Thursday brings us around to a couple of points I'd like to address...

I managed to catch Woody Allen's MATCH POINT last night, absolutely brilliant. It's a Woody Allen film that doesn't come off as a Woody Allen film, so if the general Woodyness of some of his work turns you off, this might just turn you on (literally, it has Scarlett Johnansson... if she doesn't turn you on then you're dead... and that counts gay men and straight women, everyone is or should be aroused by Scarlett).

The biggest mistake I made was learning much of anything about the film before actually watching it. I didn't have the ending dropped in my lap necessarily, but I did have entirely too many clues as to what was going on for my personal comfort. So, just let me beg you (I'm now on my hands and knees) to please give this one a look-see. It has charged up the list to become at least my 2nd best film of 2005, if not my pick for number one.

Match Point, even better than CHOPPING MALL!

My second point of the day is one of confession... I never gave Tom Waits a fair chance, and now I'm regretting it.

My introduction to Mr. Waits' unique brand of music came in the mid-late 90's with his contribution to the DEAD MAN WALKING soundtrack (if you don't own that record, then there's a considerable hole in your music library). The song, "Walk Away," was odd... very odd... and to be honest with you, a bit over my fifteen year old head. I then dismissed Tom as a nutball and moved on.

My next encounter with the gravel-voiced troubadour came in 2004 when my long-time friend Jeremy came back into town to stay a while in my 8th Avenue walkup... yeah, I know it's only the 2nd floor, but that sounds so much cooler. I could listen to his music all day, but found it difficult to really connect with any of the records as there were so many of them that it became impossible to distinguish one from another. The fact that the two of us went through more beer than the cast of Cheers didn't do well to steel my memory either.

However, in the last week I've found myself once again face-to-face with Tom, this time staring down a dark tunnel and hearing his words and music for what they're intended to be. I never realized how stunning "Small Change" was, or how mesmerizing "Alice" could be. I guess everyone that ever really falls in love with Tom Waits' music really needs something to click in their mind... something good, bad or indifferent, but something nonetheless.

Whether you love him or hate him, you can't deny that he may be the lord and master of the "sad bastard song." Don't believe me, then give the lyrics to "Bad Liver and a Broken Heart" a read:

Well I got a bad liver and a broken heart
yea I drunk me a river since you tore me apart
and I don't have a drinking problem
cept when I can't get a drink
And I wish you'd a known her
we were quite a pair
she was sharp as a razor
and soft as a prayer
so welcome to the continuing saga
she was my better half
and I was just a dog
and so here am I slumped
I been chippied I been chumped
on my stool
so buy this fool, some spirits and libations
it's these railroad station bars
with all these conductors and the porters
and I'm all out of quarters
and this epitaph is the aftermath
yea I choose my path
hey come on Cath, he's a lawyer,
he ain't the one for ya
and no the moon ain't romantic
it's intimidating as hell
and some guy's trying to sell
me a watch
And so I'll meet you at the
bottom of a bottle of
bargain Scotch
I got me a bottle and a dream
it's so maudlin it seems

you can name your poison
go on ahead and make some noise
I ain't sentimental
this ain't a purchase it's a rental
and it's purgatory, hey
what's your story, well
I don't even care
cause I got my own double-cross to bear

and I'll see your Red Label
and I'll raise you one more
and you can pour me a cab,
I just can't drink no more
cause it don't douse the flames
that are started by dames
It ain't like asbestos
it don't do nothing but
rest us assured
and substantiate the rumors
that you've heard.

So I guess I've now joined the legions of Tom Waits fans, should be an interesting ride. I know I'll never be half the fan that Nathan Johnson is, but I'm willing to try.

Currently Listening To: Tom Waits - Tom Traubert's Blues