Henry Rollins

Hardcore icon, writer and punk philosopher Henry Rollins brings “25 Years of Bullshit,” his latest “talking tour,” to Variety Playhouse Thurs.-Fri., Oct. 13-14. With that in mind, here are a few of my favorites from Rollins’ impressive quarter-century of work.

??
1) “This Is Good” — Black Flag: From Loose Nut, the first of three varied albums the prolific band released in ‘85. This one leaves a bruise.

??
2) Weighting — Rollins Band: Released in 2004, this collection features material that was recorded for the classic Weight album in ‘94. With bassist Melvin Gibbs and Charles Gayle, Rollins combined the hardcore mind-set with free jazz, but braced it with enough metal to keep it rigid. A live version of “Liar” is here, too.

??
3) “I Can’t Get Behind That” — William Shatner featuring Henry Rollins: Off Shatner’s Has Been, this hilarious duet features a laundry list of their pet peeves and irritants.

??
4) Get in the Van: On the Road with Black Flag — Henry Rollins: A two-disc “book-on-tape” spoken-word account from ‘94, detailing Rollins’ life with Black Flag from 1981 to 1986. A great peek inside the punk rock mystique.

??
5) Shock and Awe (DVD): One night from the “Shock and Awe, My Ass” spoken-word tour in 2004. Compelling, topical and funny stuff, released this past February.