Where or When...

Happy B-day, George...


sung by George Michael
from Babes in Arms (1937)
music/lyrics by Richard Rogers & Lorenz Hart


It seems we stood and talked like this before
We looked at each other in the same way then
But i can't remember where or when
The clothes you're wearing and the clothes you wore
The smile you are smiling you were smiling then
But i can't remember where or when
Some things that happen for the first time
Seem to be happening again
And so it seems that we have met before
And laughed before
And loved before
But who knows where or when

Some of those things that seem to happen for the first time
Seem to be happening again
And so it seems that we have met before
And laughed before
And loved before
But who knows where or when.

known mostly for pop/rock music, George Michael put together the album featured in the video above of standards from the the 1930's-1990's that show the versatility of his talent. his version of Roxanne written by Sting and first performed by The Police is a favorite. you can find it here.

Crazy World...

sung by Julie Andrews
from Victor/Victoria
lyric - Leslie Bricusse
music - Henry Mancini


Crazy world
Full of crazy contridictions, like a child.
First you drive me wild, and then you win my heart
With your wicked art.
One minute tender, gentle, then tempermental as a summer storm.
Just when I believe your heart's getting warmer, you're cold, and you're cruel.
And I like a fool, try to cope, try to hang on, to hope.

Crazy world
Every day the same old roller coaster ride.
But I've got my pride, I won't give in.
Even though I know I'll never win.
Oh, how I love this crazy world.


i thought of this song after finishing a post on my main blog - no matter what... eschew obfuscation - regarding the death of George Carlin today - now, who's going to tell us the truth?

i think he really loved this crazy world otherwise he would never had told us the truth about it...

True Colors...

Happy Birthday, Cyndi!


True Colors
Cyndi Lauper

You with the sad eyes
don't be discouraged
oh I realize
it's hard to take courage
in a world full of people
you can lose sight of it all
and the darkness inside you
can make you fell so small

But I see your true colors
shining through
I see your true colors
and that's why I love you
so don't be afraid to let them show
your true colors
true colors are beautiful
like a rainbow

Show me a smile then
don't be unhappy, can't remember
when I last saw you laughing
if this world makes you crazy
and you've taken all you can bear
you call me up
because you know I'll be there

And I'll see your true colors
shining through
I see your true colors
and that's why I love you
so don't be afraid to let them show
your true colors
true colors are beautiful
like a rainbow.

If this world makes you crazy
And you’ve taken all you can bear
You call me up
Because you know I’ll be there

And I’ll see your true colors
Shining through
I see your true colors
And that’s why I love you
So don’t be afraid to let them show

Your true colors
True colors
True colors
Shining through

I see your true colors
And that’s why I love you
So don’t be afraid to let them show
Your true colors
True colors are beautiful,
Like a rainbow

Un garçon pas comme les autres (Ziggy)...

Celine Dion - Ziggy

Lyric - Luc Palmondon
Music - Michel Berger


Ziggy, il s'appelle Ziggy
Je suis folle de lui
C'est un garçon pas comme les autres
Mais moi je l'aime, c'est pas d'ma faute
Même si je sais
Qu'il ne m'aimera jamais

Ziggy, il s'appelle Ziggy
Je suis folle de lui
La première fois que je l'ai vu
Je m'suis jetée sur lui dans la rue
J'lui ai seulement dit
Que j'avais envie de lui

Il était quatre heures du matin
J'étais seule et j'avais besoin
De parler à quelqu'un
Il m'a dit: viens prendre un café
Et on s'est raconté nos vies
On a ri, on a pleuré

Ziggy, il s'appelle Ziggy
C'est mon seul ami
Dans sa tête y'a que d'la musique
Il vend des disques dans une boutique
On dirait qu'il vit
Dans une autre galaxie

Tous les soirs, il m'emmène danser
Dans des endroits très très gais
Où il a des tas d'amis
Oui, je sais, il aime les garçons
Je devrais me faire une raison
Essayer de l'oublier... mais

Ziggy, il s'appelle Ziggy
Je suis folle de lui
C'est un garçon pas comme les autres
Et moi je l'aime, c'est pas d'ma faute
Même si je sais
Qu'il ne m'aimera jamais.



[Trans: Ziggy, his name is Ziggy.
I’m crazy about him.
He’s a boy like no others,
But I love him; it’s not my fault
Even if I know
That he will never love me.

Ziggy, his name is Ziggy.
I’m crazy about him.
The first time I saw him.
I threw myself at him on the street.
I simply told him
That I wanted him.

It was four o’clock in the morning.
I was alone and I needed
To talk to someone
He told me: come on let's go for coffee
And we told each other about our lives.
We laughed, and we cried.

Ziggy, his name is Ziggy
He’s my only friend.
In his head there’s only music.
He sells discs in a boutique.
We could say he’s living in another galaxy.

Every night, he takes me dancing.
To very, very gay places
Where he has lots of friends.
Yes, I know, he likes boys.
I need to realize it's hopeless.
I should try to forget him, , , but

Ziggy, his name is Ziggy.
I’m crazy about him.
He’s a boy like no others,
But I love him; it’s not my fault
Even if I know
That he will never love me.]

Soave sia il vento...

from Cosi fan tutte
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Christa Ludwig - Dorabella
Gundula Janowitz - Fiordiligi
Walther Berry - Don Alfonso



Soave sia il vento,
Tranquilla sia l'onda,
Ed ogni elemento
Benigno risponda
Ai nostri {vostri) desir.


[Gentle is the wind,
Calm is the wave,
And every one of the elements
Answer warmly
To our (your) desire.]


quite probably the most beautiful trio, if not just the measures of music, that Mozart wrote. five lines conveying longing, despair and heartbreak because a loved one has left.

i may have mentioned in a previous post that i had the great fortune of spending an evening with Christa Ludwig (she is in the dark wig) and her husband a number of years ago. we laughed the entire evening.

On the Atchison, Topeka and the Santa Fe...

Happy Birthday, Judy...



from The Harvey Girls
Judy Garland


What a lovely trip
I'm feeling so fresh and alive
And I'm so glad to arrive
It's all so grand
It's easy to see you don't need a palace
To feel like Alice in Wonderland

Back in Ohio where I come from
I've done a lot of dreamin' and I've travelled some
But I never thought I'd see the day
When I ever took a ride on the Santa Fe
(wanna take a ride on the Santa Fe)

I would lean across my window sill
And hear the whistle echoin' across the hill
Then I'd watch the lights till they fade away
On the Atchison, Topeka and the Santa Fe

What a thrill (what a great big wonderful thrill)
With the wheels a-singin' "westward ho"
Right from the day I heard them start
'Cross the Kansas plains from New Mexico
I guess I've got a little gypsy in my heart

When I'm old and grey and settled down
If I ever get a chance to sneak away from town
Then I'll spend my busman's holiday
On the Atchison, Topeka and the Santa Fe

All aboard! (we came across the country lickety-split)
(rollin' ninety miles an hour)
I can't believe I'm here at last
Woo-oo-ooo!
(when you go travellin', it's best for you
to take the Atchison, Topeka and the Santa Fe!)
I can't believe that anything could go so fast

Then you pull that throttle, whistle blows
A-huffin' and a-puffin' and away she goes
All aboard for California*, hey!
On the Atchison (on the Atchison)
On the Atchison, Topeka (on the Atchison, Topeka)
On the Atchison, Topeka (on the Atchison, Topeka)
On the Atchison, Topeka and the Santa Fe



and the other Rainbow song...




I'm always chasing rainbows
from Ziegfeld Girl (1941)


I'm always chasing rainbows,
Watching clouds drifting by,
My schemes are just like all my dreams,
Ending in the sky.
Some fellows look and find the sunshine,
I always look and find the rain.
Some fellows make a winning sometime,
But I never even make a gain, believe me,
I'm always chasing rainbows,
Waiting to find a little bluebird in vain.


An interesting background note on this song: The music is credited to Harry Carroll, although the melody is actually adapted from Fantaisie-Impromptu by Frédéric Chopin. The lyrics were written by Joseph McCarthy, and the song was published in 1917 and introduced in the Broadway show Oh, Look! which opened in March, 1918. The song was sung in the show by The Dolly Sisters and was subsequently featured in a movie entitled The Dolly Sisters, released in September, 1945, where it was sung by John Payne. from Wikipedia

Money, money, money...

Money from Cabaret
Liza Minelli & Joel Grey


Money makes the world go round
The world go round, the world go round
Money makes the world go round
It makes the world go round

A mark, a yen, a buck or a pound
A buck or a pound, a buck or a pound
Is all that makes the world go round
That clinking, clanking sound
Can make the world go round

Money, money, money, money
Money, money, money, money
Money, money, money, money, money

If you happen to be rich and you feel like a night's
entertainment
You can pay for a gay escapade
If you happen to be rich, and alone, and you need
A companion, you can ring tingaling for the maid

If you happen to be rich and you find you are left by your
lover
Tho you moan and you groan quite a lot
You can take it on the chin
Call a cab, and begin to recover on your fourteen carat
yacht

Money makes the world go round
The world go round, the world go round
Money makes the world go round
Of that we both are sure
On being poor

Money, money, money, money
Money, money, money, money
Money, money, money, money, mon

When you haven't any coal in the stove and you freeze
In the winter and you curse to the wind at your fate
When you haven't any shoes on your feet and your coat's
thin as paper
And you look thirty pounds underweight

When you go to get a word of advice from the fat little
pastor
He will tell you to love evermore
But when hunger comes to rap, rat-a-tat, rat-a-tat
At the window, see how love flies out the door

For money makes the world go round
The world go round, the world go round
Money makes the world go round
The clinking, clanking sound of money

Money, money, money, money, money, money, money
Get a little, get a little
Money, money, money, money
Mark, a yen, a buck or a pound
That clinking, clanking, clunking sound
Is all that makes the world go round
It makes the world go round

yes, i'm on a French kick...

it's dawned on me that it's been over two years since i've been to Paris. i used to go once or twice a year. i guess it's time i took a little trip...

hmmmmmm...?

puisque tu pars...

Puisque tu pars
[Since you left]
par Jean-Jacques Goldman


Puisque l'ombre gagne
Puisqu'il n'est pas de montagne
Au-dela des vents plus haute que les marches de l'oubli
Puisqu'il faut apprendre
À défaut de le comprendre
À réver nos désirs et vivre des "Ainsi soit-il"

Et puisque tu penses
Comme une intime évidence
Que parfois mème tout donner n'est pas forcèment suffire
Puisque c'est ailleurs
Qu'ira mieux battre ton coeur
Et puisque nous t'aimons trop pour te retenir

Puisque tu pars...

Que les vents te mà'nent
À d'autres àmes plus belles
Sauront t'aimer mieux que nous puisque l'on ne peut t'aimer plus
Que la vie t'apprenne
Mais que tu restes le mème
Si tu te trahissais nous t'aurions tout à fait perdu,

Garde cette chance
Que nous t'envions en silence
Cette force de penser que le plus beau reste à venir
Et loin de nos villes
Comme octobre l'est d'avril
Sache qu'ici reste de toi comme une empreinte indélébile...

Sans drame, sans larme
Pauvres et dérisoires armes
Parce qu'il est des douleurs qui ne pleurent qu'à l'intérieur
Puisque ta maison
Aujourd'hui c'est l'horizon
Dans ton exil essaie d'apprendre à revenir

Mais pas trop tard...

(Chorus)

Dans ton histoire
Garde en mémoire
Notre au revoir
Puisque tu pars

Dans ton histoire
Garde en mémoire
Notre au revoir
Puisque tu pars

(Double Choeur)

Dans ton histoire
Dans ton histoire
Garde en mémoire
Garde en mémoire
Notre au revoir
Notre au revoir
Puisque tu pars
Puisque tu pars

(Dans ton histoire)
(Dans ton histoire)
J'aurai pu fermer
(Garde en mémoire)
(Garde en mémoire)
Oublier toutes ces portes
(Notre au revoir)
(Notre au revoir)
Tout quitter sur un simple geste
(Puisque tu pars)
(Puisque tu pars)
Mais tu ne l'as pas fait

(Dans ton histoire)
(Dans ton histoire)
J'aurai pu donner
(Garde en mémoire)
(Garde en mémoire)
Tant d'amour et tant de force
(Notre au revoir)
(Notre au revoir)
Mais tout ce que je pouvais
(Puisque tu pars)
(Puisque tu pars)
À n'était pas encore assez

(Dans ton histoire)
Pas assez
(Dans ton histoire)
(Garde en mémoire)
Pas assez
(Garde en mémoire)
Pas assez
(Notre au revoir)
(Notre au revoir)
eeeeeh !
(Puisque tu pars)
(Puisque tu pars)
Pas assez

(Double Choeur)

Dans ton histoire
Dans ton histoire
Garde en mémoire
Garde en mémoire
Notre au revoir
Notre au revoir
Puisque tu pars
Puisque tu pars

Dans ton histoire
Dans ton histoire
Garde en mémoire
Garde en mémoire
Notre au revoir
Notre au revoir
Puisque tu pars
Puisque tu pars

Dans ton histoire
Dans ton histoire
Garde en mémoire
Garde en mémoire
Notre au revoir
Notre au revoir
Puisque tu pars
Puisque tu pars

Dans ton histoire
Dans ton histoire
Garde en mémoire
Garde en mémoire
Notre au revoir
Notre au revoir
Puisque tu pars
Puisque tu pars

without knowing the language, just the music conveys the sadness and the loss, "Since you left. here is a loose translation of the first verse as an example.

Since the shadows have won.
Since the mountains no longer exist
With winds taking away your memory
Because I have to learn everything all over again
Since the memories are failing me
of all our dreams and life that
"Might have been"

Jean-Jacques Goldman has long been one of my favorite singer-songwriters from France. his music is story-telling; the type of song I like the best. though he is not known in the U.S., he is a huge star in France and Europe. actually, people have heard his music in this country. Celine Dion is not only a close friend of his, but she sings a lot of his songs on her albums and shows, albeit in English most of the time.

one of my dreams is to see him perform live in France someday. i've always just missed him in the past.

on that note, let me share one more of his videos. this one is with Carole Fredericks and Michael Jones. the three performed together until 1997 when Carole decided to try for a solo career. sadly, she died of a heart attack in 2001. She was originally from Boston.

the name of the song is A nos actes manques - All the things we missed doing...

Goldman"A Nos Actes Manques"

A tous mes loupés, mes ratés, mes vrais soleils
Tous les chemins qui me sont passés à côté
A tous mes bateaux manqués, mes mauvais sommeils
A tous ceux que je n'ai pas été

Aux malentendus, aux mensonges, à nos silences
A tous ces moments que j'avais cru partager
Aux phrases qu'on dit trop vite et sans qu'on les pense
A celles que je n'ai pas osées
A nos actes manqués

Aux années perdues à tenter de ressembler
A tous les murs que je n'aurais pas su briser
A tout c'que j'ai pas vu tout près, juste à côté
Tout c'que j'aurais mieux fait d'ignorer

Au monde, à ses douleurs qui ne me touchent plus
Aux notes, aux solos que je n'ai pas inventés
Tous ces mots que d'autres ont fait rimer et qui me tuent
Comme autant d'enfants jamais portés
A nos actes manqués

Aux amours échouées de s'être trop aimé
Visages et dentelles croisés justes frôlés
Aux trahisons que j'ai pas vraiment regrettées
Aux vivants qu'il aurait fallu tuer

A tout ce qui nous arrive enfin, mais trop tard
A tous les masques qu'il aura fallu porter
A nos faiblesses, à nos oublis, nos désespoirs
Aux peurs impossibles à échanger

A nos actes manqués

thanks for bearing with me on this long post...