It’s already been one of those days that really brings your spirit down.
So if anyone can make me feel better, it’s nina Simone, Billie holiday and a few others.
Enjoy

Nina Simone-Save me

Nina Simone- Aint got no, I got love

Billie Holiday-Some other spring

Hope your day goes better than mine

Until the Next Time
Remember
GoWithTheFlow

]]> http://mycroft808.wordpress.com/2009/11/29/variations-and-adaptations/ Sun, 29 Nov 2009 13:14:53 +0000 mycroft808 http://mycroft808.wordpress.com/2009/11/29/variations-and-adaptations/

Hello lovely people!

So this song literally seems to be following my everywhere I go at the moment notably due to a certain Christmas advert circulating the television screens of the nation. Former member of The Concretes- Victoria Bergsman or Taken By Trees as she’s also known, is mostly to blame for this. The Swedish songtress’ cover of Guns N’ Roses‘ Sweet Child O’ Mine is her first UK single to be released and it has already hit the UK top 40. Well done her!

Her latest album East of Eden is available to but now unfortunately that song is not included on the track listing, it’s still worth a listen though.

Hearing Taken By Trees‘ version suddenly made me want to share my favourite cover versions, done well.

Scarlett Johansson- Anywhere I Lay My Head (Tom Waits cover)

Scarlett Johansson- Falling Down (Tom Waits cover)

Cat Powers- Yesterday Is Here (Tom Waits cover)

Cat Powers- Stuck Inside Of Mobile (Bob Dylan cover)

Charlotte Gainsbourg- Just Like A Woman (Bob Dylan cover)

Yael Naïm- Toxic (Britney Spears cover)

Friendly Fires- I’m Good I’m Gone (Lykke Li cover)

The Shins- Will Become Silhouettes (The Postal Service cover)

Iron & Wine- Such Great Heights (The Postal Service cover)

Muse- Feeling Good (from several versions most commonly known for Nina Simone’s release)

Jimi Hendrix- All Along The Watchtower (Bob Dylan cover)

Led Zeppelin- You Shook Me (Muddy Waters cover)

The Byrds- Mr Tambourine Man (Bob Dylan cover)

The Byrds- My Back Pages (Bob Dylan cover)

The Byrds/ Nico- I’ll Keep It With Mine (Bob Dylan cover)

The Nitty Gritty Band- Mr. Bojangles (Jerry Jeff Walker cover)

The majority of these songs are Bob Dylan’s but that is probably due to bias. I do think he is the most amazing song writer.I wouldn’t say that these songs are better than the original but they are definitely on a par. What makes a good cover is subjective and differs for everyone. But these are definitely my fave!

Until next time…

les femmes ne sont pas comme nous. Elles ne savent pas lire une carte, elles poussent des petits cris aigus, elles tirent les cheveux, elles ont les pieds froids.
Bref, une femme, en gros, ça sert pas à grand chose (pour voyager, se bastonner, se réchauffer, au moins).

Mais il y a une chose qui est pas mal chez les femmes, au moins certaines d’entre elles, c’est la voix. Pas juste pour dire “à table” ou “j’ai plus rien à me mettre”, simplement pour induire une sieste ou envelopper un groove. Parce que la femme de qualité a un organe (ce qui n’en fait pas tout à fait un homme pour autant).
Izia par exemple a, malgré son jeune âge, un organe qui arrive à tirer des larmes de bonheur à pas mal de testosteronés de mes amis. Y’en a d’autres, hein, mais il faut avouer qu’on a un peu perdu en niveau général depuis que ces demoiselles oublient leur qualités premières : douceur, profondeur, variété (comme on dit dans les films spécialisés).
C’était mieux avant en fait, à l’époque où les femmes étaient des Divas. Pas en se faisant désirer, en s’offrant body and soul à la musique, en vibrant d’Amour transi, tragique ou trahi.

La preuve avec Elle, Ella.

Ella Fitzgerald – The one I love (belongs to somebody else)

Ella Fitzgerald, Copenhagen April 1970

Et si vous aimez les voix de femmes, l’excellent Adam Weatherhead s’est fendu d’un très beau podcast à leur gloire. N’hésitez pas à visiter son blog, il a plein d’autres pépites dans les poches, le Monsieur.

Pour les fainéants, c’est là : 44 minutes et 21 secondes de ravissement.

Merci les filles.

E filmul care mi-a plăcut cel mai mult dintre cele văzute în ultimul timp, nu mai știu din ce motiv nu l-am văzut când a  rulat în cinematografe. M-a impresionat atât povestea cât și jocul actorilor, merită aplauze  și  regizorul Emanuele Crialese. În acest film sunt în prim-plan doi actori care îmi plac foarte mult, e vorba de Charlotte Gainsbourg și Vicenzo Amato. Și ca o cireașă pe tort, pe coloana sonoră a filmului este și Nina Simone, nu vă spun cu ce piesă. E un film pe care îl recomand călduros celor ce nu l-au văzut încă.

Common and John Legend are two artists I highly appreciate. On one side Common with his unique voice and very comfortable to hear flow and on the other side John Legend with his undenieable skills as piano player and songwriter.

Now they both teamed up for the song Strange Fruit which contains a Nina Simone sample – very nice !

Lonnie Rashid Lynn on his side is a well known rapper and actor, famous for appearances in movies like Smokin’ Aces, American Gangster, Wanted, Street Kings and Terminator Salvation.

I especially appreciate him for his Finding Forever album, but he is also recognizable for his Soulquarian area music.

John Legend, real name John Stephens,  has played piano for Lauryn Hill’s Everything is Everything; has led his voice for diverse Kanye tracks and has won several Grammys.

Common Feat. John Legend – Strange Fruit

Rich Boy a.k.a. Maurice Richards is most known for his hit Throw Some D’s but I appreciate him for the hole album Rich Boy.

He was discovered by mega producer Polow Da Don and is also signed on his imprint Zone 4. He is about to release his next album in 2010, named Buried Alive.

Richard Butler, also known as Rico Love, is  signed on Usher’s label US Records .He has written lyrics for artists like Flo Rida, Taeira Marie, The Pussycat Dolls, Cassie, Natasha Bedingfield, Ciara, Keri Hilson, Chris Brown, Donell Jones etc.

Rich Boy Feat. Rico Love –  We Like It

Bu aralar sürekli olarak geçen senenin en iyi filmlerinden biri olan The Wrestler‘in soundtrackinden filmle aynı adı taşıyan Bruce Springsteen dinliyorum.Filmi izleyeli neredeyse bir yıl olacak ama ben şarkıyı daha yeni indirdim ve durmadan dinliyorum.Bir de yine geçen senenin en iyilerinden Gran Torino‘nun soundtrackinden Jamie Cullum şarkısı.Hemen ardından da Cat Power‘dan bir Nina Simone cover’ı olan The Greatest‘ı dinlemezsem içim rahat etmiyor.Sanırım genel olarak depresif bir havadayım ki bu aralar çok gülüyorum.Garip…

I’ve often thought that gay men fall into two camps; those with impeccable taste in music, and those who have abhorrent taste. There are those who know who Edith Piaf or Nina Simone were, and there are those who have the same taste in music as teenage girls, at their most annoying. (ahem Miley Cyrus) . If I meet one more gay guy who really believes that Britney Spears is a rare talent, I’m gonna vomit. I’m not saying that Homo A is better than Homo B for knowing the works of Piaf and Simone, Homo A is just fortunate enough to have been properly educated about music. There is a marked difference in the way I perceive someone when I found out what moves them musically. In most people’s eyes, this would make me a music snob; a label I am entirely comfortable with, by the way.

Being the unabashed musical snob that I am, I was perversely delighted to hear about the recent shaming of Britney Spears in Australia, where, according to reports, people walked out of her show en masse, protesting the lack of anything resembling a true artistic performance. The Spears camp essentially said it was “all made up” and it didn’t really happen, but unless you were there, who can really know? I wouldn’t be the least bit surprised if it’s happened to Spears countless times before, in Australia or any other given country. Often paying hundreds of dollars for good seats to watch a white trash girl from Louisiana parading around in a lion tamer outfit, lip-synching to songs she had no hand in writing, it’s no wonder people are fed up of it, regardless of whether the Aussie-revolt rumours are true. The fact is, Britney Spears, bless her heart, has precious little talent. Her songs are overproduced and same-y. Sure, “Toxic” was brilliant, but she just lucked out in selecting it. It could have been sung by anybody. She’s essentially good at stripping, pole dancing and sorry to say, she comes off as dumb as a sack of hammers.  And if you’re gonna lip-synch, at least try to put some effort into it.

Enter Lady Gaga. I’ll admit when I first heard Gaga (real name Stefani Germanotta) I pegged her for just the latest in the assembly line of overproduced, American skanks who can’t lay off the auto-tune button. How wrong I was. I finally came around when I heard the Cherrytree Sessions EP issued earlier this year; her latest single “Bad Romance” is so anthemic, its video so utterly crisp and clean yet dirty and bizarre (check out the last 5 seconds of it. It’s genius.) It’s quite clear that there is far more to this woman than the vast majority of her peers (if you can call them true peers). A recent YouTube clip of Gaga on a French TV show, saw her chatting to the audience [in French], improvising French lyrics to her music (which she writes, by the way) and generally enthralling the crowd who were clapping along with her at the grand piano, in happy amazement that America has finally (once again) produced a truly gifted entertainer, her talent matched only by her flair for the creative side of things that we, as a society, have come to not expect anymore.

What a sad reality; but that’s what makes the current Gaga craze so exciting, and inevitable. There’s something afoot that’s long overdue. How great it is to get excited over a performer who actually deserves her spotlight? And why is this such a foreign concept? As a music connoisseur, DJ and writer, it restores my faith in things somewhat, because the major labels have been profiting off the force-feeding of derivative, brainless garbage to the masses for far too long now. Could the stupendous rise of Gaga spell the beginning end for Spears? It believe it could; and I hope it does because [I don’t think I’m off the mark here], if Spears doesn’t show some depth of artistry, depth of character, and maybe some shred of musical skill, people are going to really tire of her and her ilk very quickly. I already sense it happening. By the way, I am absolutely certain that Stefani Germanotta knows who Piaf and Simone were. Vive La Gaga!

Querida Nina

Llevo horas leyendo cosas sobre tu vida con la decidida intención de resucitarte. Llevo horas escuchando tu voz sofocada, vibrante y profunda; tu voz, que parece casi sin aliento, pero que de pronto lo llena todo, por dentro y por fuera.

Había pensado devolverte a la vida en algún club de jazz oscuro y lleno de humo, sentada al piano en una esquina, tocando acordes con desgana ante la indiferencia de la gente. Pero luego me ha parecido mejor dar contigo en otro lugar menos tuyo, sacarte del entorno en el que es fácil suponerte. Y de pronto te he visto en el parque de una gran ciudad, sentada al sol en un banco bajo un flamante cielo azul, viendo pasar a la gente y moviendo ligeramente el pie al ritmo de alguna canción en tu cabeza; sonriendo un poco, con esa sonrisa encantadora que tienen a veces los que, como tú, hacen gala de mal carácter.

En fin, Nina, que llevo horas buscando, sin mucho éxito, la mejor manera de traerte de nuevo a esta vida, y al final he comprendido que, como ocurre con tantos otros, el problema es que no te puedo traer porque nunca te has ido.

Así que voy a seguir escuchando tu música y luego, si no te importa, voy sentarme a tu lado en ese banco del parque.

Ain’t got no home, ain’t got no shoes
Ain’t got no money, ain’t got no class
Ain’t got no skirts, ain’t got no sweater
Ain’t got no perfume, ain’t got no beer
Ain’t got no man

Ain’t got no mother, ain’t got no culture
Ain’t got no friends, ain’t got no schooling
Ain’t got no love, ain’t got no name
Ain’t got no ticket, ain’t got no token
Ain’t got no God

What about God?
Why am I alive anyway?
Yeah, what about God?
Nobody can take away

I got my hair, I got my head
I got my brains, I got my ears
I got my eyes, I got my nose
I got my mouth, I got my smile
I got my tongue, I got my chin
I got my neck, I got my boobs

I got my heart, I got my soul
I got my back, I got my sex
I got my arms, I got my hands
I got my fingers, Got my legs
I got my feet, I got my toes
I got my liver, Got my blood

I’ve got life , I’ve got my freedom
I’ve got the life

And I’m gonna keep it
I’ve got the life
And nobody’s gonna take it away
I’ve got the life.

Nina Simone, Ain’t Got No/I Got Life

È uno di quei successi annunciati, New Moon, uno di quei film da record di incassi prima ancora che siano usciti. È così ogni volta che intorno a un’opera si crea un alone che lo rende qualcosa di più di un semplice film. Così è il caso di soffermarsi sulle ragioni di un successo annunciato.

La prima è quella che in termini commerciali si definirebbe “fidelizzazione”. Tra la saga di Twilight e il suo pubblico si è creato un legame solido e inscindibile che nasce già dai libri. Come Harry Potter,  quella di Twilight è una saga, una serie di libri, che racconta una storia che non si esaurisce, ma prosegue attraverso i vari volumi. I lettori così si sposteranno da un libro all’altro, in modo che ogni libro verrà letto probabilmente più di quello precedente. Come per la saga del maghetto, i libri di Stephanie Meyer creano un mondo, che i lettori vogliono continuare a vivere andando al cinema, per vedere come prenderà forma sullo schermo quello che fino a quel momento era vissuto nella propria immaginazione. Così probabilmente i lettori del libro saranno i più appassionati spettatori del film. E a loro se ne aggiungeranno altri. Rispetto ai titoli della saga di Harry Potter, quella di Twilight potrebbe essere svantaggiata dal fatto che i libri non hanno un nome come comune denominatore (i titoli non iniziano ad esempio con Harry Potter e…), ma dei titoli diversi. Twilight, New Moon, Eclipse, Breaking Dawn (e ne arriverà prima o poi un quinto). Così al cinema i titoli sono stati raccolti sotto il nome The Twilight Saga.

Ma perché una saga abbia successo devono esserci dei contenuti. In questo senso la chiave vincente è stata travestire da horror quello che in fondo è un perfetto romanzo sentimentale. Non a caso in New Moon assistiamo a una serie di battute sul cinema, con Bella che dice di detestare i film romantici, e vorrebbe andare a vedere film d’azione, quasi che il regista volesse prendersi un po’ in giro. Perché New Moon, come Twilight, di horror ha ben poco. Non punta certo a spaventare: pensiamo che uno degli stilemi più spaventosi e spettacolari dei film di licantropi, le transizioni da uomo a uomo-lupo, qui avvengono all’istante, e il “mostro” altri non è che un lupo più grande. Invece il modello della storia di New Moon è uno degli archetipi delle sofferenza amorose, quel Giulietta e Romeo scritto qualche secolo fa da uno dei migliori “sceneggiatori” di tutti i tempi, Sir William Shakespeare, e citato in una delle prime scene del film. Anche qui ci sono due amanti divisi, non dal fatto di appartenere a due famiglie rivali, ma a due “razze” diverse, umani e vampiri (in questo il racconto potrebbe diventare una metafora della difficoltà delle coppie miste di oggi, ma non sembra mai andare in quella direzione). E il finale, in cui Edward, come Romeo, cerca la morte perché crede che la sua Bella, come Giulietta, sia morta, richiama proprio la trama di Shakespeare.

Ispirazioni celebri a parte, la saga di Twilight piace perché spinge all’identificazione. È narrata da un punto di vista prettamente femminile, quello di Bella, e riesce a cogliere molti degli aspetti tipici dell’adolescenza: il non sentirsi capiti, il non avere amici, la tentazione e il rischio di prendere una cattiva strada e di perdersi, il sentirsi diversi da chi ci sta intorno, unici, e il bisogno di ribadire, anche con rabbia, la propria unicità e la propria personalità. Bella, in New Moon, è diversa da tutti. Tra i vampiri della famiglia Cullen è l’unica umana, accettata ma mai fino in fondo, in costante pericolo. Ma è diversa anche tra i suoi simili, avendo varcato ormai una soglia dalla quale non può tornare indietro. E poi in New Moon, dopo l’innamoramento di Twilight, c’è la scoperta del sesso, del corpo, e di quel confine sottile tra amicizia a amore, come si vede nell’avvicinamento di Bella a Jacob. Per questo i film della saga Twilight sono dei film rivolti soprattutto a un pubblico giovane e femminile (e sono piuttosto odiati da quello maschile, vedi la guerra dei sessi scoppiata in rete). Lo dimostra la grande attenzione per pettorali e bicipiti che c’è in New Moon. In questo senso la cornice horror data alla storia (perché di cornice, e niente di più, si tratta) serve ad astrarre sentimenti e situazioni dell’adolescenza dalla realtà, a isolarli e renderli così più evidenti, assoluti. Le storie di Stephanie Meyer riescono, in parte, in quello in cui non riesce Moccia.

Cosa resta dunque dell’horror nella saga di Twilight? Non molto, diciamo una serie di suggestioni che servono a creare un’atmosfera intorno a una storia d’amore e di crescita. Stephanie Meyer prende una serie di figure archetipiche del cinema horror, il vampiro e il licantropo, e le svuota, interessandosi ai sentimenti e ai rapporti tra i personaggi, più che alle peculiarità dei tipi in questione. Succede il contrario di quello che capita spesso al cinema horror, dove le figure mostruose sono il cuore del film, e sono di volta in volta inserite in cornici storiche, sociali o culturali diverse, per tornare comunque prepotentemente al centro. Qui i personaggi sono il centro della storia, e sono essenzialmente caratteri con problemi e reazioni umane: il loro essere mostri è solo un contesto, un contorno, un colore. Ma al centro ci sono sempre le caratteristiche umane del personaggio. Così i vampiri non hanno il problema di non potere vedere la luce, o di uccidere gli umani a tutti i costi. E i licantropi non si trasformano con la luna piena, ma in seguito a emozioni rabbiose. Entrambi non diventano tali perché “non morti”, o morsi da altre creature, ma fanno parte di famiglie in cui tutti sono così. Quanto ai vampiri, assistiamo a una “normalizzazione” estrema della figura del vampiro. I Cullen sono persone normalissime, lontanissime dalla figura agghiacciante del Nosferatu di Murnau o di Herzog, ma anche dal Dracula di Bram Stoker di Coppola, e dai vampiri affascinanti ed eleganti anni Ottanta di Myriam si sveglia a mezzanotte, o dei dandy d’altri tempi di Intervista col vampiro, tratta dai libri di Anne Rice, e portata sullo schermo da Neil Jordan. Per andare incontro al suo pubblico, la saga di Twilight si avvicina a certi prodotti televisivi ai cui codici espressivi è abituato, cioè a serie che hanno sdoganato l’horror come prodotto per tutti, cioè Buffy, Angel e il recente True Blood.

La saga di Twilight è un perfetto esempio di film a target. Il che è interessante anche dal punto di vista commerciale, visto che permette di investire su un pubblico ben preciso. Ne è un esempio l’accattivante colonna sonora assemblando pezzi di gruppi rock, tra l’indie, l’emo e il dark, perfetti per accattivarsi il pubblico giovanile e costruire un’atmosfera oscura attorno al film. Ma, si sa, il rock è universale, e il risultato in questo caso è apprezzabile anche dai non giovanissimi. Tra canzoni dei Death Cab For Cutie, Killers e i nipotini dei Joy Division, The Editors, le cose più interessanti vengono da Thom Yorke, che, senza i suoi Radiohead, canta la sua Hearing Damage su un tappeto elettronico e cupo, che fa risaltare la sua inconfondibile voce, e dai Muse, con I Belong To You, che ripropongono il loro tipico sound con un tocco leggermente retro, vicino alle atmosfere di Feeling Good, la loro cover del pezzo reso famoso da Nina Simone.  

Prendete tutte queste premesse e metteteci quella enorme arma in più che ha il cinema: quella di creare icone e fissarle nell’immaginario in maniera indelebile. Certo, è presto, e probabilmente ingeneroso di parlare di icona, viste le vere icone che ha creato il cinema, per Edward Cullen. Ma rispetto all’aura di culto creata tra le adolescenti dai libri della Meyer, il grande schermo ha aggiunto il volto e il corpo di Robert Pattinson, diventato un vero idolo delle ragazze di tutto il mondo. La saga di Twilight lo mette in scena con un’aria alla James Dean, dimostrando di non volersi togliere nulla in fatto di esempi di ribellione giovanile. Il suo aspetto fisico, unito all’aura romantica del suo personaggio, ha fatto centro nel cuore di molte ragazze. L’attore londinese ha scatenato una mania che, restando nel mondo del cinema, non si vedeva dai tempi del primo Leonardo Di Caprio. In rete e nei negozi si trova qualunque cosa con il volto o il nome di Robert Pattinson, o del suo personaggio, Edward Cullen: magliette, tazzine, ombrelli, cappelli, borse, tende per la doccia e persino le mutande vanno a ruba. Robsessed (cioè obsessed by Rob, ossessionate da Rob) è il titolo di un documentario sull’attore (il dvd si trova in vendita su Amazon). La mania è totale. E come se non bastasse, Pattinson è anche un cantante rock, e tra qualche anno vorrebbe incidere un disco. Chissà come prenderanno le sue ammiratrici la notizia della sua love story. Chi poteva conquistare il cuore del bel Pattinson? Ma ovviamente la sua Bella, l’attrice Kristen Stewart. Dal set l’amore si sarebbe trasferito nella realtà, Edward e Bella si sarebbero impadroniti di Pattinson e la Stewart, facendo innamorare i due. Negli ultimi due mesi i due sono stati spesso fotografati insieme, e i giornali inglesi e americani stanno cavalcando la notizia. Che, diversamente dal solito, non sembra la solita trovata pubblicitaria. Speriamo che il loro amore sia meno tormentato di quello dei due personaggi. E che magari questo riesca a portare nei prossimi film un po’ più di chimica, di passione, di pathos. Cioè un tocco in più di realtà.

(Pubblicato su Movie Sushi)

Savurand cafeluta ascultam muzica pe postul meu preferat TV, VH1 CLASSIC, si au fost doua piese pe care nu am putut sa nu le notez pentru a le publica aici!

si

Chiar mi se par piese de un inceput de zi superba. Cine stie ce zi o sa am eu astazi. Cred ca va fi totusi o zi buna tocmai pentru ca melodia spune ca cica:

 November 21, 2009

For the record, I’m listening to Nina Simone while I’m listening to this, and my husband is explaining to me the metallurgic properties of a plow and quantum mechanics as it applies to Henry James “The Turning of the Screw,” and his explanation gets mixed up with Simone’s lyrics and lovely African American soulful voice in the background.  Maybe that says something about White people and music and being at home right there.

 Some people would say that it’s hard to even say those two phrases together, like White people and dancing or Baptists and dancing.  Much of Simone’s music is sad music, Blues is sad music.  Much of the music African Americans listen to gets under the skin. 

 White people’s music that I listened to in the Eighties was all about the surface.  Think the Go-Go’s, “We got the Beat,” think Miami Sound Machine, Heart, Van Halen, you could wade through the deepest lyric and not get your feet wet.  Of course, that’s not true of all White music.  I’m sure there are some people who love “Octopus’s Garden,” that was some great stuff. The main point being?

 When I was writing this, my son, the musician cut in with his opinion which was that his African American friends listen to mostly music by African American artists with the possible exception of Eminem.  But that his White friends listen to a lot of Black music, a lot of rock, and of course, (these are California kids) some salsa, some Mexican bands, and some Asian influenced rock bands.  White kids often like to listen to rap and pass themselves off as “gangsta,” they listen to whatever they want.  And what they want is to be cool.     

 We have a lot of different kinds of music, the biggest selection being classical, followed by indie stuff from Dead Can Dance and Mortal Coil to Laurie Anderson.  Our selection of African American music is jazz.  Our kids listen to a lot of rap and they put that music on my IPOD, Missy Elliot singing “Let me work it” and Snoop, Eminem, Ice Cube and 50 Cent.  This is all good on an IPOD while you’re running, but it’s hard to imagine just playing this for the whole family to listen to.  Let’s all listen to Ice Cube.  Not so much.  We have music playing in our house most of the time and I like it, since we don’t have a television, it makes a kind of homecoming feeling, a weird mixture of indie, opera, jazz, and classical music of the sort that makes you ache.

 White people are very much divided by class and region when it comes to music, whereas I think African Americans maybe listen to more of the same music by age group—soul, R&B, rap, music, reggae.  White people who live outside cities listen to country music.  When you are driving across the country, there are long stretches where there are no radio stations with what I think of as real music (rock, classical, jazz) and you have to listen to Christian preachers or country.  During those times, I listen to CD’s, Weird Al will do.  Country music is sad in a kind of cheating way, but it doesn’t have the lovely deep layers that African American soul or blues music does.  It’s weak and shallow in comparison. 

 Any categories I throw out will seem like I’m stereotyping but some of them are true:  intellectuals tend to listen to classical music, a lot of Italians and gay guys listen to opera, (so what am I? I’m a librettist, so shut it), Latino immigrants like mariachi music (not always true, sometimes their parents like mariachis while they like Latin pop music.)

 Rock music has its own wild strength and I can hardly diss it since that’s what my son’s garage band plays and all the other garage bands that they hang with listen to.  Cornel West in his famous essay, “Afro American Music from Bepob to Rap,” talks about the progression of African American music from soul to rap.  He talks about how African American music became popular with Whites especially the power of Michael Jackson to possess the crossover market.

 We listen to Black music and remind ourselves what a soul sounds like, what a dream beats like, what a huge throbbing sound feels like.  Michael Jackson danced like we all wished to dance.  Missy Elliot sings about sex, our darkest desires is that our bodies in their sexual presence are acceptable, we want what African music gives us, and that is why we keep listening and listening.

 When Obama was asked about Toni Morrison having said that Clinton was our first Black president, Obama replied, “I would have to investigate more Bill’s dancing abilities and some of his other stuff before I accurately judged whether he was, in fact, a brother,” and we can only speculate on the “other stuff.” Hillary Clinton replied, “I’m sure that can be arranged.”

 White people do not move to music in the same way that African Americans do, for the most part, they are not possessed by music, music does not inhabit our lives.  Our family has music, but many White families that I know have no music.   Many white people I know listened to music as college students and still listen to that same music.  They are shocked and offended by their kids’ music which they like to say is “not real music,” because it somehow doesn’t live up to their standards.  Nina Simone is singing,

 “Breaking rocks out here on the chain gang
Breaking rocks and serving my time
Breaking rocks out here on the chain gang
Because they done convicted me of crime.”

 And I am very happy listening to this, because it is a song about my life.  That is why we listen to music in the first place, it is why music crosses boundaries and blood and borders, because it sings to us in the deep places of our lives.  I am breaking rocks, I am serving time, my crimes are too numerous to mention. Yes, sister.

Well last night I slept for more than two consecutive hours! Miracle of all miracles it happened. I was very apprehensive going to bed, but, I did, and I slept good for about 3 hours, until I saw the sun. I laid in bed for a few minutes and the phone rang. It was a wonderful “wake up call” and those are my favorites.

This morning I am feeling much better than I did yesterday. I have a load of things to do before our trip and I need to buckle down and get some things accomplished. Since I want to keep this feeling good mood, I am going to keep on some upbeat music, including but not limited to Nina Simone’s Feeling Good.

Michael Buble did this song and that is the version you hear played most often. I first heard Nina’s version about ten years ago and I really just fell into sync with it. Michael’s version is ok, but when I need some really good feeling good vibes, I go for Nina.

Hope you like it as much as I do:

…are these five albums:

1) Disc One of Bob Marley’s “Songs of Freedom” four-CD collection

2) Charlie Parker’s “Yardbird Suite: Volume 2″

3) Radiohead’s “Kid A”

4) Nina Simone’s “Nina Simone Sings the Blues”

5) That Handsome Devil’s “That Handsome Devil”

What are you folks listening to?

Working it,

-Shady

“Hush Little Baby” is easily sung a capella.  But, if you would like to sing along with music, most music download sites have a number of good options.

A nice instrumental track is found on “Lullaby Magic” by Joanie Bartles: http://itunes.apple.com/us/album/lullaby-magic/id299023387.  She has two tracks for each song, one with her singing and the other instrumental, including “Hush Little Baby.”  The melody line is played out on the instrumental track, making it easy for anybody to sing along.  I like the “Hush Little Baby” from this one because it is not too slow or sappy, although a tad “idealized.”  Sweetness is fine, but this song can be more fun if it is a little sassy.

My favorite vocal versions are from the King’s Singer’s album NEW DAY and from the album HUSH by Bobby McFerrin and YoYo Ma

Nina Simone’s version of “Hush Little Baby” (recorded at Carnegie Hall in May of 1963) from her album “Folksy Nina” is hauntingly beautiful.  She combines “Hush Little Baby” with “Mighty Lak a Rose.”  Although the medley makes singing with the book difficult, her interpretation is enlightening.

Five favorite songs on my iTunes list that begin with “Black”:

1. “Black Barbie,” Little Jackie. “The World Should Revolve Around Me” by the same band made my holiday disc last year. Remember Imani Coppola and “Legend of a Cowgirl” (from which the screengrab at left was taken)? She returned with this new band — and according to her website is working on a new album. Her blog also pronounces fall “the sexiest season in NYC” — the season of “intellect and lucidity.”

2. “Black Is the Color of My True Love’s Hair (Jaffa Remix),” Nina Simone and Jaffa. Thing I learned about a movie I never saw: In “Point of No Return,” the American remake of “Nikita,” Bridget Fonda’s character’s nickname is Nina as a nod to Nina Simone.

3. “Black Milk,” Massive Attack.  Did you know there’s a website devoted to album covers? Sleevage discussed the “Mezzanine” cover here, and although Wikipedia claims the “beetle” in the Nick Knight photo is made from Volkswagen Beetle parts, I think that’s an error; the legs look too real. (There’s a 500-pixel version on the Sleevage website, or you can click on the thumbnail at right.) Anyway, I’m excited for the new Massive Attack album, if the new song “Psyche” is any indicator.

4. “Black Swan,” Thom Yorke. If you haven’t heard it — and I am thinking of my sisters here, specifically — the chorus of this solo release from the lead singer of Radiohead repeats:  “ ’Cause this is (dirtyword)ed up / (dirtyword)ed up.” In other words, not a contender for those days you need your mood elevated through music. (Art co-opted from the cover of the British version of the book “The Black Swan: The Impact of the Highly Improbable” by Nassim Nicholas Taleb, in which he puts forth the theory that the really important events of the past were just as rare and unpredictable as black swans. (Which makes trying to forecast things like stock market trends somewhat of a folly.)

5. “Black Sweat,” Prince. By no means among my five favorite Prince songs — those would be, in alphabetical order, “Alphabet Street,” “Delirious,” “I Would Die 4 U,” “Strange Relationship” and “U Got The Look.”  But still oh so delicious.

And two favorite songs on my  iTunes list that begin with “White”:

1. “White Lilies,” Peder feat. Anne Trolle. A few years ago I was so thrilled with myself for discovering the “Hotel Costes” compilation CDs, smug with discovery … and then I walked into a Banana Republic store and one of the tracks was playing over the loudspeaker. Goodbye, hubris.
2. “White Pepper Ice Cream,” Cibo Matto. I also love their trippy version of “The Candy Man,” from the same album. I’m going to assume the reason I can’t find any version of it on YouTube is because the Sammy Davis Jr. estate is greedy about residuals. (Other songs from the same album are there.)

WHAT SAM WORE: 11-17-09 I declare this “crewneck sweater week.” Dress accordingly.
The shirt: Long-sleeved cotton crewneck sweater from Urban Outfitters. Underneath: T-shirt by Abercrombie & Fitch, from Buffalo Exchange.
The pants: Olive boot-cut cotton khakis from Old Navy.
The shoes: Boots by Doc Martens, from Last Chance.
The scent: Cucumber Essence Oil by Kiehl’s and Texas Cedarwood essential oil by Aura Cacia.

WORD

jive [jahyv] n. 1. swing music or early jazz 2. the jargon associated with swing music and early jazz 3. Slang. deceptive, exaggerated, or meaningless talk: Don’t give me any of that jive! ∞ v. 4. to play jive 5. to dance to jive; jitterbug 6. Slang. to engage in kidding, teasing, or exaggeration 7. Slang. to tease; fool; kid: Stop jiving me! ∞ adj. 8. Slang. insincere, pretentious, or deceptive

BIRTHDAY

Frank Calder (1877), Soichiro Honda (1906), Gordon Lightfoot (1938), Martin Scorsese (1942), Lauren Hutton (1943), Danny DeVito (1944), Lorne Michaels (1944), Gene Clark (1944), Stephen Root (1951), Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio (1958), Jeff Buckley (1966), Sophie Marceau (1966), Daisy Fuentes (1966), Kimya Dawson (1972)

STANDPOINT

Short and sweet today. I’m really quite annoyed with the all the goddamn Christmas ads, sales, etc. that are all ready all over the place.

Despite my misanthropic tendencies, I’m really kind of a softie in some ways. I like the holidays. I do.

But this time of year has been kind of tainted, for me, by all the commercialism. Even those of you out there who possess the unending optimism I enjoy frowning upon know this to be true.

For lack of a better, more definitive sentiment: BAH! HUMBUG!

QUOTATION

There are about five things to write songs about: I’m leaving you. You’re leaving me. I want you. You don’t want me. I believe in something. Five subjects, and twelve notes. For all that, we musicians do pretty well. → Elvis Costello

TUNE

I know. I’m beating this HTC commercial thing into the ground. I just like it. Really like it. More than I like most people. For those of you wondering what song is actually playing, it’s a remix of “Sinnerman” by Nina Simone. One of the comments on YouTube simply reads, “Futureproof.” Sums it up.

GALLIMAUFRY

→ Oprah Winfrey and Sarah Palin were on the same stage and no one thought to do the proper thing and plant explosives. Christ, people, do I have to think of everything?

→ In what’s becoming sadly commonplace, another celebrity has died young. Ken Ober, the host of the late-80s MTV game show “Remote Control,” passed away yesterday at the age of 52. As of yet, no one’s sure how.

→ All right, on a personal note, here’s a picture of my favorite piece of art – “Woman with a Water Jug” by Johannes Vermeer. It’s only 18 in. by 16 in. The detail is amazing. Best part is that the painting currently resides in New York City at the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Concerto da gran diva Nina Simone gravado no Fabrik de Hamburgo o 6 de maio de 1988.

Sponsored by the Black Rock Coalition, the 17 piece all female orchestra under the musical direction of Tamar Kali  returned to France to play three sold out shows.  This was a special experience as we were in the region where Nina spent her time.  It was beautiful.  We stayed in two fully furnished lodgings with a full kitchen on a arts complex in Chateauvallon.  Besides the fantastic shows, I really enjoyed cooking and spending time with the other women whom I don’t get to see too often in NYC because of our busy schedules..  Thankyou Chateauvallon, Sainte Maxime, and Martigues.  BIG Thankyou also to LaRonda Davis, Laurent, Sandra, Jaco, Christian and everyone else who made our stay and shows so fantastic!

Viva Nina Simone!

Good Times!

Here are some out takes from soundchecks and shows:

I put a spell on You (Sound Check)

Mazz  – Lilac Wine (Sound Check)

Feeling Good (Sound Check)

Narjess solo

song = “japhy“

named after the infamous Japhy Ryder – of Dharma Bums fame (my favorite of Kerouac’s books) – this song is more or less an ode to a few poets whom I have loved deeply: Japhy Ryder (a fictionalized caricature of Gary Snyder I have been told), Tom Waits, Rumi, Jeff Buckley, Leonard Cohen and Nina Simone. the song is an ode, and a love song, and it is a fantasy: each verse is my mind wandering to a moment we might have had together and then the inevitable knowing that I would have to leave, that I couldn’t live up to the perfection of each of these moments, and might have my heart explode if I tried. of course that changes in the latter half of the song, where maybe it would be healing to stay just a little longer . . .

this version features marc verwaerde – of Parisian band “Chapter 9″ – on guitar. he and I were both on Sellaband and did two collaborations together. this one was never completed. though only for my fault, his guitar part as you’ll hear is just gorgeous. but a song of his “Surrender” came out quite lovely. you can read more about that, and request the song from him here: http://chapter9.fr/WordPress/tag/annie-bacon/

lyrics:

if I’d met Japhy Ryder in time
I’d be his lover and he would be mine
we’d take baths at midnight
and howl at the trees
I’d fall asleep against his cheek
and in the morning I would leave

if I could get old Tom to come down here
we’d sit and talk and maybe have a beer
I’d ask about jesus and his mother’s kitchen sink
his voice would growl and his breath would probably stink
we’d fall asleep against the dawn
and in the morning I’d be gone

if I had been Shams of Tabriz
I would meet Rumi and bring him to his knees
He would whisper blissful poems
while we built ourselves a home
I’d fall asleep beside his pen
and in the morning leave again

in the morning the reasons change
the sun exposes meaning
but lovers hide their love in metaphor
that’s what poetry is for

and if I’d met Jeff Buckley that day
when he walked to the river and stood on the bank
“you really miss him don’t you” is all I would say
and I’d let him collapse on my shoulder and sob
I’d stay all the through the night
to make sure he’s alright

and if Leonard had only seen
my “sleepy golden storm” in his dream
I’d kiss each his fingers and beg to be touched
and cry out for poems, it can’t be too much
I’d fall asleep inside his words
and all my sadness would be cured

and if nina hadn’t left me so soon
I know she’d hate me and wish me to the moon
but I wouldn’t speak all night long
just to hear one verse of song
I’d never sleep while she played
and pray my sins had been forgave.