The Book People

Well it's that time again . . . time for the Frankfurt Book Fair. I can't wait to hang out with The Book People and be reminded that there are indeed a lot of people who still care about books, despite what the doomsayers would have us believe about the demise of the printed word.

So with that in mind, here's my tribute to book lovers everywhere--one of the most beautiful pieces of music ever written for film. It's the finale to Bernard Herrmann's score for Fahrenheit 451. The music accompanies the scene in which Montag has finally found his way to The Book People and begins the task of committing to memory Tales of Mystery and Imagination by Edgar Allan Poe. Oh and in case you're wondering, my book would be The Bone People by Keri Hulme . . . and if you don't know what I'm on about then read Bradbury or see Truffaut's adaptation.



Okay, if that doesn't grab you, try this one!

Blogging will resume in about two weeks . . .

29 Settembre (Updated)

Thanks to my friend Dario, I now have an actual translation of the Lucio Battisti song, "29 Settembre." After reading the lyrics, I can only wonder why my dear friend in Florence misled me about the true nature of the song. Because yeah, the guy meets a beautiful girl in a cafe and has a wonderful time with her, but my friend neglected to mention that the guy already had a girlfriend. Ah well, perhaps the fact I consider this an issue just means that I am a little prude born and raised in the US . . .

Whatever.

It's still a beautiful song . . . see I am becoming Europeanized . . .

Many thanks Dario!! This was a lovely birthday gift.

Original Italian lyrics:

29 Settembre (Battisti, Mogol 67)

Seduto in quel caffe'
io non pensavo a te....
Guardavo il mondo che
girava intorno a me...
Poi d'improvviso lei
sorrise
e ancora prima di capire
mi trovai sottobraccio a lei
stretto come se
non ci fosse che lei.
Vedevo solo lei
e non pensavo a te...
E tutta la citta'
correva incontro a noi.
Il buio ci trovo'
vicini
un ristorante e poi
di corsa a ballar sottobraccio a lei
stretto verso casa abbracciato a lei
quasi come se non ci fosse che,
quasi come se non ci fosse che lei.
Mi son svegliato e
e sto pensando a te.
Ricordo solo che,
che ieri non eri con me...
Il sole ha cancellato tutto
di colpo volo giu' dal letto
e corro li' al telefono
parlo, rido e tu.. tu non sai perche'
t'amo, t'amo e tu, tu non sai perche'
parlo, rido e tu, tu non sai perche'
t'amo t'amo e tu, tu non sai perche'
parlo, rido e tu, tu non sai perche'
t'amo, t'amo tu, tu non sai perche'.

Dario's English translation:

29th of September

I was sitting down at that Cafè…
I wasn’t thinking of you
Only looking the world going
around me
Then she suddenly
smiled
and even before to understand
I was “with my arm under her arm”
walking close as she
was the only.
I saw her only
and I didn’t think of you…
And all the city around
ran to meet us.
The dark surprised us
so close
A restaurant and then
fast to dance “with my arm under her arm”
embraced going home
as she was the only
as she was the only one.
I woke up and
and now I think of you.
I only recall that
yesterday you weren’t with me…
The sun erased everything
and I suddenly jump out the bed
and I run there at the telephone
I speak, smile and you…you don’t know why
I love you, I love you and you…you don’t know why
I speak, smile and you…you don’t know why
I love you, I love you and you…you don’t know why
I speak, smile and you…you don’t know why
I love you, I love you and you…you don’t know why

[Literally: “be with my arm under her arm”, it means to have an intimate relation of friendship or love with a person in Italian.]

29 Settembre, Daydreams, and Marty

In 1998, I was lucky enough to wake up in Florence, Italy on my birthday. The friends who hosted me during that trip gave me a CD, which was a collection of Lucio Battisti's greatest hits. They picked this gift because of "29 Settembre," a song Battisti recorded in 1969. As far as I understand it, the song is about a young man meeting a pretty girl in a cafe. It's a lovely song and I enjoyed the other tracks on the CD as well. Unfortunately, there are no videos on YouTube which feature live performances of this song, but there are some nice photos in this tribute.



Released by the Loving Spoonfuls in 1966, "Daydream" was my absolute favorite song when I was a little kid . . . well, at least until "I Want You Back" was released a few years later in 1969. In any case, I'll never forget sitting at the breakfast table one morning before school and hearing "Daydream" dedicated to me on the radio. The dedication came from my mom, who sent birthday greetings to me that the entire city could hear if they were listening. What an incredible feeling, what a great song, and a very nice video from Hullabaloo.



And to wrap up this little musical musing on birthdays past, I can't forget last year, when I woke up with the music in me. Unfortunately, the video is no longer available due to copyright claims, but what does remain from that post is my dear friend Marty, who found my blog after Googling the New Young Radicals, thus beginning a transatlantic, southern folk, meeting of the minds. Marty, thanks for all of your stories, comments, and advice. Keep fighting the good fight for justice and equality, which is so desperately needed in the world.

This one is for you my friend.