Normandy: Just returned from a few days in Normandy, as I warned you, and I am glad to see you've all behaved yourselves! We stayed in Bayeaux which is, I guess, quintessential, provincial France. A long main street filled with small, privately-owned shops with no space for any of the national or international chains stores that have ripped the character from almost every High Street in England. However, even where they still exist, the English shopkeepers can never match the style and wit of their French equivalents in the imaginative and elegant manner in which they display their wares. It is almost impossible to walk by a French patisserie shop or delicatessen without going in.
Of course, there is an irony for an Englishman in Bayeau, whose famous tapestry tells the story of an invasion going in one direction, but every beach, hill and village in the district tells of another invasion from the opposite direction. We lingered at Pegasus Bridge where Maj. Howard and the glider-borne troops of the Ox and Bucks Light Infantry carried out their daring coup de main, supported by the Parachute Regt. who dropped further east. We drove to the other, western flank, to St. Mere Eglise, where the American paras dropped and one of their number was caught on the spire of the church and had to hang there, feigning death, as the Germans took pot-shots at him. Then we went to Utah beach, and the tide was out as it was on the morning of 6th June 1944, and from there to the Pointe du Hoc where the American Rangers fought with such courage to silence the huge 155mm gun emplacements. I am not an unimaginative man, but gazing at those tranquil scenes it was impossible to conjure up the crashing, smashing, pulverizing ferocity of modern war unleashed. Quietly, in one's mind, one can only offer up a salute to brave warriors.
Perfection: There are certain things I have come across in my life which, after due consideration, I class as 'perfection'. It is necessary for some time to pass before such a judgment can be made, and the 'perfection' under consideration must be experienced several times during which every effort must be made to think of ways in which 'it' might be improved. If there is room for such improvement, of course, 'it' then fails to enter the hallowed (well, hallowed to me!) shrine of 'perfection'. By now you will have guessed that I have just experienced one of my 'perfections'. This afternoon I sat down to read, whilst listening to a CD of the best album Frank Sinatra ever recorded, Songs for Swinging Lovers. Those of you who know it, will understand why, in the end, I gave up on the book and just listened. The combined art and artistry, amounting to genius, of Sinatra and Nelson Riddle was always bound to produce great musical interpretations, and when you ally their talents to the some of the greatest popular songs ever written, you have, well, perfection. I think Sinatra would have made a superb Shakespearean actor. You can tell from the way he delivers the lyrics that he has an instinctive feeling for spoken language, the points where you can use a consonant to bite off the end of a word, or use a vowel sound to elongate a phrase. Riddle's orchestrations are superb and as a non-musician, I couldn't improve them if I wanted to, but I suspect that no-one else could either. Anyway, to me Songs for Swinging Lovers is perfection and the greatest popular song album ever made.
PS: I wonder if the sainted 'Norm' would agree?
Bush whacked! A depressing editorial today in The Business ("Britain's best newspaper", says David ... who?) They take him to task for nominating as Chief Justice to the Supreme Court, a lawyer who is so bland he has somehow contrived to go through life without upsetting anyone! Even the Dems are having trouble pinning anything controversial on him. Next, the president has appointed a crony of no obvious talent to the other vacancy on the court. I must try and educate myself on this whole business which I have rather ignored on the assumption that Bush would take the chance to ram some true-blue conservatives onto the court so that they can spend the next twenty years undoing some of the damage done by the liberals who have dominated it for so long. Not so, according to The Business, and that has the appearance of yet more carelessness on the part of a president to add to a growing and worryingly long list.
Hmmm, Sinatra and Shakespeare, an interesting notion that's worth considering. Gives a new slant to 'Mack the Knife' I suppose.
Posted by: Thesisville | Monday, 10 October 2005 at 17:04
About the Miesr nonination.
Mostly the conservatives are upset right now. The have been burned several times by nominees who seemed conservative enough but turned out to be a little left of left wing. The real preference is for someone who has solid public conservative credentials and has maintained them despite harsh criticism and maybe career damage. The principle is likely strongly held and not likely to change. Roberts had the first, and looks solid even if he hasn’t been hit hard over them.
Miers, who is apparently a competent lawyer , is publicly an unknown on both counts, though given the time she has worked for Bush she is probably been reasonable solid.
Bush has a dilemma. The “republican moderates” in the senate are not likely to support a fight to nominate a conservative with a partisan record. He cannot get a nominee through without their votes.
Roberts was good solution to the dilemma. Miers???
Bush puts on the “good ole went Texas country boy” act, but don’t believe it; He is a very sharp political tactician, master of the bluff, feint, and side step, changing means while not losing sight of his goal. Whether or not it is Miers, the smart odds are he will end up with the type of candidate he wants.
Posted by: Hank_ | Tuesday, 11 October 2005 at 00:13
"Songs for Swinging Lovers" is a knockout album I agree, and probably my favourite Sinatra album - at the moment. However a frind of mine whose judgement I trust tells me that Frank's collaborations with Count Basie are even better (e.g http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B000002K9B/104-8273672-4337515?v=glance#product-details), but I haven't yet heard them so can't comment.
Congratulations David on finally being right about something.
Posted by: Larry | Thursday, 13 October 2005 at 17:39
"Congratulations David on finally being right about something."
Well, Larry, sooner or later it happens for each of us - er, do let me know when it's your turn, won't you!
Thanks for the tip on the Basie/Sinatra, it will be my Xmas present to me! I was listening to Basie's 'One O'clock Jump' the other day - just terrific. I'm no jazz expert but I can't help wondering if John Lewis of the MJQ wasn't influenced by Basie's piano technique of paring everything down to the minimum without ever losng that rhythm? For me, they're two of the greatest jazz pianists of all-time.
Posted by: David Duff | Thursday, 13 October 2005 at 20:26