Charade--Nelson Riddle

 

Lester Young - Blue Lester

 

Reuben Wilson-Blue Mode

 

Little Girl · Bill Frisell

 

I Love the Sun · Jon Redfern

 

Farewell Angelina · Rita Hosking

 

Farewell, Angelina
The bells of the crown
Are being stolen by bandits
I must follow the sound
The triangle tingles
And the trumpets play slow
But farewell, Angelina
The sky is on fire
And I must go
There's no need for anger
There's no need for blame
There's nothing to prove
Everything's still the same
Just a table standing empty
By the edge of the sea
Means farewell, Angelina
The sky is trembling
And I must leave
The jack and queen
Have forsaked the courtyard
52 gypsies
Now file past the guards
In the space where the deuce
And the ace once ran wild
Farewell, Angelina
The sky is falling
I'll see you in a while
See the cross-eyed pirates sitting
Perched in the sun
Shooting tin cans
With a sawed-off shotgun
And the neighbors, they clap
And they cheer with each blast
But farewell, Angelina
The sky's changing color
And I must leave fast
King Kong, little elves
On the rooftop they dance
Valentino-type tangos
While the make-up man's hands
Shut the eyes of the dead
Not to embarrass anyone
But farewell, Angelina
The sky is embarrassed
And I must be gone
The machine guns are roaring
And the puppets heave rocks
And fiends nail time bombs
To the hands of the clocks
Call me any name you like
I will never deny it
But farewell, Angelina
The sky is erupting
I must go where it's quiet

Cantaloupe Island (Remastered) · Herbie Hancock

 And yet another version.  

Bruce Springsteen - My Beautiful Reward

 Well. . . they can't all be obscure. . . but when was the last time you listened to this?

Well I sought gold and diamond rings
My own drug to ease the pain that living brings
Walked from the mountain to the valley floor
Searching for my beautiful reward
Searching for my beautiful reward
From a house on a hill a sacred light shines
I walk through these rooms but none of them are mine
Down empty hallways I went from door to door
Searching for my beautiful reward
Searching for my beautiful reward
Well your hair shone in the sun
I was so high I was the lucky one
Then I came crashing down like a drunk on a barroom floor
Searching for my beautiful reward
Searching for my beautiful reward
Tonight I can feel the cold wind at my back
I'm flying high over gray fields my feathers long and black
Down along the river's silent edge I soar
Searching for my beautiful reward
Searching for my beautiful reward
Searching for my beautiful reward
Searching for my beautiful reward

Haley Bonar - Drinking Again

 

My old friendHe don't think or feel a thing
He asks me to wear his ring
But I can't sit down and talk to walls again
Cos they break down
As soon as you leave town
That's when another one comes around
And builds another wall around you

But I been thinking about it
I been drinking again
And it don't help that much
But I don't care
So I just keep sipping the red wine
As I pass the time till I see your face again

I'm tuckered out
So sick and tired of men
But every now and then
I just sing a song and another comes along
And thinks he's quite a hit
But I can't settle down for shit
I think I'm going home to see my ma again

And I been thinking about it
I been drinking again
And it don't help that much
But I don't care
So I just keep sipping the red wine
As I pass the time till I see your face again

The Verve - Bitter Sweet Symphony (Official Music Video)

 Of course. . . I mean. . . you've heard it, but. . . .  I think The Verve nailed it.  Simply.  That song lifts me to the heights and sinks me to the depths.  I love life so deeply and despair all in one instant.  There are no guardrails, no boundaries.  I pity and envy those who never realize that.  

I have so much to be thankful for. . . and then. . . there is all the rest.

'Cause it's a bittersweet symphony, that's life
Tryna make ends meet, you're a slave to money then you die
I'll take you down the only road I've ever been down
You know the one that takes you to the places where all the veins meet, yeah
No change, I can change
I can change, I can change
But I'm here in my mold
I am here in my mold
But I'm a million different people
From one day to the next
I can't change my mold
No, no, no, no, no
(Have you ever been down?)
Well, I've never prayed but tonight I'm on my knees, yeah
I need to hear some sounds that recognize the pain in me, yeah
I let the melody shine, let it cleanse my mind, I feel free now
But the airwaves are clean and there's nobody singin' to me now
No change, I can change
I can change, I can change
But I'm here in my mold
I am here in my mold
And I'm a million different people
From one day to the next
I can't change my mold
No, no, no, no, no
(Have you ever been down?)
I can't change, oh, no
I can't change, oh
'Cause it's a bittersweet symphony, that's life
Tryna make ends meet, tryna find somebody then you die
I'll take you down the only road I've ever been down
You know the one that takes you to the places where all the veins meet, yeah
You know I can change, I can change
I can change, I can change
But I'm here in my mold
I am here in my mold
And I'm a million different people
From one day to the next
I can't change my mold
No, no, no, no, no
I can't change my mold
No, no, no, no, no,
I can't change my mold, no, no, no, no
It's just sex and violence, melody and silence
It's just sex and violence, melody and silence
I'll take you down the only road I've ever been down
I'll take you down the only road I've ever been down
Been down
Ever been down
Ever been down
Ever been down
Ever been down
Have you ever been down?
Have you ever been down?
Have you ever been down?

Out Into the Empty--Boy With a Fish