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3 Comments
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small head, big ocean....This is a satisfying slice of life piece, that would be a welcome addition to any show with a maritime theme, and a surefire crowd pleaser if aired on coastal public radio stations. It is replete with salty language, interesting facts, and a taste of the sad realities of the declining fishing industry. My only criticism, and it is small (and really a compliment as it reflects some masterful mixing!) is that it just doesn't seem noisy enough, windy enough, engine-rumbly enough! I know engine noise is the bane of a radio producer's existence but, I have been on a few boats, and this was a quiet one. That being said, I am left pondering this incredible image, and what an image; "when it's just your head sticking up out of the ocean, it's a big ocean" Clearly the sinking of his boat had a lasting impact on Frank, not big enough to turn him away from his life's passion though. |
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Review of Frank Sabatino, FishermanBefore I launch into the meat of the review, know this: I am from Brooklyn. I am, in fact, from Sheepshead Bay and went fishing regularly with my father on the very boats mentioned in this piece. We used to buy our fish caught by the mates from the piers. For a brief period, I dreamed of being a mate, gutting and cleaning fish and throwing the rest to the gulls as they followed the boat's wake hoping for scraps. So do I enter into this with a sentimental involvement with the subject matter? Oh yeah! I did not know Frank Sabatino, but I could have. And how well I know that accent. And how well I know the loud sound of those crappy little boat engines as they strained to pull the boats through the soupy, polluted waters of the bay heading out to the cleaner (read edible fish) Jamaica Bay and Long Island. This vignette paints the somber hues of a fading way of life. And it does this nicely. But it suffers from the problem of wanting to say too much in too short a time. As a result, it is cut too quickly. The fast pace does not allow the richly layered sound effects to establish themselves. The final result sounds a bit rushed, the effects, a little too loud, the music, distracting. Nevertheless, it is engaging listening and would easily find a home into many a magazine program. |
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Justin Grotelueschen
Posted on July 11, 2004 at 03:37 PM | Permalink
Review of Frank Sabatino, Fisherman
Good flow, easy to ingest. When I think of people and elements in proximity to New York City, I wouldn't think of a fisherman. A nice slice of life, dark and dreary and real.