Doesn't anybody stay in one place any more?
- - - Carole King, "Far Away"

Down the street the dogs are barking And the day is getting dark. As the night comes in a-falling, The dogs´ll lose their bark And the silent night will shatter From the sounds inside my mind, For I´m one to many mornings And a thousand miles behind. From the crossroads of my doorstep, My eyes they start to fade, As I turn my head back to the room Where my love and I have laid.... - - - Bob Dylan "One Too Many Mornings"

Every time I look in the mirror All these lines on my face getting clearer The past is gone It goes by, like dusk to dawn Isn't that the way Everybody's got their dues in life to pay - - - Aerosmith, "Dream On"

I come to you defenses down with the trust of a child. - - - Peter Gabriel "Red Rain"

I like a tombstone, cuz it weathers well, and if it stands or if it crumbles; only time will tell. And you can carve my name in marble, you must cut it deep; there'll be no dancing on the gravestone, you must let me sleep.--Suzanne Vega, “Tombstone”

I want to stand with you on a mountain I want to bathe with you in the sea I want to lay like this forever Until the sky falls down on me - - -Savage Garden, "Truly Madly Deeply"

In the rain the pavement shines like silver All the lights are misty in the river In the darkness, the trees are full of starlight
And all I see is him and me forever and forever - - - "On My Own" from Les Miserables

Life it seems, will fade away Drifting further every day Getting lost within myself Nothing matters no one else I have lost the will to live Simply nothing more to give There is nothing more for me Need the end to set me free - - - Metallica "Fade to Black"

Little drops of rain Whisper of the pain Tears of love Lost in the days gone by. - - - Robert Plant, "Thank You"

Place a name upon the night One to set your heart alight And to make the darkness bright Paint the sky with stars.
- - -Enya "Paint the Sky with Stars"

See the stone set in your eyes See the thorn twist in your side I wait for you Sleight of hand and twist of fate On a bed of nails she makes me wait And I wait . . . without you With or without you With or without you - - -U2, "With or Without You"

Yesterday don't matter if it's gone. - - -Rolling Stones, "Ruby Tuesday"

“No sir, well I don’t want to be to blame, not anymore. It’s your turn, so take a seat, we’re settling the final score. And why do we like to hurt so much? I can’t decide…I was wrong. That’s what you get when you let your heart win. I drowned out all my sense with the sound of its beating” Paramore, “That’s What You Get”

“It’s not the end, but it feels like it is. I’m waking up like I’m back from the dead. I’m stepping out, and it feels so free, but as long as I’m moving it’s all right. I feel alive and it hurts for a change, and looking back, it’s hard to believe that I was cool with the days that wasted, complacent and bored…” The Afters, “Never Going Back to Okay”

The love you take is equal to the love you make. - - - The Beatles, "The End"

The World Before Columbus [4979 KB]

Suzanne Vega has a blog (doo dah, doo dah)

Back in the old days, when their dad and I were married, Lyn (Michael's sister) was one of my best friends, a true ally. Life did what life does, Michael and I divorced, and Lyn's and my paths split off to become forks in the road - divergent, not quite parallel, yet familiar. And, when Owen died, she wrapped me in her arms, and I knew she felt his loss in a way that could not be explained. Again, she was my ally...consistent, and therefore, trustworthy.

I know what it's like to lay prone in a hospital bed, trying to sleep while lights and noise conflict with our need to heal. It's an odd thing, being in a hospital. Mom used to tell me, "Linda, a hospital won't let you get well enough to die." I used to laugh when she said this. The two of us spent lots of time contemplating health and the lack thereof, waiting on lab tests and doctors who said things like, "Well, I'm not sure what's going on, so we'll just have to wait and see." I always knew Mom knew that healing was something that happened with or without doctors and hospitals. I'm sure Auntie L knows this, too.

We love you, Auntie L. Thanksgiving is just 'round the corner, and you cook the best turkeys on the planet. Get your ass outa that bed and let us cook a turkey for you this year; fix us a pot of coffee and regale us with stories from the old days; make us laugh together, while we celebrate our common frailties, our common strengths, our common losses, our common loves...our common histories.

Song for the night: Tom's Diner, Suzanne Vega (coffee, horoscopes, funnies, and crosswords, wow...we never stopped this routine, but freakin' whoa...we were young back then, eh?)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8cy5Xn42Ymo

The Queen and the Soldier

The soldier came knocking upon the queen's door
He said, "I am not fighting for you any more"
The queen knew she'd seen his face someplace before
And slowly she let him inside.

He said, "I've watched your palace up here on the hill
And I've wondered who's the woman for whom we all kill
But I am leaving tomorrow and you can do what you will
Only first I am asking you why."

Down in the long narrow hall he was led
Into her rooms with her tapestries red
And she never once took the crown from her head
She asked him there to sit down.

He said, "I see you now, and you are so very young
But I've seen more battles lost than I have battles won
And I've got this intuition, says it's all for your fun
And now will you tell me why?"

The young queen, she fixed him with an arrogant eye
She said, "You won't understand, and you may as well not try"
But her face was a child's, and he thought she would cry
But she closed herself up like a fan.

And she said, "I've swallowed a secret burning thread
It cuts me inside, and often I've bled"
He laid his hand then on top of her head
And he bowed her down to the ground.

"Tell me how hungry are you? How weak you must feel
As you are living here alone, and you are never revealed
But I won't march again on your battlefield"
And he took her to the window to see.

And the sun, it was gold, though the sky, it was gray
And she wanted more than she ever could say
But she knew how it frightened her, and she turned away
And would not look at his face again.

And he said, "I want to live as an honest man
To get all I deserve and to give all I can
And to love a young woman who I don't understand
Your highness, your ways are very strange."

But the crown, it had fallen, and she thought she would break
And she stood there, ashamed of the way her heart ached
She took him to the doorstep and she asked him to wait
She would only be a moment inside.

Out in the distance her order was heard
And the soldier was killed, still waiting for her word
And while the queen went on strangling in the solitude she preferred
The battle continued on

Suzanne Vega

"Tom's Diner" was originally released on Vega's Solitude Standing album and is one of my favorite songs. I heard the remix version first which I like very much but I wanted to hear the original version so I've got the Solitude Standing album.

Tom's Album was released in 1991 and produced by Suzanne Vega, contains twelve different versions of “Tom's Diner”, and a remix of “Rusted Pipe,” which I also liked.

I still can't decide which version I like better but I am leaning towards the remix version done by DNA. The lyrics below is the complete version.

Tom's Diner

I am sitting
In the morning
At the diner
On the corner

I am waiting
At the counter
For the man
To pour the coffee

And he fills it
Only halfway
And before
I even argue

He is looking
Out the window
At somebody
Coming in

"It is always
Nice to see you"
Says the man
Behind the counter

To the woman
Who has come in
She is shaking
Her umbrella

And I look
The other way
As they are kissing
Their hellos

I'm pretending
Not to see them
And instead
I pour the milk

I open
Up the paper
There's a story
Of an actor

Who had died
While he was drinking
It was no one
I had heard of

And I'm turning
To the horoscope
And looking
For the funnies

When I'm feeling
Someone watching me
And so
I raise my head

There's a woman
On the outside
Looking inside
Does she see me?

No she does not
Really see me
Cause she sees
Her own reflection

And I'm trying
Not to notice
That she's hitching
Up her skirt

And while she's
Straightening her stockings
Her hair
Has gotten wet

Oh, this rain
It will continue
Through the morning
As I'm listening

To the bells
Of the cathedral
I am thinking
Of your voice

And of the midnight picnic
Once upon a time
Before the rain began
I finish up my coffee

It's time to catch the train

Lyrics by Suzanne Vega

Suzanne Vega recalls the completely charming and bizarre story of her life, music and recordings. In the New York Times

SUZANNE VEGA : Ludlow street

[audio=http://adrianboholtan.files.wordpress.com/2008/09/suzanne-vega-ludlow-street1.jpg]

August 24, 2007, J&R's Musicfest at City Hall Park
Originally posted at Postcards from the Clouds
Edited on September 17, 2008

It was a hot and sunny day. As I walked towards the park, I could see a crowd had formed around a temporary stage. I had to wait an hour and some minutes before Ms. Vega's turn to perform. There were two acts before her whom I was not familiar with. The crowd emptied out as the second artist ended his performance. I think they had  different musical taste. There was at least a twenty minute wait as the equipments were being set up. Still there were lot of people due to the fact that it was Friday night.

Suzanne Vega was a redhead beauty in complete black with a sparkling band around the neckline of the long shirt she was wearing, exposing her white, long arms. Her red hair, short and loose, shined in the overhead lights. It was almost dark, maybe seven o'clock by the time she appeared on stage.  Surrounded by instruments and other musicians, Ms. Vega shined brightly with her sweet smile and her clear voice. She made a few jokes and notes about some of the songs she performed. The crowd cheered and applauded as song. The speaker was extremely loud. I think I was standing much too close but I couldn't really move because there were people behind me.
As the evening grew darker, Ms. Vega performed songs from her new album, Beauty & Crime and some from a few, maybe even a decade ago. Still they sounded like new songs to me. Ms. Vega's voice was still very lively and fresh.

I had to stop taking pictures towards the end of the evening as my camera's battery was running out. Maybe I should have brought that extra battery but I rarely use the camera this long. I was taking shots all day from various places. The last shots of Ms. Vega were all fuzzy but they have a nice effect to them. Some camera functions didn't functioned since the battery was very low. I tried to preserve the battery length by turning the camera off and only turn it on when I see a moment that needs to be capture.

Some tall guy kept blocking my way and I had to move several times and he almost step on my foot. I think he was a little out of it. He didn't even notice I was there. Several times I cursed at him but got no respond. Being as short as I am, I just couldn't find a decent spot to take shots. If only I was ten inches taller. But I did managed to get a few good shots even if everyone kept blocking my view. I tried to enjoy the music but I had to keep moving around to see Ms. Vega and the speakers was getting much too loud.

The sound quality - that is the speaker - was having problems on the last song of the evening which was "Tom's diner" done in the DNA remix style. The speaker beat out big boom sounds and Ms. Vega continued on even when she noticed the sound. I can't be sure what was going on but I did hear a booming sound from the speaker and even a sort of electrical short sound. I had to covered my ears and moved farther away. Ms. Vega managed to finished the song with a genuine smile and heartfelt thanks as she walked off stage.

The streetlights got turned on then.  It was surreal as all the shops were closed and the only light was from J&R's music department.  I walked as fast as I could across the streets to waited in yet another line to get my Suzanne Vega album signed. I had purchased the album in the afternoon before the concert so I didn't had to wait to buy the album. You cannot get on line unless you have brought the album. It's sort of J&R's way of forcing you to be buy.  But I did save a little time. Still there was more waiting. I didn't stick around to see if how long the line was.

What do you say to a total stranger? I like her music but I was too star-struck to say anything but "Thanks" as she signed my cd booklet of the album. I think she said "Thanks." But I wasn't really paying attention. I think I was distracted by her eyes. What is there to say when you don't know the person? It was still a thrill to see her. I had seen her in the late nineties for her other album release but forgotten which album it was. She was beautiful then and still quite beautiful now.

I saw a guy before me with "Solitude Standing" record, not a CD but an actual record. "Solitude Standing" was the first Suzanne Vega album that I ever heard. He was black and young, dressed all in black. He didn't said much as his record was being signed by Ms. Vega. I wonder what he was thinking as he didn't appeared to be smiling. He looked down as he walked away and out into the  streets.  Then it was my turn for my cd booklet to be sign so I didn't follow him. I didn't take photos since my camera's battery was dead by the time it was my turn. But I think it was best since I probably couldn't take a decent shot anyhow being so awestruck that I was.

"Si tu crees en el amor a primera vista, nunca dejes de mirar"

 Película del 2004, dirigida por Mike Nichols y escrita por Park Marber.

Protagonizada por Julia Roberts(quien fue llamada después que la actriz Cate Blanchett rechazó el papel por salir embarazada de su segundo hijo Roman Robert), Jude Law, Natalie Portman y Olive Owen.

La historia se basa en la infidelidade y una mirada a las relaciones modernas, la película tiene un excelente libreto y un excelente reparto con varias nominaciones al oscar(9) y reconocidos premios internacionales. Hasta ahora una de las mejores que e visto. 

♫ Música del trailer :

 ♦Damien Rice: The Blower`s Daughter

♦Suzanne Vega:Caramel

Didn’t I tell you you’re mine? You are mine. Now we go home.

* * *

Bossa nova to me used to be solely and strictly Antonio Carlos Jobim. I would want to include Astrud Gilberto but the only exposure I have to Gilberto is A Certain Sadness, oh, and Waters Of March which almost every jazz singer or instrumentalist has a version of. And I did not even get to listen to Jobim out of a curiosity for bossa nova. I got to him through Frank Sinatra. Just around that time when Sinatra just passed away, RPN 9 had a re-run of his 60s TV show, and in one of the episodes I saw, I was fortunate enough to catch that one where Ella Fitzgerald and Jobim guested. Jobim played acoustic guitar to a smoking Sinatra’s medley of Jobim’s compositions, namely Girl From Ipanema, I Concentrate On You, Change Partners, and Quiet Nights Of Quiet Stars. It was so sexy. I never perceived of Sinatra as sexy until I heard him sing those songs. I got hooked instantly. When I learned that the two actually collaborated on an album, I sought the said record (Francis Albert Sinatra & Antonio Carlos Jobim), and found it eventually.

The last two years actually saw a rise in the number of bossa nova acts and the release of their recordings locally. Former mainstream artists, say, Agot Isidro, even came up with bossa nova albums. And the record shelves are always stacked these days with bossa-fied versions of Bacharach and what-have-you.

Quite a what-have-you is what I got upon scoring a copy of Nouvelle Vague’s self-titled album. If before my perception of bossa nova is simply Brazilian jazz or 60s jazz or beach jazz, Nouvelle Vague turned it to what it should be – rebellion. And Nouvelle Vague is, as bossa nova is, rebellion.

Bossa nova came around during the late fifties as a new, hip form of jazz. It literally means ‘new wave’ or ‘new beat’ in Portuguese. Nouvelle Vague, as I would later learn, plays only punk and new wave/post-punk songs in bossa nova arrangements. A typically close-minded punk or new wave listener would probably raise eyebrows at the thought. I did not. Actually, having heard them now, I can’t wait for them to make covers of, say, I’m Not Down, or Brainstew/Jaded, or hey, Hey.

* * *

In the film A Mighty Heart by Michael Winterbottom, just right after the character of Mariane Pearl played by Angelina Jolie gave birth to her son Adam, just as she cradles the baby in her arms, the strains of a classical guitar can be heard. This plays on in the next scene, supposedly a few years having passed, where the mother is shown walking hand-in-hand with her boy in a European city street. The song blooms at this point, and the words, which speak of yearning, fittingly brings the film to its close –

            “ … In a manner of speaking, I just want to say

                  That I could never forget the way

                  You told me everything by saying nothing…

              … So in a manner of speaking, I just want to say

                  That just like you, I should find a way

                  To tell you everything by saying nothing.

                  Oh, give me the words, give me the words

                  That tell me nothing.

                  Give me the words, give me the words

                  That tell me everything …”

The song is In A Manner Of Speaking. It was written by Depeche Mode’s Martin L. Gore. Yes, the same guy who wrote the Depeche Mode classic Enjoy The Silence. Apparently, he seems to have quite a fix on silences.

In A Manner Of Speaking as played on the film was not performed by Tuxedomoon, though, the group which originally recorded it. The version in the film was by Nouvelle Vague.

* * *

The song was so haunting and heartbreaking I was immediately sorry that I could not wait for the film to be shown in the theatres – I had to be listening to it through my supposedly-stereo-sounding TV, as played off my Quiapo copy of the film. But if it had that effect on me despite the circumstances, what more had I been listening to it in a dark, cold, sonics-friendly theatre? I would be welling up tears, I bet. I had to wait for the song credits to be shown, then zoomed in the title of the song to see the performer: Nouvelle Vague. Consoling myself, I just made a commitment that from hereon, every time I go into a record store, I would always check the jazz section for a Nouvelle Vague record.

And then one night, after seeing a fashion show for the first time, and after I had to leave the venue quick because they were through playing Bjork and I couldn’t find the cocktails and I felt timid asking about it and I just basically suddenly felt out of place, I decided to go to the nearby mall, Rockwell, and check out the Fully Booked there. Freezing in my halter dress, sore in those killer heels, and carrying my Saturday book load, I climbed up to the mezzanine floor of the bookstore which housed the record section. The new releases shelf was right up front, and I quickly cussed as I saw a copy of Radiohead’s The Best Of, because I knew I couldn’t buy it, along with some other poetry books I saw downstairs. I looked further on, hoping not to see another goodie.

But there she was, the fair woman on the cover with her chin up, staring right at me, the words Nouvelle Vague right below her neck, so readable despite the purple and close-knit layout. She, along with a twin, was stacked right beside Massive Attack. I grabbed her immediately, held her close to my heart like a loony, and turned her over to see if indeed this was the Nouvelle Vague that sang In A Manner Of Speaking. It was! And along the titles in it were I Melt With You, and Love Will Tear Us Apart. Interesting, I thought. An even more interesting was that it cost only 350, a hundred lesser than Radiohead, but still I couldn’t afford it. All I really had was taxi money, and if I insisted on buying the disc, I would have to risk waiting for ages in Rockwell for a jeep. That could take me the whole night, all the way to dawn. If only I brought slippers, if only I didn’t eat in that coffee shop before the show…

So I laid her back down in her place. But not without saying you are mine you are mine you are mine…

It always works, you see.

The next time I saw her was August 18, 2008. I was in really good spirits, having finished an important personal project. I wanted to reward myself. It felt to be the right time to look for Nouvelle Vague. And because I couldn’t afford taxi fare all the way to Fully Booked Rockwell, I had to decide to go to the nearest good record store which was merely one jeepney ride away, Music One at Quezon Avenue.

And there she was, erroneously classified under electronica when she should be in jazz (I first looked at the jazz section but did not find her, so good thing I remembered the disc as laid next to Massive Attack way back in Rockwell, I actually thought of looking for Nouvelle Vague’s right there at Music One in electronica, just in case).

So I approached her, took her again for good this time, and in my head said, as I cradled her, didn’t I tell you...

I had to be cut off quickly though, for as I embraced the disc while lining behind a few other people towards the counter, I saw the concerts section. And there was another lady there who I had to approach. Suzanne Vega Live In Montreux.

For 395. More than a week’s lunch. Caramel was in the listing.

This enticing collection will be released through her website as Suzanne Vega Acoustic Favorites. From what I've gleaned from interviews about her writing process, it sounds like the results could be akin to polished demos. I'm very excited at the prospect of stripped down versions of her songs, particularly ones from her 1990s albums.

I recently posted about her iTunes Live performance, which has since been released on the iTunes Store. Sadly it's the usual iTunes Live six-track EP, not a video of the whole concert, as I presumed from the pre-show announcement. My mistake. Sorry to get anyone's hopes up, and I still recommend catching a date next time she tours in your area. If you're lucky, you'll get a venue as top-notch as the Royal Concert Hall in Nottingham, where I saw her in 2004.

Take me along with you
Inside your pocket
My body against your warmth
Rolling rolling rolling...

Or toss me away
Into the drain
I will roll with debris and water
Along along along...

Bobbing up and down
Traversing putrid rivers
Your tired face I shall be
Kissing kissing kissing...

Until I find the sea again
Ride the undulating waves
Then into the bottomless ocean sink
Deep deep deep...

There I will kiss you again
Listen to the water engulf me
Enwrapped in your soft breathing
Sigh sigh sigh...

I am nothing great
Just a small blue thing.

Suzanne Vega

~The Queen And The Soldier~

The soldier came knocking upon the queen's door
He said, "I am not fighting for you any more"
The queen knew she'd seen his face someplace before
And slowly she let him inside.

He said, "I've watched your palace up here on the hill
And I've wondered who's the woman for whom we all kill
But I am leaving tomorrow and you can do what you will
Only first I am asking you why."

Down in the long narrow hall he was led
Into her rooms with her tapestries red
And she never once took the crown from her head
She asked him there to sit down.

He said, "I see you now, and you are so very young
But I've seen more battles lost than I have battles won
And I've got this intuition, says it's all for your fun
And now will you tell me why?"

The young queen, she fixed him with an arrogant eye
She said, "You won't understand, and you may as well not try"
But her face was a child's, and he thought she would cry
But she closed herself up like a fan.

And she said, "I've swallowed a secret burning thread
It cuts me inside, and often I've bled"
He laid his hand then on top of her head
And he bowed her down to the ground.

"Tell me how hungry are you? How weak you must feel
As you are living here alone, and you are never revealed
But I won't march again on your battlefield"
And he took her to the window to see.

And the sun, it was gold, though the sky, it was gray
And she wanted more than she ever could say
But she knew how it frightened her, and she turned away
And would not look at his face again.

And he said, "I want to live as an honest man
To get all I deserve and to give all I can
And to love a young woman who I don't understand
Your highness, your ways are very strange."

But the crown, it had fallen, and she thought she would break
And she stood there, ashamed of the way her heart ached
She took him to the doorstep and she asked him to wait
She would only be a moment inside.

Out in the distance her order was heard
And the soldier was killed, still waiting for her word
And while the queen went on strangeling in the solitude she preferred
The battle continued on

- To było kapitalne! Uważam, że mój awatar jest znacznie fajniejszy ode mnie prawdziwej. Dzięki Second Life poczułam się, jakbym dostała do ręki lalkę, mogę nią manipulować, ubierać, sterować nią. Niestety, ciągle jeszcze ma za mało ekspresji. Muszę pokombinować przy twarzy, żeby była bardziej realistyczna.

Ale ogólnie to świetna rzecz, można dotrzeć do ludzi, z którymi inaczej nie możesz się skomunikować. Widzę tu ogromną przyszłość. Gdybym tak mogła wysłać swojego awatara w trasę, mogłabym dotrzeć do milionów Polaków, nie ruszając się z sypialni… Śpiewałabym naprawdę, ale za jego pośrednictwem”.

Źródło: Z Suzanne Vega rozmawiał Filip Łobodziński, Poetka w awatarze, Newsweek, 10 czerwca 2007.

(c'è sempre la musica sotto la verità)

Not sure how many of you all are actually up on this one, but there was definitely a time in my life when I knew every word to this little 1991 gem. It's funny listening to this now. She's rapping about her loving, protective father who used to leave and go on business trips and how she was wildin' out behind his back. Today, all you hear from most rap artists is dead beat/non-existent fathers and how they ache for that connection. According to Wikipedia, Nikki D is now the marketing manager at Phat Fashions, the apparel company for Phat Farm and Baby Phat. I guess she's been down with Russ for more than a minute. She was the first female rapper to sign to Def Jam back in 1989.

Oh and just for the heck of it, the video for Suzanne Vega's "Tom's Diner" is below. That's the song Nikki D sampled. Enjoy