He had a blue wing tattooed on his shoulder Well, it might have been a bluebird, I don’t know but he’d get stone drunk and talk about Alaska The salmon boats and 45 below
Well, he got that blue wing up in Walla Walla and his cellmate there was a Little Willy John and Willie, he was once a great blues singer so Wing & Willie wrote him up a song
Another Glass Of Wine My Dear (April 5, 2007) — Image by kenne
Have Some Medeira, M’dear
She was young, she was pure, she was new, she was nice She was fair, she was sweet seventeen. He was old, he was vile, and no stranger to vice He was base, he was bad, he was mean. He had slyly inveigled her up to his flat To view his collection of stamps, And he said as he hastened to put out the cat, The wine, his cigar and the lamps: Have some madeira, m’dear. You really have nothing to fear. I’m not trying to tempt you, that wouldn’t be right, You shouldn’t drink spirits at this time of night. Have some madeira, m’dear. It’s really much nicer than beer. I don’t care for sherry, one cannot drink stout, And port is a wine I can well do without… It’s simply a case of chacun a son gout Have some madeira, m’dear. Unaware of the wiles of the snake-in-the-grass And the fate of the maiden who topes, She lowered her standards by raising her glass, Her courage, her eyes and his hopes. She sipped it, she drank it, she drained it, she did! He promptly refilled it again, And he said as he secretly carved one more notch On the butt of his gold-headed cane: Have some madeira, m’dear, I’ve got a small cask of it here. And once it’s been opened, you know it won’t keep. Do finish it up. It will help you to sleep. Have some madeira, m’dear. It’s really an excellent year. Now if it were gin, you’d be wrong to say yes The evil gin does would be hard to assess.. Besides it’s inclined to affect me prowess, Have some madeira, m’dear. Then there flashed through her mind what her mother had said With her antepenultimate breath, “Oh my child, should you look on the wine that is red Be prepared for a fate worse than death!” She let go her glass with a shrill little cry, Crash! Tinkle! it fell to the floor; When he asked, “What in Heaven?” She made no reply, Up her mind, and a dash for the door. Have some madeira, m’dear. Rang out down the hall loud and clear With a tremulous cry that was filled with despair, As she fought to take breath in the cool midnight air, Have some madeira, m’dear. The words seemed to ring in her ear. Until the next morning, she woke in her bed With a smile on her lips and an ache in her head… And a beard in her lug ‘ole that tickled and said: Have some madeira, m’dear!
Fishing Boats Docked at Galveston Bay, Texas — Image by kenne
[Verse 1] Sittin’ in the mornin’ sun I’ll be sittin’ when the evenin’ come Watching the ships roll in And then I watch ’em roll away again, yeah
[Chorus] I’m sittin’ on the dock of the bay Watching the tide roll away Ooo, I’m just sittin’ on the dock of the bay Wastin’ time
[Verse 2] I left my home in Georgia Headed for the ‘Frisco bay ‘Cause I’ve had nothing to live for And look like nothin’s gonna come my way
[Chorus] So I’m just gonna sit on the dock of the bay Watching the tide roll away Ooo, I’m sittin’ on the dock of the bay Wastin’ time
[Bridge] Look like nothing’s gonna change Everything still remains the same I can’t do what ten people tell me to do So I guess I’ll remain the same, yes
[Verse 3] Sittin’ here resting my bones And this loneliness won’t leave me alone It’s two thousand miles I roamed Just to make this dock my home
[Chorus] Now, I’m just gonna sit at the dock of the bay Watching the tide roll away Oooo-wee, sittin’ on the dock of the bay Wastin’ time
Oh… (CHORUS): Shrimp boats is a-comin’ Their sails are in sight Shrimp boats is a-comin’ There’s dancin’ tonight Why don’t ‘cha hurry hurry hurry home Why don’t ‘cha hurry hurry hurry home Look here! The shrimp boats is a-comin’ There’s dancin’ tonight (Shrimp boats is a-comin’, there’s dancin’ tonight)
: They go to sea with the evenin’ tide And the women folk wave their good-bye (There they go… There they go) While the Louisiana moon floats on high And they wait for the day when they can cry…
: Happy the days while they’re mending the nets ‘Til once more they ride out to sea (There they go… There they go) Then how lonely the nights will be ‘Til that wonderful day when they sing…
: Happy the days while they’re mending the nets ‘Til once more they ride out to sea (There they go… There they go) Then how lonely the nights will be ‘Til that wonderful day when they sing…
Let’s dance Let’s dance For fear your grace should fall Let’s dance For fear tonight is all Let’s sway You could look into my eyes Let’s sway Under the moonlight, this serious moonlight
I first asked this question ten years ago on the thirty anniversary of John Lennon’s death.
Whether asked the question or thinking to yourself, we often recall years later what we were doing when we first heard of a sad happening. With today being the 40th anniversary of John Lennon’s death, thoughts on time and place are reviewed. I was in my small apartment on a rainy, cold night, just off the campus of Western Kentucky University, where I was teaching. If I had a TV, I don’t recall because I was usually listening to music on the radio. Then, as now, music is a part of my daily existence, and the beauty of Lennon’s music is its ability to make you think and help you answer questions.
In December of 1980, Lennon had only recently turned forty, and I was about to reach the same age. We shared little besides years of life and his music. Now, forty years out, I wonder what John Lennon would be like if he were still a part of our existence. We both would be fifty years into the age Lennon, as a young flower-child rebel, famously labeled, “Never trust anyone over thirty!”
Imagine
Imagine there’s no Heaven It’s easy if you try No hell below us Above us only sky Imagine all the people Living for today
Imagine there’s no countries It isn’t hard to do Nothing to kill or die for And no religion too Imagine all the people Living life in peace
You may say that I’m a dreamer But I’m not the only one I hope someday you’ll join us And the world will be as one
Imagine no possessions I wonder if you can No need for greed or hunger A brotherhood of man Imagine all the people Sharing all the world
You may say that I’m a dreamer But I’m not the only one I hope someday you’ll join us And the world will live as one
May the spirit of John Lennon always be with us.
— kenne
“I believe in God, but not as one thing, not as an old man in the sky. I believe that what people call God is something in all of us. I believe that what Jesus and Mohammed and Buddha and all the rest said was right. It’s just that the translations have gone wrong.”
Kae Tempest (formerly Kate Tempest) — Source: scenestr.com
I’m a new fan of Kae Tempest, an English spoken word performer, poet, recording artist, novelist, and playwright — a great performer by any measure.
— kenne
People’s Faces
[Verse 1] It’s coming to pass, my country’s coming apart The whole thing’s becoming such a bumbling farce Was that a pivotal historical moment we just went stumbling past? Well, here we are, dancing in the rumbling dark So come a little closer, give me something to grasp Give me your beautiful, crumbling heart Another disaster, catharsis Another half-discarded mirage Another mask slips I face off with the physical My head’s ringing from the love of the stars There is too much pretense here Too much depends on the fragile wages And extortionate rents here We’re working every dread day that is given us Feeling like the person people meet really isn’t us Like we’re gonna buckle underneath the trouble Like any minute now, the struggle’s going to finish us And then we smile at all our friends (Click Here for all Verses)
Kenne & Joy In New Orleans (12/26/07) — Photo-Artistry by kenne
Decatur Street, New Orleans (12/26/07) — Photo-Artistry by kenne
Heart Within A Heart
Ther is a heart within your heart A place go when all the trouble starts When your world spins upside down and falls apart There is a heart within your heart
There is a soul within your soul A secret room only angels know Come on baby, leave your fear, rise up and go To the soul within the soul
Rainbow In The Catalina Foothills — Image by kenne
I still believe that someday we’ll find the Rainbow Connection.
Rainbow Connection
Why are there so many Songs about rainbows And what’s on the other side Rainbows are visions They’re only illusions And rainbows have nothing to hide So we’ve been told and some chose to Believe it But I know they’re wrong wait and see
Someday we’ll find it The Rainbow Connection The lovers, the dreamers and me
Who said that every wish Would be heard and answered When wished on the morning star Somebody thought of that And someone believed it And look what it’s done so far What’s so amazing That keeps us star gazing What so we think we might see
Someday we’ll find it That Rainbow Connection The lovers the dreamers and me
Have you been fast asleep And have you heard voices, I’ve heard them calling my name, Is this the sweet sound that calls The young sailors, The voice might be one and the same. I’ve heard it too many times to ignore it It’s something that i’m supposed to be,
Someday we’ll find it The rainbow connection… The lovers, the dreamers and me La lala la lala la la la lala la la la
Love is in the air, everywhere I look around
Love is in the air, every sight and every sound
And I don’t know if I’m being foolish
Don’t know if I’m being wise
But it’s something that I must believe in
And it’s there when I look in your eyes
Love is in the air, in the whisper of the tree
Love is in the air, in the thunder of the sea
And I don’t know if I’m just dreaming
Don’t know if I feel safe
But it’s something that I must believe in
And it’s there when you call out my name
Love is in the air
Love is in the air
Oh, oh, oh, oh
Love is in the air, in the rising of the sun
Love is in the air, when the day is nearly done
And I don’t know if you’re illusion
Don’t know if I see truth
But you’re something that I must believe in
And you’re there when I reach out…
This song is a train song It’s a song about a train Not the Atchison and Topeka Not the Chattanooga Choo-Choo Nor the one that leaves at midnight For the state of Alabam’ This song is a train song Where the engineer is Uncle Sam
Here comes the Freedom Train! You better hurry down Just like a Paul Revere It’s comin’ into your hometown
Inside the Freedom Train You will find a precious freight Those words of liberty The documents that made us great
You can shout your anger from a steeple You can shoot the system full of holes You can always question “We the People” You can get your answer at the polls
That’s how it’s always been And how it will remain As long as all of us Keep riding on the Freedom Train
Riding’ all across this country Playing music for the people With the fellows in the band We’re singin’ of the liberty And freedom through the land
You can write the President a letter You can even tell him to his face If you think that you can do it better Get the votes and you can take his place
If you hate the laws that you’re obeying You can shout your anger to the crowd We may disagree with what you’re saying But we’ll fight to let you say it loud
That’s how it’s always been And how it must remain As long as all of us Keep riding on the Freedom Train
Ain’t no sunshine when she’s gone It’s not warm when she’s away Ain’t no sunshine when she’s gone And she’s always gone too long Anytime she goes away
Wonder this time where she’s gone Wonder if she’s gone to stay Ain’t no sunshine when she’s gone And this house just ain’t no home Anytime she goes away
And I know, I know, I know, I know, I know, I know, I know, I know, I know I know, I know, I know, I know, I know I know, I know, I know, I know, I know I know, I know, I know, I know, I know I know, I know, Hey, I oughtta leave young thing alone But ain’t no sunshine when she’s gone
Ain’t no sunshine when she’s gone Only darkness every day Ain’t no sunshine when she’s gone And this house just ain’t no home Anytime she goes away Anytime she goes away Anytime she goes away Anytime she goes away