Poking around teh innernets, as one does, I discovered there was a book out of Tom Russell's correspondence with Charles Bukowski, as well as some poems, paintings, vignettes, interviews, and other Russell miscellany. Of course, I ordered it after about two seconds of thought.
It turns out it's hard to even call it a "book" due to the completely amateurish, low-tech production. It's basically a spiral-bound bunch of sheets printed off of some dude's color printer. Not even proofread very well, as there are plenty of typos. But, hey, Tom Russell signed it, man, and it's certainly interesting to anyone who likes Russell and his take on things.
I love finding connections among people and things that I like. In one of the interviews, Russell says he loves the works of Graham Greene, and that his favorite novel is The Heart of the Matter. That is a great book, though I think I like The End of the Affair a bit more. Anyway, I suppose it validates my taste to know we share an affection for Greene's stuff. Meanwhile, Russell, a literate and well read man, in addition to writing songs based on Paul Bowles stories and tossing in lyrical references to T.S. Eliot, is introducing me to other writers and musicians I didn't know about. This is how it works, or how it should work.
It's a no-brainer I'll see him in concert any and every time he comes through here. Sez Tom:
Cut out the politically correct lingo. You cannot bullshit God. While we're at it, let's abandon partisan politics and golf lessons. So you're left foaming at the mouth, eh? Well, write a novel.Yes. Good. On we go.
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