Would you rather be at the Ritz in Paris or London than in lockdown at home? I certainly would, even if my budget could never, would never, extend that far. I decided that the next best thing is to pour a glass of wine and sing a song about it. I’ve been meaning to learn… Continue reading Happiness as Anarchy #357: Puttin’ on the Ritz
Tag: songs
Happiness as Anarchy #272: Disappearing down the music wormhole
Rehearsing is always a pleasure. Especially when it’s for one of my favourite small festivals – Melbourne Ukulele Festival – and one of my favourite songwriters – Leonard Cohen. I was going to post a clip of Leonard singing Come Healing live in Dublin, but the musical wormhole is a rich place. So much material… Continue reading Happiness as Anarchy #272: Disappearing down the music wormhole
Happiness as Anarchy #268: When my kids like my songs
Possibly the best things I could hear:~ “Hey Mama, I went to listen to that song on youtube because I really like it, but then I realised it’s not there because it’s one of your songs.”~ “Hey Mama, can you play your songs while I’m going to sleep?”~ Waking up on a Sunday morning to… Continue reading Happiness as Anarchy #268: When my kids like my songs
Happiness as Anarchy #252: Hold On
Geoff and I added this song to our list today for a new project we’re cooking up. I love the underlying train rhythm that keeps it gently moving while the lyrics conjure up images of everyday life. It’s a beautiful film clip too, worth watching right to the end for two hands that meet.
Happiness as Anarchy #198: Don’t Fence Me In
‘Tis a song that most people associate with country and western, but in fact twas written by the master of music theatre, Cole Porter. He penned the melody in 1934, with lyrics written by Robert Fletcher, for the musical Adios Argentina. However it didn’t become a hit until Roy Rogers sang it in the Warner… Continue reading Happiness as Anarchy #198: Don’t Fence Me In
Happiness as Anarchy #188: Shiver Me Timbers
Shiver Me Timbers is such a beautiful song. Digging deep into a song to learn it properly is always a fascinating process, but some songs are like medicine for my heart too. This is one of those and I’m very much looking forward to playing it at my Tom Waits gig on the 4th December.
Happiness as Anarchy #97: Quantifiable Progress
As a qualitative researcher, I’m normally quite suspicious of quantitative measurements. However, there are times when the numbers are both meaningful and deeply satisfying. I just updated my song list document – I haven’t done it since January when was sitting around the century mark – and discovered that it now numbers 180. That’s a… Continue reading Happiness as Anarchy #97: Quantifiable Progress