|
|
Post by monabonejakoff on Nov 18, 2011 7:15:30 GMT -5
The personal development of writer, man, musician; Can we really disassociate ourselves from what our past has been without referencing it?
There was a strange comment in a thread a while ago tha got me thinking.the comment was about appropriateness and the lyrics of a song or should I say it's thrust (or is that not appropriate (?) .
My point being- where we where is where we began. Without beginning there is no journey and to eschew what we were is disingenuous. Take for example Northern Change or I'm Gonna get me a Gun, now I can see how that would be embarrassing but to expunge them from the record is surely a sort of self denial . What do you think ..?
|
|
|
|
Post by ilovemycat on Nov 18, 2011 17:53:58 GMT -5
I totally agree with you. There were many things about the 60's that were embarrassing as well - but who wants to get rid of that period in history? Your past is what makes you who you are - it shows growth, context, and - particularly in Yusuf's case there isn't cause for any embarrassment anyway. His life and art are both equally fascinating and deeply entwined. It's why he still holds such appeal all these years later ... and I happen to like I'm gonna get me a gun  |
|
|
|
Post by monabonejakoff on Dec 5, 2011 4:59:16 GMT -5
His life is fascinating, I don't think I have read such bunkum for a long time . What's fascinating about it? It's fairly run of the mill I would say. As a man he is likeable in parts, , he has chopped and changed his life path , like most people, wed, had kids, and done some good things. So have I , so have you , so have all the people on this site ..No I am entering the psychology of the universal not the individual here with this post. You mistake my thrust on this thread. But - and this why i mention SCY , when you make a commodity of your life then you are playing with fire. Fire being , the press, public commercial opinion and the judgement of the individuals you are indirectly preaching too.
The only thing SCY has done is write songs , garner money and give lots of it away - brilliant but he has been an urban guy all his life, never climbed a mountain or dug a mine..he is a working writer , a musician. For GS why do people get so attached to his work..its only a f#####k song.
|
|
|
|
Post by dawndew on Dec 5, 2011 13:25:07 GMT -5
Aah but Mrjackoff you miss the point you really DO miss the point... For some ,me included it is NOT just a f..........song.... Why on earth does it bother you that someone may think that his life is fascinating?....I agree with you Ilovemycat!!......... It does not bother me that you dont find him fascinating.... I have tried to explain that you will never understand how I ,for example love the man.......or why blah blah any more than I will ever understand how he quite clearly effects you..... Dont worry about it...I actually agree with you on many of the points about him that you made in your comment..but hey I still rate him without idolitary... If you think 'oh there they go again the deluded bunch!..then you miss the point..if however you smile ,nudge ,laugh at yourself and just goof around then you 'get' it.....it is FUN...lighten up..... although of course its more than that for some of us!!(just added that to annoy you further!!) I wrote a poem on the Inspired by thread...well several really that probably made you vomit ...and I know you question my sanity.... but I swear I am as stable as the next feller!!lol... You would not be on this site if you were not also a teeny bit fascinated by him...or at least intrigued why others are fascinated.... if you just think some of us are deluded maniacs with nothing else of import in our lives..you couldnt be more wrong.......I have had hair transplants to enhance my moustache and beard all silvery to look just like his!!!!and spend all day gazing at the ceiling above my bed which is adorned with a lush painting of the man....ahhhhhhh and thats all I do all day gaze and listen to his music...and gaze and gaze and write silly comments on a fan site.........  sadly I think that you believe me...  |
|
purplemoon
Majik of Majik Member
Growing old is necessary but growing up is optional.
Posts: 483
|
Post by purplemoon on Dec 5, 2011 13:38:54 GMT -5
His life is fascinating, I don't think I have read such bunkum for a long time . What's fascinating about it? It's fairly run of the mill I would say............<lots deleted> .... I consider myself to be well-qualified to answer this question. Until about a year ago, I knew nothing about the life or music of Cat Stevens beyond what I had heard on the radio, at the beach, in Southern California when I was a teen-aged surfer-babe. I have never purchased a Cat Stevens album, CD or video. I never attended a Cat Stevens concert. I didn't know what Cat Stevens looked like until last Fall. I had a vague idea that he was a California musician--certainly not British. So, no, I'm not a "fan". One afternoon last Fall, I heard an amazingly beautiful song on Pandora radio. When I leaned over to see what it was, the imageof an astrolabe caught my eye. "Cat Stevens? A celestial mechanic? Hmm... Whatever happened to him ..." So I scrolled down to Pandora's album notes. "HE DID WHAT??!? A MUSLIM??!?! That deuteronomical backwater of misognyistic.... auctioned all of his guitars and did WHAT??!??!??! .... to UNICEF??!?!?? ..." Thirty seconds later I was at Wikipedia devouring a longer biography. Today, I could probably write a 100 page biography of Steven Demetre Giorgiou without referring to notes. Why? Because I had to know WHY--- WHY a talented, successful, wealthy, famous, drop-dead gorgeous man would covert to Islam, donate all of his "tax exile" millions to UNICEF, take an arranged marriage and disappear. I had loved 20th century stories like this one before--- Glenn Gould, J.D. Salinger, Alexander Theroux --- but something about this case was unique. He was returning to music. He seemed to be healthy, sane, respected, honored. Peaceful? Joyful? I had to know HOW. If it were all true, he had made his LIFE into a work of art. That had always been my idea of the perfect life.
When we’re young we set our hearts upon some beautiful idea
Maybe something from a holy book or French philosophia
Upon the thoughts of better men than us we swear by and decree a
Perfect way to end the war of ways the only way
to be a work of art, oh a work of art.
But in time a thought comes tugging on the sleeve edge of our minds
Perhaps no perfect way exists at all, just many different kinds
Oh but if it’s just a thing of taste then everything unwinds
For without an absolute how can the absolute define
a work of art, oh to be a work of art.-- Guggenheim Grotto, lyrics of Philosophia |
|
|
|
Post by ilovemycat on Dec 5, 2011 14:30:31 GMT -5
Sorry if I missed the intended thrust of your thread. You are obviously entitled to your opinion that his are just f----ing songs. But for me his songs touch my heart and soul like no others. They are actually responsible, after rediscovering his music a few years back, for re-uniting me with my spirit once again, and for putting me back on my path of the continual search for the elusive. There may be better songs out there (or at least as good as), but none that can compete for my soul. Certainly not from any singular artist/group - maybe an occasional song here or there - but not an entire catalog of music... as consistently as Cat'sYusuf's. From a girlish perspective - or I should say from my girlish perspective of younger days - he is the complete package that most girls could only dream of. Certainly not easy to find in the flesh - and there he was in all his glory. You really cannot deny that aspect of his appeal - he was a living fantasy. And sorry but my life is not nearly as fascinating as his. Glad yours is though  Welcome back Sabina and Purplemoon!! |
|
purplemoon
Majik of Majik Member
Growing old is necessary but growing up is optional.
Posts: 483
|
Post by purplemoon on Dec 5, 2011 19:38:37 GMT -5
To monabonejakoff: You sound surprised about people being attached to his work. Gee, whiz, you're on a FAN site! What did you THINK we'd feel about his work? I think Mr. Bone is just trying to enliven the conversation ... Can we call it a "FAN AND ADMIRERS" site? I doubt I would qualify for being a "fan" since I don't purchase CDs, fly around the globe to concerts, or buy memorabilia. I am, nonetheless, a very great admirer of the life and work. And I'll match wits with anyone in a Cat Stevens trivia contest!!! |
|
|
|
Post by monabonejakoff on Dec 8, 2011 3:33:20 GMT -5
There are so many points to try and answer ..I am going to try and get round to them - some actually don't because they are very much like my own experience..I first heard cat in 1972 , a long time ago and some of his songs are musically nonpareil , uniquely sensitive and beautiful and of course they have wormed their way deep into the psyche of thousands.
Thanks for the answers. Let see if we share further .
T
|
|
|
|
Post by dawndew on Dec 8, 2011 3:48:27 GMT -5
|
|
peacock
Majik of Majik Member
Posts: 505
|
Post by peacock on Dec 8, 2011 4:01:36 GMT -5
I'm gonna confess. I'm also a fairly recent Cat fan. Wellllll....I have liked Cat music for a very long time, certainly since the early 80s when I first discovered popular music at all -- I am from a later generation, an 80s girl, not a 70s girl. My first records were Bee Gees and ABBA, then we moved onto Duran Duran or classic rock like Zeppelin - which used to be my favorite. I loved Neil Young, CSNY, Pink Floyd, Hendrix. Then Black Sabbath, Rush, OMG I *love* Rush!!! Love Rush almost as much as I love Cat. And then later, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Stone Temple Pilots . . . can't think of anything really recent I like. Some new artists intrigue me, like Lady Gaga, Nicki Minaj, Black Eyed Peas - yet there's really nothing I'd buy. And the thing is, it's SO easy nowadays to get the music you want without having to shell out a penny for it. I know of a very good site at which you can download free MP3s to your heart's content. Ethical? Legal? Probably not. But there's Spotify and Pandora and other sites that just let you have streaming music, so there's really no need to buy CDs or MP3s at all if you don't want to - the only reason to do so, IMO, is to support artists you truly love. Sort of like casting a vote. Cat's the only music I've bought lately. Well, for me. I buy tracks here and there for my kids and they share. I bought a "Catch Bull at Four" album about a year ago at a resale shop for $1. Got my eye on another at a local flea market - Greatest Hits - but I'm waiting to find a copy in better condition. I like vinyl. Pandora's the reason for my recent obsession. Truth: I'd been on a camping trip with friends, including a couple who plays bluegrass - and they'd done some John Denver. So I plugged JD into Pandora and a Cat song came up. I hadn't heard Cat in a long time because radio stations quit playing him after the Rushdie thing, so this was a welcome memory and it hit me all of a sudden how much I'd loved Cat's songs way back when. And I wanted to hear them all. So I researched and listened and cried and sighed and obsessed and FOUND YOU GUYS HERE so thankfully I learned I am not crazy -- well at least not ALONE being crazy. There's just something about Cat's songs. I swear. It's magic. |
|
purplemoon
Majik of Majik Member
Growing old is necessary but growing up is optional.
Posts: 483
|
Post by purplemoon on Dec 8, 2011 6:21:19 GMT -5
....Pandora's the reason for my recent obsession. Truth: I'd been on a camping trip with friends, including a couple who plays bluegrass - and they'd done some John Denver. So I plugged JD into Pandora and a Cat song came up. I hadn't heard Cat in a long time because radio stations quit playing him after the Rushdie thing ...... Radio just wasn't the same for me after John Lennon died (and Reagan was elected). As a college student in the 70s, I couldn't afford to buy many LPs. I idolized Joni Mitchell and I bought her records so I could learn to play the songs. But that was it. Later, when I had disposable income, at a certain point, I stopped buying LPs or CDs because it just seemed senseless to invest in collections of recordings that won't be playable 20 years down the road after the next media revolution. I once owned an awesome collection of Blue Note 45s. C'est la vie. (I buy books. Hardbound. Acid free. They have a track record. And I support the musicians/composers who give concerts where I live. I have always lived in towns with great live music.) So, it wasn't until my son bought me an ipad and showed me Pandora that I discovered and rediscovered some of the great "alternative" artists out there. Have you noticed that Pandora almost never plays Yusuf songs. If you type in "Cat Stevens" you get a reasonably wide selection of Cat songs. But during the past year, I have heard only three Yusuf songs on Pandora ever --- even when listening to my "Yusuf" channel ! What's that about? |
|
|
|
Post by ilovemycat on Dec 9, 2011 2:05:48 GMT -5
I hadn't heard Cat in a long time so this was a welcome memory and it hit me all of a sudden how much I'd loved Cat's songs way back when. And I wanted to hear them all. So I researched and listened and cried and sighed and obsessed and FOUND YOU GUYS HERE so thankfully I learned I am not crazy -- well at least not ALONE being crazy. There's just something about Cat's songs. I swear. It's magic. That's similar to how my reunion with Cat's music went as well...and after buying all the CD's and listening again, they brought me back to my youth, and sort of bridged the years. And then the nostalgia hit...whoo hoo, tears and tears, but not sad ones. Just an arousing of memories loooong forgotten. Anyway - absolutely, his songs are magical for sure. Sort of beating a dead horse here...  |
|
|
|
Post by monabonejakoff on Dec 18, 2011 11:02:28 GMT -5
When we’re young we set our hearts upon some beautiful idea
Maybe something from a holy book or French philosophia
Upon the thoughts of better men than us we swear by and decree a
Perfect way to end the war of ways the only way
to be a work of art, oh a work of art.
Have you ever seen a Tracy Emin piece?
We are perfect when born and are fragmented as we grow older , the rest of our life is spent trying to rebuild ourselves into that single perfection once again. Muhammed ELIAS 1957- 2042
|
|
purplemoon
Majik of Majik Member
Growing old is necessary but growing up is optional.
Posts: 483
|
Post by purplemoon on Dec 18, 2011 12:11:50 GMT -5
Correction: The only way to be, a beautiful work of art!
I disagree with the quote. I think we are born with God given
gifts and God given flaws, and a destiny to fulfill. We injure ourselves
and others when we fail to embrace the cup of destiny we are
given.
Ms. Emin's artwork reminds me of an acquaintance of my son.
For his art school senior project, the kid filmed himself vomiting on
things. Two months ago, he was on the cover of the NY Times
Sunday Magazine. This just demonstrates the appalling state of the
art world. The only thing some of these ersatz artists care about
is doing something outrageous to garner attention.
Thank heavens there are still some artists with taste and integrity.
Yusuf is a BEAUTIFUL work of art.
|
|
|
|
Post by aurarisma on Dec 18, 2011 23:28:25 GMT -5
When we’re young we set our hearts upon some beautiful idea
Maybe something from a holy book or French philosophia
Upon the thoughts of better men than us we swear by and decree a
Perfect way to end the war of ways the only way
to be a work of art, oh a work of art.
Have you ever seen a Tracy Emin piece?
We are perfect when born and are fragmented as we grow older , the rest of our life is spent trying to rebuild ourselves into that single perfection once again. Muhammed ELIAS 1957- 2042
I totally agree with you Mr. M !! we are perfect when we are born.. a true state of perfection .. then we start to put meaning to life perhaps a bit early .. not understanding ... and making choices.. not wrong or right but choices based on that first choice we made around 3 yrs old... sooner or later .. we come right back to where we started from .. as the Cat sang about and he is experiencing now ... its a wild trip ... and never too late to... complete the charisms that God had /has in store for us ... and find that true essence of joy .. more Kairos time ..
we must never lose that childlike wonder.. I seee alot of people spending too much time in that left brain hemisphere .. thickness oooo weeeee just well it gives me a headache lol... I can do it and well.. but ..would rather bein the right brain experience ..... like that childlike wonder and kaleidoscope eyes of magic that we had as children .... I'm starting to see that beauty again emanating out of yusuf .. not to say its not been there all this time but the openess and the frolicking is the Joy of the Creator and Creation .. so .. I'm really digging seeing it again .. probably been seeing it alot since 2009 Tour .. .. definitely back to where he started from .. in its purest Joy Form /Formula...
Life is Art tho ... tooo... but not always beautiful ...
mmm....
In Joy xo |
|
