Creation and Destruction!

Last night we Netflix-ed two documentaries: "What Happened to Nina Simone," and "Big Star: Nothing Can Hurt Me." I didn't know much about Nina Simone, I knew a lot about Big Star, because I read that great book about Alex Chilton.

People. What a tangled web. You don't want to "judge" people, better to try to understand and empathize, but of course, there's only so far you can go, and then you are left with, "I wonder what was going on in their heads?"

We are left with great music, and the enigma of what it means to be human: flawed, talented, charismatic, compelling characters living in the world. Messy, chaotic, crazy, silly, misguided.

Nina Simone. It's all in that voice. Listen to any song she sings. It's all there. And Big Star? Three records of power and beauty. A "star-crossed" band. Nothing went right for them. Still, they created shimmering, gorgeous, r&r.

Chris Bell a conflicted, lost genius. Tortured, sensitive, with an over-blown ego. Easily hurt. Brilliant singer-songwriter.

And Alex Chilton? I find everything he did, everything he played, everything he sang, compelling, brilliant, and a little confounding too. Creation and destruction in equal parts.

That was the theme of both movies. Creation and destruction. Beauty and madness. Things falling together and falling apart.

I can highly recommend both movies!