BOOKS
The Goblin Companion
Brian Froud and Terry Jones

Back in 1986, a George Lucas and Jim Henson collaborated on a movie. Terry Jones (of Monty Python Fame) wrote the screenplay. Trevor Jones composed the score, with additional Music by David Bowie, who also starred in the film. Sound familiar? The movie was called Labyrinth, and it's one of the best humorous fantasy films ever made. Around the time of the movie's release, a book containing Brian Froud's conceptual drawings for the film was published, with surreal and witty text by Terry Jones, under the title The Goblins of The Labyrinth. After a lengthy time of being out of print, the book is now available again, with a title change that no longer links it to the movie. Indeed, the work stands alone as a monument to Froud's quirky style, and Jones' natural wit. The Goblin Companion is now available at Barnes & Noble for $12.98 in hardcover. Not to be missed by any 80's buff, Froudian admirer, Hensonite, or anyone with a Jones jones.

MUSIC
Sand in the Vaseline; Popular Favorites:
1976-1992
Talking Heads

More than just a collection of the best songs by one of the most original bands of the late 1970's and early 1980's, but also an intimate and humor-ous look into the quirky lives of the "art rockers" know as the Talking Heads. The album features such oddities as the recordings of "Sugar on My Tongue," and "I Want to Live" from the first (rushed) recording session the Heads had back in 1975, recordings the band itself did not hear for 15 years because they did not have a reel to reel player. In the liner notes, each song on the 2 CD set is accompanied by an annotation by one of the band members. Also included in the liner notes are a brief biography of the band, photographs, and a question-and-answer session with a startling lucid David Byrne. My personal favorite "extra" is a love letter to the band from a fan done in the style of a ransom note.