Blog Schedule

I post on the first Wednesday of every month with an occasional random blog thrown in for good measure.
Showing posts with label The Doors. Show all posts
Showing posts with label The Doors. Show all posts

Monday, March 14, 2016

Music and Words Award

It's been a long time since I've been given an award. This one comes to me via FarAwayEyes at FarAwaySeries. I don't know how long we've been reading each other's blogs, but it's been a while now. She lived in the Virgin Islands for a time and that connected us as well.

This award seems fitting after last week's post about meeting a famous person. You can read about my encounter with Scott McKenzie HERE.


Here are the rules for this award: 
  1. Link back to the person who nominated you
  2. Answer the questions with words AND music
  3. Pass the award on to 5 bloggers who inspire you with their posts about music
  4. Tag your post with #MWA, for Music & Words Award so that we can all find you down the line
  5. Quote these 5 steps and the award icon in your post. You can display the icon on your sidebar as well. 
I don't know how to do "Tags", so I'm leaving that out. And, since I know many of you may not  have the time, I won't be passing on this award . BUT, if you would like to do, you are more than welcome to copy and paste. I've included a lot of music here and I don't expect you listen to it all, but maybe pick something and enjoy.

What does music mean to you?
I have to admit, though I don't listen to music as much as I used to, it remains a core part of my being. There's music everywhere, in the wind through the trees, in bird song, in the shushing of waves lapping on the shore. Most times, when I'm on the computer or writing Pandora Radio is on and I'm listening to my Bill Evans Radio or Heart Meditations Radio.

This is an improvisational and unrehearsed melody Bill Evans recorded for his 1958 album called "Everbody Digs Bill Evans."

What is your first music related memory?
There was music going on in my home from my infancy. No matter where we lived my father always had a record player so I grew up hearing all kinds of jazz and classical music. No only that, he played trombone and was always in some kind of band. I know from the time I was six or seven my sister and I were singing standards like "Mood Indigo", "I've Got You Under My Skin",  "A Foggy Day"... too many to name. I love, love, love, Ella Fitzgerald.

But one of my earliest musical memory dates to when I was five and my mother took my sister and me to see the San Francisco Ballet preform The Nutcracker. Maria Tall Chief, the first Native American prima ballerina, played the Sugar Plum Fairy. Mom thought I'd fall asleep but according to her I sat on her lap the entire time, fascinated. When we got home Dad played his record of Tchaikovsky's suite and I danced around the house, copying what I had seen on stage. I also remember before I was five singing Three Little Fishies, (this version is by Spike Jones from 1953 but was originally recorded by Kay Kyser in 1939)   How Much is that Doggie in the Window, (recorded by Patti Page in 1952) and A Tisket, A Tasket, (recorded by Ella in 1939 it was either being played on the radio or my father had a copy.)

What was the first album you’ve purchased yourself?
Because I spent the first 14/15 years of my life listening to jazz and classical, I didn't care for rock and roll. I certainly didn't like Elvis or Paul Anka or any of the doo wop groups. And, though it may be sacrilege to say (write) it, I didn't like the Beatles when they first came out either. So, when I finally spent my hard earned money it was on Frank Sinatra's 1965 album, "September of My Years." I no longer have the album, and in revisiting some of the tunes on YouTube, it's so very flowery... It's my second album that set me on the road to discovery. Yup it was The Doors who turned me on to rock. Summer of 1967 with the song The Crystal Ship. That was quickly followed by The Beatles, All You Need is Love from The Magical Mystery Tour. I was hooked.



What was the latest music you purchased?
I recently got to see Sara Hickman and bought one of her albums. She played this song. It was much better live, and she's quite an accomplished guitar player and very humorous. She was also the Texas State Musician for 2010. Sandwiched, as she said, between Willie Nelson (2009) and Lyle Lovett (2011).

And then... hubby got me this album for Valentine's by James Darren because we enjoyed him as the character,Vic, on Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. It's currently in the CD player of the car.


Which song did you listen to last?
Other than what I'm currently listening to on Pandora? Which is Lush Life by John Hicks... I would have to say it was Strange Brew by Cream. On the Classic Vinyl channel of Sirius XM. Look at the hair and clothes!

I was enthralled with Ginger Baker's drumming. I remember getting Dad to listen to the song Toad. Then he said, "Listen to this. This is the man who introduced drums as a solo instrument." His solo is at about 1:45 and short and sweet. But you can hear why they called his drumming scary. And his kit, like Bakers, so small compared to what most drummers have now. Amazing what they were able to do.

And that's it for me with the Music and Words Award!

***
Being Thankful
Today I'm thankful for, what else, MUSIC!

What are you thankful for? Are any of these artists new to you? Familiar with any of them? Do you like jazz/rock/classical? 

Monday, September 14, 2015

Alternatives, Origins, Being Thankful, and Guest Posting at March of Time Books

Today I'm a guest at March of Time Books (formerly March House Books.) Hope you'll take a few moments to stop by to read about a few of my favorite childhood books!

Alternatives is a post in which I give synonyms for an over used word. Click on the tab above for a "complete" list of over used words.


Today's word is:

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Watch it appear and disappear... I'm going to let you add your own "s" or "ed" for words such as dawns/dawned or change the tense for words such as arose or blew up.


Depending on how you use it, this list may come in handy for finding another way to say the same thing.

act, actualize, arise, arrive, attend

be apparent, be clear, be created, be developed, be evident, be invented, be manifest, be obvious, be patent, be plain, be present, be produced, be published, be published, be revealed, be within view, become apparent, become available, become evident, become visible, blossom, blow in, bob up, break, break out, break through, breeze in, bulk

check in, clock in, come, come across as, come forth, come into being, come into existence, come into sight, come into view, come off as, come on the market, come out, come to light, come/came across as being, commence, crop up

dawn, debut, develop, drop in

emerge, engender, erupt, expose

feel, form

get here/there, get in, get through, give/gave the impression of being, got on sale

happen

issue

land, look as if, look to be, loom

make, make the scene, manifest itself, materialize

occur, originate, outcrop

perform, play, pop in, pop up, present, punch in, punch the clock, put in an appearance

reappear, recur, rematerialize, resurface, ring in, rise, roll in

seem, seem to be, set in, shoot up, show, show one’s face, show up, sound, spring, start, strike someone as being, surface

time in, turn out, turn up

unfold
***
I haven't included a video in a while but when I saw BREAK THROUGH as an alternative for appear, I immediately thought of Break on Through by The Doors.


You know the day destroys the night
Night divides the day
Tried to run, Tried to hide
Break on through to the other side
Break on through to the other side
Break on through to the other side, yeah

We chased our pleasures here
Dug our treasures there
But can you still recall
The time we cried
Break on through to the other side
Break on through to the other side

Yeah! C'mon, year

Everybody loves my baby
Everybody loves my baby
She gets (high)
She gets (high)
She gets (high)
She gets (high)

I found an island in your arms
Country in your eyes
Arms that chain
Eyes that lie
Break on through to the other side
Break on through to the other side
Break on through, oww!
Oh, yeah!

Make the scene
Week to week
Day to day
Hour to hour
The gate is straight
Deep and wide
Break on through to the other side
Break on through to the other side
Break on through
Break on through
Break on through
Break on through
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah



***

Origins is a post in which I delve into the history of a word or phrase.

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Today's word is: DAWN
I chose this word because it's in the above list.

From the 1200 centuray word dauen, meaning "to dawn, grow light," which is a shortened form of dauinge or dauing meaning the "period between darkness and sunrise," which is from the Old English word dagung which comes from dagian meaning "to become day," which is from the Proto-Germanic word dagaz, "day" (which has the same ancestor as tagen meaning "to dawn.") Probably influenced from Scandinavian words such as the Danish dagan and Old Norse dagan, meaning "a dawning."

Being Thankful
Today I'm thankful for trees!
All kinds of trees. Here are a few from the islands.
 Kapok tree on St. John

 Rain tree at Cinnamon Bay National Park Camp Ground, St. John. My friend Margaret on the left, me on the right.

 One of two Baobab trees on St. Thomas that are several 100 years old.

An African tulip tree, St. Thomas

 Some of my classmates and me on a tree that was blown down in a storm many, many long years ago yet kept on growing.
***
So, what are you thankful for? Any new ideas "dawning" on you? Got a favorite alternative for appear? How about, Morrison and his pouty look? I was definitely intrigued by him when I was teen.

Monday, June 1, 2015

Alternatives

Alternatives is a recurring post in which I give synonyms for an over used word. Click on the tab above for a "complete" list of over used words.



Today's word is:

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Quick, what's the first synonym for the word end that comes to mind. No thinking about it. I came up with stop.  


"End", however, can be used in a number of different ways. I was a bit surprised.


For example:

stopping a process: cease, cutoff 
a real or imagined point beyond which you cannot go: boundary, cap, ceiling
an unused or unwanted item, usually small and of little value: scrap, oddment, refuse
something one hopes to accomplish: aim, ambition, dream
the last and usually sharp or tapering part of something long and narrow: apex, cusp, tip
the last part of a process or action: close, conclusion, finale
the line or narrow space that marks the outer limit of something: border, edge, rim, fringe
the permanent stopping of vital bodily functions: death, exit, fate
something belonging to, due to, or contributed by an individual member of a group: allotment, piece


Depending on how you use it, this list may come in handy for finding another way to say the same thing.

abeyance, aftermath, aim, allotment, allowance, ambition, annihilation, annul, anticlimax, apex, area, arrest/arrestment, aspect, aspiration, assassination, ax

balance, bar, barrier, border, borderline, bound, boundary, bourne/bourn, break/break off, brim, bring to a close, butt end

call off, cancel, cap/capper, cap stone, casualty, cease, ceiling, cessation, check, chip, climax, circumference, close/closing, closedown, closure, coda, come to a head, come to an end, compass, conclude/conclusion, confine/confines, consummation, copestone, coup de grace, crescendo, crown, culminate/culmination, curtail, curtains, cusp, cut, cutoff

deadline, death, decease, demise, denouement, design, desire, destination, destruction, discontinue/discontinuation, dissolution, dissolve , doom, downfall, draw to a close, dream, dying

edge/edging, endgame, epilogue, execution, expiration, exit, expiration, expiry, extent, extermination, extinction, extremity

fag end, fatality, fate, fence, field, finale, finis, finish, flake, fragment, frame, fringe, furthest point, foot

goal, grail, grand finale, grave, great devide

halt, head, hedge, heel, hem, holy grail, high-water mark, home stretch, hope

idea/ideal, intent/intention, interruption

kill/killing

lapse, layoff, leavings, leftover, letup, limit/limitation, line

margin, mark, martyrdom, massacre, meaning, meridian, mind, mop-up, moratorium, motive

neb, nib, nirvana

object/objective, oddment, odds and ends, offset, outside,

part, passage, passing, pause, peak, piece, perimeter, periphery, peroration, phase out, pickings, piece, pike, pinnacle, plan, plot, point, portion, postscript, pretension, project, prong, province, purpose, put an end,

quietus, quota

refuse, remain/remainder/remains, remnant, residual/residue, resolution, rest, restraint, ribbons, rim, ruin, ruination

scheme, scraps/scrapings, section, segment, self-destruction, self-murder, self-slaughter, shank, share, shred, shutoff, side, skirt/skirting, slaughter, sleep, slice, sliver, spire, splinter, standstill, stay, stop/stoppage, stub, stump, suicide, summit, surcease, suspension

tag end, tail, tail end, take, target, tatter, term, terminal/terminate/termination/terminus, thing, tip, top, tip-top,

ultimate

verge, vestige

wall, Waterloo, windup, wish, wrap-up

zenith

This was a  radical song when it came out in 1967. I was 17. Viet Nam was raging. Riots and protests were happening across the U. S. and tensions were high around the world.

Jim Morrison said of this song: "Everytime I hear that song, it means something else to me. It started out as a simple good-bye song... Probably just to a girl, but I see how it could be a goodbye to a kind of childhood. I really don't know. I think it's sufficiently complex and universal in its imagery that it could be almost anything you want it to be."


On the flip side... so as not to leave you broken and depressed... that same year The Beatles gave us, All You Need is Love.


My generation was schizophrenic. :)
Got a favorite alternative for the word end? Are you a Door and/or Beatles fan?

Thursday, January 14, 2010

The Doors

I grew up listening to my father's music which was mostly jazz and music from the Big Band Era. I can still sing along with or hum the tunes to a ton of the old standards. My love for the music of the '30s and '40s, led to my singing (if only for a short time) in a jazz trio. So when the Beatles arrived on the scene, I didn't get it. I didn't understand all the hoop-la about rock 'n' roll.

Then came the summer of 1967. The Summer of Looooooove.There was a tremendous amount of stuff happening musically; the Beatles came out with Sgt. Peppers and Magical Mystery Tour and there were hits by, Jefferson Airplane, Pink Floyd, Small Faces, Cream, Procol Harum, the Rolling Stones, the Velvet Underground, the Who and Jimi Hendrix, just to name a few.

But I still didn't get...
...until the Doors snuck into my room, invading my eardrums with "Light My Fire." They just sounded so different from other bands, no base...it was electric keyboard, guitar, drums and jeese, that guy Jim Morrison singing. I liked their songs. Their lyrics were so... so different and Morrison was so...you know...hot. They didn't have the aura of being light and fun-loving like the Beatles nor did they have the bad-boy image of the Rolling Stones. They were something other, they were moody, dark and mysterious. They appealed to my dark, moody, mysterious teen-aged self.

I loved and had no idea what "Horse Latitudes" meant. I still love it and still don't know what the heck, if anything, it means.

When the still sea conspires an armor
And her sullen and aborted
Currents breed tiny monsters
True sailing is dead
Awkward instant
And the first animal is jettisoned
Legs furiously pumping
Their stiff green gallop
And heads bob up
Poise
Delicate
Pause
Consent
In mute nostril agony
Carefully refined
And sealed over

(Don't ask me why but I laugh every time I hear/read the line, "In mute nostril agony.")
Was there a first group, a first kind of music, that inspired, or moved you along your path in life? I give FULL credit to the Doors for leading me into the mansion called Rock 'n' Roll, but it was the Beatles who eventually won first place in my heart, and in whose room within the mansion, I spent/spend the most time.