Here's a sensual song about, IMO, what Plato calls the "Form of the Good" (or ἀ–λήθεια) ... re: Sophia.


"Ain't No Sunshine" (2:03)
Just As I Am, 1971
Bill Withers

Good one.

The world is a ploy...
The world is a ploy
To train you and shame you
A leash of employ
The rake sweeps and servers, dry leaves are the weak
A breakthrough could break you the day that you see

Hanging by a thread to the miniature things
Our loved ones are leaning on something they can't see

If you want to take, if you want to give
When you find a meaning, you'll find it short-lived
The gifts and opportunities that come or go or stay
The buttons there for you to push are only in the way

Buttons so vivid, your soul could seem gray
The world all around you entices you to play
Come on! Come out!

You have a choice to make
The push button glows in wait...

The more you believe, the less that you think
The less that you think, the more that you speak
The more that you speak, the less that you see
The less that you see, the more you believe

The world is a ploy, the world is a ploy
A break-through will break you, a break-through will break you

The less they are thinking, the more they believe
My loved ones are leaning on something they can't see

Come on! Come out!
Come on! Come out!

:death: :flower:


"Nobody Love Me But My Mother" (1:26)
Indianola Mississippi Seeds, 1970
B.B. King

There are shadows in "I love you"
Not just love, not just that
Traces of time that linger
There's a contract in these words
You say love has its language
But words are useless to me
If you need phrases to hold hostage
Like a seal on a parchment...

Then know that I
Know that
Know that I...

There is death in "I love you"
There is "I see only you"
Die to the world, to its poems
To read one's own rhymes only
A dishonest stratagem
These three words do not affirm
There is a question in "I love you"
That asks "do you love me too?"...

Then know that I
Know that
Know that I...

JJ Goldman loooooves American music. This is a nice bouncy blue grass / blues on an interesting story.


She had a baby all alone
She made a baby on her own
It was in those crazy years
When dads were out of fashion
Ooh, she made a baby on her own
She chose the father scientifically
For his genes, his astrological sign
Ooh, she made a baby on her own
And she runs all day long
She runs from December to summer
From nanny to babysitter
From diapers to snack time
And she smokes, smokes, smokes even at breakfast

She unmakes her big bed by herself
She lives like in those magazines
Where money and men are facile
Ooh, she makes her bed all by herself
And she runs all day long
She runs from December to summer
The garage, the gym and the blues all alone
And the girlfriends crying for hours on the phone
She assumes, -sumes, -sumes her new femininity
And she runs all day long
She runs from December to summer
From nanny to babysitter
From the diapers to snack time
And she smokes, smokes, smokes even at breakfast

She calls me when she's blue
When she can't sleep
I take her to the movies, I give her hugs
I make her laugh
Am a bit like a big brother, a little incestuous when she wants
And then, her kid is almost my kid
Except he's got blue eyes
She did make a baby on her own

There's hate

We've got more than just love to trade
There's hatred too
It must go out
We must dump it somewhere

Here's a song I wrote about a transformative mystical awakening I had in my late 20s. Recording is rough but you get the spirit. Enjoy!




Look down from the golden sky
The earth is a miracle shining for the blind

Look down on the end of time
The earth is a flash of fire in the night

Creature, wake up
My brother, open your eyes
My sister
The sun wants you to rise
And heal the world
Stand up
Grow up
And heal the world

You were born with a prisoner's eyes
But you broke your chains now you wander with the sky
One with the vision of the fire inside
You carry through the darkness
O how you know the darkness
You've fallen into the abyss and the abyss made you a monster

But your love was strong
And you won the light
And the sky cracked open
And the angels cried

Creature, wake up
My brother, open your eyes
My sister
The sun wants you to rise
And heal the world
Stand up
Grow up
And heal the world

World, world, world, world

But your soul was strong
And you faced the night
It was in your love
It was in your light
Crying

Creature, wake up
My brother, open your eyes
My sister
The sun wants you to rise
And heal the world


Copyright 2021 :smile:

The Little Trade - Boris Vian

I used to sell chickweed but it didn't work
I sold ties, but people were broke
I sold scissors and razor blades
Corozo combs, files and choppers
I tried strawberries, I dabbled in lilies
I repaired chairs, fixed bidets
I was pulling my cart over the wrong pavement
I was about to lose my mind, but finally made it!

I ride a Cadillac through the streets of Paris
Now I understand life
I've got a mansion, three servants and a driver
And the cops greet me like one of them
I sell cannons, short and long
Big ones and small ones, in all sizes and prices
There's always a buyer for these delicate instruments
I'm a cannon dealer, come see me for your children!

Cannons for sale!

With your scrap metal we forge these devices
That will make a mess of the neighbors
It gives work to all the laborers
And everyone plans to start a new home
They make money, they make kids
They get the insurance and the child benefits
It doesn't matter because when they grow up
They'll go out in a dizzy to die for a few francs!

I used to sell cannons in the streets of the earth
But my business was too successful
I've made all the cemetery makers rich
But now I'm travelling on foot
All my good customers have died, singing
And all alone I go without a care
At the corner of old streets, the heart happy, the foot light
I dance the Carmagnole, there's no one left on the pavement!

Cannons on sale!

Boris Vian - The Deserter

And now for a waltz, a rarity in pop music.


Joe Jackson - Forty Years

(On the 40th anniversary of the end of World War II)

Here in Berlin
People line up to get in
To wait for the end
Living in glorious sin
They've looked around
And now there is no looking back
To when rivers ran red
Now it's the sky that grows black
Shadows are cast
As two giants roam over the earth
We light a match
But what is that little flame worth

Once allies danced and sang
But it was forty years ago

Here in D.C.
They talk about 'Euro-disease'
And how the French
Are always so damn hard to please
Motions are passed
In Brussels but no one agrees
And no one walks tall
But no-one gets down on their knees

Once allies laughed and drank
But it was forty years ago

Where I come from
They don't like Americans much
They think they're so loud
So tasteless, and so out of touch
Stiff upper lips
Are curled into permanent sneers
Self-satisfied
Awaiting the next forty years

Once allies cried and cheered
But it was forty years ago

Coltrane "Live" at the Village Vanguard (36:31), 1962

A1. Spiritual 00:00
A2. Softly As In A Morning Sunrise 13:45
B1. Chasin' The Trane 20:23

Soprano & Tenor Saxophones – John Coltrane
Bass Clarinet – Eric Dolphy (tracks: A1)
Piano (side one) – McCoy Tyner
Bass (side one) – Reggie Workman
Bass (side two) – Jimmy Garrison
Drums – Elvin Jones

Recorded at The Village Vanguard, NYC, November 2 and 3, 1961

David Bowie's translation of the best song every written about my home town. Well one of the best written songs ever if you ask my totally unbiassed ;) opinion. so here is the original too...



And here is a version in Dutch from a local folk band:

Nice one 180 proof. I never listened to it from that angle, but indeed. It makes me think of an interesting quasi theological concept: parousia, an always present manifestation of the divine. Which I would explain immanently as the feeling of being in love or of longing for a certain someone. Our metaphysics is built on the experience of a concrete other.

Our metaphysics is built on the experience of a concrete other. — Tobias

:fire: Platonic love(?)

Not surprised that you have divined my interpretation of Mr. Withers channeling 'Socrates' paean to Xanthippe / the daimon' (pace Plato). :up:

Congratulations to @Tobias for the Brel song, and for making the first philosophical comment on this thread for a long time. Also for @180 Proof for prompting it, and for the Coltrane album. I didn't know of it; loved the B track -- aptly titled "Chasing the Trane" because (I guess) Elvin Jones keeps chasing Coltrane throughout. 2 geniuses sharing their musical ideas. Gorgeous.


This one never gets old. It is here dedicated to the oh-so-perfect philosophers who perfectly concluded that all political systems are equally immoral, and that it's all just a matter of 'flag waiving'.

About the edges.



Well they're still racing out at the trestles
But that blood it never burned in her veins
Now I hear she's got a house up in Fairview
And a style she's trying to maintain
Well if she wants to see me
You can tell her that I'm easily found
Tell her there's a spot out 'neath Abraham's bridge, and tell her
There's a darkness on the edge of town
There's a darkness on the edge of town

Well everybody's got a secret, son
Something that they just can't face
Some folks spend their whole lives trying to keep it
They carry it with them every step that they take
'Til some day they just cut it loose
Cut it loose or let it drag 'em down
Where no one asks any questions
Or looks too long in your face
In the darkness on the edge of town
In the darkness on the edge of town

You know some folks are born into a good life
And other folks get it anyway, anyhow
Well now I lost my money and I lost my wife
Them things don't seem to matter much to me now
Tonight I'll be on that hill 'cause I can't stop
I'll be on that hill with everything I got
With our lives on the line where dreams are found and lost
I'll be there on time and I'll pay the cost
For wanting things that can only be found
In the darkness on the edge of town
In the darkness on the edge of town

:up:

Je ne peux plus dire je t'aime
Ne me demande pas pourquoi
Je ne ressens ni joie ni peine
Quand tes yeux se posent sur moi
Si la solitude te pèse
Quand tu viens à passer par là
Et qu'un ami t'a oubliée
Tu peux toujours compter sur moi

Je ne peux plus dire je t'aime
Sans donner ma langue à couper
Trop de serpents sous les caresses
Trop d'amours à couteaux tirés
Si dure que soit la solitude
Elle te ramène à ton destin
La loi du grand amour est rude
Pour qui s'est trompé de chemin

Je ne peux plus dire je t'aime
Ne me demande pas pourquoi
Toi et moi ne sommes plus les mêmes
Pourquoi l'amour vient et s'en va?
Si la solitude te pèse
Quand le destin te mène ici
Et qu'un ami t'a oubliée
Tu peux toujours compter sur moi
Et qu'une amie vienne à manquer
Tu peux toujours compter sur moi

Childhood living
Is easy to do
The things you wanted
I bought them for you
Graceless lady
You know who I am
You know I can't let you
Slide through my hands

Wild horses
Couldn't drag me away
Wild, wild horses
Couldn't drag me away

I watched you suffer
A dull aching pain
Now you've decided
To show me the same
No sweeping exit
Or offstage lines
Could make me feel bitter
Or treat you unkind

Wild horses
Couldn't drag me away
Wild, wild horses
Couldn't drag me away

I know I've dreamed you
A sin and a lie
I have my freedom
But I don't have much time
Faith has been broken
Tears must be cried
Let's do some living
After we die

Wild horses
Couldn't drag me away
Wild, wild horses
We'll ride them some day

Macca @80 :up:

Send me a postcard,
drop me a line
Stating point of view
Indicate precisely what you mean to say
Yours sincerely,
wasting away

"When I'm Sixty-Four" (2:37)
Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, 1967
writers Lennon-McCartney (1956)
performers The Beatles

Sometimes I don't know where this dirty road is taking me
Sometimes i don't know the reason why
So i guess i'll keep gamblin'
Lots of booze and lots of ramblin'
It's easier than just waitin' around to die

Well one-time friends I had a Ma
I even had a Pa
He beat her with a belt once cause she cried
She told him to take care of me
She headed down to Tennessee
It's easier than just a -waitin' around to die

I came of age and found a girl
In a Tuscaloosa bar
She cleaned me out and she hit it on the sly
Well i tried to kill the pain
I bought some wine I hopped a train
Seemed easier than just waitin' around to die

Then a friend said he knew where
Some easy money was
We robbed a man and brother did we fly
But the posse caught up with me
Drug me back to muskogee
Now it's two long years, waitin' around to die

Now i'm out of prison
I got me a friend at last
He don't steal or cheat or drink or lie
His name is codeine
And he's the nicest thing i've seen
And together we're gonna wait around to die

In my solitude you haunt me
With reveries of days gone by
In my solitude you taunt me
With memories that never die

I sit in my chair
Filled with despair
There's no one could be so sad
With gloom everywhere
I sit and I stare
I know that I'll soon go mad

In my solitude
I'm praying
Dear Lord above
Send back my love

I sit in my chair
Filled with despair
There's no one could be so sad
With gloom everywhere
I sit and I stare
I know that I'll soon go mad

In my solitude
I'm praying
Dear Lord above
Send back my love

Dans son regard absent
Et son iris absinthe
Tandis que Marilou s'amuse à faire des vol-
-utes de sèches au menthol
Entre deux bulles de comic strip
Tout en jouant avec le zip
De ses Levi's
Je lis le vice
Et je pense à Carroll
(Lewis)

Dans son regard absent
Et son iris absinthe
Tandis que Marilou s'évertue à faire des vol-
-utes de sèches au menthol
Entre deux bulles de comic strip
Tout en jouant avec son zip
À entrebâiller ses Levi's
Dans son regard absent
Et son iris absinthe, dis je
Je lis le vice
De Baby Doll
Et je pense à Lewis
Carroll

Dans son regard absent
Et son iris absinthe
Quand crachent les enceintes
De la sono lançant
Accords de quartes et de quintes,
Tandis que Marilou s'esquinte
La santé, s'éreinte
À s'envoyer en l'air,
Lorsqu'en un songe absurde
Marilou se résorbe,
Que son coma l'absorbe
En pratiques obscures
Sa pupille est absente,
Et son iris, absinthe,
Sous ses gestes se teinte
D'extases sous jacentes

À son regard le vice
Donne un coté salace
Un peu du bleu lavasse
De sa paire de Levi's
Tandis qu'elle exhale
Un soupir au menthol
Ma débile mentale
Perdue dans son exil
Physique et cérébral
Joue avec le métal
De son zip et l'atol
De corail apparaît
Elle s'y coca colle
Un doigt qui en arrêt
Au bord de la corolle
Est pris près du calice
Du vertige d'Alice
De Lewis
Carroll

Lorsqu'en songes obscurs
Marilou se résorbe
Que son coma l'absorbe
En des rêves absurdes
Sa pupille s'absente,
Et son iris absinthe
Subrepticement se teinte
De plaisir en attente
Perdu dans son exil
Physique et cérébral
Un à un elle exhale
Des soupirs fébriles
Parfumés au menthol
Ma débile mentale
Fait teinter le métal
De son zip
Et, Narcisse,
Elle pousse le vice
Dans la nuit bleue lavasse
De sa paire de Levi's
Arrivée au pubis,
De son sexe corail
Écartant la corolle
Prise au bord du calice
De Vertigo, Alice
S'enfonce jusqu'à l'os
Au pays des malices
De Lewis
Carroll

Pupilles absente,
Iris absinthe,
Baby Doll
Écoute ses idoles:
Jimi Hendrix, Elvis
Presley, T-Rex, Alice
Cooper, Lou Reed, Les Rol-
-ling Stones elle en est folle
Là d'ssus cette narcisse
Se plonge avec délice
Dans la nuit bleue pétrole
De sa paire de Levi's
Elle arrive au pubis
Et très cool au menthol
Elle se self-controle
Son petit orifice
Enfin poussant le vice
Jusqu'au bord du calice
D'un doigt sex-symbol
S'écartant la corolle
Sur fond de rock and roll
S'égare mon Alice
Aux pays des malices
De Lewis
Carroll

The English translation of the poetic German is rather pathetic...

This ain't the down, it's the upbeat, make it complete
So what's the story, guaranteed accuracy, enhanced CD
Latest technology, darts at treble twenty
Huge non-recoupable advance, majors be vigilant
I excel in both content and deliverance
So let's put on our classics and we'll have a little dance, shall we?
No sales pitch, no media hype
No hydro, it's nice and ripe
I speak in communications in bold type
This ain't your archetypal street sound
Scan for ultrasound
North, South, East, West and all round
And then to the Underground

You say that everything sounds the same
And then you go buy them
There's no excuses, my friend
Let's push things forward

As we progress to the check point
I wholeheartedly agree with your viewpoint
But this ain't your typical garage joint
I make points which hold significance
That ain't a bag it's a shipment
This ain't a track, it's a movement, I got the settlement
My frequencies are transient and resonate your eardrums
I make bangers not anthems, leave that to the Artful Dodger
The broad shouldered fifty-one percent shareholder
You won't find us on Alta Vista
Cult classic not bestseller, you're gonna need more power
Plug in the free phase and the generator, crank it up to gigawatts
Critics, ready with your pot shots, the plot thickens
Put on your mittens for these sub zero conditions
But remember I'm just spitting, remember I'm just spitting
Once bitten, forever smitten

You say that everything sounds the same...

Spit jewels like Eastern riches, junkie fixes
Around here we say 'birds', not bitches
As London Bridge burns down Brixton's burning up
Turns out you're in luck, I knows this dodgy fuck in the Duck
So it's just another show flick for your local city poet
In case you geezers don't know it, let's push things forward
It's a tall order but we're taller, calling all maulers
Back street brawlers, corner shop crawlers, victory's flawless
Love us or hates us but don't slate us
Don't conform to formulas, pop genres and such
Sharp darts, double dutch, parked cars troubles you much
With more bud - let's - push - things - forward

You say that everything sounds the same... Etc.

Row, row, row your boat,
Gently down the stream.
Merrily, merrily, merrily,
Life is but a dream!

:fire:

Quoi?
De notre amour fou ne resterait que des cendres?
Moi,
J'aimerais que la terre s'arrête pour descendre
Toi,
Tu me dis que tu n'vaux pas la corde pour te pendre
C'est à laisser ou à prendre

Joie
Et douleur c'est ce que l'amour engendre
Sois
Au moins conscient que mon coeur peut se fendre
Soit
Dit en passant j'ai beaucoup à apprendre
Si j'ai bien su te comprendre

Amour cruel
Comme en duel
Dos à dos et sans merci
Tu as le choix des armes
Ou celui des larmes
Penses-y, penses-y
Et conçois que c'est à la mort, à la vie

Quoi?
De notre amour feu ne resterait que des cendres?
Moi,
J'aimerais que la terre s'arrête pour descendre
Toi,
Tu préfères mourir que de te rendre
Va donc savoir, va comprendre...