NIRVANA UNPLUGGED

NIRVANA UNPLUGGED

Nirvana unplugged in New York, often known as MTV unplugged is first and foremost a high moment in music history to me.

For our very first chat here on the blog, almost five years ago now, I told you about the cardigan Kurt Cobain wore during the recording of this live show.

Then over time we talked a lot about music but never came back to what is really one of the most important memories for me.

First of all it is the memory of an emotion: the first time I listened to Come as you are without even getting to the end I was convinced that I would never like another song again.

Come as you are is perhaps the only one of Nirvana’s most popular songs, performed even during unplugged, I think precisely because of its characteristic intense intimacy.

But every single song performed during MTV unplugged is beautiful.

The cover of The Man Who Sold the World in my opinion beats even the White Duke.

Where did you sleep last night is poignant to the point of almost materialising Kurt’s suffering.

And then Dumb, About a Girl, Pennyroyal Tea … which is your favourite?

Sadly released posthumously Unplugged in New York with every listen reminds us of the pain and loss of an artist who would now be a grandfather, as his Frances Bean became mother to Ronin at the end of September.

Many tales and anecdotes about 18 November 1993 chase each other all over the place, but what we can all still see is Kurt arriving, and after a simple ‘Good evening’ he introduces About a girl by attacking his guitar ride.

The rest is magic, atmosphere, white flowers, candles, drapes and soft lights, like metaphorical arms that welcome us into an immersion of music and sensations, simplicity and depth at the same time, where everything else is stripped away, the whole world is outside, where all that counts is the lightness of a faint breath destined to fade away but which in reality can only remain engraved in the memory forever.

Extreme vulnerability yet disruptive power.

Nirvana Unplugged is one of the gifts I cherish, it is 30 years old today and yet I’m never tired of listening to it again.

I treasure it along with Kurt Cobain Diaries

Nirvana unplugged

and Montage of Heck, which I saw at the cinema earlier anyway.

Nirvana unplugged

On the off chance that you’ve missed something, I recommend catching up: I find it indispensable to understand the deep torment of a Soul torn between the love of music and the pain of life.

I wish I was like you
Easily amused
Find my nest of salt
Everything is my fault

I’ll take all the blame
Aqua seafoam shame

I WANNA TAKE HUGH THERE

I WANNA TAKE HUGH THERE

I wanna take Hugh there … pun inspired by the very famous lyrics of a song that needs no introduction:

When you call my name, it’s like a little prayer
I’m down on my knees, I wanna take you there

Impossibile to listen to this song without singing it, a universal song.

Just as Hugh is universally known.

Also this time I would like to talk about the non-original soundtrack.

Here it is.

I wanna take Hugh there.

What can I say?
A fantastic excursus into pop history.

I mention as an example You’re the One That I Want, itself the soundtrack to a film I have seen countless times in my life.

Grease was the first film with friends in the cinema in the place where I was born, obviously love at first sight.

A movie in which cars take on the role of status symbols for the guys, who process them, use them for drive-ins and also for their ‘dates.’

Lo and behold, even the Deadpool & Wolverine scene with the Grease song playing in the background takes place in a car … still a symbol if you will, but a lame one.

And ‘the encounter’ is still physical and related to friendship, but on the level that characterises the whole film: totally insane.

Friendship and madness mingle as elective affinities between this trio who manage to put together a series of crowd-pleasing situations, not to mention cameos.

The third element is Shawn Levy, who gave us that gem Stranger Things

Watch out for those other two: Hugh and Ryan interact like two opposite, colourful halves, just like in this little gadget.

I wanna take Hugh there.

They represent well the passing of time, with the desire to always remain themselves, superheroes or nerds, or both.

And at the first notes of Good Riddance you are left with nostalgia: something umpredictable but it in the end is right.

Would you like to tell me something related to any of the other songs?

You can find them directly on Spotify

In both cases the songs appear as per the tracklist on the Disney site which sells the two branded LPs.

There is actually more.

Impossible not to mention Hells Bells … I’ll let you imagine as soon as the first notes start.

And then there’s I wanna take Hugh there
courtesy of Madonna.

It’s not like it’s a no-brainer.

Ryan Reynolds said in an interview that he didn’t know how to ask for it: ‘what do I do, call up and say hello this is Ryan?’

Apparently that’s exactly what happened, but luckily for him, Madonna’s kids like Marvel superheroes too.

I wanna take Hugh there.

How about you?

LIKE THE BIRDS OF CINDERELLA’S DRESS

LIKE THE BIRDS OF CINDERELLA’S DRESS

Like the birds of Cinderella’s dress … is the comparison Sabrina Impacciatore used during an interview at the Emmy Awards ceremony in Los Angeles.

Listen:

I really like this way of her being ironically crazy.

This attitude of laughter brings good humour, don’t you think?

The perfect friend for messing around …

Speaking of friendship … have you ever seen “Amiche da morire – Friends to Die For?”

I would say that Sicily is a congenial place for Sabrina: the season of The White Lotus for which Sabrina received a nomination for Best Supporting Actress in a Drama Series is filmed in Taormina.

In the interview Sabrina tells that her dress was fitted the night before by tailors like the birds of Cinderella’s dress, and also declares that her victory is to be there, but we can say that another great shot is her participation in the upcoming film In the head of Dante with Al Pacino and John Malkovich.

Who knows, maybe the Fairy godmother has a hand in it… 🙂

And you? Have you ever lived a fairy tale?

I could tell I live perpetually in the mess, but isn’t it the real fairy tale?

Gianni Rodari wrote:
Where are the fairy tales?
There is one in everything:
in the wood of the coffee table,
in the glass, in the rose.

Where can you see the fairy tales?

THERE IS STILL TOMORROW.

THERE IS STILL TOMORROW.

There is still tomorrow which sees the directorial debut of Paola Cortellesi is the film that won the Audience Award, Special Jury Prize and Mention as Best First Work at the Rome Film Festival

Paola Cortellesi doesn’t need to be introduced, I always remember one of her gags in which she ironically listed all the things she has done, which are really so many and very different from each other, but which have the same feature in common: they are all done well.

I thank Elisa and her proposal: we went to the movies together fearing that we would have to use tissues to wipe tears and instead we mostly surprised ourselves.

The Friends.
In the movie: Delia and Marisa.

Emotion, however, was not lacking.

I, for one, was moved by the portrayal of a mother’s love for her daughter, who is played by Romana Maggiora Vergano in the film.

A love above all things, a love for which nothing is impossible, a pure and unwavering love.

Fragility and strength in a maelstrom of endurance and determination in which the ability to carry the crushing weight of a long interminable series of verbal and physical injustices and bullying, is catalyzed in the resolute will to seek a better destiny for Marcella.

Mother and daughter.

A crushed mother and a model daughter who does not understand Delia’s submission.

Succumbing and resisting at the same time, in a dance that is broken melody, is rock, is hip hop rap, is retro.

Marcella does not understand, but she will.

Marcella will look at her mother Delia and see the affirmation of a seemingly simple but extremely important gesture as a right, as a beginning.

Every change has a beginning.

There is still tomorrow represents “the music that changes” in a literal sense: I cannot fail to mention the repertoire songs from the soundtrack:
Aprite le finestre Fiorella Bini
Nessuno Naked Music
Perdoniamoci Achille Togliani
A bocca chiusa Daniele Silvestri
M’innamoro davvero Fabio Concato
La notte dei miracoli Lucio Dalla
Calvin The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion
B.O.B. – Bombs Over Baghdad Outkast
The little things Big Gigantic featuring Angela McCluskey
Swinging on the right side Lorenzo Maffia and Alessandro La Corte
Tu sei il mio grande amor Lorenzo Maffia, Alessandro La Corte and Enrico Rispoli.

Surprising, isn’t it?

Surprising as what you don’t expect from There is still tomorrow: the ending.

Indeed, in my heart I hoped that Delia’s project would not be the obvious one, but at the same time I would not have guessed an epilogue like the one with which Paola Cortellesi invites everyone to a beautiful reflection.

Light yet explosive, simple yet disruptive, just like Delia, just like Paola.

Yes because Delia is Paola, she is Marcella, and she is our grandmother.

Delia is so many lives of giving up, Delia is so many years of suffering.

Like nothing at all.

TIM BURTON COFFEE

TIM BURTON COFFEE

On October 11 in Turin, a very special exhibition opened at the Mole Antonelliana: The World of Tim Burton edited by the National Cinema Museum.

Tim Burton needs no introduction and any description would be reductive to his entirely personal style, in two words I could say that there is a before and there is an after Burton.

Who could at length describe him is Paola Pioletti, a deep connoisseur of his creative genius.

Exhibitions, on the other hand, are Maria‘s specialty on her Art and Cult Blog


Kind of like Eva Carducci did just with him.

@theevesapple

Quando ho fatto ridere Tim Burton grazie al caffè 😜 #timburton #netflix #dietrolequinte #imparacontiktok #junket #luccacomics #mercoledi #wensday @Netflix Italia

♬ suono originale – Eva Carducci

 

 

 

And what do you think?
How do you imagine Tim Burton Coffee?


Did you know that in New York the Beetle House is dedicated to Tim Burton? I went for a virtual tour and fell in love with the sign: Come as you are …


Would you like to go there? What would you order?


What if we ended up singing Day-O?


Even in the historic center of Mexico City there is a Burtonian-style coffee bar: El Extrano Coffee Bar.

Instead, in Italy we invented the Wonka vaccinara … I always admire imagination, but in this case … I better pass on!

Since we are in Turin, isn’t a classic Bicerin enough dark?

Indeed … anyway we can fall back on the iconic Turin Cafè in the Museum Temple Hall.

Kevin Spacey during a visit recommended making it a working café, isn’t this cute?

In this case, the Tim Burton Coffee version includes a special set-up with very limited edition posters.

Which one would you like?

I like Sleepy Hollow

Did you know that Johnny Depp at the end of filming decided to adopt Goldeneye, the one-eyed horse who stars as Gunpowder in the movie?

But back to coffee dust, or rather Tim Burton Coffee dust, is there a movie that you never tire of rewatching, or that you associate with a particular anecdote?

A GOOD SPY THRIVES UNDER PRESSURE

A GOOD SPY THRIVES UNDER PRESSURE

A good spy thrives under pressure.

How do you react under pressure?
Can you achieve the goal?

The target in question is a coffee prepared with a fantastic espresso machine

Unlikely and unexpected is the specialist intent on preparation.

What could possibly happen if the Terminator “himself” prepared your coffee?

The result explodes in full force in the commercial introducing the new Netflix series Heart of stone starring Gal Gadot

Schwarzenegger quotes True lies, what spy movie would you quote?

The very famous 007 medium sweet for example?

The Condor asked, “but what if the pressure wasn’t there?”

Pressure or no pressure? Enigma … 

Or a palindrome

Definitely intelligence stuff …

The best spy is undoubtedly hidden in Jingle all the way, or not! What do you say?

A good spy thrives under pressure.

I had fun mentioning some spy movies, I suppose you recognized them all.

What, on the other hand, is your favorite film inspired by this strand?

If I say spy, what is the first name that comes to mind?

Can we agree that Mata Hari is perhaps the quintessential name? I would say that Mata, short for Margaretha, is even synonymous with spy.

The word spy comes from the Gothic spaíha according to the Treccani vocabulary, but derives from the French espie according to the etymological vocabulary, so the duality is extrinsic from the origin of the name.

Curious, isn’t it?

It is rather difficult to establish even the first spy in history, so perhaps we can settle for the first spy who makes explosive coffee, can’t we?

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