A Song for Bob Dylan: Hunky Dory
In 1971 David Bowie released his first great record, Hunky Dory. Along with landmark songs like Changes and Life on Mars, the album features several songs that are tributes to Bowie’s role models. These include Andy Warhol, Song for Bob Dylan, and Queen Bitch which is supposedly about Lou Reed. There’s something about Song for Bob Dylan that’s bothered me for years. The third verse is all about how Dylan is gone and we’ve lost his poems.
Except, I’m not really sure what Bowie is talking about. Previous to 1971 Dylan released Nashville Skyline in 1969 and both Self Portrait and New Morning in 1970. Nashville Skyline is a great album and was a critical and commercial success. Self Portrait was considered a flop at the time but has since been recontextualized as the masterpiece it always was. And New Morning was considered a return to form for Dylan. At this time, the bootlegs that you later be known as the Basement Tapes are circulating. These are arguably the greatest work Dylan has ever done and helped to popularize country rock. It’s not a bad average for someone coming off the legendary run Dylan had in 1965 and 1966. It’s possible that Bowie doesn’t like any of these albums but that’s kind of harsh criticism to throw at someone you like enough to write a song about. This will continue to bother me forever.
How Many Dead?: The Dark Knight
In the conclusion to the second-best Batman movie, The Dark Knight, Jim Gordon is talking with Batman about how to cover up Harvey Dent’s killing spree. Jim Gordon says “Five dead. Two of them cops.” But that’s not what happened. Harvey Dent has killed three people. Det. Wertz, Salvatore Maronie, and Maronie’s driver. Dent only slapped Det. Ramirez and it’s possible Gordon doesn’t know that yet and maybe Gordon is counting Dent as one of the dead. This seems like kind of a stretch. This line may be from an earlier version of the script but that doesn’t make a lot of sense. Either way, Nolan come get your boy.
Wrong Sneakers: Space Jam
The 1996 film, Space Jam, is one of the greatest movies ever made. The movie has only one flaw. When Michael Jordan is brought into the cartoon world he is wearing golf clothes. Obviously, Bugs and Daffy need to go back to the real world to get his sneakers. The sneakers they find are Jordan 9s and this was a poor decision on the part of the screenwriter. I understand why they wanted it to be the 9. It was released while Jordan had left the NBA and as a result, sold poorly in comparison to the models before and after. I do not doubt that this was an attempt to boost the popularity of the 9. However, if Mike had stepped into the gym with Seal’s cover of the Fly Like An Eagle playing, wearing a pair of 1s, 3s, or 5s, the scene would be far more triumphant. It would have made an already perfect movie just a little better.
Latent Homosexuality in Hip-Hop: Coming of Age by Jay-Z Featuring Memphis Bleek
Coming of Age by Jay-Z and Memphis Bleek is one of the most romantic songs in the history of the genre. It tells the story of an up-and-coming drug dealer who is taken under the wing of an older Mafioso. What makes the song amazing is the two rappers express so much love affection towards each other. With lines like
“I like your style
(Nah, I like yo’ style)
Let’s drive around awhile
(Cool n***a) here’s a thou'”
And
“Ha, I like your resume, pick a day, you can start
(From now until death do us part)”
It’s impossible to not fall in love with their romance. It’s just a beautiful story about a male partnership.