Zayne Reeves, Staff Contributor
About Me: Where Richard Burton and Peter O'Toole could get drunk and recite Shakespeare backwards, I am equally renowned amongst my inner circle for being able to do the same thing, except with the lyrics to every song off Boz Scaggs' Silk Degrees.
Favorite Film of The Decade (so far): Mulholland Drive. Anchored by an astounding Naomi Watts, David Lynch's best film perfectly captures the thin, wild mercury sound of dream logic.
Favorite TV Show of The Decade (so far): Deadwood. Regardless of whether or not Suncoast starts selling Cy Tolliver action figures (complete with realistic, Pimp Fu grip), David Milch & Co. should be so proud of themselves for giving us the most moving, intense and entertaining hour of television possibly ever.
Favorite Book of The Decade (so far): America (The Book). A near seamless satire that also functions quite capably as a bullshit free account of a great country's ugly roots.
Favorite Song of The Decade (so far): "Joan Jett of Arc", Clem Snide. A wry, heartbreaking first love song off their excellent 2001 album, The Ghost of Fashion.
Favorite Album of The Decade (so far): Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots, The Flaming Lips. Maybe it's the memory of walking down the streets of Ilsan, South Korea with this on the headphones while I passed by arcade after arcade, but this album continues to haunt me with its sad, weird beauty.
Top 5 Albums That Might Have Slipped In Under Your Radar:
1. Nilsson Sings Newman, Harry Nilsson. This was best described by a friend of mine as, basically, Pet Sounds but with better songs.
2. Streets of This Town, Steve Forbert. A pure blast of folk rock that can get your toes to tappin' even while your mind is absorbed with Forbert's amazing lyrics.
3. Escape From Monster Island, Jon Dee Graham. As a songwriter and bandleader, Jon Dee Graham is one of the very best and this album is full of crunchy rockers and devastating ballads. And did I mention that he has the best growl this side of Tom Waits?
4. Cowgirl's Prayer, Emmylou Harris. Perhaps the most overlooked great album of her career.
5. The Pilgrim, Marty Stuart. Stuart shocked the artsy alt. country crowd by beating them at their own game with this astonishing song cycle.
Articles:
November/December 2005
Column: Unearthed
Column: I Wanna See the Nashville Lights
October 2005
Feature: Being There's Halloween Frightfest
Column: Globetrotting
Column: I Wanna See the Nashville Lights
September 2005
Feature: The Duellists, Vol. 2: Cockfight
Column: Should Have Been There
Column: I Wanna See the Nashville Lights
Album Review: Jimmie Dale Gilmore's Come On Back
August 2005
Feature: Heartworn Highways: The 25 Greatest Country Albums of All Time
Column: Hello In There
Album Review: John Hiatt - Master of Disaster
July 2005
Feature: The Hard Country Sound of Robbie Fulks
Feature: Song of The SIren
Column: Getting to Know: John Prine
DVD Review: Chappelle's Show: Season Two
June 2005
Album Review: John Prine's Fair & Square
Album Review: Lucinda Williams's Live @ The Filmore
Editorial: Song For Dave Chappelle
May 2005
Feature: Got It Made
Column: Hello In There
Column: I Wanna See the Nashville Lights
Album Review: Heavy Trash's Heavy Trash
Editorial: Mixed Bag
April 2005
Column: Hello In There
Column: I Wanna See the Nashville Lights
Editorial: Pure Drivel
March 2005
Feature: Turn It Up And Be Somebody - The Ne'er Do Wells
Column: Advice to Graduates: An imaginary conversation with T-Bone Burnett
Column: I Wanna See the Nashville Lights
Concert Review: Steve Forbert at The Workplay Theatre in Birmingham, Alabama
Unearthed Album Review: Johnny Dowd - Cemetery Shoes
Editorial: I'll Be Right Back
February 2005
Feature: Give Us An Absolute, Songwriter - An interview with Steve Forbert
Column: Advice to Graduates: An Apology to Richard Thompson
Column: I Wanna See the Nashville Lights
Unearthed DVD Review: Daddy & Them
Editorial: I Have Always Depended on the Kindness of Strangers
December 2004:
Column: Advice to Graduates
Editorial: Notes from the Checkout Lane
