September 2023 – Page 3 – All Across the Arts

AMANDA & THREE BOOKS

If you’re looking for a first-hand account of Jennings’ journey from a burgeoning, polished rock and roll artist to a country music superstar, this 2009 memoir is an essential read. Waylon: An Autobiography recounts many of Jennings’ most difficult life chapters, from the loss of his close friend Buddy Holly to his struggles with addiction. It also serves as a tribute to Colter, who helped inspire him to improve his life.

education, Literary, Poetry

IN THE MINDS OF MEN?

Some people really like the transporting nature of experimental prose or spare autofiction, but when I want to fully peace out of reality, I like being dropped into another life entirely, one that feels as rich and detailed as possible. The Marriage Plot by Jeffrey Eugenides was a comforting reread lately, because the scenes have the quality of life. Anywhere But Here by Mona Simpson is comforting for the same reason, a fictional world that is so tightly woven that it blots out the actual world.

cinema, Literary, Music

CAPOTE: IN COLD BLOOD

Capote´s distinctive, high-pitched voice and odd vocal mannerisms were bought to life in Philip Seymour Hoffman's Oscar-winning portrayal of him in the 2005 movie, Capote.

Literary, Music

WRITERS WRITE TO RIGHT WRONGS

McCormick died in 2015, a poor, unhappy man unable to let go of his Johnson manuscript or the “Monster.” Now that the book and the field recordings have been released, we know more about Johnson and Texas blues, but we are still left with burning questions. The biggest question of all is what might have happened if Johnson’s life had not been cut so short and he had lived to become a crucial figure in the tumultuous changes in American music during the 1940s and ’50s. In a forthcoming Curmudgeon Column, we will try to provide an answer.