This blog was begun Wednesday night, November 11 2020 :
Pearl and I had fun tonight watching "House of Dracula, one of the movies included in "The Wolf Man Legacy Collection" that I purchased on Amazon just before Halloween, and it's also the first movie I've watched since Halloween. Like everybody else, I've been distracted by the unfunny clown show in Washington, but since tonight is my last night at Pearl's until November 27th, and since I don't have a Blu-ray player at home, I figured it was a good night to watch one. I've actually seen "House of Dracula" before, a few years ago on a regular dvd that I got from the library. But it certainly bears repeat viewing (as do all the Universal Horror films and their sequels), and man does it look great on Blu-ray.
The plot is fun, too. As the movie opens, "Baron Latos" (John Carradine) appears at the door of "Dr. Franz Edelmann" (Onslow Stevens), asking for his help in curing a terrible malady that's causing the Baron to crave human blood. When he tells the doctor he will only be available for nighttime appointments, Edelmann puts two and two together, and Latos confesses that he is, in fact, Count Dracula. He then guides Dr. Edelmann down the stairs to the doc's laboratory, where Drac has already moved in - his coffin is sitting in a darkened corner. The nerve of that Count Dracula! Squatting in the basement unannounced. Give the governor a "harrumph"! But he does seem legit in his desire to be cured, so the doctor, a man devoted to the Hippocratic oath, takes Drac on as a patient, scheduling him for a blood test the next evening.
But then, the next day there is another knock at the door. This time it's "Lawrence Talbot" (Lon Chaney Jr.), also known as the freakin' Wolf Man. Talbot is distraught; he too wants a cure.
What are the odds that not just one, but two Universal Monsters would travel all the way to Visaria to be cured of their conditions, and that they'd have the same doctor? Man, that Edelmann must be a miracle worker (he ain't no quack that's for sure).
So there you have it. The doc has his hands full but he's up to the task, with the help of his two nurses, one of whom suffers from a severe curvature of the spine. Over the course of the next 67 minutes, Lantos/Count Dracula will revert to his old ways, first hypnotising one of Edelmann's nurses and then the doc himself, who he turns into a murderous proxy. You didn't think Dracula was sincere, did you? Lawrence Talbot is, though. He genuinely despairs at the coming of each Full Moon. He hates being The Wolf Man as much as Dracula loves being a vampire, and they couldn't have cast a better actor for the part than Lon Chaney Jr. He was so great at pathos.
At one point, Dr. Edelmann and his assistant are exploring a sea cave on the coast near his mansion. They are looking for the body of Larry Talbot, who's tried to kill himself by jumping into the ocean. Well, not only do they find Talbot - alive, no less - but as they are bringing him to safety they also discover Frankenstein in the same cave, buried in the sand. Now, I know what you're thinking : "C'mon Ad.....what're the odds of that"? But it's not as big a stretch as you think, because it turns out that Victor Frankenstein's castle was not far down the road from Dr. Edelmann's house, and when the townspeople burned the Frankenstein place to the ground, Frankie's body - over the years - migrated with the rubble into the sea, and finally into the sand inside the cave. But - and it's a big but - though he appears to be dead when Dr. Edelmann finds him, he isn't. It turns out that he cannot die, so in that way he is even more indestructible than Count Dracula, who by now is controlling the proceedings.
You can't go wrong with "House of Dracula", you get three Monsters for the price of one, and you get a Mad Scientist thrown in for good measure. And, you get John Carradine and Lon Chaney. ////
And this part of the blog was written on Thursday night, November 12 :
I'm back home, and it's a good time for a list, even though we've probably done this one a couple of times already. Let's run through The Top Ten Singers, shall we? I hope it's cool and not too boring. You can add your favorites, too. I was just thinking today that in my case, it's as notable for who isn't on there as for who is. For instance, Geddy Lee would not make my list, even though Rush is probably my favorite band. I loved him as a screecher on the early albums, and of course even when he changed his style and began singing mid-range in a kind of meandering way, he still got the job done and then some (even if on the last few albums he wasn't that great). But even at his best, and as much as I love Rush, Geddy would not make my Top Ten.
Same with David Lee Roth, same with Ozzy, though I love Van Halen and Black Sabbath and both are great singers for those bands.
My Top Ten is based on singers who strike some chord in me that has to do with emotion, and/or originality, and with their ability to turn a song into a story. Ian Gillan is not on my list, nor are any of Ritchie's singers. Doesn't mean they aren't great - incredible, even - it's just that there are ten I like better. For the record, David Coverdale is my favorite Blackmore singer. Even if you only took "Burn" into consideration, on that album alone he captures the flag.
But without further ado, here are my Top Ten Favorite Singers. The first three are set in stone as The Holy Trinity. The other seven are in no particular order, I'm listing them as their names occur to me. As a final note I should mention that Beatles are not included. Beatles are an entity unto themselves and thus are never included in Lists of Musical Favorites.
The Holy Trinity :
1) Greg Lake
2) Rob Halford
3) Doug Pinnick
These guys need no introduction nor explanation.
The Rest of the List :
Todd Rundgren
David Gilmour
Jon Anderson
Peter Hammill
Russell Mael
Alice Cooper
Eric Johnson
You'll notice that there aren't a lot of what you would call classic lead singers on there, guys like Robert Plant or Paul Rodgers. My choices are esoteric - as yours might be - and they are based on what the singer makes me feel, in relation to the music he is performing. Some folks might say, for instance, "Eric Johnson"? How can he be one of my favorite singers, right? It's all because of the feeling - for me - whereas Ronnie James Dio, while no doubt an amazing singer, just didn't do it for me in the same way, or not enough to include, in his case, in my Top Twenty.
You can't just belt it out. You have to bring the feeling. You have to bring the lyrics to life, or at least elevate the song or lead the song, even if the lyrics are not at the forefront.
Do you wanna know a great singer? Nick Drake. He barely whispered his vocals, but the effect was goosebump inducing.
I could go on and on, because to me, singing makes a song, even more than guitar playing or any other instrument. I'm not talking complex progressive or instrumental music here, but basic pop and rock. And in those formats, you've gotta have good singing. In the 1960s, the vocal melody was emphasized above all else, which is why you have so many indelible pop classics from that era.
I'll stop now, and I know it's all subjective. I could list a few dozen other singers. These just happen to be my very favorites. //////
See you in the morning. Tons of love. xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo :):)
No comments:
Post a Comment