You can never judge a man by his knitwear, as Jack Bruce proves in this documentary Jack Bruce: The Man Behind the Bass, in which the legendary musician returns to his homeland of Scotland, to give a guided tour through his life and career, and re-interprets 6 of his classic songs. Here are the ingredients:

Jack Bruce fronted the Sixties supergroup Cream alongside Eric Clapton and Ginger Baker, and has played with everyone from Marvin Gaye to Jimi Hendrix and from Lulu to Lou Reed. ArtWorks tells the story of his life, from childhood in Scotland to global superstardom, through some of Jack’s favourite songs and with contributions from Eric Clapton, Ginger Baker, Flea of Red Hot Chilli Peppers and Adam Clayton of U2.

The story encompasses some of the biggest riffs and rifts in rock, taking in family tragedy, drugs and near death. A specially chosen set of six songs mark crucial moments in Jack’s life, including Cream’s “Sunshine of Your Love”. Jack rerecorded the tracks with some of Scotland’s finest musicians including folk trio Lau, percussionist Jim Sutherland, keyboard player Andy May, guitarist Taj Wyzgowski, drummer Chris Peacock, his nephew Nico Bruce on bass and string ensemble Mr McFall’s Chamber.

This is an excellent documentary, which showcases some of the best of the brilliant Jack Bruce.
 

 
Previously on Dangerous Minds

‘Rope Ladder to the Moon’: Solo genius from Cream’s Jack Bruce

 
David Bowie having fun at the Beat Club in May 1978, dressed in what looks like a pimp’s pajama top and those kind of pants he made famous, which were later sold via adverts in the NME and The Face. I once nearly bought a pair but opted to have my ear pierced instead. As always, Bowie is more than ably supported by his superb backing band, which here includes Adrian Belew on electric guitar; George Murray on bass guitar; Carlos Alomar on rhythm guitar; Dennis Davis on drums; Simon House on violin; Sean Mayes on piano and strings; and Roger Powell on keyboards and synthesizers.

Track Listing:

01. “Sense of Doubt”
02. “Beauty and The Beast”
03. “Heroes”
04. “Stay”
05. “The Jean Genie”
06. “TVC15”
07. “Alabama Song”
08. “Rebel Rebel”
 

 
When asked how he felt about the fact he’d received £400,000 to make Caravaggio in 1986, and the director of Chariots of Fire, Hugh Hudson had received 4 million to make his film, Derek Jarman replied, ‘Fortunately, I’m one hundred times more intelligent than Hugh Hudson, so it doesn’t matter.’

It certainly didn’t matter as Jarman’s output, during his 20-year career, pisses from a great height on Hudson’s work. What Jarman would have made of this year’s London Olympics, with its recurring reference to Chariots of Fire, would certainly have been interesting. Yet, Jarman was never fooled by his position as an outsider, he was well aware that there ‘is a complicity between the avant-garde and the establishment, it’s symbiotic, they need each other,’ as he explained to Peter Culshaw in the NME, April, 1986.

‘..all avant-garde gestures have been appropriated by just those people they sought to undermine. Dada was conceived as a full-scale assault and now Dada sells for millions. But what people never point out about me is that I’m probably the most conservative film-maker in the country. I’m not talking about Thatcherite-radical conservatives, who are anti-traditional and destructive, and who see progress as heaven, I mean more like the conservatism of groups like the Green Party.’

The artist Caravaggio fascinated Jarman, because ‘he was the most inspired religious painter of the Middle Ages and was also a murderer.’

‘Imagine if Shakespeare had been a murderer - it would completely alter the way we see his plays. [Caravaggio] was particularly taken to heart by the Romans because he painted real people. The girl next door was Mary Magdalen. Or in Death of a Virgin he painted a well-known prostitute as a virgin. It was the equivalent of Christine Keeler being put up over the high altar at Westminster Abbey.’

Jarman felt a tremendous parallel between Caravaggio and his own life, and he believed that ‘the cinema of the product precludes individual voices…’

‘...and I think unless one can put one’s own voice into a film, then there’s an element of dishonesty in it.’

In this short interview Derek Jarman talks about his life and films, Caravaggio, The Last of England and War Requiem,  taken from Spanish TV’s Metropolis from 1989.
 

 
Previously on Dangerous Minds

‘Glitterbug’: Derek Jarman’s final film

Photo-spread of Derek Jarman’s ‘Jubilee’, from 1978

 
Bonus interview of Jarman talking about ‘Caravaggio’, after the jump…
 

 
Something Awful held a Breaking Bad meets Star Wars GIF mash-up contest. Most of the submissions were, well…awful. However, I do like the above GIF submitted by The NPR Store.

See the rest over at Something Awful.

Via Nerdcore

 
Two great tastes that taste great together, here’s an inspired musical pairing of two of pop’s most famous “belters,” Tom Jones and Janis Joplin, performing “Raise You Hand” in 1969 on the This is Tom Jones TV series.

Crazy good stuff on display here. Crazy good.
 

 
Earth, Wind and Fire for the Panasonic Platinum Series boom box.

Actor Harrison Johnson, a Scott Baio look-a-like, is suitably impressed. “Wow, Earth, Wind and Fire!”
 

“Omar Little” wind-up toy by Mister Frothee.
 
One of television’s most multifaceted characters, IMO, is The Wire‘s “Omar Little” played by intense actor Michael K. Williams. In a recent interview with New York Magazine, Williams mentioned the music he would listen to in order to get into character for “Omar.” Their Vulture blog went one step further and asked Williams for his entire playlist.  Apparently, ask, and ye shall receive ‘cos they got the full, hour-long playlist from him.

Williams warns: “I tend to stay away from the Omar playlist … I know where it’s gonna take me.”
 
01. 2pac “Unconditional Love”
02. Nas “Let There be Light”
03. Young Jeezy “Dreamin’”
04. Mary J. Blige “My Life”
05. Lauryn Hill “Oh Jerusalem”
06. Jay-Z “You Must Love Me”
07. 2pac “So Many Tears”
08. Biggie Smalls “Suicidal Thoughts”
09. Young Jeezy “Bury me a G”
10. Jay-Z “Oh My God”
11. Biggie Smalls “Who Shot Ya”
12. 2pac “Against All Odds”
13. Biggie Smalls “Everyday Struggle”
14. Nas “One Mic”
15. Lauryn Hill “War in the Mind”
16. Common “It’s Your World”
17. Lauryn Hill “Mystery of Iniquity”
18. Meshell Ndegeocello “Akel Dama (Field of Blood)”
19. Lauryn Hill “I Gotta Find Peace of Mind”
20. 2pac “Dear Mama”
21. Sun Tan “Sunscreen”

Listen it to in its entirety over at Spotify.
 

 
Thanks, Barb!

 
Private membership torrent tracker UKNova, a community entirely devoted to UK television programming, has been voluntarily closed by the proprietors. One of the older torrent trackers on the Internet, UKNova launched in 2004 as a place where British expats could get their fix of soap operas like Coronation Street and EastEnders, football matches and BBC comedy.

UKNova has long had the reputation as an “ethical” torrent tracker, bending over backwards not to encourage digital piracy. Torrents expired there after 30 days and anything out on DVD was prohibited, or immediately removed once a DVD release was even announced.

Since last week, the following message has greeted members when they’ve logged on:

To the members of UKNova.

UKNova is being forced to change. We have been issued with a “cease and desist” order by FACT (The Federation Against Copyright Theft).

Despite our efforts to cooperate with the UK media companies, FACT have stated: “ALL links or access to content provided by UKNova are infringing, unless it can be proven that explicit permission from the copyright holder for that content has been obtained”.

Whilst we believe that they are wrong both legally and morally on account of the strong ‘no commercial content’ stance that we have always taken, we are not in a position to be able to risk lengthy and costly court battles to prove this. Therefore we have no other option but to close down the trackers. It has not been an easy decision to take, but it is apparently our only option.

The forums will remain open for business as usual. Torrents and their associated pages will disappear over the next few hours.

Our heartfelt thanks go to all, past and present, who have worked tirelessly, often thanklessly, for the good of our community.

Memo to BBC: If your iPlayer was on offer in the US of A, I would happily pay $5 a month for the pleasure. Just sayin’.

 
British Chancellor of the Exchequer, George Osborne had no place to hide when the boos rang out around the Olympic Stadium today in London. It’s allegedly the first time boos have been heard inside the stadium, which says much about the loathing for the ghastly Osborne and the current Con-Dem Government. As Channel 4 News reported:

‘The first boos of the day ring out in the Olympic Stadium for George Osborne, Chancellor of the Exchequer, who was presenting medals at the 400m T38 victory ceremony.’

Surprisingly, there was cheers for former Labour PM Gordon Brown, which suggests the public do have short memories.
 

 
Via Channel 4 News
 

 
Roxy Music own the stage at the Musikladen studios, as they showcase 3 songs from For Your Pleasure, and one from their self-titled first album.

There is a book to be written on how Roxy Music are a key component to so many teenage evolutions (my own included), and the touchstone for so many bands, from Chic to Siouxsie and the Banshees. There’s also a major tome to be written on Bryan Ferry, that suave, sophisticated, cool-as-fuck genius who progressed through so many musical styles yet always maintained essentially true to his own vision.

Add to that the fact Roxy’s music is a fresh and as vital today, as it was forty years ago.

Track listing:

01. “Do the Strand”
02. “Editions of You”
03. “In Every Dream Home A Heartache”
04. “Re-Make/Re-Model”
 

 
Previously on Dangerous Minds

‘The Thrill of It All’: The Roxy Music Story