A killer line.........

....... you desired my attention but denied my affections......

Of course the SoD for this line should really be Mumford & Sons the track from which the line is taken..... but as much as I love M&S I will go with this SoD to compliment the line......

the lord and master.....

.... to those of you who perhaps don't appreciate just what a masterful poet the great Leonard Cohen is, here is my first introduction to him.

Now I will say this, sometimes, just sometimes [and I will cover this in more detail in later entries] some of LC's song are much better when sung by someone else, but they are still LC's songs, who ever sings them ..........

But this first entry for leonard, was seen live by me at the Albert Hall. At this time in his life he was 74 years old, and yet he could still beguile the whole of the Albert Hall. I have seen some great concerts, I have seen some great bands [I even saw U2 before they were famous] but on this night at the Albert Hall, I have never seen anything so masterful than the great Leonard Cohen........

The lights dimmed, the backing singers remained silent, the musicians remained quiet but for a light background sound [just a pity the audience didn't ...although to be fair this is the riff raff at the O2 and not RAH] but lordly lordy, I had never heard this before [I think he has a song called 1000 kisses deep on an earlier album but thats not the same as this recited poem in this video].....

So imagine yourself, lights dimmed and in hushed tones you hear the master perform his art so eloquently.......

I'm your man !

although thinking about it........

........ nessy at skeggy then perhaps this should be the song of the day .....

Nessy Lives ! .........He Lives...He lives I tell ya

..... seems I was wrong.... Nessy lives and not only that, he has gone to skeggy for his holidays !

http://news.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474981546853

Wonders never cease.... I am shaking my head at my own dismay for thinking that Nessy could not have possibly existed.....and now we know the truth at last.


There can only be one song for this story .......

two effin fords .........

....... I love the english language for the many things it throws up, recognising that of course that the english language is in a way, somewhat of a misnomer as it is riddled with lots of other words from other non english languages and to some extent is an amalgam of many different languages, but what caught my eye yesterday was someone's name.... strange I have never noticed before.......the name ?

Natalie Fforde 

Now seriously what is the point of those two F's and come to tthinke of it why have an 'e' at the end as well. You would have to say to yourself, why oh why am I spelling my name this way.....obviously one of the most Ffundemental reasons why you are spelling it this way is because that's the way it's shown on your birth certifficate and that's how you show you are related to your parents, Mr & Mrs Fforde, but other than that I can ffind no logical reason for it.

Search the internet for the reason and it seems no one else can either. Yeah yeah I know they all talk about its origins blah blah..... but many names were thought up when most of the populous were illiterate....you only have to look at some of the earliest census records to see how people's name were spelt in a variety of different ways.... but no one actually offers the precise reason ffor two f's and one e.

But just imagine, every time you introduced yourself you'd be saying........ oh hello, my name is Natalie Fforde, that's with two F's and an 'e' the end, and most likely as not the reply will be.......oh how strange I never realised Natalie had a 'F' in it let alone two...to which which you retort [in a slightly irritated voice  as you have had this conversation for your whole life]........no it's two effin Ford........... to which the other person with a look of indignation shouts ......don't you swear at me !  ..... leaving you to think........why oh why could I not be a heir to the motor car empire and be called Natalie Ford like any normal Pperson.

So my song today is about the absurdity of having something that shouldn't be there.....like a trampoline in a field, and were it not for that absurdity, then we couldn't enjoy this fab bed bouncy song...so thank you Natalie Fforde, for carrying your superfluous letters with pride.

the trouble with narcissists is ......

.... they spend far too long in front of the mirror !!

I wonder just how may times Victo..... ach erm .... Queen Victoria stood in front of the mirror practising this pose -

I loved the olympics and all credit to those who showed greater skill than I ever could have, but please oh please, every time we reminisce how wonderful our medal winners were/are, can we please not see this image repeated time after time....why do we have to honour this self indulgent clap trap on the part of our illustrious cyclist, non other than Ms Pendleton. By all means recognise her proven talent[s] on the track but this is just cringe worthy....... and what followed the heart making symbol was even worse..... keep it to ya sen luv !

so today my song for vicky is:

 

you could make this up.....

..... this notion could only have been promoted by a man.... good on ya fella !


http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-2186710/Could-oral-sex-pregnant-womans-best-defense-morning-sickness.html?ITO=1490




and so there is only one song to go with this story.....

how does this happen....

...... I was going to post a song/video following on from my last post, but there I was surfing various news headlines and then I tripped up over this story......

Now it is fairly well documented how humans can brutalize other humans but no matter how many times you read such stories ...... there are still stories out there that leave you wondering .....

how does this happen ?

I read this story:

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/crime/home-invasion-doc-eulogizes-wife-daughters-article-1.264842

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cheshire,_Connecticut,_home_invasion_murders

and am still thinking that thought......

how does this happen ?

I will post a song, but not as a song of the day, but a song,  when reading such a story as above, reminds you of things so important.

make your own sound track moment.....

...... now it sounds easy.... but its not.....

We all listen to music as we do things...other stuff...and sometimes the music is just humming in the back ground, some times we might sing along, and sometimes we even sing and dance*.

But they are not sound track moments.....

How many times have you watched a movie, and wondered what would it be like if that happened in real life ? now of course I am not talking orchestra's and crashing waves during those ...ach um... you know those.... when you're doing it...ach erm you know.... yes you know.... any way orchestra's playing then would be just toooooo cheesy.

This was my sound track moment:

There I was at the airport on my way home from the Netherlands and the flight was delayed...... and so bored witless at Schipol Airport, I did the usual, picked up whiskey bottles and compared the price to home [realising that duty free is no longer duty free even if we still call it duty free !]....

and so after exhausting the delights of Duty Not Free,  I turned to my iPod for solace. Not long before my flight was due to board I had been texting my wife with the usual I'm bored texts...... and then the typical text conversation takes place, and then I hit upon the idea and picked the track. Now the strange thing about Schipol Airport is that to get in the departure lounge you do not go through security and you only go through the rigmarole of shoes and belt removal, and bag rummaged [along with the occasional rub down] after duty not so free, and just before you about to board the plane.

So I selected the song and then texted my wife the idea. I told her to find the same song on her iPod and when I text her the word or "go" she is to hit the play button for this song the same as me.

Getting the timings right I sent the word "go". And so at that very moment me and my wife were listening to the same song at exactly the same time, but in totally different locations.

And the song ? Oh my what a great song it is. To be fair in his video, as clever as it may be, matching the meaning of the song to the imagery, he did kinda nick the idea from the master Cohen** [yes Leonard Cohen's influence impacts again] but nevertheless I will let Tom off simply because the song*** is so wonderful.

Here's the song and then I explain the impact:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v_h_wZQjVvY 

[note that the ar$e$ at EMI have blocked the official version of the video so I have to use this link on youtube which is the same video/song but opens in a new window thats all]

So there I am, in my head listening to this magical song, knowing my wife is listening to it at the same time, and yet I am walking through the airport lounge and then stood in a queue of people waiting to go through security, and then still listening, the song is juxtaposed with the image of all these people semi undressing and putting their discarded belts/coats/shoes/computers on the conveyer belt.

Played blast loud, listening with Sennheiser IE6 headphones, walking through Schipol Airport, there are very few songs to match this one for a sound track moment.

Did I know this StM would work when I suggested it to my wife****...... not on your nelly....... did it work..... well it worked...... and proof positive that you don't have to wait for a movie to have a sound track moment..... you can make your very own...... all you need is a great song, a great location and viola !

*[Song and dance footnote 1: - tomorrow I will post a great video where someone has matched a song and dance together, which on paper should not work, but my oh my..... it is just so ...... well I know it won't disappoint]

**[Cohen footnote 2: - The great man Leonard will get a post all of his own, but it will be a long one as his influence stretches far and wide]

***[Better footnote 3: - Now don't get me wrong I am not anti boy bands, or boyzone but don't listen to their version of Better ....why ? because it is sh1te that's why, even if they are better known for it than Tom baxter]

****[Shared experience footnote 4: - As it was, my wife was listening to the same song at the same time as me, but she had a different visual experience to me, so I am not sure that vicarious StM's work in that way, so she may well never have "seen" it the way I saw it...... but one golden rule of making your own StM, they are a private affair and as selfish as it may appear, they are yours and yours alone]

A sound track moment.....

..... there I was watching the olympics ...... thinking..... the chariots of fire music is a great piece of stirring sound track moment for any athlete ....... but you can listen to it just once too often..... and now that Mr Bean has stamped his mark on the music driven imagery.....and well....

Then later listening to Seb ......ach erm Sir/Lord/Knight of the Realm/Dame/HRH {add anymore as appropriate} Seb Coe was talking about playing rock music to the 1500m final..... there is a skill to creating a sound track moment .... you can't just randomly pick music hoping it will enhance the image..... you have to be good at getting it right.... great music to the wrong image will not work in just the same way that wrong music to a great image will not work either......

Nooooo a sound track moment has to leave you thinking..... omg what was that ? and it should create such a strong bond between the music and the image that is difficult to remove and propels the film/image/scene/experience {delete as appropriate} in to a whole new level .... a level that black words on a white back ground are not sufficient to be able to explain it ...... Mr Bean and Chariots of Fire ? ..... not on your nelly not even close.....

There are, however, a number of movies that can do this and in truth I probably need a top ten of sound track moments, but for today's song of the day I am going to pick one. Not because it is the best, but simply because it works so well. [but it is one of the best though]

Pedro Almodovar is, I think, generally accepted as a great movie maker [but if you are reading this Pedro, cut back on the staring roles for Penny please - yeah yeah I know she is sooooo divine but you can over do it abit]{although interestingly having said that for the subject soundtrack Pedro movie, Penny was not in it}.... anyway where was I ..... oh yeah.... sound track moments.....

So there I was channel hopping with the remote buttons, as blokes love so to do, and on came this movie .......Hablo con ella, [what a fab premise for a movie], and so as I was watching intently, suddenly there in the movie this sound track moment came from nowhere....totally unexpected ...... here is it.....

and when this scene came on.... well lordy lordy lordy...... until this time I had never heard of Caentano or the song.... I watched this movie before the days of shazam, and so was left to do some detective work on the net..... and of course I should have known... the song it is called ......Cucurrucucú paloma*

And so me being me [but not necessarily the unique me] was hooked..... turns out, it is a mexican love song that essentially [but not exclusively] means that if you love someone ....love them so much.... you will be prepared to let them go, if they have to leave you to follow their dreams....

Now I have to admit that Caentano sings this song in such a way, I defy any one not to be hooked, but then as I looked up more about this song, ......and then, .......well then I tripped up over the devine Perla.... oh my gosh Perla has the voice of an angel..... [I should have known about her before this as she is very pally with Leonard Cohen.... I shall tell all about Leonard another day other than to say now..... that what ever you think of his singing....and its not that bad I think..... his lyrics are something else... he knows the true power of the written word] anyway back to Perla..... well Perla does a version of cucurrucucu paloma, like no other. It matters not that you do not know the english meaning of the word..... just look at the face of Perla Batalla as she sings this song.....she sings from her soul.... she gets it...she gets it like I get it......

She sings this like no other ....... Paul Buchanan may be one of my favourites but when Perla sings this, well she is in the top 10 without any doubt. 

And so it is, thats what a true sound track moment is all about..... not Mr bean running along the beach destroying the image of Chariots of Fire for all those great olympians as they entertain us with their skills and prowess.

For this entry I did toy with the idea of using In Brugges and the bell tower scene with Raglan Road, now I could watch that movie a 1000 times, I could see that scene a 1000 times, and a 1000 times it would still leave me breathless and with that heavy feeling inside one.... you know the one.... the one where you feel your very insides are being touched but you don't know how or what it is....but you feel it alright......

Well that is Raglan Road, but only in this movie, listen to it as a stand alone song and it is just another great tune... but my oh my..... glue it to the celluloid of In Brugges and it is something else.... but I elected not to use In Brugges to illustrate my point because to understand the importance and beauty of the bell tower scene you need to watch the movie in it's entirety..... a movie of great humour, but also a beautiful story of one mans sacrifice for the redemption of another.... who knows maybe that was a cucurrucucu paloma moment as well.

And tomorrow I will tell you a story of creating your very own sound track moment..... trust me it works.....

*[cucurrucucu paloma - footnote - the latest incarnation of this song can be in heard in the five year engagement but whilst I have not seen the movie, trust me the use of this song in this movie will never match that of Hablo con ella..... how do I know..... trust me I know these things.... and when I say trust me....its not because I am a doctor....cause I am not]

no not because of the great....

.... bradley.....

no I love this song regardless of whether Bradley is a faux Paul Weller .....

this is such a jingly jangly song that once it gets in your head it is sooooooo hard to get rid...

how rubbish is this newspaper story.........

........ for me, ever since Magnus Magnusson's 1974 program, Unsolved Mysteries,  any story that refers to the Loch Ness Monster generally catches my eye.....


So after all these years and without proof positive, I have generally come to conclusion that Nessy does not exist. We have enough modern technology and no matter how wide, how long or how deep Loch Ness maybe..... we should be able to find the fish, the one photo'd so many times......

And so this very weekend,  there was the news story, from non other a self styled Nessy Expert.

As George Edwards peered into the grey mist that lay over Loch Ness, he glimpsed a dark hump slinking in and out of the grey waters.

www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2183094/Skipper-claims-finally-proof-Loch-Ness-Monster-exists.html

He claims :

He even says image was verified by team of US military monster experts

What the fooking hell is a US military monster expert ?  Surely not the same knobs who were looking for WMD in Iraq,.... having read the nessy article who knows, they could be...

He then goes on to say [and this was the bit that got me shaking my head at the screen, shaking in dismay] :

Far too many people have being seeing them for far too long, he said. The first recorded sighting was in 565AD and there have been thousands of eye witness reports since then. All these people can’t be telling lies

And so it is I ask my self just one question.......why can't all these people be telling lies ?? ..... man [and woman] has been telling lies from the moment he could speak [or even sign language before that !]

But reading this so called newspaper report, you would think.....where is the most basic and rudimentary of proof tests being applied........ Anyone who is a tad less cynical than me, would be thinking..... hey this guy might have a point you know.

But the most fundamental question that the reporter seems to have omitted to ask good ole George Edwards is this:

So George, what a wonderful story, George, I can call you George can't I ? [that's not the question btw but George nods his head, smiling his agreement to being called George]...... well then George my question is this [this is the fundamental question] ...... are you nuts ?

At that point without waiting to hear George's answer I would close my note book, gather up my things and head back to London; I would say to my editor, you are sooooooo not gunna believe this but this guy says the Loch Ness monster is real, and get this, he say's there is more than one of them !

Now I realise George, you might be reading this and thinking yeah yeah... I may well mock you .... but I will say this, either George is nuts or.... or this could be the real reason for this story.......... his Nessy Spotting boats trips are having a lean time, and he has conjured up some brilliant publicity.

But as for you, so called Journalist, Mr Matt Blake...... yes you Mr Blake, I mean you..... shame on you for your lazy writing and failing to report like a grown up.... Seriously what possessed you to write such CRAP..........who knows maybe you sat in front of the telly in 1974 watching Magnus Magnusson's program, Unsolved Mysteries and have just not matured in to adultum !!

Of course this needs a song of the day.... 

It should be this me thinks...... [mainly because I had it playing in the car blast loud on Sunday and its the first time I have listened to it in ages, but there are some other clues with this song]

99 percentile ........ The Dave Tate effect

This is my song of the day....... why....

well simples really ...... this guy has a great voice

and this vid deserves more than 415 views (not that this blog is gunna blow the views stats sky high !)

so Dave keep banging out those tunes cause I am is a listening.... I am listening

You can get a better fill of Dave Tate here :

http://www.myspace.com/davetatemusic