A quiet morning in the East Village. In front of a church, it seems odd to see a lion. The lion looks towards the church and is contemplative. He carries a shield befitting his role as king of the beasts.
But, in contrast to that, he stands quietly mute, as if on guard against any evil that might appear in his small peaceful territory with his subjects, the pigeons, at his feet. He wants to be the protector of anyone who might feel lonely and who would sit on those benches. You get the feeling that he would roar if it became necessary. —Paul Goldfinger
SOUNDTRACK: From the movie “The Deer Hunter,” Craig Ogden, an Australian born guitarist, plays “Cavatina.”
The Belmar Marina is one of the finest docking places at the Shore. It is 1/2 mile from the ocean, and the fleet takes fishermen and fisherwomen out to deep waters, and when they return, they tie up to floating concrete docks. The Miss Belmar Princess is 120 ft long and is the fastest party boat in New Jersey. The three turbo diesels create 2100 hp.
Currently the Princess is going after mackerel, a species of fish that is high in omega-three-fatty acids. The expression “holy mackerel” means “wow” in case you don’t know. It also means holy moley and holy cow.
SOUNDTRACK: This music was chosen because it is featured in a movie with a nautical title. Otherwise, there is no good rationale. In 2010 a romantic comedy with Phillip Seymour Hoffman called Jack Goes Boating was released. Many reviewers liked it (“quirky” “charming,”) and the soundtrack is really good.
It is described as “indie rock” and it is extraordinarily diverse and engaging. Some of the fine groups that were featured included Grizzly Bear which I actually had posted on BF some time ago and which I really like. There also is Fleet Foxes with “White Winter Hymnal.”—very beautiful. They even included Mel Torme and Bill Evans (jazz guys.)
But we chose an old song (below) by a new group. Dave’s True Story is a duo from NYC.
I really like this version of “Blue Moon” written by Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart in 1934; the Boswell Sisters were the first to record it.
The up tempo is just right for a spiffy fox trot or a happy jitterbug. I bought the album on iTunes.
Beth Rowley is an English singer who performed two songs on the soundtrack of “An Education”— a 2009 film from England about the coming of age of a 16 year old girl who is being pursued by a man in his 30’s. This song is called “A Sunday Kind of Love.”
Lyrics: “I’m hoping to discover a certain kind of lover.” And it better be “a love to last past Saturday night,” because if it does, it’s better—it’s a “Sunday kind of love.”
“Sunday Kind of Love” was written in 1946 and was made famous by Etta James. One of the four composers was Louis Prima. Since it’s Sunday today, it seems like a good idea to play it now. Rowley’s interpretation is much different than Etta’s, and the movie was very good. Rent it.
ART FARMER (1928-1999) made an album in 1958 with the great pianist Bill Evans. It is called “Modern Art.” The group consists of Art Farmer on trumpet, Bill Evans on piano, Benny Golson on tenor sax, Addison Farmer on bass and Dave Bailey on drums.
The song “Like Someone in Love” was written in 1944 for a film called “Belle of the Yukon.” Jimmy Van Heusen wrote the music, and Johnny Burke—the lyrics. This is one of the great love songs of all time, but you won’t hear the lyrics on this version. Being an old saxman, I love the interplay between the sax and the trumpet early in the song. Listen for it.
—-Paul Goldfinger (reposted from August 2013 on Blogfinger)
