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Joss Whedon recommended Once Upon a Time in the West (1968) in Movies (curated)

Once Upon a Time in the West (1968)

1968 | Action, Drama, Western

8.5

(8 Ratings)

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"This one had beat out a couple contenders who were dueling for a long time on my list. It is as ecstatically cinematic as any western ever got. We’re talking about a movie where the hero is so badass, he plays his own theme song. And not only that, he plays his own theme song for a reason that is devastating, that’s revealed in flashback before the final gunfight. I mean, come on. The camera moves, the music, the utter ballsiness of it, the pace. The western exploded with this one. This came out the same year as The Wild Bunch, and they kind of put a stake in it — that was it, we have gone as far as we can go in two very different directions. One is a lyrical opera, the other is an insane shoot em’ up kind of nihilistic orgy. For me, the operatic is gonna win out, as you will see in the other films I am going to mention."

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Kudos

Joe Jonas recommended track Bohemian Rhapsody by Queen in Live at Wembley Stadium by Queen in Music (curated)

Live at Wembley Stadium by Queen

1990 | Rock

(0 Ratings)

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Bohemian Rhapsody by Queen

(0 Ratings)

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"Queen and Freddie Mercury are heroes to me and musically they inspire so much of what I do now. ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ is hands down one of the best songs of all time - it’s operatic, it’s Rock ‘n’ roll and it’s got one of the best videos as well. It takes you on a journey and it’s unexpected. Freddie came from opera and you can obviously hear it in this song. I feel like I want to take a time machine and go back and watch him sing it. “As a band we walk out on stage to this song, so it’s really important for us as a unit. It sets the mood, especially at a big show like the show at Hyde Park: you walk out to Queen and it makes you proud! I really look up to Freddie as a frontman - I have him tattooed on my arm too, which I got done recently."

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Kudos

Rufus Wainwright recommended Don Carlos by Verdi in Music (curated)

Don Carlos by Verdi

1967 | Vocal

(0 Ratings)

Album Favorite

"I came across this early on in my operatic journey, and to this day it remains one of my favourite recordings and one of my favourite operas. The wonderful thing about Verdi is that, as you get older, it starts to make more and more sense: these fraught relationships between fathers and sons and lovers and friends. He's so profound in his understanding of human relationships. This opera, Don Carlos, is in my opinion a great masterpiece on a Shakespearian level in its defining, most notably, of the father and son dynamic. There's actually a moment when the father contemplates killing his son – I don't know, but I think that has crossed the minds of certain dads. And as well as Domingo and Caballé, Shirley Verrett is on that recording, who is one of the greatest mezzo-sopranos of all time. So everybody is in there at their zenith vocally, and it's a wild ride."

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Kudos

Gruff Rhys recommended California 99 by Jimmie Haskell in Music (curated)

California 99 by Jimmie Haskell

(0 Ratings)

Album Favorite

"This 1971 album by Hollywood arranger Jimmie Haskell is a rare case of the Topographical Album. It reimagines a future sovereign state of California in the wake of a catastrophic earthquake along the San Andreas fault - creating a gigantic inland lagoon where most of So-Cal sits today. If you're a Mapster that's into Maps - then this is the record for you - and from that perspective this has the greatest sleeve ever made. (Folds out into a giant map of said post apocalypse America). For heritage rock completists: this record features a cover of the Band's 'The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down' and Joe Walsh ( who would soon be joining the Eagles) features heavily on a couple of tunes. Generally though, Approach with caution - even though it's a fun record and a bold attempt at a new musical micro-genre, it also has the faint unwelcome smell of the rock opera."

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Kudos