Il_Paolo

Bella Bartle, but never despise your origins (liscio and Nilla Pizzi), the socio-musical context of your parents, because cutting those roots would be dangerous and wouldn’t nourish the sprouts you write about so well!

Bilquis, be careful not to fall into a dangerous "inferential" argument: the fact that I have refined tastes and am a known sycophant, and the fact that I notoriously admire Tina, does not imply that John Lennon deserved the unfortunate end he - poor thing - met. That would indeed be in very bad taste, and morally unacceptable as a conclusion. Your argument proves too much, as they say: my discourse is different, and it pertains to the fact that post-Beatles Lennon, accompanied by his wife, was a relatively insignificant figure in music, perhaps more impactful for a certain idea of "counterculture," which, in essence, built a "character": a character that, relentlessly, unleashed the madness of the Chapman of the moment, contributing to a paradoxical, and thus sad, construction of the "myth." This was not the case for McCartney (my favorite of the 4 beetles), who even today makes us chuckle under our breath, seeing the sad end he met with Heather Mills, undermining the myth, though certainly not his worth as a musician! ST, Il_Paolo

Ah, Sanjuro, I would be cautious about downplaying the Kiss as just another "American dream" band: it would be interesting to analyze the Jewish roots of Gene Klein and Stanley Eisen, their relationship with the religion of the book, with tradition, and with sex. They could use a Philip Roth too, we would get something much more than just "Portnoy's Complaint".

Not on the <<visa>> (long live migrants, anyway), but on the <<face>>. Give it a try yourselves.

Ah, my Muito Doppelganger! Well, I too must confess that I got close to rock thanks to the 4 of Bacio and the allure their masks stirred within me: listening to all of "Destroyer" was love - youthful - at first sound. Besides the title track, "Flaming Youth" and "Great Expectations" still move me! I would lock myself in the bathroom and cover my entire face with shaving foam, uniform, to see if I could be the fifth Kiss, without anyone knowing. Perhaps it’s out of respect I have for them, and for my memories, that I wouldn’t want to see them live, aged.

Poletti, when Debaser allows book reviews, you know I’ll also extend my discussions to Moccia, or Chicco Sfondrini from Amici! Of course, in private life you must allow me to dedicate time to the so-called "high" culture, precisely because without it, there wouldn’t be that "lower" culture, derived from subtraction. ST, Il_Paolo (whenever you want, come read and especially comment on my audio reviews too, we all miss you!)

Listen to what Tina Weymouth says about John Lennon (from www.rockol.it) <<Well, I met Lennon in New York; I would see him now and then. I’ll be honest: in my opinion, he was an asshole. A grump who always tried to mock you, to prove he was smarter than you. And he never smiled>>. I've always liked Tina, so...

I quote Pollack! That year I had chosen Italian for my oral exam, but my teacher wasn’t exactly a genius: we had only reached Foscolo (!!!!!) by May. So I had to prepare by myself, amidst distractions and various trivialities, using a decisive text in my cultural formation: "Sprint finale" by Cristoforo Attalienti, a more analytical compendium than Bignami. You won’t believe it, but I was awarded a nice final grade.

In my opinion, Lennon had an Oedipal complex, sublimated in his bond with Yoko. A castrating bond that separated him from his lifelong friends, throwing him, almost like a nemesis, into the arms of the tempting Big Apple, and there, of Chapman.

It wasn't her, Poletti! The one I remember was someone else.