Ian Dury, lead singer for British New Wave act Ian Dury and The Blockheads, had his warts-and-all life story open up on UK screens last weekend.  Back in the day, Dury, who passed away from cancer a decade ago, was by no means my cup of musical tea (I much preferred his Stiff label-mate Wreckless Eric, or —thanks, Richard!—Jilted John), but with Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll, and Hit Me With Your Rhythm Stick, there was no denying his ability to craft a hooky song.

And while biopics of a musical nature typically leave me cold (I’m Not There), or incensed (What We Do Is Secret), I’m looking forward to catching Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll (trailer below).  It stars the fantastically expressive Andy “Gollum” Serkis, and, as Dury’s father, that Sexy Beast himself, Ray Winstone. 

It’s no stretch to imagine Ray Winstone playing domineering authority figures, but I still remember his slim, punk-rock self costarring with Diane Lane in one of that era’s best musicals, Ladies And Gentlemen, The Fabulous Stains.  A.K.A., the film with the forever-humbling line, “You’re just an old man living in a young girl’s world!”

 
(via The Guardian)