Life has been not just a whirlwind but many of them. Blogging hasn't been an option for days, and I do apologize, especially since I will be taking some lengthy time off from posting here over the official school break.
However, I am happy to find that the BBC Electric Proms footage of Ray Davies singing the title track from Working Man's Cafe is now up at Youtube and posted here for everybody's listening pleasure. While I'm away, you can come here and listen to this over and over again until the album is officially released in the US in Feb 08. I think it is already available on US iTunes.
I cannot get enough of this track. I play it over and over and let the emotions wash all over me. I was born into the working class, with genetic code from generations of copper miners, cotton spinners, green grocers and stone masons. My dad was a brick layer when we were kids, which was very much a bonus for us, as he was often off work during winter snow season. He thought up great projects to while away the indoor months, like building a sailing ship to scale, a life size replica of a mummy case, and a model of the Parthenon. Eventually, he stopped bricklaying and became an antiquarian book dealer. My dad is my working class hero, for sure.
My mom was a pink collar worker until she worked her way through college and got to be a teacher after years of taking dictation, typing and assorted office work. She enjoyed teaching a lot more and kept on doing it for a long time. She lead the way into teaching and I have gamely followed her into the classroom. I will always owe her for lending me a suit jacket and skirt for the teaching interview that landed me my dream job. (First and last time I ever wore a skirt on the job!)
Now she and dad are retired and happily living in the little working class house that they built. They seek out working class cafes where a meal is cheap and the atmosphere unpretentious. I will never be able to listen to this song without thinking of them and all they have done for me. So mum and dad -- this one's for you:
Ladesbet Giriş
2 weeks ago
3 comments:
Great post. And a great song, too. Thanks!
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The DEWYNTERS London Newcomer of the Year
Ella Smith – Fat Pig at Trafalgar Studios & the Comedy
George Sampson – Into the Hoods at the Novello
Joseph Mawle – The Last Days of Judas Iscariot at the Almeida
Josh Hartnett – Rain Man at the Apollo
Ray Davies – Come Dancing at Theatre Royal Stratford East
Tarell Alvin McCraney – In the Red & Brown Water & The Brothers Size at the Young Vic & Wig Out! at the Royal Court Downstairs
The MOBIUS Best Off-West End Production
An Enemy of the People – at the Arcola
Come Dancing – at Theatre Royal Stratford East
Piranha Heights – at Soho Theatre
Plague Over England – at the Finborough
The Vaclav Havel season – at the Orange Tree
The White Devil – at the Menier Chocolate Factory
God save the Kinks and Ray!
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