Joanee’s back, woot woot!!
After a month-long wedding preparation hiatus, I am very pleased to announce the return of this daily blog to my routine and your computers! I missed this thing, and have a ****load of music queued up and ready to talk about, so grab a drink, sit down, and buckle in! Here’s a sneak peak of what you have to look forward to:
- A ten-part wedding playlist series is about to commence starting tomorrow, so definitely stay tuned for that! I will also be blogging about many of those songs individually in the months to come. I’m guessing through September at least!
- Some incredible new 2010 songs that have been milling about in my brain needing to be discussed.
- A cover you won’t believe, introduced to me by daddy dearest.
- A review of Suzanne Vega’s newest album.
- My recommendations for what to watch on television if you love music (an article I’ve been working on for a year now!).
- A tribute to great bass lines.
And so much more!!!
So, yeah, stay tuned. Bookmark me. Do whatever you need to do! And please, for the love of all that is good and right, comment on my blog, email me with suggestions, start discussions! If more people don’t join in, I’m going to have to change the name of this blog to “Dear Dad: A Public Discourse on Music Between Two People”.
SONG OF THE DAY
“Hymne à l’amour (Hymn to Love)” by Christopher Gunning (La Mome: La Vie En Rose soundtrack, Emd International Records, 2007). Lyrics by Edith Piaf, with music by Marguerite Monnot.
WHERE DID I HEAR IT?
The day before we packed for the wedding I finally had absolutely nothing to do and an honest-to-moses day to relax. So, I decided to watch a movie with subtitles, and La Vie En Rose topped that list. I couldn’t get Piaf out of my head for the rest of the week. I was absolutely stunned by that film and lead performance. Marion Cotillard definitely earned that Oscar.
Here’s where you can hear a 1950 recording of the song by Piaf herself (though I prefer the dreamy instrumental cover from the 2007 soundtrack that I reference above): http://edith-piaf.narod.ru/2/Edith_Piaf_-_Hymne_a_l_amour.mp3
WHY TODAY?
Because it is an essential and true love song, and, having just returned from my wedding weekend, there is no greater or more fitting tribute to the love that enveloped me from family, friends, and my new husband all weekend. It is no joke to say that the French know love; this song is hard evidence to the nation’s uncanny ability to tap deep into the ultimate sentiment of human existence: love.
INTERESTING FACTS (a la wikipedia)
– She first sang this song at the cabaret Versailles in New York on September 14, 1949.
– It was written to her lover and the love of her life, the French boxer, Marcel Cerdan.
– On October 27, 1949 Cerdan was killed in a plane crash on his way from Paris to New York to come see her.
– She recorded the song on 2 May 1950 (this is the recording linked above!).
– It has been adapted to English as “If You Love Me (Really Love Me)” (with lyrics by Geoffrey Parsons) and alternatively as “Hymn to Love” (with lyrics by Eddie Constantine), and to Spanish as “Himno Al Amor”.
LYRICS
| Le ciel bleu sur nous peut s’effondrer Et la terre peut bien s’écrouler. Peu m’importe, si tu m’aimes Je me fous du monde entier Tant que l’amour inondera mes matins J’irais jusqu’au bout du monde J’irais décrocher la lune Je renierais ma patrie On peut bien rire de moi Si un jour la vie t’arrache à moi Nous aurons pour nous l’éternité Dieu réunit ceux qui s’aiment! |
The blue sky above us might fall down And the ground might well collapse. Little matters to me, if you love me I don’t give a damn about the entire world As long as love inundates my mornings I would go to the ends of the earth I would go and take down the moon I would renounce my homeland They might well laugh at me If one day life tears you away from me We will have eternity to ourselves God reunites those who love each other! |
VIDEO OF THE DAY