Led Zeppelin. "Over The Hills and Far Away" from the Houses of the Holy album. Jimmy Page and Robert Plant. John Bonham. John Paul Jones. The original heavy metal band.
This song does not start as many other Led Zeppelin songs do. It is an amazingly beautiful acoustic guitar introduction that makes this song worth listening to. Add to it, Zeppelin's usual excellent lyrics and it became a perennial favorite of mine.
Released in 1973, it only reached 51 on the Billboard charts. For the song Page started with an acoustic six string guitar and then repeats the theme with an acoustic twelve string guitar. "Lady, got the love on me, maybe, more than enough. Oh darlin', darlin', darlin', walk a while with me..."
Listen to it!
Sunday, February 13, 2011
Thursday, February 10, 2011
Tu Es Partout
Perhaps the greatest torch singer of the 1940s and 1950s Edith Piaf's best remembered songs are: La Vie En Rose, Les Trois Cloches, and Je Ne Regrette Rien. Tu Es Partout was prominently featured in "Saving Private Ryan." It's haunting refrain stayed with me long after I left the theater. (Yes, I know the movie is from 1998.)
Piaf's life mirrored the tragic music she sang. Her personal heartaches may have led her music to take on a more poignant quality. Whatever the cause, it stirs my soul every time I listen to something she recorded. If you do not understand French fluently, do not worry. Her voice transcends language. So raw, so melancholy, so beautiful, one cannot help but feel the pull of the music.
Tu Es Partout interested me in Edith Piaf. I fell in love with her voice, as I often do with beautiful music. I urge you to listen and appreciate a different era of music. A time when the world was at war. When Big Band/Swing was the highlight of the dance halls and nobody's jukebox had been touched by "Rock 'N Roll."
Piaf's life mirrored the tragic music she sang. Her personal heartaches may have led her music to take on a more poignant quality. Whatever the cause, it stirs my soul every time I listen to something she recorded. If you do not understand French fluently, do not worry. Her voice transcends language. So raw, so melancholy, so beautiful, one cannot help but feel the pull of the music.
Tu Es Partout interested me in Edith Piaf. I fell in love with her voice, as I often do with beautiful music. I urge you to listen and appreciate a different era of music. A time when the world was at war. When Big Band/Swing was the highlight of the dance halls and nobody's jukebox had been touched by "Rock 'N Roll."
Wednesday, February 9, 2011
Glory Days...
Bruce Springsteen. 1985. Born in the USA album. #5 on the Billboard Hot 100. Teaching high school and middle school reminds me of the value others place upon athletic success. I love this song cause it talks about how some folks want to recapture their past victories. My students, my players are making lifetime memories right now. I just hope they realize one can only remember the past, not actually relive it. :)
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