Screenshot of Cicely Tyson and Sammy Davis Jr. in the trailer for A Man Called Adam by There Stands the Glass.
Top Ten Albums (released in February)
1. Benoît Delbecq- The Weight of Light
2. Pooh Shiesty- Shiesty Season
Brrrrd.
3. Benjamin Grosvenor- Liszt
4. Quatuor Bozzini- Alvin Lucier: Navigations
Creepy drones and controlled cacophonies.
5. Archie Shepp and Jason Moran- Let My People Go
A feast in the wilderness.
6. Femi and Made Kuti- Legacy+: Stop the Hate and For(e)ward
Family tradition.
7. Cassandra Jenkins- An Overview on Phenomenal Nature
Astral minutes.
8. Tindersticks- Distractions
Focused.
9. Pink Sweat$- Pink Planet
Softer than John Legend.
10. R+R=Now- Live
Genius plus hubris equals fascinating complications.
Top Ten Songs (released in February)
1. Syd- "Missing Out"
Fomo.
2. Nana Yamato- “Burning Desire’
Temperature rising.
3. H.E.R.- "Fight For You"
Throwback anthem.
4. Kevin Gates- "Plug Daughter 2"
Roadside assistance.
5. Polo G- "GNF (OKOKOK)"
I care a lot.
6. Cardi B- "Up"
Once upon a time...
7. Ariana Grande- “Test Drive”
Ride or die.
8. Cherry Glazerr- "Big Bang"
Universal.
9. Sada K- "You"
Nothing compares.
10 Nick Cave and Warren Ellis- “Albuquerque”
Stasis.
Top Ten Movies (viewed for the first time in February, in lieu of live music)
1. A Man Called Adam (1966)
Miles ahead.
2. The Silver Chalice (1954)
Astoundingly bad or exceptionally good?
3. The Golden Coach (1952)
Jean Renoir’s luminescent critique of colonialism.
4. The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter (1968)
An odd but stellar interpretation of Carson McCullers’ novel.
5. It Should Happen to You (1954)
Judy Holliday and Jack Lemmon are adorable.
6. Juarez (1939)
¡Viva México!
7. Native Son (1951)
Richard Wright stars in an uneven rendering of his classic work.
8. Murder, She Said (1961)
Margaret Rutherford as Miss Marple is just too much.
9. Treasure Island (1934)
Yo-ho-ho and a bottle of rum.
10. His House (2020)
Political asylum as horror.
January’s recap and a link to last year’s monthly surveys is here.