SOTU 584 - Death and Life (Funeral Farewells)

[hands_on_lanzon]

Greetings current and aspiring Seasonistas!

It's my first time hosting, so please bear with me as I try to keep up with entries, playlists, comments, etc. Please feel free to ping or PM me with comments, questions, or tips on how I might improve!

Theme
One of my go to Spotify playlists is one I put together called Death and Life. I thought of it when a well known tattooer passed away and asked to play Jerry Garcia's version of "I Shall Be Released" at his funeral. I've always thought of my main funeral proceedings vibe being Normal Greenbaum's "Spirit in the Sky", but there are many other great songs that fit the bill. I realized they don't have to be songs just about death and dying. They should also be songs in celebration of life or perhaps a message you'd like to pass on to those listening to either help their mourning, drive them deeper into mourning, or to live their life in a meaningful way. Maybe it's just a song you love or something to make folks laugh.

@Voran posted this one a little while ago:

I want this played at my funeral

I am a giant child, I know. Never grew out of it.

forum.ukuleleunderground.com

Here's my opening entry, recorded earlier this week.
It was perfect timing, with the beautiful sakura blossoms reminding us of the transient and fleeting nature of this life!

The Rules

• No limit to number of entries. I'll do my best to keep up, but play away and free!
• Collaborations and multi-tracking are welcomed.
• No videos should be posted before 12:00 AM Hawaii time, Sunday 4/23/2023.
• Season ends at 11:59:59 PM Hawaii time next Sunday, 4/30/2023.

The Prize
I'll select three (3) of my favorites based on my gut feel for lyrics, meaning, vibe... something I might add to my personal playlist or that I really feel the Seasonista might add to theirs. The winners will receive a hand-painted postcard inspired by the song.

Here are some example postcards I painted for some friends back in the 2020 lockdown madness:



I hope this week provides a little memento mori. Enjoy!

Playlist

 

[Voran]

Oooh I got one...

 

[TCK]

Welcome sir, fun theme here and excellent prize idea! Thanks for hosting

 

[Ziret]

Greetings current and aspiring Seasonistas!

It's my first time hosting, so please bear with me as I try to keep up with entries, playlists, comments, etc. Please feel free to ping or PM me with comments, questions, or tips on how I might improve!

Theme
One of my go to Spotify playlists is one I put together called Death and Life. I thought of it when a well known tattooer passed away and asked to play Jerry Garcia's version of "I Shall Be Released" at his funeral. I've always thought of my main funeral proceedings vibe being Normal Greenbaum's "Spirit in the Sky", but there are many other great songs that fit the bill. I realized they don't have to be songs just about death and dying. They should also be songs in celebration of life or perhaps a message you'd like to pass on to those listening to either help their mourning, drive them deeper into mourning, or to live their life in a meaningful way. Maybe it's just a song you love or something to make folks laugh.

@Voran posted this one a little while ago:

I want this played at my funeral

I am a giant child, I know. Never grew out of it.

forum.ukuleleunderground.com

Here's my opening entry, recorded earlier this week.
It was perfect timing, with the beautiful sakura blossoms reminding us of the transient and fleeting nature of this life!

The Rules

• No limit to number of entries. I'll do my best to keep up, but play away and free!
• Collaborations and multi-tracking are welcomed.
• No videos should be posted before 12:00 AM Hawaii time, Sunday 4/23/2023.
• Season ends at 11:59:59 PM Hawaii time next Sunday, 4/30/2023.

The Prize
I'll select three (3) of my favorites based on my gut feel for lyrics, meaning, vibe... something I might add to my personal playlist or that I really feel the Seasonista might add to theirs. The winners will receive a hand-painted postcard inspired by the song.

Here are some example postcards I painted for some friends back in the 2020 lockdown madness:

View attachment 151245

I hope this week provides a little memento mori. Enjoy!

Playlist

Hey you can share your Spotify playlists, and yours sounds like just what I need. My Spotify user name is teriz. Would you mind sending it? Meanwhile I’m thinking what to play. Good idea.

 

[hands_on_lanzon]

Hey you can share your Spotify playlists, and yours sounds like just what I need. My Spotify user name is teriz. Would you mind sending it? Meanwhile I’m thinking what to play. Good idea.

Here's the link to my playlist...


I'll see if I can find you and share with you directly, but I think you can listen from the link above as well.

 

[Voran]

 

[pabrizzer]

for sotu 584 - gospel songs tend to be very optimistic about where god's people go after death

 

[Canada Jim]

In Dead Earnest - Lee Hayes/Pete Seeger

Thanks for hosting and for giving me a reason to sing this one.

 

[UkeCan1]

I was going to bring you the song I "co-wrote" with my dad in the last weeks of his life, but the part he wrote contains lots of beautiful jazz chords that are still at the edge of my capabilities. I'd like to be able to play it cleanly for once, so I'm going to attempt to get it there by tomorrow.

Then I remembered the much simpler and more lighthearted song I wrote about my cat Twinny, who made it to age 18 and in her final years took delight in walking outdoors on a leash. But even though she's been gone almost a decade and I very rarely think of her, I just could not get through the final verse and chorus without bawling and blubbering. Someone must have been cutting onions in my living room, it's the only explanation.

So, since I still wanted to get something done for you before my Sunday ends, I channeled that grieving energy toward someone I didn't know personally, but who nevertheless met his sad end way too soon.

I wore black and played a black uke to honor him properly.

By the way, good sir ... perhaps everyone else here already knows, but since you are a relatively new Seasonista and I haven't yet made your acquaintance, perhaps you would be so kind as to share your first name?

 

[wee_ginga_yin]

For Eucaryotes given the correct temperature and enough food perhaps they can lead the timeless life... Oh death where is thy sting?

 

[Charley B]

I'm getting cremated ...

 

[LimousinLil]

Hello, and thank you for hosting ... yes, please let us know your first name, "Hands-On!" This song fits more into the philosophy for living category, although it takes a bit of a nose dive in the last verse, which means that it would probably NOT be suitable for funerals or life celebrations! (And, yes ... I'm getting cremated, too!)

 

[hands_on_lanzon]

By the way, good sir ... perhaps everyone else here already knows, but since you are a relatively new Seasonista and I haven't yet made your acquaintance, perhaps you would be so kind as to share your first name?

Sure thing! I'm Chris. Pleasure to meet you all!

I'm horrible with names... it'll take me a while to learn all of yours.

 

[Canada Jim]

A couple of John Prine tunes that suit Chris's Season 584. Here you go Chris:

Please Don't Bury Me - John Prine

When I Get to Heaven - John Prine

 

[Bystander]

Nice to be back home and able to participate in a season again, thank you for hosting, some good songs on your spotify playlist. This Lennon song seems to fit the theme and luckily it's one that's in my repertoire.

 

[hands_on_lanzon]

Been working on this Dave Matthews piece called "Sweet." His vocals are no joke, but fun to attempt.

He wrote this one on ukulele in a hotel room, when his son was going swimming. The first time I heard it, I thought of persistence during the struggles of life, the feelings of letting go and giving in, getting buried and covered in dirt, then the sweet ethereal feeling of the spirit making it out and floating away.

 

[bobjking]

Thanks for stepping up to the plate, Chris and good luck on your debut hosting!
Here's a Handsome Family number that sits very firmly in the 'songs about death and dying' camp. It features a sad farewell to all manner of critters great and small.
Bobby 2 joins me on harmony vocal and a banjolele solo (I've never noticed before just how loudly that guy breathes through his nose! He's a nice enough fella though, so I won't hold it against him...)

Anyway, I hope you enjoy your season!

 

[UkeCan1]

All that practice I did yesterday seems to have sunk in overnight ... which I guess is the nature of practice. I managed to get through my original song for my cat with only an appropriate, and not derailing, amount of emotion. And my dad song chords are in much better shape now - I hope to bring you that one this afternoon.

Teeny and Twinny, whose nicknames are short for their full names, 18 and 27, were feral kittens my housemates and I rescued from the New Brunswick, New Jersey highway junction on-ramp where they spent their first months of life in 1995. (Yes, that's right - they were named for the two highways, NJ State Routes 18 and 27.)

The housemates didn't think my plan of keeping them as pets was a good idea ... but the girls and I proved them wrong. Teeny lived 13.5 years, and Twinny 18 - the two longest animal relationships of my life. Getting over their wild streak was a process that continued for years, but they quickly became the sweetest lovingest kitties you could want to meet. They loved each other, and me, and they loved life.

After Teeny died, Twinny lost her spark and seemed so depressed that I feared I would lose her too. Then one day, after about a month, she just seemed to suddenly "get it" - "Oh, this is my life now!" ... and my sweet girl was back.

One day I discovered her at the bottom of the stairs by the front door, after years of showing zero interest in leaving the house. I promptly put a leash and harness on her and took her for a walk. She loved it so much that we went "walking" almost daily for the last three years of her life - even in snow.

Cats don't walk like dogs. Teeny used to go out on the leash occasionally, and would mostly just lay down in the grass and enjoy being outdoors. When she got up, she would immediately attempt to explore behind the bushes, or some other place not conducive to leash walking.

Twinny proved a better leash walker than her sister had been, and would actually walk a bit, though she mostly meandered around aimlessly, often in the middle of our (thankfully not too busy) suburban street. Occasionally people would walk by, and would marvel at the strange sight of this tiny kitty on a leash (she lost almost half her weight in her last years due to health problems. She didn't seem to notice the kerb - she would just kind of fall into the street, then nonchalantly pick herself up and keep going. Toward the end it dawned on me that she may have been blind during that time - but it didn't seem to faze her.

At some point I tried to train her to walk in a straight line ... and one day we did successfully make it all the way Into town, three blocks away, and back home again. Once we reached the busy main street, she kept wanting to walk right out into the traffic!

Everything in the song is true. She walked with me to the big noisy crowded Memorial Day parade on that busy main street, where she met several dogs, including a big one who barked at her, and several smaller ones who befriended her. She appeared to love all of it - even the fire engine horns, marching bands, and drum corps. She was a big hit that day, and the subject of many photographs.

That afternoon, a beautiful late spring May day, I drove about 45 minutes to an outdoor music party. By that time, Twinny was requiring medical care every couple of hours, so I had to take her with me if I was going to go anywhere. I selfishly wanted to ride with the top down, but feared the additional noise and wind might freak her out, let alone just being in the car. Up till then, the only times she'd ever been in the car were the very short and terrifying ride home from the onramp as a kitten, and the even shorter (6 blocks) occasional trips to the vet ... and one 20-minute trip to the emergency vet the night Teeny died - always in a carrier, and always unpleasant and scary for both cats. She'd never been on an interstate highway at full speed, or on a drive this long.

I guess her recent embrace of everything I thought should have terrified her must have emboldened me, because I decided to go for the top-down drive. She sat calmly and relaxed the entire time, and even seemed to enjoy herself. At the party, she was a big hit with my friends. She spent part of the day in the company of people, and part off by herself resting. She seemed to be loving the party when she was with us, even though she was pretty sick by then and was obviously not feeling well.

I'd been getting her (and myself) ready for how I was going to take her with me to a weeklong camping music festival in July/August. She'd spent a night or two in my backyard in a tent to get used to it, and I was figuring out all the logistics.

One beautiful morning in June, as we sat at my backyard table, Twinny in my lap, enjoying the outdoors she'd grown tove so much, she quietly slipped off to her next adventure.

Somewhere she and Teeny are romping freely together, or just laying side by side, purring and nuzzling and content. They lived great lives, and I'm grateful I got to share it with them ... and for this opportunity to remember them today.

 

[hands_on_lanzon]

Thanks for stepping up to the plate, Chris and good luck on your debut hosting!
Here's a Handsome Family number that sits very firmly in the 'songs about death and dying' camp. It features a sad farewell to all manner of critters great and small.
Bobby 2 joins me on harmony vocal and a banjolele solo (I've never noticed before just how loudly that guy breathes through his nose! He's a nice enough fella though, so I won't hold it against him...)

Anyway, I hope you enjoy your season!

Thanks! Easy to enjoy with all the great entries.

Bobby 2 seems a'ight. Nailed the solo and spot on with his harmonies. Maybe loud nose breathing is the secret!

 

[Flatbaroque]

Gday Chris thanks for your enthusiastic hosting debut,
Here's a John Prine on the death side of the life / death spectrum. On guitalele tuned down G to g.
Cheers