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"A little bit of this. A little bit of that. A pot, a pan, a broom, a hat. . ."—Anatevka, "Fiddler on the Roof." This is a blog about everything and nothing. A little parenting, a little humor, some poetry, news, essays, a lot of music. I don't want to waste your time, just send positive vibes into the blogosphere. Oh, yeah, my name is Sarah Torribio. Enough about me, how are you?
Friday, August 21, 2020
Tuesday, August 18, 2020
Monday, August 17, 2020
Friday, August 14, 2020
Thursday, August 13, 2020
Wednesday, August 12, 2020
Song of the Day: "Love of My Life" by Queen
I've been craving the purity of Freddie Mercury's voice something awful today. My song of the day is "Love of My Life" by Queen.
Sunday, August 9, 2020
Song of the Day: "Red" by St South
Song of the Day: "Walk on the Wild Side" by Lou Reed
- OLDER POST
- NEWER POST
Come on, Lou! Cut through the soul-destroying powers of groupthink and ennui. My song of the day is "Walk on the Wild Side" by Lou Reed.
Saturday, August 8, 2020
Friday, August 7, 2020
Song of the Day: "Song from the Edge of the World"
With this in mind, my song of the Day is “Song from the Edge of the World,” a 1987 Siouxsie and the Banshees song. It was released as a stand-alone single, which I had, or shared with my then-boyfriend, on cassette.
It's modern and fresh and new while simultaneously exuding the mythic and mystical ambiance common to this glam, gothic, punk, romantic dark wave, new wave band. Also in the band's favor, Siouxsie Sioux could power the world with her voice, a deep, octave-straddling and a soaring vibrato.
You know how lazy radio stations are, though. I’ll wager this song has never seen airplay outside of Shropshire. Check it this vibrant B-side and tell me what you think as Siouxsie scatters black and silver fairy dust over your world.
Thursday, August 6, 2020
Song of the Day: "Dear Mama" by Tupac Shakur
I'm just thinking about various rap songs where the artist says, "I reminisce." For example, in his poignant tribute "Dear Mama," Tupac Shakur —or 2Pac, if you prefer—says, in that unmistakable cadence: "I reminisce on the stress I caused, it was hell/Hugging on my mama from a jail cell."
There's something sideways about Tupac's delivery, like he's leaning against a wall or writing in cursive. He makes sad songs, angry songs, celebratory songs sound casual and intimate.
At the same time, a latent anger, frustration, cynicism, sadness and despair fuels those moments when Tupac stresses a word, spitting it out like a bad sunflower seed, lobbing it like a bomb. It makes Tupac's delivery as much as percussion instrument as well as a paradigm of rap vocals. There's no predicting when it will happen, which makes Tupac's spoken-word hypnotically random. In short, the late rapper regularly reaches a state Zen Buddhists, as well as rappers and rap fans, call "a state of flow."
And then, every once in a while, Tupac seems to awake from the bad, sad dream of his experience; from his pessimistic and at times sci-fi post apocalyptic view of the future; from his arguably self-destructive forays into the glamour of "thug life" and Machavellian power and his increasing paranoia. As time would tell, the latter state was justified. I read the very good biography "The Rose That Grew From Concrete" and that' where the above analysis comes from.
Throwing off the whole paradigm, we hear laughter in his voice, and see him flash an auditory smile. But I digress.
According to Google, other rap songs that employ the verb reminisce include: Pete Rock & CL Smooth - They Reminisce Over You (T.R.O.Y.) and 2Pac's Reminisce.
It seems like such an old-fashioned word, and certainly a smart, multi-syllabic one. It's the kind of word that makes a 6th grader take out a dictionary. Or do they just google that stuff now?
This leads me to wonder: What other elegant, antiquated and all-around fancy words are hidden among rhymes both loose and tight, slang, boasts and urban lingo. Perhaps, in the end, it is hip-hop that will save us from linguistic decline?
Wednesday, August 5, 2020
Song of the Day: "We've had Enough" by Alkaline Trio
Every once in a while, mommies have to listen to songs that have the F-word in them. My song of the day is "We've Had Enough" by Alkaline Trio.
Song of the Day: "Buffalo Stance" by Neneh Cherry
In this song, which I now realize is completely uncategorizable, Ms. Cherry is hardened and disillusioned and wry and vulnerable, all at the same time. I have to channel her whiskey, sandpaper-stroked alto, in which her accent ranges from American urban to London fly.
I start off by imitating Ms. Cherry's in-your-face, aggressive, challenging and bravado-fueled opening rap delivery: "Who's that gigolo on the street, with his hands in his pockets and the crocodile feet/Hanging off the curb, looking all disturbed?"
It goes from there and unwinds as an intricately produced and completely unpredictable number.
Perhaps the best and, from a living room karaoke perspective, challenging moment is when Neneh starts freestyle talking. "What's he loike [English accent]. What's he loike, anyway?" She answers her own question, with pure Long Island irony and a hard-won pragmatism "What do you expect, man? The guy's a gigolo. . ."
I hear heartbreak beneath her street smarts. Neneh Cherry is taking a tough buffalo stance. It's not just for herself but for all of her sisters among womankind. Listen to me now and you won't have to walk a painful path, learning the tough way how many men will use you.
*And yes, for those of you who are wondering, singer/songwriter Eagle-Eye Cherry, of "Save Tonight" fame, is Neneh Cherry's brother. Good looks and talent run in the family.
—Sarah Torribio
Tuesday, August 4, 2020
Monday, August 3, 2020
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