Skylark

Helen Forrest

This MP3 Selection Expired on 06-01-2006:

Skylark
Words: Johnny Mercer
Music: Hoagy Carmichael
Date: 1942

Vocal: Helen Forrest (1942)
Orchestra: Harry James

Skylark, have you anything to say to me
Won't you tell me where my love can be
Is there a meadow in the mist
Where someone's waiting to be kissed

Skylark, have you seen a valley green with spring
Where my heart can go a-journeying
Over the shadows and the rain
To a blossom covered lane

And in your lonely flight
Haven't you heard the music of the night
Wonderful music, faint as the will-o'-the-wisp
Crazy as a loon, sad as a gypsy, serenading the moon

Oh, skylark, I don't know if you can find these things
But my heart is riding on your wings
So if you see them anywhere, won't you lead me there

Johnny Mercer: And the Angels Sing

General Sherman offered to President Lincoln the city of Savannah as a Christmas present in December 1864. Johnny Mercer proffered to the world his music and lyrics. If we are inclined to take in the wealth from these southern hospitalities, our lives would be that much richer.

As an "old" music lover, traveling through Savannah last week, its native son Johnny Mercer came to mind. Mercer died in 1976 and was buried in the family plot in Bonaventure Cemetery, Savannah. The inscription on his headstone reads, "And the Angels Sing." That's Mercer plain and true.

Tomorrow, I will send to my friends in Virgina some songs with Johnny Mercer lyrics. These 32 songs are as follows:

Andy Williams (1986 rel) - Emily
Anne Shelton (1957) - I Remember You
Annie Ross (1958) - This Time the Dream's on Me
Audrey Hepburn (1961) - Moon River
Barbara Lea (1995) - I'm Old Fashioned
Crosby & Wyman (1951) - In the Cool Cool Cool of the Evening
Diana Krall (1999) - Midnight Sun
Dick Haymes (1944) - Laura
Dinah Shore (2001 rel) - Blues in the Night
Doris Day (1958) - That Old Black Magic
Harry Connick Jr (1999) - Charade
Helen Forrest (1942) - Skylark
Henry Mancini (1962) - Days of Wines and Roses
Henry Mancini (1965) - The Sweetheart Tree
Johnny Mercer (1944) - G.I. Jive
Johnny Mercer (1945) - Ac-cent-tchu-ate the Positive
Johnny Mercer (1945) - On The Atchison, Topeka and the Sante Fe
Johnny Mercer (1952) - Glow Worm
Lynn Roberts (2005) - Goody Goody
Mario Lanza (1953) - Song of India
Marlene Dietrich (1997 rel) - Come Rain or Come Shine
Martha Tilton (1944) - And the Angels Sing
Michael Bublé (2003) - Summer Wind
Nancy Knorr (1992) - Tangerine
Nancy Lamott (1995) - Autumn Leaves - When October Goes
Nancy Lamott (1995) - Hit the Road to Dreamland
Nancy Lamott (1995) - P.S. I Love You
Nancy Lamott (1995) - Talk to Me Baby
Norma Winstone (1998) - When the World Was Young
Pat Boone (1957) - Bernadine
Pied Pipers, The (1945) - Dream
Ray Eberle (1940) - Fools Rush In

Remembrance

Remembering those who have died for our freedoms;
Honoring those who have served,
or continue to serve to keep us free;
Praising the One who set us Eternally Free.

Memorial Day Sunday, 2006, Part 2 of 2

This MP3 Selection Expired on 05-30-2006:
Eternal Father, Strong to Save

Words: William Whiting
Music: John Bacchus Dykes

Eternal Father, strong to save,
Whose arm hath bound the restless wave,
Who biddest the mighty ocean deep
Its own appointed limits keep;
Oh, hear us when we cry to Thee,
For those in peril on the sea!

Most Holy Spirit! Who didst brood
Upon the waters dark and rude,
And bid the angry tumult cease,
And give, for wild confusion, peace;
Oh, hear us when we cry to Thee,
For those in peril on the sea!

O Trinity of love and power!
Our brethen shield in danger’s hour;
From rock and tempest, fire and foe,
Protect us wheresoever we go;
Thus evermore shall rise to Thee
Glad hymns of praise from land and sea.

Memorial Day Sunday, 2006, Part 1 of 2

Psalm 121 has been called the "Traveler's Psalm," because it petitions God to watch the comings and goings of His people. In this blog, I have also selected verses from this psalm as a wish and blessings for my site visitors (see sidebar).

Hymnals of the 19th century frequently contained a collection prayer-hymns for God's care of travelers, more so for mariners. The most notable mariner's hymn, "Eternal Father, Strong to Save" was written by William Whiting of England. See Part 2 of this post.

Whiting at one time had survived at sea on a storm damaged ship. He respected the might of the sea nearly as much as he respected the God who made and reigned over it. When later in 1860 a student was sailing for America confided to Whiting his fear of the ocean. The latter penned several verses of poem which he named, "Eternal Father, Strong to Save."

Compilers of an 1861 hymnal revised the poem fitting to the John Dykes' hymn tune "Melita," a name for the island of Malta. It was on this island where the apostle Paul was shipwrecked. In 1869, Whiting rewrote the entire hymn in 1869. It is this version which is found in most hymnals.

In 1879, the first verse of "Eternal Father" was sung at the conclusion of the U.S. Naval Academy's Sunday Services. Of this institution, this hymn is popularly known today as "The Navy Hymn." Other branches of the military services have also adapted verses to this hymn. The hymn is also sung on French and British ships or played at state funerals.

During World War II, an allied troop transport ship, the Dorchester, was torpedoed by a German U-boat in the North Atlantic. Among more than 900 men aboard the Dorchester, were four young Army chaplains - a Methodist minister, a Jewish rabbi, a Dutch Reformed Minister, and a Catholic priest - helped many soldiers to safety. They gave up their own life vests so four more soldiers could be saved.

Eighteen minutes after it was hit, the Dorchester sank with a loss of 675 lives, including the four chaplains. It was later reported that they were linked arm-in-arm at the top of the ship and sang hymns, among which was "Eternal Father, Strong to Save."

It is fitting on this Memorial Day Sunday to play "Eternal Father" in honor of the men and women who have served in harm's way. More important and comforting to note, our God is greater than all forces on earth, seen or unseen.

Carolina in the Morning

Hydrangia along Pond, Magnolia Plantation & Gardens, SC

This MP3 Selection Expired on 05-28-2006:
Ferrante & Teicher (duo-piano) - Carolina in the Morning

24 May, 2006. 2213 H EDT.

This post was sent from the iPAQ hx2755,
Charleston, SC.

Log Time: 2213 H EDT.

Spent the last three days in the greater Charleston area.

Flying home tomorrow.

22 May, 2006. 2330 H EDT.

This post was sent from the iPAQ hx2755,
Charleston, SC. 2330 H EDT.

Entry Date: 22 May, 2006
Entry Time: 2330 H EDT.

21 May, 2006
Arrived at Fort Pulaski on Cockspur Island at 0900 H EDT. Humid. The temperture was already at a humid 85° F/30°C.

Hilton Head, SC
21 May, 2006

Arrived at Cafe Europa Harbor Town,. Temperture at this resort island at 1230 H EDT was at 96° F/35°C. Checked in at Westin at 1430 H EDT.

1630 H EDT.
Explored Hilton Head seashore ecology during Loggerhead turtles nesting season.

1830 H EDT.
Buffet extravaganza at Carolina Cafe.

21 May, 2006 0835H EDT

This post was sent from the iPAQ hx2755,
Savannah, GA. 0835H EDT.

Log Time: 0835

"Savannah would be better for you. You'll just get in trouble in Atlanta."
-- Mammy to Scarlett O'Hara
Margret Mitchell, 'Gone with the Wind'

Mammy was right. I will distill the plethora of sights and sounds these past two days in another post.

Heading north to Hilton Head, SC in 20 minutes.

19 May, 2006 1710 H EDT

This post was sent from the iPAQ hx2755,
Savannah GA. 1710 H EDT

Log Time: 0046 H EDT

This post could be the last one dispatched from Jekyll Island. Onward to Savannah in the morning.

In the course of the two-day stay on the island. I have dined in the very informal coffee and danish to the elegant and expensive fares. As to the latter, the dining ambient was enhanced with live or recorded piano music. Invariably, the "Moonlight Serenade" genre was the kind of music played for the dinner guests. My dinner tonight at the Jekyll Island Club House was twice as enjoyble, because the pianist played "my kind of music." I knew all the tunes he played.

I will write more on Jekyll Island and its history upon my return to the Left Coast.

18 May, 2006 1524 H EDT

This post was sent from the iPAQ hx2755,
Jekyll Island, GA 1524 H EDT.

Log Time: 1524 H EDT
Temp.: 85° F/30°C, Sunny

Completed a 7.5 mi/12 km bike trail around the island. Took pictures of an alligator over 2m long basking on the banks of a pond on one of the unpaved trails.

17 May, 1657 H

This post was sent from the iPAQ hx2755, Jekyll Island, GA, 2253 H EDT.

Log Date: 17 May, 2006
Log Time: 1657 H EDT
Carrier: Delta-Boeing B-737-800
Cabin Temp: ~ 75°F/25°C
Destination: Jacksonville, Fl (JAX)
ETA: 1820 H EDT
Present Airspace: GA

After a 2.5 hr layover at ATL, the final leg to Jacksonville, FL began at 1700 H EDT. The flight should arrvive at JAX on time.

17 May, 2006. 0800 Hrs. PDT.

This post was sent from the iPAQ hx2
Jekyll Island, GA, 2233 H EDT.

Log Date: 17 May, 2006
Log Time: 0800 H PDT
Carrier: Delta-Boeing B-757
Cabin Temp: ~ 75°F/25°C
Destination: Atlanta, GA
ETA: 1430 H EDT
Present Airspace: CA - NV

Just finished the morning snack of cracker & cheese snack. The movie now being shown is "Glory Road."

The onboard passenger demographic on this flight is predominant white. And some - suprisingly well behaved - toddlers are also travelling with their parents.

Suthun Nights

Mah Dear Frands:

Them tetchy people are gittin' on my nerves like a chiwoohwooh. I'm goin' to Gawjuh an' Sooth Ca'lina an' do some stuffin' an' stringin'. I'll be stoppin’ by Flawduh first. Y'all know, the state moah suthun than Gawjah, but only geographic’ly.

Meetin' a magnolia cum laude like Scollet O'Hara travelin' in tall cotton's sawrite, too. I ain't mind if she talk Shakespayuh like the late Senatuh Sam Irvin did. As long as she don't walk like a cow on crutches an' scrunge on me.

This MP3 Selection Expired on 05-27-2006:
Glen Campbell (1977) - Southern Nights

Happy Mother's Day!

"Her children rise up and bless her, Her husband also, and he praises her saying: 'Many daughters have done nobly, But you excel them all.'"
(Proverbs 31:28)

Here is a lullaby mothers approved:

This MP3 Selection Expired on 05-15-2006:
Hans-Andre Stamm - Dolly Suite Bereceuse (Fauré)

A Foray into Fauré

Gabriel Fauré (12 May, 1845 – 4 November, 1924)

This MP3 Selection Expired on 05-13-2006:
Kathryn Stott (piano)
Barcarolle No. 6 in E Flat Major, Op. 70 (Fauré)

A Rose By Another Name

We have a staff officer from another unit assigned to our services until the end December. Her name is very uncommon. Yet, in English and Romance languages speaking countries, the name would be recognized instantly.

Several days ago I sauntered into her office during a Folger coffee moment. After we exchanged the pleasantries and the three Ws, I teased her with a literary game. It was one of the ways I used to break the ice. Especially with her surname, this game was well suited.

"Shakespeare, I have a mission for you." I eyed her with a mischievous grin. Nonchalantly, she smiled back thus tacitly agreed to the take on this quest. I tossed her this clincher, "If you should fail to meet half of the assigned objectives, you'll have to change your family name." She wasn't fazed by the condition nor by not knowing what the rules of the game were.

Later that afternoon, I returned to her with a print of The Shakepearean Fantasy by James Christensen. It was then she knew this thing came out of the left field. She walked right into it.

Any Shakespeare worthy of his word, as it were, must uphold the family marque and the reputation of ancestor Bill. Her subdued deportment had not lessen her resolve. Perhaps she did not want to give me the satisfaction. With what I thought was a fleeting wry smile, she listened to the instructions and began to scrutinize the Christensen drawing.

Two days later I saw her again at another Folger coffee moment. She was methodically transferring the contents from one old purse to a new one. What she engaged in at that intersect of space and time was mission critical. With the purse being a women's life essentials, I dared not risked the consequences of diverting her attention during a purse-transplant. Out of deference to her finishing the task, I watched the operation from a distance. Her hands danced between the two purses like bees interrogated the clovers of the field.

"I could only identify six of the plays," she finally looked over my way. As I walked over to her table, she got up and unceremoniously threw the old purse in the trash bin. "Frankly, I think your having deciphered six of the eighteen plays is better than what I'd expected from anyone in this department." I eyed her newly organized purse briefly. Her easily accessible sidearm should be inside the purse as well.

"Tell you what. I will give you the answers to the plays. Would you like that?" She is already married and soon a mother to be. The wager was moot from the start. She knew it as well. She gleamed a radiant smile very becoming of an expectant mother, "Yes, I would."

A Shakespeare by another name would still be a Shakespeare.

High Noon

Gary Cooper & Grace Kelley
Wedding Scene 'High Noon'

Among the notable film industry celebrities birthdays today are:
Fred Astaire (10 May, 1899 - 22 June, 1987)
Max Steiner (10 May, 1888 - 28 December, 1971)
Dimitri Tiomkin (10 May, 1899 - 11 November, 1979)

This MP3 Selection Expired on 05-12-2006:
Do Not Forsake Me (The Ballad of High Noon)
Best Song in 1952
Words: Ned Washington
Music: Dmitri Tiomkin
Movie Vocals: Tex Ritter

Do not forsake me O my darlin'
On this our weddin' day
Do not forsake me O my darlin'
Wait, wait along

The noonday train will bring Frank Miller
If I'm a man I must be brave
And I must face a man who hates me
Or lie a coward, a craven coward
Or lie a coward in my grave

O to be torn 'twixt love and duty
S'posin' I lose my fair-hair'd beauty
Look at that big hand move along
Nearin' high noon

That he made a vow while in State's Prison
Vow'd it would be my life or his an'
I'm not afraid of death, but O
What will I do if you leave me

Do not forsake me O my darlin'
You made that promise when we wed
Do not forsake me O my darlin'
Although you're grievin', I won't be leavin'
Until I shoot Frank Miller dead

Wait along, wait along
Wait along
Wait along

One Day in May

One day in May
The bloom and sweet scents of happiness
Transport on the breeze of the morn
Blows softly as a sigh to her ear
We give you all the glorious beauty of the year
Today is the birthday of your life

One day in May
She rises to the birds on the wing
Looks for God's tender mercies in the wistful dawn
Hears the soft pensive echo from the ethereal hill
The spring early light is sweet to thee
To see the morning side of your life this day

One day in May
When evening tinct sets on the western shores
As sleep invites soft purl dreams
With ever tender voice she blesses the Lord
His canopy of love to curtain over
A daughter of His eternal spring

Printemps d'amour (Springtime Love)

Louis Moreau Gottschalk
(8 May, 1829 - 19 December, 1869)

This MP3 Selection Expired on 05-10-2006:
Piano Duo
Eugene List & Cary Lewis
Printemps d'amour, Op. 40 (Gottchalk)

Birthdays of the Last Romantics

Piotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (7 May, 1840 - 6 November, 1893)

Johannes Brahms (7 May, 1833 - 3 April, 1897)
The very last of the Romantic classicists.

Click on the link and listen to a ubiquitous Brahms piece:

This MP3 Selection Expired on 05-08-2006:
Nana Mouskouri - Parle-Moi (Berceuse de Brahms)

Senza Cetane

This MP3 Selection Expired on 05-06-2006:
Il Divo (2005) - Unchained Melody (Senza Cetane)

Golightly Does It

Audrey Hepburn (4 May, 1929 - 20 January, 1993)
Sings the Oscar Winning (she really did) 'Moon River'
in 'Breakfast at Tiffany's (1961)'.

This MP3 Selection Expired on 05-05-2006:
Audrey Hepburn (1961) - Moon River (Mercer & Mancini)

Moonlight Becomes You

Today is Bing Crosby's birthday.
(3 May, 1903 - 14 October, 1977)

Without further ado, here's one of Bing's all time top of the chart tunes.

This MP3 Selection Expired on 05-04-2006:
Moonlight Becomes You

Words: Johnny Burke
Music: Jimmy Van Heusen
Vocal: Bing Crosby ('Road to Morocco' 1942)


Moonlight becomes you, it goes with your hair
You certainly know the right thing to wear
Moonlight becomes you, I'm thrilled at the sight
And I could get so romantic tonight

You're all dressed up to go dreaming
Now don't tell me I'm wrong
And what a night to go dreaming
Mind if I tag along

If I say I love you
I want you to know
It's not just because there's moonlight
Although, moonlight becomes you so

[Interlude-Bridge]

You're all dressed up to go dreaming
Now don't tell me I'm wrong
What a night to go dreaming
Mind if I tag along

If I say I love you
I want you to know
It's not just because there's moonlight
Although, moonlight becomes you so

Before Oscar There Was Larry

Doris Day, 'Young Man with a Horn' (1950)

You have probably hummed, whistled, or sung the song "Blue Moon." If you have, then you know one or both artists who wrote this song.

Today is Lorenz Hart's birthday. He was one of the top American lyricists who'd collaborated with Richard Rodgers on many standard ballads known to many generations of Americans. Sadly, alcoholism destroyed this writer and his partnership with Rodgers. In 1943, their professional relationship concluded when Rodgers teamed with Oscar Hammerstein II to produce the world renown musical, "Oklahoma!"

This MP3 Selection Expired on 05-03-2006:

With a Song in My Heart

Words: Lorenz "Larry" Hart
Music: Richard Rodgers
First Introduced: 'Spring Is Here' (1929)

Vocal: Doris Day with Harry James and His Orchestra
(soundtrack from 'Young Man with a Horn' 1950)


With a song in my heart
I behold your adorable face
Just a song at the start
And it soon is a hymn to your grace
When the music swells
I'm touching you hand
It tells that you're standing near

And at the sound of your voice
Heaven opens it portals to me
Can I help but rejoice
That a song such as ours came to be
But I always knew
I would live life through
With a song in my heart for you

[Trumpet Solo and Orchestral Bridge]

At the sound of your voice
Heaven opens it portals to me.
Can I help but rejoice
That a song such as ours came to be
But I always knew
I would live life through
With a song in my heart for you

The Lusty Month of May

Richard Burton & Julie Andrews 'Camelot' (1960)

The rainy days of spring are about over. On this first day of May, the day time temperture was about 88°F/31°C. As of this post, 72°F/22°C.

Click on the title link below and listen to a selection from the 1960 Lerner and Loewe Broadway musical, "Camelot." As Queen Guenevere, the youthful and vivacious Andrews sings "The Lusty Month of May."

This MP3 Selection Expired on 05-02-2006:
The Lusty Month of May

GUENEVERE:

Tra la! It's May!
The lusty month of May!
That lovely month when ev'ryone goes
Blissfully astray.
Tra la! It's here!
That shocking time of year
When tons of wicked little thoughts
Merrily appear!
It's May! It's May!
That gorgeous holiday
When ev'ry maiden prays that her lad
Will be a cad!
It's mad! It's gay!
A libelous display!
Those dreary vows that ev'ryone takes,
Ev'ryone breaks.
Ev'ryone makes divine mistakes
The lusty month of May!

Whence this fragrance wafting through the air?
What sweet feelings does its scent transmute?
Whence this perfume floating ev'rywhere?
Don't you know it's that dear forbidden fruit!
Tra la la la la! That dear forbidden fruit!
Tra la la la la!

GUENEVERE & CHORUS:
Tra la la la la [etc.]

GUENEVERE:
Tra la! It's May!
The lusty month of May!
That darling month when ev'ryone throws
Self-control away.
It's time to do
A wretched thing or two,
And try to make each precious day
One you'll always rue!
It's May! It's May!
The month of "yes you may,"
The time for ev'ry frivolous whim,
Proper or "im."
It's wild! It's gay!
A blot in ev'ry way.
The birds and bees with all of their vast
Amorous past
Gaze at the human race aghast,
The lusty month of May.

CHORUS:
Tra la! It's May!
The lusty month of May!
That lovely month when ev'ryone goes
Blissfully astray.
Tra la! It's here!
That shocking time of year
When tons of wicked little thoughts
Merrily appear.
It's May! It's May!
The month of great dismay.

GUENEVERE:
When all the world is brimming with fun,
Wholesome or "un."

GUENEVERE & CHORUS:
It's mad! It's gay!
A libelous display!
Those dreary vows that ev'ryone takes,
Ev'ryone breaks.
Ev'ryone makes divine mistakes
The lusty month of May!