Personally I'm tired of all this COVID stuff. I hate the lock downs, the masks, the social distancing. There's a devious plot afoot the way I see it. I feel badly for a lot of the younger folks who have had their lives overturned and diminished from what is going on. This is unlike anything we've ever seen. I have my theories as to what is going on, but I'll save those for myself or for anyone who wants to hear what I think--but I won't say much in this blog post.
Recently I was reading about the Hong Kong Flu pandemic. I recall the name, but couldn't have said when it happened until I started reading about it. This pandemic was from fall of 1968 to sometime in 1970. That was my senior year in high school and the beginning of my first year at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville. I have no recollection of a pandemic going on at that time even though about 1 million deaths worldwide and 100,000 deaths in the United States were the results.
Maybe we were tougher then. Or maybe more callous? Or maybe we just wanted to live our lives. I don't know what the difference between then and now is. I can guess, but does anyone really care? All I can say now is I'm ready for all of this to end. Please! No more my Lord...
Battle of the Bands
No More My Lord
This is a "Negro prison song" first collected by ethnomusicologist Alan Lomax many years ago. There are many renditions to be found on YouTube. For this Battle I've chosen two versions by female artists. Take a listen and pick your preference...
Dorris Henderson "No More My Lord" (1967)
Melody Gardot "No More My Lord" (2010)
Time to Vote!
How does this song make you feel? Which song version do you prefer? Hopefully you have an opinion of some kind. You don't have to know about music to have an opinion since it all comes down to your own personal taste.
Please vote on your favorite by letting us know your choice in the comment section and tell us why you prefer the version you chose. Then after you've finished here, please visit the other blogs listed below who may or may not be participating this time around. And if you've put up your own BOTB contest let us know that as well so we can vote on yours.
Here are some other places where you might find BOTB posts:
StMcC Presents Battle of the Bands
‘Storms and Stardust’
'MIKE'S RAMBLINGS'
'Curious as a Cathy'
Sound of One Hand Typing
The Doglady's Den
Angel's Bark
Jingle, Jangle, Jungle
Cherdo on the Flipside
A I Love Music
Winner of this Battle Announced on Friday May 22nd
I plan to be here then, but probably not before. Hope you'll come back to see which version won the most votes.
I liked Dorris Henderson's better, BUT what I really liked was playing them simultaneously. You should try that. Very interesting if you can start the music in about the same place. Even the intros sound good together. It's like Melody is singing backup.
ReplyDeleteI'd forgotten about the Hong Kong flu. I was also finishing HS and starting college in 69. I have a feeling our opinions would be similar as to what is going on...
Donna Smith, the simultaneous playing of the versions is very cool. You are right that they sound very well together.
DeleteNo one was making a huge deal of the Hong Kong flu back then. It was basically business as normal as I recall.
First vote goes to Dorris Henderson.
Lee
Following you on Twitter, I do know where you stand. As long as you avoid, as you have, the "Compassion for others is cowardice" themes that so many people I have deleted have, I can say 'agree to disagree' and leave it there.
ReplyDeleteThe songs, though- Melody turned me the wrong way early. One more vote for Dorris.
CW, there are a wide range of views on Twitter and elsewhere which is further indication of the great divide in our country.
DeleteAnother vote for Dorris Henderson.
Lee
I like Dorris Henderson better as well. More soul to it.
ReplyDeleteI was too young to remember that time, but my parents do. People were just careful and washed their hands.
Alex, I think people are more germophobic now than back then. I'm not even sure we had hand sanitizer back then like we have now. I've always been a frequent hand washer.
DeleteAgain a vote for Dorris Henderson.
Lee
The first time I heard Melody Gardot, I went and bought all of her albums (I think she had two at the time). Love that woman's voice. Give my vote to her.
ReplyDeleteHere in the Southeast, we've started getting back to normal. Mary and I went out for lunch on Monday, and while the restaurant was pretty much empty and everyone there was wearing a mask, it was nice to get out of the house and sit somewhere besides the car. They've finally opened the Starbucks near our house, albeit for take-out and drive-thru service only. Great Clips opened yesterday and Mary is planning to get a haircut next week.
I understand: people are still catching it, and people are still dying from it. But two weeks to "flatten the curve" was one thing, this two months going on three (and you're closed down through the end of June as I understand it) is being a little too careful, and I say that as a person with several risk factors (over 60, obese and with cardiovascular issues).
John H, actually L.A. mayor is saying our lock down is until the end of July which is ridiculous. From the looks of things in my drives around the city not many people are paying much attention.
DeleteAn end to the shut out with a vote for...
Melody Gardot.
Lee
Yes! That pandemic was the Hong Kong flu and we didn't shut down for it. In fact, that was the year of Woodstock. Here's an article about it - https://www.aier.org/article/woodstock-occurred-in-the-middle-of-a-pandemic/?fbclid=IwAR1pa5vCYI1ZQNFleAouWa5D7_OdbanRLUYD_Zppt_UF2d-kY8AD2Elu1Eo I posted it everywhere I can (and will on my blog this Monday) because what we are doing now is insane.
ReplyDeleteL.Diane, that Woodstock story was what caused me to do more investigation about the Hong Kong Flu. I had thought it was more recent and was shocked to find when it actually did happen. More people need to be revealing the truth about the COVID response as it is unrealistic--and unscientific.
DeleteLee
Exactly! That's why I have been sharing that article as often and wherever I can. I even shared on Pinterest. Monday I will share on my blog. To me, it's heartwrenching to read it. That's what we should've done. Sweedon had it right.
DeleteI love the spiritual and I vote for Doris who really felt inspiring to me. Her voice seemed so strong and yet you can feel the pain she and her race had and continues to go through.
ReplyDeleteBirgit, there is indeed an authenticity to that version...
DeleteDorris Henderson.
Lee
First things first - I think the MEDIA happened during this pandemic. To be fair, this is far worse than anything we've seen in this century, so I understand needing the lockdowns and the masks. On the other hand, the virus has mutated so much that now the rules that applied to mask-wearing have changed from don't wear them to wear them. I am all for the social distancing and the masks and gloves, but I know plenty of others who aren't. This is the first I'm hearing of the Hong Kong Flu you mentioned. That was a lot of deaths, even here in the States. I'm guessing it just wasn't given as much attention as this pandemic is. Also, you could only get your news on tv, radio, or the paper, and not receive constant updates at any time of your choosing via a smartphone.
ReplyDeleteAs for the battle, this is a tough one. I genuinely enjoyed both versions. Melody's voice and a cappella version are powerful and moving, but my vote goes to Doris because she's an actual Black woman singing a prison song for Black people. Melody did it justice for sure, but this one just belongs to Doris.
Kim
Kim, I would certainly blame the media for the disproportionate response to the pandemic. If the country were less fixated on fear then we'd be business as normal, but with an awareness of how we can avoid getting sick. The current hysteria divides us as a nation more than allowing a greater unified effort to fight the real enemy. Too much information is not the problem in our era as much as too much disinformation and misinformation. Propaganda is rampant.
DeleteA vote for Dorris Henderson.
Lee
A Facebook vote from my Cousin Tom for...
ReplyDeleteMelody Gardot.
Lee
LEE ~
ReplyDeleteThis indeed has been a very successful UNCLE SCAM scam!
Those who get their information from reliable alternative news sources, rather than from the pure propaganda of the mainstream (mainscum) media, know that this thing has been orchestrated in order to steal from Americans their Constitutional rights.
This virus was being studied and experimented with in the USA in 2014. It was decided that no good could come of it, and a moratorium on the experiments was declared.
But according to various sources, in 2015, DR. FAUCI (Dr. Fraudci) surreptitiously funneled about 3.7 million American tax dollars to a lab in China for further study and experimentation of this coronavirus. (If that is indeed true, that was illegal, traitorous, and robbery perpetrated against the American taxpayers!)
[Link> Italian news segment from 2015 proves the Chinese were developing the coronavirus in a lab
Then, in early 2017, shortly after Trump was elected president, DR. FRAUDCI publicly, and very confidently stated "there is no question" that the Trump administration WOULD have to deal with a "surprise" viral "outbreak"!
How can it be *BOTH* confidently and accurately predicted years in advance *AND* simultaneously come as a "SURPRISE"? It can't! A "surprise", by definition, is something that a person does not foresee occurring.
Obviously, Dr. Fraudci knew in advance what 'The Powers That Be' were planning to unleash in a few years on America and the planet!
[Link> Fauci: "There will be a surprise outbreak" (2017)
To borrow from Benjamin Franklin:
"Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety."
We have seen our Bill Of Rights completely shredded recently, and now the (egregious) precedent has been set that Uncle Scam can veto our Constitutional rights any time Uncle Scam uses the excuse that it's for our own health and safety.
This will end VERY BADLY for EVERYONE!
As for the BOTB, while Melody Gardot's version was fine, I definitely preferred the one by DORRIS HENDERSON. That's my kind of music right there!
Good Battle, Lee!
~ D-FensDogG
STMcC Presents BATTLE OF THE BANDS
Wow... just, wow.
DeleteSTMcC, as usual there are all sorts with agendas out there and it takes a lot of sorting to figure out who's legit and who is trying to get something out of this pandemic hysteria. What's happening now as coming from the left doesn't feel or smell right. WE are seeing the madness of globalism and godlessness at work. Satan be gone already!
DeleteThis will end VERY BADLY for EVERYONE!
From the world's perspective I agree, but from the "New Jerusalem" perspective I kind of welcome the trends of this current world.
Another vote for Dorris Henderson.
Lee
A Facebook vote from my sister Joni for...
ReplyDeleteMelody Gardot.
Lee
I had the Hong Kong flu at the end of 1968 but somehow did not pass it on to my husband or kids. I only remember thinking I was going to die. A coughing co-worker who didn't have the sense to stay home was to blame. Obviously I survived, but it was rough. I'll take every precaution I can to avoid getting COVID-19, especially now that I'm much older.
ReplyDeletePatricia, I've never heard of anyone I've known who had the Hong Kong Flu and I don't recall being sick during that time. I sure don't want to get sick, but I don't like having so many restrictions on living either.
DeleteLee
I'm so ready for all of the nonsense going on this year to be over. I'd say that I wish 2020 to be over, but that would only mean extending things definitely into 2021.
ReplyDeleteAn interesting note: I had 2 appointments this past week. One was with an oral surgeon the other for wound care. The oral surgeon had his own office entrance in a strip mall type setting. I had to put on a mask and have my temperature taken before I was granted entry into the office. Once I got in there, Not a single person (all staff, as they were only allowing one patient in at a time) were wearing their masks properly - including the Dr. On the other hand, my wound care clinic is at a local hospital. Again, I have to wear a face mask, but only until I get to the exam room. The Air Force was doing their fly-by minutes before my appointment. Practically all the staff that was on hand was outside to watch. Definitely no social distancing being practiced. Side note- the fly by was pretty anti-climatic and rather disappointing.
Idaho is open now to it's phase 2 - and restaurants are open to inside dining - provided that they follow social distancing and extra safety guidelines. But given that medical personnel can't seem to follow protocol, I seriously doubt the restaurants will as well.
I'm voting for Dorris. I truly enjoyed her rendition.
Mary B, in late March and early April I had to go to the dentist for some emergency work--thank goodness my dentist was open! I didn't wear a mask but everyone who worked there had masks and the dentist also had a plastic face shield, but I think I've always seen my dentists wearing those even before COVID. We had a flyover that passed near our house the other day, but I couldn't see it because it was behind the trees in the neighborhood.
DeleteMy wife and I are anxious for restaurants to open again because we enjoy going out to eat 2 or 3 times a week.
A vote for Dorris Henderson.
Lee
I followed up that Woodstock story that Diane posted - and even subscribed to the site which posted it. A lot of truth there, but also there's more to both sides - in fact as many sides as viruses and plagues. I'll shut up now. [P.S. I'm in Idaho like Mary B and noticed the casual approach to 'protocol' - in my family and their friends.]
ReplyDeleteAnyway, my vote goes to Melody Gardot.
Roland, there are usually more than one side to any big story--some based on perspective and some on agenda. I like to filter it all with logic and common sense.
DeleteA vote for Melody Gardot.
Lee
My vote goes to Melody Gardot, hard choice. Sorry I'm late but been off line for a few days. I too am fed up with this virus and lockdowns. I've been indoors now for 10 weeks. I recall Hong Kong flu but can't recall all the fuss that goes with a panmedic.
ReplyDeleteHope you're well Lee also the family.
Yvonne.
Yvonne, Hong Kong Flu was buried occasionally in the newspapers I guess and we didn't have the 24 hour news cycle that we have now so, yeah, didn't hear much about that pandemic. Besides, we had life to live then.
DeleteThings are well here under the circumstances.
Melody Gardot.
Lee
This is one where, the one I am currently hearing is my choice, whichever one that may be. But after calming the waters, here in the silence, I choose...
ReplyDeleteDorris Henderson
Michael, a valid vote for...
DeleteDorris Henderson.
Lee
I'm voting for Melody. Naturally.
ReplyDeleteI drove across the U.S. about two weeks ago. Great trip. No traffic, except in Indiana, strangely enough. Those scofflaws there were all out and about! I wanted to tattle on them.
I'm obviously sick of this crap. I watched all those videos of McCarthy's posted links weeks ago... March or February. The whole thing is a setup to steal our liberties. I just have not figured out how the details fit together and what their next steps will be.
I will be interested to see how restless LA will be in late August when that A-hole mayor still has you on lockdown. Even the street gangs will be restless by then.
6-gun, thanks for the email you sent--I'll try to answer it this weekend, but you've kind of covered it again here. But I DID get your email in case you were wondering.
DeleteYeah, I think there is a more nefarious scheme in this COVID response and I'm not falling for the nonsense. If things don't open here soon I do think things might explode (hopefully not violently where I live though).
A vote for Melody Gardot.
Lee
I slightly preferred the Dorris Henderson version.
ReplyDeleteI'm afraid this indefinite lockdown will trigger my cyclical depression if things don't change soon. The people cheering on a potential year or more of this must live in huge houses, with huge yards, have lots of money in the bank, have no history of depression or mental health issues, and are in safe living situations. My heart goes out to all the victims of domestic abuse trapped with their abusers, unable to leave. Some of them have already been murdered due to lockdown making it impossible to escape.
I suspect the people who support indefinite lockdown also see nothing inappropriate about strapping 12-year-olds into booster seats.
Carrie-Anne, I'm sure many are falling into a funk during this period of lock down. In my retirement I've mostly been at home anyway, but I'm rather saddened that I might not be able to go back East this summer. Still trying to decide on that.
DeleteDorris Henderson.
Lee
Hi Lee,
ReplyDeleteDefinitely Dorris Henderson! She sings it like she means it.
I'm sure there's a stage for Ms. Melody, just not this one ;-)
Quite the conversation going on here. Good to know.
Take care, Lee.
Diedre, yeah, the conversation seems like old times. And about a topic that is starting to get old as far as I'm concerned.
DeleteAgain it's Dorris Henderson.
lee
Melody Gardot gets my vote I liked her voice better.
ReplyDeleteMike, thank you for your vote!~
DeleteMelody Gardot.
Lee
Lee,
ReplyDeleteI'm so glad you came by today or was it yesterday because you know I stopped by earlier in the week to vote and then I don't know what happened. I remember hopping over here but I failed to give my two cents. I'm going with DORRIS HENDERSON. Melody didn't sound authentic with her cover, as if she tried too hard. Here's to hoping things calm down and MSM's virus hype blows over soon enough. According to news in our area the cases are down. Is it what were doing the cause or is the media sensing the unrest and better pull back a bit to let the masses out for a short spell? Stay well and enjoy the holiday weekend, my friend!
Cathy, I wish the media would just shut up about this COVID stuff. Their coverage is making me sick.
DeleteJust in the nice of time since I was getting ready to compile my results post!
A vote for Dorris Henderson.
Lee