On the Road Again

This is the first Grenadian Calypso I ever learned, thanks to a guy in my Grade 5 class (Ernesto). It's full of bravado and proverbs (When you play with puppy, puppy gonna lick your mouth; when you play with big dog, big dog gonna bite you).

Ajamu has written some of Grenada's best composed and beloved calypsos. He's also a great reggae artist and is a consummate 'music man'. 

Here's a little taste: 

Closer

Goapele is one of the unnoticed gems in the music industry but she still manages to have a large fanbase. Followers of Goapele tend to be lovers of 'real music'. I've known of her for a while now, even follow her on Twitter but today's the first I've ever listened to one of her songs(Play which is like lyrical sex), and I'm now obsessed.

Thank you G98.7 FM for your commitment to quality radio and music.

This song speaks to my present state of mind and I'm sharing it with you. Enjoy.

The Lyrics 

Closer to my dreams
Getting over, I’m gettin’ higher
Closer to my dreams
I’m getting higher and higher

Feel it in my sleep
Some times it feels like I’ll never go pass again
Some times it feels like I’m stuck forever and ever
When I’m going higher

Closer to my dreams
I’m goin’ higher and higher
I ain’t gonna sleep
Some times you just have to let it go (Let it go, let it go)

Leaving all my fears to burn down
Push them away so I can move on
Closer to my dreams
Feel it all over my being
Close your eyes and see what you believe ...

Midnight In Paris

One word accompanied the smile on my face at the end of Woody Allen's Midnight In Paris: BEAUTIFUL.

I hesitated on choosing this movie, but fell in love within 10 minutes. MIP captures Paris in all it's beauty and reignites the francophile inside of me. I've always wanted to visit Paris, especially after seeing springtime pictures. 

The movie is about a young writer who is spending some vacation time in Paris with his fiance and her parents. There they meet up with an old friend of his fiance (the man is a complete douche _ pretentious and pedantic). Gil (played excellently by Owen Wilson) has a deep fascination with 1920s Paris, and I don't blame him. After a wine tasting, gil decides to take a stroll, on a rest he is invited into a vintage peugeot (which is GORGEOUS) and begins the adventure of his lifetime. 

Courtesy http://remarkablecars.com

I won't share much more of the plot but it's the underlying lesson it shares that grabbed me. I am guilty of lingering on past eras, for me the nineties were the best in terms of music. And if you look at the YouTube comments under any song from the 90s, 80s or 20s, you'll find that I am not alone. Everyone speaks of a golden era, a 'belle epoque'. It's the place we escape to when the present time becomes too unbearable. It symbolizes a time of freedom, creativity and ease. The memories provide comfort. What Gil learned tho' is that every era, every generation has it's golden era. And that we cannot retreat to the past to escape the immediate. We can achieve our hopes and dreams right now, and we have at our disposal all that is needed to succeed. 

I recommend this movie for its beauty, its story and its ability to provoke deep thought ... also there are so many quotable moments, especially from the lips of 'Ernest Hemingway' and 'Gertrude Stein'.

Trailer: