Culture

Art, music, film, television, sports all loom large in my life.

I have always enjoyed music and have spent years studying where American music, all American music, came from. Where exactly are our nation's artists' roots? How has American expression arrived to where it currently stands?

These questions led me to study our music historically and trace the albums and artists as far back as the 1920s. There's an outdated theory about "American Exceptionalism" when it comes to industry and military might and such. Well, I'm of the opinion that, though some believe that viewing everything through an "American Exceptionalism" point of view may be a regressive, nationalistic-to-a-fault, and non-global way of thinking, the art & literature made in the U.S.A. between The Second Industrial Revolution and into the 1980s was indeed exceptional.

I particularly enjoy the style of Jazz known as "Bop." Its early innovators are household names such as Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie, Charles Mingus, Miles Davis, Max Roach, Thelonious Monk, John Coltrane, and even though most don't consider Duke Ellington as a "Bop" artist, he did play on a few Bop records and his music paved the way for Bop.

Though I obviously have an affinity for jazz- blues, soul, funk, rock 'n roll, and country western all weigh heavily on my mind and on my record shelves. Here's a list of some of my favorite artists:

Jazz	Soul & Funk	Blues + Rock 'n Roll	21st Century	Country Western
Duke Ellington	James Brown	Tom Waits	LCD Soundsystem	Hank Williams
Miles Davis	Ray Charles	Link Wray	Magnolia Electric Co.	The Deslondes
Bill Evans	Curtis Mayfield	Muddy Waters	Animal Collective	Blaze Foley
Charles Mingus	Nina Simone	Lou Reed	Wilco	George Jones
Thelonious Monk	Booker T. & The MG's	CW Stoneking	Flaming Lips	Lefty Frizzell

As for film, there was a seminal moment that changed the way I viewed cinema. One weekend during the fall of 1996 (I was twelve years old), I rented two movies on VHS. Without knowing how important the decision of choosing those two movies would become, I rented The Rock and The Shawshank Redemption.

The first evening, I saw The Rock. While watching one Beatles-on-vinyl-loving scientist and one audacious political prisoner succeed in stopping a platoon of domestic terrorists who have already seized Alcatraz (as well as kidnapped a few dozen tourists) from detonating some mysterious and cataclysmic toxic gas that could potentially wipe out the entire Bay Area, there wasn't a moment that I didn't feel foolish, irrational, gullible, and eventually angry that a prominent American studio believes they can produce this type of product and behave with confidence knowing that we as a buying public will gladly accept it. The components that make action movies, especially Jerry Bruckheimer action movies, such as the cheesy lines that precipitate thoughtless action sequences and implausible scenarios that give way to even more implausible conclusions made the experience particularly insufferable.

I'm not sure I've ever gotten over it. And, yes, people have called me humorless before.

The following film provided something entirely different. A film about two flawed men both working to come to terms with past mistakes as well as the harsh injustices that life has laid at their feet. This was quite the departure from my real life, but it was also an experience that made me more aware of the human struggle. I saw that film, that I'm sure most of you have seen, and upon its conclusion - keep in mind that I was just under twelve years of age- I experienced a revelation. I experienced the byproduct that follows quality, worthwhile communication and growth through an artistic medium. I wanted to chase that feeling again and again. And so, I instantly committed to experiencing art that has this very specific type of potential.

A few of my favorite actors along with some of their notable films:

Jack Nicholson	Paul Newman	Marlon Brando
Five Easy Pieces	The Hustler	On the Waterfront
Chinatown	Cool Hand Luke	A Streetcar Named Desire
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest	Cat on a Hot Tin Roof	The Godfather

Here are a few promotional posters from some of my favorite films: