Last night the wife and I watched Kevin Spacey’s “Beyond the Sea.” I’ve yet to see a truly terrible Kevin Spacey film, and his performance in “21” has only heightened my curiosity since seeing it last spring. Being a passive fan of Bobby Darin’s the movie looked like a slam-dunk Netflix order for the middle of the week.
We were not disappointed.
In the film, Spacey plays the part of crooner Bobby Darin, and actually sings all of Darin’s hits in the film (soundtrack available here), including our Pax Plena Song of the Week Mack the Knife.
Originally set to the 1928, Brecht – Weill Threepenny Opera, the German text of Mack the Knife tells the dark and twisted tale of murderer Mackie Messer, old Macheath, a.k.a. Mack the Knife. The opera opens with a minstrel solo comparing the villainous Macheath to the menacing teeth of a shark, before recounting Mack the Knife’s manifold robberies and murders.
In the 1959 Bobby Darin hit Mack the Knife, the early verse tells much the same story as the Brecht – Weill version, yet it continues apace offering a modern rendition of the tale. But what really ‘makes’ the song is the contrast between its subject matter and its music. If one compares Brecht & Weill’s german moritat with the version sung by Darin, well, one could be forgiven for thinking the two have nothing in common at all. Far from becoming Brecht’s sinister figure, Bobby Darin’s Mack the Knife could probably be a part of the show dancing on stage at The Copa with the legend himself.
Musically, the song captures the essence of the crooner/lounge era of American music – a point in time often referred to as music’s golden age. The song begins softly with a steady baseline, and builds with casual ease as Darin tells the tale of Mack the Knife. In a voice thick with coquetry, Darin ticks off Mack’s bloody murders to his female audience, subtly mocking any fears the story might conjure. Like most crooner songs, the swinging tempo makes an unmistakable cameo appearance, all while pressing toward the song’s denouement where Darin jubilantly proclaims: Macky is back in town! In the end, the big band music is so alive, and so exciting, it’s as if welcoming a serial killer to the city were a perfectly logical thing to do.
The video below is take from one of Darin’s early performances of the song. Alas, they don’t make ‘em like this anymore. Lyrics follow after the jump. Enjoy!
Mack the Knife
by Bobby Darin
Oh, the shark, babe, has such teeth, dear
And it shows them pearly white
Just a jackknife has old MacHeath, babe
And he keeps it, ah, out of sight
Ya know when that shark bites with his teeth, babe
Scarlet billows start to spread
Fancy gloves, oh, wears old MacHeath, babe
So there’s never, never a trace of red
Now on the sidewalk, huh, huh, whoo sunny mornin’, uh huh
Lies a body just oozin’ life, eek!
And someone’s sneakin’ ’round the corner
Could that someone be Mack the Knife?
There’s a tugboat, huh, huh, down by the river don’tcha know
Where a cement bag just a’droopin’ on down
Oh, that cement is just, it’s there for the weight, dear
Five’ll get ya ten old Macky’s back in town
Now d’ja hear ’bout Louie Miller? He disappeared, babe
After drawin’ out all his hard-earned cash
And now MacHeath spends just like a sailor
Could it be our boy’s done somethin’ rash?
Now Jenny Diver, ho, ho, yeah, Sukey Tawdry
Ooh, Miss Lotte Lenya and old Lucy Brown
Oh, the line forms on the right, babe
Now that Macky’s back in town
I said Jenny Diver, whoa, Sukey Tawdry
Look out to Miss Lotte Lenya and old Lucy Brown
Yes, that line forms on the right, babe
Now that Macky’s back in town………………..
…….. look out old Macky’s back!
UPDATE: The women referred to, toward the end of the song, left me puzzled. A quick search on the web reveals that Jenny Driver, Sukey Tawdry, and Lucy Brown were all characters in Brecht’s Threepenny Opera. Lotte Lenya sang the original german moritat written by her husband, composer Kurt Weill (i.e., of Brecht – Weill acclaim). A video of her performance, lo so many years ago is below. It makes for an interesting contrast with the Darin version above. Some similarities are obvious after watching both – proving once again the music tends to influence music.
Song of the Week: Jingle Bells
With finals beginning tomorrow morning, now seems the perfect time to resurrect the Pax Plena Song of the Week!
The tune this week will be a familiar one to most. Written in 1857 by Boston’s own James Lord Pierpont, the tune was featured prominently atop Diana Krall’s creatively titled Christmas album, “Christmas Songs” in 2005.
But do not let such a blasé album title fool you. This Jingle Bells track boasts an up-tempo rendition of the popular holiday song as sung by one of Jazz’s most popular and sultry vocalists. It’s enough to make one wish for a sleigh and snow – even in the middle of the desert.
Besides some pretty sweet accompaniment from the Clayton-Hamilton Jazz Orchestra, Krall’s version also features the elusive last verse of the song, imploring youngsters to give life a go. Not bad advice this finals week.
As always, lyrics follow after the jump, and a video of Krall’s performance appears below. Enjoy!
“Jingle Bells”
by Diana Krall
Dashing through the snow
In a one-horse open sleigh,
Over the fields we go,
Laughing all the way;
Bells on bob-tail ring,
making spirits bright,
What fun it is to ride and sing
A sleighing song tonight,
O Jingle bells, jingle bells,
jingle all the way!
O what fun it is to ride
In a one-horse open sleigh
[repeat]
Now the ground is white
Go it while you’re young,
Take the girls tonight
And sing this sleighing song;
Just get a bob-tailed bay
two-forty as his speed
Hitch him to an open sleigh
And crack! You’ll take the lead.
Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells,
Jingle all the way!
O what fun it is to ride
In a one-horse open sleigh.
[repeat]
[Vocal Improv]
Hey, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells,
Jingle jingle all the way!
O what fun it is to ride
In a one-horse open sleigh.
Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells,
Jingle jingle all the way!
O what fun it is to ride
In a one-horse open sleigh.
Jingle bells, jingle all the way!
O what fun it is to ride
In a one-horse open sleigh.
Jingle bells, jingle all the way!
O what fun it is to ride
In a one-horse open sleigh.
I’m just crazy about horses!
Lolcat of the Week
Burning the midnight oils here in Tucson, I cannot help but think that the lolcat of the week accurately sums up my love affair with coffee (and now tea). Enjoy!
see more Lolcats and funny pictures
Thoughts on My Wedding Day
In roughly 1.25hrs, I will stand at the alter of Avoca Baptist church and pledge my love, and life to Gwyn Hamrick (soon to be Fodder).
My vantage from the small window in the alcove of the church shows an absolutely perfect day with only wisps of clouds in the sky. A crane of the neck looks out at a field of green behind the church. The warmth of the sun feels a lot like the Father smiling down, and feeling pleased. It’s the kind of day made for beginning life anew.
It might seem strange to some, adding my thoughts on marriage, and life here in this space normally devoted to political wranglings, and snarky remarks.Yet in other ways writing here could not be more appropriate. This peculiar hobby of mine has been one of the few things that I have continued throughout my formative years- from college, through my time in Boston, to my days of law school down in Tucson, until now. Why not share some thoughts with an old friend?
The single thought that occupies my mind in these waning hours of my single, adult life is the notion of loyalty, and its implications. I remain convinced, now as much as ever, that love is fundamentally a commitment. We choose whom to love. And love is something borne out in life’s great struggles as the commitment to another is tested, time and time again.
I am under no delusions that love, and marriage will be an easy commitment to keep. Any commitment given proper consideration requires some quid pro quo from both parties. But in marriage, the agreement should never terminate. Given this depth and breadth of commitment, deciding whether to marry or not is among the most profound decisions one can make.
And so marriage, in many ways, is not unlike any other major decision that life brings our way. We simply make the best decision we can with the information available to us, and proceed accordingly. I am confident in my decision. I am appreciative of my betrothed for her agreement. And I am joyed at our mutual decision to love each other.
And on this we can build a life.
In sum, I love my bride to be with all of the commitment a life time can afford. My feelings on this auspicious occasion are quite serene. The wedding itself, the reception, the entire production is ancillary to the actual commitment between the two of us that this day is set to commemorate.
But, ‘to every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven.” (Ecclesiastes 3.1). Today is our day to love, and to laugh.
And this is good.
Weight and Marriage
With the big day looming on Saturday, it was unsettling to read today’s Daily Beast article on marriage and weight gain.
According to a recent study conducted by the University of North Carolina’s School of Public Health, adults entering a long-term cohabiting relationship, particularly those who get married, are prone to higher rates of weight gain and obesity than those who remain single.
The author’s solution endorses a heavy-handed government intervention in America’s obesity problem:
So where does this leave us? Ultimately, the Obama administration should fully embrace weight control as a societal issue, and realize it is not something that can be left to individual responsibility. There are so many useful things the government could do that would make it easier, from subsidizing the right types of farming to reining in the food industry and funding health-maintenance programs at worksites.
[Link]
The prescription does not square with the ailment. Later in the article, the author notes several tips for keeping the pounds under control even after tying the knot – chief among them eating less, and exercising more. One might be tempted to call such suggestions commonsense, and personal responsibility. Although, in the age of Obama, such notions are quaint.
Even so, the warning is a good wake up call for all Americans as health care reform dominates the Nation’s political landscape. In many ways, the health problems we face are ones of our own creation. The choices we make in life, and in marriage have real, long-term consequences.
Here’s hoping the future missus and I can learn to adopt healthy habits – lest Big Brother ‘make sure’ that we do. Ja?
