Things to Watch, Read and Listen
Keeping track of TV shows, movies and books used to be a fairly easy task, but with today’s segmentation of markets and the sheer volume of media being produced (just looking at TV, there were approximately 495 scripted original series in 2018), relying on word-of-mouth has never been more important or more overwhelming. Each time someone recommends a show or book or whatever to me, I text it to myself and compile a list that I keep near the TV, but I’ll never get to most the recommendations; there’s simply too much out there to wrap one’s arms around. I have a list of twenty shows to watch, fifty movies to view, fifteen books to read, twenty-five bands to listen to, and another half a dozen podcasts to explore. This is in addition to the pile of unread books I already own and the podcasts I listen to regularly.
In the spirit of offering more than you can handle, I thought I’d share just a few things I’ve come across lately that might be worth your time.
WATCH
The loss of romantic comedies from movie theaters has been lamented for some time, though apparently not enough for Hollywood studios to actually produce them. But there is hope for the hopeless romantic. Amazon has released Season 1 (8 episodes) of Modern Love, an anthology series based on a column in The New York Times, and has already renewed the series for another season. I can’t vouch for all eight episodes, but the first two were excellent, with smart writing and directing, mostly by John Carney of Once and Sing Street. The episodes clock in at under half an hour, which might almost be too snappy to tell compelling tales consistently, but so far so good.
If you haven’t already checked out Ken Burns’s latest documentary Country Music on PBS, I urge you to do so. Like all of his material, it requires a degree of dedication you might not be accustomed to – the series runs about sixteen hours – but it’s a rewarding ride. I’m not much of a country fan, but I’ve learned a lot during the first four episodes, and with Spotify at my side, I’ve been able to explore many of the artists even further. There’s something to be said for technology.
READ
As if there weren’t enough music rabbit holes to fall into, Tom Breihan of Stereogum has embarked on the monumental task of listening to and writing about every #1 single on the Billboard Hot 100 track hit from 1958 to the present. Word-of-mouth failed me with this endeavor, because I just found out about it a month ago as a fluke, and Breihan is already into 1977, but that’s not a band place to start, as 1977-1982 is my sweet spot for music. The first song I clicked on was Manfred Mann’s “Blinded by the Light,” and I figured I’d read a few paragraphs about the track. But no, Breihan writes extensively about each song, providing some history and context, offering links to other versions of the songs, and rating each song he covers, which makes this blog a little more thought-provoking than many. When he mentioned how much he hates “Hotel California” the comments section went ballistic, but that to me is half the fun. A great read.
LISTEN
Measured by time, I listen to podcasts more than any other medium – even music. I have my usual suspects – WTF with Marc Maron, Fresh Air with Terry Gross, Freakonomics, Radiolab – but here are two that I’ve added to my arsenal this year:
Unspooled. If you like movies, this is a fun podcast that covers one movie a week from the AFI list of Top 100 Films. Hosted by actor Paul Scheer and critic Amy Nicholson, this weekly discussion has inspired me to fill in the gaps of some of my own viewing (my daughter Sarah has now watched 93 of the top 100 – I’m probably somewhere in the 60s). Paul and Amy are not the most eloquent speakers – I keep wanting them to live up to the standard that Siskel and Ebert set – but I like that they’re challenging the status quo and questioning whether the old boys club that supports mainly male-centric films from the 1970s needs to be upended (spoiler: it does). They’ve also recommended some terrific books – most notably Making Movies by Sidney Lumet and Cameron Crowe’s Conversations with Wilder. Both brilliant.
My friend Michael Stoller has produced a podcast called My Blueprint, an exploration of various issues pertaining to growing as a human being. These are snappy episodes of under ten minutes, and the few I’ve listened to so far are terrific. Stoller doesn’t shy away from providing specific examples from his own life and touching on topics that affect all of us, and I walk away with just a little something to ponder as I go about my day.
So there you are! Add them to the list so you can feel just as overwhelmed as I do!