A Selection

Philosophy • pop songs • Jazz • Classical Music • Pop Music •
• Art • Literature • Film • Television • Graphic books

Philosophy

Richard Wollheim

* Theodor Adorno
* Aristotle: On Tragedy; Rhetoric; De Anima; Ethica
* J.L. Austin, How to do Things with Words
* Martin Heidegger

* David Hume
* John McDowell, Mind, Value, & Reality., “The Contents of Experience”
* Friedrich Nietzsche
* Bernard Williams, Ethics and the Limits of Philosophy.
* Ludwig Wittgenstein: Philosophical Investigations; Remarks on Colour; Zettel; Lectures and Conversations, etc.

* Richard Wollheim: Painting as an Art; The Mind and its Depths; The Thread of Life, On the Emotions

Pop songs, the very best

* “Since I’ve Been Loving You”, Led Zeppelin (III)
* “Black Napkins”, Frank Zappa (Zoot Allures)
* “Late Nights and Heartbreak”, Hannah Williams and the affirmations
* “The Way Young Lovers Do”, Van Morrison (Astral Weeks)
* “You Do Something To Me”, Paul Weller (Stanley Road)

Jazz

Anthony Braxton

* Paul Bley: Ballads, 1971
* Anthony Braxton: Creative Orchestra Music 1976, etc.
* John Coltrane: Coltrane, 1957; Olé Coltrane, 1962.
* Miles Davis: Ascenseur pour l’échaffaud, 1957; Kind of Blue, 1959; Bitches Brew, 1969; Live Evil, 1971; etc.
* Eric Dolphy : Out To Lunch, 1964.
* Warne Marsh: Star Highs, 1982, etc.
* Charles Mingus: Mingus, Mingus, Mingus, 1963; Changes One and Two, 1974, 1975 etc.
* Thelonious Monk: Monk Alone, 1962-68.
* David Murray: Lovers, 1988; Deep River, 1988; Shakill’s Warrior, 1991 etc.
* Charlie Parker: Now’s the Time, 1952, ’53
* Henry Threadgill: Spirit of Nuff…Nuff, 1991.
* Lennie Tristano: Tristano; The New Tristano

Classical Music

* Bach: Goldberg Variations (Glenn Gould) (YouTube)
* Beethoven: Les Quatuors (Late string quartets 10-16), Quatuor Végh Amazon
* W.A. Mozart: Requiem, K626 (Hogwood, Kirkby) (Amazon)
* Arnold Schönberg: The Piano Works (Pollini); Verklärte Nacht (Karajan)
* Vivaldi: Quattro Stagioni (Harnoncourt)
* Edgar Varèse: Ionisation / Ameriques (Amazon)
* Anton Webern: Passacaglia for Orchestra, Op. 1; Fünf Sätze für Streichquartett, Op. 5; Six Pieces for Orchestra, Op. 6; Four Pieces for Violin and Piano, Op. 7; Six Bagatelles for String Quartet, Op. 9 (Amazon)

Popular Music

Loudon Wainwright III Album II

* Corinne Bailey Rae: Corinne Bailey Rae; To the Sea
* Nick Cave: Prayers on Fire (Birthday Party); Murder Ballads; No More Shall We Part; The Boatman’s Call
* D’Angelo and the Vanguard: Black Messiah (! 2014); Brown Sugar (1995); Voodoo (! 2000)
* Disclosure: Settle (2013)
* Dr. Dre: 2001
* edIT: Crying Over Pros For No Reason (2004)
* Marvin Gaye: Let’s Get It On (1973)
* De jeugd van Tegenwoordig: Ja, Natúúrlijk! (2013)
* Jay-Z and Kanye West: Watch the throne (2011)
* Linkin Park: Hybrid Theory (2000)
* Los Lobos: Kiko (1992)
* G Love and Special Sauce: Idem (1994)
* Van Morisson: Veedon Fleece (1974); Astral Weeks (1968)
* Gram Parsons: GP (vooral: “She”; 1973)
* Busta Rhymes: Genesis (2001)
* The Roots: How I got over (2010)
* Gil Scott-Heron: I’m New Here (2010)
* Loudon Wainwright III. Album II (1971)
* Paul Weller (also Style Council)

Rembrandt: Self Portrait as the Apostle St. Paul

Art (Museal Arts)

* Marina Abramowicz
* Paul Cézanne
* Giorgio de Chirico
* Lucian Freud
* Frans Hals
* William Klein
* Jeff Koons
* Rembrandt
* Gerhard Richter
* Santiago Sierra

Narrative works, aesthically elaborated

Film

* Jacques Audiard: Un Prophète
* Kantemir Balagov: Tesnota, 2017
* Nuri Bilge Ceylan: Three Monkeys, Uzak, etc.
* Jean-Pierre en Luc Dardenne: Le Gamin au vélo, 2011
* Abel Ferrara: Bad Lieutenant 1992, with splendid Harvey Keitel (forget about the remake!)
* Michael Haneke: Funny Games, Caché, Code Inconnu, Amour, etc.
* David Mackenzie: Starred Up
* Claude Lanzmann: Shoah
* John McNaughton: Henry. Portrait of a Serial Killer, 1986
* Pawel Pawlikowski: Ida, 2013
* Steven Söderberg: The Limey, 1999; Traffic, 2000
* Bertrand Tavernier: Coup de Torchon
* Andrej Tarkovski: The Mirror, 1975
* Steven Söderberg: The Limey, 1999; Traffic, 2000
* Thomas Vinterberg: Festen, Jagten
* Wong Kar Wai: In the mood for love

Also great:

* Quentin Tarantino: Reservoir Dog, 1992; Pulp Fiction, 1994, etc.
* Robert Bresson: Pickpocket, 1959; L’Argent, 1983
* Hotel Modern: Kamp
* Claire Denis: (made only masterworks)
* Coen Brothers

Omar, The Wire

Television

* Informer (BBC, 2018, excellent)
* The Wire (HBO, 2002–2008) (!!!! The city as the main character, plus the human characters!)
* Curb your Enthusiasm (HBO, 1999–2006; incredibly funny Jewish-American humor)
* True Detective (HBO, 2014) (Great characters!)
* The Sopranos (HBO, 1999-2007; funny, serious)
* Girls, (HBO, 2012-15; great fun, provides nice view of youths in eternal crisis, humorous)
* Murder One (Steven Bochco Productions, 1995–1997; underrated, was splendid; at start of second year all characters were replaced—painful)
* In Treatment (a.o. HBO, 2008-11; well played inside view of psycho-therapy and its effects on people)
* Olive Kitteridge (HBO, 2014; lovely)
* Happy valley, (BBC, 2014)
* Breaking Bad (a.o. High Bridge and Sony, 2008-13)
* De negen dagen van de gier, 2011. (underrated; among the best the Dutch/Belgians made)
* Line of Duty (BBC, 2012, 2014, 2016, 2018. Great story-line, great characters)
* Scott & Bailey (Red Production Company, a.o., 2011-16. Lovely, funny, absolutely plausible)
* Blue Lights (U.K., 2023. Absolutely plausible)
* Dexter (a.o. Showtime Networks, 2006-13)

* Unforgotten (S5, great series,  aesthically plausible)
* Mad Men (overrated, incredibly superficial, sentimental soap)

Literature

* Paul Auster
* Isaac Babel: De Rode Ruiterij (Stories, 1923-1924; Verhalen (uitg. Van Oorschot))
* Julian Barnes: The Sense of an Ending, 2011
* Truman Capote: In Cold Blood
* Adolfo Bioy Casares: The Invention of Morel, 1964
* Jonathan Franzen
* Arnon Grunberg
* Colin Harrison: Bodies Electric, 1993, etc.
* Elmore Leonard: Out of Sight; Be Cool, etc.
* Primo Levi
* Bernard Malamud: the Fixer, 1966
* William Maxwell: So Long, See You Tomorrow, 1996
* Ivo Michiels: Het Afscheid, 1957
* Jim Thompson: The Killer Inside Me, 1952; The Grifters, 1963, etc. (Great American crime-writer)
* John Williams: Stoner, 1965, Butcher’s Crossing, 2007 (Absolute must-reads)
* Douglas E. Winter: Run, 2001

100 Bullets

Graphic books (comics, graphic novels)

* Geo Herriman, Krazy Kat
* Joe Matt, Spent, Drawn & Quarterly, 2007.
* Frank Miller, Sin City, Dark Horse books, 1991, ff.
* Hugo Pratt
* Brian Azzarello and Eduardo Risso, 100 Bullets, Vertigo.
* Art Spiegelman: Maus, 1986 (Penguin, 2003).
* E.C. Ware, Jimmy Corrigan, or, the smartest kid on earth, 2000.

* Brian Wood and Ryan Kelly, Local, Oni Press, 2008.