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Reviews (4)
06 May 2007
A Poor Imitation
I can't say enough about this book, but I'm afraid it's all bad. It's as if Mr.
Spitz went out and bought a couple of Beatle coffee-table books and suddenly
proclaimed himself the new Messiah of Beatle biographers. I first became familiar with this "work" when some excerpts were published in Reader's Digest
a while back, and I was appalled at what appears to me as a brazen rip-off of
the several fine works that exist, i.e. Geoffrey Giuliano's, Hunter Davies's,
etc. He was clearly never within a light year of the Beatles' inner-circle,
as were the above-mentioned authors. For example, according to Spitz, the
homosexual liason between Brian and John is pretty much set in stone. It
happened, folks! ....Horsefeathers!!! No one accompanied those two to Paris,
so how did you arrive at this conclusion- --Hmmmmm?...Mr.Spitz? Balderdash,
folks!! Buy the Giuliano book. Buy the Davies book, (which incidently is the
authorized biography and was written in the glorious sixties by a man who for
months hung out with the Fab Four and was present during much of the writing
and recording of Sgt Peppers!) Better yet, buy the Beatles Anthology,(written by the Beatles) O.K., I feel better now!
04 January 2007
Chuck Leavell Vol. I
When I was young, I longed for the opportunity to sit and watch great rock
and Blues piano players up close in order to see exactly what they did.
Thanks to technology I now see guys like Dr. John, David Cohen, Johnnie
Johnson, and now the great Chuck Leavell up close and personal any time
I chose. This is a wonderful video featuring a unique performer offering
a heapin' helpin' of killer piano playing, solid tips and exercises, and
some cool old footage to boot. What it ~isn't~, in my opinion, is a
tutorial for the beginner (although Chuck pays lip service to the novice).
This is not to say a beginner shouldn't buy it, just don't expect any
real elementary examples- I didn't see any. Buy this dvd if you want a comprehesive look at the life and work of an exceptional player. By the way,
he's no slouch as a storyteller either.
26 January 2007
Johnnie Johnson
0 of 1 found this helpful Don't be afraid of this one if your looking for plenty of good close-up
footage of one of our (now) late-great Blues artists at work. Most of
the music presented leans heavily toward the Blues side rather than the
Chuck Berry style rock and roll some might expect. David Bennett Cohen
hosts the presentation and he and guitarist Jimmy Vivino solicit a few good
war stories, but Johnnie politely ignores many of Davids questions and just
burns. Here's a good hour-long look at a ~great~ piano player jamming with
a competent back-up band.