In the Mood

We overcame our typical Friday night, end of the week fatigue, battled the commuter traffic and drove into the city to watch a wonderful Canadian musician at a small pub in Mirvish village. The cosy venue was tiny and the stage - tinier. Bri-anne and her one man band were tuning their instruments as the crowd negotiated beers and the slab of plywood that had been fashioned into a bar.

The only empty table happened to be parked beside the riser that served as the stage. I was happy, and hubby was less happier. Maybe he resented the fact that he got residual bounce from the stage lights on his shiny head. He usually likes to fade into the background and there was no chance of that tonight. So while we munched on hurriedly prepared burgers and fries and sipped our beverages, we were serenaded by a passionate musician with an angelic voice. The only downside was the table of boisterous lads beside us who were clearly there for a boys night out, and not to listen to a folk singer. It was especially disappointing while Bri-anne sang the quiet, moving numbers like Hallejuah and we had to strain to hear over the party. I resisted the urge to suggest that they take the table across the room by the window opting instead for another glass of Sauvignon Blanc for me, and a fried mars bar for hubby. 

It's a tough gig being an artist singing to a rowdy room of "unawares". But they press on, apparently caught up in the momentum of the performance, and afterwards, they pass around the hat. It's a tough gig and we tried to be generous in our donation. We had a rare night out to listen to some great live music.

If you want a taste of the treat we had tonight, listen to Bri-anne Swan singing Leonard Cohen's song Hallelujah,

Off to bed; I have another full day tomorrow of Christmas immersion!

Tonight's the Night

I just couldn't resist showing off the pics I took at the Stevie Nicks and Rod Stewart concert Saturday night. Aside from the woman sitting/standing/floating/jerking/dancing in the "seat" in front of me (who hubby was sure was having a seizure) and the lady behind me who decided that the middle of Stevie Nick's Landslide tender ballad was the perfect time to phone her daughter to urge her (loudly over the music) "listen -- can you hear it??? It's Landslide - my favourite song", the concert was simply fantastic. Of course I looked back at that lady wishfully -- thinking that it was one of my favourite songs too, and I would LOVE to hear it!

Stevie still has the goods. She is beautiful, ethereal and has an intimate way of engaging the audience. The stadium shrinks and she is front and centre, her husky, distinctive voice luring you in as she twirls and swirls around the stage. I loved her final number -- a new cut called Love is ... and if seizure girl in front had stopped gabbing with her girlfriend for but a moment, I may have heard the whole song. Why do people go to a concert if they have no intention of listening to the music?

The curtain dropped and when it went up, it was a whole new world. Tonight's the Night hit the speakers and out he pranced -- in a canary yellow jacket -- belting out his hit as the audience endeavored to drown him out. It was hit after hit and Rod Stewart seemed to be genuinely enjoying the crowd as they sang along. For me it was a flash back in time as the music of my teen-aged years triggered memory after memory. Funny how music can do that ... put you right back to the scene of the crime. The concert was hubby's birthday gift to me and it was a magical night. I sang my heart out, shed a tear or two and at the end of it all, I left feeling completely satisfied and contented and humming, "you're in my heart, you're in my soul ...".

Thanks Hubby.

Take a Break

Riding a wave of contentment - one that even frigid -22 degrees Celsius can't break. So I can't resist taking a JD (John Denver) moment to share one of my old favourites.  I know - John Denver is not cool - nor was he when I was listening to him when I was fifteen years old, but I loved then what I love now. His voice is soaring, his lyrics inspiring and his passion for the environment and the planet - contagious. Take 5 and enjoy!

Gleeful

Television viewing is one of laziest forms of entertainment there is. It asks little of us; even catering to our snack and bio breaks with the ultra-generous disbursement of commercials. And lately there has been slim pickings on the tube. I am weary of the seemingly endless stream of "reality" shows. I am hungry for scripts and good writing, for clever banter and story lines that give me golf ball sized lumps in my throats. I crave characters that I can despise and love, and get ridiculously attached to.

Then along came Glee -- the quirky, funny, musical comedy-drama TV show that has members of the high school glee club singing and dancing their hearts out to rock and pop classics - week after week. Gay, jock, cheerleader, nerd, wheelchair bound, overweight, insecure, disenfranchised; Glee has them all.  I admit it took me  an episode or two to get the show - and now I am officially, fully addicted. It's an unusual soup of a show - edgy and sexually charged in a lovable, "baffoony" kind of way. Without fail, I walk at least two feet higher off the ground after watching it, the songs recycling in my head over and over again.

Tonight was the season finale and I gotta tell you - it was a showstopper. Kidlet and I sat here together, ooohing and ahhhing, cheering and laughing as we watched each performance. That show compacts more talent per second than any show I have ever watched. It's concentrated Glee. And now I am gleefully off to bed. Just had to share that.

Simple Time

Photo credit: Billboard.com

For my birthday Hubby gave me tickets to the James Taylor/Carole King Troubadour tour. *sweet*   It's no secret how much I LOVE acoustic, singer/songwriters and these are two of my favourite. Okay, maybe I'm stuck in a bit of  time warp. Do you think??

Carole King is from the decade before I was a teen but then again I've always felt I was born ten years too late. I related to the laid back, folksy vibe of the late sixties and early seventies and loathed the overproduced sounds of disco and the eighties' music. boo to that!  Give me an artist who can sit at a piano or with their guitar and sing their own material - and sound like their recordings. Enter John Denver. It was not cool to like John Denver ... in fact I don't remember any of my friends liking JD. I was pretty much the lone folk freak in my crowd. But his soaring vocals singing the virtues of nature and freedom and of course, love and peace were the anthems of my teenage-hood.

But with that folksy vibe, came a relaxed way of life. Dressing was easy ... what shirt to wear with your jeans. You washed your hair with baby shampoo - no products required, and sexy hair was shiny and soft to the touch.  I don't remember alot of conversation and fretting about weight - maybe that's because there wasn't alot of show and tell in the body parts department. The thong hadn't been invented (so there was something between me and my Calvins) and neither had lingerie for teenagers.

Life was simple and natural was in. My friend Jill once cracked that my "style" hadn't changed since the seventies ... and it occurred to me today as I hung up my favourite LL Bean flannel shirt that she may be right. So cultural rut or not - I am going to be in acoustic heaven when I go to the concert next month -- and something tells me there are going to be alot of long gray ponytails in the audience - and I'm not talking about the girls!

Now what shirt should I wear with my jeans?

A Song & A Prayer -- And I'm There

What is it about music that takes us back? The sounds of familiar strains can equal instant transport back to another time and place.

As I write this, Neil Diamond is on TV performing in a New York concert. I didn't plan on watching ... the phone rang and as I came back into the room I could hear it ...

I am I said ...
[flashback 32 years] I am sitting on the floor of our rec room with my sisters, my mom perched, feet tucked under her, in her red comfy chair that had arms wide enough to accommodate a kid on each side. Love at the Greek is on TV and my mom is singing along with every song. OK -- we were all singing along.

Me and you are subject to the blues now and then, but when you take the blues and make a song, you sing them out again ...
[flashback 33 years] Bouncing up and down to the music in the seat next to my first boyfriend, in his beat-up 19 fifty-something GMC pickup as Song Sung Blue blasts on the radio. I think I was singing as I bounced.

Hands, touching hands, reaching out, touching me, touching you ...
[flashback 20 years] My mom, sister and I are at Maple Leaf Gardens at a Neil Diamond concert - we did it for our mother. My mom is on her feet, arm outstretched, flicking her Bic to her hearts content, swaying and singing to the music. It was her first big concert -- and just maybe we danced too -- just a little.

Sweet Caroline ...
[flashback just a few years ago] My two amigas and I are at the Air Canada Centre with the thousands of other aging fans - many past their prime - but dressed as if they had a personal date with the Diamond. We are seeing him - one last time. Maybe we shouldn't have. His act had gone very Las Vegas and his flirting with the middle aged, Lady Clairol groupies was more than a little disconcerting ... Yikes.

Sometimes you just can't go back - but you can let the music take you there.

What Else Are We Missing Out On?

Photo: The Telegraph

She is the top "trending topic" on Twitter and she is popping up all over the Internet and TV. She dreamed a dream - and it came true. Ask anyone who has viewed the You Tube video of Susan Boyle singing on Britain's Got Talent, and they will probably say they were moved to tears. I have watched the video many times over the past week - alone and with other people - and I admit my eyes welled up to overflowing almost every time I saw it.

I thought I was crying because I was witnessing someone extraordinary realizing a lifelong dream. I thought I was moved by the unexpected. But after soul searching this one, I think I discovered that I was was crying because I was ashamed - not so much personally - but on more of a societal level. Have we become so shallow and obsessed with packaging over substance that we discount and overlook anything - anyone - not deemed beautiful? Very telling.

This woman with her bushy eyebrows, unfashionable attire and winning smile had the gumption to walk boldly on stage - apparently unaware of the unspoken code - and share her gift.

At that moment she exposed us all. The hauntingly angelic strains were in stark contrast from the packaging of the person singing them. Why is it so unexpected? Do we think only beauty begets beauty? The more I heard her speak with her gentle spirit, humility, and simple authenticity, the more beautiful she became.

If we don't see past the superficial, thin veneers, it makes me wonder what else we are missing out on.

I've heard God works through people. I think that if Susan Boyle had no greater purpose in life than those few minutes which millions around the planet witnessed one of life's most powerful lessons - that would be enough. She is angel with a message - and an angelic voice - not to be missed.

Beauty pleases the eyes only;

Sweetness of disposition charms the soul

~Voltaire

Sealed With Some Bliss

Hubby and I just got home from our road trip - a trip to Windsor to see a Seal concert at Caesar's Palace. I always enjoy the time alone with hubby in the car - uninterrupted time to catch up, philosophize (me), dream (me) listen to the extensive music collection on the Zune (him), and just be. The rain was relentless, and the hypnotic rhythm of the wipers made it hard to keep from dozing off. We were cosy in our car, a cocoon from the dreary chill and as I leaned back in my seat listening to the music I realized how special these seemingly simple times spent together can be. For a few hours time is suspended, peace descends and we are left alone in the company of our thoughts and one another.

The concert with our fantastic vista was icing on the cake. I came away from our special get away thinking that we have to make more of an effort to make more together time. Life is wonderful and the fact that I have someone I love so dearly to share it with, only delivers deeper meaning and dimension. A blissful, technicolour life - that is what I am living.