Come Back after I Go (#BOTB Results)

       
Et Tu, Arlee?

      I'm soon going to do that which I never thought I'd do regarding this blog.  I'm going to take a break.  Seems like a lot of bloggers have done this or will be taking breaks for the summer.  And now me.

        No big deal really because I guess it's not really that much of a break.  After all I'll still post for #IWSG on July 5th and August 2nd.   And in July and August on the 15th I'll still take part in Battle of the Bands with results posts for each posting a week after each Battle.  So it's not like I'll be disappearing and actually I'll be posting pretty much as I have in the past month or so.  However I will presumably be back in some expanded form by September and hopefully that will be my blog and not my waistline.

         So I guess I'm not really going to be all that inactive on this blog. But I will be offline a lot more than I have been.  After all, it's summer.

         What kinds of things are you doing this summer?   What is the longest complete blog break that you've ever taken?    When it's raining where you are, does it feel like it's raining all over the world?

Battle of the Bands Results

       Last week's Battle was Aretha Franklin versus Barbra Streisand singing their renditions of "Lover, Come Back to Me".   I've grown to dislike Streisand in recent decades, but not because of her singing.  Listening to her version of this old standard I recalled how much I used to like her singing.  On the other hand, I've never been a big fan of Aretha Franklin.  I had no idea that she sang more in a jazzy style before she started singing soul.

       Like some voters also expressed, Aretha's delivery of "Lover" was a pleasant surprise.  Although I liked both versions a great deal, I thought Aretha edged out Barbra for my vote.  The total vote outcome came out much the same way with Aretha taking a few more votes than Barbra.

Final Vote Tally

Aretha Franklin            13

Barbra Streisand          10

I'll Be Back

         My next appearance here will likely be Wednesday July 5th with a post for the Insecure Writer's Support Group.  That's my plan at least.

Lover Come Back to Me (2017) (#BOTB)

Lover Come Back (I Kind of Miss You)

         I'm missing an old lover of sorts.  It's not a person, but partly a state of mind.  Of being.

          In a sense I'm missing the internet while it's also blogging the way that it used to seem.  Is it just me who's lost the magic?   Or is it because the community and the participation is shrinking that some of the excitement and novelty has worn off?    Several bloggers who were very active a few years ago are not so much now.  Some just don't blog any more.
           Best if I let summer pass before I start back into blogging full steam.  And that's assuming that I can get stoked for full steam.  Besides, the internet has become a stranger, meaner place that it seemed like it was when I first discovered the magic of being online.  Maybe I've just found out for myself a darker part of social media that was always there and I just hadn't fallen into the mire.

         Don't get me wrong, but I'm hooked.  I'll be checking in on email and other social media things at least up until mid-August, but I just might not be on as much.  And I'm not going to disappear over summer, but I'll be doing other things.  And when mid-August arrives then we'll see what will happen next.

          Does the "magic" of the internet seem different to you in recent years?   How did you first stumble into the cyberworld?   Do you still have hope for blogging? 


Battle of the Bands

   Battle of the Bands is the blogging event started by Far Away Series and now hosted by StMcC Presents Battle of the Bands.   This event happens twice each month on the 1st and 15th.   The premise is simple:  Listen to the songs presented below and then in the comments vote for your favorite and tell us why you liked it.  Then visit the links listed near the bottom of this post for more Battle action.

 Lover Come Back to Me

     Holy déjà vu, Batman!  (R.I.P. Adam West)

     A year ago on this same date I used this same song in a Battle of versions done by Gaucho and Brenda Lee.  It's such a great song with so many outstanding recordings done by numerous artists that I thought it was worth revisiting.  In fact, considering the multitude of great versions of the song, I could make this particular Battle a yearly event for years to come.   So bear with me as I revisit this lovely song in a couple of jazzed up versions by two very well known female vocalists.  If you want to refer back to my first Battle using this song in order to learn the background of the song then please click here.



Aretha Franklin   "Lover Come Back to Me"  (1962)








Barbra Streisand   "Lover Come Back to Me"  (1964)





Time To Vote!

       Do you have a preference between these two choices?   Hopefully you have an opinion of some kind. Which version do you like the best?  Do you prefer "The Queen of Soul" or the other singer?     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

 ‘YOUR DAILY DOSE’ 

  'MIKE'S RAMBLINGS'

'Curious as a Cathy'

Sound of One Hand Typing

The Doglady's Den 

Angel's Bark  

Jingle, Jangle, Jungle 
  


Winner of this Battle Announced on Wednesday June 21st.

       That announcement post could be my next post unless I get a hankering to do another one before then.  Gosh, I guess summer's really here!   Whatever I do I hope you'll try to stay with me.  And I guess you'll probably want to see who comes out the winner of this grand battle of two iconic divas of our time.  

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Should Some Things Stay As They Are? (#BOTB results)

Is It Almost Sacrilege to Tamper with Tradition?

       If it were up to some folks, things would always stay the same.  Over the decades we've seen updates on Shakespeare, Beethoven, and even the Bible.  Some might argue when a story is a good enough one then it doesn't matter how you tell it as long as you tell it true.  Others might bemoan the idea of taking a beloved classic and putting a different twist on it.   Beethoven's Fifth Symphony disco or rock style?   Really?   But actually it did kind of work didn't it?

        There might be some musical works that might be better not tampered with.  Do we want to hear a rock version of Debussy's "Claire de Lune" or an up-tempo jazzed up version of Schubert's "Ave Maria"?   I'm not sure, but I won't pass judgement until I hear a well done version of either if that ever happens.

        The recent mash-ups of 19th century novels such as Pride and Prejudice with an inclusion of zombies and other popular literary works done in similar ways were fun (though I've heard the film version of PP&Zombies wasn't so great), but probably more novelty than any real literary breakthrough.    

        We've come to a time where almost anything goes when it comes to the arts--or it's at least worth giving the change up a try.  Jazz and rock  have probably broken more musical barriers then any other music form, but musical artists in all genres have explored the possibilities of what can be done with music.  The question for some still remains--should you mess with a musical work that was outstanding in its original incarnation?

Sigmund Romberg's Musical Masterpiece Goes to Battle

       My most recent Battle of the Bands contest put a sultry 1930's style jazz version of "Lover, Come Back to Me" that was closer to its intended light opera style up against a swinging upbeat big band jazz arrangement from the fifties.   Either way you look at at the song works well in both styles.  After all, a darn good song is a good song no matter how you play it.

         The voting bore this out well I think.  Each version had its fans which resulted in a nail-biter of a musical battle.   There were turn-offs as well as big pluses to each version depending on the ears of the beholders.  Some preferred the energy of Brenda Lee while others found her version "Las Vegasy", but most agreed she did a good job.  Other listeners felt that Tamar Korn and Gaucho captured the essence of a musical era with their slowed down version.

         In the end I was left with--are you ready?--a tie!  What this means is that I get to break the tie with my vote for my favorite.  I've got to go with that forlorn sound of Gaucho which seems more appropriate to the lyrical content of the song.  The lyrics work for either style, but to me it's more of a sad song about the singer yearning for a lost lover.  And I loved that smoky speakeasy sound of the jazz ensemble.   This was some wonderful music.

         This made for a great battle and kind of a tiring one.  After that I need a slow song to wind me down.

Final Vote Tally

Gaucho           14

Brenda Lee     13



Next Battle Will Be Next Friday July 1st!

          Hopefully you'll enjoy this next Battle of the Bands post.  Between now and then I'll have a couple of posts about looking back and reliving old memories.  My previous Battle may have dealt with an old song in old styles, but my next Battle will consist of two different not as old songs that were released in the 80's a couple of years apart.   The songs will deal with the topic of living in the past and neither one is by Jethro Tull.   Both song artists have ties to one another.   One artist became a huge star while the other remained only a regional favorite.  You're free to take a stab at guessing any part of this upcoming battle or you can just wait for the fun to begin next Friday.  Please don't miss this one!

           Do you enjoy twists on musical classics?   What is your favorite re-imagining of a popular literary work?    Would you prefer that something that works well not be tampered with?  

Lover Come Back to Me (#BOTB)

    "Sorry" seemed to be the hardest word--or at least song--in my previous BOTB post.   Now I have different song with a similar subject matter.  I hope you will enjoy this song more than that Justin Bieber classic "Sorry"...

Film poster for Deep in My Heart - Copyright 1954, MGM (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

       Back in April, in the midst of the A to Z Challenge, a movie that was showing on TCM one night caught my eye. I felt like I needed a break from blogging so I decided to watch a film from 1954 called Deep in My Heart. I'd never heard of this film, but since the film was a musical biopic about a composer's life, I felt compelled to watch it.  I'm glad I did.

      This film is essentially like a variety show of many great performers of that time strung together with dialog and story to fill the gaps between musical numbers.  I didn't recall ever having heard of the story's subject, Sigmund Romberg, but once the songs started playing I realized they were all great standards that I have known and loved since childhood.  That's when the inspiration for today's Battle of the Bands came about.

         If you're a fan of good old-fashioned musical biopics, I think you might enjoy Deep In My Heart.  The lead role is played José Ferrer.   I don't recall much of what this actor has done, but I know I've seen him in many films.  I thought his portrayal of Romberg was quite well acted though maybe many modern day audiences might find him to be stilted and stuffy.  

        In any case, I loved the film and I love this song from the film...

Battle of the Bands

        Battle of the Bands is the blogging event started by Far Away Series and now hosted by StMcC Presents Battle of the Bands.   This event happens twice each month on the 1st and 15th.   The premise is simple:  Listen to the songs presented below and then in the comments vote for your favorite and tell us why you liked it.  Then visit the links listed near the bottom of this post for more Battle action.

"Lover Come Back To Me"

         With lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein and music by Sigmund Romberg, "Lover Come Back to Me"  was published in 1928 for the Broadway show The New Moon where the song was first introduced to audiences by Evelyn Herbert and Robert Halliday.  The original version (click here to listen) is almost in a light operatic style popular at the time.   The influence of classical music on Romberg's composing style is especially apparent in the middle section of the song which makes reference to "June: Barcarolle" from Tchaikovsky's The Seasons, opus 37b.

          Over the years this song has been recorded numerous times by a wide variety of artists in many styles.   Now the song is considered more of a jazz or pop standard than what it was originally intended to sound like.  The selections I've chosen for this Battle were recorded nearly fifty years apart with the newest recording performed in a style that sounds 30 years older than the older recording.  Sounds crazy perhaps, but take a listen and you'll see what I mean...

Gaucho w/ Tamar Korn  "Lover, Come Back To Me"  (2010)

       Tamar Korn is a respected jazz artist with world renown.  On this cover of our featured song of Battle she is backed by an ensemble of world class jazz musicians who have played with artists as diverse as Tom Waits and the B-52's.  The vocals might be off-putting to some of you at first, but try to stick with it.  The song presentation is done in the style of 1920's jazz as performed by artists such as Rudy Vallee, Annette Hanshaw, Tiny Tim, and Betty Boop.  During the instrumental trade-offs, about half way through the performance, Korn's vocal violin imitation caught my ear as this was something I used to hear some vocalists do back when I was a kid--don't hear this done much these days.  This version immediately captivated me when I first heard it.  I hope you enjoy it as well...




Brenda Lee  "Lover, Come Back To Me" (1963)

  Known for hits like "I'm Sorry" (shades of my last BOTB installment!), Brenda Lee was a dynamo of a singer as seen in the next video. Though the previous video might have sounded older, this Brenda Lee video predates it by nearly 50 years. Let's step up the tempo with Brenda Lee's jazzy version of "Lover, Come Back To Me"...





Time to Vote!

       This is an old oldie so I hope that's not a turn off for too many of you.  Just try to feel the music.  Let us know what you think about these two versions. Is there one that you prefer over the other?    If you're visiting a Battle of the Bands post for the first time then let me briefly explain.  Please give each song version a fair listen to decide which one you enjoy the most.  If you don't like either then at least tell us which recording was least innocuous to you. This comes down to your preference and it's as easy as that.

     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

 ‘YOUR DAILY DOSE’ 

  'MIKE'S RAMBLINGS'

'Curious as a Cathy'

Sound of One Hand Typing

DC Relief Battle of the Bands

The Doglady's Den 

Angel's Bark  

Cherdo on the Flipside  

Jingle, Jangle, Jungle 

Janie Junebug Righting & Editing.
  
J. A. Scott  

Quiet Laughter

Holli's Hoots and Hollers

Be ReInVintaged


Winner Announced on Wednesday, June 22nd

        On my next Wrote By Rote post this Saturday June 18th I'm going to be speculating the concept of haunting melodies such as I consider the song "Lover Come Back to Me" to be.  This will be a Soundtrack of my Life post.   I'll also be posting here on Tossing It Out next Monday June 20th.  But definitely be here for my June 22nd Wednesday post to see which artist comes out ahead in this current Battle of the Bands.


      Do you welcome back old friends after a disagreement or do you feel that relationship is forever tainted thereafter?   What old films have recently taken you by surprise?   Do you think that there is anything wrong with "borrowing" musical phrases when creating an new piece of music?