#Guy Lombardo and His Royal Canadians | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

just-some-teag · 19 days ago

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Summary: Tallying lost souls, packages and a letter from a friend, a phone call, meeting the early hotel crew, and seeing an old friend.

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Notes: Thanks to @oculianilluvinial here on AO3 and @onemoregayapollokid on Tumblr for beta reading this, @strongfish911 on Tumblr for making sure the Russian I include is correct, and @jimmygervais_net on Instagram for making sure the Québécois French I include is correct. I blame the Cambridge Dictionary translator if the Spanish I included is incorrect. Please note that neither the emails nor the phone numbers for the characters work.

Fun fact! Older people from Québéc roll their r's which means that since Ameillia died back in the 1940s, she rolls her r's when she relaxes her accent.

Word Count: 4.5k

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Ameillia sits at her desk as the radio finishes playing Bei Mir Bist du Schoen by Guy Lombardo and his Royal Canadians[1]; the repeated line of flutes and trumpets fading into a prerecorded clip of the Radio Demon complimenting the song, not by name, and introducing Let’s Misbehave by Irving Aaronson & His Commanders[2]. She smiles fondly at the song's opening measures, remembering when her friend first introduced the song. Living in the boonies of the Prairies of Canada, she didn’t get much of the music from south of the border through her radio sets. She puts together the next contract and hums along to the trumpets and the lyrics. Ameillia’s claws pierce through the now flimsy paper as she reads the name of Anastasiya Stravinskaya, her closest friend in the living world and Hell.

“Из всех грешников, которые могли погибнуть во время Истребления, это должна была быть она… (Of all the Sinners to have died during the Extermination, it had to be her…)” she sighs and brings her hands to her temple. Anastasiya has helped ensure that everyone in her territory has shelter, food, and a relatively decent job despite living in Hell.

“So, I need to find the files she had on my newest souls to finish getting those Sinners settled before I try to get more souls under my belt,” Ameillia switches back to English as she shuffles the stack of papers in her hands. “I first need to finish cataloguing the souls I’ve lost, inform their friends in my territory, and write to the Overlords of their friends. J'emmerde ma crisse de vie démoniaque (Fuck my goddamn demonic life) , if only Alastor had granted me access to his broadcast centre before he left. That could have made this task go by much faster.” With her eyes closed, she doesn’t see the Shade of Alastor appear on the wall before it moves and deposits a letter on her desk. It pauses, and the smile on its face grows wider as it disappears with a new purpose and a question to ask its owner to provide their friend with a favour.

The moose opens her eyes and reads through the rest of the torn contracts. She lost a total of thirteen souls in this Extermination, almost triple the last year. She knows that her people don’t leave their homes unless they absolutely have to, which means that the Exorcists are starting to go into the buildings, searching for the Sinners who didn’t hide themselves well enough. Ameillia starts grumbling into the semi-quiet of her office and fists her hands into her hair. Why are the Exorcists getting increasingly aggressive as the years go by? Why must Hell’s people go through the panic and fear of being hunted each year?

“Miss Azaadi? A package from Miss Carmine is here for you,” a knock sounds from her office door, knocking her out of her frustrated grumbling. “There’s also a letter from her that she told me you had to read first.”

“Come on in, Harl,” she calls out to the Sinner behind the door.

The owl from earlier steps in with three packages and a letter in their arms. Ameillia clears a space for the packages on her desk and helps them place them down. She takes the letter from the top of the stack and cuts it open with her claw. She freezes for a moment once she sees the name of her fallen friend.

Harl, the owl Sinner, stands there as their overlord reads and re-reads the letter Carmilla Carmine sent her. They step back as a few tears start falling from her eyes, and she places the paper on the desk in front of her. While they’re debating on what to do, Alastor’s Shade pops back up and replaces the original note with a new one and a key. The owl’s screech they let out reminds Ameillia that she’s not alone in her office, and she looks up, catching the owl puffing up out of fear and the Shade waving at them. She wipes underneath her eyes with a handkerchief to make herself a bit more presentable and sits straighter.

“Shade, why are you here? And stop scaring my messenger,” she still sounds choked up as she addresses the spectral Shade of her friend. “And you shouldn’t be able to be here unless… Is Al-” Ameillia doesn’t get a chance to finish her first question to the Shade as the landline on her table starts ringing. She holds up a finger to the Shade to ask it to stay and waves away the owl to leave and calm down.

“Hello, this is the Guardian,” she purposefully omits her name as she answers the phone, watching the Shade clap giddily. “How may I assist you today?”

“Is this Miss Ameillia Azaadi? I’m Charlie Morningstar,” the nervous voice of the heir to the throne comes through the phone receiver.

“Oh! Hello, Princess Morningstar. I wasn’t expecting your call today,” Ameillia relaxes minutely when she realizes that this might not be another overlord, her R’s starting to roll and not realizing that her voice still sounds choked off. “This is Ameillia Azaadi. Now. How may I help you?”

“I’d like to take up your offer to protect the hotel and whatever souls you’d be willing to spare. But we have a minor issue here,” the heiress still sounds nervous, but her voice has a hint of being relieved when the moose confirms her identity.

“What seems to be the ‘minor issue’ you’re calling me about, Your Highness?” She waits a beat before prompting Charlie to speak again, “Dear? What’s wrong? What’s got you scared?”

“TheRadioDemonishere!”

Ameillia blinks and holds the receiver away from her ear as she tries to process what the princess said, to no avail, “You’ll need to repeat that but a bit slower, Your Highness. I didn’t catch all of that.” She listens as the princess speaks to someone else before taking a deep breath and speaking into the phone's microphone again.

“Alastor, the Radio Demon, is here at the hotel, and we can’t defend against him if he decides to attack.” It’s a small miracle that she doesn’t do a small cheer hearing that.

“I’ll be there as soon as possible, dear. He won’t harm anyone unless he wants to or if someone angers him. Tell whoever is there with you not to provoke him too badly. " She makes herself sound as soothing as possible as she takes her claw to the seam of the topmost package, ripping through the tape easily and quietly. “If someone does, play some jazz from the 1920s. It might not calm him down completely, but it should buy you some time for me to get there.” She opens the package's flaps to see an urn and a sheathed blade.

“O-oh, okay. How long do you think it’ll take you to get here?”

“Shouldn’t take too long, dear,” she pauses and thinks for a moment, “tell the woman with the spear not to brandish it at him. He doesn’t take kindly to that.” Ameillia summons her hockey stick from her pocket dimension and slides the current blade off the stick. The metal scrapes against the wood before it clinks softly against her desk.

“I’ll tell her that,” she can practically hear the princess nodding before she speaks again. “Goodbye, Miss Azaadi. See you soon.” The moose unsheathes the new blade, noting its metal is darker than the previous blade.

“Goodbye, dear,” Ameillia presses on the hook switch before she puts the phone down so that the Princess doesn’t have to deal with the sound of the ring echoing through the call. She clicks the new blade into the slot on the stick and makes sure it’s fully secure before getting up.

“Okay, hun, take me to Alastor,” she speaks to the Shade, who just shakes its head with a mischievous smile. “Is it because I still have my hockey stick out?” It nods, and she sighs, setting the hockey stick back into the pocket dimension.

“I’m unarmed now. May we go?” The Shade seems to disagree with her statement but nods anyway.

Ameillia places her hand into the Shade’s, the familiar cool velvet of its faux skin making her smile softly. The shadows under the furniture sweep through the room to where she and the Shade stand. The ears on the Shade flick towards sounds she can’t hear, and it gestures for her to step closer with a shadow of a worried look on its face. Her ears naturally fall as she realizes that, with Alastor not around to tame them, the shadows have gotten more dangerous to travel through without an affinity to them. Stepping closer to the Shade, Ameillia makes herself a bit shorter than it to be easier hidden in the shadowy embrace. The smile on the Shade’s face stretches wider as it wraps around her, and the shadows move up to cocoon the two figures. The column of shadow drops and a string of darkness goes toward the hotel, the only indication of where the two went.

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The thin fur on Alastor’s nape prickles as he feels the familiar energy of Ameillia’s soul intertwining with his shadow magic while he waits for the princess to speak. He can tell his presence is unnerving to her as he towers over the heir to the throne of Hell.

“Princess, may I speak now?” The Radio Demon prompts her again, enjoying seeing her jump at his voice.

“You may…” Charlie is wary enough before he lunges forward and grabs her hand in a shake, pulling her closer to him.

“My name is Alastor, and it’s a pleasure to meet you, my dear! Quite a pleasure!” He releases her hand and makes his way around her in a shadow, wiping his hand on his blazer. “Pardon my intrusion, but I saw your fiasco on the coloured picture show! Why- I haven’t watched anything as entertaining as that since the fall of the stock market in 1929!” Alastor continues moving through the entrance and into the foyer as he chuckles, “So many orphans…” There’s a small click each time he steps from his cane as it hits the floor as he moves

“Stop right there, hijos de puta (you son of a bitch)!” Vaggie stands a few feet in front of him with her spear out, but not aimed directly at him. “I will not have you hurting anyone here. State your business.” The chuckle from the Overlord is more fear-inducing than his earlier knock.

“Darling child,” Alastor starts, moving one step closer and his antlers extending. “If I wanted to hurt anyone here…” One more step closer, and the shadows from the dark foyer coalesce around him as he grows in size. “I would have done so…” Stitches appear close to the ends of his smile, and his eyes darken with radio dials taking the place of irises, “Ă̴͖̠̈l̷̳̰̅͝r��̢̺̈́ë̴͉a̴̟͆̓ͅd̸̙͐ÿ̷͕́[4].” His voice's already apparent radio filter intensifies before he shrinks back to his normal size, and the shadows return to their rightful places.

“No, no, no,” He stops just short of the woman, Charlie rushing around him to check that Vaggie’s alright. “I’m here to help!”

“Pardon?” The question comes from both of the women.

“I wish to help you!” Alastor laughs to himself again before he brings up his cane and taps on the microphone, “Is this thing on?”

“Well, I can certainly hear you loud and clear!” The perpetually open eye on the cane narrows as an annoyed voice emerges. The Shade attached to Alastor chuckles silently at the antics.

“Help with..?” The Princess of Hell asks, unsure if she should be excited or terrified by this feared Overlord offering his help.

“With this ridiculous venture you’re doing!” The deer grabs both of the princess’s hands and pulls her away from her spear-wielding companion. “This hotel to redeem the damned!”

“Why would you want to help?” Charlie asks, body stiffening to a board as she gets dragged. “What would this hotel even bring you? You wouldn’t get any souls from this endeavour; I wouldn’t allow it, nor would you be able to gain more magic from any other avenue you could use through this hotel.” The Overlord chuckles as he comes to a stop.

“Why does anyone in this Hellish domain do anything?” Alastor asks the princess but barrels on before she can respond, “Pure, absolute boredom! Everyone needs entertainment in their lives, and the world is your stage! Make of that what you will, and have a brilliant time.”

“Does getting into a fight on live TV count?” She looks uncertain about how to get this exuberant demon back on track.

“Ha! Absolutely, my dear!” Alastor spins his cane and leans on it, eyes in line with hers. “The purest kind. Reality at work is always how you get the best entertainment! As I said, the world is a stage. And the stage is a world of entertainment!”

“Does… does this mean you believe that redemption is possible?”

“Heavens no, my dear! That’s just wacky nonsense,” the Overlord shakes his head at her question. “Redemption, by my blackened soul! Now, I don’t believe that there’s anything that can save such loathsome Sinners!” He gestures towards the rest of Pentagram City, “Their souls had one chance, and they squandered it! This is a hell of their own making, and now they must sit ḁ̶͗n̵̻͗d̶̨̈́ ̷̘͛r̶͍̿o̷̙͑t̷̥͌.[5]”

“Then… why are you here? I already told you that you’d get no souls nor more magic from my hotel,” Charlie says, looking at the man's smiling face.

“Consider it an investment into ongoing entertainment for myself!” Alastor grabs the princess’s hand and twirls her as he continues to speak, “I want to watch the scum of our world struggle to push their boulder of sins up the hill of betterment, only for it to roll back down repeatedly!” Chuckling at his analogy, he stops twirling the Princess of Hell and rests his hand on her lower back.

“Right…” she brushes his hand away and steps back from the dangerous demon.

“Yes, indeedy! I see big things coming your way, Princess. " Seeing her brush his hand away, he uses his cane to guide her further away from the makeshift sitting area, where he can see his shadows coalescing. The grey woman sighs somewhat dejectedly and returns to the couch she was sitting on.

“Who th’fuck is the red deer twink?” Those are the first words out of Angel Dust’s mouth as Vaggie sits back down beside him.

“You’ve been in Hell longer than I have,” The woman's head snaps towards him in surprise. “How the fuck do you not know who the Radio Demon is?”

“Eh, I’m no’ really that interested in politics,” the spider shrugs in response to the baffled question.

“You know who the Guardian Demon is.”

“Val hates her! Hell, even to th’point where she’s banned from even enterin’ th’district,” Angel tilts his head to the side and looks at the woman’s face, keeping his six others on the red-clad man in the room. “Somethin’ about ‘stealin’ souls from him’ or somethin’ stupid like that.”

“I- well, that’s fair. But,” Vaggie turns on the couch to face him, preparing to tell what she knows about the Radio Demon, “Alastor manifested in Hell, seemingly overnight. He began toppling Overlords who had been in power for centuries and began broadcasting their screams all over Hell so that everyone could pay witness to his carnage. A newly manifested soul had never had that sort of power before. As lazy as it sounds, souls across Pentagram City started calling him the ‘Radio Demon’ in response to what he could do. There are rumours of what unimaginable force gave him the power to rival our world's ancient and destructive evils.”

Somewhere in the short woman’s story, Alastor’s Shade deposits a moose woman onto the one other seat in the destroyed sitting area. She rolls her shoulders back as her ears focus on the two conversations in the lobby area. She clasps her hands on her lap as she watches the white-and-grey-haired Sinner speak passionately about what she knows of the Radio Demon. The moose crosses her ankles, waiting for the Sinner telling the story to finish so she can say her piece. Her eyes slide over the bright red blouse and black miniskirt of the speaker, then over the pink-and-white-furred spider Sinner who’s listening uninterestedly to the picture she’s painting. The moose blinks as she realizes that this Sinner is one of the largest names in Pentagram City’s porn industry.

Sliding her eyes away from the two, the blood-red and black-clad moose observes the room she’s in. It seems to be a dilapidated hotel lobby with small piles of debris piled in different corners. Alastor’s Shade seems to have deposited her onto the only fully intact armchair. Next to where she sits is a boarded-up fireplace and a mostly crumbled mantle that looks like someone grabbed and crushed it in a fit of anger. As she looks at the broken mantle, she can see deep, narrow grooves across its front edge, similar to most Sinners' claws.

A faint static hits the moose’s ears, and she turns her head. She sees her red-clad friend talking animatedly to the Princess of Hell. His eyes flash up at her, catching and making short eye contact with her before flicking to the grey-skinned woman finishing her story and narrowing in vague contempt that makes the moose wonder if the spear wielder ignored her warning about not threatening him. An echo of the same woman’s voice sounds in one of the moose’s ears; a line of Spanish causes said ear to flick as she understands the reason. A frown flits across her dark lips, and she gives her friend a small nod of understanding when he looks back at her before continuing to look at the Princess and turning away from her.

“Well,” the moose starts, her voice smooth enough to slide over everyone’s ears without startling them too much, “you’re not wrong about how Alastor started on this plane. But you only have the fear-mongering story, not one from someone who lived on a leash he held for around… sixty to seventy years.” Angel Dust and Vaggie jump from the new voice joining them, turning to look at the woman sitting in the armchair near them. Their eyes watch as she grows in height while sitting in the chair, the dark red blouse she wears adapting with her body. She thinks about having a word with the startled woman about what she insinuated about Alastor’s mother but thinks better of it to ensure she can get into the good graces of her.

“Alastor has a strict code of ethics; he only targets those worse than himself. I should know because he had a chance to kill and eat me when I first Fell,” the woman shrugs, her black hair shifting around her shoulders with the movement since she didn’t think to put it up before getting swept up by the Shade. “If I recall correctly, while alive he…” her eyes shift to the Radio Demon, who has now made it so that he was facing the trio's direction with an eyebrow raised while talking to the princess, “That’s a story for when he’s not in the same room, sadly. Anyways,” she stands and walks towards the sitting Sinners, “my name is Ameillia, the Princess called me here to assist.” She offers a hand towards the two, the dark grey-brown fur and dried blood-red claws only slightly off-putting with her now towering over them.

“Fuck me hard over a railin’, yer a tall dommy mommy!” Angel Dust shakes her hand roughly, “Angel Dust at yer service, Miss Guardian Demon! I’ll give ya a discounted rate if ye ever wanna buy a night with me…” The moose blinks a couple of times before smiling gently at the man.

“I know who you are, Angel. Thank you for the… generous offer that I will have to decline for the rest of eternity,” Ameillia reciprocates the handshake before releasing his hand and turning to the much shorter woman who has moved closer to the two. Observing the extreme height difference between the two, the moose shifts her height to be just a tad taller than the grey-skinned woman.

“I’m Vaggie,” Vaggie’s eyes widen at the sudden change in the Overlord's height and shakes her hand. “I’m sorry about Angel.”

“What do you have to be sorry about?” The moose tilts her head curiously at the other woman’s apology, her other ear swivelling around when she hears static ramping up on the other side of the room, “One moment.” The Overlord releases the Sinner's hand and turns around to face her old friend, seeing him offering his hand to Charlie with green wreathing it. She sighs and starts over there, putting a smile on her face.

“Princess Morningstar! What a pleasure to meet you in person!” The clicks of Ameillia’s heels on the hardwood floors, along with her voice, causes the princess to turn around and the other Overlord to drop his hand, “I do hope that Alastor is treating you well?” When the moose reaches the pair, she drops into a bow before the royal.

“I-it’s a pleasure to meet you too?” Charlie sounds very confused with the appearance of this new person. “I’m sorry, but who are you? A-and you don’t need to bow! We’re equals.” She puts her hands on the moose’s shoulders and gently pushes her upwards. The woman’s ears pin back from the unexpected touch.

“Ah, I’m terribly sorry. I forget that my voice sounds different from when you called me on the phone.” Ameillia straightens up because of the princess’s urging, relaxing her practiced accent a bit so that her R’s start to roll like it did earlier. “I’m Ameillia Azaadi, the Guardian Demon and Overlord of the Abused. You called me to assist.” Both of the Overlords next to the princess see her hair twitch as her ears move, and a soft flush appears high on her cheeks.

“R-really? Oh, thank goodness!” The moose stiffens as Charlie cheers and hugs the currently slightly shorter woman. “Could you please help?” The two Overlords make eye contact, the moose’s eyes wide and pupils small as she doesn’t know how to pull away from the very uncomfortable hug without seeming rude to the Princess of Hell and damning herself further.

“Alastor, would you mind helping with the hotel and not attempting to make a deal with our… very exuberant princess here?” Ameillia darts her eyes to the girl's shoulder before reconnecting to the deer’s. He nods in response once he understands what she’s inadvertently saying.

“As long as she releases you from that forced embrace, mon ami (my friend),” Alastor could feel the corners of his smile try to turn downwards at the sight of his friend in such visible distress.

“Brilliant! Princess, you heard the demonic man,” the moose speaks directly into the princess’s ear, causing it to twitch more from the impact of air onto it.

“Oh, shit! Sorry!” As Charlie releases her, Ameillia walks over to the other Overlord.

The moose’s body shifts and grows to full height as she stands beside her friend. Before reaching full height, she gives the deer a friendly shoulder check and steps away to give him his personal space. He briefly makes eye contact with her, his smile reflecting in his eyes. She takes a step and spins around to face the Princess again, feeling her friend's Shade pulling her hair back into a low bun as thanks. Ameillia manages to hide her surprise at the action as she observes the princess’s demeanour as she observes both of the Overlord’s interactions with each other.

“I assume you have only one member of staff right now?” The moose’s eyes cast over to the two souls on the couch in the sitting area, “I know Angel Dust is your only resident, and Harl told me that Miss Vaggie is more your bodyguard than anything. Then you have the two goat-like… demons with you that they told me about.” The princess gestures for her partner to come forward and join their conversation.

“It’s only Vaggie and I manning the hotel right now; you’re right,” Charlie waits until her girlfriend joins her and the Overlords.

“That’s not good,” Ameillia shares a look with the deer next to her. “I have a few souls I can spare that are proficient in house maintenance. Alastor, I remember helping you acquire a little darling in the fifties before I was an Overlord. What was her name? She was quite the cleaner.”

“You’re right. She would be a good fit here,” Alastor nods, shooing the taller Overlord away. “Go, summon your souls, and I’ll summon mine.”

Ameillia nods and walks away, her hand disappearing into her pocket dimension momentarily before pulling out her cell phone. Her claws sheath to make it easier for the pads of her fingers to touch the screen. The thump of her heels as she walks away, holding the microphone near her mouth and one ear focused on the small speaker at the top, and the moose starts rapidly speaking in Ukrainian to whoever is on the other end. Her other ear is flattened against her head to prevent other sounds from filtering in and ensuring she is focused solely on her conversation.

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Post Script: [1] Bei Mir Bist du Schoen by Guy Lombardo and His Royal Canadians is a song to dance to the Foxtrot and a popular jazz song in 1938. The title is Yiddish, meaning "To Me, You are Beautiful." https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CqnDknNDWzg [2] Let's Misbehave by Irving Aaronson & His Commanders is a popular jazz song from 1928. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=if48K_v4S5w [3]: "Dear Ameillia,

It is my solemn duty to report how one of your souls died under my brief protection.

Anastasiya Stravinskaya came across my daughters, cornered by a group of Angels while collecting Angelic weapons left behind. As my daughters tell me, Anastasiya went in front of them to distract the Exorcists so that my girls could call me. Apparently, she practically skated between the angelic weapons to keep their sights on her. I arrived just as one of them grabbed her arm to restrain her while the other cut off her head.

Along with this letter, I’ve sent a new blade for your hockey stick and sixteen angelic swords that I forged with Anastasiya's ashes. The urn with the leftover ashes is enclosed with your new blade.

Don’t worry, my friend, I avenged her. I’ll explain how at the next Overlord meeting. I hope I’ll see you there.

Sincerely, Carmilla Carmine Overlord Ruler of the Industrial District (Signature: CARMINE)

Business Email: [email protected] (Smudged out: Personal Email: [email protected]) Landline: +666 (958) 555-5842, you know the extension" [4] Ă̴͖̠̈l̷̳̰̅͝r̷̢̺̈́ë̴͉a̴̟͆̓ͅd̸̙͐ÿ̷͕́ - Already [5] ḁ̶͗n̵̻͗d̶̨̈́ ̷̘͛r̶͍̿o̷̙͑t̷̥͌ - and rot

#hazbinhotel #hazbin hotel fanfiction #ao3 author #ao3 fanfic #ao3 link #ao3 writer #Fallen Angel's Guardian Demon #artwork #ao3

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oldisnewradio · 8 months ago

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Everyone's talking about Daylight Savings Time! Tonight on Everything Old Is New Again Radio Show, we’ll Listen to Four Renditions of "(There Ought To Be A) Moonlight Savings Time". Written by Irving Kahal & Harry Richman with performances by:

* Guy Lombardo & His Royal Canadian with Carmen Lombardo

* Annette Hanshaw

* Joyce Breach

* & Hannah Gill

Plus we are featuring the music of Liza Minnelli

Join me on WBAI 99.5 FM New York & https://www.wbai.org/listen-live/ at 10PM(ET)

Tell a friend!

#EverythingOldIsNewAgainRadioShow#45thYear#PopStandards#GreatAmericanSongbook#Jazz#Showtunes#Cabaret#broadway

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projazznet · 9 months ago

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Guy Lombardo – Guy Lombardo and His Royal Canadians

#guylombardo #swing #bigband #projazznet

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darpow · 10 months ago

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#a lot like dare #;; happy new years friends! <3 #i'll be around lots tomorrow to catch up and hang #Spotify

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xtruss · 10 months ago

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It wouldn't be New Year's Eve without "Auld Lang Syne"—and we have legendary Scottish poet Robert Burns to thank for it. He wrote the poem and fine-tuned the melody for the traditional song. His original manuscript is seen here up for auction. Photograph By Jeff J. Mitchell, Getty Images

Why We Sing ‘Auld Lang Syne’ on New Year’s Eve

The Iconic Song Became a Staple at the Stroke of Midnight with a Little help from 18th Century Poet Robert Burns and the Scottish Diaspora.

— By Parissa Djang I December 27, 2023

If New Year’s Eve had an official carol, it would easily be “Auld Lang Syne.” Every year, just after the clock strikes midnight, people around the world join hands and sing this beloved song.

Why is “Auld Lang Syne” a New Year’s tradition? From its beginnings as an 18th-Century Scottish Poem to its Iconic Status today, “Auld Lang Syne” captures the spirit of the holiday.

A Scottish Poem

The song is actually a poem penned by Robert Burns in 1788. Traditionally considered Scotland’s National Poet, Burns stirred the Country’s National consciousness by writing in the dying out Scots language. In English, auld lang syne roughly means “times long past.” Fittingly, the song tells of old friends meeting after time apart.

An Oil Painting of Robert Burns in nature. Robert Burns is considered the National Poet of Scotland 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 for his work in the 18th century that celebrated Scottish Cultural Heritage. Photograph By Pictures From History, Getty Images

Although Burns’ version is the one that we know today, there were earlier versions of the poem, including Allan Ramsay’s from 1724. Burns explained his version was indeed inspired by another. As he claimed to music publisher George Thomson in September 1793, “I took it down from an old man’s singing.”

Burns was not satisfied with his version of the poem’s original tune, dismissing it as “mediocre.” So between 1799 and 1801, Thomson found and fine-tuned a different melody for the song. It’s the one we still sing today.

A Song For The Year’s End

Burns’ song soon found a home in an annual Scottish tradition: Hogmanay. A blend of Norse and Gaelic customs, the holiday celebrates the last day of the year.

For centuries, Hogmanay, not Christmas, reigned as the biggest winter holiday in Scotland. After all, the Church of Scotland, the country’s official church, had banned the celebration of Christmas in 1640, since it felt the holiday was not Protestant enough.

Unable to make merry at Christmastime, people embraced Hogmanay instead. During Hogmanay, Scottish men, women, and children exchanged gifts and visited friends and neighbors to welcome the new year.

Left: People in Edinburgh watch fireworks during New Year festivities. The New Year festival of Hogmanay became an especially important one in the Scottish calendar after the Church of Scotland banned Christmas in 1640. (The ban was lifted four centuries later.) Photograph By Crofts Simon, Anzenberger/Redux

Right: To welcome the arrival of 2006, the Hogmanay Celebration in Edinburgh attracted more 15,000 people and included a torchlight procession. Photograph By Marco Secchi, Camera Press/Redux

Another Hogmanay tradition? Singing. Some songs—such as “A Guid New Year to ane a’ A’”—were widely recognized. Others were created by families or local communities.

With its emphasis on friendship, reminiscence, and parting, Burns’ “Auld Lang Syne” expressed the essence of Hogmanay: bidding adieu to one year so another could begin.

A New Year’s Tradition

As Scotspeople emigrated in the 19th century, they brought their Hogmanay traditions with them around the world—including “Auld Lang Syne.”

The song soon became a fixture in New Year’s Eve celebrations in the United States. Jazz band Guy Lombardo and His Royal Canadians played it during a New Year’s Eve radio broadcast in 1929. It was a hit—and “Auld Lang Syne” remained a midnight staple of the band’s annual New Year’s Eve show, which aired on radio and eventually television every year until 1976. The show’s success popularized “Auld Lang Syne” as the quintessential New Year’s song across the country.

Guy Lombardo, center, poses with the Royal Canadians orchestra. The jazz band first popularized "Auld Lang Syne" on New Year's Eve in 1929 during their radio broadcast. Photograph By CBS, Getty Images

As Life reported on December 17, 1965, “Should [Lombardo] and his Royal Canadians fail to play ‘Auld Lang Syne’ at midnight on New Year’s Eve […], a deep uneasiness would run through a large segment of the American populace—a conviction that, despite the evidence on every calendar, the new year had not really arrived.”

However, musicologist M.J. Grant emphasizes in her book Auld Lang Syne: A Song and Its Culture that at the time the song “was already firmly established in many communities, quite possibly beginning in the Scottish diaspora.”

So the tradition of playing “Auld Lang Syne” on New Year’s may have not started with Lombardo, but his band ushered in a new beginning for a song that honors the past while welcoming the dawn of a new day.

#New Year’s Eve #A Scottish Poem #Auld Lang Syne #A New Year’s Tradition #Iconic Song | Scotland 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿#18th Century Poet Robert Burns #Scottish Diaspora #Scottish Cultural Heritage #Robert Burns | National Poet of Scotland 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿

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brookston · 1 year ago

Text

Holidays 11.20

Holidays

Absurdity Day

Africa Industrialization Day (a.k.a. Ban Ki-Moon; UN)

Air Your Dirty Laundry Day

Automatic Traffic Light Day

Beautiful Day

Black Consciousness Day (a.k.a. Dia da Consciencia; Brazil)

Blade Runner Day

Caregiver Rights Day (UK)

Clean the Cat Hair Out of the Vacuum Cleaner Day

Day of Friendship (Aysellant)

False Confession Day

Flag Day (UK)

Future Teachers of America Day

Give Your Computer a Name Day

G.O.H.A.R.D. (Globally Organized Hug A Runner Day)

Microsoft Windows Day

mRNA Day (California)

Name Your PC Day

National Absurdity Day

National Child Day (Canada)

National Flower Day

National Gary Day

National Headwrap Day

National Kick a Ginger Day

National Lucia Day

National Oscar Day

National Pay Back Your Parents Day

Ngày nhà giáo (Teacher’s Day; Vietnam)

Nuremberg Trials Anniversary Day

Parsnip Day

Public Health Thank You Day

Roller Day (French Republic)

Royal Thai Navy Day (Thailand)

SETI Day (Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence)

Teacher’s Day (Vietnam)

Transgender Day of Remembrance

Traffic Light Day

20-N (Spain)

Type 1 Diabetes Day (New Jersey)

Vertical Marathon Day (Singapore)

Warriors’ Festival (Elder Scrolls)

World Children's Day (UN)

World Day of Prayer & Action for Children

World Piles Day

World Television Day (Aleutian Islands)

Writing On the Wall Day

Zumbi Day (Brazil)

Food & Drink Celebrations

Mallomar Day

National Peanut Butter Fudge Day

3rd Monday in November

American Education Day [3rd Monday]

Anchor Christmas Ale Day [Monday before Thanksgiving]

Learn When to Start Thawing the Turkey Day [Monday before Thanksgiving]

National Day of the Bible [Monday before Thanksgiving]

National Military Families Recognition Day [Monday before Thanksgiving]

Odd Socks Day [3rd Monday]

Revolution Day (Mexico) [3rd Monday]

Independence Days

National Sovereignty Day (Argentina)

Feast Days

Abdul Aziz Day (Church of the SubGenius; Saint)

Agapius (Christian; Saint)

Ambrose Traversari (Christian; Saint)

Ampelus and Caius (Christian; Saint)

Anacleto González Flores, José Sánchez del Río, and companions (Christian; Martyrs of Cristero War)

Bartolomeo Pinelli (Artology)

Bernard of Hildesheim (Christian; Saint)

Carista (A Day of Peace in the Family; Pagan)

Dasius of Durostorum (Christian; Saint)

Day of Sekhmet and the Purifying Flame (Egyptian Warrior Goddess)

Edmund the Martyr (Christian; Saint)

Felec (a.k.a. Felix) of Cornwall (Christian; Saint)

The Gonk (Muppetism)

Gregory of Dekapolis (Christian; Saint)

Humbert (Christian; Saint)

Josaphata Hordashevska, Blessed (Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church)

Maxentia (Christian; Saint)

Paulus Potter (Artology)

Praetexatus and Paulina's Day (Guardians of the Eleusinian Mysteries)

Say No To Cannibalism Day (Pastafarian)

Solutor, Octavius, and Adventor (Christian; Saints)

Sully (Positivist; Saint)

Theonestus of Vercelli (Christian; Saint)

Lucky & Unlucky Days

Fortunate Day (Pagan) [47 of 53]

Taian (大安 Japan) [Lucky all day.]

Very Unlucky Day (Grafton’s Manual of 1565) [53 of 60]

Premieres

Around the World, by the Police (Live Album; 2022)

Auld Lang Syne, recorded by Guy Lombardo and his Royal Canadians (Song; 1939)

Blue Monday, by New Order (12-Single; 1983)

Boris Bites Back or A Rebel Without a Pause (Rocky & Bullwinkle Cartoon, S2, Ep. 74; 1960)

Boris Bounces Back or The Rubber Heel (Rocky & Bullwinkle Cartoon, S4, Ep. 180; 1962)

A Bug’s Life (Film; 1998)

Bullwinkle’s Rise of This Goon for Higher (Rocky & Bullwinkle Cartoon, S2, Ep. 73; 1960)

The Children's Hour, by Lillian Hellman (Play; 1934)

Crocodile Rock, by Elton John (US Song; 1972)

Daffy Duck’s Thanks-for-Getting Special (Animated TV Special; 1980)

The Day After (TV movie; 1983)

De DoDoDo, De Da Da Da, by the Police (Song; 1980)

Deep Sea Skiving, by Bananarama (Album; 1983)

The Dixie Jass Band One Step, by the Original Dixieland Pass Band (Song; 1917) [1st Jazz Record]

The Duxorcist (WB LT Cartoon; 1987)

Fidelio, by Ludwig van Beethoven (Opera; 1805)

Get a Job, by The Silhouettes (Song; 1957)

Go Go Amigo (WB MM Cartoon; 1965)

Happy Days Are Here Again, recorded by Leo Reisman (Song; 1929)

Hawaii, by James A. Michener (Novel; 1959)

Highlander (Film; 1986)

Howl’s Moving Castle (Animated Film; 2004)

The Hunger Games: Mockingjay — Part 2 (Film; 2015)

If Anything Happens I Love You (Short Animated Film; 2020)

Jessica Jones (TV Series; 2015)

The Last Emperor (Film; 1987)

The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou (Film; 2004)

Little Town on the Prairie, by Laura Ingalls Wilder (Novel; 1941)

The Looney Looney Looney Bugs Bunny Movie (WB Cartoon Compilation Film; 1981)

Malcolm X (Film; 1992)

Mirror (Film; 1975)

M!ssundaztood, by Pink (Album; 2001)

Mr. Peabody & Sherman (Animated Film; 2014)

One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest (Film; 1975)

Planet 51 (Animated Film; 2009)

Prelude for War, by Leslie Charteris (Novel; 1938) [Saint #20]

The Rugrats Movie (Animated Film; 1998)

Sailor Moon (Anime TV Series; 1992)

Shadow of the Condor (Animated TV Show;Jonny Quest #10; 1964)

Spring Awakening, by Frank Wedenkind (Play; 1906)

Symphony No. 1, “The Titan,” by Gustav Mahler (Symphony; 1889)

Underwater Trap or No Air in the Snare (Rocky & Bullwinkle Cartoon, S4, Ep. 179; 1962)

Waking Ned Devine (Film; 1998)

We Are the World, by Lionel Richie, Michael Jackson and many others (Song; 1985)

Young Americans, by David Bowie (Album; 1975)

Today’s Name Days

Bernward, Edmund, Korbinian (Austria)

Edmund, Oktavije, Silvestar, Zlatan, Zlatko (Croatia)

Nikola (Czech Republic)

Volkmarus (Denmark)

Helmar, Helmer, Helmo, Helmu, Helmur, Helmut (Estonia)

Jalmari, Jari (Finland)

Edmond, Octave (France)

Corbinian, Edmund, Elisabeth, Felix, Korbinian (Germany)

Denahis (Greece)

Jolán (Hungary)

Benigno, Edmondo (Italy)

Anda, Andina, Andis (Latvia)

Feliksas, Jovydas, Vaidvilė (Lithuania)

Halvdan, Helle (Norway)

Anatol, Edmund, Feliks, Jeron, Oktawiusz, Sędzimir (Poland)

Grigorie (Romania)

Félix (Slovakia)

Edmundo, Félix, Octavio (Spain)

Marina, Pontus (Sweden)

Edmond, Edmonda, Edmund, Edmunda, Octavio (USA)

Today is Also…

Day of Year: Day 324 of 2024; 41 days remaining in the year

ISO: Day 1 of week 47 of 2023

Celtic Tree Calendar: Ngetal (Reed) [Day 21 of 28]

Chinese: Month 10 (Gui-Hai), Day 8 (Ren-Wu)

Chinese Year of the: Rabbit 4721 (until February 10, 2024)

Hebrew: 7 Kislev 5784

Islamic: 7 Jumada I 1445

J Cal: 24 Mir; Threesday [24 of 30]

Julian: 7 November 2023

Moon: 50%: 1st Quarter

Positivist: 16 Frederic (12th Month) [Sully]

Runic Half Month: Nyd (Necessity) [Day 10 of 15]

Season: Autumn (Day 58 of 89)

Zodiac: Scorpio (Day 28 of 29)

#calendar #Holidays

0 notes

brookstonalmanac · 1 year ago

Text

Holidays 11.20

Holidays

Absurdity Day

Africa Industrialization Day (a.k.a. Ban Ki-Moon; UN)

Air Your Dirty Laundry Day

Automatic Traffic Light Day

Beautiful Day

Black Consciousness Day (a.k.a. Dia da Consciencia; Brazil)

Blade Runner Day

Caregiver Rights Day (UK)

Clean the Cat Hair Out of the Vacuum Cleaner Day

Day of Friendship (Aysellant)

False Confession Day

Flag Day (UK)

Future Teachers of America Day

Give Your Computer a Name Day

G.O.H.A.R.D. (Globally Organized Hug A Runner Day)

Microsoft Windows Day

mRNA Day (California)

Name Your PC Day

National Absurdity Day

National Child Day (Canada)

National Flower Day

National Gary Day

National Headwrap Day

National Kick a Ginger Day

National Lucia Day

National Oscar Day

National Pay Back Your Parents Day

Ngày nhà giáo (Teacher’s Day; Vietnam)

Nuremberg Trials Anniversary Day

Parsnip Day

Public Health Thank You Day

Roller Day (French Republic)

Royal Thai Navy Day (Thailand)

SETI Day (Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence)

Teacher’s Day (Vietnam)

Transgender Day of Remembrance

Traffic Light Day

20-N (Spain)

Type 1 Diabetes Day (New Jersey)

Vertical Marathon Day (Singapore)

Warriors’ Festival (Elder Scrolls)

World Children's Day (UN)

World Day of Prayer & Action for Children

World Piles Day

World Television Day (Aleutian Islands)

Writing On the Wall Day

Zumbi Day (Brazil)

Food & Drink Celebrations

Mallomar Day

National Peanut Butter Fudge Day

3rd Monday in November

American Education Day [3rd Monday]

Anchor Christmas Ale Day [Monday before Thanksgiving]

Learn When to Start Thawing the Turkey Day [Monday before Thanksgiving]

National Day of the Bible [Monday before Thanksgiving]

National Military Families Recognition Day [Monday before Thanksgiving]

Odd Socks Day [3rd Monday]

Revolution Day (Mexico) [3rd Monday]

Independence Days

National Sovereignty Day (Argentina)

Feast Days

Abdul Aziz Day (Church of the SubGenius; Saint)

Agapius (Christian; Saint)

Ambrose Traversari (Christian; Saint)

Ampelus and Caius (Christian; Saint)

Anacleto González Flores, José Sánchez del Río, and companions (Christian; Martyrs of Cristero War)

Bartolomeo Pinelli (Artology)

Bernard of Hildesheim (Christian; Saint)

Carista (A Day of Peace in the Family; Pagan)

Dasius of Durostorum (Christian; Saint)

Day of Sekhmet and the Purifying Flame (Egyptian Warrior Goddess)

Edmund the Martyr (Christian; Saint)

Felec (a.k.a. Felix) of Cornwall (Christian; Saint)

The Gonk (Muppetism)

Gregory of Dekapolis (Christian; Saint)

Humbert (Christian; Saint)

Josaphata Hordashevska, Blessed (Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church)

Maxentia (Christian; Saint)

Paulus Potter (Artology)

Praetexatus and Paulina's Day (Guardians of the Eleusinian Mysteries)

Say No To Cannibalism Day (Pastafarian)

Solutor, Octavius, and Adventor (Christian; Saints)

Sully (Positivist; Saint)

Theonestus of Vercelli (Christian; Saint)

Lucky & Unlucky Days

Fortunate Day (Pagan) [47 of 53]

Taian (大安 Japan) [Lucky all day.]

Very Unlucky Day (Grafton’s Manual of 1565) [53 of 60]

Premieres

Around the World, by the Police (Live Album; 2022)

Auld Lang Syne, recorded by Guy Lombardo and his Royal Canadians (Song; 1939)

Blue Monday, by New Order (12-Single; 1983)

Boris Bites Back or A Rebel Without a Pause (Rocky & Bullwinkle Cartoon, S2, Ep. 74; 1960)

Boris Bounces Back or The Rubber Heel (Rocky & Bullwinkle Cartoon, S4, Ep. 180; 1962)

A Bug’s Life (Film; 1998)

Bullwinkle’s Rise of This Goon for Higher (Rocky & Bullwinkle Cartoon, S2, Ep. 73; 1960)

The Children's Hour, by Lillian Hellman (Play; 1934)

Crocodile Rock, by Elton John (US Song; 1972)

Daffy Duck’s Thanks-for-Getting Special (Animated TV Special; 1980)

The Day After (TV movie; 1983)

De DoDoDo, De Da Da Da, by the Police (Song; 1980)

Deep Sea Skiving, by Bananarama (Album; 1983)

The Dixie Jass Band One Step, by the Original Dixieland Pass Band (Song; 1917) [1st Jazz Record]

The Duxorcist (WB LT Cartoon; 1987)

Fidelio, by Ludwig van Beethoven (Opera; 1805)

Get a Job, by The Silhouettes (Song; 1957)

Go Go Amigo (WB MM Cartoon; 1965)

Happy Days Are Here Again, recorded by Leo Reisman (Song; 1929)

Hawaii, by James A. Michener (Novel; 1959)

Highlander (Film; 1986)

Howl’s Moving Castle (Animated Film; 2004)

The Hunger Games: Mockingjay — Part 2 (Film; 2015)

If Anything Happens I Love You (Short Animated Film; 2020)

Jessica Jones (TV Series; 2015)

The Last Emperor (Film; 1987)

The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou (Film; 2004)

Little Town on the Prairie, by Laura Ingalls Wilder (Novel; 1941)

The Looney Looney Looney Bugs Bunny Movie (WB Cartoon Compilation Film; 1981)

Malcolm X (Film; 1992)

Mirror (Film; 1975)

M!ssundaztood, by Pink (Album; 2001)

Mr. Peabody & Sherman (Animated Film; 2014)

One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest (Film; 1975)

Planet 51 (Animated Film; 2009)

Prelude for War, by Leslie Charteris (Novel; 1938) [Saint #20]

The Rugrats Movie (Animated Film; 1998)

Sailor Moon (Anime TV Series; 1992)

Shadow of the Condor (Animated TV Show;Jonny Quest #10; 1964)

Spring Awakening, by Frank Wedenkind (Play; 1906)

Symphony No. 1, “The Titan,” by Gustav Mahler (Symphony; 1889)

Underwater Trap or No Air in the Snare (Rocky & Bullwinkle Cartoon, S4, Ep. 179; 1962)

Waking Ned Devine (Film; 1998)

We Are the World, by Lionel Richie, Michael Jackson and many others (Song; 1985)

Young Americans, by David Bowie (Album; 1975)

Today’s Name Days

Bernward, Edmund, Korbinian (Austria)

Edmund, Oktavije, Silvestar, Zlatan, Zlatko (Croatia)

Nikola (Czech Republic)

Volkmarus (Denmark)

Helmar, Helmer, Helmo, Helmu, Helmur, Helmut (Estonia)

Jalmari, Jari (Finland)

Edmond, Octave (France)

Corbinian, Edmund, Elisabeth, Felix, Korbinian (Germany)

Denahis (Greece)

Jolán (Hungary)

Benigno, Edmondo (Italy)

Anda, Andina, Andis (Latvia)

Feliksas, Jovydas, Vaidvilė (Lithuania)

Halvdan, Helle (Norway)

Anatol, Edmund, Feliks, Jeron, Oktawiusz, Sędzimir (Poland)

Grigorie (Romania)

Félix (Slovakia)

Edmundo, Félix, Octavio (Spain)

Marina, Pontus (Sweden)

Edmond, Edmonda, Edmund, Edmunda, Octavio (USA)

Today is Also…

Day of Year: Day 324 of 2024; 41 days remaining in the year

ISO: Day 1 of week 47 of 2023

Celtic Tree Calendar: Ngetal (Reed) [Day 21 of 28]

Chinese: Month 10 (Gui-Hai), Day 8 (Ren-Wu)

Chinese Year of the: Rabbit 4721 (until February 10, 2024)

Hebrew: 7 Kislev 5784

Islamic: 7 Jumada I 1445

J Cal: 24 Mir; Threesday [24 of 30]

Julian: 7 November 2023

Moon: 50%: 1st Quarter

Positivist: 16 Frederic (12th Month) [Sully]

Runic Half Month: Nyd (Necessity) [Day 10 of 15]

Season: Autumn (Day 58 of 89)

Zodiac: Scorpio (Day 28 of 29)

#Holidays

0 notes