"Wish You Were Here" by PINK FLOYD - September 1975 UK LP on Harvest (September 2011 EMI Reissue and Remaster and January 2016 Pink Floyd Records Reissue) - A Review by Mark Barry...

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"…Lost Souls Swimming In A Fish Bowl…"

I've reviewed the 2011 remasters of Pink Floyd's "Meddle" (1971), "Obscured By Clouds" (1972) and "The Dark Side Of The Moon" (1973) – all of which are sonically amazing - but hugely disappointing on the packaging front (miniscule booklets that exclude original details and don’t expand your knowledge a jot). It's pretty much an identical story here. But let's get to the details first...

1. Shine On You Crazy Diamond (Parts 1 to 5) [Side 1]

2. Welcome To The Machine

3. Have A Cigar [Side 2]

4. Wish You Were Here

5. Shine On You Crazy Diamond (Parts 6 to 9)

The LP "Wish You Were Here" was originally released 12 September 1975 on Columbia Records PC 33453 in the USA and 15 September 1975 on Harvest Records SHVL 814 in the UK.

This 26 September 2011 single-disc version (released 27 Sep 2011 in the USA) on EMI 50999 028945 2 2 is a straightforward 5-track remaster of that studio album. 

A 2CD 'Experience' Edition and a 6-Disc 'Immersion' Box Set both arrive on 7 November 2011 (see images below). 

This single-disc 'Discovery' reissue comes in a gatefold card sleeve with a newly laid-out 12-page inlay inside (total playing time 44:18 minutes).

[Note: original UK copies of the vinyl LP came in a 'black' shrink-wrap with a centered circular 'clasping-hands' sticker obscuring the cover underneath (US issues had 'blue' shrink-wrap). This new issue doesn’t feature either of those, but instead simply uses the now familiar artwork underneath - two men shaking hands (one of them on fire).]

Like all the other albums in this 14-title reissue series - JAMES GUTHRIE and JOEL PLANTE have remastered "Wish You Were Here" at the Das Boot Recording Studios in Tahoe in California (Guthrie is a Sound Engineer associated with the band since 1978). The original 1st generation master tapes have obviously been given a thorough going over because it truly feels like each segment has had a staggering amount of time spent on them - worrying out every single nuance possible. The audio result is truly impressive.

On original 1975 vinyl and even later Audiophile represses, this most loved of their albums has always been a sonic disappointment – and frankly the 1994 remastered CD wasn’t a whole lot better either. That’s no longer the case. Little will prepare fans for "Have A Cigar" (sung by fellow Harvest Records label mate Roy Harper) and "Wish You Were Here" (the two opening tracks on Side 2). The funky keyboards and choppy guitars of "Have…" are unbelievably clear – huge in your speakers - while David Gilmour's acoustic guitar lead that comes in at about 1:10 minutes on "Wish…" is simply gorgeous (lyrics above).

The power of the synths on "Welcome To The Machine" still thrills, but the album's centerpiece has always been the 9-part "Shine On You Crazy Diamond" which is spread across both sides of the album (Parts 1-5 opening Side One, Parts 6-9 ending Side 2). Suddenly it's as if a fog has been lifted off the recordings – by the time it hits Dick Parry’s astonishing sax solo at 11:10 minutes – I'll admit to having the same chills I had when I first heard it - all those innocent years ago. Another surprise is how good Parts 8 and 9 on Side 2 are – superb keyboard work from Rick Wright and often forgotten in favour of the more famous Parts 1 to 5 on Side 1. It's an impressive remaster, it really is – Guthrie and Plante are to be praised for their work here.

I wish I could say the same for the staggeringly unimaginative packaging. The 'Pink Floyd' logo you see in all the photos advertising these new reissues turns out to be a sticker on the outer shrink-wrap that gets lost the second you unpeel it. The card sleeves are like The Beatles 09/09/09 EMI reissues - glossy and flimsy - so they smudge with finger prints the second you open them and are easy to bend and crease. The CD itself has the new generic artwork (the sticker design on the outer packaging) repeated in different colour variations throughout the series - a sort of Turquoise and Pale Green for "Meddle", a garish Red and Pink for "Obscured By Clouds", Black and Gray for "Dark Side…" and for "Wish You Were Here" we get Blue and Green. But where is the beautifully designed sticker that graced original album sleeves on both sides of the pond - or the superb logo on the original label? This ludicrous new design has no relevance to the original and speaking of the disc itself - there’s no protective gauze sleeve for the CD either so it will scuff on repeated plays. They’ve put the postcard that came with original albums as a centre-spread in the booklet instead of printing it separately – one of the biggest bands in the world and we get this cheapo shit…

But the skimpy booklet is the biggest disappointment. Although it has the lyrics (like this is a major improvement) it seems little different to the 1994 issue. It has no history on the album (it was about Syd Barrett and the music industry), no pictures of European and Worldwide 7" sleeves for "Have A Cigar" (the single lifted off the album), the different US album artwork etc. There are a few pictures of the band in the studio; the gatefold has the man swimming through sand (newish), but naught else to get your teeth into. OK - it does look nice and does the job adequately - but that's all. It's a lazy-assed approach on behalf of EMI and undermines the sterling work done on the sound front. I hate to come across like some nick-picking fan boy here, but it would have been nice to actually 'discover' something on this so-called 'Discovery' version (docked a star for that). And the superb 17:32 minute Parts 1 to 7 'Edit' of "Shine On You Crazy Diamond" on the 2001 2CD Best of "Echoes" is A.W.O.L. too. 

To sum up – I’m thrilled to say we finally get five-star sound for this truly unique album, but sadly only 3-star presentation in my book. Still - with the truly beautiful sonic upgrade - the casual listener is advised to dig in, rediscover and enjoy...

Die-hard fans however might want to wait for the Japanese Editions that will inevitably arrive in 2012 on the far superior SHM-CD format (a better make of CD playable on all players). With their faithfully reproduced artwork and audiophile reproduction - they may give your bank manager a cold sweat - but they will absolutely be the ones to get if the best is all you'll accept. 

On hearing this - "Meddle", "Obscured By Clouds" and the magnum opus that is "The Dark Side Of The Moon " should be your next port of call. I suspect many will feel exactly the same...

PS: fans of memorabilia should note that for this launch - HMV London is giving away a titled banded-envelope containing 6 colour postcards in the same style as the one in the original LP (a girl diving into a lake) for customers who purchase 2 titles in this reissue campaign. They’re gorgeous and will probably become future collectables.

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"Meddle" by PINK FLOYD. A Review Of The 1971 Studio Album Now Reissued and Remastered Onto CD In 2011.

PINK FLOYD is part of my Series "SOUNDS GOOD: Exceptional CD Remasters 1970s Rock And Pop" Download Book available to buy on Amazon to either your PC or Mac (it will download the Kindle software to read the book for free to your toolbar). Click on the link below to go my Author's Page for this and other related publications:

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"…I’ll Climb That Hill In My Own Way…"

I’ve just come from reviewing the 2011 remaster of Pink Floyd's "Obscured By Clouds" (the album that followed “Meddle” in June 1972) - which is sonically amazing - but is also disappointingly skimpy on the packaging front (a miniscule 8-page booklet). It’s pretty much an identical story here. But to the details first...

Released 30 October 1971 on Harvest Records SMAS-832 in the USA and 13 November 1971 in the UK on Harvest Records SHVL 795 - original UK copies of the vinyl LP came in an untitled textured gatefold sleeve. American issues were titled and featured reversed artwork on a hard-card sleeve – the back of the UK cover put on the front. This 26 September 2011 version (27 Sep 2011 in the USA) on EMI 50999 028942 2 5 is a straightforward 6-track remaster of that studio album and comes in a gatefold card sleeve (using UK artwork) with a 12-page colour inlay inside (total playing time 48:51 minutes).

Like all the other albums in this 14-title reissue series - "Meddle" has been mastered by JAMES GUTHRIE and JOEL PLANTE at the Das Boot Recording Studios in Tahoe in California (Guthrie is a Sound Engineer associated with the band since 1978). The original 1st generation master tapes have obviously been given a thorough going over because it truly feels like each song has had a staggering amount of time spent on them worrying out every single nuance possible. The audio result is truly impressive.

On the 1995 remaster the six-minute opener "One Of These Days" took ages to arrive and even when it did it was somehow dull and lacklustre. How things have changed – when the huge synth riff kicks in about 2:50 on this 2011 version – the sound is incredibly clear - allowing you to hear crashes and bangs going on in the background that I’ve never heard before. Then the sort of Piltdown Man voice says "One Of These Days I'm Gonna Cut You Into Little Pieces…" and all Hell breaks loose – Gilmour's guitar indeed sounding like a musical chainsaw. It's revelatory genius and in that uniquely peculiar Pink Floyd kind of a way.

But even that is trumped by the awesome clarity of the forgotten and hugely underrated "A Pillow Of Winds". Put simply - it sounds 'beautiful'. The jaunty "San Tropez" and the rather pointless ditty that is "Seamus" are both the same – so clear and renewed. The 23:25 minute Side 2 opus "Echoes" has hiss as it opens on sonar pings – but luckily Guthrie and Plante have allowed it to breath instead of using some no-noise dampening technique. So when the funky break takes place at about seven minutes (now being used by Dance DJs in the UK as a mix in sets) it sounds just HUGE. It’s impressive stuff, it really is.

But on this album my heart has always been with "Fearless"(issued as a B-side to "One Of These Days" in the USA and other European territories. It seems like I've waited literally 40 whole years to hear this fabulous song in such clarity. It's a genuine wow – and reminds me of a club I used to go to in Dublin called The Grove in the Seventies when they actually used this song as a 'lurch' (a slow tune). As it fades out to the Liverpool Football Club fans singing "You'll Never Walk Alone"” (a no.1 UK hit for Gerry & The Pacemakers in 1963) – I'm in floods (lyrics above).

I wish I could say the same for the staggeringly unimaginative packaging. The 'Pink Floyd' logo you see in all the photos advertising these new reissues turns out to be a sticker on the outer shrink-wrap that gets lost the second you unpeel it. The card sleeves are like The Beatles 09/09/09 EMI reissues - glossy and flimsy - so they smudge with finger prints the second you open them and are easy to bend and crease. The CD itself has new generic artwork that's repeated in different colour variations throughout the series - a sort of Turquoise and Pale Green for "Meddle", a garish Red and Pink for "Obscured By Clouds" etc. It has no relevance to the original albums whatsoever (where's the original Harvest label they've used on other reissues or the colourful inner bag?) but also has no protective gauze sleeve so it will scuff on repeated plays.

But the skimpy booklet is the biggest disappointment. Although it has the lyrics (like this is a major improvement) it seems little different to the 1995 issue. It has no history on the album, pictures of European and Worldwide 7” sleeves. Ok - it does look nice and does the job adequately - but that's all. It's a lazy-assed approach on behalf of EMI and undermines the sterling work done on the sound front. I hate to come across like some nick-picking fan boy here, but it would have been nice to actually 'discover' something on this so-called 'Discovery' version (docked a star for that). And there are no outtakes either...and man would they have worth a listen.

To sum up - five-star sound with 3-star presentation - but with an opening salvo price of less than a tenner in most stores - and the truly beautiful sonic upgrade thrown in - the casual listener is advised to dig in, rediscover and enjoy.

Die-hard fans however might want to wait for the Japanese Editions that will inevitably arrive in 2012 on the far superior SHM-CD format (a better make of CD playable on all players). With their faithfully reproduced artwork and audiophile reproduction - they may give your bank manager a cold sweat - but they will absolutely be the ones to get if the best is all you'll accept.

"Meddle" is a gem in the Pink Floyd canon and on the strength of the remaster alone - I'm going to have to buy the new "Dark Side Of The Moon " and "Wish You Were Here" versions too. I suspect many will feel exactly the same...

"Obscured By Clouds" by PINK FLOYD (September 2011 EMI 'Disocvery Edition' CD Reissue and Remaster - and January 2016 Pink Floyd Records CD Reissue) - A Review by Mark Barry...

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"...Floating Softly On The Air..."

30 seconds into this 2011 remaster of Pink Floyd's "Obscured By Clouds" and little will prepare fans for the sonic assault that will hit them - it's incredible. Where has this sound quality been for the last 40 years? But I wish I could say the same of the truly naff and skimpy packaging. Still - to the details first...

Released 3 June 1972 in the UK on Harvest Records SHSP 4020 and 15 June 1972 on Harvest Records ST-11078 in the USA - original UK copies of the vinyl LP came in a round-cornered textured sleeve with a sticker on the front advising that it was "Music From La Vallee". The movie by French filmmaker Barbet Schroeder is about a group of young people seeking a mythical valley in Papua New Guinea which on maps is "...obscured by clouds".

1. Obscured By Clouds [Side 1]

2. When You're In

3. Burning Bridges

4. The Gold It's In The...

5. Wot's...Uh The Deal

6. Mudmen

7. Childhood's End [Side 2]

8. Free Four

9. Stay

10. Absolutely Curtains

This 26 September 2011 version (27 Sep 2011 in the USA) of "Obscured By Clouds" by PINK FLOYD on EMI 50999 028943 2 4 (Barcode 5099902894324) is a straightforward 10-track 'Discovery Edition' CD Remaster of that Soundtrack album and comes in a gatefold card sleeve with an 8-page colour inlay inside (total playing time 40:34 minutes).

Mastered by JAMES GUTHRIE and JOEL PLANTE at Das Boot Recording Studios in Tahoe in California in 2011 - the original 1st generation master tapes have been given a thorough going over (Guthrie is a Sound Engineer associated with the band since 1978). In fact - each song feels like these experts have spent a staggering amount of time worrying over every single nuance - because the audio result is truly impressive.

Highlights include the opening track "Obscured By Clouds" (the first of four instrumentals) which fades in with a synth and drum beat - and when it turns on the power at about 23 seconds - the audio is like a punch in the face - clear, warm and swirling around your speakers with amazing presence. "When You're In" is the same though this time with Gilmour's guitar to the fore. "Burning Bridges" sums up the languid feel to so many of the lyric songs - it feels like someone relaxing with a nice bottle of wine in rural France (lyrics above). The acoustic guitars of "Wot's ...Uh The Deal" are gorgeous while the clarity of "Childhood's End" has made me hear instruments I missed before (Gilmour's solo in particular comes at you with an energy it's never had before). "Mudmen" and "Absolutely Curtains" are the other two excellent instrumentals and even the hissy (but lovely) "Stay" hasn't had the air sucked out of it by some no-noise techniques - the two engineers have let it breath. It's all impressive stuff, it really is...

I wish I could say the same for the staggeringly unimaginative packaging. The 'Pink Floyd' logo you see in all the photos advertising these new reissues turns out to be a sticker on the outer shrink-wrap that gets lost the second you unpeel it. The card sleeves are like The Beatles 09/09/09 EMI reissues - glossy and flimsy - so they smudge with finger prints the second you open them and are easy to bend and crease. The CD itself has new generic artwork that's repeated in different colour variations throughout the series - a garish Red and Pink for "Obscured By Clouds", a sort of Turquoise and Pale Green for "Meddle" etc... It has no relevance to the original albums whatsoever (where's the original Harvest label they've used on other reissues or the colourful inner bag?) but also has no protective gauze sleeve so it will scuff on repeated plays.

The front artwork of the original LP is a soft-focus blurred picture of a man in a tree in the rain with the EMI/Harvest logo in the top left hand corner. This new variant drops the logo and has a darker looking picture that to my mind completely looses the aesthetic feel of the original. It just looks wrong somehow. In its favour - when opened the new gatefold shows a beautiful colour still of men on horses being greeted by natives and some other film shots background the lyrics (lead actress Bulle Ogier is on Page 3). But the skimpy booklet is a huge disappointment. Although it has the lyrics (like this is a major improvement), it has no history on the album, pictures of the band etc... The album produced 7" singles in the USA ("Free Four" b/w "Stay") as well as a myriad of European and Worldwide picture sleeves - but again no show. Ok - it does look nice and does the job adequately - but that's all. It's a lazy-assed approach on behalf of EMI and undermines the sterling work done on the sound front. I hate to come across like some nick-picking fan boy here, but it would have been nice to actually 'discover' something on this so-called 'Discovery' version (docked a star). And there's no outtakes nor DVD of the film either...

To sum up - we finally get five-star sound, but in skimpy 3-star presentation. Still, with the truly beautiful sonic upgrade - the casual listener is advised to dig in, rediscover and enjoy.

Die-hard fans however might want to wait for the Japanese Editions that will inevitably arrive in 2012 on the far superior SHM-CD format (a better make of CD playable on all players). With their faithfully reproduced artwork and audiophile reproduction - they may give your bank manager a cold sweat - but they will absolutely be the ones to get if the best is all you'll accept.

"Obscured By Clouds" seems to have always been the runt of the Pink Floyd litter and I've never understood this - it's a cohesive work and contains some of their most musical compositions. For such a famous band it's a weirdly overlooked album when it shouldn't be.

Hopefully this flawed reissue will draw many newcomers in. I've also just listened to "Meddle" as well and it's even more astonishing - so audio-wise neither it nor "Clouds" are obscured any more. Onwards and upwards folks...

This CD was reissued January 2016 in the same packaging on Pink Floyd Records 

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"The Thomas Crown Affair". A Review Of The 1999 Film Now Reissued On An 'All-Regions' BLU RAY by 20th Century Fox in 2011.

"…An Elegant Crime… A Worthy Opponent…"

*** THIS REVIEW IS FOR THE 'BLU RAY' VERSION ***

Armed with nothing more sinister than a plain croissant and a nondescript briefcase beneath his seat, billionaire Thomas Crown (Pierce Brosnan) sits in the Impressionist Gallery of New York’s Metropolitan Museum staring at "Noon: Rest From Work (After Millet)" by Vincent Van Gogh. Approaching from behind comes Bobby the Principal Security Guard (played by Michael Lombard) who then smiles at Crown. It pleases him to see one of the exhibits regular patrons sat in his usual place being no trouble to nobody. But then Bobby is curious...

Immediately to the right of Van Gogh’s 'haystacks' (as his immaculately dressed art-lover calls it) is a painting that would surely appeal to the 42-year old far more – Claude Monet’s "San Giorgio Maggiore At Dusk". But no, Thomas is unmoved. Bobby presses and tells him it’s worth a cool $100 million dollars. But again – Thomas is not impressed. Crown then sighs - and staring with great discipline at the Van Gogh immediately in front of him - he says, "It's nice Bobby. It is. But I like my haystacks…" The Security Guard smiles, shrugs his shoulders and walks away admiring Thomas Crown’s honesty.

A few hours later a 20th Century Greco Asian Horse arrives in a pallet downstairs instead of an Etruscan Sarcophagus – a 'disparity' perhaps? Or perhaps Bobby needs to go to character assessment classes more often…

In 1998 Pierce Brosnan and his production company "Irish Dreamtime" wisely decided to remake the sophisticated 1969 playboy heist movie "The Thomas Crown Affair" which originally starred Steve McQueen and Faye Dunaway - cleverly giving Dunaway the part of Crown’s therapist in the new version. It was a genius move. Already beginning to be straight-jacketed by Bond, Brosnan showed that not only could he pull off a leading man in another film, but he could do it with more style and panache than most of Hollywood’s elite. Remake or no - the result was a critical and commercial winner that sizzled with both sex and sexiness.

Containing both of these - and a great deal more – up steps the movie’s other secret weapon – actress Rene Russo playing a super-savvy Insurance Agent called Catherine Banning. The chemistry between her and Brosnan was so sensational it set tongues wagging globally (“Will you get me? Oh I hope so…”). But with all of this loaded dialogue - promptly followed by sweaty shenanigans on the marble staircase - the movie desperately needed some serious grounding and the occasional laugh. For this they added in the wonderful Denis Leary as Detective Michael McCann (…”some of these broads are wearing my salary…”) and Frankie Faison as his partner Detective Paretti. Their sparring with the smarter Russo character (some of her dialogue titles this review) is magical and so deftly handled.

Also blessed with a brilliantly-written and cleverly plotted script by Lesley Dixon and Kurt Wilmer, great original music by Bill Conti and expert Direction by John McTiernan – "The Thomas Crown Affair" was quite rightly hailed as a fantastic piece of cinema.

Which brings us to this BLU RAY reissue. Its default aspect is 2.35:1 (bars on the top and bottom), but even stretched to full screen – it holds its shape, is detailed and clean. I’m also thrilled to say that the picture upgrade is obvious even as the credits roll. It never looks anything less than great and at times (close-ups of suits, faces in restaurants, her slinky gowns) it looks beautiful. Even in the Museum Basement sequences - which are dark and faintly lit – the print is still superbly clear.

Niggles – the Blu Ray is an American-only issue at the moment, but it is an 'all regions' disc – which means it plays on all players. Some have found that this isn’t the case, but it did on my mine without any fuss whatsoever – so check your machine. The other major let down is the complete absence of any extras – not even a trailer. But - by way of small consolation – the disc can be had for less than a tenner…

To sum up - 12-years haven't diminished the entertainment value of this fantastic remake one jot. And despite the disappointing lack of extras – the truly superb upgrade in picture quality and reasonable price - should convince fans and newcomers alike to put this Blu Ray repurchase high on their wish list. Great stuff.

I’m off now to capsize my yacht and run off with that moll from the insurance company with the M25 legs and Mick Jagger lips (as you do)…

BLU RAY Specifications:
Picture: 2.35:1 Aspect ratio
Audio: English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio, Spanish 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio, French 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio
Subtitles: English for Hard-Of Hearing, Spanish and French

"Sucker Punch". A Review Of The 2011 Film Now Issued On A Double & Triple Pack BLU RAY.

"...Ask Yourself...Where Is My Mind?"

"Sucker Punch" gets close - it really does. For some of its duration - it absolutely rocks. Employing visuals that borrow heavily from Guillermo Del Toro's "Hellboy" and The Wachowski Brothers' "Matrix" (falling empty shell casings, running up and down walls with big guns and even bigger swords) - it serves up huge action set pieces that come at you with the breathtaking audacity of a Punk band doing their first gig.

The story goes something like this - the principal female character (the permanently soppy-faced Baby Doll played by Emily Browning) has five days to 'escape' before the 'High Roller' comes into town and does whatever that perverted twat does. Baby Doll and her fellow inmates are then instructed by a wise warrior (Scott Glenn) to gather up 5 items from 4 battles - a map, a knife, fire and a Key - the fifth item being an unknown - a mythical thing that will set them free if only Baby Doll can recognize what it is. It helps of course that the heroines look like a SEAL team from St. Trinians - tooled-up twenty-something nubiles with protruding cleavage, laced-up leather bodices, frilly skirts and Cheerleader ponytails.

It all sounds like great fun - and as I say - in parts it is. But all that hard-won admiration goes right out the window when we encounter the real world and the 'other' storyline...

The girls are really in a Vermont Sanatorium - orphaned and under the watchful eye of a violent slimeball called Blue (Oscar Isaac). The Lennox House for the Mentally Insane is a place where cruelty is an institutionalized norm and use of their bodies a lucrative side business. To alleviate all of this authority-ignored abuse of the inmates, Dr. Gorski (Carla Gugino) teaches each pretty young lady how to dance and thereby 'escape' to where there is no fear and they are free. "...That place can be as real as any pain..." she wisely councils them - poncing about the theatre area in her own ludicrously provocative outfit that's a composite of teacher, Madam and slut. And as you can imagine - it's these slyly staged scenes that will sorely test the patience of even the most open-minded of viewers. I hate to come across like an old prude here - but the 'girlpower' theme is so obviously exploitive - and worse - the film is blatantly guilty of voyeuristic sleaze it supposedly abhors.

But that’s not the worst part – there’s sickening cruelty doled out by men on the girls. Instead of empowerment of women we get assaults in kitchens, beatings in offices and lap dancing for grotesque male patrons. And "Sucker Punch" somehow seems to gloat on it too. It smacks of appalling hypocrisy and has of course caused an outcry in the States (as did the graphic violence to children in the sick "Watchmen"). Women's Groups everywhere may quite rightly feel that Director Zack Snyder needs to be taken outside - given a good slap - and told to grow up.

It's a damn shame because you can't help but think that with some obvious rejiggering of the plot - put all the fantasy action sequences together in one go with the Asylum stuff at the end - thereby giving you a big reveal and also giving the girls a freedom of sorts - Snyder might have indeed produced a genre masterpiece that actually said something into the bargain. The actresses themselves could also be accused of being 'suckered' into such an obvious mix of titillation and torture, but they were probably having too much fun swinging around on pulleys to notice.

"Sucker Punch" is not a movie I'm going to watch again willingly - let alone buy – and it’s hard to forgive its staggeringly convenient theme about the empowerment of women through sexy clothes and fighting. But some of those action sequences are great and some may feel it’s worth a rental for that alone.

"The Company Men". A Review of the 2010 Film Now On A 2011 BLU RAY.

"…You're Gonna Have A Rough Time Out There…"

Bobby Walker (Ben Affleck) knots his silk tie, jumps into his silver Porsche Convertible, speeds out of the leafy drive of his seven-figure suburban mansion and heads off into his job as Regional Sales Manager for GTX – an $11 billion dollar ship-building conglomerate based in the plusher part of Boston who employ over 60,000 people nationwide…

In a less conspicuously wealthy part of town Phil Woodward (Chris Cooper) – a man who’s been to Vietnam and then worked himself up from a 60-hour week doing dangerous riveting on the propeller shafts of oil-tankers to a distinguished 30-year managerial career – fixes his dapper cufflinks – albeit a little more wearily.

Out by the waterfront in a palatial monolith too gross for mere adjectives, the Executive Vice President of Global Transportation Services (GTX) Gene McClary (played by Tommy Lee Jones) looks down at a machine that polishes his leather shoes to a mirror-like shine. All three then look into their home mirrors with the faintest whiff of insufferable smugness.

Little do any of them know that Black Friday is about to bring a particularly cruel and detached word into their vocabulary – 'downsizing'…

"The Company Men" deals with the American bank collapses of September 2008 and their devastating knock-on effect on US heavy-manufacturing industries and their already constricting workforces. As you can see from the principal actors outlined above - the cast is to die-for – and John Well's Script and Direction gives them real substance to work with. Another weapon in the movie's favour is the cinematography of the legendary ROGER DEAKINS (“The Shawshank Redemption”, “The Hudsucker Proxy” and “True Grit”). Not only is the Blu Ray image immaculate throughout (he can make a car driving down a snowy road look like poetry) – the pristine sheen of home interiors and top floor offices strewn with Degas Paintings and iMacs is both beautiful and menacing – because beneath all that money, veneer and polish is a very real unspoken threat - poverty is only a corporate axe-swing away.

The story begins by putting all three 'company men' in the firing-line – forcing each to reassess themselves and the promises of people they once thought they could trust. Tommy Lee Jones – an actor with as much gravitas as the Lincoln Memorial – does a stunning job of portraying Gene McClary. You can literally 'feel' his treacle-like slide into the abyss. His lifelong friendship with his boss Jim Salinger (a typically excellent Craig T. Nelson) is poisoned beyond repair as corporate greed callously axes 5000 jobs to meet shareholder’s needs – and keep the big boys and their moneyed lifestyle intact (Bobby Walker is the first of these casualties). As the monetary noose tightens – another 5000 job cuts are called for and the blade comes closer to home. In a brilliantly written scene where they’re deciding who goes and who stays - a lawyer tells Gene "…We’re breaking no laws here…" to which Gene replies "…I guess I always assumed we were trying for a higher standard than that…" And is doesn’t help either that Gene is sleeping with Sarah Wilcox (Maria Bello) – an upper-coming executive who does all the firing in a sexy dress with a concerned look…

Chris Cooper too brings the film some badly-needed heart with a brilliant and unnerving portrayal of a man of a certain age losing his job – and by extension what defines him. In a particularly brutal scene - a tough female Career's Officer (Cady Huffman) tells Phil how it really is (her dialogue titles this review) and she doesn’t mince her words "You're pushing sixty and you look like Hell…" She outlines what has to be axed and what has to be massaged in his old fart’s resume. Sat there in a suit that no longer feels right and with his body crouched forward in an already defeated way, Cooper’s look of puppy-dog bewilderment combined with a barely contained rage is so good that it’s palpable. His disintegration later is both sad and painfully believable. He’s a great actor and such an asset to this movie…

But the whole thing pivots on Ben Affleck's character Bobby Walker and the arc of his painful journey. He starts out as an insufferable motormouth earning $120,000 a year plus incentives with a golf-club membership and eating-out expenses of $600 a month. His wife and two kids want for nothing and have every electrical gadget that screams 'we've arrived'. And when he joins the Jobseeker's club he cockily tells Danny (a huge presence in Eamonn Walker) that he'll have a job in a few days – he completely believes it. Three months later – with his car and possessions gone – their home foreclosed on – 100% of his phonecalls not returned and his severance pay running out - he’s beginning to look and sound like a 37-year old loser who can’t support his family. Luckily his wife Maggie (a superlative Rosemary DeWitt) keeps him and their world from falling apart with a practicality that her husband so clearly lacks (they rediscover each other in the process).

Affleck is often accused of being too pretty boy and too lightweight to be taken seriously, but with his two excellent directorial works "Gone Baby Gone" and "The Town" and past performances in "Hollywoodland" and "State Of Play" – once again he shows here that he can easily stand up with the big boys. There’s a scene in Jack’s house (a wonderfully held-back performance by Kevin Costner – a working man who is incensed at the mere presence of this upstart he clearly feels deserves his comeuppance) when Bobby is looking around the room at the dinner table. He sighs - he’s anticipating lectures about responsibility and prayers for hope - his eyelids weigh about 2000 tons. The slide of despair has begun – but there’s still that arrogance there. It's a spot-on performance by Affleck for his character at that particular moment. By the time his Bobby gets to huffing sheets of timber about on a construction site for his hated brother-in-law – his dirty-faced blister-handed appreciation of having 'any' job is real and complete. It's impressive stuff…

Niggles – despite the A-list cast, the beautiful presentation of the print, the often exceptional writing and the slick direction, there’s a gnawing feeling that you’re being asked to care about smug pricks with too much money – people you want to hit over the head repeatedly with a cricket bat. And worse - the movie slyly concentrates too much on the ‘young’ jobless type and not the men of 40, 50 and 60 who can be all but destroyed by such a loss. But luckily the script is smarter than all that and despite a rather pat happy-ending - the sheer quality of the cast and the material win out.

"The Company Men" probably isn't going to trouble any Oscar Nominations List or fire up critics into spilling out orgasmic soliloquies - but like a good night in with friends where way too many drinks have been taken – what was said in liquored-up truth the night before will stay with you for days afterwards. Mostly it’ll make you think about 'work' - how it traps/frees us - how it even gives us life itself...

And if "The Company Men" makes us appreciate what we have and value it - then it's a job well done. A good movie really...

Put it high on your rental list.

"Barney's Version" - A Review Of The 2010 Film Now On A 2011 BLU RAY.

"…Have I Ever Given Up When It Comes To 'You'…"

Sounding not unlike a child’s software program - "Barney's Version" is a terrible name for a film and nearly put me off renting this 'journey' movie – I'm glad it didn’t.

Produced by Robert Lantos and Directed by Richard Lewis, the screenplay by Michael Konyves is adapted from Mordecai Richler’s 1997 book of the same name. Across 30 eventful years, it tells the story of Barney Panofsky – a Monte Cristo smoking, whiskey guzzling chubby man living in Montreal. Barney is the TV Producing equivalent of "Gregory House" – irascible and loveable at the same time. Like his Dad Izzy Panofsky (a scene-stealing Dustin Hoffman) Barney tells it as it is – loves women impulsively – is headstrong in everything he does but has his heart in the right place. But he has a fatal flaw. It isn’t that Barney is deliberately cruel or mean, he just keeps on making terrible mistakes over and over again (most of which are of his own making) and learns rather painfully as the years pass and happiness fades that the enemy is not others but 'himself'.

It begins in Rome in 1974 when we’re introduced to his motley crew of dead-beat friends – there’s Thomas Trabacchi as Leo Fasoli – an Italian artistic genius who has yet to find an appreciative audience, a black friend who does a terrible deed on Barney (he later forgives this) and his best-friend – Boogie. Young, cocky, handsome and fancy-free – Boogie is a full-on babe magnet (played beautifully by Scott Speedman) who can’t seem to finish his brilliant first novel as he systematically hoovers up every narcotic he can get his sweaty hands on. You sense Barney admires his balls and vicariously lives out his fantasies through Bookie’s wanton bohemian lifestyle – but as life and the years go on – Bookie's drug addiction and stupid waste of a God-given talent stop being funny and even lead to a drunken catastrophe by the lake house.

We are then introducing to Barney’s three women – Clara, Bonnie and Miriam. Each of the actresses get real meat to work with and you can really sense they are relishing good parts in a good film. 1st up is Rachelle LeFevre playing Clara Chambers – a family dysfunctional who is beautiful but bordering on mental illness at every moment. Her performance is short but so astutely done. Barney then meets the equally gorgeous Miriam – a well-connected Jewish lady who can talk to beat the band (has a ‘Master’s Degree’) – dryly played by Minnie Driver to maximum effect. But then his eyes meet with the real deal – Miriam – played by the ethereally beautiful British actress Rosamund Pike. Barney is lost from the moment he sees her and pursues Miriam with the relentlessness of a Tomahawk missile. Their relationship’s up and downs make up the bulk of the movie and Pike is fabulous in the part. More top moments are provided by the rest of the cast...

Hoffman gets some great dialogue which he delivers in that soft understated way of his – regaling a table of elderly po-faced ladies at Barney’s 2nd wedding about his 'cop-on-the-beat' past he tells them "…he came at me with a hard-on the size of a can of hairspray…"
Or when he’s giving his son ludicrously inept parental advice about marriage to Bonnie (a subject he knows nothing about) "…you’re married to a well-bred woman who is loaded, makes a nice Flaky Kugel and has a beautiful rack – many successful marriages have been built on far less…"

Nice supporting roles also go Kate Hopkins and Jake Hoffman who play Kate and Michael (Miriam and Barney’s grown-up children) – Jake Hoffman showing more than a passing vocal and visual resemblance to his famous Dad - and glimpses of his acting chops. Bruce Greenwood is Blair – a handsome vegan who tempts Miriam both mentally and spiritually in the later stages of her rocky marriage to Barney - while Macha Grenon is superb as Solange - an aging TV star in the 30th season of Barney’s daytime soap “Malley Of The North” – a woman who constantly harks back to her looks in the past (her clinging neediness is both protected and derided by Barney in equal measure). England’s Mark Addy is excellent as Detective Sean O’Hearne – a bull-headed cop who is convinced that Barney has literally gotten away with murdering one his friends and has published a book to that effect called “With Friends Like These” (the mystery is brilliantly resolved at the end of the movie). There’s even a great cameo by Saul Rubinek as Clara’s Jewish father who tries to guilt away Clara’s self-destructive past – but not in a way that shows compassion - but embarrassment for what it brought to their family (Barney makes short shift of him).

But the film belongs to Giomatti - who gives his bumbling motormouth of a creation a beating heart – you laugh at Barney’s life-grabbing impulsiveness (a particularly nice scene where he chases after Miriam in a train) up to his heart-breaking remorse at doing what he said he would never do to Miriam (crying into her chest on the side of the bed). With the aid of wigs and make-up, Giomatti flits from one time period to the next – and in each his character is wholly believable. In rolls on to 2010 where Barney is now balding and forgetting where he parked his car – but gets one final meet with his beloved Miriam. They talk openly and honestly and despite differences and irreparable harm - express their true feelings (title above). Giomatti is magnificent in the role and fully deserved of his Golden Globes Award for Best Actor.

To sum up – while it’s a couple of shades short of being a masterpiece - “Barney’s Version” is that rarity – a really good film that you’ve neither seen nor heard of – a little filmic gem that deserves a viewing and will reward you for doing so.

Put it high on your rental list.

"Whatcha See Is Whatcha Get" by THE DRAMATICS. A Review Of Their 1972 Soul Album Now Remastered And Expanded Onto A 2011 "Stax Remasters" CD.

This review is part of my "SOUNDS GOOD: Exceptional CD Remasters Soul, Funk & Jazz Fusion" Download Book available to buy on Amazon to either your PC or Mac (it will download the Kindle software to read the book for free to your toolbar). Click on the link below to go my Author's Page for this and other related publications:

                       http://www.amazon.co.uk/-/e/B00LQKMC6I

"…I'm For Real…Whatcha See Is Whatcha Get…"

What this 2011 CD doesn’t advertise too well is that it contains 'two' Stax albums and not just one – and then for good measure - throws in two more bonus tracks as well (and it’s pitched at mid-price too). Here are the details…

Released Monday 12 September 2011 in the UK (reissued 12 Oct 2011), Concord Music Group, Inc 0888072331761 breaks down as follows (59:03 minutes):

Tracks 1 to 8 are their debut album "Whatcha See Is Whatcha Get" – released January 1972 in the USA on Volt Records VOS-6018 and April 1972 in the UK on Stax Records 2362 025

Tracks 9 to 16 are their 2nd album "A Dramatic Experience" – released October 1973 in the USA on Volt Records VOS-6019 and April 1974 in the UK on Stax Records STX 1021

Tracks 17 and 18 are "Stand Up Clap Your Hands" and "Hum A Song (From Your Heart)" – two previously unreleased tracks which first appeared on the 1991 CD reissue of "A Dramatic Sensation"

The new 12-page booklet has very knowledgeable and affectionate liner notes by ROB BOWMAN (author of “Soulsville, U.S.A.: The Story Of Stax Records”). You also get the original artwork on the front and rear of the booklet, musician and session details, a collage of 2 photos on the inlay beneath the see-through tray and the disc itself pictures the original LP sleeve (front and rear). But it’s a shame the booklet doesn’t go any further – there’s no new photos, no memorabilia – not even a picture of the title track – their most famous and beloved tune. Surely a promo 45 could have been procured? It makes the inlay feel workmanlike at best – even a little dull – when it should have spread its wings a little. But the big news is the SOUND…

I bought and recently reviewed two other titles in this new "Stax Remasters" series - "Be Altitude: Respect Yourself" by The Staples Singers and “McLemore Avenue” by Booker T. & The M.G.’s and duly raved about the fabulous sound quality on both – especially after years of lacklustre reissues in jewel cases and repro digipaks.
Well this is the same. 24-bit remastered from the first generation tapes at JOE TARANTINO Mastering in Berkeley, California – the audio quality is fantastic – which of course makes you reassess every song – and here it gives incredible clarity to these hugely underrated and largely forgotten Soul albums.

Highlights include "In The Rain" which has a melodrama formula that 'so' works. The song intro is a thunderstorm - rainfall then fills the speakers - only to succumb to a heavily echoed guitar which actually sounds like a man crying. With William "Wee Gee" Howard's pleading vocals and Dennis Coffey on that treated guitar, the public and radio loved it - sending "In The Rain" all the way to the No.1 spot on the US R'n'B charts. The sound quality of the horn player on "Gimme Some (Good Soul Music)" is startling too – so clear – and the tune is reminiscent of The Temptations at their upbeat best.
Even the two bonus tracks don’t disgrace themselves - especially the "…get it together…" message funk of "Stand Up Clap Your Hands".
The title track "Whatcha See Is Whatcha Get" too has been gracing CD compilations for decades – a stone Soul classic (lyrics above).

To sum up – this is as superlative value-for-money reissue with top-notch Seventies Soul and sound quality that trumps everything that’s gone before.

The book of 'Guinness World Records 2012' is launched today (15 Sep 2011) and in it they celebrate Aevin Dugas from New Orleans - who at 4ft 4in. - officially has the world’s biggest Afro Hairdo.

Well - like Aevin - this CD is both impossibly cool and worthy of written celebration. Recommended.

PS: titles in the "STAX REMASTERS" series are:
1. McLemore Avenue - BOOKER T. & THE M.G.'S (1970) [May 2011]
2. Woman To Woman - SHIRLEY BROWN (1975) [September 2011]
3. Whatcha See Is Whatcha Get – THE DRAMATICS (1972) [September 2011]
4. Be Altitude: Respect Yourself - THE STAPLE SINGERS (1972) [May 2011]
5. Tailored In Silk - JOHNNIE TAYLOR (1973) [May 2011]
6. Do The Funky Chicken – RUFUS THOMAS (1970) [September 2011]