When Living in a World You Don’t Understand…

Lilac Wine

Performed by Nina Simone. Jeff Buckley does it perfectly too but we’ve all heard that recording before right?

IDM Timeline

It was about this time of year when I was was in a car at night in the suburbs. Like many stories I have about music, I was with my friend Joshie and Joshie and I were with his old friend Alex in that very car that same night. Driving down a hill, I thought we were listening to my soul sonified through car speakers. Some telekinetic mind trick? Better not ask questions.

No, always ask questions.

In Pine Effect. Something called “I”DM…stands for “Intelligent” Dance Music. Pretentious.

I would spend the rest of my high school days simultaneously driving video taping, listening to u-ziq, and consuming a lot of caffeine. Up and down the parkway. Around and around 495 construction.

Sometime after high school while crossing the Wilson Bridge I would declare Midwinter Log to be my spirit animal.

10 years later I would move to Chicago to be close to IDM (one of Top Five Reasons). Yay. There never was anything like it near DC and to be completely pessimistic, there probably never will be.

A White Girl’s Pet

Good lord. Is this the most tragic song?

Dark Was the Night Cold Was the Ground

Blind Willie Johnson

Each Day Valentine’s Day!

I went to Alexandria, VA over the weekend. At home I was reading through my mama’s copy of the Fake Book turning the pages like I wanted her to give it to me and picking up on this she said I could have it if I learned her favorite jazz song before she came to visit me in Chicago the next week. Deal!

16 hours later I’m back in Chicago listening to several pages worth of My Funny Valentine on YouTube.

There’s Michael Buble, a truly talented performer and entertainer. At first his voice makes me melt and I think I’m in love. Everything is going really well for almost a minute until I start feeling like he’s trying to sell me something. It’s not that he’s insincere and I really enjoyed his performance but… this is just not the one for me. Same thing with Frank Sinatra.

There’s one by Nico. Interesting, dark, mysterious.

There’s one by Tony Bennett and Buddy Rich which seems promising until I’m reminded that listening to Tony Bennett is like being force fed cardboard. Buddy Rich plays minimally which I guess would be considered tasteful if listening to Tony Bennett’s voice wasn’t business casual torture. Keith Jarrett always comes up when I look for standards on YouTube… why is he always wearing those goofy shirts?

Something about Billy Holiday’s voice makes me feel like she is looking me straight in the eye and going right in for my soul. What is she going to do in there? I’m worried but ok, I trust her. I let her in. She is not blinking. I mean she is really singing to ME and it’s almost creepy like those paintings of Jesus with the eyes that follow you across the room. The song is over and I have no idea what just happened but I think I liked it.

There is a funny video by Sammy Davis Jr that I liked.

But then there is Sarah Vaughn’s version and this one is the truth as I know it!

Embedding disabled!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WGaPVXy2Cm8

Cat Power

Bill Evans Trio

I have to play Autumn Leaves at skool tomorrow. Bill Evans is one of my favorite pianists. I’m out of time!

Update

I noticed that my favorite video of all time is not available on YouTube anymore.

Jeff Buckley – Satisfied Mind (Live, 03-22-92)

This is a Promise With a Catch

I stopped and talked to one of the neighbors on my way home this morning. He lives alone and is much older than me, somewhere between the ages of my father and my grandfather. There is a dangerous wise warmth to his presence that I find comforting.

Today he asked me if I thought it was going to rain. I knew he knew it was going to but I said I didn’t think it would. The sky was clear and blue and there wasn’t much moisture in the air – why would I think it was going to rain?

He says they say we’re expecting thunderstorms. Rumors.

Must be something in the air… I was informed of three breakups this morning before 10am!