Lael Summer Uses Soul to Fight the Good Fight

Lael Summer’s debut album, titled Burden to Bear is to be released on 21st January, 2014 through True Groove Records. Apart from Lael’s cover of Hall & Oates’ Do What You Want, Be What You Are, all the tracks are written by Lael Summer and Tomas Doncker (album produced by Tomas Doncker and James Dellatacoma, with executive producer, Marla Mase).

Old school soul and funk meets modern-day themes and a contemporary sensibility in the lyrics, all wrapped up in a polished pop production. This New York City performer has had her battles and explores some of her demons in these songs. She has a soulful voice, which she uses well on both the up-tempo songs and the ballads.

Wringing every nuance from a melody, she has soul and r&b in her DNA.  The line-up of accomplished musicians on the album, which includes Tomas Doncker, complements the vocals so well.

I’m a sucker for that fat horn section sound, which used to regularly fill a dance floor, and opener, I Need a Man struts its stuff beautifully. Apparently, the man referred to here is coming online slots up short in the bedroom! Hard-hitting lyrics also appear on You’re So Small; again, she’s telling the guy just what she thinks of him! Lael shows her sensitive side on the emotionally moving Make You Whole. I’m also a sucker for fat, funky keyboards, which appear on It’s About Soul, a song about body image and how women try to live up to what they see in the magazines and “some ideal”. This is a feisty Lael Summer, again telling it how it is without compromise.

A slow and sensual Latin beat with sultry vocals on In Time puts the listener in a mellow mood once more, and there’s more sensual lyrics on Kiss and Tell, a piece of soulful pop. As for the cover here, Lael does justice to the Daryl Hall and John Oates song, Do What You Want, Be What You Are with a soulful rendition and the musicians in great form. What Do I Know (about love) is a pop / r&b track, once more with a great arrangement. Look Around Me has those funky horns again. The Good Fight has a plaintive piano intro leading to an uplifting, rousing finale with Lael in defiant mood. Other tracks are titled Too Much and Unconditionally.

Burden to Bear takes you through different moods and emotions and shows that soul and r&b can be about whatever a songwriter wants it to be about. There are songs here to dance to, to be romantic to and to set the world straight to – a musical and personal achievement.

Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/laelsummer/sets/burden-to-bear

 

 

 

Film Review: A Town Like Alice

I’m not sure what I was expecting when, a few days ago, I sat down to watch this film. It was one I’d heard of but never before given a viewing for whatever reason. The title suggests something domestic and perhaps slightly delicate and pretty and yet the blurb on the TV guide said it was a WW2 drama starring Virginia McKenna and Peter Finch. So after two hours of well-crafted cinema, intrigue became enlightenment and awe.

A Town Like Alice is a gripping 1956 British drama film based on the book of the same name by Nevil Shute. It tells the harrowing story of a group of women and children forced to march hundreds of miles across Malaya from village to village by the occupying Japanese forces who refuse to take responsibility for them. It is at once awful to witness the hardship and suffering the group has to endure and yet uplifting to behold the strength of the human spirit in times of woe.

The film opens with Jean Paget (played by Virginia McKenna), in a London solicitor’s office shortly after the war. The solicitor informs her that she has a large inheritance and, asked what she wants to do, Jean decides to go to Malaya to build a well in a small village. As work gets under way, she recalls her three years of living in the village and the journey she endured to get there during the war.

Flashback to 1942 and Jean is working in an office in Kuala Lumpur when the Japanese invade and take everyone prisoner. The men are sent off to labour camps and the women and children are told they must walk to a women’s camp fifty miles away. Jean being fluent in Malay, is therefore a prominent figure within the group and helps arrange the acquisition of food and medicines they require from the locals. But after an arduous march in unbearable heat and mosquito infested swamps, the women are told by the camp commanders that they are not wanted and are therefore forced to march on in search of another camp. And so their journey continues with disease and danger always close behind.

Along the way, the group meets young Australian soldier, Joe Harman (Peter Finch), also a prisoner of war, who drives a truck for the Japanese. He and Jean quickly forge a friendship and often meet behind their guard’s back to share a cigarette and swap stories. It is here that he tells her about his hometown of Alice Springs and this is where the story’s title comes from. Joe is appalled by the suffering the group has to endure and helps them by stealing food and medical supplies from his Japanese captors. However, a theft of chickens is investigated and with Jean being the initial suspect, Joe confesses his guilt to save her and the rest of the group. For his troubles, he is beaten and crucified to a tree and left to die. The women are forced to march away but a while later, when their guard dies, Jean begs that the group be allowed to stay in a village where they will gladly work and become part of the community. This they do until the end of the war when they are repatriated.

Returning to the present day in the village where the well is being built, Jean learns that Joe Harman didn’t die against that tree and that he survived the war and returned to Australia. She therefore travels there to search for him. Likewise, he travels to London in search of her and after some disappointment, the two finally meet in the airport at Alice Springs. Very moving it is too.

This is where the film differs from the book because where the cinematic story ends, the novel continues to explore Jean’s new life in the Australian outback and examines all the joys and difficulties that that throws up.

The film was shot mainly at Pinewood studios although some exteriors were filmed in Malaya and Australia. It was directed by Jack Lee (arguably his best known work) and distributed by The Rank Organisation. It was the third most popular film at the British box office in 1956 and won BAFTAs for both McKenna and Finch. Give it a look and you’ll see why. Their performances are faultless. But then, the same could be said of the entire cast. The film itself was nominated too as was the screenplay. The pacing is spot on – your attention and interest in the characters never wanes – and the look of the film is frighteningly real.

All in all, an incredible tale of triumph over adversity – a great film made from a great novel.

 

Amelia Scalies – Blossoming with a Message

 

If someone is 14 years old and promoting herself as a singer songwriter, she needs to have the maturity to back it up. Fortunately, Amelia Scalies does and her melodies and lyrics are impressive. It’s always hard to describe a younger creative person without sounding patronizing, which is something she doesn’t deserve.

Amelia, who hails from Philadelphia, released her debut album, titled I Should’ve Known on July 18th, 2013. It contains twelve tracks, eleven of which are her original compositions. The remaining track is her cover version of Welcome to the Black Parade by My Chemical Romance. This is pop music with a harder edge lyrically and ventures into musical influences that channel her individual style well. Her themes include the sting of love going wrong and the sometimes painful ebb and flow of friendships, so important during adolescence. However, it would be unfair to dismiss these lyrics as mere teenage angst; they’re more truthful than that. Given that her compositions carry a lot of emotional weight, it’s not surprising, then, that the one cover she has chosen is My Chemical Romance’s classic.

Oh, she does like writing songs when she’s pissed off! Opening track, Bottom of the Ocean is an angry slice of thrash pop verging on pop punk. Small Talk Friends, my favourite track, is in similar vein. In this song, she threatens to hit back at the bitchiness aimed at her in the school hall and hit back hard. I wouldn’t like to cross her when she’s roused! More Than Words is another thrash pop blast of anger and she’s not in a forgiving mood. The title track, I Should’ve Known, reminds me of Ladykillers, the Britpop hit from Lush.

There is country tinged pop here too, with sweet country guitar, a genre that really suits her voice and her song writing too, on tracks, Phoenix, Rose Blossom, Macey Brown (Green-Eyed Girl) and What I Should’ve Said. Rose Blossom shows that she is capable of writing about the joy of falling in love and not just about being hurt and angry. What I Should’ve Said contains heart-breaking lyrics about a loved one slipping away and regret over not telling her she was loved.

Don’t Let Them Win addresses the topic of bullying, urging victims to stay strong and not to let themselves be overwhelmed. Amelia wrote this when just 10 years old.

Amelia’s voice isn’t outstanding in any way, but she uses it well and it will mature, no doubt, as she grows older and as she continues to perform live. Perhaps more importantly, she is a good role model for young girls going through problems, sending out a message that in preserving strength and dignity, you can win in the end.

https://soundcloud.com/tony-scalies/sets/i-shouldve-known

 

 

 

 

 

The Lockhearts Unlock the Power

 

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How to make the ‘performing to camera’ video more interesting? Day-glo colours! Mashing up  60’s psychedelic  colours  with 80’s style rock,  The Lockhearts present their Freakshow track (released 25th October 2013)  in an entertaining debut video with lots of tricksy fluorescent lighting effects popping out of the darkness. Bikini-clad babes also make an appearance, but it’s done quite tastefully for once. Feature film director, Tanzeal Rahim has brought fresh thinking  to the classic performing band, promotional video. With a catchy chorus, stonking good guitar solo and lots of energy driving the whole thing along, Freakshow is a radio-friendly and car stereo-friendly song, which can only be helped casino online by more people being aware of it through this  video. This kind of sing-along rock will never go away.

Hailing from Sydney, the quartet has been likened to Cheap Trick and the Foo Fighters. They are Tim Meaco on lead vocals and guitar, Jameel Majam on bass guitar, Age Vella on lead guitar and Brenton James on drums. They’re a hit on MTV, with Freakshow having peaked at Number 2 on the MTV Hits Chart.

The future looks busy for The Lockhearts, with plans for more recording and for extensive tours. Long hair. Tight trousers. Powerhouse rock. Arenas get ready. They may just blow your roofs off.

View Video at http://goo.gl/flNJdJ

 

 

 

Film Review: Rififi

Ah, the heist movie! Love them or loathe them, just thinking about them conjures up images of a group of misfits enduring painstaking preparation overseen by some intelligent mastermind. Of masked gunmen overpowering unsuspecting night-watchmen. Of safecracking equipment and smoke grenades. Of fast getaway cars. All the ingredients for a thrill-a-moment spectacle.

Hollywood obviously loves them. The success of remakes like Ocean’s Eleven (and its sequels), The Italian Job and The Thomas Crown Affair is proof that, for the most part, we do too. There are of course, dozens of titles worthy of viewing, both old and new, but if you want to watch one of the most influential of them all, then I recommend the 1955 French classic, Rififi.

Even though Rififi is filmed in glorious Paris, the French capital has never looked so bleak. Director Jules Dassin, argued on more than one occasion with his cameraman by insisting he didn’t want to shoot in sunshine. He wanted the overall look of the film to be grey and cold and consequently it’s about as far removed from the glitz and glamour of somewhere like Ocean’s Eleven’s setting of Las Vegas as it’s possible to get. Dassin wanted gritty realism and boy! – that’s exactly what he got. Indeed, so real is it’s actual heist scene – an incredible 30 minute segment void of any dialogue or music – that upon its release in ’55, several countries banned it on the grounds that it was akin to watching a training film for anyone wishing to commit burglary. A reviewer in the Los Angeles Times referred to it as a “master class in breaking and entering as well as filmmaking”. Burglaries mimicking the film’s scene began occurring around the world. Dassin responded to critics by claiming that the film showed how difficult it actually was to carry out a crime.

Jules Dassin was American by birth and found success as a director in the ’40s, particularly with a number of noir films. But when the communist witch hunts burned through Hollywood like wildfire he was blacklisted and consequently decided to move to Paris to continue looking for work. Nothing came his way for five years until he was offered Rififi, an adaptation of Auguste Le Breton’s novel of the same name and despite shooting on a low budget and with a no-name cast, the film revived his career.

The film follows Tony le Stéphanois (played by Jean Servais), an ageing gangster recently released from a five year prison stretch for jewel theft. Down on his luck, he meets up with two gangster friends Jo le Suédois (Carl Mohner) and Mario Ferrati (Robert Manuel) who propose to him a smash-and-grab job from a parisian jeweler’s window display. Initially Tony refuses but when he learns that his girl has hooked up with nightclub owner and rival gangster Pierre Grutter (Marcel Lupovici), he accepts the job on condition that they go for the safe inside rather than simply what is in the window. Mario suggests they bring in expert Italian safecracker César le Milanais (played by Jules Dassin under the pseudonym Perlo Vita). The four men then concoct and rehearse an intricate plan to break into the jeweler’s and disarm the (then) state-of-the-art alarm system. The heist is pulled without any major hiccup but the problems arise, as they so often do in this type of story, in the aftermath. And with that, I shall say no more about the plot. I should hate to spoil it for those who haven’t seen it.

Not only did Rififi revive its director’s career but it also found success in America, making Dassin the first artist to come back from the Hollywood blacklist. The film was praised by audiences and critics alike and won several awards during the ’55-’56 season. It also quickly became a hugely influential marker for many heist films that followed. If you’ve never seen it, give it a look and see what all the fuss is about. I promise you won’t be disappointed.

 

Checking Inn – Emily Harper Launch Day Tour

Checking Inn Launch Banner

 Welcome to the Launch Day Tour for Emily Harper’s new novel Checking Inn!

 The book is officially released today so why not start celebrating the upcoming festivities with a fantastic new read nestled in your stocking . . .

 

What they say:

‘Kate Foster runs the Summerside Inn (and her life) by well-organized checklists.

Pageflex Persona [document: PRS0000032_00025]Make sure the caterers don’t serve devil’s food cake to the Christian Women’s Alliance– check.

Tell my mother that having a séance to get rid of any unwanted spirits in the kitchen during dinnertime is not okay- check.

Send a friendly reminder to all staff that the pens are colour coded for everyone’s enjoyment, and therefore it is not a good idea to put them all in one jar in order to “spice things up” as was anonymously suggested– check.

But, when an acclaimed hotel critic dies at the Inn, just before she’s about to publish a scathing review that would ruin the business, Kate’s life and checklists are thrown into disarray. And it doesn’t help matters that the detective assigned to the case is messy, unorganized, and too charming for his own good. Now Kate has to prove her innocence and save her Inn, or else the only thing that she’ll be organizing is the prison’s next bake sale.’

Click Here To Buy This Book – UK

Click Here To Buy This Book – US

emily-harper-head-shotAuthor Bio: 

Emily Harper has a passion for writing humorous romance stories where the heroine is not your typical damsel in distress.  Throughout her novels you will find love, laughter, and the unexpected!

Originally from England,  she currently lives in Canada with her wonderful husband, beautiful daughter, mischievous son,  and a very naughty dog.

Emily is also the author of the funny and charming novel White Lies, which has proven to be a huge hit with fans. The book will even be appearing on The Marilyn Denis Show as a giveaway next month! For more information on the book please visit Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com.

Ways to stalk  follow Emily

Blog | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads

Praise for Emily

‘The story bounces along, sweeping the reader up along with it, and has a feel-good factor that makes it both unputdownable and downright fantastic’

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