Monday 26 January 2009

Cave and AA Gill


Off-topic culture update.
I've been listening to Nick Cave again. He's an all-time fave, and I found a CD of Nocturama (released on Mute, 2003) that had a free DVD I'd never bothered playing in the five years I've owned it. It's a video of the the breathless 15-minute non-stop 'Babe, I'm on fire.' And it's funny. More so because Cave is viewed, by many, as a miserable get. Cave has been recording for nearly 30 years and, except for Boatman's Call - a mawkish bleat about breaking up with PJ Harvey - every new album has been bloody killer. He's relentlessly brilliant.

Also relentlessly brilliant is the book I've just finished, Previous Convictions by AA Gill. It's a collection of features about everything from stag shooting in Scotland to visiting Iraq with Jeremy Clarkson. It is superbly written. And, because it's a collection of newspaper and magazine columns (from The Times, Sunday Times, GQ and others), you can read a bit, leave it alone, read a bit more... But I couldn't put it down. Highly recommended... GI

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Also two of my favorites. Were we separated at birth Gary?

Boxofbits said...

"Relentlessly brilliant", Oh yes. But what sort of "miserable get" would sing Stagger Lee whilst wearing a pink Take That t-shirt? Great mag and blog.