19/11 – 25/11/19 Elton John, Down Under and Wild Geese

Posted on November 25, 2019 by observationblogger — 4 Comments

news on the march

Welcome to Monday’s News on the March – The week that was in my digital world.

Book review by Richard Williams at thebluemoment:

Big disappointment, that Elton John. I’d been expecting his autobiography, Me, to contain a chapter gratefully acknowledging all the people who wrote about him with warmth and enthusiasm in the British music weeklies at a time when he couldn’t get arrested on Denmark Street. I’m thinking of Penny Valentine, Lon Goddard, Caroline Boucher. And, yes… me.

How soon, how completely, they forget.….… (read more).

Article by Sheree at View from the Back:

Driving around Australia has often turned into much more than driving from A to B as quickly as possible. It’s given us a fine appreciation of the varied and beautiful landscapes, land use and crop cultivation, the rigours of life in the Outback, distances, and how difficult it must have been for those early settlers – convicts or otherwise.

I spend hours researching where to stay and for how long and it was satisfying that as the trip unfolded I’d largely been proved correct. I say largely because there’s always places where we could have tarried longer or towns en route where I would have happily stopped and further investigated their charms…..…Read Entire Article

Poem at House of Heart:

This is a day of sun kissed
stones and blustery winds,
of wild geese adorning river banks
their graceful necks and gilded feathers
remind me that I am nothing more than
an observer to that enchanted world.
Moss covered arms of oak reach across
slanted waves to weightless clouds
passing by.
Dipping my fingers into green and amber
circlets I hold my reflection in cupped palms..… (View Original Post).

Story by the Intellectual Shaman:

The beach is where people go to get away from the world. They lounge in the sand, their whale bodies, white, and wrinkly. And concession sellers walk by offering overpriced drinks. My van is parked 50 feet away. It’s my life; and periodically my family visits.

“What are you doing here? A vacation is one thing, but you’re wasting your time.”

“The waves are having an effect on me; they’ll bring me something good.”

“Have you lost your mind?”…..…. (Read entire post)

Post by Mia at the grizzly grist:

What does it mean to be a good neighbor?

Is it simply smiling as you drive by the house?

Is it raising your hand with a wave as you pass them in the street corner?

Is it picking up a valuable and returning it to their doorstep?

Is it holding open the door as he wobbled in on the cane?

Is it helping her take one more step with her feeble pace?….(Read entire post)

news on the march the end

Posted in Music, News, Reading, Sport and Adventure

Bachata Rosa (1990) – Juan Luis Guerra

Posted on November 23, 2019 by observationblogger — 14 Comments

Bachata Rosa

Bachata Rosa is an iconic modern Latin song by one of my favourite Latin artists – Juan Luis Guerra. It was released in 1990 on his 5th studio album of the same name. The record has sold over 5 million copies worldwide. Bachata Rosa is derived from a genre of music called ‘Bachata’. In fact the success of his record brought ‘Bachata’ music not only into the mainstream in the Dominican Republic where Luis Guerra is from, but gave the genre an international audience.

In Spain, the album spent eight weeks at number one. Even in the Netherlands, the record peaked at number two on the Mega Album Top 100 and was certified gold. Music critics have cited Bachata Rosa as one of Luis Guerra’s most important works due to his songwriting and the record production.

Bachata music originates from the Dominican Republic and is played with guitars and percussion (bongos, maracas amongst other instruments). The principal themes of this genre are love, betrayal and jealousy. Due to the motives surrounding this form of music they are known as ‘Bitter songs’. Bachata was defined as music from the rural areas of the Dominican Republic with lyrics considered too crude and vulgar to the public’s taste. You could say that the Bachata of today’s song ‘Bachata Rosa (Rose)’ is a refined version of the original Bachata music by having endowed the form with more melody and softer lyrics.

The lyrics are superb even in their loose English translation:

I give you a rose
I found her on the road
I don’t know if she’s naked
Or has only one dress
No, I do not know
If you water it in summer
Or if it gets drunk to oblivion
If she was ever loved
Or has hidden loves

Ay, ay ay ay, love
You’re the rose that gives me warmth
You are the dream of my solitude
A lethargy of blue
An eclipse of the sea

The version of Bachata Rosa below is performed live and with english subtitles no less. It gives someone unfamiliar with Luis Guerra’s music a glimpse into not only what a great singer / songwriter he is, but what comprises Bachata music. Don’t fret, more songs will feature from Luis Guerra in this music project.

References: Wikipedia – Bachata Rosa

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Posted in Music

The Remains of the Day (1993) – James Ivory (Friday’s Finest)

Posted on November 22, 2019 by observationblogger — 23 Comments
Remains_of_the_day

Stevens: In my philosophy, Mr. Benn, a man cannot call himself well-contented until he has done all he can to be of service to his employer. Of course, this assumes that one’s employer is a superior person, not only in rank, or wealth, but in moral stature.

Remains of the Day is an American British drama based on the novel of the same name by Nobel prize winning author Kazuo Ishiguro. It currently sits at number 2 on my all time favourite movie list. In my opinion Anthony Hopkins and Emma Thompson give their career best performances here. It contains my favourite acting from any one movie. I have also seen this movie more times than any other movie. I’m in love with this movie. Fullstop.

IMDB Storyline: Rule bound head butler Stevens’ (Sir Anthony Hopkins’) world of manners and decorum in the household he maintains is tested by the arrival of housekeeper Miss Kenton (Dame Emma Thompson), who falls in love with him in pre-World War II Britain. The possibility of romance and his master’s cultivation of ties with the Nazi cause challenge his carefully maintained veneer of servitude.

It figures here in Friday’s Finest because when critics and public alike cite great cinema classics Remains fails to get a mention. It’s also a real shame that young audiences are by and large unfamiliar of its existence. I understand the solemn and restrained performances and the seriousness of the plot could be off putting to some, but to me it remains the best story of unrequited love in cinema history.

The excerpt below of sdillon’s IMDB movie review of Remains of the Day reflects my own sentiments regarding the picture, but I was so impressed by the manner he expressed them:

It’s a masterpiece of understated emotion. Stevens (Anthony Hopkins) absurdly repressed personality gently takes the audience from laughter to tears in the most emotionally devastating finale I have ever seen. Remains effortlessly embraces complex themes such as misguided loyalty, dignity, pride, wasted lives, and unrequited love. It would be all too much to bear if it weren’t for the film’s genuine good-humoured understanding of English culture. In fact, humour is an important element in the film. There are many laugh-out-loud moments, which make the tragic part of the story all the more real and poignant. All in all, The Remains of the Day is a milestone film; an unforgettable tragedy of a man who pays the terrible price of denying his own feelings.

IMDB Trivia:

  • Sir Anthony Hopkins, as a guest on Inside the Actors Studio (1994), said that he got tips on how to play a butler from real-life butler Cyril Dickman, who served for fifty years at Buckingham Palace. The butler said there was nothing to being a butler, really, when you’re in the room, it should be even more empty.
  • The part of Miss Kenton (Dame Emma Thompson) is one of only three movie roles for which Meryl Streep has ever been turned down.
  • This movie was nominated for eight Academy Awards including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor, Best Actress, Best Screenplay Adapted from Another Medium, Best Original Music Score, Best Costume Design, Best Art Direction-Set Decoration, but the movie failed to win an Oscar in any of these categories.
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Posted in Movies and TV

Babylon (2000) – David Gray

Posted on November 21, 2019 by observationblogger — 9 Comments

David Gray - Babylon

When a friend in Melbourne introduced me to the music of David Gray, I was puzzled why I’d never heard of him before. It was music that struck an immediate chord and drew me in. Babylon is a good appetizer of his music in general. “Let go of your heart, let go of your head, and feel it now,” he sings in the chorus. He’s simply just a guy trying hard to say what’s going on in his heart and the world around him. There’s real passion in his voice; the sense that David is compelled to open up his soul and shout, to declare something.

David Gray is a British singer songwriter who came to world-wide prominence after the release of his White Ladder album in 2000. Babylon – his second single from White Ladder would be his highest selling single to date. It peaked at number 5 in British charts and became a minor hit in Australia and Germany. The album White Ladder is the biggest selling album to date in Ireland having sold over 100,000 copies there alone. It spent a whopping 2 years and 5 months in the UK albums chart.

His 3 three albums before White Ladder comprised of  mainly folk-rock music. Starting with the release of White Ladder, Gray began to make significant use of computer-generated music (folktronic) to accompany his voice and acoustic instrumentation. He has been dismissed by some as making middle-of-the-road soft rock, but that’s ultimately a matter of taste. I can understand that criticism but there’s no denying he is a talented singer-songwriter. This music library project will feature other songs from David Gray.

The version of Babylon below is a softer acoustic (classical) version on KFOG Radio, San Francisco.

Sunday all the lights of London shining
Sky is fading red to blue
Kicking through the autumn leaves
And wondering where it is you might be going to
Turning back for home
You know I’m feeling so alone
I can’t believe
Climbing on the stair
I turn around to see you smiling there
In front of me
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Posted in Music

Wet Ghost – Chris Wallace-Crabbe

Posted on November 20, 2019 by observationblogger — 17 Comments

I had a lot of memorabilia recently forwarded to me from Australia. That included newspaper clippings I found interesting. One such clipping is of the poem below called Wet Ghost by Chris Wallace-Crabbe. You’ll have to excuse its state of disrepair, but it has traveled many miles to be here.

Wet Ghost

For more information about the Australian poet and professor Chris Wallace-Crabbe, click on the image from Australian Poetry Library below :

Chris Wallace-Crabb

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Posted in Reading

Baby, Let Me Follow You Down (Live 1966 and the Last Waltz) – Bob Dylan

Posted on November 19, 2019 by observationblogger — 8 Comments

Bob_Dylan_-_The_Bootleg_Series,_Volume_4

It won’t come as much of a surprise that I adore all the versions of this old folk number sung by Bob. I suppose if I had to choose a favourite it would be the Live 1966: The “Royal Albert Hall” bootleg, yet funnily enough this bootleg release wasn’t performed at The Royal Albert Hall. It was recorded at the Manchester Free Trade Hall during Dylan’s world tour in 1966, hence the quotation marks around the false attribution to the Royal Albert Hall. Extensively bootlegged for decades, it is an important document in the development of popular music during the 1960s.

The dissenters in the audience started a derisive ‘slow hand-clap’ as Bob goes into Baby, Let Me Follow You Down off his first album. Ignoring them, the band kicks in and is throbbing and Bob bounces with this ghost of electricity, playing with the rhythm of words which no one was accustomed hearing. He did however warn everyone earlier saying, ‘It used to be like that, now it goes like this’. He was redefining the music playing field as it were.

He first performed Baby, Let Me Follow You Down in its traditional folk format on his debut album Bob Dylan in 1962. It was originally popularised in the late 1950s by blues guitarist Eric Von Schmidt. But after Bob went electric, he morphed it into this punk-rock number. The actor Edward Norton recently described Dylan in his interview on Joe Rogan as the original punk rocker or words to that effect. Initially I didn’t register with that description until I reflected on Bob’s demeanor in the Don’t Look Back documentary of Dylan’s 1965 tour of England and his Live 1966: The “Royal Albert Hall” concert. His general demeanor, aggressive approach to rock and just the loudness to it are arguably cognizant with a punk-rock brand….

The conundrum with writing these posts about an individual song of Bob’s is it can lead me down a rabbit hole from which I might not return!

A decade after Dylan was infamously heckled ‘Judas’ at the Manchester Free Trade Hall having upset the delicate folk establishment apple cart, he performed Baby, Let Me Follow You Down with a medley of “Forever Young” at The Band’s Last Waltz concert. The version below is from that very concert. I liked one fan’s comment:
‘One thing about watching the Band backing up Bob is that even though they became huge stars in their own right they still seem to really relish playing backup to Dylan. The love and respect must run deep’.

Baby, let me follow you down, baby let me follow you down
Well, I’ll do anything in this God-almighty world
If you just let me follow you down
I’ll buy you a diamond ring, I’ll buy you a wedding gown
Well, I’ll do anything in this God-almighty world
If you just let me follow you down
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Posted in Music

12/11 – 18/11/19 Meaning of Life, Saints, Influencers and Virgins

Posted on November 18, 2019 by observationblogger — 15 Comments

news on the march

Welcome to Monday’s News on the March – The week that was in my digital world.

Poem by River Dixon at The Stories In Between:

There it is again
At the corner
Of my eye
Dangling, distracting
A tiny strand
Twitching, dancing
As if
From a marionette’s
Interpretive hand….… (read more).

Article at the Waking Up on the Wrong Side of 50:

Influencers show us a world that we can have if we just try to be perfect 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. They show a standard of living that is unrealistic, and frankly unhealthy. When I look at some of the influencer pictures, I can’t help but think Stepford… At 50+, I’m perfectly content with not being even remotely perfect....…Read Entire Article

Poem at Lydia Rae Bush Poetry:

Whisper words like “virgin” and watch
as images dance through their minds

of white satin gloves,
of innocent deer,
of crystal clear glass.

Write it on my i.d. or social,
but leave it off my nametag, please.… (Read all).

You tube video podcast excerpt on the Joe Rogan show with Spanish subtitles redacted by Carlos M. Pineda:

The meaning of life to me as a child was prescribed in the form of a good dose of Sunday school and a theistic doctrine. Then science and rational materialism threw a monkey wrench in the works. How do you reconcile Religion and Science? Some say you can’t, but Jordan Peterson says you can.

This presentation of ideas about the biggest questions we face in life is without doubt the most confounding and transformational I have seen. One day when I have time, I will transcribe the whole excerpt, so when my children ask me ‘Pa, what am I doing here on this rock’? I’ll have this transcript to give to them..…. (Watch entire excerpt)

Poem written by Mike Ennenbach at Mike’s Manic Word Depot:

he stripped
the meaning
from the words
then plastered them
across the room
in hopes
someone
saw something
in the hollow
outlines  (Read entire poem)

news on the march the end

Posted in News, Reading, Reflections

Baby You Know Me – Wolfsuka

Posted on November 16, 2019 by observationblogger — 9 Comments

Baby You Know Me

Baby You Know Me came to me as a song recommendation on you tube. I wish I had an enlightening backstory to tell you, but I haven’t. However Baby You Know Me does headline all the songs starting with ‘B’ in the music project. Hurray!

There is very little information online about Wolfsuka although they do have their own web site, but apart from samples of their music from their album Poison to the Artists which houses today’s song – Baby You Know Me and a song titled funnily enough – Would I trade my life to be Bob Dylan? there contains very little else – not even tour dates or band credits. Although on the you tube description of their official release below it states: Produced by Ryan Shmedly Maynes. Female vocals by Lee McAfee. Bass by Shmed.

The moment I opened this song I was attracted to its rollicking and jangling composition. Once in a while musicians capture something special in a bottle and Wolfsuka did that by finding a restrained, but fantastic toe tapping rhythm in this song. What isn’t there to like about it? From the vaguely Dylanesque vocals to the improvisational setting –  “It’s funny you’re in my thoughts,” it starts, but then the singer changes his mind and backpedals. “No, no, back up…you’re not in my thoughts at all. You’re a hiccup.”

I might one day buy their whole album, until then I will have to settle for this. I hope you enjoy Baby You Know Me as much as I do.

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The Goodbye Girl (1977) – Herbot Ross (Friday’s Finest)

Posted on November 15, 2019 by observationblogger — 30 Comments

The Goodbye Girl

The Goodbye Girl is the first US film we have featured on ‘Friday’s finest’ for a while. I’m very partial to it because it is one of my mother’s favourite films. Also the film’s theme song was my favourite from the band – Bread. As you can imagine my brother and I got an obscene dose of this movie growing up! This one and Tootsie to be exact. Unless I’m mistaken, they don’t make excellent romantic comedies like The Goodbye Girl anymore. First and foremost the writing in this movie formerly a play by the legendary playwright Neil Simon is extremely intelligent, fluid and witty. And secondly we have the great actor Richard Dreyfuss star in his prime as an out of work actor. Dreyfuss won the Academy award for best actor in this role and Neil Simon the screenplay.

IMDB Storyline: A divorced woman and her daughter come home to find that her boyfriend has left for an out of town job with no warning. This has happened before. The second surprise comes in the form of another actor who has sublet the apartment from her boyfriend (who did not mention the pair of females who would be in residence). After some negotiation the two decide to share the apartment even though she has vowed to stay away from actors.

To give you a taste of how good this script is:

Paula McFadden : This is your room. I do not clean or make beds. You may use the kitchen or the bathroom when I am not in it and wash it up when you are through. You pay for your own food, laundry, linens and phone bills. I would appreciate some quiet between six and nine as that is when Lucy does her homework and I don’t care what you drink or smoke. As long as it is not grass in front of my 10 year old daughter. Now, we have everything straight?

Elliot Garfield : No.

Paula McFadden : No?

Elliot Garfield : No. I’m not crazy about the arrangements.

Paula McFadden : You’re not.

Elliot Garfield : Definitely not. I am paying the rent, I will make-a-da rules. I like to take showers every morning and I don’t like the panties drying on the rod. I like to cook so I will use the kitchen whenever I damn well please and I am very particular about my condiments so, keep your salt and pepper to yourself. I also play the guitar in the middle of the night whenever I cannot sleep and I meditate every morning complete with chanting and burning incense so if you’ve got to walk around I’d appreciate a little tip-toeing. Also, I sleep in the nude. Au buffo. Winter and summer, rain or snow with the windows open and because I may have to go to the potty or to the fridge in the middle of the night and because I don’t want to put on jammies which I do not own in the first place… unless you’re looking for a quick thrill or your daughter an advanced education I would keep my door closed. Thems my rules and regulations, how does that grab you?

Despite its Academy awards The Goodbye Girl remains largely unknown now which is strange and why its here in Friday’s finest. I think it’s one of the greatest romantic comedies I’ve seen. It is a wonderful tale of family, of career, of relationships and of love. This is easily my favourite performance by Dreyfuss. Everything that makes him so precocious and appealing as an actor is manifested in The Goodbye Girl. The movie melts with humour from start to finish. It also has one of the most gorgeous endings I’ve seen on film.

Interesting IMDB Trivia:

* Marsha Mason recalled working with Richard Dreyfuss – “Richard was fast and funny. I was thoughtful and more serious. Richard was wild and free. I was a responsible wife and mother and an actress. I wanted so much to be like him. He was so sure of himself, so sure of his place and space, and he moves forward accordingly. He’s bright, bright, bright, incredibly well read, and comfortable with his intelligence.”

* The film’s theme song “Goodbye Girl”, sung and written by David Gates, went to No. #15 on the Billboard Hot 100 Chart in 1977.

* Sources point to this film as the first romantic comedy to gross 100 million dollars.

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Posted in Movies and TV

The ABC with Elmo and India Arie (Special Edition)

Posted on November 14, 2019 by observationblogger — 12 Comments

Elmo Singing with the stars

Today we commemorate with a special edition music post the ending of all songs starting with the letter ‘A’ in the music library project. Below is India Aria singing the ABC with Elmo. This lovely song is good refresher training to remind us which letters come next in the alphabet. Also if my maths is correct since we have officially concluded letter ‘A’ that leaves us with 25 letters. Given the quantity of songs remaining and my current posting rate of three song posts a week, this project should conclude in 320 weeks from this point. In 6.15 years give or take we would be done if I refrained from adding new songs to my library, which is highly unlikely. So 7 years is my best guesstimate.

According to Muppet Wiki: India Arie Simpson (b. 1975), known famously as India.Arie, is a two-time Grammy Award winner R&B singer-songwriter. She sang “The Alphabet Song” with Elmo in Sesame Street Episode 4100 and a song about jumping on the video Happy Healthy Monsters.

Being ElmoI really enjoyed watching Elmo sing with the stars when my kids were younger. Some of my favourite guest appearances include Jason Mraz, Ricky Gervais and Andrea Bocelli. Also the highly acclaimed documentary film Being Elmo (see image inset) about the puppeteer behind Elmo – Kevin Clash was released in 2011.
According to wikpedia:
The film focuses on Clash’s early career in Baltimore, Maryland. It covers his meeting and interactions with Sesame Street creator Jim Henson, puppet maker Kermit Love, and the phenomenal success of Elmo. Clash joined Sesame Street in 1984.

So to officially sign off to the letter ‘A’ in the music library I present to you India Aria singing the ABC with Elmo:

 

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Posted in Music

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