“On a basic quantum level, all the matter in the universe is essentially made up of stardust.” – Moby
Like the picture above and the title suggest, We Are All Made Of Stars has this airy, space-like feel. Despite seeming simple, it deceptively goes pretty deep and becomes wonderfully atmospheric, just like many of Moby’s productions. It edges towards techno with a world music sensibility and a trance-like feel.
I like that loopy guitar in the chorus. It’s so groovy. My favourite part of the song is where it feeds back on itself and comes full circle at 2:35, staying like that for the rest of the song.
What Moby had to say below about why he chose We Are All Made Of Stars as the lead single from his album 18 is how I feel too whenever I hear it:
I chose this song because every time I listen to this song, it makes me smile. I made the song, I’ve heard it a million times, but every time the chorus comes, it makes me smile.
The song reminds me a bit of David Bowie’s Heroes. Interesting too, since Moby has repeatedly acknowledged David Bowie as one of his greatest musical influences. You can’t help but hear Bowie’s influence here, along with a spacey vibe that also recalls his earlier Space Oddity era.
As you can imagine, there are remixes galore that lean even further into techno and dance music, with some listeners even citing them as superior to the original.
Wikipedia:
We Are All Made Of Stars reached number 11 on the UK Singles Chart and became a top-10 hit in several other European countries.
We Are All Made of Stars was written by Moby in New York after the September 11 attacks to express a sense of hopefulness. Moby has stated that the song was inspired by the song Flowers from the album Today by American alternative rock band Galaxie 500.
The song’s music video below points out the excesses of the typical “Hollywood” lifestyle, showing celebrities in seedy environments, while Moby, an outsider to that world, portrays a spaceman.
Richard Melville Hall known professionally as Moby is considered by some to be among the most important dance music figures of the early 1990s, helping bring dance music to a mainstream audience both in the United States and the United Kingdom.
[Verse 1] Growing in numbers Growing in speed Can’t fight the future Can’t fight what I see
[Chorus] People they come together People they fall apart No one can stop us now ‘Cause we are all made of stars
[Verse 2] Efforts of lovers Left in my mind I sing in the reaches We’ll see what we find
[Chorus] People they come together People they fall apart No one can stop us now ‘Cause we are all made of stars People they come together People they fall apart No one can stop us now ‘Cause we are all made of stars
[Breakdown] Slow slow slow, come come Someone come come come Someone’s come come Someone’s come Even love is going round You can’t ignore what is going ’round You can’t ignore what is going ’round You can’t ignore what is going ’round
[Verse 3] Slowly rebuilding I feel it in me Growing in numbers Growing in peace
You can see Dylan holding his sunnies there on the Highway 61 Revisited cover. I bet he didn’t find them broken like I did mine this morning when I took them out of their case. I didn’t dwell on it for long though. I put on this lazy, toe-tapping acoustic-electric blues number and that lifted me out of my little lull. I must go back to ‘Dollar City’ first thing tomorrow and buy me a new pair.
The jolly saloon piano sounds so good here, Mama. It merrily rolls the whole song along and has such a great vibe. How does he do it? The music itself feels like a train gently rolling down the tracks. It differs from some of the aggression in other songs Dylan wrote during this period. Speaking of which, on the same day he recorded It Takes a Lot to Laugh, It Takes a Train to Cry, he also recorded Positively 4th Street and Tombstone Blues.
The song closes with the sweetest wailing harmonica solo, providing a lovely counterpoint to the light-hearted feel of the rest of the music. Dylan’s cutesy voice here also adds so much to the whimsical nature of the song. It’s relaxed, lilting, and carries a conversational tone with a touch of world-weary resignation.
I always got a kick out of the title too. It’s like – wait, what?! Read that again. It’s a nice play on words with a bit to unpack, even in that sentence alone. I certainly can relate to “It takes a train to cry,” since that’s how it feels sometimes. It would also take a train not to enjoy this song. Such is its catchiness and wry, grinning delivery. It’s one of the coolest songs.
Snippets from Wikipedia:
(It Takes a Lot to Laugh, It Takes a Train to Cry) is one of three blues songs on the album (the others being “From a Buick 6” and “Just Like Tom Thumb’s Blues“.
It is made up of lines taken from older blues songs combined with Dylan’s own lyrics. The imagery is sexual, and the song can be interpreted as an allegory of someone who is sexually frustrated.
Musically, the song has a lazy tempo driven by lazy-slap drumming with a shuffling beat and slight emphasis on the offbeat from session drummer Bobby Gregg. There is also a barrelhouse piano part played by Paul Griffin, a raunchy bass part played by Harvey Brooks, an electric guitar part played by Mike Bloomfield and an unusual harmonica part.
An earlier version of the song went by the title “Phantom Engineer“. This version has a more upbeat tempo and four lines of different lyrics.
Steely Dan borrowed a line from the song as the title of their debut album Can’t Buy a Thrill (1972).
[Verse 1] Well, I ride on a mail train, baby Can’t buy a thrill Well, I been up all night Leanin’ on the windowsill Well, if I die On top of the hill And if I don’t make it You know my baby will
[Verse 2] Don’t the moon look good, mama Shining through the trees? Don’t the brakeman look good, mama Flaggin’ down the “Double E?” Don’t the sun look good Goin’ down over the sea? But don’t my gal look fine When she’s comin’ after me?
[Verse 3] Now the wintertime is coming The windows are filled with frost I went to tell everybody But I could not get across Well, I want to be your lover, baby I don’t want to be your boss Don’t say I never warned you When your train gets lost
There is passion aplenty and it is all pretty carnal in Ways to Be Wicked. It’s smokin’! Tzzz. Sometimes it is better not to mince words and just come right out and say it. There is so much energy and authenticity here. The song is driven by innate, natural instincts and urges, and it is not short on sexual innuendo.
Lead singer Maria McKee has fallen for the bad boy, and he is “walking her through hell”. She has been treated “wicked”, but such is the allure of his cobra eyes that she keeps coming back to be his fool. The rational conscience within her barely seems to stir. The closest it comes is in the chorus line:
Ooh, but you don’t know one little thing about love
The song has this enticing, jumpy, upbeat country sound, and there is that snarl in Maria McKee’s voice. I love the way she draws out the words “about love” in the above chorus. Another part that sounds so cool is when she sings, “Yeah, and I probably will again.” The song is full of these sweet moments and it is never dull.
It has everything you want in a country-rock song: a highly strung female singer with something to say, and a band that knows its chops, backing her with great licks and changes in tempo.
Considering how brash and driven Maria McKee is in telling this story, it may come as a surprise to learn that the song was not written by a woman. Drumroll: it was written by none other than Tom Petty and Mike Campbell. The song reached No. 29 on the US Billboard Mainstream Rock chart and No. 77 in the UK.
It is a bit of a mystery to me why it did not peak higher. Moreover, the band never really took off commercially, despite opening for U2 after recording their debut album. Critics loved Lone Justice, but the record-buying public not so much, and the albums sold poorly.
Lone Justice began as part of the Los Angeles cowpunk scene of the 1980s. Cowpunk was a rough-edged blend of country music and punk rock that emerged in the late 1970s and early 1980s, particularly in Southern California. The band released two albums, Lone Justice in 1985 and Shelter the following year, before disbanding in 1987.
But Maria McKee did eventually have a No. 1 hit in the UK with Show Me Heaven in 1990.
[Verse 1] Honey, why you always smile When you see me hurt so bad? Tell me what I did to you, babe That could make you act like that
[Pre-Chorus] Well, I’ve been your fool before, honey Yeah, and I probably will again ‘Cause you ain’t afraid to let me have it No, you ain’t afraid to stick it in
[Chorus] Well, you know so many ways to be wicked Ooh, but you don’t know one little thing about love
[Verse 2] Well, I can take a little pain Yeah, I can hold it pretty well I can watch your little eyes light up While you’re walking me through hell
[Pre-Chorus] Well, I’ve been your fool before, honey Yeah, I probably will again ‘Cause you ain’t afraid to let me have it No, you ain’t afraid to stick it in
[Chorus] Well, you know so many ways to be wicked But you don’t know one little thing about love
[Bridge] Those cobra eyes light with a smile Baby, you take pride in the devil down inside
[Verse 3] Well, I can take a little pain Yeah, I can hold it pretty well I can watch your little eyes light up While you’re walking me through hell
[Pre-Chorus] Well, I’ve been your fool before, honey Yeah, and I probably will again ‘Cause you ain’t afraid to let me have it No, you ain’t afraid to stick it in
[Chorus] Well, you know so many ways to be wicked Ooh, but you don’t know one little thing about love Well, you know so many ways to be wicked Yeah, but you don’t know one little, one little thing about love Yeah, you know so many ways to be wicked But you don’t know one little thing about love
In 1998, Billy Bragg & Wilco released Mermaid Avenue, an iconic album built around previously unheard lyrics written by American folk singer Woody Guthrie. They did a wonderful job breathing music into these words and bringing them into the light of day. Guthrie’s recording career was more or less over by the late 1940s, but his daughter Nora approached Billy Bragg in 1995 about setting Woody’s handwritten, unrecorded lyrics to music.
Following the success of Mermaid Avenue (1998), a second and third volume of recordings were released in 2000 and 2012 respectively. The project culminated in Mermaid Avenue: The Complete Sessions. A DVD containing the documentary Man in the Sand (1999), which functions as both a biography of Guthrie and a chronicle of the making of Billy Bragg & Wilco’s Mermaid Avenue, is included as a fourth disc. You can view the entire documentary here.
When you hear today’s featured song, Way Over Yonder in the Minor Key, it really does feel as though Woody’s voice and music have been spookily transfigured and projected through the song. Woody’s lyrics here are, well, just so Woody: humorous, tongue-in-cheek, with a lovely turn of phrase and a heavy dose of Americana imagery.
The music has a slow swing: simple acoustic rhythm, led by Billy Bragg’s rustic voice, with a wistful organ in the background and Natalie Merchant’s haunting backing vocals. It serves the lyrics so well, don’t you think? Like the rest of the album, the song sounds as though it has been dug up and unearthed from a 1940s time capsule. Mermaid Avenue is truly a collectable keepsake, and I’m so glad I bought it when it came out and can still dust off these timeless songs.
[Verse 1] I lived in a place called Okfuskee And I had a little girl in a holler tree I said, “Little girl, it’s plain to see Ain’t nobody that can sing like me Ain’t nobody that can sing like me“
[Verse 2] She said, “It’s hard for me to see How one little boy got so ugly” Yes, my little girly, that might be But there ain’t nobody that can sing like me Ain’t nobody that can sing like me
[Chorus] Way over yonder in the minor key Way over yonder in the minor key There ain’t nobody that can sing like me
[Verse 3] We walked down by the Buckeye Creek To see the frog eat the goggle-eye bee To hear that west wind whistle to the east There ain’t nobody that can sing like me Ain’t nobody that can sing like me
[Verse 4] Oh my little girly, will you let me see? Way over yonder where the wind blows free Nobody can see in our holler tree And there ain’t nobody can sing like me Ain’t nobody can sing like me
[Chorus] Way over yonder in the minor key Way over yonder in the minor key There ain’t nobody that can sing like me
[Verse 5] Her mama cut a switch from a cherry tree And laid it on to she and me It stung lots worse than a hive of bees But there ain’t nobody that can sing like me Ain’t nobody that can sing like me
[Verse 6] Now I have walked a long long ways And I still look back to my tanglewood days I’ve led lots of girls since then to stray Saying ain’t nobody that can sing like me Ain’t nobody that can sing like me
A couple of weeks ago I was in a local fruit and vegetable store here in Bogotá, Colombia, when I heard this vallenato song come over the shop’s speakers. The young cashier was singing it quite animatedly, and I found myself enjoying the smooth and expressive vocals, melody, rhythm and spirited accordion playing. I asked her what the song was called and she replied, ‘Me Vas a Extrañar’ (Eng: You’re Going to Miss Me), and here we are today.
Vallenato music, which originates from Colombia, is typically focused on themes of romance, passion which certainly this song is. Vallenato literally means someone as “born in the valley”. The name is linked to the people of Valledupar, the city most associated with the genre, whose name comes from Valle de Upar (“Valley of Upar”).
It is traditionally performed by a trio featuring the diatonic button accordion (melody), the caja vallenata (a small single-headed drum providing rhythm), and the guacharaca (a ribbed scraper).
I mentioned earlier romance and passion, but as I began translating the lyrics below, I soon realised Me Vas a Extrañar was not your run-of-the-mill story of unrequited love. The song takes that subject to a far more polemical and darker place, so much so that I weighed up whether to present it here at all because of the troubling sentiments expressed within.
Such was the controversy surrounding the song that it prompted articles in national media outlets. One of Colombia’s most prominent news organisations, Caracol, ran a story under the headline:
On a superficial level, you could describe the song as one that explores the complex emotions of a man torn between two relationships and ultimately choosing to accept responsibility for a new life while recognising the pain his decision will cause.
But if we get down to brass tacks, and as is explicitly related in the lyrics (it would be worth reading them before continuing here), and according to Carlos Andrés Centeno, the son of the song’s author and performer Jean Carlos Centeno, the purported true story behind the song is as follows:
Jean Carlos Centeno reportedly dedicated the song to Wendy Orozco, daughter of the late vallenato singer Rafael Orozco, who was his girlfriend at the time. However, Centeno was involved with other women, and during one of those relationships another woman became pregnant with his first son, Carlos Andrés Centeno. Wendy did not forgive the infidelity, and the relationship came to an end.
So, lets not mince words here and these are mine and opinion based on the available information:
In this song, Jean Carlos Centeno dedicates a song to the woman he betrayed after another woman became pregnant with his child. The lyrics present his decision to support the mother and unborn child as the morally correct path, while also telling Wendy that she will miss him when he moves on with someone else. The gall of it! To many listeners, the song can sound less like an apology and more like a justification of his actions. Adding another layer of irony to the story, Centeno ultimately did not marry either the mother of Carlos Andrés or his fiancée at the time.
It is an outrageous situation and one that must have been degrading and distressing for everyone involved, and I imagine even more so when the song was released and became a hit. The one thing I can give Jean Carlos credit for is his honesty – well, brutal honesty.
So why is the song here, you ask? Well, apart from having one of the most intriguing and unsettling backstories I have ever encountered behind a song, I genuinely like the music. As I mentioned at the beginning, I can see why it became a major hit. Musically, it is appealing and more melodic and ballad-oriented than the typical vallenato song.
But as we have learned on this occasion, as enticing as a song may sound, the story behind it can be far more complicated. Beneath the affectionate expression and emotional delivery lies a tale of infidelity, heartbreak, responsibility and regret. It’s both fascinating and unsettling in equal measure.
Antes de que otra persona a ti llegué / Before someone else comes to you Con mentiras a cambiarte mi historia / With lies to change my story Yo te la vengo a contar / I’ve come to tell you Y escucharas la verdad / And you’ll hear the truth
Hay alguien mas que igual a ti es mi presente / There’s someone else who, just like you, is my present Lleva en su vientre una inocente criatura / She carries an innocent child in her womb Y no sabe que hacer / And she doesn’t know what to do Si pecar o dejarla vivir / Whether to sin or let her live
Yo he decidido darle vida a esa vida / I’ve decided to give life to that life Aunque tú quieras darle fin a lo nuestro / Even though you want to end what we have Sólo Dios sabe lo que me pasaría / Only God knows what would happen to me Si yo a ese niño le arrebato el derecho / If I take away that child’s right Sólo Dios sabe lo que me pasaría / Only God knows what would happen to me Si yo a ese niño le arrebato el derecho / If I take away that child’s right De soñar / To dream De reir / To laugh De vivir / To live Como yo / Like me
Si te pido otra oportunidad / If I ask you for another chance Te imagino diciendome no / I imagine you saying no Pero si me marcho con otra al altar / But if I walk down the aisle with someone else Por siempre vas a extrañarme mi amor / You’ll miss me forever, my love
Cuando me vaya a casar el padre dirá / When I get married, the priest will say El novio ya puede a su novia besar / The groom may now kiss his bride Y tú me vas a extrañar me vas a llorar / And you’ll miss me, you’ll cry for me Porque otra ocupará lugar / Because someone else will take my place Cuando me vaya a casar el padre dirá / When I get married, the priest will say Ya los novios se pueden besar / The bride and groom may now Kiss
No me arrepiento de haber sido tu novio / I don’t regret being your boyfriend Después de todo fue bello conocerte / After all, it was beautiful to meet you Porque a tu lado viví / Because I lived by your side Y sentí un verdadero amor / And felt true love
Yo he decidido darle vida a esa vida / I’ve decided to give life to that life Aunque tú quieras darle fin a lo nuestro / Even though you want to end what we have Sólo Dios sabe lo que me pasaría / Only God knows what would happen to me Si yo a ese niño le arrebato el derecho / If I take away that child’s right Sólo Dios sabe lo que me pasaría / Only God knows what would happen to me Si yo a ese niño le arrebato el derecho / If I take away that child’s right De soñar / To dream De reir / To laugh De vivir / To live Como yo / Like me
Si te pido otra oportunidad / If I ask you for another chance Te imagino diciendome no / I imagine you saying no Pero si me marcho con otra al altar / But if I walk down the aisle with someone else Por siempre vas a extrañarme mi amor / You’ll miss me forever, my love
Cuando me vaya a casar el padre dirá / When I get married, the priest will say El novio ya puede a su novia besar / The groom may now kiss his bride Y tú me vas a extrañar me vas a llorar / And you’ll miss me, you’ll cry for me Porque otra ocupará lugar / Because someone else will take my place Cuando me vaya a casar el padre dirá / When I get married, the priest will say Ya los novios se pueden besar / The bride and groom may now Kiss Y tú me vas a extrañar me vas a llorar / And you’ll miss me, you’ll cry for me Porque otra ocupará lugar / Because someone else will take my place
Once Upon a Time…Storybook Love is one of my favourite pieces from Mark Knopfler’s film soundtracks. I featured another favourite soundtrack piece back in 2022 from the movie Local Hero called Going Home, but today we shift our gaze to the beloved fantasy romance The Princess Bride.
We couldn’t get enough of this film when it came out, and then, like a family heirloom, it was passed down to my children. Rob Reiner, who directed the film, had a knack for creating movies filled with endearing and memorable moments, often blending clever comedy with heartfelt storytelling that could be enjoyed by all. Apart from The Princess Bride, Stand by Me, The American President and The Sure Thing come to mind.
Most people who first heard the music in the movie, including yours truly, would be forgiven for not recognising that it was composed and performed by one of the world’s great rock guitarists, Mark Knopfler of Dire Straits fame.
Who could forget the moment when the first notes of today’s featured piece begin?
The Princess Bride contains so many wonderful rewatchable scenes, and the one that captivated me most was the beginning of the narrated story. I suspect many readers will remember it: the Princess Buttercup (played by Robin Wright) gives her farm boy, Westley (played by Cary Elwes), a series of petty commands, and he dutifully responds each time with the now-iconic phrase, “As you wish.” It is also the moment when this beautiful storybook love theme is introduced.
The scene culminates when Buttercup asks Westley to fetch a pitcher that is right beside her, something she could easily have retrieved herself. As he steps closer and reaches for it, their eyes meet, and she smiles with growing affection and anticipation. And then there is that music. As a teenager, it made the hairs on my arms stand up; it still does all these years later.
When you hear this piece, you can’t help but be impressed by Knopfler range and musical sensitivity. To me, it is simply one of the most romantic and sweetest acoustic guitar instrumentals I have ever had the good fortune to hear.
In 1988, Storybook Love – the vocal version written and performed by Willy DeVille and arranged and produced by Mark Knopfler – received an Academy Award nomination for Best Original Song.
Welcome again to my Wednesday literature segment. Today I feature various short excerpts from English writer Jane Austen’s book Persuasion, a novel I just finished this morning and, with some regret, I must admit, since the protagonist Anne Elliot was one of the most endearing characters I have had the pleasure of reading. Austen brought to her such delicate charm and humility that I felt unwilling to let go.
Also, this being Austen’s final completed novel before succumbing to her fateful yet undetermined illness at just one-and-forty years of age (as she might have written of it then) makes it all the more poignant. Austen herself remained unmarried, childless, and reluctant to have her name associated with her published novels during her lifetime, despite her astonishing talent.
So I am back once again delving into classic English literature after my recent plunge into more contemporary novels. As usual, if you enjoy dabbling in books, feel free to join me [here] on Goodreads.
I admit when Austen’s books arrived in the alphabetical listing on my library’s bookshelf, I looked at the four books on offer with some trepidation. I had not yet read anything by her, but I understood her love stories were mainly set in pre-Victorian high society England. My thinking was that I read stories to escape the petulance, gossip, and trivialities of elite social circles.
What instead I decided to do was choose just one from Jane, and if I enjoyed it, I would come back to her other books at a later, not-too-distant date. Persuasion, I decided, would be my embarkation into her writing. I had read it was a story of love, regret, and second chances – all themes I could certainly relate to – so I set sail.
In the early going, I felt myself cast back to my mindset while reading books assigned to us in English classes. I felt overwhelmed not only by the complex array of characters and their motivations, but also by the formal and elaborate speech of early nineteenth-century English upper-class society. So yes, my earlier apprehension was starting to reveal itself in my initial reading of it.
My perseverance in adapting to the language and learning the characters and their world began to bear fruit as I found myself becoming more immersed and appreciative of Austen’s subtle but witty linguistic sensibilities, using irony and formal language to critique social hypocrisy and the marriage market.
I found myself chuckling aloud at the deft way Austen used double meanings and euphemisms to convey, yet cleverly underscore, her characters’ thoughts and predicaments. There were a series of passages which I found particularly relatable and entertaining because they centred on my own former profession as a Navy Officer. So this Wednesday’s literature excerpt will be dedicated to that.
You see, the main contingent of eligible gentlemen in Persuasion are of the naval officer variety, so I had a good ol’ time seeing how they conducted themselves and were portrayed in this era, set during the Napoleonic Wars, when the threat of conflict with France was ever present.
The following excerpt is a hearty and diverting discussion about the Navy and ageing. Our protagonist Anne Elliot is in discussion with various others who opine that naval life and its stresses lead to the exaggerated ageing of its personnel. As one character remarks, “Sailors work hard enough for their comforts,” before their lot in life is laid bare.
Oh, how I could not wipe the grin from my face reading this and contemplating my own predicament and eventualities in this regard. For more information on the topic of ageing, I point you to my post, Youth is the One Thing Worth Having, which contains further personal reflection and an excerpt from Oscar Wilde’s only novel, The Picture of Dorian Gray.
Without further ado, I present to you three excerpt pieces from Persuasion associated with the Navy. Firstly, as aforementioned, “The Navy and Ageing”. The second excerpt is also about ageing, but this time concerns the decommissioned ship Asp, which is remembered with slightly conflicting yet sentimental reflections by two men who sailed aboard her – Anne’s love interest, Captain Wentworth, and the esteemed Admiral Croft. Lastly, there is a perky outpouring by Anne’s sister in law – Louisa, describing her admiration for the character of naval people – their friendliness, their brotherliness, and a number of other warm attributes she observes among them.
I hope you enjoy it as much as I did. Oh, and as always, thanks for reading.
Today we look at Bruce Springsteen’s most popular song according to Spotify streams, with 1.2 billion plays (at the time of writing), well surpassing his next most streamed song, I’m On Fire, at 778 million. It’s easy to see why Dancing in the Dark is so crowd-pleasing. It’s a pop-rocker that appeals to young and old alike, with a feel-good, danceable melody that edges on euphoria and sees Bruce and the E Street Band supercharged and effervescent in their performance.
Then there’s THAT video! It has become culturally iconic, featuring a young Courteney Cox (Friends) towards the end, and was a defining moment of the MTV era. It even features Bruce dancing in that awkward and goofy 1980s way, which was somehow all the rage back then. The song reached No. 2 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and won the Grammy Award for Best Rock Vocal Performance, Male.
Despite its overwhelming popularity, Dancing in the Dark probably doesn’t rank especially high among many hardcore fans’ favourite Springsteen songs. Even so, I don’t doubt that nearly all of them were as captivated by it as everyone else when they first heard it. Beneath its catchy exterior lies a powerful statement on modern isolation and the need for connection, which of course resonates with so many people.
While I wouldn’t place it among my personal top-shelf Springsteen songs, I still enjoy hearing it from time to time. It also takes me back to when I first started listening to the Boss’s music. It was one of the first Bruce songs I introduced my children to, which seemed as good a place as any to begin exploring his extensive discography.
Dancing in the Dark comes from Bruce Springsteen’s most popular and commercially successful album, Born in the U.S.A. It has sold more than 30 million copies worldwide, making it one of the best-selling albums of all time. Dancing in the Dark was its biggest hit, too.
Snippets from Wikipedia:
Springsteen wrote it overnight after Jon Landau convinced him that the album needed a single. Springsteen was not impressed with Landau’s approach. “Look“, he snarled, “I’ve written seventy songs. You want another one, you write it.”
Despite this reaction, Springsteen sat in his hotel room and wrote the song in a single night. It sums up his state of mind, his feeling of isolation after the success of his album The River, and his frustrations of trying to write a hit single.
Directed by Brian De Palma (Scarface), the video below was shot at the Saint Paul Civic Center in Saint Paul, Minnesota, on June 28 and 29, 1984.
Springsteen thought Courtney Cox was just a pre-selected fan attending and did not know until afterward that she was a professional actress brought in from New York City.
[Verse 1] I get up in the evening And I ain’t got nothing to say I come home in the morning I go to bed feeling the same way I ain’t nothing but tired Man, I’m just tired and bored with myself Hey there, baby I could use just a little help
[Chorus] You can’t start a fire You can’t start a fire without a spark This gun’s for hire Even if we’re just dancing in the dark
[Verse 2] Messages keep getting clearer Radio’s on, and I’m moving ’round my place I check my look in the mirror I wanna change my clothes, my hair, my face Man, I ain’t getting nowhere Ah, just living in a dump like this There’s something happening somewhere Baby, I just know that there is
[Chorus] You can’t start a fire You can’t start a fire without a spark This gun’s for hire Even if we’re just dancing in the dark
[Bridge] You sit around getting older There’s a joke here somewhere, and it’s on me I’ll shake this world off my shoulders Come on, baby, the laugh’s on me
[Verse 3] Stay on the streets of this town And they’ll be carving you up all right They say, “You gotta stay hungry” Hey, baby, I’m just about starving tonight I’m dying for some action I’m sick of sitting around here trying to write this book I need a love reaction Come on now, baby, give me just one look
They call my home country Australia ‘the lucky country’, and one not so discerning could have applied that label to Australia’s fantastic win against Turkey two days ago. Turkey had a whopping 72% possession and 30 shots on goal, but it was Australian coach Tony Popovic’s game plan of compact defence and counter-attacking football, along with its near-faultless execution by his players, that proved to be the trump card of the encounter. At the end of this post is a very short highlights video.
Turkey were heavy favourites against the Aussies, with opening odds of 1.69 for a Turkey win and 5.17 for an Australia win. But as former Australian coach Ange Postecoglou put it in an interview just prior to the match (or words to that effect), if there’s one thing about Australia in any sport, it’s that you discount them at your own peril. As an aside, Australia is often described as a secular country, but I like to think our religion is fundamentally of the sporting variety.
Anyhow, Ange’s words appeared prophetic as Australia pulled off a massive upset. It wasn’t just that we won by a commanding 2-0 scoreline; it was the way it was achieved. The analogy that comes to mind is that Turkey were like a soaked sponge at the start of the match, and as each minute wore on Australia wrung that sponge ever so deftly, its liquid content diminishing incrementally throughout the game. By the end, the sponge had been exhausted and left dry. The Turks had no answers and looked depleted and dishevelled.
It was such a masterclass technical display, but of a highly unusual nature. The counter-attacking football playing using pace down the widths and the long ball were exceptional. The speed of our dual attacking forwards, namely Mohamed Toure and Nestory Irankunda was unlike anything I can recall and the through balls to them were sublime culminating in Nestory Irankunda’s first goal. It was truly was one for the ages as far as Australian football-lore is concerned – At 20 years-old he was the youngest Australian to score a goal at the world cup.
Now to herald and rejoice in the clear man of the match. You see that young lad at the top of this article? Well, his name is Patrick Beach. He was Australia’s goalkeeper on that unforgettable night. Not only does he possess one of the coolest names I’ve heard, but he also produced one of the greatest debut performances you are ever likely to see.
He remarkably made his Australian debut in this opening World Cup match. Coach Tony Popovic put his faith in the 22-year-old Patrick Beach ahead of Australia’s captain and long-time goalkeeper, Mat Ryan. Yes, you read that correctly. And the proof was in the pudding: Beach made an incredible eight saves, and some of them were nothing short of spectacular.
As my son Jesus Mateo (a football nut like his old man) commented, “I haven’t seen reflexes in a goalkeeper like that before.” Hear, hear! And I replied, “I’ve never seen a goalkeeper move so quickly to make his saves.” It was thrilling to watch. No Australian goalkeeper has ever made that many saves in a World Cup match, and it was the highest save tally by any keeper in the tournament up to that point. The stuff of legend!
Speaking of legend, below is a video of Jesus scoring a last minute goal for his former club Millonarios (Eng. Millionaires). Please excuse my poor camera work and unruly yelling.
I have a personal connection with the Socceroos, as they are affectionately known, that goes way back. In my youth, after winning our local club’s Footballer of the Year award, I was honoured by the club president to present Australia’s then national team coach, Frank Arok, with a small token of memorabilia from our club in appreciation for a training clinic his team conducted at my high school, Colo High (image inset).
Australia’s next match is a mouth-watering one against tournament co-hosts the United States, who played a near-faultless game themselves in their commanding victory over Paraguay. I fear that contest above any other imaginable, as the United States are playing better football than I can ever remember seeing from them, and they will also have the advantage of home support. In fact, it makes the build-up to the Turkey match seem subdued by comparison.
That’s all for now. Until next time, thanks as always for reading.
While researching my previous article on Eva Cassidy, I came across her beautiful cover of Paul Simon’s Kathy’s Song and was enamoured with it. It showcases her signature acoustic guitar fingerpicking and pure, emotive vocals. When I hear her voice, it’s as though a light surrounds it. There’s something angelic in its aesthetic and tone that I haven’t really heard in another singer.
Eva was blessed with such a wondrous and authentic voice and, when you consider her tragic passing at such a young age, it makes you wonder if she was sent down here to give us a fleeting glimpse of what heaven sounds like.
I agree with Arun Starkey, writing for Far Out, who opined that Cassidy’s version of Kathy’s Song could make a “strong claim to be better than the original“. She recorded the song on January 3, 1996, just ten months before her passing from melanoma on November 2, 1996, at the age of 33.
She was virtually unknown outside her native Washington, D.C. area at the time of her death. Her music reached a global audience in late 2000 when BBC Radio 2 DJ Terry Wogan began playing her version of Over the Rainbow from the compilation album Songbird. Since then, her music has featured in countless films and continues to receive significant airplay.
Eva’s version of Kathy’s Song was released posthumously on Time After Time (2000), four years after her death in 1996.
Kathy’s Song was from Paul Simon’s 1965 debut album The Paul Simon Songbook and re-recorded for Simon & Garfunkel’s second album Sounds of Silence, released in 1966.
It has been described as one of Simon’s most personal songs; it is dedicated to Kathy Chitty, Simon’s girlfriend and muse during his mid-1960s sojourn in England.
