The Insecure Writer's Support Group
Join us on the first Wednesday of each month in Alex J. Cavanaugh's Insecure Writer's Support Group--a forum of writers who gather to talk about writing and the writer's life. For a complete list of participants visit Alex's Blog.
The co-hosts for the June 2 posting of the IWSG are J Lenni Dorner, Sarah Foster, Natalie Aguirre, Lee Lowery, and Rachna Chhabria.
Nothing I had to say about the question for this month. But that's been the case for a lot of things. Oh, don't let me mislead you--I've always got something to toss out for folks to mull and chew on. There are other things I'm thinking about lately, but nothing I want to blog about. It's all blog worthy, but I need to clear my mind.
So I plan to take a semi-hiatus for a few months. I'd like to think I'll be writing. Or doing something worth doing. I'll likely pop in each upcoming month for the Insecure Writer's Support Group post. And until sometime after August the following will be my final...
Battle of the Bands
White Bird
The Scones "White Bird" (2019)
Vanessa-Mae "White Bird" (2001)
Time to Vote!
Gonna fly soon but first I want to see who wins this Battle. Please join in and play along in this Battle of the Bands. I hope you'll at least give the versions a listen to discern your favorite. Which 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
'MIKE'S RAMBLINGS'
'Curious as a Cathy'
Sound of One Hand Typing
Jingle, Jangle, Jungle
Winner of this Battle Announced on Monday June 7
The first one does have an amazing setting, but somehow they managed to make the song annoying. My vote goes to the second version.
ReplyDeleteUnderstand the break. Probably won't blog but once a month myself this summer.
Alex, summer has never seemed particularly conducive to blogging. Might as well cut back.
DeleteFirst vote goes to Vanessa-Mae.
Lee
Lee,
ReplyDeleteWe're all due a break from blogging. I'm doing the same over summer. I did not know this song so it's nice introduction. I by far preferred THE SCONES version. Vanessa Mae has a lovely voice but it wasn't nearly as interesting as her competition's rendition. When you get a moment, I hope you stop by to vote in my Diamonds Are Forever BOTB Showdown. Have a good week, my friend!
Cathy, hope you have a wonderful summer!
DeleteSecond vote goes to The Scones.
Lee
Lee, you have a wonderful summer, too!
DeleteI'm voting for Vanessa-Mae for much the same reason that Alex did.
ReplyDeleteJohn H, you got it...
DeleteA vote for Vanessa-Mae.
Lee
The Scones all the way for me. The girl just sounded whispy, not of strong voice and repetitive. I hope you return because once people take a blogging break they seem to vanish. Enjoy your summer!!
ReplyDeleteBirgit, I hope I don't vanish! Well, unless I vanish for a good reason.
DeleteA vote for The Scones.
Lee
LEE ~
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure if I'd heard this song before, but I definitely know of the group 'It's A Beautiful Day', primarily because of that one somewhat iconic LP cover illustration of the girl and her bonnet.
This match-up seems to have elicited some sharply divided opinions. So far, anyway, voters either find The Scones annoying, or else they prefer The Scones to Vanessa-Mae by a good margin.
I fall into the latter camp. Vanessa-Mae's rendition didn't seem to have much "There" there. It was just too thin and gauze-like (or wispy, as Birgit termed it). Now if Vanessa-Mae possessed that saudade quality in her voice like Astrud Gilberto had, it would be a whole different ballgame. But she doesn't (and few ever did).
THE SCONES -- I don't know about that name, and they sure did have their hippie-'60s on, with those "outfits", but I quite enjoyed their rendition of the song. I found it more pretty than annoying, and they get my BOTB Bote by a pretty large margin.
This is shaping up to be a close Battle with fairly strongly divided viewpoints. In other words, "good stuffs!"
For anyone who might be interested in participating, I have returned with a Battle Of The Bands contest of my own here:
STMcC Presents BATTLE OF THE BANDS
~ D-FensDogG
STMcC, I'd be surprised if you'd never heard this song in its original form. I hear it played relatively frequently. But it might be an easy song to just dismiss while hearing it in the background.
DeleteThis is turning out to be an interesting contest.
A vote for The Scones.
Lee
Hey, LEE ~
DeleteDid you get the Email I sent you last night?
If not, check your Spam file.
~ D-FensDogG
STMcC Presents BATTLE OF THE BANDS
STMcC, thanks for the heads up. I've been avoiding the internet the past couple days, but today I'm rounding things up for my winners announcement for Monday.
DeleteI've added 6-Gun's vote below.
Lee
First, I must say, this has been my favorite Battle from you, Lee. This song is virtually unsingable. Even the original It's A Beautiful Day version has many misfires, but still, it is an all time top forty pop performance. The version by The Scones goes far to mimic the original, and for that, I grant infinite kudos. Well done, Scones!
ReplyDeleteA vote for the Scones, please, Sir.
Michael, funny you should say the song is unsingable and there are so many good versions to be found on YouTube. I guess somebody has been able to sing it.
DeleteA vote for The Scones.
Lee
I found Vanessa Mae much easier to listen to. I wasnt familiar with the contenders or the song. Sometimes that makes it easier to cast a vote.
ReplyDeleteMary B, not knowing helps make a more unbiased judgement.
DeleteA vote for Vanessa-Mae.
Lee
I do not know this song but I loved the video of The Scones, shot in the Colorados ... but i have to say Vanessa Mae is more pleasing to me. Thanks Arlee and all good wishes for your blogging break.
ReplyDeleteSusan S, hope I get more things done without focus on blogging even though I haven't been all that focused on blogging in recent years.
DeleteA vote for Vanessa-Mae.
Lee
Hands down...Vanessa Mae. Much more watchable...and love her voice.
ReplyDeleteLeigh, that's a definitive vote for...
DeleteVanessa-Mae.
Lee
Hi Lee!
ReplyDeleteI can't remember the last time I heard this song, nice blast from the past. Vanessa-Mae has a lovely voice, but I found it, as well as her video, more seductive than I think the lyrics intend. My vote goes to the Scones, please. Good video too.
We'll miss you...have a wonderful summer!
Diedre, "White Bird" is a song I always enjoy hearing. Good memories of a distant time in my life.
DeleteA vote for The Scones.
Lee
From my Cousin Tom on Facebook comes a vote for...
ReplyDeleteThe Scones.
Lee
I'm voting for The Scones! But I suppose I'm inherently biased, because that's my generation of music. And I loved the video.
ReplyDeleteEnjoy your time off!
Lee L., Music is timeless!--well, good music is.
DeleteA vote for The Scones.
Lee
Dang, I have to say neither is quite my style. After sampling both, I think I'll toss my vote to The Scones.
ReplyDeleteI hope you have a nice break. I've certainly scaled back on the amount of blogging I do, and have barely made it for the IWSG each month anymore.
Loni, maybe a summer break will be the recharge I need.
DeleteA vote for The Scones.
Lee
From an email from 6-Gun:
ReplyDeleteI've been wanting to get back to the battles for a while, but blogger
(or my computer) lost my ID/moniker/nom de plume, and THEN my Mac simply
crashed... so I've been out of commish for some time.
A mutual fiend suggested that I vote annoyingamousely, as it were, and
simply type my old cognomen at the bottom. SO here I is. (My jumping
back in right now is 100% coincidental with the return of McCarthy. In
fact, I feel it will distract from my glorious return. And I am sorry
to get back in just as you are taking the summer off! Safe travels, and
visit me if you get as far back as NH.)
It was fun to hear this song again. I have not listened in ages, though
I still have the LP of "It's a Beautiful Day." I, too, was surprised
that so many people were unfamiliar with it. Must be either youthful
ignorance or senility. Heck, even BIDEN would probably remember the
song, and he cannot remember whether the person he sleeps with at night
is his wife or his sister. (Frankly, Hunter is confused on that issue
as well.)
Anyway: I really liked the first rendition, and really hated the second
one. So a vote for the scones.
Sixgun McItchyfinger
Thanks for the vote 6-Gun. It's A Beautiful Day was a bit of a flash in a pan of the early 70s I guess so maybe it makes sense that a lot of folks don't know the group. And I think they were probably a bit of a musical niche anyway.
DeleteThanks for your vote for The Scones.
Lee
Vanesa Mae gets my vote!
ReplyDeleteMike, she's got it!
DeleteVanessa-Mae.
Lee
Hi Arlee, hope you are well. Enjoy your hiatus and please stay safe.
ReplyDeleteRachna, thank you for your well-wishes. And you have a wonderful rest of the year.
DeleteLee
Hope you get some writing done during your blog break.
ReplyDelete