The "he" is always lower case . . . . .

Ahh, finally a song for the rest of us.

The win is strong in this one.

Happy Birthday Bob!

Bob Marley would have been 64 today. It's hard for me to believe that he was only 36 when he died. He was a true poet, in his mind and in his heart.

He left us way too soon.

Everyday at work, as I sit at my desk, I can look over my monitors and see Bob hanging on my wall. Many years ago, I purchased a charcoal drawing of him at an art show. I paid about a hundred dollars or so for it. At the time, that was a pretty large sum for me. I've never regretted the purchase. During those years, (my low to late 20's), I moved several times. Bob was always the last thing off the wall in the old place and the first thing on the wall in the new place.

When I got divorced, I brought Bob to my office. No one in my office even knows who he is. I tell them he's my grandfather. The most common response is: "Are you Indian"?

Philistines.

I love to watch him sing, he has such passion. I get the feeling he'd be just as happy singing on a street corner as he would be in a concert hall. It was about the music, not the money.

Anyway, I love Bob. I wish he were still around.

Redemption Song

Old pirates, yes, they rob I;
Sold I to the merchant ships,
Minutes after they took I
From the bottomless pit.
But my hand was made strong
By the 'and of the Almighty.
We forward in this generation
Triumphantly.
Won't you help to sing
These songs of freedom? -
'Cause all I ever have:
Redemption songs;
Redemption songs.

Emancipate yourselves from mental slavery;
None but ourselves can free our minds.
Have no fear for atomic energy,
'Cause none of them can stop the time.
How long shall they kill our prophets,
While we stand aside and look? Ooh!
Some say it's just a part of it:
We've got to fulfil de book.

Won't you help to sing
These songs of freedom? -
'Cause all I ever have:
Redemption songs;
Redemption songs;
Redemption songs.
---
Emancipate yourselves from mental slavery;
None but ourselves can free our mind.
Wo! Have no fear for atomic energy,
'Cause none of them-a can-a stop-a the time.
How long shall they kill our prophets,
While we stand aside and look?
Yes, some say it's just a part of it:
We've got to fulfil de book.
Won't you help to sing
Dese songs of freedom? -
'Cause all I ever had:
Redemption songs -
All I ever had:
Redemption songs:
These songs of freedom,
Songs of freedom.

A New Feature!

I'd like to introduce a new feature here at Tales of Brave Sir Robin. I call it:

Songs I like that you've probably never heard of.

Of course, the problem with that premise will be that the more obscure the song, the more difficult it will be to find a video of it. The quality of today's video will attest to that fact. It is a live version and not nearly as haunting and poignant as the studio cut.

So, now that my intro is crudely out of the way . . . .

Songs I like that you've probably never heard of.
(Vol. 1)

Paralyzed

Artist - Sixpence none The Richer Album - Divine Discontent

Americans like distractions.

We must, because we are so easily distracted. Why do you think bad news always comes out late on a Friday afternoon? Although you'd barely know it from the (American) media, there has been a great deal of brutal carnage going on in Gaza for the last month. To be fair, there has been a lot to distract us from the rest of the world lately; the holiday season, the banking crisis, the economy, the new administration nominating cabinet officials, and of course, the inauguration.

It seems the human race just can't keep from killing and maiming one another. I challenge you to find a 5 year period in modern history without a war of some type. Hell, I haven't done the math, but I'll bet a 2 year period doesn't exist. Perhaps that's why we hardly treat it as news anymore. What is your reaction when you watch an account of a village being bombed? Do you ignore it? Are you anesthetized to it? Or do you grieve?

This song was written 10 years ago, but it will sadly remain topical for as long as human nature remains as it is. It is also an appropriate response to violence.

Again, seek out the studio cut, it's so much better.

Paralyzed
(Matt Slocum)

I look out to the fields
Where blood is shed upon the ground
I breathe in, breathe out
Change the channel, mute the sound
I take a match, a cigarette, and a walk to clear my head
Stomach's reeling at the thought of all those (human beings dead)

I breathe in, breathe out
I'm going to an interview
About a song, three minutes long
I just need something to do
Especially when my dearest friend
Was sent to cover Kosovo
His last assignment brought a bullet
And now he's gone, he's gone

Feels like I'm fiddling while Rome is burning down
Should I lay my fiddle down, take a rifle from the ground
I need the Ghost to breathe a Northern Gale tonight*
'cause I'm paralyzed, I'm paralyzed

I packed his books up, left the office*
Went to tell the wife the news
She fell in shock, the baby kicked,
And shed a tear inside the womb
I breathed in, I breathed out,
Soaked the ground up with my eyes
It's hard to say a healing word
When your tongue is paralyzed

Feels like I'm fiddling while Rome is burning down
Should I put my fiddle down, take a rifle from the ground
God give me strength to pray that You will set things right
'cause I'm paralyzed, I'm paralyzed

*Yes - some of these lyrics don't quite match the live version. This band was originally signed to a Christian label, and was still representing this label in 1999 when this performance was recorded. The song wasn't actually released until 2002 on a secular label. I am supposing that is the difference. These lyrics match the studio version.

No Doubt About It, This Is Good News

I'm loving this!

Happy Birthday Alfred Matthew Yankovic

Yes, Weird Al turns 49 today. There was a time years ago, that I found him humorous. He came into his own at exactly the time MTV did, which was really the perfect forum for his brand of humor.

I find it slightly ironic that he still makes his living making fun of contemporary music, and I no longer enjoy him. How is that ironic you ask? The reason I no longer enjoy him is because I'm so freaking old I don't recognize any of the song he is parodying!

That's right, he hasn't become irrelevant, I have.

I realize many of you may not be a fan of his. I understand that. At the risk of falling into gender stereotypes, I get the feeling he is more popular among males than females. I imagine his demographic is the same as Mad Magazine's.

Love him or hate him, it's hard to deny his cleverness, and his longevity.

This is, I think, his Magnum Opus.

(Geek warning - There is a high level of Geek required to appreciate this song) -

Sorry, embedding is blocked, you'll have to click here.

Sending Out an S.O.S.

I've always considered song lyrics to be a particularly difficult type of poetry. If I could be a poet, I think I'd want to be a troubadour in the vein of Lyle Lovett or Townes Van Zandt. Yes, poets, both of them, to be sure. With song writing, not only does the poem have to speak to the audience, it has to fit within the frame work of the melody, not to mention the bridge. It is a skill I stand in awe of. That is not to say that only the singer/songwriter model of a lyricist is a poet, on the contrary, poetry can be found in every genre of music no matter whether it is to one's taste or not.

Hmm, funny how these blog posts work - that paragraph really didn't have anything to do with what I sat down to write about, but as I always tend to say - "that's another post", and then never get back to it, I think I'll expand a bit on that idea.

Yes, I suck at this stream of consciousness thing - So sue me.

Take Eminem for example. though you may revile his music, or him personally, and though his lyrics may be misogynistic and homophobic, the man is truly a wordsmith. Do I aspire to write his kind of poetry? Certainly not, but he is a poet.

It was through a song lyric that I first heard of Aphrodite. I looked her up in the library (no Internet back in those days), so I could better understand a particular song that was a favorite in my hard rocking adolescent days. I still look back amazed at how naive I was at 13. I can assure you, my children are far more worldly than I ever was.

So where am I going with this? I sat down to write about how this blog and blogging are a life line to me, and I suspect to many others, connecting isolated souls to like minded people. What made me think of this, was a song that came on while I was doing housework. More on that in a moment.

It may appear that I'm changing the subject again, but bear with me, someday I hope to have an amazing skill at tying seemingly disconnected ideas together into a beautiful post, but sadly, I am not there yet.

Do you remember a radio show called In The Studio With Redbeard? It apparently still comes on but I haven't heard it in years. The song I heard a while ago reminded me vividly of an episode of that show I heard many, many years ago. If you're unfamiliar with the show, Redbeard, the host takes the audience behind the scenes of a famous album and talks about when and how it was made, and interviews the artists, producers, etc... Great show, btw.

This particular episode was on The Police's 3rd studio album, Zenyatta Mondatta. During the interview portion, Steward Copeland called Sting the king of the three minute pop ditty, and noted that Sting considered it a high calling indeed. I think I'd agree with that sentiment on both counts. Yes, Sting can be pompous, and even pretentious, but come on - who else is going to work Nabokov into a pop song? A funny aside - during the same interview, Copeland said of Sting:

Sting is probably the person whom fame has changed the least, he was swaggering and cocky when he didn't have a dime to his name.

I love that.

So, back to the original post. As I'm cleaning house with the Satellite radio going, I'm thinking that I've really been neglecting my blog, and at the same time, not spending much time on other sites either. Most of my comments of late have been quick little one liners. I miss the ongoing conversations that comment strings can become. I was thinking to myself that it has been ages since I've sat down and just started writing whatever's on my mind. I miss it. I miss all of you, both here, and at your own little corner of the web.

As I'm think that, the live acoustic version of Message In A Bottle came on. As the final verse came on, I stopped folding the towel, and I just marveled at Sting's words. It gave me a little chill as he sang:

Walked out this morning, don't believe what I saw
Hundred billion bottles washed up on the shore
Seems I'm not alone at being alone
Hundred billion castaways, looking for a home
Ill send an s.o.s. to the world
Ill send an s.o.s. to the world . . . . . . .

I thought to myself, that is exactly what blogging is, little messages, floating out on the vast ocean of the Internet, hoping to be plucked out of the water and to find a home. Who says pop music can't be poetry? Not me.

Here is a video of the same version of the song, it is most likely the exact same performance. It is from the Secret Policeman's Other Ball, and yes, I have the LP. Oh, and can one help but notice how young and beautiful he was back then?


Yeah, that's poetry.

Things That Make Me Happy

This is just absolutely full of win.

It's only 3:32 long, trust me, you can spare 3 minutes. I dare you to watch this without smiling. Go ahead, I'll bet you can't.



UPDATE** - I just watched this for like the 9th time, I just noticed this - Watch when the bass line comes in (at about :41), the camera focuses in on what must be the only black person in the audience. WTF??? Are you kidding me?

Also, make sure you watch it all, the vocals are the best part!

I Got Nothing

I'm going to skip the cross country meet tomorrow for a couple of reasons. Firstly, because I'm going to drive to Houston and see Scottie. Then, instead of driving to Houston on Sunday, I can stay home and clean my filthy house, attack the pile of laundry from hell, and actually cook a meal. Second, my allergies are in full swing and spending 4+ hours outside in a field would insure me a miserable 3 or 4 days of itching, swollen eyes, mucus-ie lungs and nose, and headaches. Oh, don't worry, I'll have those anyway, but not quit as severe if I stay indoors. Thirdly, (OK - I know I said a couple of reasons, but I didn't wake up prepared to do math), the boys don't have anywhere to be on Sunday, and we can spend a day together at home for the first time since mid-August.

So where's my head these days?

McCain is a bigger douche than I ever imagined, and believe me when I say I have a huge imagination.

I am still missing Rene' a lot. It is only a couple of weeks away from one year since I ended the relationship, and I still miss her. I've seen her several times this week, and it still hurts. I still get (quite literally) weak in the knees when I see her. If there is a silver lining to all the bullshit in my life right now, it's that I simply don't have time to be overwhelmed with Rene' induced depression. Doesn't mean it's not there, mocking me from my sub-conscious, but the immediacy of the Scottie crisis and having to fit it all in between work, kids, and household responsibilities is keeping it from crushing me as it has in the past.

I finished Atonement this week, and now I'm dying to see the film. Yes, I loved it. I started Midnight's Children yesterday. It's too early to tell, but I think it might be alright. I confess, I was a little afraid of it. Have any of you read it? Or read any Rushdie for that matter?

The boys are good - Cross Country, Football, and the Fall Play are keeping us very, very busy.

Here's a little music to get you ready for the weekend - can this song really be 12 years old already? Shit, I consider this some of my "newer" music. I gotta get out more.

Things I Love

Bob Geldof

Read it all.

He's talking about the UK, but everything he says applies in the USA, and then some.

Still today, 800 years later, Magna Carta resonates: "To no man will we deny, To no man will we delay, Justice and Right." Is that not grand, worthy of your vote? Is habeas corpus to be traduced in one sad moment of political expediency? Do we not clearly deny and delay Justice and Right when we imprison a person for 42 days without charge?

What existential threat do we face greater than those of the past 800 years? What great terror exists today that not civil war, not world war, nor recent other terrorisms could make our forefathers change the fundamental basis of this state? What is so dangerous that our oldest statutes could be upended for such a ha'p'orth of momentary panic?

What terrorises the terrorists is our civilisation. What those unthinking fools of fundamentalism fear most are the freedoms our representatives now strip away. This "war on terror" is against Islamist forces that reject the Enlightenment.

How can we ever succeed, if we side with our opponents in rejecting those ideals? Every moment we are spied on by the invisible watchers, every time we are monitored, every time we are logged on databanks, they win. And every time we accept it, we lose.

What's not to love?
Oh yeah, and he did this too.

Like I said, what's not to love?

I Don't Get It

Is there something you don't "get"? I don't mean quantum physics, or the meaning of life - I mean is there something the rest of the world just goes nuts over, that you just don't get.

Of course there are the obvious things like taste in music and such, but that isn't necessarily what I mean. I'm not a fan of Hip Hop, or most of what I call chuga-chuga-chuga music, but I can see how some of it has a catchy tune or hook line, and I understand that one generation will rarely enjoy the music of the next generation.

That being said, I am going to talk about a musician.

I don't get Justin Timberlake.

I don't think he's attractive. I mean, even as a straight guy, I can see that Brad Pitt is attractive. I get it. I even get why some girls dig Matthew McConaughey. Well, girls who don't care about hygiene anyway. But I just don't see that whole Justin thing. Talent? Musical taste aside, the dude can't sing. I mean, really, he can't sing.

I don't get it.

While I'm ranting about musicians. . . .

Marilyn Manson -

Musical abilities (or not) aside. This dude pulls some serious A-list talent for girl friends. WTF?? I understand that some girls are groupies. Fine. I don't get that either, but that's another post. Look at this list:

Dita Von Teese

Rose McGowen

Evan Rachel Wood (That hurts my feelings, seriously!)


But these girls could probably have any rock star they wanted if that's what they are into. Seriously - Ewww. I don't get that.

That's why

Houston Bound . . . .

Wanna know why?


Now you know.

Because I Can Do Anything I Want Today

I'm going to say this is officially the best cover ever.

I will brook no argument.

Put on the headphones and spend the next seven minutes with me and Diana.

If this doesn’t give you chills, well . . . you probably don’t read this blog.

Have a beautiful day.

Do You Need A Smile Today?

I do.

As today is Sir Arthur Sullivan's birthday, what better way to add a little cheer than to hum this little ditty all day.



btw - If you've never seen this 1983 version of The Pirates of Penzance you don't know what you're missing. Alas, it has not, apparently ever been released on DVD.

That's a shame.

I Suck

I am officially an imbecile. I am part of the great unthinking, unwashed masses. I am what's wrong with America.

Not only did I watch an entire episode of American Idol, I actually voted.

FSM, just shoot me.

Ok, in my defense, it was Andrew Lloyd Webber night. I get a pass for that, right?

For what it’s worth – my ranking last night.

1. Carly Smithson -- "Jesus Christ Superstar" (Hmm Judas as a female?? I'd buy a ticket to see her sing that role)

2. Syesha Mercado -- "One Rock & Roll Too Many" from Starlight Express (The dress alone was worth second place)

3. David Archuleta -- "Think of Me" from Phantom of the Opera. (Dude, you do know that song is sung by a girl right? Oh wait. . . yeah)

4. David Cook -- "Music of the Night" from Phantom of the Opera (Meh - whatever)

5. Jason Castro -- "Memory" from Cats. (My cat left the room)

6. Brooke White -- "You Must Love Me" from the film adaptation of "Evita" (Seriously, the Film version ? WTF?)

Happy Birthday Billie

Today would have been the 93rd birthday of Billie Holiday. A tragic childhood, a hard life, and one that was all too short, oh, but she could sing! She could bend a syllable and move an audience to tears. Ella, Lena, Sarah, they all stand in her shadow.

Happy Saint Patrick's Day!!

I couldn't let this day pass without a mention.

Yes, I have some Irish ancestry. My Paternal Grandmother was the first American born in her family. Mostly though, I've just always enjoyed drinking beer and joining in the mindless revelry that we Americans manage to infuse in every fake holiday.

So, although you will hear this song countless times today, I'm guessing you won't hear it like this.

If you are of a certain age, you will most likely find this hysterical. If not, you may be scratching your head and wishing you had the two minutes back.

Either way - I loved it.

Happy Saint Patrick's Day!! May some Irish Lass, (or Lad - to each his own) favor you today.




And Happy Birthday Tart!!

Hope it was great!

Dinner included -

Bee's Soda Bread

Corned beef and cabbage, roasted potatoes and carrots

From The "Oh Great NOW You Tell Me" Files . . . .

It seems that drowning your sorrows in alcohol doesn't, in fact, help you forget them, but actually locks memories in place longer than if you didn't drink!

Researchers at the University of Tokyo concluded that ethanol -- an intoxicating agent in alcohol -- does not cause memory to decrease, as widely believed, but instead locks it in place.

Boy, you'd think I would have figured this out on my own!!! So the good news is, it's not MY fault I can't get over Rene', it's Don Henley's fault for giving me this bad advice:

You're Not Drinking Enough
lyrics by Don Henley

I can see that you haven't recovered from
the girl who let you down
And you'd sell what is left of your soul for
another go-round
You keep telling yourself she means nothing
and maybe you should call her bluff
But you don't really believe it
You must not be drinking enough
Well, the perfume she wore you can buy
down at the Five & Dime
But on some other woman
It don't smell the same in your mind
You keep telling yourself you can take it-
Telling yourself that you're tough
But you still wanna hold her
You must not be drinkin' enough
You're not drinking enough
to wash away old memories
And there ain't enough whiskey in Texas to
keep you from beggin' ,"Please, please, please."
She passed on your passion
and stepped on your pride
Turns out you ain't quite so tough
'Cause you still wanna hold her
You must not be drinkin' enough
Ay-yi-yi-yi
Ask yourself why
You still wanna hold her
You must no be drinkin' enough
Ay-yi-yi-yi, etc.......

I Have A New Love . . . .

From the Same Record Label that brings us Lucinda Williams (and Lyle Lovett's new label as well) . . .

Shelby Lynne . . . . .



Amazing voice. Add this to my CD's and DVD's don't count as materialism so I want it list.

Tag, I'm it. - My Cultural Life

I've been tagged by Konagod

1. What am I reading at the moment?

I'm looking for something to read!! Actually, I'm in the middle of 1776 , by David McCullough. I need to make a run to the bookstore, but that is a trip out of town. I hope to read soon:

The Border Trilogy by Cormac McCarthy
Atonement by Ian McEwan (So I can go see the film)
His Dark Materials Trilogy by Phillip Pullman (So I can make sense of the very blah film I saw in December.)


2. What Am I Listening To At The Moment?

In the car, mostly one of the two NPR stations on Sirius. I particularly look for The Bryant Park Project. As for music, I'm on a "Bitter Chicks" kick. Lucinda, Amy mostly. A little Edie, Diana, Natalie, and Joss thrown in for good measure. I know they aren't all bitter, but when I'm listening to the ladies, I tend to listen to them all together.


3. What Am I Watching At The Moment?

The Complete Season 2 of Saturday Night Live, The Sarah Connor Chronicles, the new season of Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations. And of course, the NFL playoffs.



In keeping with the theme, I give you this. Best cover ever? Probably not, but it's right up there. It takes a great song and re-imagines it in a delicious way. This is my favorite song by her.

Enjoy:



I tag Phydeaux, Red Queen, and Robin

For The Red Queen . . .

Red Queen my dear, I know things are tough right know, but maybe this will make you smile and remind you of happy childhood days.

Hang in there.