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Ten Beatles Songs About Driving and Riding Vehicles

Is there a subject for a song that Beatles never covered? They sang about Lady Madonna, Nowhere Man, Fool on the Hill, and This Boy. They composed songs about Lovely Rita, Michelle, Eleanor Rigby, and a Day in the Life. Their guitars wept, and the mighty foursome rolled over Beethoven while the crowds of their fans twisted and shouted in ecstasy.

Have we realised, though, how many songs Beatles had written about driving or riding (flying and sailing) different vehicles? No, it is not just the famous Drive My Car. For all you Beatlomaniacs out there, this is a recap of Beatles songs on the subject of driving.

1. Back in the USSR. A very quick commemoration of the fact that, to get to the (now former) USSR, one needed to take a plane. “Flew in from Miami Beach BOAC… On the way the paper bag was on my knee, Man I had a dreadful flight”. You still need to take a plane to go to Russia from Miami. We hope the quality of flights has improved, though.

2. Penny Lane. Under the blue suburban skies there once were “a banker with a motorcar” and a fireman who liked “to keep his fire engine clean”. Oh yes, there were also a barber and a nurse, but apparently they had no memorable vehicles to them.

3. A Day in the Life. In the middle of the song John Lennon’s character “made the bus in seconds flat”. Before that, though, the character got to see a film and to read a story. The story from the newspaper was rather gruesome. It was about a man “who made the grade”: “he blew his mind out in a car. He didn’t notice that the lights had changed”. Next time you decide to speed up, remember this song.

4. Lovely Rita. Not sure Paul or John would be particularly impressed by the modern meter maids, especially since so many of them are guys and not really approachable either. But back in 1960s it was so much more different. Even though a girl looked “like a military man”, she agreed to a dinner, paid the bill (!), and even brought the guy home to sit on a sofa “with a sister or two”. This is when you begin to regret the passage of time.

5. Ticket to Ride. The song is packed with motion verbs: “the girl that’s driving me mad is going away, she’s got a ticket to ride”. It doesn’t get better than this…

6. Day Tripper…. unless you consider the phraseology of this song. If you are unaware of “day tripper” as the reference to drug addiction, then the song is a story of a carefree girl who nearly drove the guy mad (and then took a ticket for a Sunday drive). If you know about the other meaning of being a day tripper, then there is evidently much more to the song.

7. Yellow Submarine. This is a story about inspiration: “a man who sailed to sea” told “about his life in the land of submarines” with such gusto that a whole neighbourhood migrated below the waves. And they had all they needed on their yellow submarine. Oh, and an Octopus’s Garden in the vicinity.

8. Taxman. The list of songs about driving and riding would be incomplete without the mention of the notorious taxman. “If you drive a car, I’ll tax the street… if you take a walk, I’ll tax your feet”. So true, so true.

9. Honey Pie. The song’s protagonist was urging his sweetheart to “sail across the Atlantic”, otherwise his position was to get more and more frantic. “Will the wind that blew her boat across the sea kindly sends her sailing back to me?” OK, the Atlantic is actually an ocean… but you could still do with coming back, honey pie.

10. Drive My Car. By far, the most car-related and car-focused Beatles song. A very humorous one, as well. Never mind your own prospects, boy, if you can drive my car, you are in for a fortune. OK, not before I am really famous and with a car, but “I found the driver, that’s a start!

The image of John Lennon’s Rolls-Royce Phantom V is courtesy of Beatlemania.ca. The article by John Whelan about the car.

Michel Polnareff – Je Suis Un Homme

I am sure all of us have been missing dearly the Polnareffienne’s additions… well, no more now!

In fact, we should be grateful to a friend of mine who sent me an email about Sweet Transvestite post. I didn’t actually ask for a permission to mention this on the blog, but I’m doing so without giving out any names, so I hope he’s OK with that. In short, although a straight man, he did go out in female apparel a few times. I believe he played the part very convincingly.

I was partly replicating Polnareffienne label on my Russian blog, and Je Suis un Homme was one of the first l’Amiral’s songs that I translated into Russian. For those who already know the lyrics and the gist of the story, the connection between my friend’s email and Polnareff’s song will be obvious; for those who are yet to know the message of the song, it will become evident.

The story, of course, is that because of his provocative photographs, like the one above, Polnareff was one time thought to be gay. Unlike some of the stars, then as now, who are happy to court controversy for as long as it goes, Polnareff eventually responded with Je Suis Un Homme. And years later, when the rumours about his return began to spread, the Paris Match magazine (if I remember correctly) came out with the cover that pretty much speaks for itself.

I shall repeat what I said to my friend: I admire him and others like him, be they men or women. What I find the most admirable about this is that a straight person puts on the “persona” of their opposite gender and actually takes it out to the street. This is one thing with performers… and a very different thing with ordinary folks (although the friend isn’t quite ordinary). Somehow we continue seeing that acting is reserved for professional activity; as a result, being creative without necessarily making films or going on stage is likely to be misinterpreted. Here I remember how a few years ago I was walking in Canal St in Manchester on a weekend, and there I saw several couples where a husband was dressed as a woman. I don’t doubt for a second that the acceptance and the ability to walk out together when you look rather like two lesbians than a man and wife has demanded a lot from both partners. I guess this has something to do with the fact that acting is considered a lie sometimes. But then, exactly what is a man, and how different is the man from a woman (apart from certain physiological and anatomical aspects)?

 

Sweet Transvestite… The Way You Rarely Knew It

It may be strange or not, but the road to my discovery of Rocky Horror Picture Show was paved by Mina Mazzini. Or rather, by her spectacular cover of Sweet Transvestite. For those of us who are Mina’s fans it may be very hard to say when her performance is not great or her covers are not spectacular. But I am sure that the very fact that a female cover of Sweet Transvestite exists is enough to make one wonder how it could be performed on stage or screen. This is obviously not to encroach on the achievement of Tim Curry; instead, this is simply a question of how to make the classic not only long-living but also evolving. The most obvious way is surely to make Dr. Frank-N-Furter a woman and to tell – or imagine – the story from that perspective.

As for I got to finally watch the film – it was last year in Manchester, on the occasion of the Halloween. You can browse the film’s official fan site here.

Without a Title (About Natasha Richardson)

Had I been blogging several years ago, I’d be in the same state of shock upon hearing of Falco’s death. But sadly, I knew very little about him then and didn’t even react to the news, if I noticed it at all (and I was still in Russia then, very far away from the world of music, though not from music itself). And I didn’t see some of the films with Natasha Richardson they mentioned everywhere, like The Parent Trap. And I didn’t realise whose wife she was until the news about the accident began to come in. Although, of course, I knew about her mother and sister.

I don’t know if I saw any films with Natasha before 2005. But in late 2005 I went to see Asylum at Cornerhouse in Manchester. A riveting adaptation by David Mackenzie of the novel by Patrick McGrath saw Richardson not only as the leading actress but also as an Executive Producer. The performance from the four leading actors – Hugh Bonneville, Richardson, Ian McKellen, and Marton Csokas – was so intense, it took me a few weeks to get over it. I remember thinking that certain things could be done differently and possibly even better, and that it was beginning with the novel itself. But in perspective, Asylum seems now to be a tragic story of a woman who was torn between masculine preconceptions, societal expectations, and her own character. This is something that is seen in this short extract from the film.

I called this post “without a title” because nearly three years ago I experienced a sudden loss of a relative who was dear and close to me. It wasn’t an accident; if anything, it was a spectacular flop on the doctors’ side, and what had taken a matter of days over in America in 2009, had dragged on for two weeks in England in 2006. Apparently, in neither case there was any thought that this could be fatal. And yet it was… So, whilst tributes come in to the outstanding acting talent, my thoughts are entirely with Natasha’s family. I know their pain, and I hope our thoughts help them.

Stand Up for Manchester International Festival Programme

The 2009 Manchester International Festival (2-19 July 2009) full programme goes up live on the site tomorrow, Thursday 19th of March, at 2pm. The tickets will be on sale from 3pm on the same day.

First of all, bookmark the MIF09 official website, and if you haven’t yet joined their mailing list, do it here. Then, you can follow their Twitter updates. Even if you’re not of Twitter, you can safely follow the festival via an RSS reader.

Speaking of… Prima Donna, the debut opera by Rufus Wainwright: I know the festival organisers were happy to hear my feedback about the poster you can see in Manchester. And on the screen by Piccadilly you can see the teaser clip… and if walking to Piccadilly is out of your regular path, then watch the clip online.

Next, you can either friend them on Facebook or MySpace – your choice. And be sure to follow their Flickr photostream and to add pictures when the time is right.

Two years ago I was attending the first ever MIF07; you can update yourself on the posts under the relevant label, and look up some pictures on Flickr. And I’m definitely looking forward to going places and events this year… naturally, reporting them here, in Los Cuadernos.

The photograph by Anthony Crook (Janis Kelly in the leading part in Prima Donna) is courtesy of Manchester International Festival 2009.

Sylvie Vartan – Locomotion (1962 Scopitone film)


I have no doubt that very many of us – my age and younger, in particular – have known Locomotion as a song by Kylie Minogue. The older Anglophones are likely to remember the original Goffin-King version by Little Eva. Well, this particular cover is notable for two reasons. Number one, it’s in French, covered by Sylvie Vartan (official website). And number two, it is a Scopitone film, which, as I understand it, was the forerunner of music videos.

Here’s the lyrics in French (found here), in case you decide to try yourself at either French ye-ye song, or locomotion, or indeed, le deux:

Prenez le premier train qui vous fera danser
Invitez les copains qui savent bien twister
Vous allez par devant et puis vous reculez
Vous twistez en marchant ce n’est pas complique
Venez danser tous le locomotion oh oui
Si vous avez un bon ticket
Allez-y venez danser
Pour tous bagages quelqu’un qui vous plait
Attention au depart il faut vous depechez
Il est deja trop tard le train va demarrer
Et si y un voyage je prend le train de nuit
Jusqu’a la derniere heure, jusqu’au dernier whisky
Venez danser tous le locomotion oh oui
Prenez le bon wagon pour bien vous amuser
En courant le garcon ou la fille qui vous plait
Et quand le dernier train arrivera en gare
Vous quitter les copains en leur disant bonsoir
Jusqu’a demain oui le locomotion oh oui
Venez danser, venez danser tous le locomotion
Venez danser
Venez danser, venez danser tous le locomotion
Venez danser

The Power of Pluto

The day I started blogging (24 August 2006) I felt so enthusiastic about it that I produced 5 (!) posts. One of them was the reaction to a news report about Pluto being relegated from the Planet league. Well, a story has just been Dugg that the Illinois State Senate unanimously declared Friday 13th “the day of Pluto”, in order to commemorate the discovery of this dward planet by Clyde Tombaugh, the native of the farming village of Streator in Illinois, in 1930.

However, in astrology Pluto rules the motives of death and rebirth, and this couldn’t be more true about the debate around Pluto’s celestial status. The National Geographic News article stresses precisely this: the decision to “demote” Pluto isn’t convincing enough. For this reason, as well, several online publishers protested against the decision by the International Astronomical Union. JustNow blogger reported on the appeal planned by a group of scientists in January 2009. And a year ago, on 15 March 2008, Seattle had seen a public protest march and rally under the tagline “Pluto IS a planet”.

The image is courtesy of Seattlest.

Voyages in Lancashire and Yorkshire

I have recently been added as a Flickr contact by someone who was making pictures of Liverpool on exactly the same day – 18th of December – when I visited the 2008 European Capital of Culture. The person even took a few pictures of Walker Art Gallery where I spent some four hours exploring the collection.

This obviously means that the world IS small, but this is actually the first time I have come so close to having my virtual path cross with someone else, even without knowing it. On another note, I remember advising the gentleman in the photo on the right to get up on the staircase of Stockport’s Town Hall, to get a good picture of the Georgian building on the opposite side of the road. As you can see, he adhered to my advice. I won’t be surprised if next he adds me as a contact on Flickr.

Likewise, tomorrow when I’m travelling to Leeds to listen to Slavoj Zizek’s talk about Richard Wagner, there’s a good chance I may meet someone I know, or someone accidentally takes a picture of me. If you do see me there, please feel free to say “hello”. I don’t know yet what form of Social Media content I will be able to produce tomorrow, but I’m at least hoping to squeeze in some tweets designated by #Zizek (you’ll be able to follow them here). And there will certainly be a blog post afterwards. Anything else will depend on the venue restrictions.

I started with mentioning a Merseyside city (Liverpool), and Stockport is often “filed” under Cheshire, but generally speaking, apart from two trips to Birmingham last year, the turn on 2008/2009 has all been about trips to various places in Lancashire and Yorkshire. I went to Blackburn and Preston, and I’m about to go Leeds for the third time since the end of January. This Saturday, however, I decided to go to Southport on the spur of the moment. As you may already have learnt, this is my favourite way of travelling.

I arrived to Southport before noon and was greeted with a light drizzle which I braved. A musician who lives in Preston and with whom I had a pleasure to work earlier this year has said that Southport was his favourite place in England: he liked the sands and the sight of Blackpool Tower in the distance. I’d been to Blackpool quite a few times (though not once since 2006), but never to Southport, although I might have gone past it in a car. I contemplated going to Blackpool, but chose Southport. Judging by the rainy clouds over Blackpool, I may just have been right.

As always, I brought photos back with me. I haven’t gone much beyond the city centre, but even strolling down the central streets was something of an adventure. There were two teenagers with an advertising board for Bojangles, a fashion accessories shop, touring the backstreets of town in the hope to attract more customers (left). A little bit away from the city centre there was the Holy Trinity church of the diocese of Liverpool, built in 1913 and adorned with distinct Gothic details (right). Not far from there was a small restaurant, Little Gourmet, where I had a very pleasant and very filling luncheon, including fish&chips, although my fondest memories treasure a homemade tartar sauce, a lemon and chocolate cake, and a Roma coffee (with Sambuca liquor).

And then I went to Southport Pier, and now I’ll only post a couple of pictures I took there, saving a few more for later. It really was an interesting experience considering how many people go to the pier, in spite of a very strong chilly wind and little to see apart from people and dogs who play and walk on the sand, and the Blackpool Tower, barely seen through the mist. But I think I can see the beauty of going to the pier and back. It’s almost like walking on water. I was practically intoxicated by the fresh air and ended up sleeping most of the remaining weekend, although I managed to go out on a Sunday afternoon and took a few pictures of the building where I presently work. But I’m sure I’m still wearing the scent of the sea. And the cold wind yet blows in my ears.

Celebrating Spring With Doisneau and Rodin

I have been hearing the birds singing at sunrise for half a month now, and last night the air was full of spring, too. Today, however, when I sat to write a post for my LiveJournal blog wishing everyone a wonderful spring on the occasion of the first day of March, one thing downed on me.

That the posture of figures in Eternal Spring by Auguste Rodin and The Kiss at the Hotel de Ville by Robert Doisneau were somehow, strangely, similar. The figures on Doisneau’s photograph are surrounded by the crowd in the street, so the movement and sensuality are not as apparent as in Rodin’s sculpture, as a consequence. And yet the similarity is there. Which is a good reason to believe that spring is indeed eternal.

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