The Captain and the Kim

Hey Ahab…It’s a dream come true! I’m in Mandalay again, wearing my monkey suit and my eight hundred dollar shoes…and I’m going to Shiloh for the Union during the best part of the day. I should’ve sent roses, but…since there’s no tomorrow, you’re never too old to live Jimmie Rodgers’ dream…You know, if it wasn’t…

Ok, so I’ve had nearly a week to listen to, absorb and reflect upon The Union.  I feel like I should have some earth-shattering revelation to share with you, some Taupin-esque tidbit (if only!) that ties it all together, but all I can muster up is this:  The Union amazes me…it (truly) amazes me. I…

Need I say more?

I’ve been listening to Don’t Shoot Me… this past week, and I had almost (but not quite!) forgotten how much I really like this song.  And since the CD is playing in my car whenever I transport my daughter, she tells me it is one of her favorites, too. You wore a little cross of…

Ok, so this is not exactly my scene, but this piece is musically provocative (and not just because of the lyrics)…I realize that the vignette portrayed in this song is a bit too realistic (AKA raw) for many, but you know, if nothing else, it is an honest portrayal of a side of life that…

Arguably one of my favorite lines…(I have a lot of those, don’t I)?!  From the song Curtains, a melancholy piece from Captain Fantastic…meandering through some beautiful imagery and culminating in that masterpiece of a line. When I first heard this song, I thought Bernie was foreshadowing the end of the Elton/Bernie partnership.  Perhaps he was.…

I do love this song, but it is has always been a source of frustration to me.  Bernie, Bernie, Bernie…what the heck word in Spanish are you referring to? I realize that the mystery of not knowing adds to the song’s intrigue, but please, I beg you,  just tell us what word brings the female…

I think I’ll let this song speak for itself…as Bernie’s lyrics so often do… In the quiet silent seconds I turned off the light switch And I came down to meet you in the half light the moon left While a cluster of night jars sang some songs out of tune A mantle of bright…

This past Thursday night, my sisters and brothers surprised me with a poem, commemorating my 50th birthday celebration earlier this year. Of course, they knew whatever they wrote must have some linkage to EJ, so here it is… Fifty Candles in the Wind* Told to pack for two days, Kim asked “Where are we going?”…

Candle in the Wind, the boys’ tribute to Marilyn Monroe, is essentially ubiquitous (which doesn’t make it any less amazing, by the way).  And, of course, the version of Candle in the Wind dedicated to Princess Diana perhaps even more so.  On the other hand, Cage the Songbird, also a tribute (albeit obscure), is from…