Season 562 - Poetry in Song

[joo]

15 songs! 15 wonderful songs! Thank you, everyone!
I hope it will be like this everyday from here! Keep bringing them in!
And thanks to everyone who bothered to tell me a bit about your ukes, especially Lynda, who also shared about her experience with the strings she used, and that funny Fawlty Towers clip. So, thank you, Lynda!

Here are the comments. Please forgive me if I sound random or if my comments are like an essay for one person and then a haiku for another. I just write at the moment and I don't over think. If I have not thanked you in my comments, here is a big THANK YOU to everyone who has submitted songs so far.

Pa - Calico Pie, poem by Edward Lear, a Natalie Merchant song
Your singing is so soothing and gentle to the ears, and your uke sounds lovely, with you wonderful playing. This is so beautiful. It made me teared up a little bit, moved by the sweetness and beauty of this song. It does have a strong feeling of childhood. I love the poem. I love Edward Lear's nonsense poems. There is no nonsense in a child's world. Thanks for this little gem, Brian.

Wendy - Rave On, Raven, a mash up of The Raven by Edgar Allan Poe and Rave On by Buddy Holly
haha! If I didn't pay attention to the words I would not know it's The Raven. You sound lovely, Wendy. Very relaxed. You must do at a place like that. :---)

Wendy - Good Place for a Road, Robert Burns' "Epigram on Rough Roads" meets Gogol Bordello's "Start Wearing Purple"
Time for these emoji!! This is a brilliant mash-up, Wendy. I like the refrain!

Wendy - Go Stay Fetch, a cover of a Ken Galipeau song which was a poem by Les Barker
Poor dog!
I am back, Wendy! This is a charming little poem from Les and song from Ken! It sounds like a tongue twister to me, if i were to sing it. You did a lovely rendition here. And what a great verandah you got there to sit and play you uke!

John(jp888then) - The Man with the Blue Guitar ( part of a Wallace Stevens poem set to music)
This really does make these words come alive. I think this is really brilliant, what you did. wow. Love the mandolinny sound., and your...wailing, yeah, fantastic. I must say I find Stevens very hard to understand, but I still like his poems, I feel something in them. Thanks for this, John!

Rob - Them Stamp Lickers, a Mason Willams poem set to music
I have not seen this before. INSPIRED! The music you made here is AWESOME. Thanks so much for this, Rob! Your videos, and I mean your new ones too, work way better than coffee for me!

Steve - I Wanna Be Yours, a John Cooper-Clarke poem read to music
aww sweetest thing to say to the bride. Hope the sweetness continues till today! This is a truly wonderful bring, Steve. I have admired your little uke for a while now. Lovely reading from you too. Thank you so much!

Edwin - a cover of I Should Be Allowed to Think by They Might Be Giants, with 2 lines from Howl by Allen Ginsberg
there was a boy in art school who liked to quote that "I saw the best minds of my generation destroyed by madness" line in a smart-aleck way. It used to annoy me. Thinking back, it was true. I love this song! Thanks for this, Edwin!

Lynda - Beneath the Blissful Sky, an extract of Alfred Tennyson's poem "The Lotus-eaters" set to music
Thank you for showing us your uke! Gorgeous! I love what you wrote here, especially about the filigree hamster part! Thanks so much for sharing these things. I had the same problem with the aquila bari wound strings breaking like in just a few days. I will try the new ones. This song is STUNNING. Thank you, Lynda!

Graham - a cover of The Beatles's Here There And Everywhere, written by Paul McCartney
I was thinking of you when I linked that page of "musicians who are also poets" to my intro, seeing that you have covered a couple(or more) of them before, and more than once. I did wonder where you have been. It's nice to hear you, Graham. I love this song, and you sang it and played it so sweetly, thank you!

Alan - Eldorado by Edgar Allan Poe, set to music
WOW. Totally blown away by this, Alan! Your singing, playing, the way you set this to music. This is stunning to the max. Thank you so much! (Nice jacket you are wearing.)

Rob - I rely on you. A Hovis Presley(poet) mash up
I will check him out! I like that the poem is easy to understand and very playful! I think you are the master of playful. I LOVE this. Great film to go with the brilliant mash up. Great music you got there too, love the overlaying of voices, and that bass sound is the butter in the buttered scone!

Bob - The North Ship by Philip Larkin set to music
Speechless. This is quite...magical. I love the poem, and what you have done is utterly beautiful and moving. Great film footage too. The Garageband Erhu sounds like the real thing! That was a very lovely melody you played there. I used to try to learn the Erhu when I was around 17. It is not a very forgiving instrument to learn. Thanks for this, Bobby!

Wim - cover of U2's The Fly
wow, Wim. This is fabulous, man. Love the driving rhythm you got there. The tambourine is a great addition. Thanks for telling me what instruments you are playing here. I have never seen any Hudson ukes at the shops here in Singapore. Everything sounds pretty awesome to me. Anyway, I was slightly disappointed you didn't bring an Emily Dickinson poem but this is a great treat so I am very happy!

Pa - a lyric is a poem, an original about what poetry is
This is fantastic! What a great song/poem/whatever you wanna call it you have written! I like the soft accompanying uke, and your voice. This is the sort of stuff that makes the Seasons exciting and engaging. Thank you, Brian!

THANKS AGAIN, EVERYONE! KEEP THE SONGS COMING!

 

[wee_ginga_yin]

No music but a performance of a Bukowski poem which involves a dispute between partners and I play the female part. It shows how arguments can escalate, and looking on from the outside the conversation would be funny if it was not a sad reality.

For educational purposes only.

 

[joo]

Hey! ! am back again!

It is interesting to see how different people set a poem to song. I remember reading one of Bobby's comments on i think Lynda's video where she played her version of What's Home? He was wondering if there was ever a season where everyone played the same song? That would be interesting to me! (No, Bobby, there has never been a season like that, I don't think)
Maybe I will host a season like that one day..........

Here is the same poem. 2 versions.

Maggie and Milly and Molly and May
went down to the beach(to play one day)

and Maggie discovered a shell that sang
so sweetly she couldn't remember her troubles,and

Milly befriended a stranded star
whose rays five languid fingers were;

and Molly was chased by a horrible thing
which raced sideways while blowing bubbles:and

May came home with a smooth round stone
as small as a world and as large as alone.

For whatever we lose(like a you or a me)
it's always ourselves we find in the sea

Natalie Merchant sings Maggie & Milly & Molly & May, a poem by E.E. Cummings.


And, this is my version. I had not seen Natalie Merchant's version when I did mine. Glad i hadn't!

 

[wee_ginga_yin]

Hey! ! am back again!

It is interesting to see how different people set a poem to song. I remember reading one of Bobby's comments on i think Lynda's video where she played her version of What's Home? He was wondering if there was ever a season where everyone played the same song? That would be interesting to me! (No, Bobby, there has never been a season like that, I don't think)
Maybe I will host a season like that one day..........

Here is the same poem. 2 versions.

Maggie and Milly and Molly and May
went down to the beach(to play one day)

and Maggie discovered a shell that sang
so sweetly she couldn't remember her troubles,and

Milly befriended a stranded star
whose rays five languid fingers were;

and Molly was chased by a horrible thing
which raced sideways while blowing bubbles:and

May came home with a smooth round stone
as small as a world and as large as alone.

For whatever we lose(like a you or a me)
it's always ourselves we find in the sea

Natalie Merchant sings Maggie & Milly & Molly & May, a poem by E.E. Cummings.


And, this is my version. I had not seen Natalie Merchant's version when I did mine. Glad i hadn't!

season 33 was a season where everyone song the same song it was hosted by Ralf. I remember it well because as a prize I won a no name plastic uke from the 50's. It is now a prized possession. Thank you once again Ralf.

https://m.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL2xGE5eN6diFzGgCmecycW9mtDRarrd67

 

[joo]

season 33 was a season where everyone song the same song it was hosted by Ralf. I remember it well because as a prize I won a no name plastic uke from the 50's. It is now a prized possession. Thank you once again Ralf.

https://m.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL2xGE5eN6diFzGgCmecycW9mtDRarrd67

awesome!!! I just looked at the playlist! Gonna listen to all the songs soon! Thanks, Rob!
(several minutes later....after having watched most of the videos in the playlist)
Oh I miss peewee. He is so creative and such a good player, and very supportive.
And Rex, SillyDave, and I know Eric and Ukuleledaveey and Gary although when I joined they have left the Seasons...
and Doug and Maureen and John(29moons) and Sean!!! Oh I miss everyone!
And I love what Joko did!!! hahahahaha. This is such classic Joko madness. Love it.
And, Rob, I love the tango version of Take Me Out To The Ballgame. I have watched that video before. :--P
Awww...... this is totally a great idea to revisit! I wonder what everyone think?

 

[One Man And His Uke]

Oh I do love a Haiku, they can be as serious or as silly as you want. York Steve has already given us some John Cooper Clarke, and The Bard of Salford wrote one of the best Haiku ever imho

To-con-vey one’s mood
In sev-en-teen syll-able-s
Is ve-ry dif-fic

I wrote a load of these last night, here’s the first..
Haiku #1

When I was first born
I could not write a Haiku.
But now, I can do.


This is played on the Freshman soprano uke which was my first uke. It’s a bit rubbish tbh but it does a job

 

[One Man And His Uke]

Haiku #2

Squirrel sighs and sings
songs of love for nuts, and things.
”Macadamia!”

 

[One Man And His Uke]

Haiku #3

Please accept this ring
And let us wed in the Spring.
Or, just have a fling.

 

[One Man And His Uke]

Haiku #4

“Eat your greens”, they say.
This will baffle and confuse;
Why not “Eat your blues”?

 

[One Man And His Uke]

Haiku #5

(that’ll do for the time being )

Tenzing Norgay and
Dame Kiri Te Kanawa
Were secret pen pals.

 

[bobjking]

Hey, Joo, here's a song for option 2...

It's very much a downer, I'm afraid.

A Paul Westerberg song about the suicide of Sylvia Plath.
The title is taken from the final line of what is thought to be the last poem she wrote, just 6 days before her death.

 

[joo]

I am going to bed soon. Thought I will do a wrap-up for today's songs before I crash.

Rob performs This Dog by Charles Bukowski
so sad and funny at the same. Funny, when you performed it, and the way you twisted your beard into shape. I love that part. Especially at the start. I love how you read this. I think maybe Bukowski was terribly traumatised by the fights with his lover when he wrote this. I know nothing about him. I will find out. (Must be a really disturbed soul. The lady was very disturbing too) I totally love this. Thanks for sharing this, Rob!!! (If I were a man, I will definitely have a beard.)

John (One Man And His Uke) performs 5 haiku he wrote. (plural for Haiku is Haiku, I checked:--)
Haiku #1
you have no idea how loud I laughed out! This is epic. hahahaha. Somehow the layers you have on makes this very very VERY funny. Thank you so much, John! I love laughing and this really cracks me up. On second listen and watching (because this is way too short!) I noticed the "chores chart" on the wall and that just makes everything funnier to me!

Haiku#2
hahahahahahahaha! I have not even listened to the song but I laughed out when I read your haiku! (after having listened to the song) I am still laughing....This is so great, John. I actually have tears from laughing. Thanks for this brilliant haiku!
I came back to add how I like the way you sang "nuts"...maybe it's your accent...but I like that it was accentuated!

Haiku#3
haha! I love the unexpected in this. You even did a bit of acting. Wished you had looked at the camera all the way at the end. This is brilliant! Thanks, John!

Haiku#4
Fantastic, John! Wonderful playing and brilliant haiku! I love this one too! They are all great. I hope you don't mind that I was finding them funny if they are not meant to be. I love the humour in your haiku and I know it is cold as hell where you are, but the whole constricted feel from your warm clothing and scarf and beanie (and the chores chart) is such a funny contrast to the playfulness and humour in your writing. That was why I find everything very very funny. I love them all, thank you!!!!
I forgot to say how your Freshman uke sounds pretty nice to my ears. Thanks for sharing. Great name for a first uke. Now everything you wrote is like cracking me up. sorry....

Haiku#5
Ok! I needed to google a little bit here! Aha! wonder who gave who tips? Oh this is so fun! I started a thread on 1 minute (or less!) haiku songlets years ago...I will go put up some of the videos and images I have deleted and resurrect the thread!!! Thanks for your fantastic haiku, John!

Bobby covers Paul Westerberg's Crackle and Drag, a song he wrote about Sylvia Plath's suicide
I feel the sadness in Westerberg's lyrics....it is so well written, too well written for a tragedy like this. Utterly heartbreaking. Plath's line "her blacks crackle and drag" is so haunting. She had written about her own death. It is so sad. And the way you sing this....this is one of the most powerful and saddest songs I have heard. What you did here totally bring me to tears.

WOW. What a strange but great experience tonight. I had mixed emotions when I listened to Rob performed Bukowski's poem about what a woman said when she was fighting with her partner, then I cracked up at John's funny and brilliant haiku, all 5 of them, and then, I cried when I listened to Bobby sing about Sylvia Plath's suicide.
Thanks Rob, John and Bobby for your songs today!

Keep the songs, readings, performances, haiku, poems coming!!! I am loving this. See you all tomorrow!

PS.
Rob shared the playlist for Season 33, hosted by Ralf, where everyone played Take Me Out To The Ballgame.
See post #24
It is really interesting! Check out how everyone played the same song!

 

[mythinformed]

Great theme, Joo! And for me it once again raises the question of whether all or most song lyrics are simply poems set to music? With most of my own songwriting, the words come first. Where is the distinction?

Remove the music from the vast majority of songs and I don't think most lyrics would stand up alone as poetry. Do we always even really listen to song lyrics/words while theres a terrific hook in there or a masterful solo piece over shadowing them?

 

[wee_ginga_yin]

Another Mason Williams poem: Them toad suckers with Ukulele and dan moi. This refers to licking Psychedelic Toad Venom... which once was the New Trendy Hallucinogen.

 

[One Man And His Uke]

Remove the music from the vast majority of songs and I don't think most lyrics would stand up alone as poetry. Do we always even really listen to song lyrics/words while theres a terrific hook in there or a masterful solo piece over shadowing them?

Oh I don’t know Mark, take those Dutch/Belgian bards, 2Unlimited…

“No, no.
No, no, no, no.
No, no, no, no.
No, no there’s no limit….”

Has there ever been a more profound expression of there not being a limit than that?

 

[wee_ginga_yin]

Hey, Joo, here's a song for option 2...

It's very much a downer, I'm afraid.

A Paul Westerberg song about the suicide of Sylvia Plath.
The title is taken from the final line of what is thought to be the last poem she wrote, just 6 days before her death.

Dorethy Parker had a more optimistic point of view.

 

[Ila]

This might be low hanging fruit, but what the hell....A song based on the work of T.S. Eliot:

 

[xommen]

Well I guess you asked for this , a whole different beast then my previous song, o wait, what?

I used both my Baritons: Diamond Head DU-200B, Harley Benton Bariton EU Ukulele with PU. The Diamond Head is dead cheap laminate, and sounds great with Worth Browns. The HB has a solid top, and sports D'Adario Fluor carbons that are supposed to go on a Tenor in low D (EJ99TLG).

 

[Barbablanca]

I am hoping to get something up for this week, meanwhile here is one I put up for Welsh week. it's doubly poetic, since it is a Dylan Thomas poem set to the music of Bob Dylan's "All Along the Watchtower"

 

[ukudancer]

"O Holy Night" (also known as "Cantique de Noël") is a well-known Christmas carol. Originally based on a French-language poem by poet Placide Cappeau, written in 1843, with the first line "Minuit, chrétiens! c'est l'heure solennelle" (Midnight, Christians, is the solemn hour) that composer Adolphe Adam set to music in 1847. The English version is by John Sullivan Dwight.

I actually had no idea this song was based on a poem until I saw it on the wiki list...Anyway, this gave me a good excuse to finally learn this song. The video you see here is from two takes from last night between 11:45 and midnight. This would have been done faster if I didn't keep forgetting how the 2nd half of the song went. Hahaha.

Anyway, I used my main uke, the trusty Sparrow Flying V tenor through my usual guitar pedals (the Keeley Monterey, Keeley Seafoam Plus and Strymon Deco) going through my BOSS Katana > Zoom R20 multitrack recorder.

Apologies in advance for a slightly early Xmas tune...I really didn't intend to start so early.