2023 Top 5 Lists

Ah, 2023!  For me and hopefully for you too, it was a return to normalcy- we saw some outstanding live music/theater performances and finally got to take the EU/UK trip we'd been planning.  Any year you visit record stores in 5 different countries on 2 continents is a good year!  Sonoma Arts Live, the theater company my wife Jaime and I run, is going strong and last summer we were back onstage together for the first time in years in Guys & Dolls.  Plus, I'm still doing my radio show, ALL KINDSA GIRLS, every Saturday night on KSVY.  We finished 2023 spending the holidays at home joined by family and friends- all in all I'm thankful for a pretty great year.  As always, 2023 was further enriched by the movies, TV shows, records and books I saw, listened to and read.  You'll even see a new category, Top 5 Rockumentary Workouts, because if you don't watch something cool while you're on the elliptical you will go insane- it's a medical fact.  So, in a tradition that dates back to 1999, I humbly submit my 2023 Top 5 Lists:

TOP 5 MOVIES

American Fiction (post post-truth)

The Holdovers (Christmas in New England)

Barbie (transformational)

Women Talking (rage to redemption)

The Quiet Girl (scannán álainn)

TOP 5-ish STREAMING/DVD MOVIES

Honor Society / The Starling Girl / Full Time (she deserves better)

The Innocents / Aftersun (our daughters will save us) 

How To Blow Up A Pipeline / Jethica (ideas eclipse income)

Tetris / BlackBerry (this is how you tell true stories)

Bloody Hell / Sisu (international mayhem)

TOP 5 CLASSIC THURSDAY MOVIES

The Miracle of Morgan's Creek (Sturges slays)

Murder, My Sweet (Marlowe is the Man!)

Now, Voyager (Bette will break your heart)

Outrage (Ida Lupino was fearless...)

A Taste of Honey (UK decay)

TOP 5 ROCKUMENTARY WORKOUT MOVIES

Jobraith A.D. (the American Bowie)

Waiting: The Van Duren Story (Memphis Power Pop icon)

Creem: America's Only Rock & Roll Magazine (Big Bangs)

Being Evel (didn't play music, still rocked!)

The Public Image Is Rotten (thankfully, no politics)

 

TOP 5 ALBUMS

Duncan Reid/Big Heads- And It's Goodbye From Him (will be missed)

No Tears- Heart Shaped Eyes (Swede pleases)

The Whiffs- Scratch 'N' Sniff (KC R&R is back!)

Kurt Baker- Rock N Roll Club (Maine sustains)

Uni Boys- Buy This Now! (2 for 2)

 

TOP 5 TV SHOWS

Shrinking (perfect practice)

Beef (the lies we tell ourselves)

The Bear (work/life imbalance)

I'm A Virgo (Riley rules)

Extraordinary Attorney Woo (kindness first)

 

TOP 5 BOOKS

The Latecomer- Jean Hanff Korelitz (Oppenheimer fun)

Tomorrow And Tomorrow And Tomorrow- Gabrielle Zevin (trust Marx) 

All The Sinners Bleed- S.A. Cosby (Southern Gothic)

The Immortal King Rao- Vauhini Vara (futureshock)

The Candy House- Jennifer Egan (it's still a goon)

 

TOP 5 LIVE PERFORMANCES

Dear Evan Hansen 2/11/22 Orpheum SF (devastating/beautiful)

White Reaper 2/22/23 August Hall SF (we deserve love)

Six 3/14/23 Orpheum SF (the historemix)

Hoodoo Gurus 5/21/23 GAMH SF (We All Turned On!) 

The Little Big Things 10/11/23 @sohoplace London (Henry flys)

 

If you're interested in what I'm watching, hearing and reading during the year check out the ALL KINDSA GIRLS Twitter feed (I disavow the name change).  Please respond with your own 2023 favorites as I'm always looking for quality viewing/listening/reading material- perhaps your picks will end up on next year's lists.  Wishing you all the best in 2024!

2022 Top 5 Lists

We made it another year!  That may seem like a low bar but after the last two years I think we should just take the W.  It all still feels like "a lot" sometimes (see my favorite movie of the year) yet I'm happy to say the optimism I felt this time last year is still in place.  Sonoma Arts Live, the theater company Jaime and I run, closed out a successful first season back with The Drowsy Chaperone, in which I was lucky enough to appear as a Gangster/Pastry Chef, and Season 2022-23 is off to a great start. My radio show ALL KINDSA GIRLS remains a Saturday night staple on KSVY.  We wrapped up the year spending the holidays at home (good call it turns out) with family and friends.  Like every year, my life in 2022 was enriched by the movies, TV shows, records and books I saw listened to and read.  Classic Thursday, which we started at Jaime's urging during the pandemic, earns its own heading this year. Now, in a tradition dating back to 1999, I humbly submit my 2022 Top 5 Lists:

 

TOP 5 MOVIES 

Everything, Everywhere All At Once (right now, this IS us) 

Tár (sadly, this is also us) 

Drive My Car (but maybe there's hope for us?)

The Banshees of Inisherin (at least for some of us?)

Montana Story (thankfully, yes)

TOP 5-ish STREAMING/DVD MOVIES

Sweet Thing / The Fallout (we are failing them)

Petite Maman / Our Little Sister (empathy machine endures)

The Boy Behind The Door / Hellbender (truly terrifying)

Turn Me On, Dammit! / Emergency (hormonal hilarity)

Nine Days / The Worst Person In The World (life is hard)

TOP 5 CLASSIC THURSDAY FILMS

Brief Encounter 1945 (beautiful heartbreak)

The Bad and The Beautiful 1952 (Hollywood hasn't changed)

The Man In The White Suit 1951 (true disruption)

Witness For The Prosecution 1957 (Dietrich kills it)

The Lady Eve 1941 (so much fun!)

TOP 5 ALBUMS

Sloan- Steady (SLOOOOOOO-OOOOAAAANNNN!)

Uni Boys- Do It All Next Week (see, Power Pop isn't JUST 50+)

Hoodoo Gurus- Chariot of the Gods (the OZ Masters Return!)

The Speedways- Talk Of The Town (London swings again)

The Linda Lindas- Growing Up (hope for our R&R future)

Top 5 BOOKS

The Lincoln Highway- Amor Towles (a Great American Novel)

Crossroads- Jonathan Franzen (how to live a moral life)

Velvet Was The Night- Silvia Moreno-Garcia (non-metaphorical bloody politics)

The Plot- Jean Hanff Korelitz (don't think words can kill?)

Harlem Shuffle- Colson Whitehead (American dreamer)

TOP 5 TV SHOWS

Station Eleven (The Bard endures)

Wayne (Brockton Rawks!)

Fleishman Is In Trouble (so are we all...)

Bad Sisters (deirfiúracha i réim)

Stranger Things 4 (RIP E.M.) 

 

Hoping I get to enough non-SAL theatrical performances this year for this heading to return in the 2023 lists.  If you're interested in what I'm watching, listening to and reading during the year I invite you to check out the ALL KINDSA GIRLS feed on Twitter which has 2 Rules:  #1 Keep it positive (if I don't like something, I don't post about it), #2 No politics (see Rule #1).  Please feel free to respond with your own 2022 favorites- I'm always looking for quality viewing, listening and reading material and perhaps you'll see your recommendations on next year's lists.  

 

Wishing you all the best in 2023!

2021 Top 5 Lists

Well, here we are.  What can we say about 2021?  Was it better than 2020?  Uh.... 2021 did have less sheltering in place and fewer wildfires but our political divisions- yikes!  On balance though, I'm feeling more optimistic.  My family just got back from a great holiday trip to NYC and Boston on what a Comedy Cellar comedian dubbed "Omicron Eve."   Things first started looking up last fall when Sonoma Arts Live, the theater Jaime and I run, returned with a triumphant production of Sunset Boulevard.  I was also thrilled to bring my radio show ALL KINDSA GIRLS back to KSVY.  And, as is the case every year, in 2021 I was diverted, comforted and inspired by the movies, TV shows, records and books I saw, listened to and read.  So now, in an annual tradition that started in 1999, I humbly submit my 2021 Top 5's:

TOP 5 MOVIES (seen in an actual theater!)

The Power of The Dog (not the film you think it is)

Pig (f@%# Seattle!) 

Lamb (the animal theme is unintentional)

West Side Story (Kushner elevates Sondheim)

Together Together (friends transcend)

 

 

TOP 5 STREAMING MOVIES/DVDs (+5ish because COVID)

Paterson (art+love=life)

The Best Years of Our Lives (the best of Classic Thursday)

Small Axe: Lovers Rock (make a joyful noise)

About Endlessness (dream of life and vice versa)

Why Don't You Just Die! (brutal hilarity)

Life of Crime/Small Town Crime (I like John Hawkes, okay?!?)

Quo Vadis, Aida? (will this ever stop...) 

Possessor Uncut (mind blower)

Unpregnant/Slalom/The Sisterhood of Night/Plan B (our daughters deserve better)

Pain and Glory (Almodóvar goes deep)

Spontaneous (love pops)

TOP 5 ALBUMS

Weezer- Van Weezer (a triumph and my return to live music)

TUNS- Duly Noted (Bluenosers Rock!)

Radio Days- Rave On! (Pop potente)

Death By Unga Bunga- Heavy Male Insecurity (Egocentric!)

Matthew Sweet- Catspaw (guitar slinger/singer)

 

 

TOP 5 BOOKS

Blacktop Wasteland- S.A. Cosby (Bug's life)

A Burning- Megha Majumdar (life's not fair) 

Matterhorn- Karl Marlantes (the literal fog of war)

Missionaries- Phil Klay (marine ready)

Nothing To See Here- Kevin Wilson (firestarters)

 

 

TOP 5 TV SHOWS

Search Party (lost children)

We Are Lady Parts (rock & roll is the answer)

Mare of Easttown (rust belt blues)

Midnight Mass (philosophy, religion, monsters- in that order)

Cruel Summer (90's nightmare)

 

Some of the above did not come out in 2021 but that's when I found them.  Sadly, still no "Theatrical Performance" category for 2021 (thanks COVID)- hopefully it will return next year.  If you'd like to keep track of what I'm watching, listening to and reading during the year check out the ALL KINDSA GIRLS Twitter feed.  Feel free to respond with your own 2021 favorites as I'm always looking for quality viewing/listening/reading material- your picks might even end up on next year's list.

Here's hoping for a better year in 2022!

2020 Top 5 Lists

Let’s face it- 2020 was brutal.  So much so that it defies a witty, pithy or God forbid snarky summation.  What can be said is that never has quality viewing, listening or reading material been as essential as it was in 2020.  Just getting out of your own head and into someone else’s- doesn’t matter if that other “head” is prospecting for gems on a distant planet, hunting bail jumpers in suburban Atlanta or making the best selling fictional album of the 70’s- gave us a much needed break from the politics, pandemic, wildfires, etc. that sucked all the fun out of our lives in 2020.  That said, The Loves are all okay, crossing our fingers for the return of Sonoma Arts Live theatrical productions and All Kindsa Girls to the KSVY airwaves in 2021.  I know I say this every year, but in 2020 I was especially thankful for the movies, TV shows, records and books I saw, listened to and read.  In what is now a 22 year tradition, I humbly submit my 2020 Top 5's:

TOP 5 MOVIES (+5 DVD/streaming because 2020 killed theaters) 

Never Rarely Sometimes Always (Thank God for Cousins) 

Slut In A Good Way (Make way for Charlotte!)

Prospect (The best Pedro Pascal space epic)

The Handmaiden (Park does it again)

The Lovers (middle-age marriage story)

Banana Split / Never Goin’ Back (WWBFFD?)

Freaks (sci-fi genius)

Queen + Slim (this has got to stop)

The Assistant (this also has got to stop)

The Invisible Man / Emma (the last movies I saw in a theater-sigh-)

 

TOP 5 ALBUMS

Cheap Trick- Out To Get You!  Live 1977 (hear the masters at work)

The Zulus- Cockfight In A Bullring (a shoulda been huge Boston band)

Kurt Baker- After Party (Maine/Spain Man!)

Nick Piunti & The Complicated Men- Downtime (it’s “pyoon-tee”)

The Yum Yums- For Those About To Pop! (Norway’s finest)

 

TOP 5 BOOKS

The Nix- Nathan Hill (the past isn’t)

Saint X- Alexis Schaitkin (family vacation)

City of Girls- Elizabeth Gilbert (NYC theater survives)

Dopefiend- Donald Goines (heroine not-chic)

Daisy Jones & The Six- Taylor Jenkins Reid (sex&drugs&rock’n’roll)

 

TOP 5 TV SHOWS

Mr. Inbetween S1&2 (The Ray Way)

Teenage Bounty Hunters (Twin Powers, Activate!)

The Great (Catherine>Peter)

Brockmire S3&4 (The Redemption & The Future)

Normal People (beautiful heartbreak)

 

Not all of the above came out in 2020, but that’s when I caught up with them.  Sadly, Covid-19 killed the “Theatrical Performance” category in 2020, though I’m sure the stellar Berkeley Playhouse production of Memphis we saw in February would have made the list. During the early months of the pandemic I was watching a movie every night (check here for an ongoing rundown of those I liked).  Podcasts will likely have their own category next year- this year’s favorite being The Ballad of Billy Balls, an NYC rock & roll/love/murder story.  Please respond with your own 2020 favorites- I'm always on the lookout for quality viewing/listening/reading material and your selections may end up on next year's list.  Here's wishing you a happy, healthy and safe 2021!

2019 Top 5 Lists

John Lydon once sang "anger is an energy."  In America it seems like anger is an industry these days and business is booming!  This year we should all take a tip from Otis Redding and "Try A Little Tenderness."  I'm happy to report that life here in Sonoma for The Loves is good.  The kids are living (together!?!) in Fairfield while Jaime and I are both working from home.  We just finished a record-breaking run of A Christmas Story, The Musical where I had the honor of playing The Old Man, which was awesome!  My radio show on 91.3 KSVY ALL KINDSA GIRLS celebrated 10 years of Power Pop and is still going strong.  In these polarizing times I'm especially thankful for the movies, TV shows, plays/musicals, records and books I saw, listened to and read.  In a tradition that dates back to 1999, I humbly submit my 2019 Top 5's:

TOP 5 MOVIES
The Last Black Man In San Francisco (Jimmie Fails? I think not)
Fighting With My Family (Florence Pugh owned 2019!)
Booksmart (WWBFFD)
Rocketman (party time in the Tower of Babel)
Parasite (how we are now)

TOP 5 STREAMING MOVIES/DVDs
A Vigilante (righteous fury)
Columbus (dancing about architecture)
Capernaum (suffer the children)
The Hate U Give (Starr story)
Support The Girls (we all need a Lisa)

TOP 5 ALBUMS
Nervous Eaters- Record 10 (Boston Rock still rules!)
Pernice Brothers- Spread The Feeling (Power Pop perfection)
Sidewalk Driver- For All The Boys and Girls (Boston Glam Kings!)
Redd Kross- Beyond The Door (McDonald bros still rockin')
Giuda- Racey Roller (Roman stompers)

TOP 5 BOOKS
Clothes, Clothes, Clothes. Boys, Boys, Boys. Music, Music, Music.- Viv Albertine (not in that order)
There There- Tommy Orange (the crushing weight of history)
Super Sad True Love Story- Gary Shteyngart (Deny and Imply)
Cherry- Nico Walker (how we got here)
Moonglow- Michael Chabon  (rocket ride)

TOP 5 TV SHOWS
Lodge 49 (unlike any show I've ever seen)
Fleabag / Undone (listen to the woman)
Unbelievable (Dever + Wever + Collete= incredible)
Fosse/Verdon (as artists- genius; as people- meh)
Watchmen (you can't heal under a mask)

TOP 5 THEATRICAL PERFORMANCES
The Who and The What Marin Theater Company 3/6/19
Spring Awakening Marin Musical Theater Company 3/8/19
Rapture, Blister, Burn Lucky Penny Theater Company 5/9/19 
Once 42nd Street Moon 6/19/19
Eureka Day Spreckels Theater Company 8/30/19 

(I did not consider our Sonoma Arts Live shows though one or two easily could have made the list.)
 
Several of the selections above did not come out in the past 12 months but that's when I got around to them.  Please send your own best of 2019 lists- I've a feeling during this election year I'm going to need the distraction/immersion of quality viewing/listening/reading material more than ever.  And your selections might even end up on next year's list!  Wishing you all the best in 2020!

2018 Top 5 Lists

A (belated) Happy New Year to You!  I apologize for the lateness of this year's list- we spent the holidays in Boston and the first few days of 2019 in NYC (where we saw Book of Mormon and Come From Away, each amazing in VERY different ways).  Since then, well you know how it goes.  2018 was a time of transition, kids (mostly) out of the house and a new job working from home for me.  My radio show ALL KINDSA GIRLS has been a Saturday night staple on 91.3 KSVY for 9 years and I'm starting the new year in a production of Arsenic and Old Lace at Jaime's theater company here in Sonoma.  As always my 2018 was enriched by the movies, albums, books and TV shows I saw, listened to and read.  Last year I became an adjudicator for Theatre Bay Area so I'm adding an additional category this year- "Top 5 Theatrical Performances."  In what is now a 20 year tradition (20 years people!!), I humbly submit my 2018 Top 5's:

TOP 5 MOVIES
Eighth Grade (Gucci!)
Sorry To Bother You (Truth To Power Caller)
The Death of Stalin (leadership vacuum cleaner)
Hearts Beat Loud (a dad's dream)
Lean On Pete (lost boy)

TOP 5 STREAMING MOVIES/DVDs
Revenge (no one puts Jen in a corner!)
Brigsby Bear (grin and bear it)
First Reformed (holy father)
A Ghost Story (truly haunting)
Blockers/Game Night (Smart R rated comedy is back!)

TOP 5 ALBUMS
Sloan- 12 (Canadoozie!)
Nick Piunti- Temporary High (Power Pop Prime)
The Genuine Fakes- Issues (ruling Swedes)
Bill Lloyd- Working The Long Game (The Master returns)
Geoff Palmer- All The Hits and Some Other Sh*t (Granite State Rock!)

TOP 5 BOOKS
Manhattan Beach- Jennifer Egan (living history)
Before The Fall- Noah Hawley (media monsters)
American War- Omar El Akkad (rise of The Red)
Six Four- Hideo Yokoyama (Mikami in a maze)
The Power- Naomi Alderman (Mother Eve gets even)

TOP 5 TV SHOWS
The Good Place Seasons 2-3 (forking smart/hilarious)
The Sinner Seasons 1-2 (searing drama)
Sharp Objects (Crellen curse)
Atlanta Robbin' Season (meet Teddy Perkins)
Barry (killer theater)

TOP 5 THEATRICAL PERFORMANCES
Good People Cinnabar Theater 2/2/18
By The Water Spreckels Theatre Company 4/7/18
Straight White Men Marin Theatre Company 6/20/18
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time Spreckels Theater 9/15/18
Hedwig and The Angry Inch Ray of Light Theatre 9/21/18


(It didn't feel right to consider Sonoma Arts Live shows, which was tough because one or two might have made the list.) 

Not all of the above came out last year but that's when I got around to them.  Please respond with your own 2018 favorites- I'm always on the lookout for quality viewing/listening/reading material.  Who knows, your selections might end up on next year's list!  Here's wishing you a happy, healthy and prosperous 2019!

2017 Top 5 Lists

"Interesting times?"  We are here people!  If 2017 had been any more "interesting" my head would have exploded.  That said, my family is healthy, I had a great time in two Sonoma Arts Live productions, The Rainmaker and Inspecting Carol, and my radio show ALL KINDSA GIRLS is going on nine years.  There are also great movies, records, book and TV shows to be thankful for so as I have since 1999, I humbly submit my 2017 Top 5's:

TOP 5 MOVIES
I, Daniel Blake (bureaucracide)
The Florida Project (Moonee's world)
Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri (McDonagh's magnum opus)
The Big Sick (real American story)
Baby Driver (neat, neat, neat!)

TOP 5 STREAMING MOVIES/DVDs
Mustang (irreligious)
The Invitation (dinner party crash)
The Raid Redemption (mind-blowing bullet ballet)
Colossal (Kaiju/indie mashup)
American Honey (how the other 14.5% live)

TOP 5 ALBUMS
Matthew Sweet- Tomorrow Forever (a master returns)
The Upper Crust- Delusions of Grandeur (let there be rocque!)
The Wellingtons- End of The Summer (Power Pop perfection)
Bash and Pop- Anything Could Happen (Tommy out-Pauls Paul)
Suzy and Los Quatro- Faster and Louder (Spanish Lady rocks!)

TOP 5 BOOKS
The First Bad Man- Miranda July (Cheryl's plight)
Sixkill- Robert B. Parker (RBP and Spenser, RIP)
Mrs. Fletcher- Tom Perrotta (empty nester)
Rage In Harlem- Chester Himes (For Love of Imabelle)
History of Wolves- Emily Fridlund (Minnesota masterpiece)

TOP 5 TV SHOWS
American Vandal (who drew the d*cks?)
Halt And Catch Fire Seasons 1-4 (true disruption)
The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel (Midge can do it)
Catastrophe Seasons 1-2 (marital hilarity, until Season 3)
Better Call Saul Season 3 (Shakespearean epic)
 
TV was the most competitive category this year- so many great shows on the streaming services it's hard to limit it to five.  While not all of the above came out in 2017, that's when I got around to them.  Please feel free to respond with your own lists- I'm always on the lookout for viewing/listening/reading material and maybe you'll see your recommendation on next year's list.  Here's hoping we all find a way to navigate the new normal- however abnormal it may be- in 2018!