444 of 1001 Albums: Mariah Carey's Butterfly

In 1997 this music was huge and I'm sure at 10 I loved the tunes, though I don't remember listening to Mariah Carey as much. I found some tunes that might have appealed to me on it then. Nowadays though the album sounds incredibly 90's. As I enjoy the sounds of the 80's, I am sure the 90's pop sound is enjoyable to others. There is one thing that can't be denied though, and that is that Mariah Carey has an amazing voice.

History: This was the 6th album for Mariah Carey, and it showed her music growing in a positive way. The album was a direction for her that continued her growing into the hip hop and R&B genres, which also complimented her voice very well. Critics gave the album mostly positive reviews as well. The album also debuted as well with it being a chart topper.

440 of 1001 Albums: Buena Vista Social Club's Self Titled

I had no idea what to expect to hear when I turned on Buena Vista Social Club's 1997 album. This Latin album though is very enjoyable, and also easy to kick back to or get things done to. It's easy to feel inspired when you're listening to the lively composition of the album, and with all the talent involved it's no surprise the album turned out so well.

History: The album was put together by Cuban band leader Juan De Marcos Gonzalez and American guitarist Ry Cooder with other Cuban musicians. Interestingly, the album and band name is attributed to a music scene that was a popular club in the 40's and 50's, and most the people working on the album performed there during the time. The album is a critical success with it making the best of on several lists. It also achieved Billboard success as well at the time of it's release.

426 of 1001 Albums: Blur's Self Titled

The sound of the 90's is defined by many bands, one of them being Blur. They have songs that still hit the airwaves quite regularly like "Song 2", and their sound ranges enough to probably almost have any type of song that a person could find enjoyable on their album. Blur though gets the album kicked off quite enjoyable, but ends it on a very different note than it begins.

History: The band would be meeting a lot of challenges with the release of their fifth self titled album. Their last album, The Great Escape, hadn't went over well because it was shadowed by Oasis' success, and the genre they were becoming highly identified with, Britpop, wasn't too successful in America. The band though brought forth some changes on their new album inspired by other bands that would help this one become a worldwide hit. This album would produce hits like "Beetlebum" and "Song 2" that also becomes classics.

Wednesday Movie Night: Good Will Hunting (1997)

Matt Damon and Ben Affleck seemed to be taken to instant stardom when they both co-wrote the screenplay for Good Will Hunting. Gus Van Sant directs this movie that sticks with you after viewing though. The movie gets a tad cheesy with how easily everything seems to be just summed up, but the characters are well written enough to come to life and make you feel for them as you watch their story play out. I'm still debating how good enough it is for a rewatch eventually though.

Summary: Professor Gerald likes to leave really difficult math problems for his students to solve. With him being one of the top mathematicians it's intriguing for him to be on the hunt for one who might exceed the expectations he set in the field. Someone does solve the problem he leaves though sending him on the hunt for who he believes is a student, until he finds it is Will, a janitor at Harvard. After Gerald gets Will out of some trouble he makes him agree to see a counselor and also allow him to mentor him through his job. Sean might be the only counselor who can help Will though as he has proven a tough case for the other ones.

Bookshelf: Stephen King's The Dark Tower IV: Wizard and Glass

So The Dark Tower is definitely building toward something eerie, and developing the characters well enough that you will be devastated if anything happens to them. In the second book we spent a little time getting to know Eddie and Susannah's past and then in the third with Jake. In the fourth though we finally explore Roland's elusive past, and with him being the quietest and most mysterious character in the book most people will be curious as to what this book has to reveal about his past finally.

Summary:  Wizard and Glass picks up at the very intense scene where the last book left off. It also throws us into the past of Roland as he tells Jake, Susannah, and Eddie about what changed the course of his life at 14 years old. He tells them about his first love, Susan. Her world though is very divided among men, so when Roland steps into her led with his two other friends they find themselves in a bit of a mess, and dealing with all sorts of badness including Rhea, a witch. He shares how he found and loss bits of his life very early on in life.

168 of 1001 Movies: The Butcher Boy (1997)

I wouldn't put together that Neil Jordan directed The Butcher Boy and Interview With a Vampire. Maybe if I was to go back and watch the vampire movie again I would though. The Butcher Boy is a really disturbing movie though. I think going back and reading the novel that it was translated from would somehow give me some insight that the movie just missed. The gist of this movie to me was an unlikable boy in the town just goes mad after not knowing how to deal with his grief.

Summary: Francie and Joe are two best pals, and they seem to have a normal fantasy world that most children create for themselves to play in. Francie has a rough home life though, and his mother is suicidal and his father is an abusive alcoholic. As Joe is growing up and maturing, it seems that Francie is getting left behind in the safety of his childhood, but is feeling the pressure from the bad circumstance of his parents to mature. After his mother dies, it seems that the remainder of Francie sanity collapses and he heightens his abuse of the judgmental neighbor, Ms. Nugent and her son to the point where becomes violent.

379 of 1001 Albums: The Divine Comedy's A Short Album About Love

The Divine Comedy seems to have a lot of Scott Walker running through their music. Neil Hannon though knows how to make his voicing have some unique characteristics with each song though, and as each song plays the album does get better. The album though is truly unique in style though. The music is very operatic and instrumentally driven in tone.

History: There isn't too much out there regarding this album.  Neil Hannon is the memorable vocalist, and has been the only consistent member of the band. He's even had to do the instrumentals all by himself at times. The Northern Irish band though make for some interesting sounds that can be identified as chamber pop. A Short Album About Love is one of the band's most popular albums though, and from the peak of their career.

133 of 1001 Movies: Boogie Nights (1997)

Paul Thomas Anderson is becoming one of my favorite directors. He takes a movie that could easily be something that is ridiculous and he makes it into something very intense and emotionally driven. Out of the three I've seen from Anderson so far, Boogie Nights is by far the strongest as far a film. It does what the others seem to be trying to capture again, and that is create characters who are not normally people we would want to associate with, and creates them into people just looking for the things everyone else is, which seems to be love and a family.

Eddie is just a teen working at a nightclub, but this will lead to another world proving him some access to adulthood he hasn't had. Jack Horner meets Eddie at work, and notices that there is something special about Eddie that he thinks would do well in his line of work, the adult film industry. Eddie is hesitant at first, but after a fight at home he runs away to live with Jack and his crew. He instantly shoots to stardom as porn star, Dirk Diggler, but in the world of porn he also finds things that bring many of them down including drugs, pride, and the stigma of being in porn.