Yesterday I had the honor to prepare the Christmas dinner for some friends in my house. Everybody helped, in fact, cutting vegetables, shred the chicken for the salpicão salad, making sauce for the penne and drinking my cocktails. It was a delicious evening, as it should be a Christmas night. The food was also great, if I may be proud.
But not as good as the dishes prepared by the "best chef in France", I presume. If my meal was good, it doesn't hold a candle to the specialty of rat Rémy, the Ratatouille. In the Pixar film of 2007 (it was on HBO today, btw) there's a song, all instrumental, created by Michael Giacchino, that was nominated by the 80th Academy Award for the soundtrack to Ratatouille.
This month I ain't updating frequently this blog and it's not because there's few whistle songs. There's hundreds of them. It's just because I am enjoying the summertime very well. 8)
Last Saturday night I was drinking and chating with some friends and some women, trying to be pleasant with the girl who was talking to me, then suddenly the guy who was singing in the bar started to whistle... I immediately stopped to chat with her to wait him ended up the song to ask if there is whistlings in the song or if he was just being perky. You know the answer.
Skank is a Brazilian pop rock/ska band which surfs a lot through reggae music. Reggae is the tone in "Jackie Tequila", the 2nd song in the 1994 album named "Calango". The song tells the story about Jacqueline Mist, a pretty girl, so pretty that makes sick. Unfornately, Jackie is a fictitious character.
In a interview with Rádio Globo, the vocalist and guitarist Samuel Rosa told that "Jackie Tequila" was what the band was looking for, in terms of musicality, and the song played a lot in the radio stations: "Trata-se de uma música muito emblemática, acho que é o ponto em que a banda já vinha tentando chegar, em termos de musicalidade, o reggae com aquela parte mais falada, o raggamuffin e tal, parecia algo que o Skank finalmente tinha alcançado depois de muito almejar, depois de algum esforço e a música emplacou, tocou muito nas rádios. Eu me lembro até de alguém, em algum momento, dizendo que a letra era complicada e depois poder ver um garoto de dez anos numa loja de um shopping cantando a letra inteira, aquilo foi prova de que não dá pra fazer muita especulação e nem previsões quando a gente da falando de música pop."
Funk lá no morro da mangueira
Essa menina tá dizendo "sim"
Eu sei!
Noite bamba tudo a beça
Baião na rampa do Cruzeiro...
Essa menina tá dizendo
Don't worry
Cause everything
Is gonna be all right
Everything, every tune
Will be played by night...
Uiêê.. ê Oh Oh!
Seu nome é Jackie! Jackie!
Oh! Oh! Tequila!
Oh! Jacqueline Mist
Hiê! Hiô! Tequila!...
Reggae la na radio do café
Rapaziada que tive afim vai la
Eu vo ficar com Jackie Oh!
Se é que Jackie vai pra la
Se não for, ja foi
O bonde do desejo segue rumo
Caixa, bumbo e sexo
Saudade na rampa do mundo Oh!
Seu nome é Jackie! Jackie!
Oh! Oh! Tequila!
Seu nome é Jacqueline Mist
Hiê! Hiô! Tequila!...
Oh Jackie foi nascer
Numa cabana em Nôa Nôa
Sol do Taiti na pele na boa
Seu pai cruzou o mar
Duas filhas na canoa
Côco pra beber
E leite de leoa...
Jackie uma menina
Tão bonita que enjoa
Enjôa de vertigem
Viagem de avião
Hálito de virgem
Dois olhos de amêndoa
Vaca cadela
Macaca, gazela...
Linda toda, toda linda ela
Toda beleza
Se reconhece nela
Jackie Tequila
Coca-Cola e água
Égua língua míngua
Minha mágoa, Uô! Uô!... Iê!...
(A Você Uô Uô Iê!... Ahn.. Aahn)
I had never heard Incubus before know this song. I had heard about it, talking to one or another friend but never got to hear it. Well, still haven't... this one was their only song I heard. = P
The song is really cool when it starts. It starts in an acid jazz style and has some nice beats, but then is sung like rap, something like an electrorap. Hehe. This electro-hip-hop-jazz was recorded for the EP in 2007, called "Enjoy Incubus".
And the whistling happens only in the beginning. =)
Floatin' round my brain,
tryin' to think about the other thing.
Than that thought you know I'm considering.
What if what I thought,
about who I think I though I was,
was nothing more than my cerebellum slobbering?
Azwethinkweizm is hard to think about,
but simple to trust.
You'll know your on it
when your brain won't stop to take a break, no!
So when donut boy comes askin' around,
tryin' to figure out somethin' new,
you just smile and say,
"Pardon you! I'm sifting through
some particles and farcing through some folds.
I've stumbled upon a brain fart
which melts away your molds!"
So I think upon that ponder
while I'm pondering the thought,
just thinkin' about the thinkweiz
is leaving me distraught!
Well I think I thought
I saw an Azwethinkweiz,
Lookin' like we think we do.
Like we think we do.
Some think I'm insane,
'cause I think about the other thing,
than that one thought you call reality.
What if what you thought,
about who you think you thought you were,
was nothing more than illusion rapidly crumbling!
Azwethinkweism should be a topic we all can trust.
It's just to bad that it makes your
head go zippitykrack @#$% dang!
So when donut boy comes sniffing around
trying to figure out something new,
you just laugh and say, "Pardon you,
I'm sifting through some particles and
farcing through some folds.
I've stumbled upon a brain fart
which melts away your molds."
So I think upon that ponder
while I'm pondering the thought,
just thinking about the thinkweiz
is leaving me distraught.
Well I think I thought I saw an Azwethinkweiz,
lookin' like we think we do.
Like we think we do.
So what if you thought about the thinkweiz
was nothing like you think you are?
You'd probably more than likely be a
lookyloo lookin' like you think you do.
Like you think you do.
Talking about bands that no one knows, I give you: Menomena! It’s an indie rock band from Portland, Oregon, formed by Brent Knopf, Justin Harris, and Danny Seim. These guys:
The band was formed in 2000 under this strange name, which means, according an interview by Tiny Mix Tapes, “‘Menomena’ means different things to different people. I’d hate to spoil the fun for someone by laying down my personal interpretation as law. It came from a list of about 50 other band names that we were deciding upon. We like the way it rolls off the tongue, sexually, or something.”
“Boyscout’n” came into the band’s third studio album, “Friend and Foe”. The song talks about of failed expectations and the whistling is kind of sad. Really sad, I must say, is when the band uses a synthesizer to make the sound of the whistlings. It’s what happened here, as you can see in the video below.
Enjoy it, anyway.
So stop and take it all in slowly
'Cause this short glimpse is not the only
Chance that you will have to see
All the ways that I can prove myself as worthy
To be the one and only true sure thing
Sure thing
I can't believe I lent my hand to help destroy and helpless man
Maybe it's a long shot now, but still I say
Should not survive this fall then I pray if I pray at all
That I could catch my breath and come away unscathed
Away unscathed
I once believed you were my savior
But now you're nothing but a traitor
And still I'll wait for your return
I get the feeling I have waited
A whole lifetime in vain
A lot to lose with nothing to gain
I can't believe I lent my hand to help destroy and helpless man
Maybe it's a long shot now, but still I say
Should not survive this fall then I pray if I pray at all
That I could catch my breath and come away unscathed
Away unscathed
Some time ago I searched on Google for “a good band that nobody knows about”. Then, there it was. Venus Hum... love at first sight! Or, first audition.
I even translated its Wikipedia article for Portuguese, so much I loved it! I also downloaded its complete discography for the times when I want to listen a good good electro music.
Their for themselves: “Venus Hum is a trio consisting of vocalist Annette Strean, multi-instrumentalist Tony Miracle, and film-maker Kip Kubin. The band formed in 1999 in Nashville, TN and have released 3 album... Venus Hum (mono-fi), Big Beautiful Sky (Geffen/BMG UK), and The Colors in the Wheel (mono-fi/Nettwerk). Their 4th record, Mechanics & Mathematics, continues the mission to marry pop songs with strange eletronic sounds.”
The song of today was released in 2006 and is from Venus Hum 3rd album, “The Colors in the Wheel”. It’s one of my favorite Venus Hum’s songs. It’s so charming, so sensual... You must hear it! You must hear “Beautiful Spain” and “Montana” too! Well, hear everything, ‘cause I recommend the entire discography!
You’re eighty pounds of wreckage in a mason jar
You’re a bit combustible don’t break
So you want to fight me
With your one good eye?
And do you think you can beat me?
Hm, well come on, come on
Now you’re holding back the candy like a one-year-old
If you break in half then you could let it flow
You’re eighty pounds of wreckage in a mason jar
You’re a bit combustible don’t break
Something wicked this way comes
Is it God’s or is it yours?
It’s a bit uncomfortable
Oh, don’t kill the messenger
When you’re throwing out your punches at the rate of snow
If you break in half then you could let it flow
You’re eighty pounds of wreckage in a mason jar
You’re a bit combustible don’t break my heart
So you wanna fight me?
Well, you said you want to fight me?
Oh, come on, come on
“Always Look on the Bright Side of Life” is a popular song written by Eric Idle that originally featured in the 1979 film Monty Python’s Life of Brian and has gone on to become a common singalong at public events such as football matches as well as funerals.
Whilst trying to come up with a way of ending the film Monty Python’s Life of Brian, Eric Idle wrote an original version of the song which was sung in a more straight fashion, which the other Python members agreed would be good enough for the end of the film. Whilst practising the song, during a break in filming, Idle found that the song worked better if sung in a more cheeky manner. This new version was used in the film and became one of the Python’s most famous songs.
Brian Cohen (played by Graham Chapman) has been sentenced to death by crucifixion for his part in a kidnap plot. After a succession of apparent rescue opportunities all come to nothing, a character on a nearby cross (played by Eric Idle) attempts to cheer him up by singing “Always Look on the Bright Side of Life” to him. As the song progresses, many of the other crucifixion victims (140 in all, according to the script, though fewer than that are actually seen on screen) begin to dance in a very limited way and join in with the song’s whistled hook. The song continues as the scene changes to a long-shot of the crosses and the credits begin to roll. An instrumental version plays over the second half of the credits.
“Always Look on the Bright Side of Life” was conceived as a parody of the style of song often featured in Disney films. It may be considered an answer song to the entire genre, but particularly to songs such as “Give a Little Whistle” from Pinocchio. Its appearance at the end of the film, when the central character seems certain to die, is deliberately ironic.
The song opens with an introductory verse (half-sung with an acoustic guitar backing on the soundtrack album and most subsequent versions, though simply spoken unaccompanied in the film itself):
Some things in life are bad,
They can really make you mad.
Other things just make you swear and curse.
When you’re chewing on life’s gristle,
Don’t grumble, give a whistle,
And this’ll help things turn out for the best, and...
This deviation from the standard rhyme scheme (with ‘best’ replacing the expected ‘worse’ to rhyme with ‘curse’) leads into the first appearance of the chorus, which consists of the title and a whistled tune. A second verse continues in a similar vein, and the third and fourth verses move on to discuss the situation (namely, imminent death) in which Brian now finds himself, and alludes to the Shakespearean cliché that ‘all the world’s a stage’:
Life’s a piece of shit,
When you look at it.
Life’s a laugh and death’s a joke, it’s true.
You’ll see it’s all a show,
Keep ‘em laughing as you go.
Just remember that the last laugh is on you.
The whistled hook is an uncredited contribution from Idle’s frequent collaborator Neil Innes. One occurrence in the final chorus was omitted at the insistence of the film’s executive producer George Harrison, so as not to obscure a pet phrase in John Altman’s orchestral arrangement.
The song appeared on the film soundtrack album, listed as “Always Look on the Bright Side of Life (All Things Dull and Ugly)”. The subtitle does not appear in the actual song, and is only used on the soundtrack album. Confusingly, “All Things Dull and Ugly” was also the title of an unrelated track on Monty Python’s Contractual Obligation Album (released only a few months later), which is a parody of the popular hymn “All Things Bright and Beautiful”.
The song was also released on the B-side of the single “Brian Song”, the film’s opening theme (performed by Sonia Jones). It is likely that the claim made by Idle in the spoken fade-out that “this record is available in the foyer” was actually true in some cinemas.
The song touched a chord with the British trait of stoicism and the ‘stiff upper lip’ in the face of disaster, and became immensely popular. When the destroyer HMS Sheffield was struck by an Exocet cruise missile on May 4, 1982 in the Falklands War, her crew sang it while waiting to be rescued from their sinking ship, as did the crew of HMS Coventry.
When Chapman died on October 4, 1989, the five remaining Python members, as well as Chapman’s close relations, came together at his private funeral to sing “Always Look on the Bright Side of Life” as part of Idle’s eulogy. In 2005, a survey by Music Choice showed that it was the third most popular song Britons would like played at their funerals.
Some things in life are bad
They can really make you mad
Other things just make you swear and curse
When you’re chewing on life’s gristle
Don’t grumble, give a whistle
And this’ll help things turn out for the best
And...
...always look on the bright side of life
(whistle)
Always look on the light side of life
(whistle)
If life seems jolly rotten
There’s something you’ve forgotten
And that’s to laugh and smile and dance and sing
When you’re feeling in the dumps
Don’t be silly chumps
Just purse your lips and whistle — that’s the thing
And... always look on the bright side of life
(whistle)
Come on
Always look on the bright side of life
(whistle)
For life is quite absurd
And death’s the final word
You must always face the curtain with a bow
Forget about your sin — give the audience a grin
Enjoy it — it’s your last chance anyhow
So always look on the bright side of death
Just before you draw your terminal breath
Life’s a piece of shit
When you look at it
Life’s a laugh and death’s a joke, it’s true
You’ll see it’s all a show
Keep ‘em laughing as you go
Just remember that the last laugh is on you
And always look on the bright side of life
(whistle)
Always look on the right side of life
(whistle)
Come on guys, cheer up
Always look on the bright side of life...
Always look on the bright side of life...
Worse things happen at sea, you know
Always look on the bright side of life...
I mean — what have you got to lose?
You know, you come from nothing
— you're going back to nothing
What have you lost? Nothing!
Always look on the bright side of life
Always look on the bright side of life
