Piero Scaruffi is a normal person.

February 23, 2006 11:38 AM

Piero Scaruffi is a normal person. Like so many others, he ponders knowledge, language, and art from time to time. When he travels, he takes pictures. Just like everyone else. Sure, he has his thoughts about politics and world affairs, who doesn't? And when he's done with all of this he just wants to rock. Exactly like you. See?
posted by goodnewsfortheinsane (12 comments total)

Does this guy not have a job? Not to say that isn't a damn impressive accumulation of stuff. How the hell does he find time to write and maintain all that?
posted by public at 12:15 PM on February 23, 2006

I was wondering the same thing. Fascinating site.
posted by brundlefly at 12:21 PM on February 23, 2006

I haven't read everything on his site, but his posts on politics seem really uniformed in an especially auto-didactic way.
posted by kensanway at 1:21 PM on February 23, 2006

The rock stuff is pretty flat too, but, um, certainly completist. The sheer volume of content is defo pretty impressive.

How the hell does he find time to write and maintain all that?

According to the about page, he's effectively been working on the site for 20 years:

In 1985 he created his first e-zine, distributed by e-mail over the Internet. Between 1986 and 1990 he created an online database, downloadable via ftp. That database mutated into his own website in 1995.

Even so, considering he seems to have had a distinguished scientific career, published fiction and poetry, and works as a journalist, he can't be getting much sleep!
posted by jack_mo at 1:38 PM on February 23, 2006

Like a fawn in the rainbow,

the frailest tear coasting
down the brink of an eyelid
before being gently caught
in the web of your smile,
where it will sparkle forever;
fishing in the pond of time
for the unique moment
that will ultimately have to pass
if the billion moments lived
so far by the universe have
to make any sense at all.
posted by kensanway at 1:45 PM on February 23, 2006

Wow.
posted by If I Had An Anus at 1:57 PM on February 23, 2006

"Please do not use Internet Explorer to view this website. Besides being a terrible browser vulnerable to viruses and worms, it displays pages in idiosyncratic ways. Many other browsers can be downloaded for free."
heh
posted by Cranberry at 2:02 PM on February 23, 2006

Anyone whose top ten includes the Gun Club is ok by me.
posted by scratch at 2:13 PM on February 23, 2006

Holy God - his about pages are burned into my retinas now.
posted by Moondoggie at 2:19 PM on February 23, 2006

His taste in music's OK, if a little odd sometimes. (Robert Wyatt? The fuck?)
posted by klangklangston at 3:14 PM on February 23, 2006

I can only laugh at someone who considers himself authoritative on Science, Rock, Cinema, Travel, Politics, Fiction, Jazz, Poetry, Art, Philosophy, Classical music, and New music.

I don't think his taste has anything to do with these webpages. He's just poring through reference books copying down titles.
posted by jayder at 7:08 PM on February 23, 2006

WTF? That's an insane page, which is, you know, good news! But anyone who lists Modern Dance as album #7 and John Fahey at #9 on a list of top 100 Rock albums of all time is pretty fucking rad. Idiosyncratic as hell, but pretty rad.

(I have to say that I would put Pere Ubu pretty high up there, but would never consider their music the same as anything done by Fahey.)

Which is not to mention also having Royal Trux in the top ten?

Again, all I can pretty much say is WTF?
posted by OmieWise at 8:46 AM on February 24, 2006