I am hopeless, maybe a misfit but truly I am lost in Lady Mary's (Michelle Dockery's) eyes again. Actually I have started seeing them everywhere, from a barista, to a TV reporter, to a sales associate, and of course my wife. This could be a problem, and I could start a withdrawal program of say unsubscribing to the biggest Michelle Dockery Facebook fan page. They posted a photo album of Michelle Dockery attending a photocall for the film ‘Non Stop’ at The Dorchester on January 30, 2014 in London, England; and frankly I had to stop everything I was doing and just stare. That's probably not good, but lets look at the bright side. First, it helps my writing. Good songs and lyrics come from intense passion either happy or sad. No milk toast is allowed. Second, I find myself being more kind and loving to women who remind me of Michelle and in a very gentle way. It's like I realize I'll never be close to the real thing so be appreciative of the little things. When possible I love to just talk to someone else with dark eyes peering politely in their eyes, or I glance over to catch a glimpse of some dark eye brows. I'm as harmless as a hound dog, but it fills in the realness of these photos or TV spots. I could claim it's a bucket list item to meet Michelle, but that would be silly... she would be polite, sign whatever I passed her, maybe pause for a picture and then leave. Hell I want to sit down over a glass of wine and talk; and that won't happen. I rationalize she's too tall for me anyway... HA.
Yes I want more than this, so I'll live with the beauty that surrounds me and reminds me of Michelle, and I recommend we all find another reason to smile and to be nice to one another.
Officially I have written probably close to 100 songs, attested by the 196 posts on my prose blog, Zeman's Musings; but does that make me qualified to write about it? Well my wife would tell you that I have little humility and of course I even sauntered into writing a blog on how to Songwriting though I haven't posted to that site since 2010 (not that the hints and techniques aren't ageless.)
So let's just say a new song has been welling up inside me and I have to explain it and the process. You know like you get a new kitten and you have to keep playing with them.
First I had some time alone in the house; always important to me for thinking and writing not to have some one looking over my shoulder, and I found this old piece I wrote and it was my standard depressing wanting of a love that wouldn't happen, it started:
The dance of the life, the chance of time Ages of man and woman have written Pages and pages of nonsense to fill the subject
And you can read the rest at http://davezeman.blogspot.com/2012/03/dance.html
So I really wanted to write a gypsy type of song, a little rebellious, and some thing quick because I've been stuck in slow sad for too long. I actually had a been spending some time in the Twitter world and discovered people who are taking identities of Downton Abbey characters. In a previous post I might have mentioned that and I believe Lady Rose should have an affair with a gypsy lover, and maybe Mary too, why not Bohemians existed back then; plus we are great romantics.
So guitar in hand, a great bouncy beat the first verse went down with much of it borrowed from the 2012 piece:
The dance of the life, the chance of time
Ages of man women have written
Pages and pages filled with rhyme
Still the real bells and whistles simple
A wink of an eye, a glance from behind
To blink you’d miss it, a lover’s symbol
Now the chorus has to more dramatic, modulate it up (even if the voice can't) and DANCE!
So take this dance with me tonight
My hand gentle on your back
Keep me in your constant in your site
As we dance, we dance thru the night
A great writer John David Souther always said, "A good song is timeless" and I think dancing with the woman you love, with your hand on the sweet spot of her back, and her staring in your eyes is timeless. As I playing it quick, I did attempt to soften up especially as I gently place my hand on her back. Next up my other mentor, Pierce Pettis said, "Move the story alone" First verse was the attraction, next has to have the action. Here I draw off of my love for dark eyes, long neck of a woman with her hair up, and white complexion, ah easily this could be Michelle Dockery or Lady Mary. Though I wrote it not to be specific makes a song much more compelling; and yes I married a woman with dark eyes and fair complexion over 30 years ago
You hair pulled high all the fabric pressed
The music begins and the crowd stirs a start
Cruising the floor in you red dress
Your skin so white, your eyes so dark
Unclench my soul be still my heart
I would be yours, please drop your guard. I really love this verse and thought at one point I might have stolen "Unclench my Soul" but Google did not return any hits to that line. (yet I need to make sure my song comes up HA) Next up keep the story going, and this song of little over three minutes probably captures a half hour of elapsed time at most. So the dance is over and a lady with wine and a man with his black and tan live happily ever after.
So mark the time …that song did end
A pregnant pause a silent bow
We left the floor hand in hand
A with a toast … our life began
A blend red a black and tan
We started life a lady and her man. Now one might wonder if there really would be a sarcastic comment coming after the dance? Well put two people together and I would claim that too many times we say something we regret saying, thus the silence ensures the ending. Now you know the story... hope you enjoyed it and the song.
It's been a while since I posted funny... so while this video has over 1.5mm videos; I didn't see on the Grammy list and I just heard about it this week. Enjoy.. just a touch off color... a little brownish.
I had quiet time in the car commuting this morning and I quickly started humming, "Graceful and grand is your beauty, tender and soft is your white skin" It was a song I penned for my love of Mary, and thought about the 4 years of Lady Mary Crawley that I've lived through.
Yes I think my love for Mary was immediate. The stare from her brown eyes and arched brows did take command, and while she was entirely nasty to her sister Edith and overwhelmingly snooty and self indulged; her beauty was intense. Her long graceful neck, and her smile when she left her guard down; I knew she had a heart in that protected royal life. Pamuk really got her guard down, and the rest of the next two seasons would be haunted by it. Her vindictive self came out toward the end of the first season, but it bit her hard setting up season two. I believe Graceful and Grand was written for Season 1 Mary.
Season two brought to us a Mary that was much more fragile, while she held her stoic veneer. While the once manipulative Mary is getting manipulated and pushed into corners that she did not desire. Tenderly she held on to Matthew memories as we held on to the hope that their love would be fulfilled. Then toward the end of the season we get Mary confessing her sins and a love is blessed with a bend of a knee. After that season I wrote a piece to recap the season; and it again was started in a drive to work to a tune from the 8th century, so it would have been available to listen during Mary & Matthew's time.
Season three was a joy and ended in such disaster. I really have never written anything that would hold up to the highs or the lows; and likely to paraphrase Julian Fellows, it's much easier to write about drama and the desire than Happiness and most of the season found me wishing I was Matthew and as happy as I would be.
Season four with it's dark beginning will find Mary as a strong independent minded lady at the end (yes I've seen all of S4). Mary's men gets coined in the last show, but these two suitors dwarf in anticipation. I say bring on a little tension in Season Five; someone everyone wants Mary to be with, but she knows she shouldn't. I'd say a gypsy type American, and since I won't win the job maybe someone who looks like me. I'm sure George could pull off being desired, yet not "good" for Mary. I would try too, just put me in coach.
Personally this has been a rough week attending two funerals for children of 10 and 17. First on Saturday we laid to rest a 10 year old who died of leukemia, then on Sunday I heard a friend's 17 year old son took his life. That is first why I recorded You are Mine, a wonderful song by David Haas.
Then when I attended the second funeral, You are Mine was the opening song, ironic but still sad.
Then our praise band's service weekend was this weekend. I requested we include that song, and it felt reassuring. The highlight though of the service was our first time we played In Christ Alone. I did get a recording of it and we were true the Celtic sound, and here it is on Grooveshark.
It must be a popular song, it has over 6,000,000 views!
Ha, one might say they are a major sponsor of this blog because they employ me during my day job. I just had to share some really cool news out of WinCraft that is timely to the largest single day sporting event; THE SUPER BOWL.
So this year WinCraft received the rights to make and to distribute collectible pins for the event. There will be pins in retail.
Watched this film which is such a warm four minutes in anyone's life. Why in the world would there be any judgmental people out there saying anything like this isn't just beautiful. Then the phone rang and I find out a co-worker's teenage son killed himself. Harsh reality that I'll probably never know the answer, but my guess is that he saw hopelessness and just couldn't face it anymore.
I love Mary and MN Original did a great segment on her though she is really a WISCONSIN original. Love the "Name the Polka" bit, I got them all. ;-)
She said that her bed room is a little cleaner now.
Remember tonight on Fox she is the voice Dylan on Golan the Insatiable, part of Animation Domination. I like this review calls it a Dark Calvin and Hobbes.
On Twitter I'm amazed how many profiles are Lady Mary... I just am overwhelmed... I just love one, though I'm understanding she's really Michelle Dockery.. HA.
So as I'm watching posts or tweets, I am taken back to my desire to wrap my arms around the women and dance. And of course why not to a waltz I wrote, and can sing in the quiet moments in the car on the way to work.
I do also read to much, and Michelle Dockery wishes she had a band... put me in Michelle, I'd love to be in a band with you. Playing music live is such a rush of emotion... I wouldn't sleep until really late for an old fart like me.
oh yes.. .these are the words and I rarely share me singing them because it takes one of those "pretty voices'
Graceful and grand is your beauty
Tender and soft is your white skin
I gaze into your deep dark eyes
To lose myself once again.
There but a moment when we met
You fashioned my heart
In your alchemy
Casted a spell to tear me apart.
You fashioned my heart
In your alchemy
Graceful and grand is your beauty
Tender and soft is your white skin
I gaze into your deep dark eyes
To lose myself once again.
A season must pass until we meet
You stay in my mind
Each night and day
To renew a love more replete
You stay in my mind
Each night and day
Graceful and grand is your beauty
Tender and soft is your white skin
I gaze into your deep dark eyes
To lose myself once again.
Yes! I said and tweeted after I read the article where Olivia Hallinan challenged Julian Fellows to write her into Downton Abbey. I too miss seeing her wrapped up in beautiful clothes with her hair pulled up, though by season two I believe the corsets were gone. Yes I've fallen in love with upbeat Laura in Lark Rise to Candleford, and thought she was excellent in her single show appearance in The Paradise.
So what to write, simple! We've had Thomas as the gay butler, we need a lesbian of the time to float through the series, and why not an English poet in the vein of Elsa Gidlow or Radclyffe Hall I don't mean to type cast but Olivia did play an awesome lesbian in Sugar Rush, (a series I'm through the first season on in YouTube).
So now the plot line, oh it has to be with Lady Rose MacClare, an adventure filled young lady that is prone to be on the rebellious side of the world. I'd say it wouldn't last and Elsa in reality heads off to New York before Season 4 has started, though Radclyffe Hall stayed in London dying fairly well honored for her writing. And Radclyffe loved a Blues singer for a while, and we know how Lady Rose loves her musicians!
Well my passion with the Downton Abbey series lead this yankee to find a way to watch with the UK season four. So now what to do? Well someone had recommended Lark Rise to Candleford. Great recommendation and it's all on YouTube in a few channels. And Olivia Hallinan easily has won my heart; yes blog readers..."Dave's in love again..."
When I saw a new video for Amanda Shires and Jason Isbell show up in the new uploads, I had to watch it. It's a wonderful display of harmonies in a duo format, and I love the smoothness of Amanda's fiddle playing. Then I read the comments, and one said it was a great cover of a Warren Zevon song. I've never been a huge fan of him, but mostly because I probably didn't give him many listens. Had to look it up... sharp contrast... love both the original and the cover.
