Song of the Week - Gentleman Reg

Gentleman Reg – The Boyfriend Song

Album: Little Buildings (2008) / Darby & Joan (2004)

It’s always nice to see homegrown talent and Reg Vernue (aka. Gentlemen Reg) has been deserving credit for a long time now. As a member of Arts & Crafts (a label featuring other big artists such as Stars, Broken Social Scene, and Feist) our fine gentleman has most recently released his latest album Jet Black in 2009 and been on tour for most of 2010. He is a regular performer in Toronto, especially at The Drake Underground, and occasionally spotted on his bicycle downtown.

The Boyfriend Song is from his 2008 release Little Buildings with Arts & Crafts, though the song was originally from his previous album Darby & Joan (2004) with the now defunct Three Gut Records. The song is very catchy and fun-loving, and most importantly, doesn’t insist upon itself. It’s a great song. Be sure to check out his entire discography.

Credit Where It's Due: ayalah

The One True Winter Tradition

The NFL owns American Thanksgiving, with several featured football games on a late November Thursday. The NBA has taken on Santa for Christmas Day focus, providing a full day of major basketball rivalries, allowing all the star teams to play one another on one big day. Both holidays are very special, but the sports games are just like any other regular season game, on a day where the focus is far from sport. Only professional hockey has started something that is not only different, but also exciting. Every New Year’s Day since 2008, the NHL has hosted the Winter Classic, a single game played outdoors in the dead of winter. While all leagues have found success with their special sporting days, only the NHL has created something different, something exciting, and not diluted the event to take away from the moment. 

There are three major reasons why the NHL has outdone the other major sporting leagues with the Winter Classic.

Movie Watchers I Know - Part III

Part III of this four-part series about the diversity of movie watchers will focus on several traits people have when watching movies at home. In Part I and Part II, we spoke of those that have certain qualities when watching movies in the theatre, be it during the previews or the features presentation. This section will look at those who have movie evenings at home on TV. 

Again, if you belong to any of these groups, don’t be shy and proudly admit to it. Also feel free to add any other types of movie watchers you yourself know.  Let us continue now with Part III: At Home.

Song of the Week (Christmas Edition)

Renée Fleming (with the Mormon Tabernacle Choir) - Joy to the World

Tomorrow is Christmas Day, and what better way to celebrate than the voice of Renée Fleming. Fleming is perhaps the most accomplished opera singer currently alive. She has been a star at the Metropolitan Opera in New York City since her debut in 1991, so much so that she even has her own perfume sold in a bottle shaped like the lights hanging above at the Met.

She is a 3-time Grammy Award winner, most recently in 2010 for Best Classical Vocal Performance. She has also sung for Bill Clinton at the 1999 White House Christmas party and President Obama's inauguration, as well as performed for the 2006 Nobel Peace Prize and 2008 Summer Olympics in China. She has also performed in numerous movie soundtracks, most notably Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003). Her list of awards and singing accomplishments goes on and on.

She continues to tour today, recently releasing her latest CD, Dark Hope. In this album, Fleming takes a break from her arias to perform covers of more current alternative bands (Death Cab for Cutie, Muse, Arcade Fire, The Mars Volta), as well as classic artists (Leonard Cohen, Peter Gabriel).

After seeing her perform live almost a month ago, I can assure you that she does live up to her impressive resume.

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The Ultimate Christmas Movie

Christmas time is full of cheer and excitement. Families across the globe are looking for appropriate movies to put them in the right loving mindset with one another. There are a plethora of Christmas movies starring famous comedians looking to present a family-friendly movie.

Tim Allen, the one-time star of Home Improvement, has had box office success for his trilogy The Santa Clause. Will Ferrell, the star of Saturday Night Live during the 90s as well as many motion pictures, had his obligatory Christmas movie, Elf, released in 2003. Ferrell stared as Buddy, a human raised as an elf and, due to his size differential, was seen as an outcast. The success of this Elf has even led to its debut on Broadway this year. 

Will Ferrell in Elf

Vince Vaughan starred in Fred Claus, the story of Santa Claus’ lesser known brother. Jim Carrey has played both Scrooge and the Grinch, Billy Bob Thornton has been a shopping mall Santa, and even Arnold Schwarzenegger has dabbled in spreading the Christmas cheer with Jingle All the Way. The problem with Christmas movies is, however, that people lower their standards for such films. Audiences don’t want to look at these films critically and instead want to simply leave with a happy ending, no matter how poor the movie may be (and many of them are). So this Christmas, what should you watch? The answer is and has always been the same……

Song of the Week (The Phantom)

The Phantom - Til I Hear You Sing

The Phantom played by: Ramin Karimloo
Composer: Andrew Lloyd Webber
Album: Love Never Dies

When I was a child, my parents went to go see The Phantom of the Opera at the theatre. My parents didn't get me a ticket to join, saying that I would be too young to remember the event. A decade later, I still remember that day at home while my parents enjoyed the opera, while I was forced to stay at home.
My love of opera has blossomed since that day. I would play their CD over and over again, entranced by the music and the story. A few weeks ago during a short stay in London, I had the opportunity to see Andrew Lloyd Webber's Phantom sequel: Love Never Dies at the Adelphi Theatre.

The performance was absolutely beautiful and a welcome addition to the storied Phantom franchise.
And this time, I didn't bring my parents with me.

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Movie Watchers I Know - Part II

In Part II of a four-part series about the diversity of movie watchers, we will discuss the different types of people that watch movies in theatres. In Part I, we already spoke of those that have certain qualities during the movie previews, so this part will focus on viewers of the feature presentation.

Again, if you belong to any of these groups, don't be shy about it. Stand up and admit to it. Also feel free to add any other types of movie watchers you happen to know. Let us continue now with Part II: In Theatres (During the Movie).

Song of the Week - Will Ferrell and Manny Pacquiao

Will Ferrell and Manny Pacquaio - Imagine

As seen on Jimmy Kimmel Live

Song written by John Lennon.



It's not often that Hutchins, Hutchins & Sons gets to combine 3 of its major categories into a song, but here we have just that: film, sports, and music. Movie star Will Ferrell is well known for his singing throughout his comic past, often imitating Robert Goulet in many of his famed Saturday Night Live sketches.

Manny Pacquiao is a different breed from Will Ferrell. He is currently the congressman of the Sanrangani province in his native Philippians, but Pacquiao is most well known for his boxing fame. He is the best pound-for-pound boxer today according to Ring Magazine and has been World Champion in 7 different weight divisions. Pacquiao is also no stranger to singing, as he has two platinum albums in his native Philippians and is releasing an English album in the near future.

The two together make for an unlikely duo, but Jimmy Kimmel seems to get the best out of people sometimes.

It Takes an Athlete To Be a Politician

The natural progression for most retiring athletes is into the broadcast booth. Sports fans watching TV at home are now privy to panels of four or five retired players or coaches, all giving expert analysis and inside takes. But what happens to those who weren’t outspoken enough during their playing careers to get into broadcasting? Not every professional athlete wanted his share of the limelight, creating a personality for the everyday fan. Nowadays, there seems to be a second career athletes can turn to besides sports broadcasting: politics.

In early November, there were a few big political events that took place. In terms of local politics here in Toronto, we elected a new mayor, as well as many new city counsellors. In the United States, the midterm elections in early November saw a surge of Republicans winning many seats in the Senate as well as congress. And when we look at these political results, we can conclude that: (a) former athletes are great at winning political races, and (b) mere sports personalities are not.

Jon Runyan (left) U.S. Congressman, New Jersey

Movie Watchers I Know - Part I

Although watching a movie would typically be seen as a solitary activity, in order to have a good discussion of the plot or meaning of certain movies, or even to be ‘in’ on the joke for comedies, watching movies with others increases the socializing benefits of movies once they are done. I am an avid movie watcher, be it in theatres or at home, but sometimes it is difficult to watch movies with others. In theatres, friends are always asking you plot related questions during important times of the movie. At home, movie watching can be difficult too. There’s the constant ‘pause to run for a snack’ guy or the “rewind that, I didn’t understand what he said” guy. Odds are you belong to one of these categories, whether you are willing to admit to it or not. And if you truly are outside these categories, you surely know plenty of friends who fall within these parameters.

The next few weeks will include a list of types of movie watchers I know, but keep in mind that this list not exhaustive. In fact, the variety of types is so widespread that I have filtered these people into three different categories: In Theatres (Pre-Movie), In Theatres (During the movie), and At Home.

Which group do you belong to? Don't be shy and proudly admit to one if you do. Also feel free to add any other types of movie watchers you yourself know. Let us begin with Part I: In Theatres (Pre-Movie).

Song of the Week - The 5th Element

Inva Mula Tchako - "Oh, giusto cielo!...Il dolce suono" (The Mad Song)

Aria from Lucia di Lammermoor, adapted for the film The 5th Element.

Illustration by: Avery Easter (averyeaster.com)

Although actor Maïwenn Le Besco plays the futuristic blue alien Diva Plavalaguna on screen in the 1997 action movie The 5th Element, the voice behind this brilliant aria is from Inva Mula Tchako, a famous Albanian opera soprano.

This clip is taken directly from the movie as Leeloo (Milla Jovovich) must protect 4 stones from the onslaught aliens. The stones contain incredible powers that are needed to protect the earth from certain destruction. Meanwhile, Korban Dallas (Bruce Willis) is sent to help protect Leeloo and retrieve the stones for the good of mankind. Here he is seen listening to Diva Plavalaguna, his contact on a foreign planet, and everyone is taken in by her brilliant voice. The aria starts slowly and soon develops a hip-hop feel to it, in line with the futuristic nature of the film, as well as the concurrent fight scene.

The original song comes from Gaetano Donizetti's opera Lucia Di Lammermoor.  This aria often goes by the title "The Mad Song" because Lucia goes mad singing this song while thinking that the ghost of her brother is haunting her.

This movie is a classic and a must-see. The opera itself is also brilliant and should be at the top of any opera-goers list.

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The Right Time to Retire

Brett Favre is the ultimate Iron Man of the NFL. He has played for four different teams spanning 20-seasons and surpassed Jim Marshall’s record 270 consecutive starts in the NFL. He has won 3 MVP awards, been to the Pro Bowl 11 times, and is a Super Bowl Champion. He holds the record in every major NFL passing category including passing yards, touchdown passes, and career wins. Despite all these accomplishments, Favre will not retire. Although he has ‘retired’ at the end of each of the past three seasons, Favre has quickly jumped back at the opportunity to play again on multiple occasions. Over the past three years, we’ve seen him shipped from Green Bay to New York to Minnesota, where the 41-year old is often injured and failing to live up to any expectations, exemplified by the Vikings’ current 4-7 record and Favre’s QB rating of 71.0, the 4th lowest in the NFL. The longer Favre continues to play, the more he is tarnishing his reputation, and his health.

Brett Favre (left), Barry Sanders (right)

 Barry Sanders is widely regarded as the best Running Back in the history of football, yet tops zero all-time rushing categories. Despite making the Pro Bowl every year during his 10-year career with the Detroit Lions and winning one NFL MVP award, Sanders is 3^rd on the all-time rushing yards list, and 3^rd in the Single Season Rushing Yards list. He never even played in a Super Bowl, let alone win one. After ten years of football, Sanders shocked the football world, retiring when he was less than 1500 yards from breaking Walter Payton’s all-time rushing record. To keep put this into perspective, Sanders was averaging more than 1500 yards a season over his 10 years. Sanders stated he did not care about records and simply wanted to retire. There were never any serious talks of coming out of retirement, and his legendary status on the field has been enshrined.

These two Hall of Fame football players have gone about retirement in completely different ways. Favre has every record, but Sanders has the respect of every single player and fan that has witnessed him play. When it comes to retirement, you only have one chance to do it right.