It's the Singer and the Song: Best Original Song, 1971

Time to make another mixtape, this time of Original Song nominees!

I have to confess, Glen Campbell...I'll Be Me sits with The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies as the only non-specialty nominees I have not seen. But I've listened to it! And I liked it!

Now: the music. After the jump.

Things Are Different: Best Supporting Actor, 1971

It's not easy to compare this year's slate of Supporting Actor nominees to that of 1971. Ben Johnson is somewhere between J.K. Simmons (the steamroller) and Robert Duvall (the veteran honored) -- except Duvall already has an Oscar and several nods, and Simmons' character is incomparable to Johnson's. Jeff Bridges certainly has the same cocky attitude as Edward Norton, but it's definitely more naive, boyish, open, and borne of insecurity. Mark Ruffalo is just as charming and good-natured and dependable as Richard Jaeckel ... actually, that's a perfect comparison. If this was Ethan Hawk'e first nomination, I could more easily make the Character Actor Made Good argument with Roy Scheider. But who the hell gets saddled with Leonard Frey? 

The Oscars are different, there's no doubt about it. We joke a lot about how Supporting Actor has become the go-to category for honoring veterans, or how they're for leads who aren't as famous/young/handsome as the other lead. And in comparing these two years ... that may be quite true. Simmons is the only 2014 member nominated for the first time, in a role that would be campaigned for lead if, say, Daniel Day-Lewis or Denzel Washington played the part. But when you look at 1971's lineup, everyone is here for the first time, all of them are legitimate supporting turns, and the ages range from 22 to 53 -- quite young!

That's what I learned. Now what I did I love? That's after the jump.