|
|
Post by georgeringo2 on Jul 23, 2010 7:31:04 GMT -5
I once read that "Mona Bone Jakon" was Cat's slang term for an erection. Has anyone else ever read this?
|
|
valleycreeper
Katmandu Member
I creep through the valleys, still
Posts: 81
|
Post by valleycreeper on Aug 7, 2010 2:56:17 GMT -5
Yup.
|
|
|
|
Post by Vivian on Aug 7, 2010 4:57:14 GMT -5
YES!
Peace,Vivian
|
|
|
|
Post by ilovemycat on Aug 7, 2010 15:25:31 GMT -5
well I don't know about you guys - but I surely appreciate the lusty Cat just as much as the spiritual! It's a shame some of the songs are not appropriate for him to sing anymore  |
|
|
|
Post by richina on Aug 12, 2010 10:12:16 GMT -5
|
|
|
|
Post by ilovemycat on Aug 12, 2010 16:27:38 GMT -5
ha ha ha
That was great! Thanks for posting it.
|
|
|
|
Post by JaneB on Aug 12, 2010 16:55:02 GMT -5
This is exactly why I don't like reading what songs are about - it is always something different than I would have guessed and unfortunately, often ruins the song for me. And believe me - I am NO prude - far from it. I just want the songs to mean what I think they mean. I am going to go give myself amnesia so I forget I ever read any of this!  |
|
|
|
Post by ilovemycat on Aug 12, 2010 19:22:31 GMT -5
I don't think he was serious - maybe only half serious. And half the time he isn't even sure what the song means - lol
Besides, he would not still be singing it if it was sensual. I'm pretty sure the song means what you want it to Jane!
|
|
|
|
Post by downunder72 on Aug 13, 2010 7:51:26 GMT -5
That's what I love about Yusufs songs, it all depends on the mood you're in, or what stage of your life you're at. The may take you on a high, or you might feel like drowning yourself in sorrow. They always take on a different meaning, or some are never changing in their meaning, like 'WHERE DO THE CHILDREN PLAY'. Yusufs music is universal, and so diverse, like no other artist that has past. That's why his music has lasted through the test of time, and will continue to for generations to come.  Jane I remember this article when I was much younger, in my late teens, and it was a bit of a shock. I thought he was an angel sent from heaven, because only an angel could write such beautiful and meaniful songs. Then as I matured I realized he is only human, a human male, with very natural feelings and desires, so I thought it was very normal. Jane, look at it from a funny point of view. When you're in one of your silly modes that we all get into from time to time, it really can be quite amusing. ;D  Deep down, I still think he is a God sent angel. While writing this post, all these ants are crawling out of my laptops key board, onto my fingers.  It could be the heat wave, or most likely, it could me eating those chocolate bars secretly at night over this laptop. Serves me right ;D Apart from those little screen bugs, does one else have ant problems. ;D |
|
s271
Bitterblue Member
I've got to show the world, world's got to see, see all the love - love that's in me.
Posts: 114
|
Post by s271 on Aug 13, 2010 8:21:39 GMT -5
That's what I love about Yusufs songs, it all depends on the mood you're in, or what stage of your life you're at. The may take you on a high, or you might feel like drowning yourself in sorrow. They always take on a different meaning, or some are never changing in their meaning... I totally agree... Some songs make me ;D and some songs make me  and some songs make me ;D + and it's all just a mix of emotions when listening to his songs! His voice is so beautiful!!! Most of my favourite songs are the ones that make me cry... I don't know why. I think it's the way his voice sounds so hurt! |
|
|
|
Post by richina on Aug 13, 2010 9:14:22 GMT -5
Sorry about the "Peace Train" thing y'all.  It is what it is. I was kinda surprised myself. It doesn't seem like the sort of article that should have been published in a songbook that was for the general public. I am quite sure the song's meaning may have started out that way, and that Cat was being a bit cheeky, but it's not the meaning Yusuf (and the world) has for it today. You know it's not the first time CS/YI has not made the best choice of words, he was just being honest. Anyway, he was young, heady, handsome, and rich.....what's not to love?  |
|
|
|
Post by downunder72 on Aug 13, 2010 16:27:00 GMT -5
Just one more thought. Maybe amoung his many books that he was reading while recovering from turbuculosis, he was also into some of Sigmund Freuds books, or Carl Jungs. Maybe he was going through a period of self physcoanalysis. |
|
|
|
Post by JaneB on Aug 13, 2010 16:34:18 GMT -5
It is just one of my things - not wanting to know what the song is about. I know most people love the books and reading all about them. I enjoy ignorant bliss |
|
peacock
Majik of Majik Member
Posts: 505
|
Post by peacock on Aug 13, 2010 17:29:22 GMT -5
Oh yeah, I looked at the cover and I thought, well, duh. I just think it's sad to compare it to a trash can! I notice that his set for Roadsinger performances (on TV appearances I've seen, can't remember where, Colbert maybe?) includes a few trash cans. A nod back to the Mona days, maybe? |
|
|
|
Post by Sir Lorry Load on Aug 14, 2010 10:03:09 GMT -5
It is just one of my things - not wanting to know what the song is about. I know most people love the books and reading all about them. I enjoy ignorant bliss "Ignorant bliss" is a way of life for me, Jane! ;D -Bud |
|
|
|
Post by tiffany on Aug 14, 2010 11:28:13 GMT -5
Well, Cat Stevens was in his heydays a man, whose good looks made every female fan go wild, and I remember when I was in my late teens, hearing of his conversion to religion, and I soon found out at the time that he was a Muslim, and I was very upset, and thought he'd never play music again. Since then, when returning to the music biz, and bringing back the guitar, I've been very glad of his third comeback. We all love those songs, and they relive the test of time.
|
|
valleycreeper
Katmandu Member
I creep through the valleys, still
Posts: 81
|
Post by valleycreeper on Aug 22, 2010 4:20:39 GMT -5
I'm very much of a late 60s/early 70s frame of mind, and I was never at all disappointed by hearing what Mona Bone Jakon meant. To say that it was sexual is not to say that that was all it was. The sexual combines with all other aspects of life, and is not necessarily a crass thing, which I think most of us know, but we seem to forget it sometimes. Why isn't this an interesting human area to delve into? I think one can tell from the lyrics that the song was about more than some physical function.
|
|
|
|
Post by JaneB on Aug 22, 2010 10:42:03 GMT -5
I think I was the only one to express that it kind of ruins the song for me. I never said it wasn't interesting if that is your thing. It's pretty clear that most people who commented on this thread like knowing what a song is about. My own personal preference is not to know. I don't care to analyze a song; I just want to enjoy it and enjoy what I think it means. That's all I meant.
|
|
|
|
Post by doorcat13 on Jan 10, 2011 23:06:18 GMT -5
Holy hell...ignorant bliss? Jim Morrison said, "real poetry doesn't say anything, it just opens doors and you can walk in any one you want." That's one thing that's totally beautiful and a poet can write in that manner. But to totally wish to be in the dark regarding what an artist means and wishes to get across is another.
|
|
|
|
Post by JaneB on Jan 10, 2011 23:31:42 GMT -5
Holy hell...ignorant bliss? Jim Morrison said, "real poetry doesn't say anything, it just opens doors and you can walk in any one you want." That's one thing that's totally beautiful and a poet can write in that manner. But to totally wish to be in the dark regarding what an artist means and wishes to get across is another. I don't live my life by the words of Jim Morrison or anyone else, and I'm not even sure what that is supposed to mean. Many artists are perfectly happy and content to let the admirer of the art put their own meaning to it, and enjoy it based on that very personal meaning. That's what I'm doing. I am not judging anyone who wishes to delve into the artist's meaning, so please don't judge how I wish to enjoy art. |
|
peacock
Majik of Majik Member
Posts: 505
|
Post by peacock on Jan 11, 2011 0:37:40 GMT -5
That's the beauty of Yusuf's songs -- and of other great artists also. You can choose how you want to enjoy them. Some enjoy analyzing every little syllable and jot. Others just like to listen to the music and go wherever it takes them. This reminds me of something I've been thinking about lately, remembering my mom. She liked music, but felt she had no aptitude for it, preferred to listen to it in the background, not too loud, so it was just part of the atmosphere. I never understood that because music affected me so differently. I was the one who played it, studied it, adored the artists that made it. I spent my teens/early 20s trying to convince my mom that music was more than a paint color on the wall or a chandelier, but she was happy that way so why did she need to be "enlightened?" And she would never have convinced me that music should be less important to me. My mom was a fine, wise lady. I'm sure Jane would never tell someone like you . . . or me, and I am definitely a person who analyzes every little jot, that we're wrong. I've never read anything she's written that way. As far as interpretation, I'm torn between biographical criticism and new criticism - but I lean toward the former. I never can separate the art from the artist. But you can't judge a 1970s song by 2010 values, or a song written by a 21 year old by the way he is at 62, and anyway, I never thought there was anything wrong with a little lust.  |
|
|
|
Post by richina on Jan 11, 2011 9:39:18 GMT -5
hee hee |
|
|
|
Post by ilovemycat on Jan 11, 2011 11:41:12 GMT -5
For me it was the mixture of lustiness and spiritualism that made Cat so intriguing.
|
|
|
|
Post by Katmandu on Jan 20, 2011 9:50:50 GMT -5
The most important point made here(imo) is that this was written by a 21 year old male. I remember what was important to me in those days, and that was very high on the list of priorities. It's still imprtant, but now I like to see what's on cable first.
|
|
|
|
Post by Sir Lorry Load on Jan 20, 2011 11:46:07 GMT -5
The most important point made here(imo) is that this was written by a 21 year old male. I remember what was important to me in those days, and that was very high on the list of priorities. It's still imprtant, but now I like to see what's on cable first. Too funny, Kat! And your wry 'n' dry delivery of it only added to my chuckles. ;D -Bud |
|
purplemoon
Majik of Majik Member
Growing old is necessary but growing up is optional.
Posts: 483
|
Post by purplemoon on Jan 20, 2011 18:43:39 GMT -5
Cat Stevens was, I think, unfairly characterized as a womanizer
because of the Mona Bone Jakon LP. The song itself is subtle,
honest and a very understandable grief reaction from a young man who was making an effort to cheer himself up after Patti D'Arbanville jilted him. He reminded himself mantra-like that his "mona bone ... won't be lonely for long". The original album
title was "The Dustbin Cried the Day the Dustman Died."
According to legend, he was forced to abandom that title
because there wasn't enough room around the Dustbin artwork.
Ah ...... bona peritura ........
|
|
|
|
Post by ilovemycat on Jan 20, 2011 22:23:01 GMT -5
Cat Stevens was, I think, unfairly characterized as a womanizer because of the Mona Bone Jakon LP. The song itself is subtle, honest and a very understandable grief reaction from a young man who was making an effort to cheer himself up after Patti D'Arbanville jilted him. He reminded himself mantra-like that his "mona bone ... won't be lonely for long". . That is a very good observation purplemoon |
|
|
|
Post by greeneyedgirl on Mar 25, 2011 0:40:20 GMT -5
He left that explaination out in the extras on the Majikat DVD.
|
|
valleycreeper
Katmandu Member
I creep through the valleys, still
Posts: 81
|
Post by valleycreeper on Apr 18, 2011 9:04:13 GMT -5
purplemoon, better defence/explanation than I could come up with, thank you.
|
|
DJ
Majik of Majik Member
Posts: 475
|
Post by DJ on Jun 22, 2011 3:43:46 GMT -5
Oh yeah, I looked at the cover and I thought, well, duh. I just think it's sad to compare it to a trash can! I notice that his set for Roadsinger performances (on TV appearances I've seen, can't remember where, Colbert maybe?) includes a few trash cans. A nod back to the Mona days, maybe? I think I read somewhere that the original title he wanted for this album was 'The dustbin cried the day the dustman died', or something very similar. In the UK in the 60's a dustman was what we used to call the guy who empties your trash. The illustration is of an old metal 'bin', as we call them, which, as well as general household waste and dust, would be used to empty in the ash from the household coal fires, in the days before central heating. I believe that the record company thought the title too long and just didn't like it, not surprisingly, so Cat picked 'Mona bone jakon', as I suspect the record executives didn't know the meaning of it either, and he was having a little private joke. |
|
Deep down, I still think he is a God sent angel. 
It could be the heat wave, or most likely, it could me eating those chocolate bars secretly at night over this laptop. Serves me right ;D Apart from those little screen bugs, does one else have ant problems. 
and some songs make me ;D + 
It is what it is. I was kinda surprised myself. It doesn't seem like the sort of article that should have been published in a songbook that was for the general public. 
