262. You Want It Darker.

The last song of UWC in 2014 This was well past the dead of night and on into the wee hours around 3:30AM on a Sunday morning. It had been raining for a good while and someone or other had been on this stage singing for about 14 hours... Dark Enough?



Participants include Thom Dawg, Marion Koleski, Matt Lindahl, Mim, Bonita Jerry, Tinafish, Pueo, ....

thank you for these last posts tonight Alan.
looking forward to watching these and others tomorrow evening.
saying g'night now folks. thanks again to everyone for the performances posted today.
will leave you with this.

Not sure if this song is about nuns or ladies of the night.
Mr Cohen always dealt in ambiguities.

CeeJay said:

Wilco Johnson, Lee Brilleaux and the rest of the gang on " Stupidity ". The live album and the best LP of my yoof ...from a Rhythm and Blues Band from dahn sarf ..... Dr Feelgood and the 70's,my best time.

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Damn you, CeeJay, for doing a belting version of the very song I decided to do last night (but put off recording until today). You see, I grew up listening to Dr Feelgood too. So here goes...(and do I get a bonus point for using a uke which came from a Mountain Goat clearance sale?)

262-2

Starry, Starry night....

mountain goat said:

Joko. Ballad Of The Absent Mare.
The only thing better than one Joko is two Jokos. And what a song. I can guarantee there is no cover of this song anywhere quite like this mate. Ha! Loose and wild in the best way. You always make me smile. Thanks brother.

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I covered this some time ago and whilst doing some research I came across a reference to Cat Stevens
"Catch Bull at 4" which is an oblique reference to some Japanese woodcuts which is called "Ten Bulls"
which is a Zen Buddhist wood print and reflects on the stages of personal growth and discovery.

Ten Bulls

Now Cohen was always interested in Buddhist philosophy, as well as Judaism and Christianity, and
in the ballad of the Absent Mare when you analyse it, the steps and stages that he goes through with
the Horse are exactly parallel to the steps taken towards enlightenment via the 10 bulls.

Here is my analysis with the 10 woodcuts, Lyrics and the 10 stages to enlightenment... and there you
were all thinking it was just a silly old cowboy song. I will have to listen to Joku's version now.

Ballad of an absent mare analysis

Μαύρη είναι η νύχτα, Mavri einai i nychta

A song of mine that concerns Leonard, among others.
He and Castro died within a week of one another, as you know, did you know that they were both pallbearers for the senior PM Trudeau, Jimmy Carter and the Aga Kahn?

I seem to recall that Cohen said it was about two young ladies who provided him with oral favors one evening. If so, it may be significant that he dedicated it to Anne Richards, the then Governor of Texas on "Austin City Limits" once (their highest rated show ever at the time) while mentioning that his Country was also ruled by a female.

wee_ginga_yin said:

Not sure if this song is about nuns or ladies of the night.
Mr Cohen always dealt in ambiguities.

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2 sides of Mark Wo- part Punk, part Crooner

Of course, when I wasn't listening to Dr Feelgood, I was down at the 70s disco, strutting my stuff to The Trammps...

I had a great time last weekend at a ukulele event in a hotel near Hadrians wall on the border between Northumerland and Cumbria, Englands two Northernmost counties. I came away with a 6 string ukulele which I am playing here on a traditional song. I gave it an outing last night and a friend commented that the extra strings gave it a fuller sound. It's tuned g cC E aA so octave pairs on the first and third string and also it makes for a double re-entrant tuning.

I've included some information on the song below the video.


The title of this traditional song is also the name given to a category of songs where a woman [usually] is visited in the night by her lover. One explanation of this is that it is a reference to somewhat more relaxed attitudes to sexual matters in earlier times than we are usually led to believe. I find this on one site dealing with traditional songs

Before the times of Puritanism in Scotland, it seems the country was quite permissive in sexual matters, and the practice of bundling is still remembered in the Orkney Isles. The custom was to allow a courting couple to be bedded together with sacks tied round the waists to prevent complete consummation of their love, although presumably what could be tied could also be untied. The night visiting songs common to the whole of Northern Europe were a celebration of this practice.

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In another group of these songs the woman is visited by the ghost of a dead lover who has to depart before the dawn announced by the cock crow. In most of these the cock crows too early and the lover has to go too soon.

This version of the song the lover is definitely alive and warm It was popularised by the Dubliners but actually came from Scotland but there are versions of the song from all over the UK and from North America. In one I hear fairly regularly locally, the lover has been shipwrecked and drowned in the Bay of Biscay and has come back to let his love know his fate.

Season 262. Submission 3. "One Night The Moon" (Written and recorded by Paul Kelly, 2001)


Jon, I first heard the magnificent songsmith Paul Kelly through your sensitive interpretations. When I heard Pa cover his songs, the deal was closed for me. Now, when I've a bit of a car trip in store, I reach for his "A To Z" recordings and I could care less how long the trip takes. The longer, the better.

A few months ago, Pa covered this one. His recording was so powerful that I put it on my "Watch Later" Tube list. I've
returned to it for a listen many times.

Jon, I offer it here with an apology. I had never recorded more than one track with just me before. I should have videoed
my playing of the concert resonator uke, instead of the tenor guitar. Duh. I didn't catch it until this was uploaded on the Tube. Anyway, the reso uke is front and center in the song..... but not the vid. Mea culpa.

This one is sent in gratitude to you and Brian ..... who gave me Paul Kelly.

Here's my offering for You Want It Darker, an old folk song, In The Pines. There's killing, shivering out in the woods at night, and all sorts of dastardly dark things happening...

Dreaming

<TCK>Thank you all for your comments on my Ukulele Ike song...I found a few of them amusing though. A few folks (who had probably seen enough of my thing to make them nauseous) said that the style really suited me (don't feed the animals gang- hard fast rule!). It dawned on me that some of my friends do not remember a time when we traded songs like these back and forth all the time.
So, I bought Melissa an ukulele (she wanted a banjo) and I had to figure out how to teach her to play the darn thing, so I took to Youtube. A quick search of the dark side of humana (that is said with love folks) there quickly brought up a video of a plucky fellow playing an ukulele and singing a tune called "When You Wore a Tulip". He was dressed like he might have bumped his head hard, and he introduced himself with a note card...but man when he played that song! I called to Melissa and spit my coffee everywhere, went and subscribed and was sad to see that there was only one video.
I checked every day for more and eventually my prayers were answered...and they came in droves. I decided to contact this fellow, and we began to trade songs back and forth on a regular basis. All the while I was studying what he did and trying to play those tunes. He invited me to judge his season before I had played in one, and the rest is history.
Now, I don't play these songs like Jon does, but what a delight I get in just playing them. I guess it is occurring to me that I have not done them in years, and it might be time to rinse them out again. He sure was one hell of a teacher. Those old videos no longer exist...he knows I wish they did, but I have excellent recall. I suppose if he had said "play upbeat songs this week", I would be searching for the saddest stuff I could find.
Instead, I am looking at a pile of 78's and learning some oldies for you.
I am at Bb, F, and C7 here, so get your ukes and play along-
Last Night
Hank Penny
King Records #507B March 1945
78 RPM
Thanks for the reason and inspiration Pancho</TCK>

And the road goes on forever ... My apologies for trying this with sinus troubles, but here we go --

paoriginal

What an incredible day of music. And here I was longing for nightfall.
Just gonna try and back off the sunset awhile now.
I heard this today. I hope y'all heard some of it too.
This week is a joy. Unexpected surprises, memories, the whole gutload of emotions.
And it's cause of you all. Thank you.

Pops. Treaty.
As deeply affecting a performance as I've heard for many a long while brother. This is jawdropping good. I know because I started dribbling. thank you pops.
Rob. Sisters Of Mercy.
The effects you ran through this really add to the gravity of the performance Rob. It's a beautiful one in every way. The*emotion in your voice is almost visceral. Thank you.
Steve. Back In The Night.
Extremely well done mate. Very smooth playing and singing. I be feelin real good after this. Thanks Steve.
Rex. Vincent.
Extremely moving vocal mate. Beautiful performance. Thank you.
Pops. Black Is The Night On The Mountains.
What a song! Thanks for this gem brother. Superbly performed.
Mark. Scream A Little Dream Of Me.
I suffer from your issues too mate. There's drugs you can take to fix this stuff though. But don't you dare take em. Don't want you to go changing Mark. ever. This is gold mate. Cheers.
Steve. Hold Back The Night.
Oh yes! YES!!!!! So good. thanks for this ripper brother. Wasn't expecting this at all. Brilliantly done Steve. thank you.
Geoff. The Night Visiting Song.
I sung this many years ago also Geoff...when I went through my old time Scottish music phase. Beautifully rendered my friend. Your voice is so authentic and the instrument sounds clean and sweet. Thank you brother.
Linda. One Night The Moon.
Gee this is special. Gorgeous arrangement. These instruments blend so well together Linda and your voice. Your voice. And your other voice. *It's a joy to see the development in your playing and singing over the last couple of years. Just outstanding. Thank you.
Phil. In The Pines.
Great playing Phil. And there's a real depth and truth in your voice. Brilliant choice of song mate. Thank you.
Paul. Dreaming.
Ripper song Paul. Your voice is like some magical elixir to me. Every time I listen to you sing it's like a moth to the flame, a magnet to my soul. You always, always have that effect on me. I love hearing you sing and play mate. Thank you brother.
Alan. Some Days It Rains All Night Long.
Another smooth and sweet and sad performance mate. You really have a lovely voice. Beautiful song. Thank you Alan.
Lefty. Last Night.
glad you dropped in Lefty. awesome laid back real*stuff as per the*Cloverdale MO. what a song mate! and you're still the best whistler I ever heard.
Rick H. Midnight Rider.
YES!!!! Rick! You brought the Allman Brothers! Nice version brother, done up just right. Thanks mate.
Brian. Passover.
Seriously? Not sure how anyone can compete with this Brian. One of the finest songs I've heard in sometime. You are so talented it's scary sometimes. Thank you mate.