Tag Archives: music review

A Jazz Experience.

books, entertainment, jazz, music, , , ,

I walked across the Woodstock town square to a restaurant-lounge called “Joey T’s.” This establishment has live jazz bands performing Wednesday through Saturday evenings.

When l walked in the door, the band was already playing.  The group, composed of four members, was set up in the lounge’s bay window area.  At first, I thought the band was in between sets and practicing.  However, as some time passed, I realized that what they were doing was playing songs.

To me, their music was incoherent and overly loud.  They sounded like people who never had musical training and were just banging the drum helter-skelter and hitting any note on the trumpets.  Perhaps they were improvising.  Perhaps I just could not appreciate their style.

As much as I really appreciate most types of music, this particular jazz band disappointed me, and I believe it’s mostly because of the loudness. I like jazz, but sometimes a band ruins the experience for me.  Unfortunately, I forgot to find out this band’s name.  On the brighter side, this is only one poor experience of many, many good ones.  This will not prevent me from seeking similar entertainment in the future, as I am open to new experiences.

As ever,

✿●▬●✿ ©2023 The Oasis at Four Queen Palms ✿●▬●✿

Excerpt from my upcoming book, “On the Town,” ©2023

A Night at the Opera – Part 2.

entertainment, music, opera, , , , , ,

It’s opera season 2023, and this time we saw Gilbert and Sullivan’s The Mikado.

We ate a light supper before getting ready.  It wouldn’t work out to eat at a restaurant, since there are not that many along the way to the theater, which was in another town.

I wore a black and white dress with a sparkling black and gold shawl.  Best Friend wore his black Beatle boots with dress pants and shirt.

The drive to the theater was easy, rain clouds hung in the distance, and we made it to the theater in about 40 minutes.  The parking lot was crowded, but we easily found a spot to park our car.  We later learned that the lot was crowded because there was also a private birthday party for “Chris” in a small conference room attached to the theater.

When the doors opened, we took our seats – orchestra left center.  We had a good vantage point of the stage, and we were excited for the opera to begin.  Especially since a gaggle of chitty chatty women were standing next to us in the aisle talking about their sons, their daughters, the beauty salon, the manicures they just got . . .

Patrons were dressed casually, and I observed it all – shorts, t-shirts, jeans, sparkling blouses, and khakis.  Something that I wish people would cut back on is dousing themselves in cologne.  It’s enough to gag an elephant.

The Mikado was enjoyable, although sometimes it was difficult to understand the spoken dialogue.  The costumes were not what I expected.  Since The Mikado takes place in a fictional location in Japan, I expected kimonos, yukatas, and traditional hairstyles.  Instead, the costumes had hints of traditional dress – shoulder pads, vague oriental designs, and the like.  Mainly, the costumes were of late nineteenth century Western style dress for both men and women.

Despite my disappointment with the costuming, the story was funny, and the songs were sung with strong, rich voices.  My favorite piece from The Mikado is “On a Tree by a River (“Willow, tit-willow”), and I have liked that song since I was little.  And . . .

PIRATES ADD

We picked up a coloring book for my grandnephew that tells an abridged version of The Pirates of Penzance.

This was nearly a three-hour opera, and by the time we returned home, it was after eleven o’clock.

It was all worth a night out.

As ever,

✿●▬●✿ ©2023 The Oasis at Four Queen Palms ✿●▬●✿

Looking Beneath the Surface.

carols, christmas, christmas carols, holidays, songs, , , ,

We awakened early this December morning.  The crisp, cool air felt lively on my face as I opened the kitchen door to let in the outdoor air.  At 58oF (14oC), the crisp air was a welcomed burst of freshness.  The sunrise, though short, was a pretty ombre of yellow, peach, and pink strewn across the eastern horizon.

One of my Christmas traditions is listening to holiday-themed music.  This year is no exception.  For us, we began playing songs last Thursday, and continue every day, even if it’s only for an hour or so.

We turned on the music for a bit of festivity.  Whilst listening, “The Little Drummer Boy” sung by Andy Williams popped up.  This is the song whereby a little kid goes to Bethlehem to bang his drum for Baby Jesus since that was the only gift he could give.  Ra-pum-pum-pum-a-dum.  I listened closely to the lyrics this time.  I heard something that struck me – or rather, it was something I didn’t hear that struck me:

Mary nodded . . . the ox and lamb kept time . . .

But wait!  What about Saint Joseph?  Where was he, and what was he doing at the time?  What was the donkey doing?  There is no mention of either of them in this song.

Granted, the lyrics are what they are.  But is it always necessary to know more?  I believe so.  This song always seems to lack the full story.  It would make a better story for me to know that Joseph took the donkey and rode to the other side of Bethlehem for carry-out, maybe an order of falafel or at least Chinese (it’s a Christmas tradition for some, of course.)  Knowing that Joseph was an honorable and providing man, he would make sure Mary had something to eat.  She would have been pretty darn hungry after delivering Jesus.

Then there is “Driving Home for Christmas” by Chris Rae.  Gracious mercy!  It is the only song I know that gives a play-by-play of driving in heavy traffic:

I’m driving home for Christmas

Oh, I can’t wait to see those faces

I’m driving home for Christmas, yeah

Well, I’m moving down that line

And it’s been so long

But I will be there . . .

At this point, why is it that the singer “can’t wait to see those faces?”  Where has he been?  Why the surprise?   Was he in jail and just got sprung?  Was he in the service and is home on leave? Or is he one of those people that pops up during the Holidays, hoping for a wad of dough-re-me or a stack of presents?   There is no clue.  Yet, this song goes on with descriptions of heavy traffic:

Top to toe in tailbacks

Oh, I got red lights all around

For a bit of translation from British English to American English, “tailbacks” is a British term for bumper-to-bumper traffic.  Honk your horns!  The singer judges the guy in the car next to him:

I take a look at the driver next to me

He’s just the same

Just the same.

I still want to know the reason the singer is going to surprise the people at his destination.  Is his intention respectable or nefarious?

I prefer the traditional carols with singers who sang with no electronic enhancements.  Today’s singers?  Well, they yell, holler, and scream.  You don’t hear their voices; those “voices” you hear are the artificial creations the sound engineers create, along with the instruments’ sounds.

Right now, Bob Dylan’s version of “Must Be Santa” is playing.  It has a polka beat.

Oom-pa-pah.

Good heavens.

As ever,

©2022 The Oasis at Four Queen Palms

FRONT DOOR 1A (1)

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