Monday 13 July 2009

44. 10 Wedding Songs

Let's Get Married - The Proclaimers
Marry Me, John - St Vincent
White Wedding - Billy Idol
Cigarettes, Wedding Bands OR Marry Song - Band of Horses
To You - I am Kloot
I Was Married - Tegan and Sara
Ballad of John and Yoko - The Beatles
Be My Wife - David Bowie
Kiss the Bride - Elton John
$1000 Wedding - Gram Parsons

It's wedding season, so I thought I'd better get in the spirit. Of course, I've omitted the greatest wedding song of all, 'Suddenly' by Angry Anderson. If you were there on that fateful day in November 1988, you'll know exactly what I mean.
Anyway, five weddings for me this year, pretty good going. Various corners of the globe, as well. They're primarily exercises in speech timing and middle distance drinking. And can we not just get rid of the handshake parade? Everyone hates it, everyone dreads it. You really do end up saying "you must be very proud" and then you have to wash your mouth out with anti-cliche soap.
I'm still waiting to go to one where anything dramatic (in a bad way) happens - o, now i recall at my sister's my brother-in-law, the groom, spent the night in hospital after twisting his ankle - I guess that's pretty dramatic, but I haven't seen a soap wedding "you can't marry'er - you're still married to me! ..." DUM DUM DUM
Here's hoping.
Of the songs above, I can't recommend the Gram Parsons song highly enough -it's the perfect duet for Parsons and Emmylou Harris, sad and brilliant.
Rather in the spirit of that, of things going wrong and such japes, I wrote this. I had two thoughts on my mind - one was a country song, Hank Williams, George Jones or something, melodramatic and tearjerking (so if you can put the words in a country twang and add in your own slide guitar, that wil help, I'm sure), the other was Glasvegas funnily enough, though that's only really there in the title, for I have called it - quite the best title I've ever come up

WHO, THEN, WILL RESCUE MY BITTER, LONELY HEART?
Trees of green and skies of blue
are well and good - and good for you
The teenage goth has cleaned her face,
the long lost soul has found its place
The stars are out and you may gaze
with wonder now, with fresh delight,
The night is long, you're not afraid,
The night is long, long live the night.
The morning sun sneaks through the blinds,
great thoughts creep slowly on great minds
and who will save my lonely heart?
more lonely now than e'er before
now you're not lonely more

Communion wine it tastes so sweet
and heady in the summer's heat
Your sins and guilt are washed away
with all the words you needn't say.
The cross reflects the morning sun
upon the crowns of lovers kneeling -
for love, it's freed to everyone
who dares give up to hope and healing.
The morning sun shines through stained glass,
a gift of faith for those that ask
and who will save my bitter heart,
more hopeless now than e'er before
now you're not hopeless anymore.

Straight outta Nashville!

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