Mark CaroNov 5, 20213 minMitch Easter, The Caropop InterviewThis dates me, but I first saw Mitch Easter when his band, Let’s Active, was opening for R.E.M. in the fall of 1983 on my college campus....
Mark CaroNov 1, 20211 minAnother restaurant quandary: Eat or send back?Two women were seated next to each other at separate tables along a banquette. A food runner delivered what appeared to be a fried...
Mark CaroOct 29, 20212 minCostello, Spoon bringing the rockElvis Costello and Spoon have released new songs over the past couple of days, and both boast a throwback rock energy. The new Elvis...
Mark CaroOct 28, 20213 minRiccardo Muti and the death and rebirth (we hope) of cultureSitting in the Symphony Center lower balcony on the evening of Sept. 23 was a surprisingly emotional experience for me and, I assume,...
Mark JacobOct 26, 20214 minMarlon Brando as the Sundance Kid and other casting near-missesMovie casting remains a popular spectator sport, as evidenced by the reaction to Deadline's report yesterday that Brendan Fraser will...
Mark CaroOct 25, 20212 minPython seduces 'SNL'A couple walks into a meeting with a man who seduces the wife, much to the husband’s chagrin. Is this an original idea or a standard...
Mark CaroOct 21, 20213 minDigging into War with founding member Lonnie Jordan War is one of those bands that I always liked more than I knew. I’d enjoyed the sing-along choruses and laugh-along verses of “Why Can’t...
Mark CaroOct 19, 20215 min'Love, Charlie' captures the compelling complexity of Chef TrotterI’d never seen my head so big. That wasn’t my main takeaway from the Chicago International Film Festival world premiere of Rebecca...
Mark CaroOct 15, 20213 minKathy Valentine: Going to the Rock Hall with the Go-Go's but not done pushing the beatKathy Valentine and the Go-Go’s made me do something I didn’t want to do. I think the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, as a concept, is stupid....
Mark CaroOct 13, 20213 minWill ABBA hold the record for the longest gap between albums? And what are the best 70+ songs?Forty years passed between the release of Glenn Miller’s “In the Mood” and that of the Clash’s “London Calling.” Forty years also will...
Mark CaroOct 12, 20213 minIf a restaurant no-shows, does it owe you anything?I made the reservations Monday on Resy for a late-summer Sunday brunch at 12:15 p.m. on the patio. There would be four of us, two coming...
Mark CaroOct 11, 20216 min5 thoughts about 'Ted Lasso'1. The reason viewers are exerting so much effort to analyze Ted Lasso is that the Apple TV+ show has done a remarkable job of making us...
Mark CaroOct 8, 20211 minYour Friday Cage Match"Rock and Roll" vs. "Rock & Roll" vs. "Rock 'n' Roll." Discuss.
Mark CaroOct 7, 20213 minBruce Thomas: The Caropop interviewAnyone who knows me knows I’m a huge Beatles fan, but I went nuts for them in retrospect, imagining what it would have been like to hear,...
Mark CaroOct 6, 20214 minWhy most prequels don't work, including 'Many Saints of Newark'Years ago I was in a novel-writing workshop in which the professor counseled us to follow our characters to their natural destinations...
Mark CaroOct 4, 20215 minListen, Listen: Diving back into vinylMy high-school age daughter enjoys asking me, “What did you like to do when you were my age?” “I’d go in my room and listen to records,”...
Mark CaroSep 28, 20214 minAt long last: R. Kelly officially guilty“Chicago singer and songwriter R. Kelly used his position of fame and influence as a pop superstar to meet girls as young as 15 and have...
Mark CaroSep 28, 20212 minCan Jennifer be a ‘Natural’ Aretha?Casting Hudson as Franklin is a no-brainer, but can she make you think she’s Aretha Franklin while reminding you that she’s Jennifer Hudson?