A Nostalgic Journey Through the Tracks of My Years
Author: Alyson
Whenever I hear an old song on the radio, I am immediately transported back to those days. I know I'm not alone here and want to record those memories for myself and for the people in them. 60 years ago the song "Alfie" was written by my favourite songwriting team, Bacharach and David. The opening line to that song was, "What's it all about?" and I'm hoping by writing this blog, I might find the answer to that question.
Last month I wrote a post (link here) about that amazing full moon we in the UK were all witness to. Having discovered that all full moons have a name, generally having come from the Native Americans who very much used the moon’s cycle as their calendar, I decided to embark on a series of “moon posts” to coincide with whenever a new one appears in our skies. Last night, despite the fact there had been solid cloud cover all day, I managed to witness the Cold Moon, so-called because it occurs at that time of the year when the cold grip of winter really starts to take hold. I tried very hard to get a good shot of it both with my phone and camera, but not easy, so here is the best I could come up with – My Cold Moon as seen in the Highlands of Scotland.
The next full moon will occur in January, so as this is my last lunar offering of 2017 I am going to feature a song by an artist who sadly left us earlier this year and whom I have been remiss in not mentioning until now. I am talking about Al Jarreau who despite having had an incredibly long career as a jazz performer will, for me, always be remembered as the guy who sang the “Moonlighting” Theme. Al started out in 1968 and during his lengthy career received a total of seven Grammy Awards and was nominated for over a dozen more. He is perhaps best known for his 1981 album “Breakin’ Away” but passed away back in February this year at the age of 76, just two days after announcing his retirement.
“Moonlighting” Theme by Al Jarreau:
Moonlighting was the American comedy-drama television series, set in the offices of a private detective agency, that ran for four years in the late 1980s. It was must watch telly in the flat I shared with my best friends and even when we all started to move out and go our separate ways, it was always a great excuse for a get-together back at the mothership!
The show made a star out of Bruce Willis and re-launched the career of Cybill Shepherd. The relationship between their characters, David and Maddie, was of course one of those “will they, won’t they” ones but naturally once they did, the magic ended. Still included in most lists of the best TV couples of all time however.
Bruce and Cybill aka David and Maddie
Al Jarreau
Next month’s full moon will be called the Wolf Moon so I shall return at the start of January with another lunar song title. A bit of a quirk next month however in that we will also have a Blue Moon. Doesn’t happen often (thus the name) but as all full moons occur every 29.5 days we will have one on the 2nd and the 31st (just snuck in there at the end of the month). Plenty of song choices for blue moons but will have to have a think about which song would be most suitable for a wolf moon. Bob Seger and his Silver Bullet Band immediately comes to mind but we’ll see!
Until next time…. RIP Al Jarreau
Moonlighting Lyrics (Song by Al Jarreau/Lee Holdridge)
Some walk by night Some fly by day Nothing could change you Set and sure of the way Charming and bright Laughing and gay I’m just a stranger Love the Blues and the Braves There is the sun and moon Facing their old, sweet tune Watch them when dawn is due Sharing one space
Some walk by night Some fly by day Something is sweeter When you meet ‘long the way There is the sun and moon Facing their old, sweet tune Watch them when dawn is due Sharing one space
So come walk the night Come fly by day Something is sweeter ‘Cause we met ‘long the way We’ll walk the night We’ll fly by day Moonlighting strangers Who just met on the way Who just met on the way
Well, my last post was a very long one so you’ll be glad to know that this is going to be a shorter, mid-week mini-post. I recently had a comment from a new visitor to this place who knew me from another blog we both frequent (that would be Rich’s KamerTunesBlog). It had come to his attention that I’d written a post called LOVE, Young People and “Don’t Look Back In Anger” and had assumed it was about the band Love. Sadly for him it wasn’t, it was about the One Love Manchester benefit concert that took place back in May, a couple of weeks after the city’s terrorist attack. In reply to his comment I mentioned that I didn’t really know the band Love but said I would definitely seek them out, which is exactly what I did next.
Wow, I am now in love with Love!
Ever since starting this blog, the year I keep returning to time and time again is 1967, and here we go again. There are many reasons why I am so fond of this particular year and I have cited them many times already but now that I recognise the sheer number of musical genres out there, the ones I warm to most were all at their peak in 1967, orchestral pop, baroque pop, folk rock and psychedelic rock. Love definitely fell into the last camp and despite having poor sales back in the late sixties, their album “Forever Changes” received great critical acclaim and is now ranked 40th on Rolling Stone magazine’s list of The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time. It is also recognised as one of the finest albums to have come out of the Summer of Love.
Alone Again Or by Love:
The first track on “Forever Changes” is the song Alone Again Or which was written by bassist Brian MacLean although most of the other songs on the album were written by the band’s founder, Arthur Lee. I am pretty sure I know it from a soundtrack to a film or television show but can’t quite work out which one – Maybe someone could help me out? The song was apparently inspired by the memory of waiting for a girlfriend – The essence of it is the contrast between the upbeat tune and the sad lyrics, “And I will be alone again tonight, my dear”. Love‘s influences included folk rock, hard rock, blues, jazz, flamenco and orchestral pop so the addition of a string section and a horn part for a mariachi band seemed perfectly sensible. The song has become a true classic and has now been recorded by many other artists including The Damned.
So, “What’s It All About?” – Some bands just seem to be in the wrong place at the wrong time so despite their obvious brilliance never really get the commercial success they deserve. Love were the hippest band in LA in 1967 but because they had two black front men playing music unlikely to appeal to a black audience, they were ill-equipped to take the place of bands such as The Byrds. They became overshadowed by The Doors and Jimi Hendrix in 1967 and their drug usage started to spiral out of control. As the year ended, Love splintered apart, never to regain the same momentum. Despite a period of incarceration for gun crimes, Arthur Lee continued to work with other musicians using the band’s name until his death in 2006.
But here we are 50 years on from the now infamous Summer of Love and I am discovering Love for the first time. That all sounds a bit odd actually, but it just goes to show that you are never too old, and I am going to enjoy every little bit of it!
Alone Again Or Lyrics (Song by Brian MacLean)
Yeah, I said it’s all right I won’t forget All the times I waited patiently for you I think you’ll do (just what) you choose to do And I will be alone again tonight my dear
Yeah, I heard a funny thing Somebody said to me You know that I could be in love, with almost everyone I think that people are the greatest fun And I will be alone again tonight, my dear
Yeah, I heard a funny thing Somebody said to me You know that I could be in love with almost everyone I think that people are the greatest fun And I will be alone again tonight, my dear
A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away there lived a handsome prince called David. All the young ladies of the land collected pictures of the prince and adorned their walls with them.
The humble author’s teenage collection of David Cassidy pin-ups
Many of you will have heard that one of the 1970’s biggest teen idols died earlier this week at the age of 67. Not a massive shock this time as it had been announced earlier this year that he was suffering from dementia and then last weekend, from multiple organ failure – A transplant was not deemed possible so the life-support machines were switched off on Tuesday at noon. Still sad news however for those of us of a certain age who remember him at his shiniest best.
Of course when I heard the news I had to refer to my box of teenage memorabilia and in the folder of pin-ups and posters from the early ’70s, it turned out that most were of David Cassidy. There were also a fair few of those Osmond Brothers, TheJackson 5, David Essex, Bjorn Borg,Marty Kristian from the New Seekers and Ben Murphy of Alias Smith and Jones fame, but no, by far the biggest number were of Mr Cassidy as he was omnipresent within the pages of teen mags from 1970 to 1974.
I have written about David Cassidy in this blog before (link here) as my first three posts ended up being about artists called David – Bowie, Davy Jones of the Monkees and David Cassidy. Sadly, not one of that triumvirate of Davids is still with us, which is a sobering thought. This revisitation of the artists of my youth is a constant reminder that we are all journeying along that conveyer belt of life apace, and with this latest departure it does give us another “mortality reality check”.
I was just at the right age for David Cassidy to come into my life – As a pre-teen I had watched him play the character Keith Partridge in the kid’s musical sit-com The Partridge Family and then as I reached my teenage years he had become the world’s biggest pop idol, selling out concerts in every corner of the globe. But was it his music we adored or was it the idol himself? As I mentioned last time he appeared on these pages, his song Could It Be Forever was the first one that made me cry, and I didn’t even know why! The teenage hormones were starting to kick in and we girls lose our sanity a bit when it comes to our idols, behaving in a totally irrational and frenzied manner. We buy all the magazines with their pictures and create scrapbooks/fanzines. We cover our bedroom walls with their posters and even iron picture transfers onto our pillowcases. Of course we also dream of them being our fantasy boyfriends, without really understanding what having a real boyfriend would mean.
I have another few things in the archive folder that refer to David Cassidy and think they are worth sharing here as a lasting reminder of just how big he was in the early ’70s. These wordy pages are often to be found on the back of the aforementioned pin-ups but are proving to be the most interesting when looking back – A little bit of pop history. (By the way in case anyone thinks it’s a bit weird that I still have all this stuff – No, I don’t sit around of an evening dressed in flares and platform shoes pouring over pictures of my teen idols, it’s just that if you’ve ever had to clear out your parents’ loft so they can downsize, you end up finding all this childhood ephemera and are somewhat loathe to get rid of it just in case you ever start writing a music blog!)
Poor David’s time in the sun was short-lived as seems to be the case with most teen idols – As soon as your fan base comes of age and finds love with real-life boys, the career is over. Some manage to reinvent themselves but sadly David didn’t really ever manage to negotiate that cross-over success although he did record a new album in the mid ’80s and continued to tour until earlier this year.
But I can’t leave it there. Many of us who were fans back in the early ’70s probably didn’t give David and his Partridge Family pals much thought in the intervening years, but when the Richard Curtis film Four Weddings and a Funeral was released in 1994 there was a great scene where slightly awkward, upper-class Englishman Charles (played by Hugh Grant) attempted to declare his love for Carrie (played by Andie MacDowell). After much procrastination he finally got round to uttering those most difficult of words, “I think I love you” but of course they were attributed first to David Cassidy, when he was still with The Partridge Family – Très amusant and because of that scene (at 0:30) it has become my favourite Cassidy song.
I Think I Love You by The Partridge Family:
So, “What’s It All About?” – Poor old David Cassidy had a bit of a difficult life after his early ’70s heyday as a teen idol but that seems to be the norm for anyone who has experienced that level of idolatry. I can confirm however that having his picture on my bedroom wall back then was a real joy, and as I drifted off to sleep at night I probably whispered those five little words, “I think I love you”.
Until next time…. RIP David
I Think I Love You Lyrics (Song by Tony Romeo)
I was sleeping and right in the middle of a good dream Like all at once I wake up from something that keeps knocking at my brain Before I go insane I hold my pillow to my head And spring up in my bed screaming out the words I dread I think I love you (I think I love you)
This morning I woke up with this feeling I didn’t know how to deal with and so I just decided to myself I’d hide it to myself and never talk about it And did not go and shout it when you walked into the room I think I love you (I think I love you)
I think I love you so what am I so afraid of I’m afraid that I’m not sure of a love there is no cure for
I think I love you isn’t that what life is made of Though it worries me to say that I never felt this way
I don’t know what I’m up against I don’t know what it’s all about I got so much to think about
Hey, I think I love you so what am I so afraid of I’m afraid that I’m not sure of a love there is no cure for
I think I love you isn’t that what life is made of Though it worries me to say I never felt this way
Believe me you really don’t have to worry I only wanna make you happy and if you say “hey go away” I will But I think better still I’d better stay around and love you Do you think I have a case let me ask you to your face Do you think you love me?
I think I love you I think I love you…
Postscript:
I now realise I was remiss in not sharing any video footage of David Cassidy in today’s post – Here he is as Keith Partridge singing Walking In The Rain, the Phil Spector song that was first a hit for The Ronettes in 1964. This song has actually featured in the blog before (link here) when I wrote about radio, and the chart-run down shows of my early teenage years. Shirley Jones who played his mother in The Partridge Family television series was actually his step-mother in real life and has also appeared on these pages before (link here) when I wrote about the song You’ll Never Walk Alone. As I often say, we keep going in circles around here. Oh and one more thing, the eagle-eyed amongst you might just spot a young Jodie Foster in the front row of the audience in this clip as she played the daughter of Shirley Jones love interest in this episode!
Well, that old adage, “If you want something done, ask a busy person” turns out to be correct! My old life, which incorporated the heady world of secure employment as well as blogging, acting as Mr WIAA’s unpaid secretary, caring for my mum and filling the role of chief cook and bottle-washer is now a full eight weeks behind me, but I don’t seem to be getting any more done in the course of a week than before – Very strange.
Not having been in this position before I had no idea how it would pan out – I think I had this romantic notion that I would finally get round to writing that opus which would earn me millions, I would sweep through the house like Lawrence Llewelyn-Bowen creating a tranquil “haven in the Highlands” and home-cooked meals would await the family every evening….. The list goes on.
But no, it turns out that you just get a little more sleep (which is good as I didn’t get enough before, sometimes blogging until well after midnight), you spend a bit more time on housework (but no-one even notices unless for some reason it stops being done, so a bit of a thankless task really), faff about on the computer far too much and watch a bit more telly (quite a bit more actually down to the curse of the boxset). So, a life outside the home awaits me in the new year I’ve decided, although I’m a tad sceptical about how easy it will be for someone of my vintage to actually acquire paid employment in today’s job market – Time will tell I suppose and should make for some interesting blog posts.
The myth of the jolly housewife!
But although this blog does tend to become a place for me to offload my thoughts, it’s supposed to be about music and this morning that quirky Icelandic songstress Björk was to be heard on the radio promoting a show she is to take part in later on tonight. They don’t get much more bonkers than Bjork in the world of performance but I have always had a soft spot for her right from the days when she fronted The Sugarcubes. What I remember from her little slot on the radio earlier today was something about how she believes you just have to create work based on how you are feeling at the time and that is probably the case for bloggers too, which is why I’ve gone down this route today.
A song by Bjorkthat immediately springs to mind is this one, It’s Oh So Quiet, which was a big hit for her in November 1995 and reached the No. 4 spot in the UK Singles Chart. I remember it well because that was the month darling daughter made an appearance in the world (yes, we’ve just celebrated her 22nd birthday). It seemed to get blanket airplay right at the time we, as new parents, were navigating that tightrope between trying to be “oh so quiet” and coping with a “riot of crying”, so all very timely. Ironically that was also the last time I was a stay-at-home person, but as anyone who has had children knows, those first few weeks and months are no picnic and unlike now there was never enough time for anything, especially sleep. Different times.
It’s Oh So Quiet by Björk:
Appropriate that Björk Guðmundsdóttir should feature in this post as my last one (link here) featured music by a Greenlander band called Nanook. She is pretty unique in the world of music and has gone on to have a career spanning four decades having developed an eclectic musical style that draws on a wide range of influences. She has also won numerous awards including five BRITs. As for the song It’s Oh So Quiet it was originally recorded by the American singer Betty Hutton in 1951 as a cover of the German song Und Jetzt Ist Es Still. As I often say around here, every day’s a school day.
So, “What’s It All About?” – It turns out that unless you are officially retired with an income to match and have no responsibilties to speak of, after a couple of months of enjoying the luxury of being at home when all your old colleagues are still beavering away on the 9 to 5, you start to hanker after a life out in the real world. Back in the days of DD’s “gap year” when she was pondering over what she wanted to do with her life, I kept labouring the point that everyone needs something to get up for, a purpose. Time to heed my own advice I think but will just make sure I finish decluttering the loft first!
Until next time….
It’s Oh So Quiet Lyrics (Song by Hans Lang/Bert Reisfeld)
It’s. Oh. So quiet It’s. Oh. So still You’re all alone And so peaceful until…
You fall in love Zing boom The sky up above Zing boom Is caving in Wow bam You’ve never been so nuts about a guy You wanna laugh you wanna cry You cross your heart and hope to die
‘Til it’s over and then It’s nice and quiet But soon again Starts another big riot
You blow a fuse Zing boom The devil cuts loose Zing boom So what’s the use Wow bam Of falling in love
It’s. Oh. So quiet It’s. Oh. So still You’re all alone And so peaceful until…
You ring the bell Bim bam You shout and you yell Hi ho ho You broke the spell Gee. This is swell you almost have a fit This guy is “gorge” and i got hit There’s no mistake this is it
‘Til it’s over and then It’s nice and quiet But soon again Starts another big riot
You blow a fuse Zing boom The devil cuts loose Zing boom So what’s the use Wow bam Of falling in love
The sky caves in The devil cuts loose You blow blow blow blow blow your fuse When you’ve fallen in love
Ssshhhhhh…
Postscript:
Having just watched that video clip of Bjork singing It’s Oh So Quiet, I am reminded of the film La La Land which did so well earlier this year at the Oscars. What with the yellow dress, and the street scenes where everyone somehow spontaneously joins together in a well-choreographed dance, it is another wonderful homage to those great musical films of yesteryear.
A bit of a silly post this but I have previously asked the question, “Are you also addicted to blogging?” and the responses were interesting. Like myself, many others would admit to being addicted, but in a good way. To share our thoughts with others in this community can be a great stress-buster at the end of a busy day and the community itself is something to be cherished, a beautiful add-on to a world of real-life friends and colleagues.
My question today is, “How often do you check your stats?”. I ask because I tend to check mine quite frequently. I’m not sure how it works on other platforms but here at WordPress we get all sorts of breakdowns on a daily basis as to how our blog posts are faring – How many visitors and views, where these visitors come from and which posts are the most popular. Having dealt with statistics for most of my working life, I know that we have to take these stats with a pinch of salt, as there are many underlying reasons as to why a particular result might arise – Still makes for interesting reading though.
An example of the WordPress stats page
At the moment my most visited post by a country mile is this one – The Proclaimers, Hibs and Sunshine On Leith. It was written right at the start of my blogging career but by sheer coincidence I picked a post title that matches exactly what a Hibernian Football Club fan would enter into a search engine after winning a big match. The song Sunshine On Leith is the anthem the fans sing from the terraces whilst supporting their team and those who want to relive that emotional moment probably stumble upon my post. This in turn pushes it up the search engines so when the recent documentary about the twins was aired on telly, that post started getting another massive hike in views. Interesting stuff but whether these visitors hang around and read any of my other posts is debatable.
Another statistic I love is looking at is that map of the world which shows where your visitors come from. First thing in the morning your top views are likely to be from North America and Australasia as those are the English-speaking regions that have been surfing the net whilst we in the UK are sound asleep. By mid afternoon however the tables turn and your most frequent visitors are likely to come from the UK and the rest of Europe. A fellow blogger wrote recently about all of this – I mentioned in his comments box that it fascinates me too and that I have had views from countries as diverse as Greenland and Guam. I threw those two in as I thought it formed a nice bit of alliteration – Imagine my surprise therefore, when only last week, on a single day, I had views from both those countries! There is a good chance that any visits to our blogs are merely the result of a google search for something else and the surfer didn’t linger long – Just in case that was not the case for my visitors from Greenland and Guam however, I decided to do a little research into the music of those two, very different countries.
Greenland:
Most of us will know that Greenland is that island within the Arctic Circle that always looks enormous on a conventional map but mainly down to the way the globe is stretched at the north and south poles via Mercator projection. It is however still the world’s largest island although it is also the world’s least densely populated country, no doubt because of that giant ice cap that practically covers it. Although part of the North American continent, it has long been politically and culturally associated with Europe and more specifically Scandinavia. Its people are in the main of Inuit and Danish descent.
The traditional music of Greenland features drum dances but modern day music tends to be influenced primarily by rock bands from the US and the UK – According to native drummer Hans Rosenberg, Greenland is definitely a rock country, both musically and literally. With the wonders of modern technology at my disposal it didn’t take long to find something by this popular modern day Greenlander band Nanook. The video clip gives a really good impression of what it would be like to live there (brrr…) and I have become quite smitten by this song which is tricky to spell but hopefully I’ve got it right – Ingerlaliinnaleqaagut.
Guam:
Unlike Greenland, Guam has a tropical rainforest climate and is the largest island in Micronesia. Most of us will know that it’s a territory of the United States and since the 1960s the economy has been supported by two main industries – Tourism and the United States Armed Forces. Indigenous Guamanians are the Chamorros who are related to other Austronesian natives to the west in the Philippines and Taiwan. A frequently used territorial motto is “Where America’s Day Begins”, which refers to the island’s close proximity to the international date line.
Modern music from Guam has American, Spanish, Filipino and Polynesian influences however it seems that of all the popular Chamorro musicians, Flora Baza Quan is the “Queen”. Her most famous recording was of the song Hagu so time to head down to Pika’s Café where Jenand RJ perform a fine cover version.
So, another little geography lesson courtesy of “What’s It All About?” – Other countries that seem to pop up on my stats quite frequently, but unusually I think, are Japan, Finland and The Philippines. Always interested in who drops by this place so please pop your head round the door if you do indeed visit from these countries.
Getting back to my native Scotland, it does seem appropriate that my most popular post to date featured those heavily accented twins from Auchtermuchty, The Proclaimers. I do have a category dedicated to Scottish bands (link here) of which there are many, but for this post I should really include something else by Craig and Charlie Reid. As there is a lot of “love in the air” around here at the moment (yes, darling daughter has a new boyfriend), it will have to be I’m Gonna Be from 1988. I’m not entirely sure if the new boyfriend would as yet walk 500 miles and then 500 more to fall down at her door, but as love songs go it’s a belter and not schmaltzy at all.
I’m Gonna Be (500 Miles) by The Proclaimers:
Until next time….
I’m Gonna Be (500 Miles) Lyrics (Song by Craig Reid/Charlie Reid)
When I wake up, well I know I’m gonna be, I’m gonna be the man who wakes up next you When I go out, yeah I know I’m gonna be I’m gonna be the man who goes along with you If I get drunk, well I know I’m gonna be I’m gonna be the man who gets drunk next to you And if I haver up, yeah I know I’m gonna be I’m gonna be the man who’s havering to you
But I would walk 500 miles And I would walk 500 more Just to be the man who walks a thousand miles To fall down at your door
When I’m working, yes I know I’m gonna be I’m gonna be the man who’s working hard for you And when the money, comes in for the work I do I’ll pass almost every penny on to you When I come home (when I come home) well I know I’m gonna be I’m gonna be the man who comes back home to you And if I grow-old (when I grow-old) well I know I’m gonna be I’m gonna be the man who’s growing old with you
But I would walk 500 miles And I would walk 500 more Just to be the man who walks a thousand miles To fall down at your door
When I’m lonely, well I know I’m gonna be I’m gonna be the man who’s lonely without you And when I’m dreaming, well I know I’m gonna dream I’m gonna dream about the time when I’m with you When I go out (when I go out) well I know I’m gonna be I’m gonna be the man who goes along with you And when I come home (when I come home) yes I know I’m gonna be I’m gonna be the man who comes back home with you I’m gonna be the man who’s coming home with you
But I would walk 500 miles And I would walk 500 more Just to be the man who walks a thousand miles To fall down at your door
Well, socially it’s a busy time of the year in my neck of the woods and there have been two soirées in the last week alone. Last Tuesday our “across-the-road-neighbours” hosted a Halloween party which was great fun. We all specialise in different kinds of events (I do quiz nights and landmark dates in the calendar) but Halloween belongs to them. Despite being in their late sixties now, their son’s old baby bath is hauled out to enable “dooking for apples”, the garage is given a spooky makeover and all the local kids drop by in their costumes.
Then on Saturday, friends who live across on what is called the Black Isle (it’s not actually an island but it’s bordered on three sides by firths, so almost), asked if we’d like to join them for their local Bonfire Night celebrations. The best bit of the whole night however was that we witnessed the most spectacular full moon I think I’ve ever seen. The picture below is not of that actual moon, as I wasn’t quite on the ball with my camera equipment, but it could well have been.
Having looked into it a bit more it was called the Frost Moon which peaked this year on the 4th November. It is also called the Beaver Moon however, that name coming from the Native Americans as this was the time of year they set their beaver traps to make sure there were enough warm furs ahead of winter. It turns out all full moons have a name which is something I hadn’t realised before and they go as follows:
December – Cold Moon January – Wolf Moon February – Snow Moon March – Worm Moon April – Pink Moon May – Flower Moon June – Strawberry Moon July – Buck Moon August – Sturgeon Moon September – Corn Moon October – Hunter’s Moon November – Beaver Moon
Over the last year I have written about all the landmark dates in the ancient Pagan, or Celtic calendar, but as that cycle is now complete I think I can feel a new series coming on, this time all about moons! But of course Saturday’s moon wasn’t just impressive because it was a full one – Oh no, it was also a “supermoon”, when it comes to that point nearest the Earth. Despite being only about 26,000 miles closer than at other times, it appears around 14% larger and a whopping 30% brighter than usual. I love all this stuff.
But this is a music blog, so which song came to mind as I wandered along the beach on Saturday night on my way to the bonfire? Perhaps because I have written both about Frank Sinatra and the song Fly Me To The Moon in my last couple of posts, I ended up going down the Rat Pack route, and serenaded our friends with this golden oldie.
“In Napoli where love is king When boy meets girl, here’s what they say:
When the moon hits your eye like a big pizza pie, that’s amore”
That’s Amore is a song written by Harry Warren and Jack Brooks which became a big hit (and signature song) for Dean Martin in 1953. Funnily enough, I remember it best from the Cher film Moonstruck, where she plays a widowed Italian-American who falls in love with her fiancé’s estranged, hot-tempered younger brother (played by Nicolas Cage). Cher won the Oscar for Best Actress in that one and as I haven’t watched it in years, I think I will now go and seek it out.
But what else comes to mind when I think of songs with the word moon in the title or lyrics. Well, this might be a good time to include something by Christopher Cross in the blog. I have held off as long as possible as it seems that Christopher has unfortunately ended up being attributed to that category of artists who produce what is called soft rock, or even worse yacht rock. Apparently yacht rock relates to the stereotype of the yuppie yacht owner, who enjoys smooth music while out for a sail. Also, since sailing was a popular leisure activity in Southern California, many yacht rockers made nautical references in their lyrics, videos, and album artwork, particularly Sailing by Christopher Cross.
But hey, I have never owned a yacht nor am I ever likely to, but I still warm to the melodic tones of Mr Cross and always enjoy that romantic line from his Academy award winning song Arthur’s Theme (Best That You Can Do) – “If you get caught between the Moon and New York City, the best that you can do is fall in love”.
Arthur’s Theme (Best That You Can Do) by Christopher Cross:
It is no surprise really that I have always liked this song as it was written by Burt Bacharach (amongst others) for the 1981 film Arthur starring our own Dudley Moore. Burt’s song Wives and Lovers featured in my last post so definitely on a Frank and Burt roll at the moment it seems. What I have just discovered however is that the line about getting caught between the moon and New York City was inspired not by a romantic encounter but because one of the credited songwriters, Peter Allen, got stuck in a holding pattern waiting to land at JFK airport in New York several years earlier. Oh well, best not to know sometimes how these memorable lines came to pass.
So, “What’s It All About?” – I seem to have a new series on my hands! (Yes, I know I have a few others in progress but I will make time for them too, promise.) There are certainly many, many songs that mention the word “moon” in the title but which are your favourites?
In December, all being well we will witness the Cold Moon, that name again from the Native Americans as it was associated with the month when winter cold fastens its grip and the nights become long and dark. Any suggestions for songs therefore that relate to both the moon, and to the cold grip of winter, gratefully received. I will get my thinking cap on myself before that date and apologies that I couldn’t muster up anything this time that related both to the moon, and to beavers – Might have been a stretch?!
Until next time….
Arthur’s Theme (Best That You Can Do) Lyrics (Song by Burt Bacharach/Carole Bayer Sager/Christopher Cross/Peter Allen)
Once in your life you find her Someone that turns your heart around And next thing you know you’re closing down the town Wake up and it’s still with you Even though you left her way across town Wondering to yourself, “Hey, what’ve I found?”
When you get caught between the Moon and New York City I know it’s crazy, but it’s true If you get caught between the Moon and New York City The best that you can do, The best that you can do is fall in love
Arthur he does as he pleases All of his life, he’s mastered choice Deep in his heart, he’s just, he’s just a boy Living his life one day at a time And showing himself a really good time Laughing about the way they want him to be
When you get caught between the Moon and New York City I know it’s crazy, but it’s true If you get caught between the Moon and New York City The best that you can do, The best that you can do is fall in love
Postscript:
Out of interest here are a few pictures from the display we went along to on Saturday night – The fireworks were indeed spectacular but not quite as spectacular as that amazing full moon reflected on the water of the firth. Very special indeed.
Since giving up work a few weeks ago, my life has taken a serious turn for the better – Suddenly there is enough time for everything I need to do in my life and joy of joys there is also enough time for some things that I don’t really need to do, but am enjoying immensely. One of the frivolous things I don’t really need to do, has been to binge watch one of my favourite television shows, Mad Men, set in the 1960s at the fictional Sterling Cooper advertising agency on New York’s Madison Avenue. Season One begins in March 1960, just before I was born, and it’s almost worth watching it for the clothes alone. Totally impractical but incredibly beautiful.
The show won many awards over the years and has been lauded for its historical accuracy. For fans of music, the song choices for each episode were spot on in terms of evoking the era and how they related to a particular scene or storyline. This song, Fly Me To The Moon by Julie London, featured in the first season of Mad Men. I have always loved her languid voice, especially when singing her signature song Cry Me A River, and Julie’s look and sound were totally appropriate for this glamorous show.
Towards the end of the first season, the upcoming presidential elections feature highly as the agency was to work with Nixon’s team to help him secure that win. They think it’s a foregone conclusion but of course we all now know it turned out very differently back in 1960 and Nixon ended up being pipped at the post by a young Jack Kennedy. Mad Men depicts the American society and culture of the 1960s, highlighting cigarette smoking, drinking, sexism, adultery, homophobia and racism. It kind of reminds us that although we have a nostalgia for the past, we also sometimes have a selective memory.
A song I have in my digital database by Julie London is this one, but not easy to listen to nowadays. Despite the fact I love the songs of Burt Bacharach and Hal David, the lyrics to Wives and Lovers are just so at odds with how a 21st century woman would think, or more importantly how a man would expect her to think, that they become quite laughable. However if you watched only the first episode of Mad Men, set in 1960, they suddenly seem frighteningly accurate:
Hey! Little Girl Comb your hair, fix your makeup Soon he will open the door. Don’t think because there’s a ring on your finger You needn’t try anymore (?!)
Day after day There are girls at the office And men will always be men. Don’t send him off with your hair still in curlers You may not see him again (?!)
I’m not naked honest – You just can’t see the dress!
Yes, I am naked under this coat!
Wives and Lovers by Julie London:
There is a lot of talk in the media at the moment about certain “unsolicited actions” and “inappropriate behaviour” having been carried out by people in power. Our blogging buddy Jez has written a very good piece about it this weekend (link here) which I would thoroughly recommend. As he says, time and time again we hear the defence that the accused is “a dinosaur”, that their behaviour was acceptable “back in the day” – No, it really wasn’t.
Until next time….
Wives and Lovers Lyrics (Song by Burt Bacharach/Hal David)
Hey! Little Girl Comb your hair, fix your makeup Soon he will open the door Don’t think because there’s a ring on your finger You needn’t try anymore
For wives should always be lovers too Run to his arms the moment he comes home to you I’m warning you…
Day after day There are girls at the office And men will always be men Don’t send him off with your hair still in curlers You may not see him again
For wives should always be lovers too Run to his arms the moment he comes home to you He’s almost here…
Hey! Little girl Better wear something pretty Something you’d wear to go to the city and Dim all the lights, pour the wine, start the music Time to get ready for love Time to get ready Time to get ready for love
Postscript:
Just in case anyone hadn’t heard of her before, Julie London was an American singer and actress, whose career spanned over forty years. She released 32 albums of pop and jazz standards during the 1950s and 1960s, her signature song being the classic Cry Me a River. Julie’s 35-year acting career began in 1944 and included roles co-starring with Rock Hudson, Gary Cooper and Robert Mitchum. She achieved continuing success in television in the 1970s, appearing in the show Emergency! with her husband, Bobby Troup.
Welcome to this occasional series where I am attempting a virtual journey around the 50 States of America in song. For anyone new to this place, I have a continuous route map where I enter and leave each state only once. Suggestions for the next leg always welcome!
Well, I seem to have been tettering on the edge of the George Washington bridge for two months now, as my New York post ended up being rather a long one, and New Jersey doesn’t look as if it will be much shorter, or easier to put together. After this state I will really try and get back to the original premise of one state, one song, but in the meantime it will have to be another “stream of consciousness” kind of affair. Here goes….
New Jersey is tantalisingly close to wealthy and sophisticated Manhattan, but here, a mere 10 minutes across the bridge (or through the tunnel), we have a much more workaday state. To use another British analogy, New Jersey is probably the Essex of America where “Joisey” girls and boys tend to be the butt of many a joke. It is called the Garden State but the area bordering the Hudson is heavily industrialised and provides a home to many a chemical plant. The beautiful Ivy League University Princeton however is in New Jersey and further south we have the many fine beaches. Atlantic City, with it’s seven miles of boardwalk, was a highly successful and popular resort in the 19th and early 20th centuries. Post WWII it fell into decline but in 1976 came the legalisation of gambling after which massive casino hotels were built such as the Trump Taj Mahal. The original was one of the seven wonders of the world, but inside this one day and night merge into one, as high and low rollers from all over the world are sucked in leaving the old boardwalks neglected and empty.
But this is a music blog so what, and who, comes to mind when I think of New Jersey? First of all here is a clip showing the opening sequence to the television show The Sopranos – It shows the journey made by its lead character Tony Soprano (played by James Gandolfini), all the way from the New Jersey Turnpike to his comfortable suburban home. The theme music for this show (Woke Up This Morning) was ironically provided by British band Alabama 3 and I have written about that song here before as I’ve always really liked it. The short film also gives a pretty good whistle stop tour of that part of the state, just across the Hudson from NYC.
Woke Up This Morning by Alabama 3:
Like many other successful television dramas it wasn’t long before a CD was released featuring the songs included in the show, and being a big fan of course I bought it. Being a drama very much focused on Italian-Americans, it was inevitable that one of New Jersey’s most famous sons, born to Italian immigrants living in Hoboken, would pop up quite early on in the series. Not in person of course, as he died the year before the show first aired, but by providing It Was A Very Good Year, the soundtrack to the opening sequence for Season 2.
Frank Sinatra was possibly the very first teen idol, the hero of the “bobby-soxers” who sang with the Tommy Dorsey band in the ’40s and appeared in many lavish MGM musicals. After his career started to slump in the early ’50s he turned to Las Vegas, becoming one of the infamous Rat Pack. A second successful film and recording career followed in the later half of that decade and then a long period of recording and performing live in concert, right up until 1995. In terms of retirement, it never really worked out for him.
A young Frank in Hoboken, New Jersey
Although Frank didn’t ever learn how to read music, he had a fine, natural understanding of it and was known to be a perfectionist. It is often mentioned that he had wonderful “phrasing”, which is how a musician shapes a sequence of notes in a passage of music in order to express an emotion or impression – I do believe that with It Was A Very Good Year, he does that with bells on.
It Was A Very Good Year by Frank Sinatra:
Another reason I wanted to include this song in my New Jersey post is because its whole sentiment is very appropriate for what I am doing with this blog – I am probably now in the autumn of my years myself but it is enjoyable to look back nostalgically over my life, telling the stories and sharing the music of my youth.
When I was seventeen, it was a very good year:
Right at the start of my teenage years a new Community Centre was built next to the Academy I attended, and so for the next five years, until I reached the age of 17, it became the focus of our social life. Unlike today when very few parents/community leaders are willing (or allowed) to supervise a few hundred teenagers with raging hormones, back in the ’70s they were plentiful. Nearly every weekend we headed along to the Saturday night “disco” held in one of the big halls. The records, played by some of our classmates who had been insightful enough to buy the equipment, were all the current chart hits and of course it was there that we experienced first kisses, fumbles and romance.
Funnily enough one of my most vivid memories of those years is dancing to songs by a band that really should be more closely associated with the ’60s. Those original Jersey Boys, Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons had a bit of a resurgence in popularity in the ’70s and I am pretty sure my first kiss took place whilst the song December, 1963 (Oh, What A Night) was playing in the background.
When I was twenty-one, it was a very good year:
By the age of 21 I had done the unthinkable, I had dropped all my female friends because I wanted to spend most of my day with my student boyfriend. He was never alone however so it was usually a group of about five lads and myself, in the library, in the bar, in the dining hall…., you get the picture. (“Yes, we see, he was the Leader of the Pack” – sorry couldn’t resist).
Anyway, they were all great fans of that other famous son of New Jersey Bruce Springsteen, so when a rumour went round that he was coming to play the NEC in Birmingham, tickets were acquired. The boyfriend’s parents’ Volvo was commandeered and on the day of my 21st birthday we headed off, driving through the night to the West Midlands. I will have to admit that at age 21 I was more of a fan of Ultravox, Spandau, Visage and Adam Ant so my knowledge of Bruce’s back catalogue was scant indeed. In the weeks before the concert I therefore immersed myself in his album “The River”. By the time the concert came along I was sufficiently au fait with his material to really enjoy the whole experience, especially the saxophone playing of Clarence Clemons. As for the song The River, Bruce cited his inspiration as being his sister and brother-in-law who are still married today. Unlike my New Romantic bands from the early ’80s, Bruce has kept on writing and touring to this day. Never having been a follower of fashion in any way (his stage outfit remains almost unchanged) he has never gone out of fashion – He is the bard of New Jersey but a campaign to get Bruce’s Born To Runnamed as official state song did flounder, as in reality the song was all about getting the hell out of New Jersey!
When I was thirty-five, it was a very good year:
By 35 I was a working mum and a very busy bee indeed so music didn’t feature quite as highly in my life but it would have been hard to miss the fact that Ms Whitney Houston, one of New Jersey’s most famous daughters, had really achieved success of the stratospheric nature. Pop royalty, she was the cousin of Dionne Warwick, the daughter of Cissy Houston, Darlene Love was her godmother and Aretha Franklin an honorary aunt. She had been around since the mid ’80s but after appearing in films such as The Bodyguard the awards just kept on coming. The lead single from the film’s original soundtrack, I Will Always Love You, received the Grammy Award for Record of the Year in 1994 and became the best-selling single by a female in music history. I think I now prefer the original version, by the writer of the song Dolly Parton, but no-one can deny that Whitney had a stupendous set of pipes back then.
Sadly, Whitney died in 2012 at the very young age of 48, but she certainly has left us with a wonderful back catalogue of songs. She was one of the first singers to make use of that vocal technique called melisma, where by packing in a series of different notes, a single syllable can take nearly six seconds to sing. The technique inspired a host of imitators in the ’90s but what Whitney perhaps nailed best was moderation. Earlier this year I went to the cinema to see the new Kevin Macdonald documentary film Whitney: Can I Be Me – The upshot seemed to be that no, she couldn’t.
Whitney Houston, RIP
I Will Always Love You by Whitney Houston:
So there we have it, by using Frank’s song I have been able to link three other musical legends from New Jersey into this post. Incidentally there is another link you might not have noticed. Frankie Valli actually made several appearances in The Sopranos, playing the mobster Rusty Millio. Also, the Four Seasons’ music is heard in many episodes, especially Big Girls Don’t Cry. Steven Van Zandt, a long term member of Bruce Springsteen’s E Street Band, played the character Silvio Dante in all six seasons of The Sopranos and finally, Whitney Houston, was a mezzo-soprano (tenuous that one, but you can’t win them all).
Big Girls Don’t Cry by The Four Seasons:
Next time we head across the border into Pennsylvania – As ever, ideas for song choices gratefully received.
Until next time….
It Was a Very Good Year Lyrics (Song by Ervin Drake)
When I was seventeen, it was a very good year It was a very good year for small town girls And soft summer nights We’d hide from the lights On the village green When I was seventeen
When I was twenty-one, it was a very good year It was a very good year for city girls Who lived up the stairs With all that perfumed hair That came undone When I was twenty-one
When I was thirty-five, it was a very good year It was a very good year for blue-blooded girls Of independent means We’d ride in limousines Their chauffeurs would drive When I was thirty-five
But now the days are short, I’m in the autumn of the years And now I think of my life as vintage wine From fine old kegs From the brim to the dregs It poured sweet and clear It was a very good year
Ever since I got back from my trip to Amsterdam last week I have been meaning to write a short post about it all – Problem is, I’ve struggled to come up with anything particularly “Dutch” to include as a featured song. Tonight however, as I made my way home from my regular Friday night rendezvous with my mum at her retirement complex (the fun just never ends around here!), I switched on the radio to partake in a bit of Friday Night Is Music Night. I do love the affable Ken Bruce, and he does a great job of hosting this show, which is apparently the longest-running live orchestral music programme in the world. In terms of the particular inspiration for each show, you just never know what you’re going to get and this week it was Espionage, so a night of great spy theme music got underway. The programme included music from The Ipcress File, Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, The Third Man, The Avengers and, of course, 007 himself James Bond.
Listening to some of those great TV Theme tunes reminded me of the wonderful Van der Valk, that ’70s television series produced by Thames Television. It starred Barry Foster as Dutch detective Commissaris Piet van der Valk. The stories were mostly based in and around Amsterdam, where Commissaris van der Valk was a “cynical yet intuitive detective”.
Watching this very old piece of footage (wasn’t the colour poor in those days) reminded me of the very locations where I spent time last week, as in a city of canals the street pattern of central Amsterdam hasn’t changed much in about 400 years. The best thing about the show Van der Valk however was its very memorable theme tune, Eye Level, composed by Jack Trombey and played by the Simon Park Orchestra. Unbelievably, it even reached the UK Chart’s No. 1 spot back in 1973. I’m pretty sure that just couldn’t happen today but I still remember them well appearing on TOTP, as those were the days when I religiously taped the show on my little cassette recorder and carefully entered all the chart positions, in my “Chart Positions Notebook”!
But what did we get up to last week? The big irony of course was that despite the fact that Mr WIAA and I were also celebrating our Silver Wedding Anniversary, off I went gallivanting with one of my best female friends. It had all been booked a long time ago and the bad timing was down to that old chestnut, the annual leave window. Of course I am no longer even in the job that I couldn’t get leave from at any other time, but no matter, Mr WIAA was more than happy to hold down the fort and is now promised a trip of his own sometime soon.
Day 1: Headed down to Dam Square where an enormous Ferris Wheel was in operation – Great to get a view of the whole city I thought not realising that my poor friend has a massive fear of such things. She did it though and yes, we did get a great view of the whole city.
Day 2: The obligatory boat trip around the canal system. No room for any more house boats though as all the berths now taken. Also paid a visit to the Museum of Bags and Purses (it’s a thing) and the infamous Red Light District, De Wallen. Learnt a lot in the Museum of Prostitution (yes, it’s also a thing).
Day 3: Visited the Rijksmuseum where you could seriously get lost for a whole day – Pondered over probably some of the most valuable paintings in the world (Rembrandt’s The Night Watch?) and enjoyed glasses of mint tea – Maybe I’m just unsophisticated but up here in Scotland our tea doesn’t come with a bunch of mint leaves and a small pot of honey but very, very nice.
Day 4: Our last day so spent time in the harbour area where our hotel, which used to be the accommodation for Naval Officers, was based. A fantastic table with artwork depicting the harbour took pride of place in the dining room. Oh and it had its own brewery – Bonus.
Although I did say that I couldn’t really think of any songs with a Dutch theme, it was inevitable that this 1985 recording of Lost Weekend by Lloyd Cole and the Commotions would form a bit of an earworm whilst I was away. The lyrics however were not particularly appropriate for our trip as: a) we didn’t catch pneumonia b) the price of the medicine therefore wasn’t an issue and c) we came home before the weekend, so not really a lost one. Great excuse to include a song however that I have always really liked and I’ve now worked out why a band from Glasgow just didn’t sound very Scottish. Turns out Lloyd was from Derbyshire and formed the band whilst studying Philosophy and English at the University of Glasgow. Every day’s a school day.
Lost Weekend by Lloyd Cole and the Commotions:
Until next time….
Lost Weekend Lyrics (Song by Lawrence Donegan/Lloyd Cole/Neil Clark)
It took a lost weekend in a hotel in Amsterdam And double pneumonia in a single room And the sickest joke was the price of the medicine Are you laughing at me now may I please laugh along with you
This morning I woke up from a deep unquiet sleep With ashtray clothes and miss lonely heart’s pen With which I wrote for you a lovesong in tattoo Upon my palm ’twas stolen from me when Jesus took my hand
You see I, I wouldn’t say it if I didn’t mean it Drop me and I’ll fall to pieces too easily
I was a king bee with a head full of attitude Wore my heart on my sleeve like a stained My aim was to taboo you Could we meet in the marketplace Did I ever hey please did you wound my knees
You see I, I wouldn’t say it if I didn’t mean it Drop me and I’ll fall to pieces
Yes it’s too easy and there’s nobody else to blame Will I hang my head in a crying shame There is nobody else to blame nobody else except my sweet self
Again it took a lost weekend in a hotel in Amsterdam Twenty four gone years to conclude in tears That the sickest joke was the price of the medicine Are you laughing at me now May I please laugh along
I was a king bee with a head full of attitude And ashtray heart on my sleeve wounded knees And my one love song was a tattoo upon my palm You wrote upon me when you took my hand
You see I, I wouldn’t say it if I didn’t mean it Drop me and I’ll fall to pieces too easily
Postscript:
Apologies for the quality of these pictures – Not up to my usual standard but when on a short trip like this we just didn’t want to spend lots of time fiddling with our camera equipment, so done on the hop on our phones. Sometimes the best way to go.
Just when I thought I had nothing else to say to you, and that I would finally have to accept you are gone, up you pop on our television screens with a brand new documentary called Freedom. All about your life and career, and with contributions from many of those who were your friends and musical collaborators, it was seemingly in the process of being completed just before you died. It was even directed by you, so very much your baby. You really had no idea how ill you were at that time did you? What the heck were those around you doing for goodness sake – Not looking after your health it seems. To be fair you were an adult and should have taken responsibility for that yourself but not always easy I imagine for someone in your position who had already experienced so many ups and downs in life.
But I digress, the documentary called Freedom was a wonderful gift for those of us who would always want to eke out a little more new and original George Michael goodness before all that is left is the back catalogue and archived footage. I have already written to you about my memories of the Wham! and solo years but here we had all of it, and narrated by none other than your good self. The voice was a bit deeper and more gravelly than I remember, but it was most definitely you, although sadly there had to be a lookalike actor sitting there in your Highgate house supposedly typing out the dialogue for the film. We always knew how self-conscious you were about your looks and it seems you were not prepared to appear in the 2016 film as you were at the time – Sad but understandable.
One of the wonderful things about the film was that along with the really big hits from the “Faith” and “Listen Without Prejudice Vol I” eras, some of the less commercially successful songs made an appearance and this one, Kissing a Fool, has really stayed with me over the last week. Apparently you recorded the vocals for this beautiful, jazzy ballad in one take – It all sounds sublime and despite only making it to No. 18 in the UK Singles Chart, the song remains a firm favourite with fans and I can totally understand why.
Kissing a Fool by George Michael:
But what did I learn about you that hasn’t been covered in my previous letters? First of all I had no idea just how big you were in America once you went solo and released the album “Faith”. The marketing machine went into overdrive and you were on the cover of every magazine, you topped the Billboard chart with 5 of the singles released from the album and won numerous awards, including those in the R&B/Soul category. It was inevitable that there would be a backlash and for fear of burnout you had to walk away from it all for a while.
When you did come back with the very appropriately titled “Listen Without Prejudice Vol I”, you were making a statement – “Don’t pigeon-hole me, just take these songs as they come”. As James Corden said in the film however, there are some people in life who seem to have a layer or two of skin missing and appear to bruise more easily than the rest of us. You were one of them and when you sang the songs from this album for us, the pain you felt was palpable. All of this was written and recorded when you were still aged only 27 – An old head on young shoulders it seems.
When I wrote previously about that stunning performance you gave at the Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert I was just taking it at face value. Now however I understand how you were able to lift that performance to a whole new level – Having finally found love with Anselmo, you had learnt that he had also been diagnosed as HIV positive. He was in the crowd that night and although your fans didn’t even know about your sexuality at that time (well we did, but not officially), and he was unknown to us, you were singing the song for him and your heart was breaking for what was to come. The anger you felt at the unfairness of the situation was taken out on the record company from which you desperately wanted a divorce. A landmark case indeed but one which you lost in the end – As one of the executives said however, you may have lost the battle but you won the war as it was a given that you wouldn’t record anything for them again, so like with a top footballer you went on the transfer market and were snapped up by Virgin.
With the album “Older” you were able to both heal and recover from the grief you felt at the loss of Anselmo, but, then your mother got ill and died soon after so for much of the early ’90s it seems you were suffering from something much deeper than depression, a permanent fear of bereavement. By the second half of that decade you had started to come out the other side and the MTV Unplugged concert in 1996 was a fantastic example of you at your very best. You had the voice of an angel and had the ability to share raw emotion via your lyrics. A gift that possibly comes along once in a generation.
But I don’t want to say my final farewell to you George on a sad note. First of all, I noticed that the song used for the opening titles of your documentary was the Adele version of Fastlove performed at this year’s Grammys. Also the song used for the closing credits was the one jointly performed by Chris Martin and your good self (on a big screen) at the Brits. These were obviously added after your death and although I was a bit (quite a bit actually) disparaging about both of them earlier in the year, the passage of time must have made me warm to them as I thought they were both perfect for this film which turned out to be an unintended obituary. Secondly, I think James Corden has a lot to thank you for as your willingness to always step up to the plate when it came to making a bit of a fool of yourself in comedy sketches for charity, has in turn led to a new art form – Carpool Karaoke! I did love this when it first aired and never tire of watching it.
So, yet again I prepare to sign off for the last time – No more letters but before I go I just want to quote what you said during an earlier interview, included right at the end of the documentary. When asked what you would like to be remembered for, you said that you… “would like to be remembered for your songs and for your integrity, but that was very unlikely, so it was probably all a waste of effort”. I think you were just being modest there, as I expect we all would be if faced with a similar question, but of course in reality you will always be remembered – For the songs, your integrity, your performances, your generosity and yes, for those comedy sketches.
Farewell then George and thank you for that bonus gift you gave us last week in the form of your wonderful documentary. It was much appreciated.
Until next time….
Kissing a Fool Lyrics (Song by George Michael)
You are far When I could have been your star You listened to people Who scared you to death, and from my heart Strange that you were strong enough To even make a start But you’ll never find Peace of mind, ‘Til you listen to your heart
People You can never change the way they feel Better let them do just what they will For they will If you let them Steal your heart from you People Will always make a lover feel a fool But you knew I loved you We could have shown them all We should have seen love through
Fooled me with the tears in your eyes Covered me with kisses and lies So goodbye But please don’t take my heart
You are far I’m never gonna be your star I’ll pick up the pieces And mend my heart Maybe I’ll be strong enough I don’t know where to start But I’ll never find Peace of mind While I listen to my heart
People You can never change the way they feel Better let them do just what they will, For they will If you let them Steal your heart
And people Will always make a lover feel a fool But you knew I loved you We could have shown them all
But remember this Every other kiss That you ever give Long as we both live When you need the hand of another man One you really can surrender with I will wait for you Like I always do There’s something there That can’t compare with any other
You are far When I could have been your star You listened to people Who scared you to death, and from my heart Strange that I was wrong enough To think you’d love me too I guess you were kissing a fool You must have been kissing a fool
Postscript:
As of the 20th October, the reissued “Listen Without Prejudice / MTV Unplugged” Double CD is available everywhere. A worthy addition to any fan’s collection.
But what did we get up to last week? The big irony of course was that despite the fact that Mr WIAA and I were also celebrating our Silver Wedding Anniversary, off I went gallivanting with one of my best female friends. It had all been booked a long time ago and the bad timing was down to that old chestnut, the annual leave window. Of course I am no longer even in the job that I couldn’t get leave from at any other time, but no matter, Mr WIAA was more than happy to hold down the fort and is now promised a trip of his own sometime soon.
When you did come back with the very appropriately titled “Listen Without Prejudice Vol I”, you were making a statement – “Don’t pigeon-hole me, just take these songs as they come”. As James Corden said in the film however, there are some people in life who seem to have a layer or two of skin missing and appear to bruise more easily than the rest of us. You were one of them and when you sang the songs from this album for us, the pain you felt was palpable. All of this was written and recorded when you were still aged only 27 – An old head on young shoulders it seems.
What's It All About? 