Runaround Sue (1961) – Dion

Posted on September 25, 2024 by observationblogger — 2 Comments

It really is about a girl who was kind of loose in the neighbourhood. The word Sue just fit for the song – you couldn’t use Roberta, or Alice, or whatever. I’m not going to mention who it’s really about, but between you and I, the girl called in to an interview show I was on about 20 years ago. She had married a rabbi, had six kids and sounded wonderful! And I thought how good it was to hear from her, you know. Chalk it up to being young and foolish, a lot of young people are, but she turned out wonderful.
– Dion

I was reunited with the legendary ‘doo-wop’ Runaround Sue when I read fellow blogger, Nancy’s article attached at the end of this post. Here are some extracts from her first – hand observations growing up on Belmont Avenue in the Bronx, NY just a smidgen after Dion DiMucci’s time there:

We’d usually go to Sal’s Pizzeria on Belmont Avenue where the pizza was like nothing you ever tasted. It was thin and soft and light as a feather. On just about every street corner, doo-wop groups would gather and sing song after song and everyone would dance. Man, those were some of the best times.

One singer from Belmont Avenue (sadly a little before my time) was an Italian kid named Dion DiMucci. Dion’s dad Pasquale was a vaudeville entertainer and Dion would accompany him whenever he went on tour. Dion developed a love of country music, particularly Hank Williams, but he was really into the blues, doo-wop and rock and roll. His singing was honed on the street corners and local clubs of the Bronx…

This success won a place for Dion and the Belmonts on the ill-fated “The Winter Dance Party” tour with Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, the Big Bopper and other performers. On February 3, 1959, after a concert stop in Clear Lake, Iowa, Buddy Holly and the others decided to charter a flight to the next venue rather than travel on the tour bus. Dion was invited to accompany the group but declined when he heard the price of the ticket was $36. That was the same amount of money his parents spent for one month’s rent for their apartment and Dion couldn’t justify the expense.

In 1961 Dion released “Runaround Sue” which stormed up the U.S. charts, reaching No. 1 and No. 11 in the UK, where he also toured. “Runaround Sue” sold over a million copies and was followed by “The Wanderer” another big hit for Dion. 

In 2024, at the age of 84, Dion is still recording new songs and his career is going strong.
(For more information on the latest from Dion I point you to two articles from another blogger friend, Christian: The Wanderer Continues to March On and Dion Releases Incredible Blues Album)

Without further ado, I present Nancy’s dazzling article on the origins of Runaround Sue. Much like the pizza from her hometown, this article is so rich, you can practically taste the music in the air where she grew up.

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Signore, Ascolta! (Turandot) 1924 – Giacomo Puccini

Posted on September 24, 2024 by observationblogger — Leave a comment

Pieces of music from the Italian composer Giacomo Puccini have featured here from his Operas: La Bohème and Tosca, but nothing from Turandot or Madame Butterfly. But hold your hats because today we have an exquisite soprano aria from act one of the opera Turandot called Signore, Ascolta! (“My lord, listen!”) sung by no other than the American born Greek goddess Maria Callas. Her musical and dramatic talents led to her being hailed as La Divina (“The Divine One”). Recently I caught a sensational documentary on one of my favourite channels ‘Film and Arts‘ called Magical Moments in Music: Maria Callas & Tosca.

Puccini left the Turandot unfinished at the time of his death in 1924; it premiered in 1926 after the music was posthumously completed by Franco Alfano.

To set the scene of Signore, Ascolta!:
Setting: The streets of Peking
Synopsis: Liù, Calaf and Timur are in the midst of a processional to the execution of the Prince of Persia who attempted to win the Princess Turandot by answering three riddles. If he had given the correct answers, he would have married the Princess, but the price for incorrectly answering them was death. During the processional, Calaf catches a glimpse of Turandot, falls in love with her immediately, and decides to attempt to answer the three riddles. Liù sings this aria to beg him not to risk his life for the Princess.

Below are Liù’s words which touch the Prince’s heart, and he replies with “Non piangere, Liù” (“Don’t cry, Liù”):

Signore, ascolta! Deh!, signore, ascolta!
Liù non regge più!
Si spezza il cuore!
Ahimè, quanto cammino
col tuo nome nell’anima
col nome tuo sulle labbra!
Ma se il tuo destino,
doman, sarà deciso,
noi morrem sulla strada dell’esilio.
Ei perderà suo figlio…
io l’ombra d’un sorriso!
Liù non regge più!
ha pietà!
My lord, listen, ah! listen!
Liù can bear it no more!
My heart is breaking!
Alas, how long have I travelled
with your name in my soul,
your name on my lips!
But if your fate
is decided tomorrow
we’ll die on the road to exile!
He will lose his son…
And I, the shadow of a smile!
Liù can bear it no more!
Ah, have pity!

References:
1. Signore, ascolta! – Wikipedia
2. Turandot – Wikipedia

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16/9 – 22/9/24 – Jakob Ingebrigtsen, American Beauty & Malaysian Flight 370

Posted on September 23, 2024 by observationblogger — 4 Comments
news on the march

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

Not since April this year have I published a Monday’s News on the March article, but I’m delighted to restore the segment today. My aim is to keep at it, like I used to. Thanks for reading and I look forward to your comments.

Men’s 3000m (2024 Silesia Diamond League)
Video presentation at Land of Running

Norwegian Jakob Ingebrigtsen is a distance-running prodigy. As a high-schooler he was already world-class. He has won gold medals in consecutive Olympic Games. Owns multiple world records. And yet, he just turned 24. If you want to see just how good he is, watch this video of his recent 3000 metre world record. His sheer dominance and how he pulled away from the rest of the field in the closing laps was astonishing viewing…Oh and is it just me or does Jakob Ingebrigtsen look similar to a young Morrissey from The Smiths?

Kevin Spacey on American Beauty | Lex Fridman Podcast Clips
Video interview at Lex Clips

The film American Beauty currently sits at No 16 on my all-time favourite movies list. In February this year, I posted on the film here in my ‘Friday’s Finest‘ segment.
Lex Fridmen sat down with former disgraced, but now exonerated movie and TV star Kevin Spacey who spoke at length about the behind the scenes aspects of making the film and its themes and philosophy. I consider this must-see viewing for movie buffs out there.

What Netflix got WRONG – Malaysian Flight 370
Documentary at Green Dot Aviation

I hadn’t heard of any updates about the mystery surrounding Malaysian Flight 370 until this documentary came into my feed. I found it riveting, compelling and convincing all at the same time. Yet it was achieved by a You Tuber who clearly has a sense of accuracy with the detailed investigative nature and isn’t financially or narratively driven it seems.

‘This video presents a version of the most likely scenario which took place on board MH370. It is not definitive, and experts who agree with the main thrust of this video, will disagree on specifics. I have made a sincere effort to stick to the facts where they are available. Where they are not, I have restricted myself to informed and reasonable speculation’.

news on the march the end
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Cúlpame a Mí (2022) – Kenia Os

Posted on September 22, 2024 by observationblogger — 2 Comments

Cúlpame a Mí (Eng: Blame Me) by Mexican singer-songwriter Kenia Os came onto my random music player yesterday when I was getting ready to go out. I thought it was beautiful and had it on repeat until I left the house. I have no idea how this song found its way into my music library, but I’m sure glad that it did. Initially, I thought Cúlpame a Mí was a Christian outreach song because it sounded like a track from fellow Mexican singer songwriter Marcela Gandara. Also, I heard in the first line ‘Diós’ (God), but Kenia actually sang ‘Adios’ (Goodbye).

Kenia Os born Kenia Guadalupe Flores Osuna (born 15 July 1999) came to prominence from 2015 as a You Tube personality. In August 2018 Os signed with label “Lizos Music” and released her debut single, Por Siempre. Two years later, she signed with Sony Music Mexico and released her first studio album Cambios de Luna (2022) where today’s featured track Cúlpame a Mí resides. She has had appearances on streaming platform shows such as HBO Max’s Bake Off Celebrity: Mexico, in which she was a contestant on the show.

Apart from Cúlpame a Mí‘s alluring melody I enjoyed interpreting her lyrics. Most ballads of this ilk lament over a ‘lost love’ or unrequited love. In this song Kenia Os isn’t remorseful over the termination of the relationship despite still hearing the whispers of their voice. She explores the raw emotions of accepting blame for the end of a relationship, although you wonder if in fact she was the wrongdoer. Perhaps its more a case of ‘it’s not you, it’s me‘ of Seinfeld notoriety when she really means ‘Ok, it really is you‘.

An English translation of the lyrics follow:

Lost in the storm this goodbye
I hear the whisper of your voice
Trying to reach me
Trying to reach me

Time passes, the distance grows
Months go by, love dies

Baby, you have to accept
That things happened like this
I didn’t want to hurt you
You have to blame me

And I don’t know what could happen
It’s time to accept and let go
Blame me

I wouldn’t change a moment
I treasure all the time
I know we tried
We sailed against the wind

Don’t say anything, I see it in your eyes
Time passes, the distance grows
Months go by, love dies

References:
1. Kenia Os – Wikipedia

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Siege of a Nation (1982) – The Fureys

Posted on September 21, 2024 by observationblogger — 8 Comments

When I was a preadolescent I bought the album by The Furey’s called ‘When You Were Sweet Sixteen‘. Today’s featured track, Siege of a Nation, is the fourth song I’ve highlighted from my favourite Celtic album, which I consider a true gem of traditional Irish music. Another song by them on my blog called Belfast Mill continues to rack-up considerable daily ‘view’ numbers.

Siege of a Nation is characterized by its traditional Irish instrumentation, particularly the low whistle played by Finbar Furey. The group made a name for themselves by performing popularized versions of Irish traditional songs. They earned attention for bringing Irish folk music to mainstream listeners with their 1981 single When You Were Sweet 16 which we will delve into when we reach the ‘W’s in the Music Library Project.

The oldest of the brothers, Eddie Furey left home in 1966 and travelled to Scotland at the time of the great folk revival where, with his brother Finbar, he met and shared accommodation with then unknown folk singers Billy Connolly, Gerry Rafferty, Tam Harvey and Alex Campbell, now all famous in their own right. In 1969 Eddie and Finbar were the special guests for the Clancy Brothers throughout the USA and Canada. In 1972, Gerry Rafferty wrote Her Father Didn’t Like Me Anyway for Eddie.

Eddie Furey recalls how “many musicians have told us we influenced them after hearing a record from their parents or grandparents’ collection”. Dave Stewart of The Eurythmics has credited Eddie with teaching him his first chords on the guitar while still a teenager. Eddie would return the compliment by joining Dave on stage in Paris for a jam during the latter’s wedding to Bananarama’s Siobhan Fahey.

References:
1. About The Fureys – The Fureys

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Battle Without Honor or Humanity (2000) – Tomoyasu Hotei

Posted on September 20, 2024 by observationblogger — Leave a comment

Quentin Tarantino’s fusion of today’s featured music with the images of the arrival of O-Ren Ishii at “The House of Blue Leaves” in Kill Bill Volume 1 (2003) is perfect -pairing. It creates such a ‘badass’ scene and is a cinematic highlight. Also the music has become an anthem of the movie along side The Lonely Shepherd by Gheorghe Zamfir.

The instrumental called Battle Without Honor or Humanity is by Tomoyasu Hotei (image inset) and was originally used in the 2000 film New Battles Without Honor and Humanity (also known as Another Battle) by Junji Sakamoto, which Hotei wrote the soundtrack for and acted in.

The instrumental evolved into something far greater when it was picked up by Tarantino 3 years later and he used it for Western audiences. Tarantino, with his gift for recontextualizing music, recognized its potential beyond the boundaries of Japanese cinema. By placing it at a crucial moment in Kill Bill: Vol. 1, the track gained an entirely new audience.

The track has cemented itself in pop culture. According to the Japanese Society for Rights of Authors, Composers and Publishers, “New Battles Without Honor and Humanity Theme” has been one of the top 10 highest-grossing Japanese recordings based on foreign income. It has made over 20 appearances in Films and TV. Also the Kill Bill Vol. 1 Original Soundtrack reached number 1 on the Soundtracks chart.

References:
1. Battle Without Honor or Humanity – Wikipedia
2. Kill Bill Vol. 1 Original Soundtrack – Wikipedia

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Si Tú Te Vas (1986) – Juan Luis Guerra y 440

Posted on September 19, 2024 by observationblogger — 1 Comment

Si Tú Te Vas (English: If You Go) is one of the great successes of ‘merengue romántico’ music. It features Dominican singer songwriter Juan Luis Guerra and his group 440. Each sing a verse and it was the debut single from the 1985 album Mudanza y Acarreo and Guerra’s first ‘merengue’ song. Below I have presented their live version on The Midday Show, Dominican Republic in 1986 which includes to the right of screen a 29 year-old Juan Luis Guerra Y 4:40 (Roger Zayas, Mariela Mercado, Maridalia Hernandez). For many, today’s featured track Si Tú Te Vas represents the ‘beginning’ of Guerra’s commercial career.

Juan Luis Guerra is one of the most internationally acclaimed Latin artists in recent decades, and Si Tú Te Vas marks his eighth appearance here. His music, more than any other I can recall since moving to Colombia, has dominated the country’s airwaves. His popular style of merengue and Latin fusion has garnered him considerable success throughout Latin America. He is also credited for popularizing bachata music on a global level.

Mudanza y Acarreo (Spanish for House Moving and Haulage) is the second album by songwriter and musician Juan Luis Guerra. The album is widely known for making Guerra and 440 famous, and launching to national fame the group within their native Dominican Republic. Si tu te Vas is considered their first hit and was included in the Greatest Hits compilation Grandes Éxitos Juan Luis Guerra y 440 (1995). Lead singer Juan Luis Guerra and power-vocalist Maridalia Hernandez redefined 440’s sound to more traditional danceable merengue boundaries and made a more commercial turn to the band’s musical career.

A crude English translation of part of the lyrics follow below:

[Intro]
If you go, if you go
My heart will die
If you go, if you go
My heart will die
If you go

[Verse 1]
You are, my love, all I have
The sea that bathes me, the light that guides me
You are the home I inhabit
And if you go, I have nothing left
If you go

[Verse 2]
You are the mountain, ooh ooh
That my body seeks, ooh ooh
The river at night, ooh ooh
Spring, winter, ooh ooh

You are what I dream of, ooh ooh
I wake up, and if you go, ooh ooh
I have nothing left

[Verse 3]
You are, my life, the wheat that I sow
Everything I think, my voice, my joy
You are what I yearn for and crave, if you go away
I have nothing left if you go away

[Verse 4]
You are my life, ooh ooh
All my nourishment, ooh ooh
The story that rhymes, ooh ooh
If you are in my verses

You are the blanket, ooh ooh
My breath, ooh ooh
And if you go away
I have nothing left, oh no!

References:
1. Mudanza y Acarreo – Wikipedia

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Show Me The Place (2012) – Leonard Cohen

Posted on September 18, 2024 by observationblogger — 2 Comments

Show me the place where the Word became a man
Show me the place where the suffering began

Leonard Cohen has crafted some of the finest modern spiritual songs, and today’s featured track, Show Me the Place, stands among the best in this genre. Show Me The Place is from his twelfth studio album Old Ideas released in January 2012. It is Cohen’s highest-charting release in the United States, reaching number 3 on the Billboard 200, 44 years after the release of his first album. Show Me the Place is the fifth track from this late-career masterpiece to be featured here. Few singer-songwriters can be said to improve with age, but Leonard Cohen is certainly one of them.

Leonard’s music is able to enter the heart and mind, and often against our will by broaching difficult subjects such as ‘suffering’. Show Me the Place makes me feel like he’s humming a prayer directly into my ear, only for me, only to me, his precious secret thoughts and doubts. Help me roll away the stone of temptations / troubles that prevent us from freeing up our spirit to be in unison with God.

Cohen penned the song with Patrick Leonard, who is best known for co-writing many of Madonna’s late ’80s hits. As Cohen told Mojo in 2013, he met the producer when he was making an album with Cohen’s son, singer Adam Cohen:

And I know the work he did with Madonna. I think he’s a seminal figure in modern American music, very brilliant. I was listening to some of his solo piano work, too. I bumped into him with Adam several times, and somehow we got together and these four songs we did together came very quickly…Pat saw the lyric for ‘Going Home‘ and said, ‘This could be a really good song,’ and I said, ‘I don’t think so.’ He said, ‘Can I have a shot at it?’ I said, ‘Sure.’ He came back with the music, I don’t know if it was the next hour or the next day but it was very fast…He is a very unusual man and, I guess, we were both in good form..

[Verse 1]
Show me the place where you want your slave to go
Show me the place, I’ve forgotten, I don’t know
Show me the place, for my head is bendin’ low
Show me the place where you want your slave to go

[Verse 2]
Show me the place, help me roll away the stone
Show me the place, I can’t move this thing alone
Show me the place where the word became a man
Show me the place where the suffering began

[Bridge]
The troubles came, I saved what I could save
A thread of light, a particle, a wave
But there were chains, so I hastened to behave
There were chains, so I loved you like a slave

[Verse 1]
Show me the place where you want your slave to go
Show me the place, I’ve forgotten, I don’t know
Show me the place, for my head is bendin’ low
Show me the place where you want your slave to go

[Bridge]
The troubles came, I saved what I could save
A thread of light, a particle, a wave
But there were chains, so I hastened to behave
There were chains, so I loved you like a slave

[Verse 2]
Show me the place, help me roll away the stone
Show me the place, I can’t move this thing alone
Show me the place where the word became a man
Show me the place where the suffering began

For you music trivia buffs out there Show Me the Place features backing vocals from singer-songwriter Jennifer Warnes, whose biggest hits include two Oscar winning duets: “Up Where We Belong” (with Joe Cocker, from An Officer and a Gentleman) and “(I’ve Had) The Time of My Life” (with Bill Medley from Dirty Dancer). In 1971, she met Cohen, and they became lifelong friends. Warnes has toured Europe with Cohen’s band and featured as vocal arranger and guest singer on many of his albums. In 1986 she recorded the album Famous Blue Raincoat, which was made up entirely of Cohen-penned songs.

Bob Dylan, who referred to Cohen as “number one“, cited three songs from “Old Ideas” in his list of favourite Cohen songs: “Going Home“, “Show Me the Place” and “Darkness“.

References:
1. Show Me the Place – Song Facts
2. Fan Thoughts on Show Me the Place – Leonard Cohen Forum
3. Old Ideas – Wikipedia

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Should I Wait (1973) – Raspberries

Posted on September 16, 2024 by observationblogger — 4 Comments

If you the threw into a music blender The Byrds – I’ll Feel a Whole Lot Better and a sped up melodic instrumental version of Don William’s – I Believe in You then Should I Wait by the Raspberries might sound like the result. I challenge you to listen to the former by The Byrds and not hear the striking similarities between the two; it’s almost uncanny, which is not to insinuate that today’s featured track doesn’t hold up on it’s own.
I first heard it in Max’s PowerPop article way back in December, 2021. I agree with him when he described Should I Wait as ‘country tinged power pop‘. It seems deceptively simple and an emulation of other music, but artists have been borrowing and stealing for decades, and when a band can achieve this crisp and catchy sound you have to give credit where it’s due. It does seem Should I Wait stands as a testament to the band’s influence on the power pop genre and with each listen it sounds better.

Below are snippets from Max’s article:
‘The Raspberries formed in the early 1970s when Eric Carmen and Jim Bonfanti envisioned a band that would emulate bands such as The Beatles, The Who, and The Beach Boys.
This song came off of the Side 3 album released in 1973…It was an odd and cool album cover (see image left). It was a die-cut of a basket of Raspberries, with the group’s name placed on top of the LP sleeve. 

Three members wrote and sang songs. It wasn’t just Eric Carmen…This song (Should I Wait) was written and sung by Dave Smalley the bass player. This was their third album and they would end up releasing four studio albums’.

[Verse 1]
Don’t you know you’re gonna lose
If you love somebody that don’t love you?
You’ll believe him when he’s untrue
But I can’t bear seeing him break your heart in two
I’ve let it happen much too long

[Chorus]
Should I wait, hoping you’ll find out on your own?
It’s me who’s loved you for so long

[Verse 2]
If he hurts you with his lies
Don’t let it take too long to open your eyes
You’re gonna see through his disguise
But I can’t bear seeing him break your heart in two
I’m tired of trying to play it cool

[Verse 3]
If I had the chance I’d make you see
When you fall in love how it should be
A love that makes you sad can only turn out bad
So I’ll be hanging ’round until you’re free

The album itself, while not reaching the commercial heights of their earlier releases, is regarded as a cult classic, with Rolling Stone calling it “an album that stands the test of time.” Artists like Cheap Trick and The Knack have cited Raspberries as a major influence. Eric Carmen’s later solo success, particularly with ballads like All by Myself, drew attention back to his earlier work with Raspberries, further boosting the song’s legacy.

References:
1. Side 3 (Raspberries album) – Wikipedia

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