em demanda do nocturno mais-que-perfeito

recordei mais um standard reinventado por

esta dupla maravilha. clássico intemporal...

em demanda do nocturno mais-que-perfeito

recordei este velho standard, revisitado em

boa hora por louis armstrong e oscar peterson

quando, há muitos anos, passei aqueles estranhos dias em new orleans, quis muito assistir a um funeral. e uma tarde, ia eu pela toulouse street, quando vejo passar um cortejo fúnebre. soube depois que se tratava do funeral da mãe de um dos membros da banda que ia a tocar. e lá fui: acompanhei-os até ao cemitério de st. louis, onde depois tocaram isto. nunca mais esqueci.

I went down to St. James infirmary, saw my baby there

She was stretched out on a long, white table, so cold, so sweet, so fair

Let her go, let her go, God bless her, wherever she may be

She can look this wide world over, but she'll never find a sweet man like me

When I die bury me in straight laced shoes, I want a boxback coat and a Stetson hat

Put a twenty dollar gold piece on my watch chain, so the boys will know that I died standin' pat

d e s c u b r a
a s
s e t e
d i f e r e n ç a s :

george gershwin escreveu esta canção há setenta e sete anos para o musical “shall we dance”, em que astaire a canta para rogers. infelizmente morreu pouco tempo após o filme estrear, não tendo assistido à popularidade que foi ganhando, tornando-se num dos standards incontornáveis do chamado american songbook. no filme, ao contrário do habitual, ginger & fred não dançam na sequência da canção mas, nítida embora longíngua, tenho uma memória dos meus pais a dançarem ao som da cover de frank sinatra. e isso não me podem tirar.

a) ella + louis

b) jane + john

Our romance won't end on a sorrowful note

Though by tomorrow you're gone

The song has ended but as the songwriter wrote,

The melody lingers on.

They may take you from me,

I'll miss your fond caress

But though they take you from me,

I'll still possess...

The way you wear your hat

The way you sip your tea

The memory of all that

No, no they can't take that away from me

The way your smile just beams

The way you sing off key

The way you haunt my dreams

No, no they can't take that away from me

We may never never meet again, on that bumpy road to love

Still I'll always, always keep the memory of

The way you hold your knife

The way we danced till three

The way you changed my life

No, no they can't take that away from me

No, they can't take that away from me.

standard eterno: a melodia inesquecível e aquela letra superlativa fazem desta canção de cole porter 
uma das minhas “all-time favorites”. apesar da grande versão de ella fitzgerald, esta ainda é a melhor. 
podia estar aqui a escrever inúmeros pormenores e factos curiosos associados à canção mas prefiro 
confessar apenas: os pássaros fazem-no, as abelhas fazem-no, vamos fazê-lo, vamos apaixonar-nos…

When the little bluebird 

Who has never said a word 

Starts to sing Spring

When the little bluebell 

At the bottom of the dell 

Starts to ring Ding dong Ding dong 

When the little blue clerk 

In the middle of his work 

Starts a tune to the moon up above 

It is nature that is all 

Simply telling us to fall in love

And that's why birds do it, bees do it 

Even educated fleas do it 

Let's do it, let's fall in love

In Spain the best upper sets do it

Lithuanians and Letts do it

Let's do it, let's fall in love

The Dutch in old Amsterdam do it

Not to mention the Finns

Folks in Siam do it 

Think of Siamese twins

Some Argentines, without means do it

People say in Boston even deans do it

Let's do it, let's fall in love

Romantic sponges they say do it

Oysters down in Oyster Bay do it

Let's do it, let's fall in love

Cold Cape Cod clams, 'gainst their wish, do it

Even lazy jellyfish do it

Let's do it, let's fall in love

Electric eels, I might add, do it

Though it shocks 'em I know

Why ask if shad do it

Waiter, bring me shadroe

In shallow shoals, English soles do it

Goldfish in the privacy of bowls do it

Let's do it, let's fall in love

I've heard that lizards and frogs do it 

Layin' on a rock 

They say that roosters do it 

With a doodle and cock 

When the little bluebird 

Who has never said a word 

starts to sing Spring spring spring 

When the little bluebell 

At the bottom of the dell 

Starts to ring Ding ding ding 

When the little blue clerk 

In the middle of his work 

Starts a tune 

The most refined lady bugs do it 

When a gentleman calls 

Moths in your rugs they do it 

What's the use of moth balls 

The chimpanzees in the zoos do it, 

Some courageous kangaroos do it 

Let's do it, let's fall in love 

I'm sure sometimes on the sly you do it 

Maybe even you and I might do it 

Let's do it, let's fall in love

e cumpriu-se um solstício: o terceiro calhau, na sua elipse cósmica, 
aproximou-se o mais que podia do calor da estrela: chegou o verão



Summertime,
And the livin' is easy
Fish are jumpin'
And the cotton is high

Your daddy's rich
And your mamma's good lookin'
So hush little baby
Don't you cry

One of these mornings
You're going to rise up singing
Then you'll spread your wings
And you'll take to the sky

But till that morning
There's a'nothing can harm you
With daddy and mamma 
Standing by

Summertime,
And the livin' is easy
Fish are jumpin'
And the cotton is high

Your daddy's rich
And your mamma's good lookin'
So hush little baby
Don't you cry