Lexical Light

Then & Now: How Soon is Now?

16 years ago I first heard The Smiths How Soon is Now while dancing at a 6th street venue in Austin. Last Saturday night at 10:30 I listened to it at an HEB Plus in RR while getting groceries for my family of 6. I refrained from dancing - barely. 16 years from now Jack & I will be groovin' to it at the local Senior Center's afternoon dance, then head to Luby's for a 5pm dinner.

Tangents:
*I didn't hear the song until 1992, though it came out in 1985. Not surprising, given that during 1985 I was in the hot bed of dance music that is Palestine, TX. Apparently Morrisey & the boys re-released it.
*I remember when, where, & who I was with when I first heard it because I liked it so much, it scratches my melancholy itch.
*So, how soon is now?
*Now I'm married to a Smith whose middle name is Morris. On a 10 our first (& only) trip back to El Paso, he played this song. Sigh. Such soulmates.

U23D Austin: Not IF, but HOW MANY

The question is not IF i will see this, but HOW MANY TIMES? The closest I've come to seeing a U2 concert was in 1987 when I saw, from the interstate, their trucks being unloaded at the Erwin Center in Austin. I'm thinking this film will be a comparable experience - not exactly the same, but close enough and without the crowds.

How will the audience react? That would be a plus of the concert - the energy expended while standing through the show. I may have to go opening night and then go another night to compare the show. Ahh, a blog project in the making. Pity I haven't finished my other U2 blog project. Yes, I am lame.

Christy, you want to go to a quasi U2 concert, maybe opening night, Jan 23? (Here are the showtimes for the Austin IMAX at the Bob Bullock TSH Museum.) I think 1 or 2 of the my kids may basketball games, but they'll have other games. Let me know.

40

I waited patiently for the LORD;
And He inclined to me and  heard my cry. 

He brought me up out of the  pit of destruction, out of the miry clay,
And He set my feet upon a rock making my footsteps firm. 
   
He put a new song in my mouth, a song of praise to our God;
Many will see and fear
And will trust in the LORD.
Psalm 40: 1-3, NIV

I waited patiently for the Lord.
He inclined and heard my cry.
He brought me up out of the pit
Out of the miry clay.

I will sing, sing a new song.
I will sing, sing a new song.
How long to sing this song?
How long to sing this song?
How long, how long, how long
How long to sing this song?

You set my feet upon a rock
And made my footsteps firm.
Many will see, many will see and hear.

I will sing, sing a new song.
I will sing, sing a new song
I will sing, sing a new song.
I will sing, sing a new song
How long to sing this song?
How long to sing this song?
How long to sing this song?
How long to sing this song? .

"40" by U2

The Jordin Sparks/Michael W. Smith Connection

Here's a cool bit of trivia: Jordin Sparks was a back up singer for Michael W. Smith during his 2005 and 2006 Christmas Tours. His manager wrote about it here. Smitty, as Michael is known, encouraged fans to pray and vote for Jordin via his blog. I wonder why we didn't hear anything about that during AI? I guess they didn't tell who Melinda sang back up for either. I didn't even know Jordin had done back up singing. It doesn't make any difference, I just thought it was interesting. 

Until the End of the World: Behind the Tunes

This month's (?!) Behind the Tunes is #5 on My U2 Top 10 -  the bass driven Until the End of the World from 1991's Achtung Baby.  If I'm listening to this at the Y, I'm usually trying to mesh my strides on the eliptical w/the feel of the song. If I'm doing a different exercise, I'm trying not to dance to the song - as a public service.  

I wasn't a big fan of Achtung Baby, though I don't know why. Maybe because there weren't as many "spiritual" songs on the album. A friend had the CD, though, so I heard it enough to know I liked this song, mainly for the groove and the bass line. Because I weight a song heavily by it's lyrics and these lyrics aren't particularly edifying, I kept it at arm's length for several years. Since hearing it again on Napster a few months ago, I gained a new enjoyment of it. The music rocks and I appreciate the lyrics as being more an observation than a statement.

Now for a few comments on specific lyrics.

"Everybody having a good time except you. You were talking about the end of the world."
Does this scream Debbie Downer or what?

"In the garden I was playing the tart"
That's Bono. I don't know if this song is auto biographical, but I've seen a few instances of him playing the tart in performances. He's never claimed to be perfect.

He tried to drown his sorrows, but his sorrows learned to swim. Well put.

The song ends with a note of hope:
"You, you said you'd wait till the end of the world."

Such a groovily melancholy song.

Complete lyrics of "Until the End of the World" (from u2.com)

"Haven't seen you in quite a while
I was down the hold, just passing time.
Last time we met it was a low-lit room
We were as close together as a bride and groom.
We ate the food, we drank the wine
Everybody having a good time except you.
You were talking about the end of the world.

I took the money, I spiked your drink
You miss too much these days if you stop to think.
You led me on with those innocent eyes
And you know I love the element of surprise.
In the garden I was playing the tart
I kissed your lips and broke your heart.
You, you were acting like it was the end of the world.

In my dream, I was drowning my sorrows
But my sorrows they'd learned to swim
Surrounding me, going down on me
Spilling over the brim
Waves of regret and waves of joy.
I reached out for the one I tried to destroy.
You, you said you'd wait till the end of the world."

Well Wishes for Bono's Birthday

Today is Bono's 47th birthday. Instead of just wishing him well, fans can give towards a well via the African Well Fund's "Bono's Birthday Wells" program. How apropos.

BTW, though I'm quite the fan of Bono, I'm not an uber-fan. I wouldn't have know it was his birthday if not for a dear friend. Thanks, Lynn, for upping my fan factor.

U23D

"Four of the best letters put together make for a wonderful thing!!" - my 15 year old niece and fellow U2 fan

I just had to laugh when my niece wrote this in an e-mail about U2's upcoming 3D concert movie, U23D, in December. Yes, it will be cool. Yes, I will go watch it. Add it to the list, Mopsy.

 

Yahweh: Behind the Tunes

Coming in at #4 on my U2 Top 10 is "Yahweh" from How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb. Since Yahweh is the English translation of the Israelites word for their God, when I first saw the song title on the CD cover, it sparked anticipation for for another "40ish" potential worship song. I wasn't disappointed.

From a musical standpoint, I like the buildup of the drums in the intro, the feel of the beat and the "wailability" of the chorus.

From a lyrical standpoint, it's a keeper. They're a combination of clever and deep. Clever lines include: 

*"shoes click clacking down some dead end street" (click clacking fits the rhythm perfectly)
*"shirt polyester white trash made in nowhere"

Lines I need to sing often throughout my days:
*"Take this soul, stranded in some skin and bones, take this soul and make it sing" (My favorite line.)
*"Take these hands, teach them what to carry"

Good stuff, Maynard.

"Yahweh" lyrics (from u2.com)

Take these shoes
Click clacking down some dead end street
Take these shoes
And make them fit
Take this shirt
Polyester white trash made in nowhere
Take this shirt
And make it clean, clean
Take this soul
Stranded in some skin and bones
Take this soul
And make it sing

Yahweh, Yahweh
Always pain before a child is born
Yahweh, Yahweh
Still I’m waiting for the dawn

Take these hands
Teach them what to carry
Take these hands
Don’t make a fist
Take this mouth
So quick to criticise
Take this mouth
Give it a kiss

Yahweh, Yahweh
Always pain before a child is born
Yahewh, Yahweh
Still I’m waiting for the dawn

Still waiting for the dawn, the sun is coming up
The sun is coming up on the ocean
This love is like a drop in the ocean
This love is like a drop in the ocean

Yahweh, Yahweh
Always pain before a child is born
Yahweh, tell me now
Why the dark before the dawn?

Take this city
A city should be shining on a hill
Take this city
If it be your will
What no man can own, no man can take
Take this heart
Take this heart
Take this heart
And make it break

Chris Sligh Voted Off Idol _ Lexie Blogs About It

9 days. That's how long I made it w/out blogging about American Idol. I should know better than to say I'm not going to blog about something again. Is that a character flaw?

So, what broke my will? I just had to say something upon Chris Sligh's departure. I've liked his personality and voice from the start and was glad to see him progress. Though he got voted off, being on Idol is some good pub for his band.

Here are some resources to keep up with Chris:

*Half Past Forever.com
    *His band's site.
    *They released their CD in March of this year.
     *Half Past Jack esp. enjoyed the Half Past moniker

*frommymindtoyoureyes.blogspot.com
    *his personal blog
    *Don't confuse this with "The Secret Blog of Chris Sligh" written by a fan. HT: chrissligh.info.
    *Check out the "about me" from his blog:

"I am first and foremost a Christ-follower. I am also a rock star. I don't feel the two are diametrically opposed. If you do...I feel bad for you."

*chrissligh.com  -  official site.

*chrisligh.info - a legit Chris Sligh fan site with lots of good info.

*his pastor's blog - has a few entries about his experiences supporting Chris during Idol

*Finally, for a little more insight, Chris has another blog, theologicaldigressions, which he may or may not keep up with.

So, I had to break my moratorium on Idol posting to give bit o'support for Chris by listing some resources. I may or may not post about Idol again. I won't let it dominate my content or my blog time. Really.

HT: MJSbigblog, American Idol - I Love This Cheesy Show, my go to source for Idol info on Wednesdays after church.

Fun with Music History

What do Homer Simpson, They Might Be Giants, Dance, Dance Revolution and a Yale all-male acapella group have in common?

Istanbul (Not Constantinople), of course. It's a 1953 swing style song done by the Four Lads. They Might Be Giants covered it in 1990.

I found it while doing a little perusing through music archives at answers.com. The title alone cracked me up, hearing the song made me like it, and the varied pop culture references sealed it's place in my music treasure box. Since we studied about that area last fall, it's even more fun.

Youtube has the video by They Might Be Giants with Looney Tunes. Somehow the comments on the video had turned into some international squabbling about Istanbul. Zoiks!