Edition #2 - March 2007

So here we are - welcome back to Bob recommends!

"Where have you been" I hear you ask? Well let's put it this way; Between saving Christmas and famously snubbing the Oscars, I have been busy putting together some rather tasty reviews and hunting down the best in film and music for you.

To save any future long delays "Bob recommends" wants to hear from you. If there are any movies or albums out there that have totally rocked your world, I want to hear about it. From now on "Bob recommends" will feature a guest reviewer.

Want to get your review online? Just click on the "ask Bob a question" link (see bottom of the page) and send me your review. The best review each month will be posted on this page.

Right that's enough yak from me. On with the show!

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"Boys & Girls In America"
- The Hold Steady

Bob Says.....

I have a question for you, and I'm going to ask you to think about it for a minute (don't pretend you don't have time - you're surfing the net).

What is it that makes a band great? Not just good but great?

Thought about it? Chances are you have thought about their classic songs, or maybe the way they made you feel when you heard them.

It's now with this rose-tinted whimsy that I introduce you to a GREAT band; It's time to meet "The Hold Steady".

"The Hold Steady" are a rare breed, I say this because if you were to look at them you would be greeted buy a collection of 30-something guys with expanding waists and receding hair. Lets be clear - this isn't "Take That"!

Something else which is rather remarkable - this is no debut album. "Boys and Girls In America" is currently their third album to date. 

Don't ask me what has made me feel so much love for this band after just hearing one album, but I do! It's completely inexplicable and I think it has a great deal to do what I just asked you to think about. If you asked me to nail down their sound for you, they sound like a bar band that have been locked away, forced to listen to nothing but old Bruce Springsteen records, and showed movies about road trips through America. Having trouble getting it? Listen to their 'my space'.

Visit their official website here - www.theholdsteady.com

The Departed

Bob Says.....

Since the dawn of time there have been questions that have plagued mankind. How did we build the pyramids? Is there life on other planets? And how is it Martin Scorsese had NEVER won an Oscar?

The last one is a question that has famously baffled film fans and critics for a while now. Could it be that sometimes the content of his films is generally quite dark? Examples are "Raging Bull" and "Good Fellas". I mean come on - The boat sank in Titanic and that still got an Oscar!

Rant over - It's time for me to move on with the review.

The Departed is the story of a good guy (cop) and a bad guy (criminal). Sounds simple doesn’t it? Let's mix it up a bit. Let's put our cop undercover with the bad guys, and our criminal undercover with the cops. Now let's make them try to track each other down. You can see how this works now, can't you?

Now let's add something else to the mix. How does an all star cast grab you? With Matt Damon and Leonardo DiCaprio in the lead roles, and a supporting cast consisting of Martin Sheen, Alec Baldwin, Ray Winston, and Mark Wahlberg; you know we are talking about a film with serious star power.

And my personal 'icing on the cake' comes from Jack Nicholson playing a bad guy so bad that I can't hate him for it. 

Famously a remake of asian cop film classic ("Internal Affairs") - there is much speculation on whether this film will or won't win the Oscar. Either way, in my mind this stands up as a return to the type of film making that old Marty does best. Oscar or no Oscar, I still love him for it.

You can view the trailer here.

Or visit the official site here.

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Who is Bob?

Who is Bob? Well, we'll get straight to the point; Bob is a music and film God! What Bob doesn't know about the latest album to be released or the film that's about to hit the cinema, frankly just isn't worth knowing. Many of us at 3rd Molesey call upon his extraordinary skills in a variety of odd situations; like when we've heard a new song on the radio and desperately need to know who sings it. In fact we've had to ban him from taking part in music quizzes because it makes the whole thing unfair.

We decided that we had to harness this amazing power, and so displayed here for you is a dazzling selection of new and classic music and films. You can click any of the links below to order the item in question from Amazon.co.uk at their normal price, and with every purchase Amazon will pay the group 5% of the final amount. "Everyone's a winner!"

Ask Bob

Do you have a tricky music or film question? Click here to ask Bob!

Bob previously answered.....

Q: Bob, where did you get your amazing skills?
A: One night in a severe storm whilst I was surfing Amazon.co.uk I was struck by lightning, and in a freak like twist of fate I managed to absorb the entire Amazon catalogue. Now at one with Amazon I like to use my powers for the forces of good by providing helpful and informative advice on all of your entertainment needs.

Previous editions.....

Halloween 2006 - Bob reviewed: Get Cape Wear Cape Fly, The Da Vinci Code, Badly Drawn Boy, and The Rocky Horror Picture Show.