Summertime - Billie Holiday

A l'estiu el blog se calma una mica, i habitualment fem uns quants apunts pausats i tranquils sobre un tema o grup de musica en concret. Aquest any, també. 

Quan tenia 15 o 16 anys, era una esponja amb ganes de saber-ne tot sobre tot tipus de musica, i ves per on, vaig acabar descobrint a la Billie Holiday - basicament per l'historia d'ella. 

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As usual the blog will slow down over the next few summer weeks, with a few mono-themed songs to keep the heat at bay (which doesn't necessarily mean I have gone on holiday and am not sitting behind the front door with a loaded shotgun, Mr. Burglar).

This year, jazz/blues singers. When I was about 15 I had a huge thirst for music knowledge. Raiding my parents' collection, local libraries, friends' LPs, studying music magazine, I wanted to know and to hear everything. So as friends were listening to the latest 1982 hit, for some reason - basically for her tragic history - I stumbled across Billie Holiday.

A nice cup of tea - Binnie Hale #Tea

Coneixeu alguna cosa millor que una bona tassa de te? Jo tampoc.
La cançó del 1930s ho diu tot ....
........
Anything better than a nice cuppa? Thought not ...

 Some folks put much reliance
On politics and science
There's only one hero for me
His praise we should be roaring
The man who thought of pouring
The first boiling water onto tea

I like a nice cup of tea in the morning
For to start the day you see
And at half past eleven
Well my idea of heaven
Is a nice cup of tea
I like a nice cup of tea with me dinner
And a nice cup of tea with me tea
And when it's time for bed
There's a lot to be said
For a nice cup of tea

You can talk about your science
And your airships in the sky
I can do without the wireless
And you'll never see me fly
The public benefactor of the universe for me
Is the genius that thought of pouring water onto tea

I like a nice cup of tea in the morning
For to start the day you see
And when I get the breakfast in
Well my idea of sin
Is a fourth, or a fifth, cup of tea
I like a nice cup of tea with me dinner
And a nice cup of tea with me tea
And when it's time for bed
There's a lot to be said
For a nice cup of tea

They say it's not nutritious
But still it is delicious
And that's all that matters to me
It turns your meat to leather
But let's all die together
The one drink in paradise is tea

I like a nice cup of tea
In the morning
For to start the day you see
And at half past eleven
Well my idea of heaven
Is a nice cup of tea
I like a nice cup of tea with me dinner
And a nice cup of tea with me tea
And when it's time for bed
As I think I may have said
I'd like a nice cup of tea

You can talk about your liberties
They talk of women's rights
I don't want to make no speeches
Because the one that does is trite
And anyone can have my vote and chuck it in the sea
But golly there'll be trouble if they try to touch me tea

I like a nice cup of tea with me dinner
And a nice cup of tea with me tea
And when it's getting late
Almost anything can wait
For a nice cup of tea

Jazz

Ja hem pogut disfrutar del fantastic festival de jazz que tenim a Tortosa aquests dies. Dimecres a la nit, a l'aire lliure, al barri vell, a fora del bar dels Amics dels Castells, van escoltar unes meravelloses versions d'algunes cançons classiques de jazz, gracies al grup Laia Porta i el Dan Posen Trio. 

Va començar tard, i va acabar tard, però, i aixi no vam poder aguantar fins el final, però una de les peces que van cantar va ser aquesta The Way You Look Tonight escrita per Kern i Fields per a la pel·licula Swing Time, 1936. I aqui la teniu. Potser Fred és un millor ballarin que cantant, però a mi m'encanten les seves pel·lis ...i tot seguit, un clip del grup en questió, Laia Porta i el Dan Posen Trio. Don't miss it!!

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This week is Jazz Festival Week in Tortosa, and on Wednesday night we finally managed to get round to checking out a concert. A free open-air one, in a square in the old part of town with a fine bar providing (not free) drinks and snacks. A great time was had by all, as we were treated to a treasure chest of classic songs by the likes of Gerswhin, Porter, Bacharach ...by Catalan jazz group, Laia Porta and the Dan Posen Trio.  One of these gems was The Way You Look Tonight (Kern/Fields), from the Fred and Ginger film, Swing Time. Maybe he dances better than he sings, but I just love his movies, so here's Fred ..., swiftly followed by the group themselves, Laia and the boys. Don't miss it!

And here's Laia and the Dan Posen Trio, themselves,

Love is the sweetest thing - Henry Hall & His Orchestra

Vinga nois, a vore si fem una espenta i aconseguim tornar a bloquejar .... és una llarga historia, però per motius variades estava buscant altres peces de Henry Hall and His Orchestra, i he trobat aquesta, que no està gens malament. Love is the sweetest thing.

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OK, let's see if we can kick-start this blog back into action once more .... for reasons too long and tedious to go into now, I was checking out Henry Hall and His Orchestra stuff, and came across this piece which I didn't know, and kind-of like. Love is the sweetest thing.

L'Ebre, dia 5 - Lazy River del Hoagy Carmichael

L’Ebre, el Delta, la zona litoral, les Terres de l’Ebre, tenen diversos problemes i de moment el seu futur no està clar. No està clar quina visió de futur tenen els governants per aquesta zona i la gent d’aquí fa el que pot. Però del creixement socio-economic que s’ha viscut a altres indrets de Catalunya, aquí al sud no es nota. Ans al contrari, els projectes que ens arribem no van per bon camí, entre massificació d’energia eòlica, malmetent un altre dels pocs recursos que tenim, el de patrimoni natural i històric, i els nuclears, amb el possible cementeri de residus nuclears, ja veiem quin us Catalunya fa servir d’aquesta zona.

Les Terres de l’Ebre són de Catalunya i caldria que el govern català les ajudi. A banda del riu i els seus voltants podríem parlar meravelles del Delta. El Delta està reconegut com a una de les tres zones humides més importants de Europa, amb una amplia varietat de fauna i flora, que van des dels famosos flamencs fins altres ocells que no es troben a gaires altres llocs. Té unes possibilitats bones per a gaudir de turisme sostenible però això xoca contra els problemes causats per els problemes de qualitat i quantitat de l’aigua de l’Ebre. Al Delta li falta aigua i sediments, si no, continuarà el enfonsament i regressió, mentre l’aigua salada del mar va entrant poc a poc.

(Up a ) Lazy River del Hoagy Carmichael, any 1930.

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The Ebro, its Delta, the surrounding coastline and littoral, and the Ebro region itself suffer from many problems and their future is not clear. It is not clear at all that the governing bodies have any reasonable aims and plans for this area, and local people have to struggle to make a living and protect their livelihoods. The socio-economic boom enjoyed by the rest of Catalonia has not been seen here. If anything, things are going from bad to worse with 3 nuclear power plants, plans for a nuclear waste dump, and the massive introduction of wind farms spoiling the natural and historical heritage of these lands.

The Terres de l’Ebre (Lower Ebro region) forms a part of Catalonia, just as much as the cities of Barcelona and Girona, and as such should be respected and supported by the Catalan government. The river itself is beautiful but the Ebro Delta is something special. Recognised as one of the three most important wetlands in the Mediterranean area, the Delta has an amazing variety of wildlife and plantlife, ranging from the spectacular flamingos to more delicate birds at risk of extinction. It has an excellent chance of promoting sustainable nature-loving tourism but this is up against the setbacks the river and Delta are facing. The issues of water quantity and quality cause serious problems for the Delta. Besides this, if the river cannot transport sediments down to the Delta it will continue subsiding and regressing, while the sea’s salt water moves gradually upstream.

(Up a) Lazy River by Hoagy Carmichael, 1930.

Talking Dustbowl Blues - Woody Guthrie - Day 4

... si Bob Dylan reconeix algú com un dels seus ídols, aquest algú és Woody Guthrie (1912-1967), cantautor americà par excellence . Aquí el tenim amb els Talking Dustbowl Blues de l’any 1937...

... if Bob Dylan ever has to name somebody as his idol or inspiration, I’m sure that somebody would be the American singer-songwriter Woody Guthrie (1912-1967). Here he is with Talking Dustbowl Blues from 1937...

Pick Yourself Up - Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers

Torna Fred Astaire al bloc, aquí ballant Pick Yourself Up (Kern) amb Ginger Rogers, de la pel·lícula Swing Time, any 1936.