundrels' and 'Made in Dagenham.' She tried to give me the names of all her other producers and show backers. But this column has to stop somewhere short of suicide.

Note: Do not read on if you have not seen Season 3, Episode 1 of FX's The Americans, titled "EST Men"

Oof! What a good premiere. Just enough catch up, just enough new, just enough gorgeous Keri Russell hair.




Catch up: Elizabeth has been going to church with Paige. She's learning that Paige is "open" to the ideas they need her to be open to, but not quite ready for a KGB confession. This won't be the last time someone confuses a liberal with a communist. Philip is not happy.

We are in the throes of the Russian involvement in Afghanistan, so I think it's going to be fun to watch for themes that ring true today, in 2015. Annalise is sort of in love with her informant, Yousef. She's sexually involved with Philip, too. And then Yousef chokes her because she admits she's a spy. So, good job, Annalise.

Likewise, Beeman is in a war, too. A divorce. He's attending self help seminars and spending way too much time in the Jennings' house. He's going to put some things together soon, right? I've been saying this since day one, so let's just cross our fingers.

Something new: Elizabeth and Philip are not OK with each other. Probably because of Paige, probably because of that botched Larrick season finale last spring. They've been at each other before but this is different. This is Paige's future.

Frank Langella is their mentor, Russian friend! I love this idea of them having someone who cares about them, cares about the kids, and cooks them dinner.Of course, he wants Paige ready. But he loves them. This is the kind of counsel they need.

Amazing Keri Russell: After being surprised by that CIA snitch, she carefully wipes her glass and hoofs it home. Maybe she should have taken off her wig, but her surprise attack on Gaad was bad, badass.

But she's spending a lot of time crying in the laundry room listening to her tapes, isn't she?

What did you think of the premiere? Tweet me @karenfratti.

"The Americans" airs Wednesdays at 10 p.m. ET on FX.

"The Constitution only gives people the right to pursue happiness. You have to catch it yourself." - Benjamin Franklin.

When a film opens with a cute, bubbly quote such as the one above, which would be equally at home on a poster in a dentist's office showing cute puppies frolicking in a field of daises, I must admit that my antennae usually go up in the worst way, and I'm scrambling to prep an insulin shot for what's to come. However, Roko Belic's 2011 documentary Happy left me with a very pleasant, if somewhat familiar, aftertaste.

Belic, who gained notoriety with his 1999 doc Genghis Blues, takes his camera around the globe, interviewing people in slums of India, the bayous of Louisiana, and other disparate locales such as Brazil, England, Scotland, Egypt, Japan, Bhutan, Denmark, Namibia, Kenya, China, and Thailand to find out what their definition of happiness is.

There is the motivational speaker who travels to American high schools to talk about the lasting scars of bullying, while also teaching the teens the value of perspective, giving an example of a time a Special Olympics team he coached shocked him with their comradery as they approached the finish line. There is the rickshaw driver in India who lives a life, by Western standards, of extreme hardship, but all he can see from his ramshackle home, constructed of tar paper and bamboo, is that an open space ("my window") allows fresh air to circulate and gives him an unobstructed view of the river.

Happy might not be the most original documentary ever made, as it's a subject matter which has been trod over numerous times by many different outlets, but it's a subject matter that defines the word universal, and remains topical and riveting, even when it nearly wears out its welcome during the film's hour and fifteen minute running time.

Of all the subjects covered, none is more harrowing than the story of Melissa Moody, a former debutante and beauty queen who was run over by truck in 1992, resulting in the permanent disfigurement of her face. After her husband divorced her and enduring years of physical therapy and surgeries, Moody found herself dealing with a plethora of repressed memories and emotions, including sexual abuse at the hands of a family member. After remarrying and dealing with her past trauma, Moody began to see her accident as a blessing, and began working with others, becoming a staff member at San Francisco's School of Self-Healing, where she was treated for vision impairment caused by the accident.

"What I saw is that in places like the slums in Calcutta, people do not have any measure of success," she says. "What I saw, instead, was that people had a strong sense of community. Their purpose in life was being part of something bigger than themselves: Being as good as they can be among their friends and families."

In many ways, the film is almost an infomercial for the "positive psychology" movement, which Wikipedia defines as "a branch of psychology that uses scientific understanding and effective intervention to aid in the achievement of a satisfactory life, rather than merely treating mental illness." From the time it originated in 1998, this field invested tens of millions of dollars in research, published numerous scientific papers, established several masters and Ph. D programs, and has been involved in many major news outlets.

Positive psychology began as a new area of psychology in 1998 when Martin Seligman chose it as the theme for his term as president of the American Psychological Association, though the term originates with Dr. Abraham Maslow, in his 1954 book Motivation and Personality, and there have been indications that psychologists since the 1950s have been increasingly focused on the promotion of mental health rather than merely treating illness. In the first sentence of his book Authentic Happiness, Dr. Martin Seligman claimed: "for the last half century psychology has been consumed with a single topic only - mental illness", expanding on Maslow's comments. He urged psychologists to continue the earlier missions of psychology of nurturing talent and improving normal life.

Dr. Richard Davidson and Dr. P. Read Montague, neuroscientists who are interviewed in the film, have identified the part of the brain that is associated with feelings of happiness, specifying the left frontal lobe as the area where the feeling originates. They also break down happiness into several different behavioral components.

First, there is connectedness, which involves building and maintaining strong relationships with friends, family and community; Generosity, giving back to the community at large and society in general has been found to increase happiness; Novelty, which involves breaking out of old routines and habits, such as choosing a new path for hike or a new route to work; Play, people who engage in regular physical aerobic exercise tend to be happier, due to stimulation of the endorphin glands; Flow, which involves engaging in a fully absorbing hobby, such as carpentry, painting, or writing; Health and longevity: there is a strong correlation between happiness and healthiness. A positive mental attitude has been proven to help people live longer.

The formula for happiness is not the same for everyone, but research shows that almost everyone is capable of becoming happier if they choose to be.

For more information on the subject of positive psychology and the science of happiness, you can visit the following websites:

Adventures in Positive Psychology by PsychCentral

Authentic Happiness by Positive Psychology Center at the University of Pennsylvania

Dream Positive psychology blog by Canadian Positive Psychology Network

From Functioning to Flourishing by Psychology Today

The Happiness Project by Gretchen Rubin

The Positivity Blog by Henrik Edberg

photo credit: Lior Normadin

A Conversation with Meitel

Mike Ragogna: Meital, what do you think it is about your track "Give Us Back Love" that is resonating with millions of people?
 
Meital: "Give Us Back Love" is a prayer for the return of love. As of today, we live in a modern world that is ruled by some wrong values such as greed, money and fame. "Give Us Back Love" is a prayer for the return of love and that message might resonate with how people feel. I also had phenomenal DJs make phenomenal remixes for "Give Us Back Love."
 
MR: Do you see an intersection between your musical and acting careers and what do you think that is?
 
Meital: I've always been a performer, so to me both music and acting are both just manifestations of self-expression as an artist. Since I've always been an actor, I'm approaching the music from the theatrical world and that's what gives it the "Meital-ic" vibe.
 
MR: [laughs] Your recurring role on Weeds plus your ProSieben appearance certainly has helped with your visibility. Are you surprised by the world's reaction to your talents?

Meital: It's beyond gratifying to create something and have the audience embrace it. It's really what motivates me as an artist, because ultimately I want my music and my art to be in a dialogue with the world, and in order to do so, I need the world to know that I exist. So yeah, it's pretty damn cool.
 
MR: You must be very proud or at least satisfied with how far you've gotten independently, without a major label's involvement.

Meital: The nice surprise was the source of the magic that came to my life through the music. It's beyond gratifying to create something for an audience and then see that audience continue to grow. I've only released three songs in my career as a singer and I'm very blessed to have received so much love, attention and worldwide chart positions with only these three songs. I'm looking forward to sharing more of the magic through my music, and you'll be able to enjoy it on Spotify.
 
MR: What songs and artists inspired you over the years? How and when did you decide you wanted to apply the creative arts to your career?
 
Meital: Artists who inspire me are ones that use their art to provoke and incite larger debates and conversations. I think artists like Godard, Andy Warhol, Madonna, Sasha Baron Cohen, The Beatles, Yoko Ono, Kanye West, among others, are all using art to raise awareness to bigger social and political issues. As an artist, you're given the gift of a platform, and it's really important to use that platform to spread messages that are important to you.
 
I started acting when I was a kid, so I've been doing the whole creative arts thing ever since then. It's not really a conscious choice, in some ways, it chooses you and then it just happens to become your path in life. 
 
MR: What are your recording sessions like?
 
Meital: Naked. Very naked. I mean, not like my "Yummy" video naked... I mean, I'm wearing clothes, but I try to let myself feel as vulnerable as possible and that's when I'm able to create the most interesting music. I usually come to the studio with some scribbles of ideas - some lyrics, and a core of a song. Then I develop it, play it out and change it--and then maybe it becomes something real.
 
MR: What was the best advice you ever received and did you take it?
 
Meital: The best advice I've ever received was "who gives a 'F'?" That sounds crude, but it came from a friend and it was just to teach me that you can't always listen to other people, or take other people's negativity to your heart. When you're an artist you're exposing yourself in so many ways, I'm trying to say "who gives a 'F''?" whenever I come across someone who doesn't get what I'm doing. I can't let negativity keep me back or down, so it's kind of like a personal mantra to just keep on going, keep on being me. 
 
MR: What advice do you have for new artists?
 
Meital: My advice for new artists is to take time to experiment and to be brave with your art. If you have something to say, and you know it will piss some people off, you better say it. Being politically correct and polite are not what being an artist is all about.
 
MR: How do you see your musical career progressing from here? How about your acting career?
 
Meital: It's hard to plan too far ahead, but right now I'm working on new music, and I also have another TV show in progress.  It'd be cool to play a concert with the Mars rover, have kids with the rover and then become the new evolutionary family. Maybe we could start a family band like the Jacksons...me, the Mars Rover and our kids.

******************************



A Conversation with Donny Osmond

Mike Ragogna: Hey, Donny. Heads up, I'm recording with my phone app.

Donny Osmond: [laughs] How did we ever live without cell phones and apps? I came up with my own app when I was making this album. I thought, "How am I going to market this thing?" because social media is such an important aspect of our lives, so I came up with my own app.

MR: What's it called?

DO: It's simply called "Donny Osmond" and you download it to your iPhone or your Android and you get snippets of all your songs on this album with the backstories of why I recorded the song. It ties into Twitter and Facebook, which I'm on all the time. I'm a Facebook fanatic, I love it.

MR: [laughs] So you've become addicted like the rest of us.

DO: Oh yeah, absolutely.

MR: Donny, let's get into The Soundtrack Of My Life. I think we're the same age, so a lot of your song choices resonated with me, for instance, "My Cherie Amour." There's a certain story about Stevie Wonder's involvement, right?

DO: It was my very first forty-five I ever bought. After I finished the track, I put my vocal on it, the whole bit, and I thought, "Wouldn't it be amazing if I could get Stevie?" It was a long shot, but I called him up. He wasn't about to commit to just anything, he said, "Well send the song, let me hear it." The next thing I know my cell phone rings and it's his assistant saying, "Stevie's on the other line, he wants to talk to you." I said, "Okay, my heart just stopped, my musical hero is calling me." I thought, "This could either be very good news or very bad news." He said, "Send me the masters immediately, I love what you've done to the track, I've got to be a part of this project." To put his stamp of approval on this project meant the world to me. I just absolutely think he's one of the best artists of our time.

MR: What about your take on the Peter Gabriel classic "Don't Give Up"? The press release says this represents the highs and lows of your career. Not to be a wiseguy, but what the heck are the lows of your career?

DO: [laughs] Well, just think about that transition going from teen idol to adult entertainer. Not very many people have made that transition and come out unscathed. During the 1980s was my transition time. The Donny And Marie Show had ended, the "Puppy Love" era had ended and I was told that I'm pretty much a has-been, I was a former teen idol and that was pretty much all I'd be. But I believed in my talent and my wife kept telling me, "Don't give up, you've got a lot of fans, you've got friends, a lot of supporters; don't give up." So when I met up with Peter Gabriel, this would've been '87, '86, something like that, I started listening to So, and I heard that track, "Don't Give Up." That was the song that got me through the eighties. That was exactly what my wife would tell me, "Don't give up. We believe in you, just keep going." Peter had an interesting way of looking at a career which kind of rubbed off on me. He said, "You know, you could become popular and just do outrageous things," which a lot of celebrities do these days just to get their name in the headlines, "anyone can be popular, but it takes an artist to be popular," and the way they do that is through music. So I picked the hard way to come out of that teen idol popularity, and that was to just do it with my music and not do some kind of clever campaign just to get my name back in the news.

MR: Right, and you reinvigorated your career with hits like "Soldier Of Love."

DO: Case in point. It was done because of the music and not some campaign, although it just happened to be an interesting campaign where people didn't say it was me because they didn't want to admit that they were playing Donny Osmond music. In actually the campaign created itself and the music was allowed to speak for itself. Peter Gabriel was right, that's the way you've got to do it, let the music speak for itself.

MR: There are a couple more songs I identify with such as "The Long And Winding Road," which was one of my first Beatles favorites. "Peg" by Steely Dan... How did you ultimately commit to this album's material? What about the song needed to resonate with you?

DO: Really good question Mike. That was one of the toughest things about making this album. I was like a kind in a candy store, like, "Which one do you want?" The first criteria was it's got to have a compelling story. There's got to be a reason to do it that was significant in my life, not just because I liked it or it was a popular song, but it was a changing moment in my life, an apex moment. So that narrowed it down to several hundred. Then it was just a matter of going to the chopping block and saying, "Okay, how do we put a cool album together that makes it sound good and that's commercially viable yet means something to me?" I won't pull any punches, it was a really difficult process to come up with these songs.

MR: And "Your Song" is special to you because it was at an Elton John concert that you decided to propose to your wife, right?

DO: Yeah, I was dating a girl named Tammy and my brother Jay was dating this girl named Debbie. I remember when he sat down at the piano to sing "Your Song" and I said, "I think I'm going to marry my brother's date someday." Debbie and I have been married thirty-seven years.

MR: Another interesting choice is "Ben." I had no idea that Ben was written for you but you weren't able to record it.

DO: That's right, true story. Mike and I laughed about that a lot.

MR: You and Michael Jackson...what is that story? Can you remember being told about it and your reaction?

DO: I didn't know about this until the late nineties. I had no idea, but one fo the writers came to me and said, "Donny, that was your song." I said, "You've got to be kidding me." So I called Michael immediately and said, "Did you know this?" We had a laugh over it because that song is about a rat. He said, "Donny, you know what this means, you had a hit about a puppy and I had a hit about a rat."

MR: [laughs] Donny, I have no idea if this is a sore point but let me say that early Jackson 5 and Osmond Brothers singles had a lot in common.

DO: Yeah, and again Michael and I would talk about it all the time. The comparisons are pretty uncanny. There were nine children in both families, Mike and I were both the seventh child of nine, our mother's birthdays are on the same day, we both have brothers named Tito...

MR: [laughs] Tito! Donny, how about "Moon River?" I'm sure you did that because of the Andy Williams connection with your family, right?

DO: Correct.

MR: When your brothers were regulars, they brought you on the show when you were really little.

DO: I was five when I made my debut. That song represents my childhood. When I started touring with my brothers we were Andy's backup group, we'd travel with him and we would always close the show with "Moon River." A lot of the time I would stand back there and watch him sing it. "Moon River" became a song of my childhood. An interesting little note that not many people know... Before Andy passed away, he turned to his wife Debbie and he gave her a scarf and said, "This is my favorite scarf, I wear it all the time. When I'm gone, I want you to give it to Donny Osmond." If you look at the cover of this CD, you'll see a little bit of that scarf underneath my jacket.

MR: Yeah, there it is, very sweet. Donny, this really is a very personal album to you.

DO: Very personal.

MR: Hey, why "The Long And Winding Road" instead of other Beatles songs?

DO: It's pretty significant. It was the last Beatles single and probably one of my favorite songs that The Beatles ever did. I came into The Beatles scene pretty much in the latter part of the sixties. It reminded me so much of my youth when I heard that song because I was on the road all the time as a kid. I very rarely came home. It resonated to me in many, many ways that it normally wouldn't resonate with other kids listening to that song because I was living that life on the road.

MR:Maybe it also serves as a metaphor for your career?

DO: That's exactly right. But the reason I put a Beatles song on there is not just because of the metaphor or because I like the song. Back in 1973 I think it was, there was a knock on my hotel room door and I open it up and it's Paul standing there with his daughter Mary. I guess Mary was a huge Donny Osmond fan at the time and said, "Dad, I want Donny's autograph." He said, "Can I get your autograph for your daughter?" I said, "Yeah!" and he hands me a picture of myself. I put, "To Mary, love, Donny Osmond." I gave it to Paul and he gave it to Mary and she squealed a little bit and said, "Thank you very much." The door closed and I thought, "Did that just really happen? That was Paul McCartney!" So years later I'm in London at a video editing studio and Paul was in the adjacent studio editing one of his videos. I thought, "I've got to seize this opportunity and find out if it really happened or if I dreamt it." I went in and said, "Paul, did this really happen?" He said, "Donny, not only did it happen, but your autograph is one for the very few autographs I've ever asked for in my life." It was a pretty cool moment for me.

MR: Great story. Donny, what advice do you have for new artists?

DO: Pay attention to quality. Really focus on your music, especially nowadays when it's so easy to become popular. You can just do wild things and crazy things and just be popular, but focus on your talent. You look at a lady like Taylor Swift, she's really talented and she's popular because of her talent. Not because of social media or the crazy things she does. No, she's talented. Or Bruno. "Uptown Funk" is one of the greatest songs of all time. He's a talented guy and he's popular because of his talent. Look at Nick Jonas, what he's done to recreate himself. I love that single "Jealous." I think he did a fantastic job of recreating himself. None of this grows on trees. You've got to get out there and work. Some of these up-and-coming artists, with some of these reality shows they're handed all this success on a silver platter and they're giant stars overnight, but then what? Then the work starts, and they don't realize that. It takes a lot of effort, takes a lot of work, takes a lot of talent and surrounding yourself with great people, but you've got to focus on your music.

MR: Beautiful. I worked with Alan years ago, nice guy. How's your whole family doing?

DO: Well there's so many of us it's hard to keep track of them all. My crew keeps me pretty busy focusing on what I'm trying to do, but everybody's doing good. Alan's hanging in there.

Transcribed by Galen Hawthorne

******************************



A Conversation with Melissa Manchester

Mike Ragogna: Melissa, is your new album You Gotta Love The Life the result of your students persuading you to record a new album?

Melissa Manchester: They actually told me that I should do a crowd funding project, because I couldn't figure out in that moment how to pursue signing another contract with another record company even though there are very few left. My students kept coming in with their own projects, their own CDs with four or five songs on them and they looked really good, they were shrink-wrapped and had photographs and stuff. I asked them, "How have you been doing this?" and they said, "We've been doing it through crowd funding and you should do that." I said, "What is that?" They explained to me what it was and the concepts behind it and the independence and freedom that is connected to it. I ended up making one of my students my project manager and we did it Indiegogo, we ran it for several months and I was able to record it down at Citrus College where I'm honorary artist in residence. Because the studio--which is spectacular--is a teaching facility, and my engineer Tim Jaquette is the professor of recording arts, we had students just watching the collaboration of live musicians having musical discussions. It was resonating backwards and forwards on so many levels, it was just beautiful. It was so unexpectedly alive, it was beautiful.

MR: How did it feel to take this route? Did it inspire you more, being in this completely different creative environment?

MM: Well, you certainly are much more independent. You are literally independent and you are free to work on what shows up, what occurs to you. My experience when I was signed to a record label was that they're a huge bank, they bankroll your project and that's fine, but even after you make their money back, they own your work. That seemed tiresome to sign on to again. The other thing was that I have a very varied interest in all sorts of music and I think that this album reflects that. It's been a big sticking point in the past, it was very hard for me to get the kinds of music that I wanted on some of the albums. The record company would want you to follow a current trend or something that was such a manipulation of your tastes... Sometimes you're successful at it and sometimes you fail at it, but it was just not servicing my musical vision. This album really does that. There's a wide variety of songs, from the first American songbooks up to new compositions, there's beautiful musicians, fantastic guest artists, it was just lovely.

MR: There's a Stevie Wonder story behind "Your Love Is Where I live," right?

MM: Apparently he's been invited to do many projects all the time and he said yes to this one and played harmonica. He showed up with this box of harmonicas, it was incredible. He's so generous, he played enough to put on a thousand songs. When we were recording this down at Citrus it was spring break, so there was nobody on campus except the guards and they all knew who was coming, but there was one group of students that had band practice, since they had a show coming up. I have a very long history with Stevie, Carol Sager and I wrote a song in tribute to him called Stevie's Wonder and he never found that. After he was done with my session, he heard those young students' band practicing far down the hall, and if you can picture an entire group of people running after Stevie Wonder who's running down a hall towards these musicians... He went into their studio and they stopped their practice and one of the girl singers said, "Would you like to sing with us?" and he said, "Whatcha got?" She said, "Well, we've been rehearsing 'Superstition.'" He said, "Oh yeah?" He went up to the mic and all the students surrounded him with their instruments. They started playing and he started singing and the roof just blew off the place. It was fantastic and the students had their first gigantic, golden moment in their young career, it was beautiful.

MR: So awesome. Melissa, you co-wrote "Other End Of The Phone" with Hal David. What was it like to write with him? You co-write often, right?

MM: Yes, I love to co-write, it's how I get songs done in a jiffy. When I write them myself, it usually takes a while. I met Hal and asked him if he'd like to write and he said, "Yes." He was quite elderly at the time, he was ninety two. He brought up this lyric and I took it home and tried to imagine Dionne Warwick who is a beautiful colleague and heroine of mine. She would sing it where the spaces were in the lyric. Once I got that I took it back to Hal and he loved it. Then I reached out to Dionne, and we got Joe Sample to play on it--I've been trying to work with Joe for thirty years, but he's a busy composer. It turned out to be one of his last performances. Dionne said yes because she had built her career on the lyrics of Hal David and the music of Burt Bacharach. So it was a tribute. None of these songs were constructed as duets, but it was so beautiful to imagine two women singing this song. The convention would be a man and a woman I guess, but to have two women singing this song about weary friendship and standing together through the hard times no matter what was beautiful. She was beautiful, and Joe Sample shined. You hear it right away, nobody plays piano like him. It was thrilling, I could hear it right away.

MR: Considering both of these music icons passed away, was it a little bittersweet, having them on your project?

MM: Well, yes, and yet I see it as a great achievement. We're all going one day. I see it as, "I worked with these two great artists." That's what it's all about. I didn't miss that chance.

MR: Congratulations. "You Are My Heart" has to do with the Supreme Court decision on DOMA, right?

MM: Yes, absolutely. I wrote that for my dear friends Bill and Steve. They had been together for many, many years and they were not able to get married. The morning that DOMA was struck down I texted Steve and I said, "Do I hear wedding bells?" and he said, "In August," and he signed it, "You are my heart." I looked at it and thought, "That's the song." I wrote that song for their wedding.

MR: That's so beautiful. You perform a song with Keb' Mo', how did that come together?

MM: Well Keb' and I have worked together, I've written some songs with him that he's been kind enough to record on his wonderful album, he's just fantastic. I brought the song to him because I just thought it was a good fit. I went down to Nashville and recorded it in his studio and he said, "It's a very simple song." I said, "Yes it is. I know it's very simple, but there's a story behind it, would you like to hear the story?" and he said, "Sure." I told him that years before I'd been doing research in the Mississippi delta and there was a drunk who came up to me and asked me if I was married. And I said, "Yes, very," and he said, "That's too bad, because I've got a feeling for you," and I thought to myself, "I can write that song!" That's how it comes to me. It just shows up and socks me in my trap and opens something in my heart and my mind and then it shows up as a song. Keb' so captured the inner world of that song, his playing was so spectacular, as was everybody else's.

MR: By this point, Keb' Mo' should be a household name.

MM: He comes from a very good place. It's not about the big fame, it's about the big life, and he certainly lives that.

MR: Great quote. So you and THE Paul Reiser co-wrote "No There There."

MM: Paul and I had toured briefly, he's a lovely man. I got to a concert and the artist said, "I wrote all these songs with Paul Reiser," and I said, "Wow, really? I didn't know about that part." I always had the title of the song and beginning of the idea; it's about the presumption that we fell in love, too, that there is a finite point that you achieve by being in love and we don't realize the illusory part of it. And then you learn, and then you breathe, and then you let go, and then you find yourself again.

MR: Paul Reiser's been associated with lots of interesting musical projects though I think people still just associate him with his acting career.

MM: Oh, sure.

MR: You also do a couple covers on here, "Be My Baby" is very cool, especially from the perspective of a mature woman who's had life and had all these experiences. "Be my baby" has such an innocence to it, in a way this like saying, "I still get those feelings I had as a teenager."

MM: Yeah, that's the thing. Many songs recorded in those years, in the fifties and early sixties were all recorded in a very bright tempo, that was the aesthetic of the time, but--and I've done this before with other songs that I've recorded--I slow them down and I let the inner drama show up. It's usually so interesting because the songs are so well-written that you have nothing to worry about when you slow them down, they come alive on a deeper level. I started to work on "Be My Baby" on stage just to see how the audience would feel bout it. They knew the song right away, they started singing the background parts right away. This is how the whole thing started, people would come up to me and say, "You should record this now." It took me several years, but that's how it all started.

MR: "Let's Face The Music" and "From This Moment On" were really clever to meld. How did that come together, so to speak?

MM: They're two shining examples of the gold standard of the first volume of the American songbook, Cole Porter and Irving Berlin. I loved the story that they told together, and beyond that I loved the fact that in those days, which were sort of economically similar to these, the songwriters allowed to listener to hold onto their dignity even though the times were dark. They didn't keep reflecting how dark the times were, they kept shining light, or framing it in a way were you could still find romance or connection or a leg up in spite of your surroundings. Musically, to put it in the context of that rhythm, it just spoke to me and really soared. Everybody sang their brains out, I sang my brains out, it's just a love fest.

MR: You touched on the state of the modern world, so let me be mischievous and ask you, how do you feel about the world these days?

MM: The world is in an official stagnation. I feel that the value of music, the value of classical and jazz music is even more important. Anything that helps to get us to breathe, get us to find some voice that articulates our longing is very important.

MR: Right. And speaking of having your eye on social causes, a portion of your Indiegogo funds went to the Barry Manilow Music Project, which is a school music program. How did that come about?

MM: He's an old friend of mine and he created this incredible foundation. The problem with music programs is their backwards thinking. They keep thinking that music education is something that's disposable and an afterthought to education, but what I know to be true is that arts education is the central foundation or certainly a substantial part of a well-rounded education that leads to critical thinking. If I read another article about how Mozart helps babies learn how to think and develop synapses in their brain I'm going to scream, because it's the truth and people don't pay attention in positions where they should. Anyway, what Manilow does is have his fans bring broken musical instruments to his concerts and he gives them a free ticket I think, and he has his people repair the instruments and donate them to public school orchestras. It's fantastic.

MR: Do you feel like as our culture moves more toward visual forms of entertainment, music has begun to be considered superfluous?

MM: Yeah, and it's backward thinking. Look at Gustavo Dudamel, the great conductor. He came out of El Sistema, the orchestra for poor kids, and it gave him a life. That's what music does. It gives kids a life in many ways and it gives them structure in every way, and something to focus on that's not just ego-driven. It's very important.

MR: Melissa, what advice do you have for new artists?

MM: There are so many new ways to get your music out, but that's really only your ticket to the ride. Because this is such an arduous journey, you have to really want it. You have to have no Plan B in your life. This is a long run, this is not a sprint. The thing is, you have to stay spiritually healthy and have good people around you and understand that you learn from mistakes and that it's a fascinating way to walk your life. The way you walk your life can very easily become reflected in your art. It works for me, but it's not for everybody, that's for sure.

MR: Nice. Looking back from its beginnings to now, what do you think of your career?

MM: I am very grateful that it has gone on as long as I'd hoped it would have gone on. I really want to become the George Burns of singers. [laughs] It's been a remarkable opportunity for deep learning in my life, and deep learning shows up in the song, which is amazing. I've had the opportunity to work with beautiful young adults, and the journey unfolds. To be in this moment where my industry is in a revolution, it's so interesting. I'm thinking differently, my learning curve keeps showing up and I love that.

MR: Speaking of love, you know who loves you? Rupert Holmes.

MM: Yes, I love him too! We've written a musical together and it's getting a stage reading at TUTS, which is a wonderful theater in Houston.

MR: Congratulations, all the best with that. You're going on tour in support of this album and you have songs like "You've Got To Live The Life," which has this dynamic horn section on the recording. What is this live experience going to be like?

MM: Well, it's a reflection of my commitment to the music and the music of my past. In some places I'll be able to use my band, in other places I'll be working with Stephan Oberhoff on keyboards and guitar.

MR: Nice, this is almost like your residency, just on a bigger platform.

MM: Yeah, that's just how I teach stuff.

MR: You're playing at The Dave Koz Lounge, any chance he'll jump and play on a song or two?

MM: Oh yes! He said he if he is in town, he will definitely play with me on stage, which is really exciting. I'll also have The Citrus Singers who sang on this cut of "I Know Who I Am" singing with me on stage as well.

MR: Hey, "Sweet Melissa," as Barry Manilow dubbed you in his hit "Could It Be Magic," you have had a strong, positive influence for many through the years. Are you aware of such things?

MM: Not so much, thank you! [laughs]

Transcribed by Galen Hawthorne

*******************************



A Conversation with Louise Goffin

Mike Ragogna: Let's talk about your Appleonfire EP. As they say, the apple doesn't fall far from the tree, you being the daughter of Gerry Goffin and Carole King. It seems like a logical approach to do a project of your parents' recordings, but this goes beyond that. The EP also features a song you co-wrote with your father, a long lost Goffin/King composition and a couple of your own songs. How did the idea behind this project start?

Louise Goffin: It started with "It's Not The Spotlight." When my father passed away I was doing a house concert the next day. I always loved that song of his. He's written so many great songs but that one really had his essence because he sang it. He didn't really think of himself much as a singer but in 1973 he went to Mussel Shoals and made a double record and sung all of the vocals on it. Most of it was a political record, but there were some songs that later got covered and became hits and charted with other artists, and "It's Not The Spotlight" was one of them. At his memorial gathering I saw his co-writer Barry Goldberg and I said, "Oh, I just played your song." He said it would really be a great thing to go and record it, so that was the start of the whole EP.

MR: And then the thought got bigger, you recorded that song, and it snowballed.

LG: Yeah, that is what happened. There were all these fantastic musicians who I wanted to play with, and when he said, "Let's record that song" I thought, "If I'm going to call all these amazing musicians who have expressed interest in working with me, it doesn't make sense to record just one song." So I played Barry a couple of brand new songs of mine, a few of them are on the record, "Everything You Need" and "Higher Than Low," and he loved them.



MR: And then Jakob Dylan came in?

LG: Jakob Dylan guests on a Goffin/King song because at MusiCares a year ago he and I sang a Goffin and King song together and I mentioned to Barry, "Why don't we ask Jakob do sing on a song my mom and dad wrote?" So that actually happened, he came down and sang on "Take A Giant Step." I love that song so much. He actually recorded a Goffin & King song on his duets record which we performed last year. So that was the Jakob Dylan connection, and that was four songs we did in one day. Then Barry's part of it was done and I said, "You know, for it to really be a substantial EP I need two more songs." Then I was really asking the universe, "What should the other two songs be?" I went through a lot of obscure songs my father wrote. I didn't want to do the heavily-covered songs that everyone had known, I wanted to find something more under the radar. That song, "If I'm late," was on YouTube and I had never heard it. I also remembered that my dad and I had written the song, "I'm Not Rich But I'm Not Poor." I'd always wanted to do something with it, he and I talked about making a demo of it last year or a couple of years ago, but I got really busy and we couldn't do it. I thought those were really good choices for the other two songs.

MR: Yeah. So the expression behind the title "I'm Not Rich But I'm Not Poor" came from your grandfather, right? Gerry's dad?

LG: Yes, it was something that he told me, that his father used to say to him.

MR: I love the concept of finding one of your parents rare songs on YouTube. It's almost like the song reached out to you.

LG: That was the weird thing! I would be very aware of songs that my father sang lead vocal on because it was such a rare thing, but to find a demo of a song they wrote and he sings lead and my mother harmonizes throughout the entire song like an old Everly Brothers-style duet but with these really romantic lyrics... And I love the message, "If I'm late, baby gotta wait for me." I often say that to people. [laughs]

MR: Louise, is it possible it was written for the Everlys?

LG: No, there's really no connection, I just brought it up because of the style. That song was apparently written in 1969. '69 was a very transitional, bumpy year because we had all moved to LA in '68, so I'm sure there were separations and a lot of starting over again in a new place with two little girls. I'm sure they could've written that song and gone and demoed it and it could've ended up on some demo reel at a publishing company and then my mother went on to make The City or something. I think a lot of songwriters churn out so much stuff that sometimes things just fall through the cracks. It just ends up on a publishing tape somewhere. So that was amazing. Doing Joseph Arthur was also very synchronistic because I knew it needed someone who had a bit of my father's style. In fact, I switched it so I was singing the lead on it and had to change a couple of gender-specific words here and there.

I was at Village Recording Studio asking everyone, "What do I get to sing on this one?" Jeff Greenberg who owns Village said, "Oh, there's this guy, John Alagia knows him," John's a friend of mine, a wonderful musician and producer. I'm calling down the hallway, "John! Who's this guys you were working with?" and he was racking his brain, like, "Who could it be? Who could it be?" It turned out it was someone he had worked with like several years earlier. Anyway I finally got it out of Jeff that Joe's his name and John's like, "Oh! Let me call him! Let me see if he's up for it." This all happened on a text, John's in one city, Joe's in another and I'm in LA and John's making introductions via text. It turned out that Joseph was on tour and was only going to be in New York for the one week that I was going to be in New York in October but he said he'd love to do it. I went over to his place in Brooklyn and we finished up that song. I'd already cut the track but we did all the vocals and some overdubs and made a video all in the space of four hours one afternoon.

MR: Have you stayed in touch with Joseph Arthur?

LG: We have communicated, but he's in New York and I'm in LA. We're both incredibly busy, but we've exchanged messages here and there and I'll be back out there.

MR: Perhaps there's a coffee or a lunch when you get back.

LG: Oh, for sure. He makes a lot of records and I'm constantly doing stuff with my records, so it's one of those things where if you're in sync it works, and we were in sync with that tune.

MR: This is your seventh album?

LG: I think that's right. That doesn't include A Holiday Carole which I produced and wrote some songs for.

MR: What was the studio experience like for Appleonfire?

LG: It was just one of the heightened experiences of life. I really was saying, "I can't believe I'm here with these incredible musicians and awesome people." Bob Glaub has been very supportive, when I did the Carole King record he was playing bass on that, I forgot what a monster Bob is as a bass player. He's amazing. We live around each other and he's been so amazingly supportive, he's played on all of the recordings that I've been doing since then and he's been playing on shows if they're in town, he's just the greatest guy ever. I hadn't played with Jim Keltner since I was probably a teen. I called Jim I think within the last year asking him to play and he was booked that day. We had a great conversation and caught up and he said, "Call me again." So this was the session I called him again. Val McCallum I saw play with his band Jackshit, have you seen them? He's just an insanely talented guitar slinger. The whole history of soul and country and twang and all of it is in his fingertips. It's so accessible to him, he's so talented. And then Barry Goldberg himself, who was co-producing on that session of four songs, he's one of the best B3 players out there.

MR: And you were given the studio gratis by Jackson Browne.

LG: Yes, and that's another amazing story. My father passed away and I really wanted to do this thing, to cover his songs and make it celebratory in his honor. A lot of people felt that love and affection for him. I had seen Jackson's girlfriend and assistant at a show in Laguna Beach, a David Lindley and Wally Ingram show. I gave her my new record which was Songs From The Mine and I said, "Would you give this to Jackson?" she said, "Only if I can listen to it in my car on the way home first." I said, "Yeah, yeah! I don't really know how to reach him anymore." She looked at all the numbers I had and said, "That won't work, that won't work, that won't work," and then his assistant said, "I'll give you my number under one condition; that you never call me." [laughs] I said, "Okay, I'll just have it there for emergencies."

I wanted to honor my commitment to never call her, so I called his recording studio thinking, "I'll just leave a message there, that I want to ask about the studio." So I called the studio thinking I'm going to get Ed Wong who runs the studio or get a machine and his assistant answers the phone. I said, "Wait a minute, I'm trying not to call you!" She said, "You can come on over, stop by." I called Chris Aaron who I wrote "Higher Than Low" with, and I said, "Chris, you're not going to believe it, I'm going to record our song, I'm just waiting to hear back from Jackson about my studio time. He said, "Jackson's sitting right next to me. We just played a show together in Madison, Wisconsin." He said, "There's one day. The studio is completely booked," it's always completely booked, "but there's this one Monday that Jackson's going to not be there and the studio's free." I swear to you, every single musician that I wanted was free on that day.

MR: [laughs] It was meant to be.

LG: The tragic thing is that Chris Aaron passed away a month later, which makes this record even more emotional for me.

MR: Sorry about his passing, Louise. So Nathaniel Kunkel mixed the project, Niko Bolas engineered, and you recorded it in Jackson Browne's studio. Nice. By the way, did recording in that studio help your creativity?

LG: It's an amazing studio, the piano sounded good. I also need need to mention Nico Bolas. A lot of the cats who were in the studio that day are people who I've known since I was eighteen. They knew me when I was young and just having fun making records. I didn't have adult responsibilities, I was just a kid having fun in the studio, Danny Kortchmar was producing and all that. Now I'm taking the reigns and producing and being the record company and self-distributing and making the calls. Just to be in a room with all of those people who I love so much, I just feel so blessed, beyond blessed, to be able to have that continuity in spite of life having no continuity whatsoever. It's really the people who you know and the people in your life who bring the continuity through all those different changes. To be here, so far down the path and be in the room with all of these same incredible musicians, and also realizing that they're there for me, not because of a record company, it was just great.

Niko is such a talented producer and engineer, but he's also just been such a great friend. He doesn't need to assert an ego in the room. He's paid me a lot of really sweet compliments about my quietness in the studio, I'm really listening to everyone. He says when I say something, he pays attention to what I say because he knows I'm really listening to what everybody's doing. I didn't know what I was doing. What is producing? He'd say, "You're doing it!" "What am I doing?" He'd say, "You're being real quiet and you're listening and you're noticing stuff."

MR: These days, the role of producer is almost like a godfather or an advisor or a mentor compared to before when producers were totally hands-on.

LG: Yeah. The closest thing that I can think of is parenting. Yes, you're in a room with musicians and musicians are like a bunch of kids, but I'm one of the kids too. Jim Keltner explained it perfectly. You can hire people like that, but they don't guarantee that they're going to make a great record or that things are going to sound great at all. What Jim said was "All artists command a song." That's where he looks for his view. That's the horse leading. Fortunately I have played those songs. When I was at the guitar or the piano, I knew where the dynamics were. If you're searching, if you're not sure where it's going to go, you can really lose yourself in a recording session, even with the best of intentions and the best musicians.

MR: True, but on the other hand, you as Louise Goffin had the exposure to the creation of music at a very early age.

LG: I don't know how I know what I think I know, and it's not to say I'm right in where I want to go, but where I want to go is old school. A lot of things don't sound like that these days, so I'm just doing what makes my bells ring.

MR: It's a culmination of what you've admired and seen in yourself and others over the years, and I think in some ways, it's a nod to what Gerry represents, good songs.

LG: Yeah, I sure wish he could hear it, because he would really get a kick out of it.

MR: What is your advice for new artists?

LG: It's very important to find what's different about you, what's uniquely you, and then amplify that by twenty. People tend to want to mask and cover what they think makes them stand out. They try to sound more like what they year on the charts, but I think that's the kiss of death, because really what's interesting is the most unusual aspects of an artist. Whatever those things are, make them rhyme and repeat them. [laughs] Take your weirdness, make it rhyme, repeat it and put a beat on it. That's my advice.

MR: Is that how you did it over the years?

LG: I think I'm going to get more relaxed in my writing and recording the less I feel this need to "catch up" with myself. I've had so many unrecorded songs for so long that in the last year I've just been recording songs that were on my hard drive and I thought, "This is really good, I should just do this." There's still plenty more of that, but I think at this point I have a lot of effortless creativity at my disposal that I don't really run with as much as I could. The record I make when I'm not trying very hard might be interesting. I'm kind of a walking self-expression. I'm either writing or talking or singing or doing something.

MR: Everybody loves recording, but I've heard a lot of artists lately tell me they love playing live more because they can express a lot more of their creativity that would be too difficult to record.

LG: I love playing live! It's new for me because I never did a lot of it. I think I was too insecure and just too shy about my ability to do things, especially solo. I wanted someone backing me up all the time. I've gotten so much more confident and stronger in the last year and a half or so, just because I threw myself into water and made myself swim. I enjoy playing live a lot.

MR: So where's the apple rolling from this point on?

LG: I'm waiting for a sign right now, honestly. I have been financing things, I did two pledge campaigns, one for Appleonfire and before that for Songs From The Mine. I really want to work on a team. It's a lot of work to toot your own horn, and in this day and age you have to be ready to do that. You have to be ready to believe in yourself whether other people are green-lighting things or not. Too much time goes by waiting for other people to notice. This was a commitment to me of, "I'm going to notice myself and I'm going to facilitate myself. At some point, that gets exhausting. I love the camaraderie, my favorite part of music is the camaraderie, the community, the travel, the interweaving of other ideas. To me that's the point of excitement. I like working with other artists, I would like to tour with other artists and write songs with them, maybe get back into producing with other artists and be involved in all sides of it.

MR: In some respects, you couldn't be making music at a better time because of advances in digital technology and marketing through social networking. You have the potential of not waiting for anyone to green-light anything, you can take everything into your own hands. You're releasing this yourself, right?

LG: Yeah, we released it and distributed it digitally and then on this record I decided to make hard copies on CD just because I like being able to hold something that you can look at. And when you do a live show people really, really love after they've heard the live songs to hold something and take it home. When I played the Bluebird in Nashville, because of the show Nashville there were people from all over the world who wanted to go to the famous Bluebird that they'd seen on TV. There were people from Italy, Australia, it was not just a Nashville audience. Everyone else had said, "You remember this famous song that this guy covered?" but I was going, "Here's a famous song you never heard." They were all songs no one had ever heard before that I was playing. It was really nice at the end because a lot of people wanted CDs to take back to wherever they were going. That's meaningful.

MR: Yeah, I miss the physical aspect of music production, but we're here now.

LG: Well, we live in a disposable culture. You'll never get this far into the interview, for sure. I don't even know if people read stuff on Facebook, they just "like" it. I wonder if eighty out of a hundred people have read the thing, or even opened it, when they click the "like" button. Do you know?

MR: I don't know what the percentage is, but I know that a lot of people who are winging it.

LG: It's digital and disposable. You put a song out, another song out, a video out... I read this great quote, "In this age, you don't want to be a genius, you want to be a 'seenius.'" It's all about being seen. If there's one thing you do that's amazing, it'll be yesterday's news yesterday. People just go to the next, the next, the next, the next and they consume and absorb and move on from things so fast that it almost makes sense to practically put out singles. I don't know if people take time anymore. A lot of it is about how the younger generation is quicker with technology, but I'm old school. You have to find out about something that you're going to love. That's the key. There's lots of things out there that you're going to love, but how do we find out about it? That artist has to work really, really, really hard. I'm working my little butt off. I've been hitting it hard in this last year. I've never hit it so hard before. I'm not raised that way. I was raised that if you do good work and raise the flag then people will come. That is not true anymore. It's not a fact. If a tree falls and no one hears it...

MR: Sadly, there are a lot of trees falling that nobody's hearing.

LG: It's not who you know, it's who knows you.

Transcribed by Galen Hawthorne

******************************



A Conversation with Rumer
 
Mike Ragogna: Rumer,Into Colour follows your very successful Seasons Of My Soul. Did you approach this album differently than your previous recordings?

Rumer: On this record, my process inevitably changed. Seasons developed naturally and anonymously over a much longer period of time. We recorded it one day a week around my full time job. It took seven years to write and it took three years to record. In that sense the sound had time to mature and develop organically. I was also in my twenties and so I was musing on a whole set of different sentiments. This time, as much as I would have liked longer, I just didn't have ten years this time. So your process has to change. You work and collaborate with other people more, you explore different song forms, and you just don't have the time to muse on an idea and go back and keep refining a lyric, a few years after you write it. You have to be brave and say, I worked really hard, I put my heart and soul into it, we stayed up nights to meet our deadlines, and this is the best I could do. I am proud of Into Colour. I think its great, and I think it's sincere.
 
MR: How did working with some of Daryl Hall's TV band affect your arrangements? What did they add most to the music?

Rumer: They have all played together before which is great.  I wanted to make a soul record, and American record, and everyone keeps telling me how much they loved Live from Daryl's House, and so we got the players who are or have at one time or another played on that show.

Paul Pesco is a terrific guitar player and I love him on "You Just Don't Know People." Shawn Pelton, he is a real artist. You get drummers and then you get artist drummers. He is playing the beat and killing it but he's also feeling the sentiment of the song, feeling that emotion. He left his heart on I am blessed. And Zev, of course, is a phenomenal bass player. I got the some of the best musicians in America. They added a lot of heart and soul to the music.
 
MR: You co-wrote some of the material on Into Colour with Steven Bishop. How did the collaboration come about and what was the songwriting experience like? 

Rumer: Stephen Bishop is not only one of the most uniquely talented great American songwriters, but he is such a funny and entertaining person to be around. Most of the ideas we came up with were at four o'clock in the morning sitting on his bean bag in his famous "man cave"! Ultimately, I am a big fan. I love all songs. I think he is underappreciated. He is such a sophisticated and unique songwriter, and a great singer and guitar player too. He is such a cool person.
 
MR: How has your personal creative process evolved over the years?

Rumer: The creative process is so mysterious. Each song has it own unique path. There is no formula. You know, I don't think my creative process has evolved as much as it should have. My songwriting skills have evolved, and that is my understanding of song structure, but the magic, the soul of a song, that is just so unpredictable, and beyond my understanding. I think that in order to be truly and divinely inspired you have to be connected to your heart, and have a daily spiritual practice, which isn't always easy. Some of the challenges of working within a major label system strain my heart.

MR: What do you think it is about your voice that attracts compliments and associations with the likes of Burt Bacharach and Richard Carpenter?

Rumer: I think that's probably because that's the music I listened to when I was learning to sing. Dusty singing Look of Love, Dionne singing, "Walk On By," Aretha singing "I Say a Little Prayer." When I was a young girl, I didn't know it who Bacharach and David were, I just loved all that music. I love the Carpenters. It's simply the best music, and the music that I adore.
I think composers like Burt Bacharach perhaps like singers to sing melodies straight, because the magic is in the composition.
 
MR: What's the most important thing about a song to you?

Rumer: I think, the sentiment, and how beautifully that it is expressed.
 
MR: What advice do you have for new artists?

Rumer: I wouldn't look to sign a traditional major label deal, because they can be very long and personnel changes so often that you can't guarantee a collaborative relationship. I would suggest that you do as much as you can yourself, find your own investors, creative partners, and build your own team. While I would recommend the independent route, I would also say don't be possessive, be open to sharing and giving at the beginning, to incentivize those people who will give their valuable energy to your project. You must be open to opportunities, and willing to work hard, willing to sacrifice a lot to make things happen for yourself.
 
MR: Where do you take things from here?

Rumer: I have started my own production company and record label, Night Owl, which aims to make a small but significant contribution to culture through creative project development. Night Owl develops music projects, film scripts and in future, we would like to publish books. I have set this up primarily to help  facilitate other people's work, and also for my own growth and evolution as an artist. For the first time in a long time, I feel empowered, because I am back to being part of a creative community.

Here's what I said about Kevin Costner when I reviewed his low-key actioner 3 Days to Kill just over a year ago:

Getting older has been good for Kevin Costner. As the one-time Robin Hood's face has grown more creased and weathered with the passage of years, it's allowed him to leave behind some of the trappings of superstardom that first propelled and then constrained him during the '80s and '90s, leading him to the much more fruitful and fulfilling character parts that await all leading men eventually.

I stand by every word of that. In fact, Costner's performance in writer-director Mike Binder's otherwise forgettable melodrama Black or White only helps underscore that earlier point. As an actor, Costner is just imminently watchable. Even in material such as this, that really doesn't measure up to his performance, I can still find a particular joy in just watching his choices as he works through a scene. Nonetheless, just as with 3 Days to Kill, I sometimes wish he'd pick a better variety of projects with which to fill his dance card.

Now, to give Black or White (which Costner himself financed) its due, it does make an honest, earnest try at addressing the considerable racial divide that continues to effect so many facets of life in this country. But unlike, say, last month's Selma, which depicted historical events to offer commentary on our present moment, Binder uses relatively recent history (per a title card, the film is based on true events) to tackle issues of class, race, and the resentments that can power divisions in both. Admirable goals, certainly, but undone by a simplistic, borderline insulting approach that leaves both sides of its argument feeling undernourished.

The film begins with Elliot Anderson (Costner) coming to terms with the sudden death of his wife (Jennifer Ehle), and becoming primary caretaker to his mixed-race granddaughter Eloise (Jillian Estell), whose mother -- Elliot's daughter -- died during childbirth. This situation becomes more complicated when Eloise's paternal grandmother Rowena (Octavia Spencer) sues Elliot for custody of the girl, believing she'd do better with her black family in South Central than her white grandpa in Beverly Hills. What follows is a two-hours of Do The Right Thing by way of a heavy dose of Kramer vs. Kramer.

The soap opera nature of the thing is only heightened when Eloise's drug addict father Reggie (André Holland, also in Selma) reappears after being absent for most of the girl's life, and asks Elliot for a payout to disappear, potentially paving the way for her grandfather to retain custody. It's the kind of storytelling maneuver that's intended to add complexity to the drama, but just makes apparent all the machinery at work to contrive new ways to hold off the climax juuuust a little bit longer. "You're a stereotype!" Rowena's attorney brother Jeremiah yells at Reggie at one point, in a bit of dialogue that's about as on-the-nose as it gets.

My problem with Black or White isn't that it's tackling a hot button topic like race relations. I wish more movies would, to be honest. The more we have these kinds of conversations, the greater the likelihood of achieving real progress. Rather, what bugged me is the way the deck is so obviously stacked in Elliot's favor, both within the world of the film and in the eyes of the moviegoer. It's plain to see that Eloise is loved by her grandfather, and she obviously doesn't lack for anything, which essentially forces the audience to view Rowena through the same antagonistic lens Elliot does. We're never not on his side.

Yes, he's dealing with a drinking problem, but all that ends up doing is give him the shadings of an arc, unlike poor Octavia Spencer, reduced to wincing and mugging on the sidelines, playing a character so thinly-sketched that she and her entire oversized brood feel like they escaped from a sitcom. Without giving anything away, Black or White concludes pretty much the only it can given the way the chessboard has been set up for us. While it attempts some measure of high-minded resolution to the many complicated issues it raises, it's simply casting too wide a net to feel truly satisfying. In trying to be color blind, it just comes off as tone deaf. C-