Bamboo House of Dolls (1973) — Congrats, Sir Run Run Shaw!
December 16th, 2011 by Mr. C
Director: Gwai Chi Hung
Producer: Shaw Brothers Studio
Stars: Betty Duth, Lo Lieh, Wong Hap
Genre: women in prison, exploitation
What’s up y’all! I’m back from a lightweight bout riddled by a case of the peking opera-holiday blues. A few stomps on some old fax machines and the removal of some flairs proved to be a nice remedy of wonton-noodle soup for the soul! Now, back to the movie un-reviews of trashy hong kong gems to smash any remnants of fake festive cheer!?
First off, congratulations to 104 year old Sir Run Run Shaw on his retirement from Hong Kong TVB at the end of this year! What’s the ancient chinese secret for longevity, Mr. Shaw? Lo Pan (James Hong) from Big Trouble in Little China can probably take a few pointers from you! If you ask me, I think the magic elixir could be traced back to the creation of his Shaw Brothers studio! A nice dosage of sexploitation, kong fu, T’s and “A” , & cute chicks will turn any frown upside down! Ah-hemm, this seems to be a nice segue to drop down mentions about the Shaw Brother film, Bamboo House of Doll’s!
Some say this is a cheap copycat of similiar proportions from the women in prison films by Roger Corman like The Big Doll House starring Pam Grier in particular and they are probably right, but hurt me-hurt me…I still enjoyed it!
The Big Doll House & Bamboo House of Dolls shared the same quality with the women in lockdown theme while being sadistically tortured and raped but Bamboo is centered more towards nationalism and the Japanese troops invading China on a mad hunt to look for this pot of gold. Any guerillas or rebels in china standing in their way would get killed without any rice spilled. Chinese women and a few american red cross nurses would get rounded up and imprisoned into a concentration camp for further pleasure prodding & poking by the Japanese militiary which includes some girl on girl action initiated by Miko, a Japanese lady in command! Even the blind would not be left untouched! In certain scenes, the ladies in prison looked like they were having entirely too much fun for damsels in extreme distress especially during the sensual bathing sequences! Hey, that works for me! Food fights escalating into full blown cat throwdowns dissolving into frolicking & rolling around on the ground with their tops yanked off was pretty festive or cough, cough….horrible!
It wasn’t all fun & games though as the distraught ladies looked for an escape route as the Japanese looked for ways to coerce one of the captives, Hong Yulan into divulging the location of where the gold was. Here’s the kicker – one of the women captives is acting as a spy for the japanese! Another surprise would cast Shaw Brother great, Lo Lieh – playing the role of Cui Guidon, a chinese orphan raised by the Japanese. He would be a very important piece to the story!
Bamboo House of Dolls is every bit as distasteful, gaudy, & sadistic as a Shaw Brother exploitation film can get which makes it all so fun! It was nice seeing Lo Lieh sink his fangs into a white woman as his love interest instead of his usual roles of playing a badass martial arts master like in “King Boxer” otherwise known as “5 Fingers of Death” ! This movie is worth your time if you like trashy & smutty films — Shaw Style!
Tags: mr c, shaw brothers
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Pooperazzi: Photos From Outer Space 2
December 12th, 2011 by chocko
Tyrese at J&R Music World for the release of his new album, Open Invitation. I got him to sign a comic book he wrote titled Mayhem.
Fred Armisen at J&R Music World during his Portlandia Season One DVD Signing. He’s such a nice guy! Don’t you wanna high five the photo?
Lynne Ramsay (director), Tilda Swinton and some little cast members at the premiere of We Need To Talk About Kevin at Sunshine Cinema. Kathy Griffin seen at the Creperie NYC in the West Village.
Sasha Grey at San Diego Comic Con promoting her voice acting in the video game Saints Row: The Third. Olivia Munn and the OMFG hang out on the grass during the SDCC for a game of duck, duck, goose.
Charlie Wilson at J&R for the release of his new album Just Charlie.
Thurston Moore (Sonic Youth) and Henry Rollins at McNally Jackson Books for the release of Henry’s photo book titled Occupants.
(all photos by chocko)
Tags: fred armisen, henry rollins, photos, sasha gray, tilda swinton
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The Brooklyn Comics and Graphics Festival 2011
December 10th, 2011 by chocko
The Brooklyn Comics and Graphics Fest, a celebration of cartoon and graphic art took place last week at the Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Church. The gym and basement were packed with exhibitors from the underground to the more established Drawn & Quarterly, Fantagraphics and Top Shelf crews. The place was buzzing with art and creativity and every year it is an inspiring place to be. The BCGF has been a free event and this year they included programming at a nearby venue, Union Pool and a film series at Spectacle Theater. Going to this festival has become a yearly tradition and hopefully there are many more BCGF’s to come.
Jack Davis. This guy is the man…an American master of cartoons and illustration since the 1950’s, drawing for EC Comics, MAD Magazine, and Humbug. We went to the Q+A panel where Mr. Davis talked about his early days in his career and how he later got jobs illustrating movie posters, album covers and drawing for publications such as Time Magazine and TV Guide. He spoke with a slow, charming southern drawl and treated the packed room to many recollections and stories. He is a humble gentleman with amazing work ethic and endless talent. Fantagraphics just released a book titled Jack Davis: Drawing American Pop Culture – A Career Retrospective. I need that on my book shelf!
After his Q+A, Jack Davis hung out signed books, posters, and record albums at the Fantagraphics table. I got my Humbug Box Set signed!
Box Brown of Everything Dies was at the Retrofit Comics table along with Josh Bayer and Pat Aulisio. I picked up Josh and Pat’s recent insane collaboration, The Unforgiving Blade of Conon. I also bought a copy of Box Brown’s Roussimoff which is about the life of Andre The Giant.
Fort Thunder’s C.F. and underground legend Gary Panther sketch at the debut of Kramers Ergot 8 released by PictureBox. I saw Gary sketch with his eyes closed. It came out better than what I could ever draw.
Gabrielle Bell and Dash Snow keep their head down, busily drawing while Frank Santoro demonstrates his comic book kung fu skills.
Panels and Q+A’s took place a couple of blocks away at Union Pool and were also free and open to the public. We got to see Jack Davis in a rare public appearance, Phoebe Gloeckner talk about her new project about the unsolved murders of women in Ciudad Juárez and C.F. and Brian Ralph from the Providence, RI art scene talk about comics and their start at the now defunct art space, Fort Thunder. Pictured above is David Sandlin, John Porcellino and Garbrielle Bell discussing their writing techniques.
Tags: bcgf, gabrielle bell, gary panther, jack davis, kramers ergot 8, retrofit comics
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Chiller Theatre 2011
December 2nd, 2011 by chocko
Last October, the Chiller Theatre Expo invaded the toxic suburbs of New Jersey, uniting fans of horror, sci-fi (shout-out to the late Forrest J. Ackerman!), b-movies and everything in between straight out the basements. There’s always something for everyone at the the bi-annual convention from special movie screenings, guest panels, model & art contests and live music. Special guests from around the globe made their appearance to shake some hands and autograph stuff. Chocko and Mr. C went on a Friday night for a less crowded and funky experience. The next Chiller is in April. Don’t you ghastly ghouls and giddy goons miss out!
The very cool Planet Of The Apes Costume Exhibit…too realistic and kinda scary. “Take your stinking paws off me you damn dirty ape!”
Torrie Wilson looking more than ready to wrestle
Michale Graves…ex-Misfits vocalist, singer of Marky Ramone’s Blitzkrieg and solo artist. Excellent makeup job-sure to drive the ghouls crazy!
Richard Kiel, the 7’2″ steel-toothed villain of Moonraker takes a coffee break. Kiel was the original choice to portray the Incredible Hulk in the 70’s television series, but after 2 days of filming he was replaced with the more musclebound and bulky Lou Ferrigno.
Elvira makes her last east coast convention appearance. Say it isn’t so!
Pam Grier, one of my all time favorite actresses and the kick-ass queen of blaxploitation films! I wanted her autograph, but at 35 bucks a pop, this sucka’s keeping the wallet closed! Bo Svenson was also in the house…he was in the original Inglorious Bastards (1978) and will be making his 3rd cameo in a Tarantino movie in the upcoming Django Unchained.
Ed Repka…you might recognize his artwork. He’s done the art on a ton of heavy metal albums including Megadeth, Toxik, Municipal Waste and Death. He drew me an awesome Crimson Ghost sketch.
Here is an original Roger Kastel oil painting which was on display along with other art pieces. Roger is the artist of the Empire Strikes Back movie poster but probably most well known for the iconic Jaws movie poster art. Roger Kastel was so friendly and a pleasure to talk to.
Traci Lords was dressed as Little Red Riding Hood. That lady got me doing a triple take…nearly broke my neck. Nosferatu was also seen walking the halls of Chiller. The Legendary Horror Host Zacherley the Cool Ghoul was also in the house! We got Mad Respect for the Horror OG!
There was plenty of stuff for sale at the vendors tables…dolls, movies, models and Zacherley mugs! I bought a few movies: Ilsa She Wolf of The SS (a smutty, trashy classic-definitely not for the squeamish!), Mondo Topless (a documentary by Russ Meyers…the title speaks for itself) and a sci-fi blast from the groovy sixties, Wild Wild Planet.
Santa Claus was in the building styling and profiling.
(photos by chocko)
Tags: chiller theatre, convention, elvira, horror, pam grier, zacherley
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Ronnie Spector at south street seaport–christmas tree lighting
November 27th, 2011 by Mr. C
Probably more parts scrooge than festive usually, we landed the planet chocko mothership on the cobblestone streets of cannon’s walk by South Street Seaport to celebrate the OTHER more diminutive christmas tree lighting in NYC. The main attraction that really drew us in was the performance by the legendary Ronnie Spector (The Ronettes), NYC—East Harlem’s own! But, before we were served with Ms. Spector’s rock n roll with soul–christmas edition, we would be treated by the festive sounds of the Darren Wallis Jazz Trio who threw down some funky renditions of familiar holiday tunes. The School of Rock band from NYC would be next as they covered Nirvana (About a Girl), The Beatles (Because), & a Kinks song that escapes me right now.
The Big Apple Chorus would bat next as they added more fuel to the fire as they lit up the christmas tree with their wonderful harmonies & melodies in addition to a special guest…a scrooge singing on the top row of the chorus! They performed classic holiday music like Have yourself a merry little christmas, Feliz Navidad, Santa Claus is coming to town, Rockin around the xmas tree, Alvin & the Chipmunks’ (hula hoop), Little Saint Nick (Beach Boys), a Jewish hymn, & an Angel Hymn. It was really neat watching the chorus and their facial expressions as they sang! They really got into the performances! The Beach Boys, Alvin & the Chipmunks, & Feliz Navidad songs were my favorites!
Last but not least, the rock n roll bad girl herself–lead singer for The Ronettes from the 1960’s–Ronnie Spector graced south street seaport as she was decked out in glamorous claus wear! She still has the attitude, stage presence, & the soulful–piercing vocals! Chocko & I had last seen Spector perform in the summer at Lincoln Center’s Damrosch park to celebrate girl groups from the past! Before that, planet chocko would usually get treated to Ronnie Spector performing as a special guest at The Ramones’ birthday bashes at Coney Island High & the Continental in the east village! Boy, we miss those days!
Ronnie performed a 4 song set backed by the Big Apple Chorus to celebrate the Christmas Tree lighting at the Seaport as Santa Claus greeted her on the stage! She belted each tune out of the park as she sang Christmas once again, Sleigh Ride, Frosty the Snowman, & Baby I love you! I had a brief & smokey dream of Joey Ramone and The Boss joining her with the festivities!
If you guys haven’t picked up Ronnie Spector’s rendition of Amy Winehouse’s–Back To Black then you should! It’s a great cover & a wonderful tribute to Amy. All proceeds of the single will be donated to Daytop Village, a NYC-based substance abuse center.
Spector is scheduled to perform at the Cutting Room in NYC on December 16 & 17th! Get your tickets, folks! It’s gonna be Ronnie Spector’s best Christmas party ever! Literally!
(all pics by mr. c)
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Kicksville Confidential
November 23rd, 2011 by chocko
This new comic book features true torrid tales by Billy Miller and art by Avi Spivak. The book starts with the story of how Billy, a Brooklyn record dealer, met Miriam Linna, an avid record collector and The Cramps first drummer. The two really hit it off and eventually started Kicks magazine and then in 1986 began releasing some of the sickest, rarest tunes on their own label, Norton Records. Norton Records have been around for 25 years now and still going strong, releasing the best records around from all types of genres including rare rock n’ roll from the fifties and sixties, soul, rockabilly, jazz, garage band music and punk rock.
The book is busting at the seams with facts, profiles and outrageous stories about the artists on the Norton label such as Hasil Adkins, Esquerita, The Mighty Hannibal, Link Wray and Rudy Ray Moore to name a few. One of my favorite stories involved one of my favorite actors of all time…Rudy Ray Moore a.k.a. Dolemite! I never knew he started his career as a blues and R&B singer. I also enjoyed reading how The Mighty Hannibal stole a circus elephant and rode it through the streets of Manhattan. Reading about Esquerita and his street fight with Screamin’ Jay Hawkins was definitely a highlight too.
The art in the book is all in glorious black and white, but is very dense with a lot going on in the drawings and panels. The artist, Avi Spivak, also writes and draws a NYC music ‘zine titled “Human Being Lawnmower” where you can find band interviews and more of Avi’s comics. I’ve been a fan of his cartoons and drawings ever since seeing his art on punk rock flyers in NYC. I recommend buying this book and support stores that sell underground comics and keep digging in those dusty record store crates!
Tags: avi spivak, hasil adkins, norton records
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High on Crack Street: Lost lives in Lowell
November 23rd, 2011 by Mr. C
Revisiting this documentary shadowing 3 lost souls with a harrowing crack addiction in Lowell, Massachusetts in 1993 just put a whole new perspective on Thanksgiving day for me. High on Crack Street would follow Brenda, Boo Boo, & Dick Eklund (former pro boxer & older brother of “Irish” Micky Ward) for 18 months up & around in crack houses, jail, rehab, a boxing gym, & a medical clinic. God only knows how much HBO put forth in compensating the troubled trio for their on screen services & voracious habits.
Lowell, Massachussetts was known at one time as being the largest producer of cotton textile in the United States which gave them the title of being the 1st land industrial city in the US. Unfortunately, in the 1920’s most of the cotton textile industries in Lowell began to move down south which caused the city to empty out. Fast forward to the 1990’s and the city still has a roughneck disposition to its existence. Drugs, unemployment, & lack of education would slay any dragon.
Boo Boo would feed his $200+ a day rock habit by rhymin’ & stealin’ and not by the Beastie Boys’ code of ethics either. The film showed him going into a store and blitzing right out with a set of golf clubs without paying of course. I guess you can say the film crew was an accomplice to the crime as they provided the getaway for the operation.
Brenda was another victim of the night of the living baseheads as well. She has an on/off relationship with Boo Boo as she hooks on the streets of Lowell to feed her habit. She also has an on/off relationship with rehab, too. Things get a little complicated when Brenda finds out that she is prego but who is the father? Hmmm, can it be Boo Boo, ex-boyfriend Mike, or one of her paying friends from the streets? The prospects of abortion will be discussed.
Another bomb would drop on boo boo when he discovers that he is HIV positive.
Dicky Eklund, a former boxer whose most famous bout was against Sugar Ray Leonard in July of 1978 is the most dangerous of the night of the living baseheads! Being hopped up on crack and possessing two lethal hands as weapons is not a good combination. Eklund feeds his habit by robbin’ & stealin’ using lethal force by any means neccessary including assistance from a sawed off shotgun. Eklund finds himself in/out of jail as he uses boxing as a solace point but eventually the demons would come a calling once again. Dicky awaits trial for a more serious offense and the consequences can land him up to a decade in jail. The mother sets up a benefit at the local VFW replaying the 1978 boxing match between Eklund vs Sugar Ray Leonard in order to collect funds to try and bail out her son from jail. Who would know that this benefit would generate fisticuffs of their own?! Eklunds relationship with his professional boxer-brother Micky Ward has also been a rollercoaster of emotions. Training his brother for a fight seems to keep him out of trouble…for the night, but unfortunately the baseheads would eventually come knocking on his door.
The three would seem to go on a path of self destruction as AIDS, a pregnant crack addict, & a man prone to a life of violence can only lead to the calling from the crimson ghost.
To get a drama filled replay of Dicky Eklund on screen, watch The Fighter. It’s definitely a piece of work! This movie is mostly about Micky Ward — the boxer and his family, but Dicky Eklund played by Christian Bale in the movie really stole the show!
And remember, Crack is Wack, folks! Happy Thanksgiving?!
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The Last Fight (1983) — friday night fights at the movies!
November 18th, 2011 by Mr. C
Director: Fred Williamson
Stars: Ruben Blades, Willie Colon, Fred Williamson, Don King, Nereida Mercado, Darlanne Fluegel, Joe Spinell, Tony Sirico
Genre: boxing drama
Fred “The Hammer” Williamson, former NFL football player from the 1960’s directed and starred in this entertaining nuyorican-barrio piece playing the role of Jessie Crowder–private investigator & ex-cop! This was a fun movie especially because it entailed boxing as the main course with a badass brother from another mother doing some CSI work. The cool breeze salsa soundtrack was performed by the Fania All Stars with two main members from the band, Ruben Blades & Willie Colon starring in film as well! Bada-bing, even Tony Sirico was in this movie portraying the role of what else…a gangster! Cameos included Celia Cruz (Fania All Stars), Don King, boxer-Jose Torres, boxer-Salvador Sanchez, Johnny Pacheco (Fania All Stars), Hector Lavoe (Fania All Stars), referee-Tony Perez, & Producer-Bert Sugarman! The film was shot in various locations throughout NYC including the upper west side of manhattan & the Gramercy boxing gym. The west side highway & west end avenue played home to a few street scenes as well.
The story unfolds with a troubled Andy “Kid Clave” Perez (Ruben Blades), an up and coming jr. lightweight boxing contender by night & professional salsa singer all other times, who is trying to get himself out of a huge gambling debt. With a sick mother bedridden in a hospital, he decides to sign a contract with Joaqin (Willie Colon), a local gangster who promises to wipe out his debt & help take care of his mother’s medical bills along with the prospects of sharing Kid Clave’s boxing earnings 50-50. Papa, the manager & trainer is disgusted with the news and despises Joaqin as the local, no good crook. The trainer decides to go to the boxing commission to appeal the contract. Bada bing, bada boom…soon, henchmen would arrive at the gym in the late hours to talk some sense into Papa amongst other things. The ex-champ, Jose Torres would share some fisticuffs with the goons!
Big bad Jessie Crowder arrives on the scene as a private investigator to survey the situation. It was funny & ironic that Don King would be consulted by Crowder about the no good Joaquin! Can someone say mirror image?
Meanwhile, Kid Clave fights with a heavy heart and a blood clot in his brain sustained from a brouhaha in a club. Things are not quite the same with the salsa warrior in the ring. The ballgame would change once the Kid begins to unravel the truth with the help of his girlfriend! A few explosions later and Andy would find himself in a rage like “Tony Montana”! Fred Williamson would also drop the hammer on some unsuspecting fools. The climax of the film would also include a boxing match to determine the featherweight champion of the world between Andy “Kid Clave” vs the legendary champ, Salvador Sanchez playing himself!
Go see this film, y’all! When will you ever see two legendary nuyorican salsa performers play a boxer and a gangster while also providing the smooth & rhythmic twist your hips type of soundtrack for the film? That coupled with Fred “The Hammer” regulating and inoculating the opposition sounds like a winner to me!
On a sad note, the legendary mexican boxer, Salvador Sanchez died in an automobile accident shortly after the film was made. This movie was in dedication to him.
Yo Puedo Vivir del Amor – Willie Colón & Rubén Blades
Tags: boxing, fania all stars, fred williamson, mr c
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Lady Pink — Evolution
November 14th, 2011 by Mr. C
“Lady Pink’s unique personal vision has been communicated throughout her evolution from subway writer to fine artist.”
—Woodward Gallery
While hovering our UFO on the lower east “chinese” side of manhattan, our radars honed into an art gallery that displayed the works by one of our favorite graffiti artists in the N-Y, Lady Pink. Planet Chocko usually admires her street art on the side of a building, subway trains, & spaceships but her message conveys well to any medium! She earned respect amongst her peers tagging on the NYC subway trains since 1979. From her reputation as an excellent aerosol writer, director-Charlie Ahearn cast her in the role as “Rose” in the classic 1983 graffiti movie, Wild Style! The rest would be history! Her evolution from creating spontaneous-combustible, awe-inspiring graffiti and murals on the public domain to re-mastering some of her work onto canvas is a sight to behold & a must see in person whether on the street, in art galleries, or museums in the like! Lady Pink’s EVOLUTION is on display at the Woodward Gallery from November 5th-December 30th, 2011! Check it, check it out, ya’ll!!
Lady Pink — Evolution
Woodward Gallery
133 Eldridge street (bet. Broome & Delancey)
NY, NY 10002
Tags: art, evolution, graffiti, lady pink
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Joe Frazier: When the Smoke Clears — friday night fights at the movies!
November 11th, 2011 by Mr. C
Director: Mike Todd
Stars: Joe Frazier, Marvis Frazier
Genre: Boxing documentary
It was a very sad & bittersweet feeling when we screened this documentary at IFC Theater just a day after the passing of the great Smokin’ Joe. However, it was also a tremendous way to commemorate and appreciate this boxing legend and more importantly a man who was compassionate towards others–outside the square canvas that is. Family values and community were high priorities in his life and you could clearly see that this would be the solid foundation that would make him into the man that he turned out to be. It just so happened that he was a tenacious & ferocious beast in the ring when he went to work digging those damaging left hooks into someone’s body and soul!
I really dug that this film didn’t concentrate on Frazier’s obvious drama with Muhammad Ali and their epic battles in the ring but instead the director focused more on the man himself, his family in Beaufort-South Carolina, his boxing gym in philly, and the community that benefited from his kind heart. The story would also tell the tale of father and son, Joe and Marvis as they appeared inseparable. Marvis also followed in his fathers footsteps of being a professional prizefighter but you can tell that he wasn’t quite the lion that his dad was. Marvis had a respectable boxing career finishing with a record of 19-2 with two devastating losses to the hands of Iron Mike Tyson & the Easton Assassin, Larry Holmes. There was a touching story told by Marvis in the film after the loss to Larry Holmes with him crying to his dad, expecting Joe to scold him and to tell him how embarrassed he was that he ruined the Frazier name, but instead Joe hugged his son, smiled, and told him everything was alright son, he loved him no matter what. I could only imagine the pressure it was to follow in the footsteps of his dad.
Marvis seemed to blossom into a great man himself thanks to his dad, while he teached, preached, & mentored kids at Joe Frazier’s Gym. The father and son combo definitely was a saviour to the community in this crime ridden area of North Philadelphia. It was a heartbreak to hear of the financial troubles that the gym was going through several years ago which prompted Joe to sell the gym. Now it’s a furniture store.
Cameos from the film included Bernard Hopkins, Larry Merchant, Larry Holmes, George Foreman, Angelo Dundee, & the up and coming boxer from the neighborhood, Isaiah Muneer. They all had nothing but great insight and inspirational words to say about Joe Frazier. It was neat to hear Larry Merchant, Larry Holmes, & Foreman say that Smokin’ Joe might not be the greatest boxer of all time, but his will to win and his HEART was 2nd to none! A revealing statement told by George Foreman was also very poignant. He said that if Muhammad Ali ever called him on the phone and needed some help, he would be there in a minute. If Joe Frazier called him and needed help, he would be there in a second!
Smokin’ Joe represented the humble, softspoken working class folk. His spoken words didn’t break out into cute soliloquy’s or jive talkin’ rhymes such as some other dirty mouth wordsmiths but instead you had a quiet-reserved but relentless warrior ready to destroy his opponent opposite of him in the ring or be destroyed. Outside the ring, he seemed to be a gentle, fun loving family man who truly cared about his fellow brothers and sisters of the human race. It was very nice to hear from the cinematographer & director of this film and Joe’s manager, Les Wolfe that whenever Frazier made a public appearance, he would stay to sign EVERYONE’s autograph. That really says a lot about a person.
I was fortunate enough to be able to meet Joe Frazier at two autograph signing events more than a decade ago in Cherry Hill, NJ and at a Barnes & Noble on Astor Place. He was very gracious and it was fitting that his son, Marvis Frazier was there by his side.
Boxing fan or not, the father and son story of JOE FRAZIER: WHEN THE SMOKE CLEARS is worth the price of admission.
The City of Philadelphia should do more than to erect a statue of Joe Frazier. Although Smokin Joe was not born & bred in Philly, he adopted this gritty city as his home since the late 60’s and he never looked back. Frazier’s fighting style matches up with the city of brotherly love rather well both rugged, tough, & ready to rumble toe to toe! Forget about the fictional character Rocky….Phi-town had a legend and best ambassador to their city under their wings and they didn’t even know it.
Tags: documentary, joe frazier, mr c
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Crosby, Nash and Sweat
November 10th, 2011 by chocko
Last Tuesday, Keith Sweat was at J&R Musicworld in Downtown NYC to celebrate the release of his new album ‘Til The Morning. The Harlem born singer has been in the game since the 80’s ushering in the new jack swing era and continuing on to a successful soul and R&B career along with being a radio personality on the side. The O.G. Keith Sweat signed the new album and old stuff I dug out of the milk crates too. The new album is slamming and doesn’t stray too far from what works for Sweat: smooth R&B ballads which finds the singer begging and pleading with promises of candle light dinners by the fireplace and treating that girl right even if it’s on the living room floor. The album starts out fairly innocent, “Candy Store” takes a trip down memory lane when he met that cute girl at the corner store but the rest of the tracks might make somebody pregnant! The man still got it, tracks like “High As The Sun”, “Make You Say Ooh” and “Til The Morning” will get you hot and bothered and the obvious hit “To The Middle” with T-Pain will get the head nodding, no doubt. “Knew It All Along” teams Sweat up with his former LSG band members, Johnny Gill and the late Gerald Levert. In the song, they portray a man telling a girl, from a friend’s perspective that her boyfriend has been cheating but then suggests hey, I think I could take his place. Coko from SWV is also featured on a track “My Valentine.” Highly recommended if you long for those good old 90’s style r&b songs!
I also wandered around Zuccotti Park to check out what the Occupy Wall Street Protestors were up to. It’s a sight to see…plenty of tents, people holding up protest signs, musicians singing with their guitars, curious tourists, vendors selling stuff like pins and necklaces all under the watchful eye of the police. It was a microcosm of America, with all people young, old, of all races bonded together by a common struggle and a goal of peace, freedom and equality. I was standing in the middle of the park after checking out their kitchen and library when all of a sudden there was a commotion. A group of people were making their way through the park and I immediately recognized David Crosby with his stringy white hair and moustache. Graham Nash was also among the people making their way through the already crowded park and they had guitars with them. Crosby and Nash set up shop and performed a bunch of songs for the people without amplifiers or microphones, completely unplugged. It was difficult to see or hear the two legends but when the crowd sang a long it was truly inspiring. I just wanna say good luck to all the human beings out there protesting and fighting the good fight. May you stay strong, safe and warm through the upcoming colder months.
Tags: crosby and nash, keith sweat, new york city, nyc, occupy wall street, ows
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The Incredible Hulk #1
November 7th, 2011 by chocko
It looks like Marvel Comics are starting some of their books at square one, but don’t be mistaken-it’s not a reboot! The Incredible Hulk #1 features writing by Jason Aaron and art by the legend Marc Silvestri!
We find the Hulk as a bearded and introspective outsider living in the subterranean world beneath the Earth’s surface among a race of creatures, the Moloids, who depend on the Hulk as a hunter and provider. There are some really cool fight scenes of Hulk smashing monsters the size of Rhode Island with no problem. An interesting part of the story is the fact that Hulk and Dr. Bruce Banner have been separated, but we’re not sure how or why that’s happened. Hulk gets a rude awakening when government agents led by the ultra-sexy Amanda Von Doom, crash a Moloid party and request Hulk’s help in stopping Bruce Banner. Looks like Bruce is going cuckoo and experimenting on animals with his team of mutated pig people in some remote jungle.
It will be interesting to see if there will be any cool appearances and cameos in the upcoming issues. The inevitable showdown between Hulk and Banner should be fun and I’m definitely looking forward to more amazing art by Silvestri. The cover for the next issue features the Green Goliath battling a gang of oversized mutated sharks!
Tags: comics, marvel, review
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