Tonight there will be a very special performance at San Francisco's fabulous Swedish American Hall -- Robyn Hitchcock will be covering songs that uber producer/Swinging London man about town Joe Boyd made famous throughout his storied career. Will Hitchcock play "Just Another Diamond Day?" Or "Way To Blue?" The possibilities are tantalizing.

Said career was in fact storied officially in Boyd's amazingly entertaining book White Bicycles, which I highly recommend. Boyd produced artists like Nick Drake, Incredible String Band, Fairport Convention, Vashti Bunyan and many more, and was involved in the careers of Pink Floyd, The Move -- basically every good English rock or folk band or artist through the 60s.

At the event tonight, Boyd will read from his book, and will no doubt elaborate on some of his incredible stories, such as witnessing Dylan's controversial electric performance at the 1965 Newport Folk Festival from backstage, and dating Linda Thompson before she married Richard Thompson. Quite a life he's had, and tonight's show promises to be full of insider details about a fascinating time in music that's long since past but is constantly referenced by artists working today. This is the stuff of legends, people.

Of all the Oscar related films I have seen thus far this season, Rachel Getting Married felt the most real to me.


Jonathan Demme directed this film and the footage has a documentary, fly on the wall feeling to it -- it's shakey, hand held and doesn't shy away from catching awkward moments. It perfectly suits the film's plot and the depths of intensity that the characters plumb throughout. The film centers around a wounded family getting together to celebrate the wedding of Rachel (the gorgeous Rosemarie DeWitt of Mad Men) and Sidney (Tunde Adebimpe of TV on the Radio). Kym (Oscar-nominated Anne Hathaway) is Rachel's attention-needy, just out of rehab sister.

I found this film to be extremely absorbing -- it really delves into the emotions and complications of a family whose deeply cracked ties are dangerously close, in some cases, to becoming fully broken. Kym's self absorption wreaks havoc on each family member in different ways and they all struggle to cope with her actions in the crucible of a fully yuppified wedding weekend. The languid pace of the film adds to its authentic charm -- the viewer is led slowly through a series of moments that have a strong cinema vérité feeling. We are innocent bystanders as a layered history of pain and grief is slowly revealed, bringing this family to and through the emotionally charged wedding weekend.