Wednesday, July 14, 2021

Weekly Song Challenge

 



When all is said and done, we always need music and we are such diverse individuals that we all have such different tastes. This is what I love. Jingle, Jangle, Jungle has 3 themes that we must follow which always makes me think and here are the 3 themes:

A SONG ABOUT A PLACE
A SONG WITH A GIRL’S NAME IN THE TITLE 
A SONG THAT MENTIONS A TYPE OF WEATHER IN THE TITLE

1.  I LEFT MY HAT IN HAITI SUNG BY FRED ASTAIRE-1951


I was looking at Royal Wedding, a film starring Fred Astaire and Jane Powell as a brother and sister team who are in England during the Royal Wedding between Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip. This is famous for the Astaire dance where he dances on the ceiling. I thought this film had a song about heat but I was wrong and came across this fun dance and song which was written by Fred Astaire.  This is a slight autobiography of Fred Astaire and his sister Adele, a great dance team who did travel to London where Adele met and married the man of her dreams and promptly retired. Fred Astaire is very well known for his excellent dancing as well as his singing but he was also prolific in writing songs...some are better than others.This is one song I like and there are lots of drums, Fred Astaire loved drums.

2. WALTZING MATILDA SUNG BY THE MSO CHORUS & MELBOURNE SYMPHONY-2020


This song has been going through my head for over a week now so it is only natural I choose this song for this theme.  This is the unofficial national anthem for Australia and I think it is one of the nicest to be honest. I love that Waltzing is about walking and Matilda is the rucksack they have slung over their shoulder. This song's lyrics are by Banjo Peterson(love that name) and the music come from "The Craigielee March" and was first performed in 1895! There are many versions of this song but I liked this one.

3.  WE'RE HAVING A HEAT WAVE SUNG BY  ETHEL MERMAN-1938




This song was written by Irving Berlin for the musical “ Thousand’s Cheer” Sung by Ethel Waters back in 1933. I really like this song and think of it during the summer when we are experiencing a heat wave where we can hardly breathe and start to sweat as soon as we go outside. Actually many people die when there is a nasty heat wave. To be honest, I prefer the cold and snow to a nasty heat wave. We forget how young and pretty Ethel Merman was so I had to choose this version which, I think, she did a great job. (Does anyone remember her brief appearance in Airplane?)

Oh and here is Johnny Cash singing "Waltzing Matilda" but informing us what the words mean...




7 comments:

  1. Hi, Birgit!

    I am here to take the Weekly Song Challenge with you, dear friend! This is one of the easier challenges we've faced, and I appreciate the fact that you once again went old school with your selections.

    Having watched very few musicals in my life, I was not familiar with the song "Left My Hat in Haiti." I wasn't aware that Fred was a prolific songwriter. Me likey Jane Powell and have seen two of her 1940s films - Holiday in Mexico and Date With Judy. Gosh, Jane is 92 now!

    Having watched very few musicals in my life :)... I never saw Ethel Merman that young. I best remember her as the battleax and Milton Berle's nemesis in It's A Mad Mad Mad Mad World.

    Thanks for the history lesson about "Waltzing Matilda" and thanks for showing me the version of the song performed by that COVID-era worldwide virtual chorus. I also enjoyed Johnny Cash's performance and explanation of the song's meaning. Mrs. Shady and I just saw Johnny Cash as the guest villain on a 1974 episode of Columbo.

    Here are my picks:

    SONG ABOUT A PLACE: "North To Alaska," the history-themed Western novelty song written and recorded by country & rockabilly artist Johnny Horton. << Sam McCord left Seattle in 1892 with George and Billy Pratt, "crossed the Yukon river" and "found the bonanza gold below that old white mountain just a little southeast of Nome." >> Released in the summer of 1960, "North To Alaska" reached #1 on the Country chart and went top 5 pop. Tragically, Johnny died in a car crash shortly after the record was released.

    SONG WITH GIRL NAME: "DeDe Dinah" by Frankie Avalon. Frankie reportedly held his nose while recording the song, then held his breath to see if record buyers would turn up their noses at the result. They didn't. Most of them liked the weird nasal sound on his vocal, and Frankie's platter made a run at the top 5 in early 1958.

    WEATHER SONG: "Thunder And Lightning" by Wisconsin pop-rock singer, songwriter and pianist Chi Coltrane. The first single released from Chi's debut album, "Thunder And Lightning" reached #15 and #17 on Cash Box and Billboard respectively.

    Have a happy Wednesday, dear friend BB!

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  2. Three good picks here! I really like "Waltzing Matilda," more so since going to Australia years ago. Was Elizabeth queen or princess when she married Philip?

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  3. Birgit,

    Your song picks are really old! The only one of three I'm familiar with is "We're Having a Heat Wave". Speaking of which, it's been pretty hot here, too. Well done, my dear!

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  4. I get a sense of deja vu about all three of these prompts! Anyway:
    Fog on the Tyne. Bet nobody else picks that, but it’s where I’m from. The band is a place too - Lindisfarne.
    Sweet Caroline, or any song with Caroline in the title. She seems to be a popular lady.
    Stormy Weather. Various, but let’s go with Billie Holiday.

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  5. As usual, I love your choices, Birgit. Occasionally I encounter the young Ethel when I'm watching movies and every time it takes me by surprise because she was so pretty. Royal Wedding is such a good movie. My choices: 1. Hotel California-- The Eagles: I know a lot of people hate this song, but it's the first one that popped into my head. 2. Diana-- Paul Anka. We listened to this song over and over when I was a little girl. I think we had the 45. 3. Stormy Weather-- for me, it has to be sung by Lena Horne.

    Love,
    Janie

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  6. I have heard of the second two, but not the first one. I really enjoyed this challenge. I like how you pick songs I am not all that familiar with.

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  7. That having a heatwave song would be perfect for our weather in New Hampshire. It is tropical and has been wet. Nice picks this week for certain and fun to see these oldies.

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