At Etnia Barcelona we’re doing Black Friday our way: with a tribute to a culture in which we share a selection of our all-time favorites in music, film, and literature.
In the run-up to the Christmas shopping campaign, Black Friday returns this year on Friday, November 24, with a slew of discounts and deals. At Etnia Barcelona we’re also taking part, but in a different way. Far from the zealous consumerism of most businesses, we’re associating the date with our love of culture and art, an essential part of our DNA.
The result is Black Culture Friday, an initiative by which we celebrate our favorite artists and singers of black music, as well as the noir films and novels that have marked us. We’ve prepared a Top 10 in each category to share our references with all of you, and to make Black Culture Friday a festival showcasing the best creative works.
Also, on November 24 itself, our flagship store in Barcelona will celebrate Black Culture Friday with a performance by a jazz musician. And, in keeping with our passion for culture, we’ll be giving out art books to everyone who buys a pair of glasses at our store on Black Friday. See you there!
OUR TOP 10 OF BLACK MUSIC
- Aretha Franklin
The “Queen of Soul” is at the top of the list for her anthem “Respect”, which is as relevant today as it was when it was released in 1967.
- Louis Armstrong or “Pops”
For having been a jazz revolutionary and becoming one of its most charismatic voices.
- Billie Holiday
The singer Frank Sinatra considered his “greatest influence” continues to move us with her heartbreaking voice and interpretive ability.
- Nat King Cole
He learned to play the piano from his mother and combined it with his velvety voice to record classics like “L-O-V-E” that put us in a good mood.
- Ella Fitzgerald
Lady Ella, also known as the “Queen of Jazz” and the “First Lady of Song,” inspires us for having achieved success with great naturalness thanks to her incredible talent for vocal improvisation.
- Barry White
With his seductive voice, this American singer is one of the greatest names in the history of soul and R&B.
- Miles Davis
The rebellious trumpeter and composer chose to abandon his studies at the Juilliard School to learn alongside his idol, Charlie Parker, in the jazz clubs of Harlem. We would have done the same.
- Ray Charles
This artist, who managed to overcome many adversities —from blindness to poverty— thanks to his talent, used to say that there was “Nothing below us except the ground, the red dirt of Georgia.”
- Charlie Parker
With his “bebop” music, “Bird” revolutionized jazz in the 40s and became a legend.
- John Coltrane
“Anyone can make the simple complicated. Creativity is making the complicated simple.” One of his best-known quotes. Don’t miss “Chasing Trane: The John Coltrane Documentary,” one of the films being shown at the INEDIT Festival sponsored by Etnia Barcelona.
OUR TOP 10 OF FILM NOIR
- “The Night of the Hunter” (1955)
The unsettling Robert Mitchum makes us tremble every time we watch this cult film.
- “The Big Sleep” (1946)
Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall starred in this classic of the genre directed by the great Howard Hawks.
- “L.A. Confidential” (1997)
Curtis Hanson’s closes the highly contested Top 3 for having made the genre relevant again in the ‘90s and for his inspired casting choices.
- The Maltese Falcon (1941)
A paradigm of film noir of the 40s, John Huston’s movie defends nonconformism with the rules of society.
- “Touch of Evil” (1958)
The singular genius of Orson Welles as the director elevates this noir film starring Charlton Heston to the highest level.
- “Double Indemnity” (1944)
Barbara Stanwyck nails her role as a femme fatale in this timeless classic by Billy Wilder.
- “The Killing” (1956)
Its flashback narration reminds us of the Tarantino of “Pulp Fiction”, while its script leaves us with pearls of the genre like: “You like money. You’ve got a great big dollar sign there where most women have a heart.”
- “Blood Simple” (1984)
With a script by the Coen brothers, this movie won the Grand Jury Prize at Sundance for reinventing the codes of film noir by bringing in elements of the horror genre and black humor.
- “The Asphalt Jungle” (1950)
It inspires us because of its ability to put the audience on the side of the criminal through the carefully worked psychology of a group of unforgettable characters.
- “Gilda” (1946)
Rita Hayworth singing “Put the Blame on Mame” is reason enough to include this film by Charles Vidor in our Top 10 of film noir.
OUR TOP 10 OF NOIR NOVELS
- “Strangers on a Train” by Patricia Highsmith
This is the first novel by the American author, who broke with the conventionalism of the 50s thanks to the psychological aspect of her characters.
- “Red Harvest” by Dashiell Hammett
“It’s not so much the money. It’s the principle of the thing.” The author of the famous “The Maltese Falcon” published this tale loaded with memorable quotes as his first novel.
- “The Spy Who Came in from the Cold” by John le Carré
Former British intelligence agent David John Moore Cornwell —the novelist’s real name— in 1963 brought us his disenchanted spy, Alec Deamas, as a counterpoint to the popular James Bond. At Etnia Barcelona, we’ll take Deamas.
- “The Black Box” by Michael Connelly
We love his protagonist, detective Harry Bosch, for his disrespect for hierarchy, his stubbornness, and for having a name inspired by a painting by Hieronymus Bosch.
- “The Postman Always Rings Twice” by James M. Cain
The fact that the the criminal is the narrator instead of the detective is the main reason for including this 1934 novel in our Top 10 of noir novels.
- “The Return of the Dancing Master” by Henning Mankell
The fast pace of this novel by Henning Mankell got us hooked from the beginning.
- “Death in Venice” by Donna Leon
We admit it: the title of this novel was the first thing that seduced us. Then, the plot set in the criminal underworld of Venice reeled us in.
- “March Violets” by Philip Kerr
The sense of humor of his protagonist, detective Bernie Gunther, made us smile with lines like “I shot him my toughest look, the sort that would make a bear blink.”
- “Che Committed Suicide” by Petros Márkaris
The return to action of police commissioner Kostas Jaritos in the Athens prior to the 2004 Olympic Games marks this novel which blends fiction with reality.
- “The Red and the Black” by Stendhal
It’s not exactly a noir novel, but we couldn’t overlook this raw portrait of the politics, monarchy and clergy of 19th century France in the hands of an immortal character: Julien Sorel.
This is just a small sample of the tastes and recommendations of the Etnia Barcelona creative team. We hope you like it and that inspires you to celebrate a different and Anartist Black Friday!