Wesley Britton's Blog, page 25
December 5, 2017
Book Review: Letterman: The Last Giant of Late Night by Jason Zinoman
Letterman: The Last Giant of Late Night
Jason Zinoman
Hardcover:368 pages
Publisher: Harper; First Edition (April 11, 2017)
ISBN-10:0062377213
ISBN-13:978-0062377210
https://www.amazon.com/Letterman-Last...
Reviewed by Dr. Wesley Britton
It’s hard to imagine any future critical biography of David Letterman superseding
the achievement of New York Times comedy critic Jason Zinoman. That’s because his book includes much more than the essential information of Letterman’s youthful influences, early apprentice work, then long discussions of the high-flying career we witnessed on two networks, especially the most significant moments of Letterman’s late-night reign. Zinoman also provides considerable context and analysis of what we saw on the small screen as well as what we didn’t.
Of course, analyzing the life and legacy of Dave Letterman was perhaps one of the most
Daunting challenges any writer could take on of such an enigmatic personality. It was worth the effort. Zinoman successfully blends Letterman’s talents and comic gifts along with his quirks, hypochondria, self-doubt, personal remoteness, and Letterman’s unique vision that the comic turned into one of the most distinctive broadcast canons of them all.
Astutely, Zinoman critiques Letterman’s career by breaking down his book’s organization into the various eras and very different periods of Letterman’s two most important shows on NBC and CBS. Along the way, the author demonstrates why the most creative years took place while Letterman was at NBC, especially when he worked with his professional and personal collaborator, Merrill Markoe. Zinoman also describes how the contributions of writers, directors, and producers like Hal Gurnee, Chris Elliott, Steve O’Donnell, and Rob Burnett fed into Letterman’s unusual concepts of what a talk show could be, their ideas often pushing against the host’s own wishes. We witness the tugs-of-war between the various groups of writers including veterans of the Harvard Lampoon and the on-again, off-again tenures of writers for SNL.
Many long-time fans of Dave Letterman will notice Zinoman chose the guests he discusses to make specific points and not try to provide a rogue’s gallery of the countless faces that walked across Dave’s stage. No mention of Teri Garr continually kicking up her legs in front of Dave’s desk. No mention of the night Dave reconciled with Oprah Winfrey, the night Paul McCartney performed on the outside roof of the Ed Sullivan theatre, or the feud between Letterman and Alaska governor Sarah Palin. No mention of Letterman’s post-retirement work as a celebrity correspondent for the climate change documentary series, Years of Living Dangerously.
Naturally, since so many decades had to be covered, how could any one book touch on every interesting moment? Zinoman does share the origins of Stupid Pet Tricks and the Top Ten list and Letterman’s latter-day stories about the woman breaking into his house, his heart attack, 9/11, and the blackmail threat that led to the exposure of Letterman’s various affairs. Hmm, one wonders how Letterman would have fared in these days of the “Me Too” movement. Should that have happened in 2017, no matter how venerable Letterman had become, odds are he would have had to be fired.
We should be grateful Zinoman avoided the sorts of trails other biographers might have followed, as he doesn’t give us a detailed genealogy of Letterman’s second and current wife, Regina Lasko. We know they married in 2009, bore a son together, not much else. Instead, the author explores everything that mattered in Letterman’s professional career with a very analytical and scholarly eye that is appreciative when that is due, critical when that too is appropriate.
Now, as to whether or not Letterman was the “Last Giant of Late night,” I have to say the jury can’t conclude that just yet. It will be some time before any other host can claim such an honor as the cream of the current crop, Stephen Colbert, has only been on the job a few short years. So for some time to come, there won’t be any competition for this year’s winner of the Mark Twain Prize. And Jason Zinoman too deserves accolades for his timely, well-researched, fast-moving, revelatory, well thought-out exploration of an entertainment giant, the last of his kind or not.
This review first appeared at BookPleasures.com on Dec. 5, 2017
https://is.gd/0Rxy6g
Jason Zinoman
Hardcover:368 pages
Publisher: Harper; First Edition (April 11, 2017)
ISBN-10:0062377213
ISBN-13:978-0062377210
https://www.amazon.com/Letterman-Last...
Reviewed by Dr. Wesley Britton
It’s hard to imagine any future critical biography of David Letterman superseding
the achievement of New York Times comedy critic Jason Zinoman. That’s because his book includes much more than the essential information of Letterman’s youthful influences, early apprentice work, then long discussions of the high-flying career we witnessed on two networks, especially the most significant moments of Letterman’s late-night reign. Zinoman also provides considerable context and analysis of what we saw on the small screen as well as what we didn’t.
Of course, analyzing the life and legacy of Dave Letterman was perhaps one of the most
Daunting challenges any writer could take on of such an enigmatic personality. It was worth the effort. Zinoman successfully blends Letterman’s talents and comic gifts along with his quirks, hypochondria, self-doubt, personal remoteness, and Letterman’s unique vision that the comic turned into one of the most distinctive broadcast canons of them all.
Astutely, Zinoman critiques Letterman’s career by breaking down his book’s organization into the various eras and very different periods of Letterman’s two most important shows on NBC and CBS. Along the way, the author demonstrates why the most creative years took place while Letterman was at NBC, especially when he worked with his professional and personal collaborator, Merrill Markoe. Zinoman also describes how the contributions of writers, directors, and producers like Hal Gurnee, Chris Elliott, Steve O’Donnell, and Rob Burnett fed into Letterman’s unusual concepts of what a talk show could be, their ideas often pushing against the host’s own wishes. We witness the tugs-of-war between the various groups of writers including veterans of the Harvard Lampoon and the on-again, off-again tenures of writers for SNL.
Many long-time fans of Dave Letterman will notice Zinoman chose the guests he discusses to make specific points and not try to provide a rogue’s gallery of the countless faces that walked across Dave’s stage. No mention of Teri Garr continually kicking up her legs in front of Dave’s desk. No mention of the night Dave reconciled with Oprah Winfrey, the night Paul McCartney performed on the outside roof of the Ed Sullivan theatre, or the feud between Letterman and Alaska governor Sarah Palin. No mention of Letterman’s post-retirement work as a celebrity correspondent for the climate change documentary series, Years of Living Dangerously.
Naturally, since so many decades had to be covered, how could any one book touch on every interesting moment? Zinoman does share the origins of Stupid Pet Tricks and the Top Ten list and Letterman’s latter-day stories about the woman breaking into his house, his heart attack, 9/11, and the blackmail threat that led to the exposure of Letterman’s various affairs. Hmm, one wonders how Letterman would have fared in these days of the “Me Too” movement. Should that have happened in 2017, no matter how venerable Letterman had become, odds are he would have had to be fired.
We should be grateful Zinoman avoided the sorts of trails other biographers might have followed, as he doesn’t give us a detailed genealogy of Letterman’s second and current wife, Regina Lasko. We know they married in 2009, bore a son together, not much else. Instead, the author explores everything that mattered in Letterman’s professional career with a very analytical and scholarly eye that is appreciative when that is due, critical when that too is appropriate.
Now, as to whether or not Letterman was the “Last Giant of Late night,” I have to say the jury can’t conclude that just yet. It will be some time before any other host can claim such an honor as the cream of the current crop, Stephen Colbert, has only been on the job a few short years. So for some time to come, there won’t be any competition for this year’s winner of the Mark Twain Prize. And Jason Zinoman too deserves accolades for his timely, well-researched, fast-moving, revelatory, well thought-out exploration of an entertainment giant, the last of his kind or not.
This review first appeared at BookPleasures.com on Dec. 5, 2017
https://is.gd/0Rxy6g
December 4, 2017
Book Review: Tenth Avatar: A Quest for Answers by Dr. Kanchan Joshi
Tenth Avatar: A Quest for Answers
Dr. Kanchan Joshi
Paperback: 246 pages
Publisher: Kanchan Joshi (August 24, 2017)
ISBN-10: 069293314X
ISBN-13: 978-0692933145
https://www.amazon.com/Tenth-Avatar-D...
Reviewed by Dr. Wesley Britton
Reading Tenth Avatar is like reading two books in one. At the same time, the book is one of a rare breed in science fiction. I don’t know about your reading list of contemporary sci fi novels, but the vast majority I’ve read are darkly pessimistic and dystopian. Not so the Tenth Avatar. It’s not only optimistic and utopian, but even proposes a path for humanity to follow to achieve a new level of spiritual, economic, political, and social evolution.
The structure of the book is built on two parallel, alternating stories that take place thousands of years apart. One occurs In ancient India where we meet Hanuman, a noted warrior and mystic living in the forests. The setting is full of many mythological and fantasy elements. While there are many humans running about, there are also very intelligent ape-like creatures and their greatest enemy, the demons of a nearby region ruled by the evil Raven. There are all manner of strange, anachronistic weapons including radiation-bearing arrows and missiles as well as powerful flying machines and a monstrous giant robot-like killing machine.
But this world also has warriors using powerful bows and arrows, wooden chariots, and primitive maces. There are important mystical teachers, or “yogis,” who teach wisdom to Hanuman and others in the orbit of powerful, noble king-in-exile, Ram. He’s seeking his wife who was kidnapped by Raven. In this world, the forces of good gain superhuman power through meditation which leads to an awareness of what is beyond a person’s body and self including an understanding of how we fit into, well, everything.
Alternating with this saga is the modern tale of theoretical physicist Krish,
a brilliant mathematician living in California. Trying to seek out the workings of life and the universe using advanced mathematical formulas, he inexplicably hallucinates vivid images of existence beyond his physical self very like what the ancient yogis experienced. Why? He doesn’t know.
Told with a very different style from the tales of Hanuman, the author’s seemingly more grounded, more realistic odyssey of Krish has an intriguing flow with some puzzling plot holes. In the beginning, Krish discovers something he calls Quantum Communication which uses particle streams that can’t be hacked. Very quickly, the military shows interest in Krish’s unproven theories. At the same time, agents of unknown countries or organizations start trying to kill Krish. The FBI assigns protection for the scientist, but apparently not for very long. After his first bodyguard is killed on a plane, we don’t see any signs anyone is watching over Krish even if he did turn over his research to the Department of Defense. By himself, he travels home to India seeking out the lost notes of an important Indian mathematician. Any reader of spy novels will tell you this is ideal territory for more assassination attempts. Or at Krish’s wedding. And who was behind two terrible nuclear bombings in the U.S., over both California and New York? We’re never told. The adventures of Hanuman and Krish are brought together in the end, and I suspect most readers will have picked up on the clues to the ultimate resolutions long before the final reveals.
I have to admit, the use of intense meditation to be the key to gaining overwhelming cosmic awareness sounds better than I suspect it would really work in the real world. I say that as someone who has practiced various kinds of meditation for decades. Still, I am no authority on what meditation technique would make someone a Yogi and/or guru who could transform countless lives.
Nonetheless, it’s very nice to read a novel that projects the possibility that an enlightened humanity could be transformed under the tutelage of the tenth avatar. It’s a story, well, two stories that can serve as antidotes to the typical sci fi futures of genetic manipulation, global warming, biological disaster, or alien invasions that serve as constant warnings of what our futures might be.
This review first appeared at BookPleasures.com on Dec. 4, 2017:
https://is.gd/JNbitp
Here’s an especially cool book trailer for the Tenth Avatar:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=my8r7...
Dr. Kanchan Joshi
Paperback: 246 pages
Publisher: Kanchan Joshi (August 24, 2017)
ISBN-10: 069293314X
ISBN-13: 978-0692933145
https://www.amazon.com/Tenth-Avatar-D...
Reviewed by Dr. Wesley Britton
Reading Tenth Avatar is like reading two books in one. At the same time, the book is one of a rare breed in science fiction. I don’t know about your reading list of contemporary sci fi novels, but the vast majority I’ve read are darkly pessimistic and dystopian. Not so the Tenth Avatar. It’s not only optimistic and utopian, but even proposes a path for humanity to follow to achieve a new level of spiritual, economic, political, and social evolution.
The structure of the book is built on two parallel, alternating stories that take place thousands of years apart. One occurs In ancient India where we meet Hanuman, a noted warrior and mystic living in the forests. The setting is full of many mythological and fantasy elements. While there are many humans running about, there are also very intelligent ape-like creatures and their greatest enemy, the demons of a nearby region ruled by the evil Raven. There are all manner of strange, anachronistic weapons including radiation-bearing arrows and missiles as well as powerful flying machines and a monstrous giant robot-like killing machine.
But this world also has warriors using powerful bows and arrows, wooden chariots, and primitive maces. There are important mystical teachers, or “yogis,” who teach wisdom to Hanuman and others in the orbit of powerful, noble king-in-exile, Ram. He’s seeking his wife who was kidnapped by Raven. In this world, the forces of good gain superhuman power through meditation which leads to an awareness of what is beyond a person’s body and self including an understanding of how we fit into, well, everything.
Alternating with this saga is the modern tale of theoretical physicist Krish,
a brilliant mathematician living in California. Trying to seek out the workings of life and the universe using advanced mathematical formulas, he inexplicably hallucinates vivid images of existence beyond his physical self very like what the ancient yogis experienced. Why? He doesn’t know.
Told with a very different style from the tales of Hanuman, the author’s seemingly more grounded, more realistic odyssey of Krish has an intriguing flow with some puzzling plot holes. In the beginning, Krish discovers something he calls Quantum Communication which uses particle streams that can’t be hacked. Very quickly, the military shows interest in Krish’s unproven theories. At the same time, agents of unknown countries or organizations start trying to kill Krish. The FBI assigns protection for the scientist, but apparently not for very long. After his first bodyguard is killed on a plane, we don’t see any signs anyone is watching over Krish even if he did turn over his research to the Department of Defense. By himself, he travels home to India seeking out the lost notes of an important Indian mathematician. Any reader of spy novels will tell you this is ideal territory for more assassination attempts. Or at Krish’s wedding. And who was behind two terrible nuclear bombings in the U.S., over both California and New York? We’re never told. The adventures of Hanuman and Krish are brought together in the end, and I suspect most readers will have picked up on the clues to the ultimate resolutions long before the final reveals.
I have to admit, the use of intense meditation to be the key to gaining overwhelming cosmic awareness sounds better than I suspect it would really work in the real world. I say that as someone who has practiced various kinds of meditation for decades. Still, I am no authority on what meditation technique would make someone a Yogi and/or guru who could transform countless lives.
Nonetheless, it’s very nice to read a novel that projects the possibility that an enlightened humanity could be transformed under the tutelage of the tenth avatar. It’s a story, well, two stories that can serve as antidotes to the typical sci fi futures of genetic manipulation, global warming, biological disaster, or alien invasions that serve as constant warnings of what our futures might be.
This review first appeared at BookPleasures.com on Dec. 4, 2017:
https://is.gd/JNbitp
Here’s an especially cool book trailer for the Tenth Avatar:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=my8r7...
November 30, 2017
The Big BearManor Media Christmas Sale Begins!
As of Dec. 1, all of BearManor Media’s books are 30% off!
E-Books
To get the holiday discount for all e-book purchases, don’t go to Amazon. The discount only counts if you go to BearManor’s own sales site,
https://bearmanormedia.selz.com/
and plug in the discount code for all e-books-
X05RCWUZ
Please click on the link for the newly published Beta-Earth Chronicles box set, including all six books in the series!
http://bit.ly/BMboxBEC
Now, that’s the way to get some perfectly priced holiday reading!
Paperbacks
Now is the time to pick up your paperback edition of The Blind Alien for 30% off!
http://bearmanormedia.com/the-blind-a...
Fill out your shopping cart,
and then enter the discount code:
twentymore
That would be the way to go if you’d like a paperback edition of The Blind Alien to put under someone’s tree!
Happy Holidays from all Three Earths in the Multi-Verse!
The Big BearManor Media Christmas Sale Begins!
As of Dec. 1, all of BearManor Media’s books are 30% off!
E-Books
To get the holiday discount for all e-book purchases, don’t go to Amazon. The discount only counts if you go to BearManor’s own sales site,
https://bearmanormedia.selz.com/
and plug in the discount code for all e-books-
X05RCWUZ
Please click on the link for the newly published Beta-Earth Chronicles box set, including all six books in the series!
http://bit.ly/BMboxBEC
Now, that’s the way to get some perfectly priced holiday reading!
Paperbacks
Now is the time to pick up your paperback edition of The Blind Alien for 30% off!
http://bearmanormedia.com/the-blind-a...
Fill out your shopping cart,
and then enter the discount code:
twentymore
That would be the way to go if you’d like a paperback edition of The Blind Alien to put under someone’s tree!
Happy Holidays from all Three Earths in the Multi-Verse!
E-Books
To get the holiday discount for all e-book purchases, don’t go to Amazon. The discount only counts if you go to BearManor’s own sales site,
https://bearmanormedia.selz.com/
and plug in the discount code for all e-books-
X05RCWUZ
Please click on the link for the newly published Beta-Earth Chronicles box set, including all six books in the series!
http://bit.ly/BMboxBEC
Now, that’s the way to get some perfectly priced holiday reading!
Paperbacks
Now is the time to pick up your paperback edition of The Blind Alien for 30% off!
http://bearmanormedia.com/the-blind-a...
Fill out your shopping cart,
and then enter the discount code:
twentymore
That would be the way to go if you’d like a paperback edition of The Blind Alien to put under someone’s tree!
Happy Holidays from all Three Earths in the Multi-Verse!
The Big BearManor Media Christmas Sale Begins!
As of Dec. 1, all of BearManor Media’s books are 30% off!
E-Books
To get the holiday discount for all e-book purchases, don’t go to Amazon. The discount only counts if you go to BearManor’s own sales site,
https://bearmanormedia.selz.com/
and plug in the discount code for all e-books-
X05RCWUZ
Please click on the link for the newly published Beta-Earth Chronicles box set, including all six books in the series!
http://bit.ly/BMboxBEC
Now, that’s the way to get some perfectly priced holiday reading!
Paperbacks
Now is the time to pick up your paperback edition of The Blind Alien for 30% off!
http://bearmanormedia.com/the-blind-a...
Fill out your shopping cart,
and then enter the discount code:
twentymore
That would be the way to go if you’d like a paperback edition of The Blind Alien to put under someone’s tree!
Happy Holidays from all Three Earths in the Multi-Verse!
November 29, 2017
Book Review: Long Title: Looking for the Good Times; Examining the Monkees' Songs, One by One by Mark Arnold and Michael A. Ventrella
Long Title: Looking for the Good Times; Examining the Monkees' Songs, One by One
Mark Arnold and Michael A. Ventrella
Paperback: 286 pagesPublisher: BearManor Media (November 10, 2017)
ISBN-10: 1629331759
ISBN-13: 978-1629331751
https://www.amazon.com/Long-Title-Loo...
Reviewed by Dr. Wesley Britton
Some rock ‘n roll histories are designed to tell the stories of significant performers, genres, composers, producers, or record companies that shed light on the backgrounds, influences on, and legacies of their respective subjects. Some rely on considerable research, interviews, or their own experiences to go behind the scenes to show how popular music was made. Some of these histories go beyond the music and reveal much about the culture of the times and and are more than an exploration of a particular band or performer.
Other books have a more specific focus with a much more targeted audience. Such titles are often written by devoted fans and are usually meant to interest fellow aficionados of a particular group or personality. Such is the case for Looking for the Good Times—it’s obviously meant for Monkees fans who don’t mind reads based on personal opinions and not so much critical analysis.
Following a concise history of the group, The book looks at the complete Monkees song canon arranged in chronological order based on recording dates. The authors believe this order also helps show the evolution, or devolution depending on your point of view, of the band as it changed more than some listeners might think. The authors include pretty much every song issued during the 1960s run, many tunes issued on various compilations in the subsequent decades, some tracks the authors never heard but apparently found listed somewhere, alternate takes, rehearsal jams, and some rehearsal bits released on one post-break-up collection or another. A sample “analysis” should illustrate what the book is all about:
VALLERI (Tommy Boyce/Bobby Hart)
Monkee involvement: Vocals by Davy Jones
Recording dates: August 6,1966; August 27,1966; December 26,1967; December 28,1967
Highest chart position: #3 single
Original release date: March 2,1968 from 7" single and THE BIRDS, THE BEES
AND THE MONKEES
Mark: I love, love, love this song and its brass. I also love the flamenco guitar even if Nesmith really isn't playing it. The version I love best is the fade-out version from this album rather than the abrupt cold ending.
A first recorded version appears on the 2006 MORE OF THE MONKEES DELUXE EDITION CD. This is one is basically the version heard on the TV show, which originally appeared on MISSING LINKS, VOLUME 2 (1990). It's a little more lax than the punched-up single version.
Michael: I don't share in the love for this simple little song. In fact, Michael Nesmith is reported to have said that this was the worst song ever. I don't think I'd go that far. The performance is pretty good, and the horns improve the song tremendously from the earlier version done for the TV show, but the words are simple and the tune basically consists of the hook and then two lines, repeated in various ways.
This song fits much better in 1966 when it was first recorded, before the show even debuted. They redid it here and added horns, and it is a better version but it still sounds dated, since music had changed so much in that short period of time.
This was their last hit single, released at the tail end of the TV show before the summer repeats kicked in.
While promo for the book touts interviews with folks like Gene Cornish (The Rascals), Ron Dante (The Archies), Tommy James (The Shondells), Peter Noone (Herman’s Hermits), and actor Butch Patrick, these aren’t interviews but are instead short anecdotes and remembrances by fellow travelers of ‘60s popular culture. Not essential reading, but little bits of fun. Just like the introduction written by Howard Kaylan of The Turtles.
Clearly, interest in the music of The Monkees will be what draws readers to this volume, or not. Unless you’ve devoted the same amount of time to listening to all those hours of Monkees records, out-takes, deep cuts, and alternate versions, readers will likely learn all sorts of trivia they didn’t know before. Me, I decided there’s a large body of Monkee music, especially the Missing Links collections, that I have missed and should try out. Others might like to compare their own knowledge with the authors. For example, the writers don’t seem to know Buffy Ford Stewart, the widow of ex-Kinston Trio member John Stewart, inspired "Daydream Believer," and recorded her own version of the song with Davy Jones in what many believe was his last recording session. Oh, and she really was a homecoming queen.
I don’t think I’ll ever understand the title to this book—“Long Title?” Well, a not-so-important observation. If you’re a Monkees diehard, here’s a little nugget for you.
This review, in a slightly different form, first appeared at BookPleasures.com on Nov. 29, 2017:
https://is.gd/Hhu4zX
Just for fun, here’s a link to a Youtube video with Buffy Ford Stewart dueting with Davy Jones on “Daydream Believer”:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HEfvh...
Mark Arnold and Michael A. Ventrella
Paperback: 286 pagesPublisher: BearManor Media (November 10, 2017)
ISBN-10: 1629331759
ISBN-13: 978-1629331751
https://www.amazon.com/Long-Title-Loo...
Reviewed by Dr. Wesley Britton
Some rock ‘n roll histories are designed to tell the stories of significant performers, genres, composers, producers, or record companies that shed light on the backgrounds, influences on, and legacies of their respective subjects. Some rely on considerable research, interviews, or their own experiences to go behind the scenes to show how popular music was made. Some of these histories go beyond the music and reveal much about the culture of the times and and are more than an exploration of a particular band or performer.
Other books have a more specific focus with a much more targeted audience. Such titles are often written by devoted fans and are usually meant to interest fellow aficionados of a particular group or personality. Such is the case for Looking for the Good Times—it’s obviously meant for Monkees fans who don’t mind reads based on personal opinions and not so much critical analysis.
Following a concise history of the group, The book looks at the complete Monkees song canon arranged in chronological order based on recording dates. The authors believe this order also helps show the evolution, or devolution depending on your point of view, of the band as it changed more than some listeners might think. The authors include pretty much every song issued during the 1960s run, many tunes issued on various compilations in the subsequent decades, some tracks the authors never heard but apparently found listed somewhere, alternate takes, rehearsal jams, and some rehearsal bits released on one post-break-up collection or another. A sample “analysis” should illustrate what the book is all about:
VALLERI (Tommy Boyce/Bobby Hart)
Monkee involvement: Vocals by Davy Jones
Recording dates: August 6,1966; August 27,1966; December 26,1967; December 28,1967
Highest chart position: #3 single
Original release date: March 2,1968 from 7" single and THE BIRDS, THE BEES
AND THE MONKEES
Mark: I love, love, love this song and its brass. I also love the flamenco guitar even if Nesmith really isn't playing it. The version I love best is the fade-out version from this album rather than the abrupt cold ending.
A first recorded version appears on the 2006 MORE OF THE MONKEES DELUXE EDITION CD. This is one is basically the version heard on the TV show, which originally appeared on MISSING LINKS, VOLUME 2 (1990). It's a little more lax than the punched-up single version.
Michael: I don't share in the love for this simple little song. In fact, Michael Nesmith is reported to have said that this was the worst song ever. I don't think I'd go that far. The performance is pretty good, and the horns improve the song tremendously from the earlier version done for the TV show, but the words are simple and the tune basically consists of the hook and then two lines, repeated in various ways.
This song fits much better in 1966 when it was first recorded, before the show even debuted. They redid it here and added horns, and it is a better version but it still sounds dated, since music had changed so much in that short period of time.
This was their last hit single, released at the tail end of the TV show before the summer repeats kicked in.
While promo for the book touts interviews with folks like Gene Cornish (The Rascals), Ron Dante (The Archies), Tommy James (The Shondells), Peter Noone (Herman’s Hermits), and actor Butch Patrick, these aren’t interviews but are instead short anecdotes and remembrances by fellow travelers of ‘60s popular culture. Not essential reading, but little bits of fun. Just like the introduction written by Howard Kaylan of The Turtles.
Clearly, interest in the music of The Monkees will be what draws readers to this volume, or not. Unless you’ve devoted the same amount of time to listening to all those hours of Monkees records, out-takes, deep cuts, and alternate versions, readers will likely learn all sorts of trivia they didn’t know before. Me, I decided there’s a large body of Monkee music, especially the Missing Links collections, that I have missed and should try out. Others might like to compare their own knowledge with the authors. For example, the writers don’t seem to know Buffy Ford Stewart, the widow of ex-Kinston Trio member John Stewart, inspired "Daydream Believer," and recorded her own version of the song with Davy Jones in what many believe was his last recording session. Oh, and she really was a homecoming queen.
I don’t think I’ll ever understand the title to this book—“Long Title?” Well, a not-so-important observation. If you’re a Monkees diehard, here’s a little nugget for you.
This review, in a slightly different form, first appeared at BookPleasures.com on Nov. 29, 2017:
https://is.gd/Hhu4zX
Just for fun, here’s a link to a Youtube video with Buffy Ford Stewart dueting with Davy Jones on “Daydream Believer”:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HEfvh...
November 27, 2017
Book Review: Moving Target: The History and Evolution of Green Arrow by Richard Gray
Moving Target: The History and Evolution of Green Arrow
Richard Gray
Paperback: 338 pages
Publisher: Sequart Research & Literacy Organization (August 11, 2017)
ISBN-10: 1940589169
ISBN-13: 978-1940589169
https://www.amazon.com/Moving-Target-...
Reviewed by Dr. Wesley Britton
Every time I review a new offering from the Sequart Research & Literacy Organization, I always feel obligated to provide a short introduction so potential readers unfamiliar with the publisher will learn this group is a top-notch contributor of scholarly looks into popular culture creations, especially comic book characters, like the X-Men, Daredevil, Batman, the Planet of the Apes, and now DC’s Green Arrow. It’s difficult to imagine how anyone could take these subjects more seriously than Sequart Research, especially their essay anthologies where they look at their specific topics through nearly every conceivable critical lens.
This time around, Moving Target isn’t an anthology drawing from a variety of authors and scholars, but instead relies on the research and devotion of Richard Gray. He’s clearly the planet’s foremost expert on the Emerald Archer. “History and Evolution of The Green Arrow” is an accurate subtitle as the book traces the story of Oliver Queen and his altar ego from 1941 when Arrow was essentially an imitation Batman to the present.
Gray presents the various origin stories given in DC comics over the years and gives us insights from interviews with the creators of the Green Arrow mythos over the decades including comic legends Neal Adams, Mike Grell, Chuck Dixon, Phil Hester, and Brad Meltzer. As a result, we see the Green Arrow story told in the context of the changing worlds of comic books over the years, mainly at the two major publishers, DC and Marvel.
There are some points in the saga that get rather repetitive. For example, Gray continually reminds us that the Green Arrow, usually seen as primarily a secondary character in the DC pantheon of superheroes normaly relegated to supporting features with his name rarely on a book cover on its own, became the conscience of the Justice League of America. In particular, as a human without special powers, the very liberal Queen wanted the superpowered Superman and Wonder Woman to see human, earth-bound problems to be just as worthy of their interest as much as galactic threats. Throughout his long association with Green Lantern, the Arrow again wanted the empowered Lantern to use some of his gifts to deal with contemporary issues like race, drugs, political corruption, and social inequality as much as the desires of the galactic Guardians that had given him that ring of power. Likewise, the Arrow’s long relationship with the Black Canary was often an education in feminism for the characters and we readers.
I’m certain we’ll ever again see an exploration of the Green Arrow as comprehensive and exhaustive as Richard Gray’s Moving Target. Clearly, any reader of the book will have to be an aficionado of that particular character, although diehard comics fans with no special interest in Oliver Queen might enjoy this trek into the realm of a character usually remembered for being the Everyman urban vigilante using trick arrows. Or fans of the TV series and its spin-offs may like insights into those series and reading the long comic book back-stories that preceeded the jump from comic panels to live action adventure.
This review first appeared at BookPleasures.com on Nov. 27, 2017:
https://is.gd/jSCZwS
Richard Gray
Paperback: 338 pages
Publisher: Sequart Research & Literacy Organization (August 11, 2017)
ISBN-10: 1940589169
ISBN-13: 978-1940589169
https://www.amazon.com/Moving-Target-...
Reviewed by Dr. Wesley Britton
Every time I review a new offering from the Sequart Research & Literacy Organization, I always feel obligated to provide a short introduction so potential readers unfamiliar with the publisher will learn this group is a top-notch contributor of scholarly looks into popular culture creations, especially comic book characters, like the X-Men, Daredevil, Batman, the Planet of the Apes, and now DC’s Green Arrow. It’s difficult to imagine how anyone could take these subjects more seriously than Sequart Research, especially their essay anthologies where they look at their specific topics through nearly every conceivable critical lens.
This time around, Moving Target isn’t an anthology drawing from a variety of authors and scholars, but instead relies on the research and devotion of Richard Gray. He’s clearly the planet’s foremost expert on the Emerald Archer. “History and Evolution of The Green Arrow” is an accurate subtitle as the book traces the story of Oliver Queen and his altar ego from 1941 when Arrow was essentially an imitation Batman to the present.
Gray presents the various origin stories given in DC comics over the years and gives us insights from interviews with the creators of the Green Arrow mythos over the decades including comic legends Neal Adams, Mike Grell, Chuck Dixon, Phil Hester, and Brad Meltzer. As a result, we see the Green Arrow story told in the context of the changing worlds of comic books over the years, mainly at the two major publishers, DC and Marvel.
There are some points in the saga that get rather repetitive. For example, Gray continually reminds us that the Green Arrow, usually seen as primarily a secondary character in the DC pantheon of superheroes normaly relegated to supporting features with his name rarely on a book cover on its own, became the conscience of the Justice League of America. In particular, as a human without special powers, the very liberal Queen wanted the superpowered Superman and Wonder Woman to see human, earth-bound problems to be just as worthy of their interest as much as galactic threats. Throughout his long association with Green Lantern, the Arrow again wanted the empowered Lantern to use some of his gifts to deal with contemporary issues like race, drugs, political corruption, and social inequality as much as the desires of the galactic Guardians that had given him that ring of power. Likewise, the Arrow’s long relationship with the Black Canary was often an education in feminism for the characters and we readers.
I’m certain we’ll ever again see an exploration of the Green Arrow as comprehensive and exhaustive as Richard Gray’s Moving Target. Clearly, any reader of the book will have to be an aficionado of that particular character, although diehard comics fans with no special interest in Oliver Queen might enjoy this trek into the realm of a character usually remembered for being the Everyman urban vigilante using trick arrows. Or fans of the TV series and its spin-offs may like insights into those series and reading the long comic book back-stories that preceeded the jump from comic panels to live action adventure.
This review first appeared at BookPleasures.com on Nov. 27, 2017:
https://is.gd/jSCZwS
November 24, 2017
Book Review: The Angel Strikes: Volume 1 of The Brandt Family Chronicles by Oliver Fairfax
The Angel Strikes: Volume 1 of The Brandt Family Chronicles
Oliver Fairfax
Paperback: 264 pages
Publisher: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform; 2 edition (September 10, 2016)
ISBN-10: 1530995760
ISBN-13: 978-1530995769
https://www.amazon.com/Angel-Strikes-...
Reviewed by Dr. Wesley Britton
Should you see some of the publicity for The Angel Strikes, potential readers might think they’re learning about a new novel deeply involved with the Napoleonic wars. In a sense, that’s true, especially in the last quarter of the novel. But much of The Angel Strikes isn’t a typical historical drama. In fact, it doesn’t read like most modern historical fiction but rather feels like a personal memoir or a novel written during the period where everything is set, that is the early years of the 19th century. Just don’t expect much in the way of military action or struggles among the powerful movers and shakers of the period until the latter sections of the story.
The central figures at the beginning of the story, young orphan Paul Brandt and his uncles Franz and Albert, are Russian serfs trying to escape the poverty and misery of their lives by traveling east. Come winter, the trio hole up at an abandoned hut in a German forest, as far removed from worldly affairs as one could get. But not for long. On the road near the hut, two women enter the men’s lives, Anna, a young waif, and her protector, the somewhat mysterious Rosalina. Then other travelers draw the little company into larger affairs including agents for Napoleon’s Imperial Police, along with other gentlemen who might be German, English, or possibly American.
The French agents, enjoying the protection of Napoleon’s power over Prussia, have no problem murdering whomever they like and destroying anyone’s property they choose in search of important lost documents. On the run from these agents, Paul, the narrator of the story, and his group become involved in a battle between French forces and the Prussian army. Paul becomes known as the “angel of Jena” for his courageous killing of French soldiers which allows some Prussians to escape a slaughter on the battlefield.
As their picaresque journey continues, the party arrives at the castle of a friendly Duke who gives them lodging and protection while French assassins, a lusty seamstress, a pedophile priest, various servants trustworthy and otherwise, and a handful of spies become part of the growing Brandt social circles. At the same time, Paul gets more and more formal and informal education in the ways of a sophisticated world far removed from his Russian roots. Throughout his personal odyssey, Paul’s life is shaped by the influence of the Napoleonic clamp on Prussia and the fires of resistance he becomes part of. Then, Paul takes us to Berlin where a young man on his own acquits himself very well by demonstrating what he has learned. It’s this part of the story where Paul Brandt is inevitably drawn into an important role in European history.
Author Oliver Fairfax deserves considerable credit for the level of minute detail he provides. He gives every scene and character in the book complete believability. He avoids making certain incidents melodramatic which other authors would be tempted to pump up. Again, readers can be forgiven for thinking they’re reading a story written between 1804 and the following decade in both style and substance. Perhaps some readers might be unhappy at the amount of description given meals, clothes, dwellings, and transports as well as the lengthy scenes establishing characters and their relationships intertwined with the shots of muskets and the cuttings of daggers and sabres. Not until the final chapters do we witness an epic yarn spun out on a grand scale, but until then we experience a story that’s engaging, personable, and likely to whet the appetite of many a history buff to continue the adventures in the sequels. After all, Oliver Fairfax has very successfully set the stage for the role of Paul Brandt in the coming conflict between France, Russia, and Prussia in 1812.
Originally posted at BookPleasures.com on Nov 24, 2017 at:
https://is.gd/uMViBk
Oliver Fairfax
Paperback: 264 pages
Publisher: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform; 2 edition (September 10, 2016)
ISBN-10: 1530995760
ISBN-13: 978-1530995769
https://www.amazon.com/Angel-Strikes-...
Reviewed by Dr. Wesley Britton
Should you see some of the publicity for The Angel Strikes, potential readers might think they’re learning about a new novel deeply involved with the Napoleonic wars. In a sense, that’s true, especially in the last quarter of the novel. But much of The Angel Strikes isn’t a typical historical drama. In fact, it doesn’t read like most modern historical fiction but rather feels like a personal memoir or a novel written during the period where everything is set, that is the early years of the 19th century. Just don’t expect much in the way of military action or struggles among the powerful movers and shakers of the period until the latter sections of the story.
The central figures at the beginning of the story, young orphan Paul Brandt and his uncles Franz and Albert, are Russian serfs trying to escape the poverty and misery of their lives by traveling east. Come winter, the trio hole up at an abandoned hut in a German forest, as far removed from worldly affairs as one could get. But not for long. On the road near the hut, two women enter the men’s lives, Anna, a young waif, and her protector, the somewhat mysterious Rosalina. Then other travelers draw the little company into larger affairs including agents for Napoleon’s Imperial Police, along with other gentlemen who might be German, English, or possibly American.
The French agents, enjoying the protection of Napoleon’s power over Prussia, have no problem murdering whomever they like and destroying anyone’s property they choose in search of important lost documents. On the run from these agents, Paul, the narrator of the story, and his group become involved in a battle between French forces and the Prussian army. Paul becomes known as the “angel of Jena” for his courageous killing of French soldiers which allows some Prussians to escape a slaughter on the battlefield.
As their picaresque journey continues, the party arrives at the castle of a friendly Duke who gives them lodging and protection while French assassins, a lusty seamstress, a pedophile priest, various servants trustworthy and otherwise, and a handful of spies become part of the growing Brandt social circles. At the same time, Paul gets more and more formal and informal education in the ways of a sophisticated world far removed from his Russian roots. Throughout his personal odyssey, Paul’s life is shaped by the influence of the Napoleonic clamp on Prussia and the fires of resistance he becomes part of. Then, Paul takes us to Berlin where a young man on his own acquits himself very well by demonstrating what he has learned. It’s this part of the story where Paul Brandt is inevitably drawn into an important role in European history.
Author Oliver Fairfax deserves considerable credit for the level of minute detail he provides. He gives every scene and character in the book complete believability. He avoids making certain incidents melodramatic which other authors would be tempted to pump up. Again, readers can be forgiven for thinking they’re reading a story written between 1804 and the following decade in both style and substance. Perhaps some readers might be unhappy at the amount of description given meals, clothes, dwellings, and transports as well as the lengthy scenes establishing characters and their relationships intertwined with the shots of muskets and the cuttings of daggers and sabres. Not until the final chapters do we witness an epic yarn spun out on a grand scale, but until then we experience a story that’s engaging, personable, and likely to whet the appetite of many a history buff to continue the adventures in the sequels. After all, Oliver Fairfax has very successfully set the stage for the role of Paul Brandt in the coming conflict between France, Russia, and Prussia in 1812.
Originally posted at BookPleasures.com on Nov 24, 2017 at:
https://is.gd/uMViBk
Beta-Earth Box Set Now Up at Amazon!
The past few weeks, you’ve seen a number of posts here with Beta-Earth Chronicles news, especially regarding the holiday sales offered by BearManor Media!
Today, I’m delighted to let you know the Beta-Earth Chronicles box set just went up at Amazon!
The Beta Earth Chronicles: The Complete 6 Book Set! by [Britton, Wesley] https://www.amazon.com/dp/B077PYGC53
FYI: Here are the titles of the six books included—
The Blind Alien (2015)
The Blood of Balnakin (2015)
When War Returns (2015)
A Throne for an Alien (2015)
The Third Earth (2016)
Return to Alpha (2017)
Please note: the discounts offered by BearManor Media (see previous post) are not available at Amazon but rather at BMM’s own website where you can plug in the special discount code.
‘Tis the season to bop around the multi-verse with Tribe Renbourn—
Today, I’m delighted to let you know the Beta-Earth Chronicles box set just went up at Amazon!
The Beta Earth Chronicles: The Complete 6 Book Set! by [Britton, Wesley] https://www.amazon.com/dp/B077PYGC53
FYI: Here are the titles of the six books included—
The Blind Alien (2015)
The Blood of Balnakin (2015)
When War Returns (2015)
A Throne for an Alien (2015)
The Third Earth (2016)
Return to Alpha (2017)
Please note: the discounts offered by BearManor Media (see previous post) are not available at Amazon but rather at BMM’s own website where you can plug in the special discount code.
‘Tis the season to bop around the multi-verse with Tribe Renbourn—
November 23, 2017
Please support Return to Alpha by simply clicking a link--
the Our Daycause campaign for Return To Alpha, book 6 of the Beta-Earth Chronicles, is at this link—please stop by and click on the support link there:
https://www.daycause.com/kkantasautho...
https://www.daycause.com/kkantasautho...
November 22, 2017
BearManor Media announces Holiday Sales for the Beta-Earth Chronicles!
BearManor Media wants one and all to know ALL their PRINT EDITIONS on www.bearmanormedia.com are automatically 10% off right now, and that includes the paperback editions of The Blind Alien as well as Wes Britton’s highly regarded 2009 The Encyclopedia of TV Spies.
As we’ve told you before, ALL EBOOKS in BEARMANOR’s Selz.com store are now on sale at 15% off through December 31, 2017, 12:00 p.m. (EST). That includes all six of the Beta-Earth Chronicles: The Blind Alien, The Blood of Balnakin, When War Returns, A Throne for an Alien, The Third Earth, and the brand-new Return to Alpha. As of this writing, you can get all six novels in one “box set” for $18.00—and that’s before the discount!
To get the 15% discount, visit BearManor’s ebook store on Selz.com at:
https://bearmanormedia.selz.com/
Fill out your shopping cart,
and then enter the discount code:
X05RCWUZ
The best news of all is that BearManor’s ANNUAL CHRISTMAS SALE begins December 1 and runs through December 10 12:00 p.m. (EST). We will officially announce this sale on November 30, the day before. We are giving 20% off all print editions in addition to the 10% off you can enjoy now: that = 30% off during the sale.
After Dec. 1, visit--
www.bearmanormedia.com
Fill out your shopping cart,
and then enter the discount code:
twentymore
Happy Holidays from BearManor Media and the Multi-Verse!
As we’ve told you before, ALL EBOOKS in BEARMANOR’s Selz.com store are now on sale at 15% off through December 31, 2017, 12:00 p.m. (EST). That includes all six of the Beta-Earth Chronicles: The Blind Alien, The Blood of Balnakin, When War Returns, A Throne for an Alien, The Third Earth, and the brand-new Return to Alpha. As of this writing, you can get all six novels in one “box set” for $18.00—and that’s before the discount!
To get the 15% discount, visit BearManor’s ebook store on Selz.com at:
https://bearmanormedia.selz.com/
Fill out your shopping cart,
and then enter the discount code:
X05RCWUZ
The best news of all is that BearManor’s ANNUAL CHRISTMAS SALE begins December 1 and runs through December 10 12:00 p.m. (EST). We will officially announce this sale on November 30, the day before. We are giving 20% off all print editions in addition to the 10% off you can enjoy now: that = 30% off during the sale.
After Dec. 1, visit--
www.bearmanormedia.com
Fill out your shopping cart,
and then enter the discount code:
twentymore
Happy Holidays from BearManor Media and the Multi-Verse!
November 17, 2017
The entire Beta-Earth Chronicles now available in a "box set"!
Now’s your chance to get the entire Beta-Earth Chronicles e-books at a heavily discounted price as a “box set.” You can get all six books online at Selz.com for less than $20.00!
Here is the link:
http://selz.co/VJ6cP$XJ4
Here is the link:
http://selz.co/VJ6cP$XJ4
Wesley Britton's Blog
This just came in. My favorite two sentences of all time!
“The Blind Alien is a story with a highly original concept, fascinating characters, and not-too-subtle but truthful allegories. Don’t let the ...more
“The Blind Alien is a story with a highly original concept, fascinating characters, and not-too-subtle but truthful allegories. Don’t let the ...more
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