Michael gets some guitar time in before returning to his favorite vocation. Happy Halloween!
All posts by Andrew Swartz
Rusty West’s “A Collection of Strange Wilderness Stories – January 2019”
Rusty West’s You Tube videos and books talking about missing people, weird occurrences and Bigfoot have become some of my favorites. I just like his writing style and narration. I think it is very direct and entertaining. But also very spooky! Case in point, in this collection of tales, is the tale of the raided chicken coop. That one gives me the chills. Check out Rusty.
Halloween Strobe Light and Sound Effects (2019)
Here is a seasonal fun item. Rite Aide sells this adjustable party strobe light which also includes spooky sound effects of a haunted house, howling winds, thunder and lightening, creaking doors and general Halloween inspired noise. Buy a couple and have competing audio and video mayhem in your own living room. Michael Myers mask is optional but necessary. Ah. The possibilities!
HALLOWEEN THEME – ISN’T IT TIME YOU TRIED?
It is that time of year again. Want to get into the spirit? Why not pick up your guitar and learn the “Halloween” (1978) theme? I am referring to the music and movie created by John Carpenter that has become very ingrained in our culture. Very remarkable, that!
Here is some guitar tablature that will allow you to easily follow along and learn the tune. Let the celebration begin!
CASINO (1995) – They were too excessive for Vegas!
Martin Scorsese’s epic crime movie of The Mob setting up shop in Las Vegas and the rise and fall of a few of the characters involved. It is hard to believe that this thing is almost three hours long. Violence, greed, colorful dialogue and equally colorful characters inhabit this desert landscape. Episodic in nature, the exploits of all the bad guys and their battles for power and control are nicely interwoven and interesting. Great performances by Robert De Niro, Joe Pesci, and Sharon Stone. This is one of my favorite Scorsese films.
Q – The Winged Serpent (1982)
Not quite a horror comedy but this film definitely has some satirical touches added by director/writer, the late, great Larry Cohen. There is also a good supply of gore such as bitten off limbs and rains of blood from the sky above. Two New York cops are in pursuit of a crazed killer who is enacting Aztec ritual sacrifice on people. Why, you may ask. The rituals will summon forth, Quetzalcoatl , an Aztec god of wind and air who could give the killer more of an edge in taking New York over by force. So, the killings continue both on the ground and in the air. Victims are beheaded on rooftops or carried away and saved as late night Scooby snacks. A hapless criminal stumbles upon the feathered serpent’s lair and leads the cops there to set up an ambush. It then becomes a modern day King Kong finale.
Cohen makes great use of urban location shooting to tell his story and has a lively cast to bring this thing to life. David Carradine and Michael Moriarity gamely go along with the grisly goings on and provide needed spark to this film. Decent stop motion effects for the serpent and lots of interesting aerial photography to show the beast’s point of view as it flaps around town. Cohen had by this point in his career had the It’s Alive and God Told Me To films under his belt. Cohen just recently passed away. An always interesting talent!
Escape Presents: The Abominable Snowman – Fun, Old Radio Adventure
I used to listen to the CBS Mystery Theater radio program late at night as a kid and, then, in later years tried to relive those happy moments by collecting old cassette recorded copies of similar radio drama programs. I stumbled upon this gem, the 1950’s era Escape show and its feature, “The Abominable Snowman”.
The story is presented in an economic style with a handful of characters, emotive music and gobs of sound effects. All the better that there are no visuals involved so that your mind’s eye can more effectively play tricks on you. The imagination can be a powerfully suggestive thing.
A search ensues in the Himalayan mountains to find evidence of an Abominable Snowman or Wildman. Some things are just better left alone. Tragedy ensues. Drama.
This is definitely a nice road trip companion to play as the miles melt away. Just be sure not to pull the car off into some darkly lit, remote location. Who knows what lurks in the shadows?
Apollo 11 – For All Mankind (1969) – Classic Documentary of an Incredible Accomplishment
The 50th anniversary of man first setting foot on the Moon is close upon us.
Looking back at this documentary, it gives an expansive encapsulation of the entire mission from preparation, to lift off, to setting foot on the Moon. And then there remained the task of managing a safe journey back to Earth. Mind boggling! Stunning accomplishment for the United States and the World. Very cool, vintage documentary. Relive this momentous event again and try not to shed a few tears when the Eagle lunar module lands on the Moon. Joyous! We should do this adventure again soon!
Dick Dale, R.I.P.
Dick Dale was known as the King of Surf Guitar. I am including this link to a story reported in Rolling Stone magazine. It tells Dale’s story better than I could:
https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/dick-dale-surf-guitar-king-dead-obituary-809294/
I saw Dale perform at a small club a few years back. His band definitely didn’t hold back on the volume! Treble, reverb, noise showered the crowd. A beautiful thing.
Paul Raymond R.I.P.
Multi-instrumentalist and revolving UFO member MVP, Paul Raymond, passed away recently. Raymond played keyboards and guitar in many different iterations of UFO and had a memorable participation in The Michael Schenker Band. A very reliable addition to any band, his energy and enthusiasm will be missed in the music world.
Peter Tork Passes
Sadly, multi instrumentalist Peter Tork of The Monkees fame has passed at 77. Pete contributed bass, guitar, banjo, keyboards and vocals to The Monkees’ recordings and live shows. Depicted in the show as the simple minded one, in actuality Tork was quite the opinionated “thinker”. Pete passed an audition to become one of the four members of a prefabricated band to appear in a weekly television show copying the Beatles massive cultural appeal in the late 1960’s. Tork did have the ability to play an actual musical instrument which is more then can be said of half of the other members. It didn’t matter much as The Monkees, as they would be christened, had a big record company and weekly television exposure in support of crafting radio friendly music to an audience that could be easily be reached and shown promotional films of the new tunes. Marketing genius! But more than a bit artistically crass. That being said, the creative forces behind the whole Monkees machine produced some timeless pop song classics and the group was a worldwide sensation for a year or two. Tork was the first member to leave the band and went on to continue performing and recording his own music and then rejoined The Monkees in the late 1980’s after MTV played the old TV series to a younger audience. Monkeemania was reborn and their popularity ramped up again for awhile. The Monkees have continued to tour over the years.
Peaceful journey, Mr. Pete!
Do They Give A Trophy Out To Who’s Ejection Is The Best?
On the eve of the grandest viewer spectacle there is, namely, Super Bowl LIII, I would like to share this collection of dubious player performances in football that lead to the player being ejected from the game. I know these athletes are very highly paid and are thought to be role models to youthful fans, and all, but these are very competitive games and in football there is a lot of contact. Let’s face it. Tempers flare, bad manners surface and sportsmanship can go out the window. There is always next week to show people what you’ve got. Anyway, enjoy the blatant cheap shots and the over the top play contained herein. Who know? Maybe some of these players have a future in Professional Wrestling.
DICK MILLER, R.I.P.
Sadness at the passing of great character actor Dick Miller. A wise cracking, world weary, dependable presence in many horror and science fiction pictures including “The Terminator”, “The Howling”, “Gremlins” and an early starring role in the Roger Corman directed “A Bucket of Blood” which is linked to here. Macabre in the extreme, “Blood” is the tale of a destitute artist who turns his fortunes around and becomes the darling of the local Art crowd after he adopts a shocking new change to his sculpting style. Can you guess how? A twisted, enjoyable romp made back when Miller was younger and fresher and not his more recognizable, grizzled self. Miller was 90.
POSEIDEN ADVENTURE – 1972 – WHEN DISASTER MOVIES REIGNED
Here is a disaster flick with an unhappy New Year’s theme. A luxury cruiser on its final voyage has the misfortune of confronting and ending up on the losing end of an earthquake generated massive tidal wave. The net effect is that the USS Poseiden is flipped upside down by the wave and as a result everything down is now up and vise versa. A group of survivors of the initial disaster then mount an effort to find a way to be saved by the eventual rescue crews. What proceeds from this point is a potboiler of clashing ideologies and personalities and unforeseen ship generated crises. What great fun! Gene Hackman leads this merry band as they make their way toward the engine room and meet up with disaster tacked upon disaster. Also features Ernest Borgnine, Stella Stevens, Red Buttons, Shelley Winters and Roddy McDowall. It will keep your attention. Nice special effects. I guess Airport started the disaster trend in movies in the early 1970’s and this one followed before being joined by Earthquake and more Airport flicks. Gritty goings on here to be sure.