Best Film:
The Lives of Others
Knocked Up
3:10 to Yuma
Michael Clayton
Into the Wild
There Will Be Blood
The Bourne Ultimatum
The Golden Compass
Charlie Wilson's War
In the Valley of Elah
Die Hard 4.0
American Gangster
Best TV:
Skins
Best Book:
The Song Before it is Sung - Justin Cartwright
Life Class - Pat Barker
The Ghost - Robert Harris
Best Play:
The 39 Steps (Criterion)
Best Albums:
We'll Never Turn Back - Mavis Staples
Twelve - Patti Smith
Best Single/track:
Radio Nowhere - Bruce Springsteen & the E St Band
Ruby - Kaiser Chiefs
Patti Smith - Smells Like Teen Spirit
Best Gig:
1) Madcap's Last Laugh - Syd Barrett tribute at the Barbican
2) Patti Smith - Twelve Songs tour at the Roundhouse
3) The Rolling Stones - last night of their Bigger Bang tour at the O2
4) John Martyn - Solid Air at the Albert Hall
Best Exhibition:
1) Antony Gormley at the Hayward
2) Robert Capa and Gerda Taro at the IPC, New York
Best Sports Event:
1) England beating France in Rugby World Cup Semi-final in Paris
2) Start of Tour de France in London
Posts
12 comments:
Film - the best films I saw this year were 'Hard Candy' and 'Grizzly Man' although both came out in 2006. 'Grizzly Man' is best watched as a sick comedy rather than a film about man's attempt to get to know grizzly bears. Not sure that was Herzog's intention.
Music - the band laid on to provide musical entertainment for arrivals at Port-au-Prince airport, Haiti. For the surprise and the instant feeling that I had arrived somewhere that was like no-where I had ever been before.
Sport - Roger Federer's destruction of Roddick at the Australian Open. Widely see as one of the greatest tennis performances ever. The two Wasps-Clermont games in rugby's European Cup
Exhibition - the opening of the Pristina Art Gallery displaying YKA's (young Kosovo artists!). Just about the first cultural activity available there since the war and a positive signal.
Book - Homo Britannicus: Chris Stringer
TV - BBC4 documentary on electronic music pioneer Delia Derbyshire
Music - Winner - Enrico Rava, Stefano Bollani: The Third Man (stunning, stunning, stunning). Bollani's solo piano album is also special. Runners up: JDilla;Donuts. Air: Pocket Symphony (Not sure if JDilla was late 2006 I must confess)
Singles - Pass.
Theatre - The Christmas show provided by the children at my daughter's school in Lezignan La Cebe, France. Very french and totally surrealist. And the best thing about it was that this was intentional. I think I may have been the only person who enjoyed it.
As ever, PP, an eclectic selection with some surprises and some eye-openers.
Tell me a bit about Homo Britannicus - hasn't crossed my path. (Now Britannicus I do know about from my completely impractical degree:
"Adieu. Je vais, le coeur tout plein de mon amour,
Au milieu des transports d'une aveugle jeunesse,
Ne voir, n'entretenir que ma belle Princesse.
Adieu."
(Best Play: 1670)
Homo Britannicus is not surprisingly a history of people in Britain going back 900,000 years. Homo Neanderthalis, Homo Erectus, Homo, Heidelbergensis, Cro-Magnons etc. I read it once and immediately read it again. It has a strong archaeological base. Fascinating to see how recently we were attached to our European brothers by land. Shortlisted as Science book of the year. Science is my current passion!
I thought 'Hard Candy' was a brilliantly simple film. Have you seen it? You probably know I am not a great film watcher - I like a bit of added weirdness and I can't sit in cinemas.
I am also able to cheat a little with my single of the year. I believe Gregory Isaacs released 'Mi Name Gregory Pt 1' as a single this year even though the album came out in 2005. Could you add it to my list?
You know what? Along with the Gregory Isaacs I am going to put Amy Winehouse 'Love is Losing Game' in there as best single.
practicalpsychologist said...
Film - the best films I saw this year were 'Hard Candy' and 'Grizzly Man' although both came out in 2006. 'Grizzly Man' is best watched as a sick comedy rather than a film about man's attempt to get to know grizzly bears. Not sure that was Herzog's intention.
Music - the band laid on to provide musical entertainment for arrivals at Port-au-Prince airport, Haiti. For the surprise and the instant feeling that I had arrived somewhere that was like no-where I had ever been before.
Sport - Roger Federer's destruction of Roddick at the Australian Open. Widely see as one of the greatest tennis performances ever. The two Wasps-Clermont games in rugby's European Cup
Exhibition - the opening of the Pristina Art Gallery displaying YKA's (young Kosovo artists!). Just about the first cultural activity available there since the war and a positive signal.
Book - Homo Britannicus: Chris Stringer
TV - BBC4 documentary on electronic music pioneer Delia Derbyshire
Music - Winner - Enrico Rava, Stefano Bollani: The Third Man (stunning, stunning, stunning). Bollani's solo piano album is also special. Runners up: JDilla;Donuts. Air: Pocket Symphony (Not sure if JDilla was late 2006 I must confess)
Singles - Gregory Isaacs 'Mi Name Gregory Pt 1'; Amy Winehouse 'Love is Losing Game'
Theatre - The Christmas show provided by the children at my daughter's school in Lezignan La Cebe, France. Very french and totally surrealist. And the best thing about it was that this was intentional. I think I may have been the only person who enjoyed it.
Haven't seen Hard Candy - is it this movie: "A mature 14-year old girl meets a charming 32-year old photographer on the Internet. Suspecting that he is a pedophile, she goes to his home in an attempt to expose him.?" If so, that's 2005 according to IMDB.
2005? really? Perhaps saying 2006 in the UK gets us closer to 2007! That is the right film. I particularly enjoy the bit when she spoofs the removal of his testicles.
I knew I would be revisiting this. I would like to add (and a neat contrast to the Rava/Bollani) the album 'Keep Reachin' Up' by Nicole Willis and the Soul Investigators.
The opener 'Feelin Free' is a stunning piece of soul as are 'If This ain't love' and 'My Four Leaf Clover'. Very, very highly recommended.
Sounds interesting - can you whack me over a track...
Another candidate for album of the year is:
Bullion - Pet Sounds: in the key of dee
In the style of DJ Shadow and JDilla. It is a free download all over the internet. A London boy.
Nicole Willis on it's way.
I would love to have heard Frank S sing 'Love is a Losing Game'.
I would love to have seen him live (ideally timewarped back to the 50s)
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