Search - Charles Bukowski :: 70 Minutes in Hell

70 Minutes of Sublime Hell

Ouija | Las Vegas, NV USA | 04/12/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Do you think I'm crazy? I think you're crazy too. So is 70 Minutes in Hell, a German home recording made in 1969 of Charles Bukowski. What makes this so compelling is that nobody can read Bukowski like Bukowski.



Buk's 60-plus books offer a glimpse into the world of horse tracks, seedy bars, and sleazy LA rooming houses. 70 Minutes in Hell, with its haphazard recording (replete with comments to the German dude making the recording and the sound of traffic passing by) gives us some insight into the world of an aloof, desperate and drunken man disinterested in the normalities of society.



Regardless whether you're an insomniac, a narcoleptic or none of the above, if you're a Buk fan you need to listen."

A Bottle and a Tape Recorder

Doctor | Providence RI | 10/15/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I may be slightly masochistic but I thought this was more like 70 minutes in heaven and I'm sure every Bukowski fan and lovers of poetry in general would agree. And by poetry I mean a searing, white-knuckle examination of humanity, love, loss, booze and the type of loneliness you can only see in the slow movements of the hands of a clock. Sorry Hank, couldn't resist. Some people prefer Buk's live readings because they enjoy listening to him getting steadily drunker, exchanging insults with the crowd, going off on tangents etc. but I prefer this type of reading- just a man and his tape recorder reciting some of the most raw, powerful poetry the world has ever known."