I'm a serious fan of Woody Allen's movies. I say it that way so that I won't catch flak for saying "I love Woody Allen." Soon Yi blah blah blah. (On that note, Mia Farrow looks amazing in that Gap ad she did recently.) It may sound callous to say so, but sometimes--when they aren't doing something like, say, promoting genocide--we must separate the art from the artists. As it stands, he produced some of the finest films of the last century, including my favorite movie of all time, Crimes and Misdemeanors. I like a little side of something dark with my humor.
My other favorites are Hannah and Her Sisters and Manhattan. Oh, and Broadway Danny Rose. And Husbands and Wives. I love Judy Davis in that film--her rant about Don Juans, the fox and hedgehog debate, the way she's a little (ha) cold to Liam Neeson. I love Purple Rose of Cairo and Radio Days. The ubiquitous Annie Hall. Love and Death. (Diane Keaton is one of my idols.) I'm a pain in the rear to watch a Woody Allen movie with, to tell you the truth, because I have to recite all the lines I know along with the movie (and I know a lot of them).And so I wonder if it doesn't make me a little bit of a geek that I bought Woody Allen's playlist on iTunes. I'm amazed how all kinds of people put these things together and put them out there for us to buy. I guess it's as close as possible to having a personal soundtrack as you can get. I can barely make playlists just for myself to listen to...they end up full of everything but the kitchen sink, so to speak. It's easier for me to just copy everything over and just select shuffle.
Last night I was looking around on iTunes and saw the link for celebrity playlists. You all know I am not big on the celbrity thing, but when I saw the Woody Allen one, I could not resist. Here's what's on it:
Blue Horizon - Sidney Bechet
Burgundy Street Blues - George Lewis
Original Jelly Roll Blues - Jelly Roll Morton
The Pearls - Jelly Roll Morton's Red Hot Peppers
Cornet Chop Suey - Louie Armstrong
Shine - Louie Armstrong
Over the Rainbow - Bud Powell
A Night in Tunisia - Bud Powell
Just You, Just Me - Thelonious Monk
Koko - Charlie Parker
Giant Steps - John Coltrane
If you like jazz and you like Woody Allen, you can't go wrong with this. Even if you don't like Woody Allen, it's a great playlist. And while I'm on the subject of music and film, another of my favorite movies has such a wonderful, eclectic soundtrack: Rushmore. I whip this out every fall. I don't know if it's because Rushmore starts with the beginning of the school year, or if there's just something about the list of songs on there that strikes the right note with the turning leaves and the bright blue sky. If you haven't listened to it and can get your hands on a copy, give it a shot. Listen to it all the way through. And if you haven't seen the movie--well, why are you still sitting here? Go! Run to your favorite rental spot and get Rushmore. Pick up a Woody Allen film while you're at it. Oh, and Whit Stillman's Metropolitan. (If you can find it...and whatever happend to Whit Stillman? I loved all three movies: Metropolitan, Barcelona, Last Days of Disco...his last was in 1998! Too bad.)*photos from woodyallenmovies.com, IMDB, and Yahoo!
