December 28, 2013
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Breakin’ up Christmas all night long (Santa Claus done come and gone)

I’ve been familiar with the tune Breakin’ up Christmas for some time. It’s a common Old Time dance tune that gets played any time of the year. I read that the tradition of Breakin’ up Christmas is all about neighbours visiting neighbours in the two weeks after Christmas.

Hooray Jake, hooray John
Breakin’ up Christmas all night long.
Santa Claus done come and gone
Breakin’ up Christmas right along.
Don’t you remember long time ago
The old folks danced the do-si-do.
Here’s Tommy Jarrell on fiddle…

And now a version by Tom Collins on Fretless Banjo

December 27, 2013
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Bully of the Town

Today I’d like to feature a tune by one of Canada’s great fiddle players, the late Graham Townsend. Mr. Townsend was an Ottawa Valley Boy, from Buckingham Quebec. He got an early start as a fiddler and was winning competitions even as a young boy. Mr. Townsend played for the Queen, and through his career he played with many of the best musicians in Canada and the USA.

So here is Bully of the Town and the Clarinet Polka.

December 27, 2013
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American Hustle – my kind of movie

Little Georgie, our Newfoundland puppy has been dominating our time since he joined our household last Saturday.  A puppy, as many of you know, takes a serious amount of time and attention. And then there is the job of house-breaking….

We did manage a couple hours to ourselves yesterday to see American Hustle, playing up the street at the Queensway Cineplex. Let me say up front: we both loved this movie.

It’s directed by David O. Russell and stars Christian Bale as small time con artist (and small businessman – he has a modest chain of dry cleaners) Irving Rosenfeld; Amy Adams as his lover and partner in crime; the amazing Jennifer Lawrence as Irving’s wife Rosalyn; Bradley Cooper as FBI agent Richie DiMaso; Jeremy Renner as Mayor Carmine Polito; and even a great cameo by Robert de Niro. I list these actors only because they all did a fantastic job.

I’m not going to get into the story beyond saying it’s a con-man movie. It’s just a very, very good con-man movie. The film has some very funny parts – I found myself laughing out loud a number of times, yet it doesn’t feel like a comedy because there is an underlying darkness and sadness about the characters. It’s very loosely based on the Abscam scandal from the late 70s, but it’s less the plot and more the character relationships that make American Hustle soar.

The film is a period piece that offered the film-makers plenty of opportunity to indulge in some great cars, music, and outfits,  not to mention some tragicomic hair. These props could come across as gimmicks but in this film they work perfectly and I think it’s because the actors are strong enough to carry it off.

American Hustle is fun, stylish, clever and entertaining. It’s apparently not for everyone, though. At the end of the film, a woman behind me loudly exclaimed, “this is so confusing!” I thought it was a great film, and I think you will too.

 

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