A while back I was singing quite regularly - sometimes even in public - but recently I haven't done any singing for ages. After the last post and all that talk of warbling I thought I'd have another go (no warm-up, no practising... I'm just that kind of slapdash gal). So if you go here you can hear an unaccompanied song I wrote a couple of years ago called "Hindsight, hah!" It's a bit ropey at the top end but I did it in one take and after a big meal (and a thousand other excuses). The words are on my website under 'songs' if you want to read them rather than hear them... and oddly I think they too could answer this week's Enchanted Oak Poetry Bus prompt (see last post).
On another (much better) singing note today I came across the most fabulous song whilst trawling Youtube for all things Aristocats (it's a facebook thing... cartoon week). This is Scatman Crothers (Scatcat in Aristocats, hence the link) singing the opening song to a 1975 animated movie called 'Coonskin'. I'd somehow never heard the singer's name (and he was an actor too) or heard of this song or that movie until this week. If you want to read about the movie there's plenty here but this song (written, according to t'internet, by Crothers and the film's director Ralph Bakshi)... it's just such a great set of sounds:
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21 comments:
Very nice, Rachel! I love the words and the tune together.
Which... mine or Scatman's...?
If you mean mine... well, gee... thanks. Maybe I'll try and record another day and get a handle on the notes a bit more...
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Oh, Scatman - yeah, he was on a couple of American sitcoms too. Have to go listen to your song now.
Lately, we've been watching a show called "Don't Forget the Lyrics" which is basically a karaoke game where the contestant has to fill in missing lyrics when they go blank. We're singing all the time now!
Kat
I like your voice. You and I have a similar range. If I had the accent, you couldn't tell us apart.
Liked the song too - a bit woeful, but true.
Kat
Kind of happy ending though, Kat... or something like that.
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You have a nice timbre to your voice, that was really rather good I likes! And it would have served the last bus rather well
Scatman is way cool too!
I like your song a LOT - the redemption part is kind of how I feel about my life (although it does sound as if you were a bit more wild than me). And your voice is lovely too.
Scatman was just fun - thanks for sharing him!
Wow Rachel! Yes, yes to words and melody, but also impressed with the keeping of time. You sounded, obviously, like you, but there was a undercurrent of the young Cilla for me, before she began to caricature her own voice. Impressed.
Scatman great, and by one of those coincidence-y things Blue Peter had a thing about scat singing the other day and the boys are having a scat week. Mummy only found them Cleo Laine to act as role model...
I think you all need to get your ears checked! But you're lovely anyway... a lorra, lorra lovely. (Crazy scat coincidence story, T!).
And Bug... wild? Yes. One just did not know when to say 'enough'... but one knows now.
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Really enjoyed the song (yours). I think your voice is similar to mine. I'd love to hear with music as well - have you got music for it?
No, no music as yet. I just made up the tune for this one in my head and sang it as it came. If you want to have a go at playing it that would be great! Feel free to do what you like with it. Do you play piano/keyboards? I do like a bit of joanna.
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I do play Joanna after a fashion. Might be a fun project to do, setting yours toon to music.
I'd love it! Words are on website, if you need them. Don't think I changed much as I went.
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Oh and my tune is pretty basic - feel free to improve it!
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Lovely! I'm impressed how well you kept in time and key too, that's not easy to do without music!
You're all much too kind. People will think this is one of those blog areas where everyone says everything is brilliant (where's Jim Murdoch when you need him? Or Hugh McMillan to find some mistake I've left in..?).
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A songwriter as well, eh? You are a woman of many talents. Please finish that song - it is very good. I like your voice, it has a richness and a clarity to it that is very appealing. Good on you, Rachel. I am impressed.
I've only come up with tunes for a couple of songs so far - my musical ability is pretty... undeveloped so mostly it's been other people that have put my poems to music. I enjoy it though - either way. Songs are the best!
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Love Scatman. He played the Chef in 'The Shining' and, wonderfully, was the voice of 'Hong Kong Phooey' (number one super-guy).
I loved HK-Phooey so knew the voice (had the pyjamas...) but never knew the voice's name (and that he was a singer.. and a cat...). Now it all comes together!
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