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metinks you belong right here! May sunshine and moonlight reveal your paths as they do you beauties........................

This morning I have enjoyed the warm Mediterranean sun of December, the Barbara music sounded and in the hands I had a good novel not read. A perfect moment. [The DVD of Barbara au Châtelet is a marvel too. Oh thanks, my friend! ]

I have remembered Guillermina Motta, a Catalan singer, she has sung several songs of Barbara in 1979: El dia que vindràs, El sol negre / Le soleil negre, La soledad / La solitude, Senyora / Madame and in 1999 El mal de viure / Le mal de vivre. I believe they are wonderful covers. Searching in the Catalan songs I can find more covers.

Besides La dame brune (1967) (excellent!), on Moustaki's disc of 1972 there is La Ligne Droite interpreted by Barbara.

I have the Paulo Conte's live Arena Di Verona, now I have curiosity for understanding his lyrics. I do not know Giorgio.
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Some states are formed for a mosaic of nations, and not always these nations are satisfied, or feel identified, with the state that they belong. I believe that these feelings are judged as a disloyalty when it would be better to know the history of every nation.

I feel as Catalan, much more when I am exiled in Madrid , in France I am Spanish and in Dayton (Ohio) my name is Antonio and I am Latin. At the end, I feel as a citizen of this world.

I have transmitted the love, the language and the culture of my dear land from my parents to my daughters. But for it I do not feel better or worse.

For your Smile:

I'm really interested in knowing more from catalan singer's covers from Barbara (I only have "L'aguila negra", from Bonet).
The song "La ligne droite", a duet with Moustaki, is also included in Barbara's album "Amours incestueuses". Is there any particular song or songs that are touched you? In the dvd, I higly recommend you two points: "L'île aux Mimosas" and "Le mal de vivre", with its "unhuman" final catarsis. It makes me happy you liked it.
On the other hand, I agree with you about your feelings. After all I was talking about a metaphisical exile, more than a political one; neverthless, all levels are connected.
I hope some day we will not need any kind of government, that we have the bravery not to be domined by anyone.

For your Smile:

you mean the double cd or the dvd when you mention Paolo Conte's Arena di Verona? In the cd there is some sort of delirious flamenco song sung in Spanish and called "Cuánta pasión!". It is really mesmerizing in some crazy way.
Paolo Conte's lyrics are often word games, little ironic observations, I think he is much more a musician than a writer; he is not a poet like Cohen or others; as a matter of fact, he says poetry is something not for real men (I swear I've read it in an interview, of course I do not agree), and that his relation with litterature is always charged with the feeling of being in a hurry. But, whised or not, some kind of poetry lives through his lines, in a sober manner.

NightStalker of North Carolina: a verse for you.

In North Caroline out in the pines
There lives a man of few
Words and lines, he wastes no time
But what he says is true.

by Voo on the spur of the moment. (did you know that moments have spurs?)


Thank you for the warm thoughts. Happy Sunday.

It's Sunday afternoon, it's raining, Leonard Cohen is singing In My Secret Life. And I'm slow dancing with an invisible man. What's wrong with this picture?!

Antonio: why did you mention Dayton, Ohio????? And hello, btw. My great grandmother was from Spain. Her name was Ari Cortez.

about a metaphisical exile, more than a political one

This was more my understanding when I made my comments, though they naturally were delivered in the context of DNA/culture. They definitely weren't in the political vein.

~ Lizzy

Antonio wrote:Tchocolatl:

I don't know where you live, in what country; here in Spain Giorgio Conte is pretty unknown, but Paolo always gets a big attention; ticket concerts instantly sold out and great expectation for his first moves.
And for this interest in other countries, I think it is a common feeling, because we are all exiled, we belong to nowhere in this fragmented, obscure world where we have lost the sense of community and roots of ancient cultures. Intelllectualy, sentimentaly, socially exiled? Maybe this is our condition, and we are trying to find some sort of paradise where we can recognise ourselves. Well this is a personal opinion, don't want to hurt no one.

Best whises

Yes. I like what you wrote, I find it beautiful. Even though I am not a man, I feel I am this man in the song. And that many people are too.

The Stranger Song
Leonard Cohen

It's true that all the men you knew were dealers
who said they were through with dealing
Every time you gave them shelter
I know that kind of man
It's hard to hold the hand of anyone
who is reaching for the sky just to surrender.
And then sweeping up the jokers that he left behind
you find he did not leave you very much
not even laughter
Like any dealer he was watching for the card
that is so high and wild
he'll never need to deal another
He was just some Joseph looking for a manger
He was just some Joseph looking for a manger.
And then leaning on your window sill
he'll say one day you caused his will
to weaken with your love and warmth and shelter
And then taking from his wallet
an old schedule of trains, he'll say
I told you when I came I was a stranger
I told you when I came I was a stranger.
But now another stranger seems to want you to ignore his dreams
as though they were the burden of some other
O you've seen that man before
his golden arm dispatching cards
but now it's rusted from the elbow to the finger
And he wants to trade the game he plays for shelter
Yes he wants to trade the game he knows for shelter.
You hate to watch another tired man
lay down his hand
like he was giving up the holy game of poker
And while he talks his dreams to sleep
you notice there's a highway
that is curling up like smoke above his shoulder
It's curling up like smoke above his shoulder.
You tell him to come in sit down
but something makes you turn around
The door is open you can't close you shelter
You try the handle of the road
It opens do not be afraid
It's you my love, you who are the stranger
It is you my love, you who are the stranger.
Well, I've been waiting, I was sure
we'd meet between the trains we're waiting for
I think it's time to board another
Please understand, I never had a secret chart
to get me to the heart of this
or any other matter
Well he talks like this
you don't know what he's after
When he speaks like this,
you don't know what he's after.
Let's meet tomorrow if you chose
upon the shore, beneath the bridge
that they are building on some endless river
Then he leaves the platform
for the sleeping car that's warm
You realize, he's only advertising one more shelter
And it comes to you, he never was a stranger
And you say ok the bridge or someplace later.
And then sweeping up the jokers
that he left behind
you find he did not leave you very much
not even laughter
Like any dealer he was watching for the card
that is so high and wild
he'll never need to deal another
He was just some Joseph looking for a manger
He was just some Joseph looking for a manger.
And leaning on your window sill
he'll say one day you caused his will
to weaken with your love and warmth and shelter
And then taking from his wallet
an old schedule of trains
he'll say I told you when I came I was a stranger
I told you when I came I was a stranger.

"L'ile aux Mimoses"
Barbara slow dances and sings with a little piano (an invisible man? Voo):
"Et si tu m'avais cherchée"
A voice of the public says: "Je vous ai cherchée"
She continues:
"De soir en soir, de bar en bar,
Imagine que tu m'aies trouvée",
The voice: "Je vous ai trouvée"

What more can the artist wait? For what more can her public ask? Reciprocal communication and admiration.

"Le mal de vivre" finishes with a passionate:

"La joie de vivre
La joie de vivre
Oh, viens la vivre
Ta joie de vivre".

What I can say! Merveilleux!

"Cuanta pasión en la vida, cuanta pasión, es una historia infinita, una ilusión temeraria, un indiscreto final, ay!... " Pualo Conte

I was stranger twice in Dayton. The winter is very very cold there, but the Canadian ducks go down looking for something better. I can understand that a Canadien prefers living in California . Anyway, there are warm hearts in Dayton . Tomorrow I will exile myself to Madrid, just one night, already I know the loneliness of a hotel's room .

Ari is a rare name in Spain, Cortez can belong to the Extremadura, Spanish land of big conquerors.

When a man of il Piamonte says that he is in Italy for accident we do not need to justify him with artistic reasons - France? No! Nor for political reasons (this so unsightly as the money and the power), neither it is a lack of loyalty. He is speaking about his roots and feelings.

We can feel strangers in many moments, it does not matter if we are men or women. The Stranger Song can illustrate perfectly this branch of the topic.

[But, I need to explain some day, some day that I am inspired, in the topic that Pete opened "A solitary tear ". In my opinion "The stranger Song" speaks about the fight and the terrible pain for looking for the individual freedom, as a holy dogma, sacrificing for it the true love, too sad.]

It is "L'île aux mimosas". You do it in purpose, isn't it, to have me pass after you, you funny guys.

There is no such thing as "true love". If you mean by this "romantic love" it is a relatively recent invention, and the "object" of romantic love is not meant to grow old. In all the senses of the term. . The relation ends or it changes into something else. "Individual freedom", in the sense of individuation (term of psy from Carl Jung), yes. To grow up is painful sometimes, indeed, but what to do? To die "before our time"? To be "living dead people"? Zombies? I prefer to let go a tear or two to from time to time and stay alive.

I once lived in Dayton, Ohio. A very cold and frightening city. And the reference to the "invisible man" ??? by that I meant that I had all the elements of a romantic enviroment except for a solid dance partner.

Voo, did he get invisible at some point? I tremendously liked reading The Invisible Man by H.G. Wells (a couple of years ago), this week-end my eyes caught the book by chance in the bookshelf, and I would have read it again if I have had the time. Sigh... I did not remimber he was from Dayton, Ohio, though! I have to come back much later now, take care!

As a complement to Conte and French singers, I dare to take here and I recommend the album "Chambre 1050", by the german singer and actress Ingrid Caven; it only has piano and voice, very clean, and the songs go from cabaret repertoire to contemporary music (with pieces from Luciano Berio and Schönberg). About her singing, she has a soft, deep voice, maybe -just an opinion- in some point beetween Dietrich and Ute Lemper (or even Lotte Lenya). A great performance; she is also with a stunning piano player, who renders the songs at the same time deep and light.

WoW . Great descriptions, Antonio .


~ Lizzy

Dear Lizzy:

not as good as I'd like to offer; we'll keep on trying, anyway

Greetings