CHARLES BUKOWSKI UNCENSORED

The late Charles Bukowski's best-known work is the screenplay for BARFLY, the relentlessly hopeless self-portrait of seedy denizens of a seedy pub. Aficionados know his poetry and short stories, which reflect his scrappy, hard-drinking life in the duskier quarters of Los Angeles. Since his death in 1993, his stature as the bard of dissipation has spread to the mainstream literati. This recording presents him at 65, unlaundered, profane, in his living room, bantering with his producers and wife as he records a selection of his work. Whether or not he reads well is beside the point; this is a fascinating portrait of the artist as an old drunk. The sound quality is immaculate, the side comments revealing. Producer John Runette teases a great deal of personality out of his subject. Totally unique. Y.R. © AudioFile 2001, Portland, Maine [Published: APR/MAY 01]