ALBUMS

THEN:

Boy Child: 67-70 – Scott Walker

The best way to describe Scott Walker is “disenfranchised Sinatra.” A lifelong recluse, former teen idol, and hugely successful solo artist in the late ’60s, Walker remains an influential singer-songwriter to artists like Leonard Cohen, Lou Reed and Tom Waits. The joy of discovering Walker is that he truly was, and still is, a diamond in the rough.  

NOW:

Old Ideas – Leonard Cohen

Even at the ripe old age of 72, Rock and Roll Hall of Fame member and legendary singer-songwriter Leonard Cohen is still as full of longing and melancholy as ever and expressing it evocatively. This new collection of 10 original songs explores his beloved themes of loss, love, sexuality, spirituality and death.

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BOOKS

THEN:

Arguably by Christopher Hitchens

While remembered as a vocal atheist and pro-war advocate up to his recent death, let us not forget Christopher Hitchens was long a contrarian on almost every possible issue…one who delighted in disagreement and worked in rhetoric the way an artist works in oils. Hitchens holding forth passionately on Yeats or Wodehouse was as much of a joy as his famous spars with William Buckley. It is worthwhile taking the time to remember the whole of the man, for he was a true giant.

NOW:

Distrust That Particular Flavor by William Gibson

Author of the cyberpunk classic Neuromancer, along with countless novels through the past three decades, William Gibson has long been on the cutting edge of future-thinkers. Here for the first time, a collection of various published and (until now) unpublished essays and articles, including his famous Wired Magazine assignment detailing life in locked-down Singapore. A fascinating read for fans and newcomers.

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DVDs

THEN:

Terms of Endearment

Now a bona fide classic, Terms of Endearment teams up the great Shirley MacLaine, Debra Winger, and masterful director James L. Brooks in a funny, honest, wholly realistic portrayal of the evolution of a relationship between a mother and daughter over a period of 30 years. This is one of those movies people never stop recommending.

NOW:

50/50

Starring Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Seth Rogen, 50/50 is a realistic, moving and surprisingly funny portrayal of not only the life of someone diagnosed with cancer, but the life of the people around him as well. Based on the real life experiences of Rogen’s close friend Will Reiser, the two wrote the screenplay together; the unflinching honesty they bring is absolutely a breath of fresh and welcome air. Far from a pure comedy, far from a Kleenex-weepie…50/50 feels like a movie about people you know, in a really, really good way.

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