For some country-flavored artists raised on Music Row, getting back to Nashville to play in front of the hometown crowd that supported them from day one makes all the bus travel and bad hotel food worth it. Not for Rodney Crowell, aka The Houston Kid.
For him, Space City is hometown and the place he can't wait to get back to play. It's no wonder then, that when Crowell chose a few prime destinations, in the wake of the release of his new memoir Chinaberry Sidewalks, the Mucky Duck made the cut (with the show Monday night).
Crowell, 60, is a singer-songwriter who's recording career began in 1978. A student and peer of such Lone Star tunesmiths as Guy Clark, Townes Van Zandt and Steve Earle, Crowell's first big break was as a songwriter and guitarist in Emmylou Harris' Hot Band in the mid 1970s. In the '80s, Crowell was a country radio staple and a disciple of George Jones when it came to breakup songs.
"I Could Leave You If I Tried," "She's Crazy For Leavin'" and "After All This Time," were just a few of his No. 1 country hits.
It been in the last decade, however, that Crowell — in examining the history of his own life, which Chinaberry Sidewalks continues in book form — has made his greatest strides as a songwriter. Beginning with The Houston Kid in 2001, and continuing through the albums Fates Right Hand, The Outsider, and Sex and Gasoline, Crowell has delivered installments of his own autobiography set to twangy strings and spare percussion.
And while the albums haven't resulted in another stream of No. 1 songs, the acclaim and influence among his country peers, Grammy voters and up-and-coming singer-songwriters has been incalculable.
Rodney Crowell, 7:30 p.m. Monday at McGonigel's Mucky Duck
In a time when true movie stars seem to be going extinct, Timothée Chalamet has emerged as an exception to the rule. Since 2021 he has headlined blockbusters like the two Dune movies and Wonka, and also earned an Oscar nomination for playing Bob Dylan in A Complete Unknown (his second nomination following 2018’s Call Me By Your Name). Now, he’s almost assured to get his third nomination for the stellar new film, Marty Supreme.
Chalamet plays Marty Mauser, a world-class table tennis player living in New York. But reducing Marty to his best skill doesn’t do him justice, as he’s also a motormouth schemer who will do almost anything to achieve his dreams. He doesn’t have any qualms about wooing married women like neighbor Rachel (Odessa A’zion) or actress Kay Stone (Gwyneth Paltrow), or hiding his true ping pong skills to win money in scams with friends like Wally (Tyler the Creator).
Marty is seemingly on the go the entire movie, whether it’s trying to convince Kay’s millionaire husband Milton Rockwell (Kevin O’Leary) to fund his table tennis ambitions; or trying to track down the dog of Ezra (Abel Ferrara), a man he accidentally injures; or trying to avoid the ire of the boss at the shoe store where he works. Just when you think he might slow down, he’s off to the races on another plan or adventure.
Directed by Josh Safdie and written by Safdie and frequent co-writer Ronald Bronstein, the film is an almost continuous blast of pure energy for 2 ½ hours. So many different things happen over the course of the film that the story defies conventional narratives, and yet the throughline of Marty keeps everything tightly connected. His particular type of brash behavior turns much of the film into a comedy as he does and says things that are both shocking and thrilling.
Another thing that makes the movie sing is the fantastic characterization by Safdie and Bronstein. Almost every person who is given a speaking line in the film has a moment where they pop, which speaks to airtight dialogue that the writers have created. Characters will be introduced and then disappear for long stretches of time, and yet because they make such an impression the first time they’re on screen, it’s easy to pick up their thread right away.
Safdie, as he’s done previously with brother Bennie (Uncut Gems), calls on a host of well-known non-actors or people with interesting faces/vibes to inhabit supporting roles, and to a person they are crucial to the film’s success. O’Leary (of Shark Tank fame), rapper Tyler the Creator, director Ferrara, magician Penn Jillette, and fashion designer Isaac Mizrahi each deliver knockout performances. The relative unknowns who play smaller roles are just as impressive, making each beat of the film feel naturalistic.
Leading the way is the powerhouse performance by Chalamet. For one person to believably play both the famously reserved Dylan and also a firecracker like Marty is astonishing, and this role cements Chalamet’s status as his generation’s movie star. A’zion is a rising star who gets great moments as Marty’s on-again/off-again love interest. Paltrow pops in and out of the film, lighting up the screen every time she appears. Fran Drescher as Marty’s mom and Sandra Bernhard as a neighbor also pay dividends in small roles.
Josh Safdie’s first solo directorial effort is unlike any other movie this year, or maybe even this century. Thanks to its breakneck storytelling, a magnificent performance by Chalamet, and countless intangibles that Safdie employs expertly, the film smacks viewers in the face repeatedly and demands that they come back for more.
