#david berry singing

[berriesandcreamdreams]

credit: Outlanderaddicted FB, Fraser’s Ridge Brasil

[userkayjay]

DAVID BERRY interviewed by SheKnows at the Outlander season 7 premiere June 9th 2023

[tavolgisvist]

…when I was sixteen, Elvis was what was happening. A guy with long hair wiggling his ass and singing “Hound Dog” and “That’s All Right” and all those great early Sun records, which I think are his great period. … When I was a kid I was a fan of Elvis and Little Richard and Chuck Berry. I still have a soft spot for them.

(John Lennon, 1980, All We Are Saying by David Sheff)

Rock was the music that excited all kids. Elvis was the exciting singer singing the exciting songs. 'Nothing really affected me until Elvis,' says John. … 'I was very impressed by Paul playing "Twenty Flight Rock". He could obviously play the guitar. I half thought to myself – he's as good as me. I'd been kingpin up to then. Now, I thought, if I take him on, what will happen? It went through my head that I'd have to keep him in line, if I let him join. But he was good, so he was worth having. He also looked like Elvis. I dug him.'

(John Lennon in The Beatles: The Authorised Biography by Hunter Davies)

for @i-am-the-oyster <3

[thetruthwilloutsworld]

Instagram c2e2

Sing me a song of the Outlander cast at C2E2 Welcome Sam Heughan (Jamie Fraser), David Berry (Lord John Grey), and Charles Vandervaart (William Ransom)! Prepare your kilts - Photo Ops and Autographs are on sale now.

Calling all Sassenachs Here's your opportunity for an exclusive Sam Heughan Q&A, Photo Op and Autograph, and small meet and greet session. Packages are on sale now and very limited, secure your spot: C2E225.com/SamHeughan

C2E2 tickets are selling fast and ticket prices increase on February 5. Buy yours now and save.

Posted 30 January 2025

[outlander-online]

David Berry singing Last Christmas

[dweemeister]

Whenever you feel alone, just remember that those kings will always be there to guide you. And so will I.

Born to a turbulent family on a Mississippi farm, James Earl Jones passed away today. He was ninety-three years old. Abandoned by his parents as a child and raised by a racist grandmother (although he later reconciled with his actor father and performed alongside him as an adult), the trauma of his childhood developed into a stutter that followed him through his primary school years – sometimes, his stutter was so debilitating, he could not speak at all. In high school, Jones found in an English teacher someone who found in him a talent for written expression, and encouraged him to write and recite poetry in class. He overcame his stutter by graduation, although the effects of it carried over for the remainder of his life.

Jones' most accomplished roles may have been on the Broadway stage, where he won three Tonys (twice winning Best Actor in a Play for originating the lead roles in 1969's The Great White Hope by Howard Sackler and 1987's Fences by August Wilson) and was considered one of the best Shakespearean actors of his time.

But his contributions to cinema left an impact on audiences, too. Jones received an Honorary Academy Award alongside makeup artist Dick Smith (1972's The Godfather, 1984's Amadeus) in 2011. From the end of Hollywood's Golden Age to the dawn of the summer Hollywood blockbuster in the 1970s to the present, Jones' presence – and his basso profundo voice – could scarcely be ignored. Though he could not sing like Paul Robeson nor had the looks of Sidney Poitier, his presence and command put him in league of both of his acting predecessors.

Ten of the films James Earl Jones appeared in, whether in-person or voice acting, follow (left-right, descending):

Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964) – directed by Stanley Kubrick; also starring Peter Sellers, George C. Scott, Sterling Hayden, Keenan Wynn, and Slim Pickens

The Great White Hope (1970) – directed by Martin Ritt; also starring Jane Alexander, Chester Morris, Hal Holbrook Beah Richards, and Moses Gunn

Star Wars saga (1977-2019; A New Hope pictured) – multiple directors, as the voice of Darth Vader, also starring Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Peter Cushing, Alec Guinness, Billy Dee Williams, Anthony Daniels, David Prowse, Kenny Baker, Peter Mayhew, and Frank Oz

Claudine (1974) – directed by John Berry; also starring Diahann Carroll, Lawrence Hilton-Jacobs, and Tamu Blackwell

Conan the Barbarian (1982) – directed by John Milius; also starring Arnold Schwarzenegger, Sandahl Bergman, Ben Davidson, Cassandra Gaviola, Gerry Lopez, Mako, Valerie Quennessen, William Smith, and Max von Sydow

Coming to America series (1988 and 2021; original pictured) – multiple directors; also starring Eddie Murphy, Arsenio Hall, John Amos, Madge Sinclair, Shari Headley, Jermaine Fowler, Leslie Jones, Tracy Morgan, and KiKi Layne

The Hunt for Red October (1990) – directed by John McTiernan; also starring Sean Connery, Alec Baldwin, Scott Glenn, and Sam Neill

The Sandlot (1993) – directed by David Mickey Evans; also staring Tom Guiry, Mike Vitar, Patrick Renna, Chauncey Leopardi, Marty York, Brandon Adams, Grant Gelt, Shane Obedzinski, Victor DiMattia, Denis Leary, and Karen Allen

The Lion King (1994) – directed by Roger Allers and Rob Minkoff, as the voice of Mufasa; also starring Jonathan Taylor Thomas, Matthew Broderick, Jeremy Irons, Moira Kelly, Niketa Calame, Ernie Sabella, Nathan Lane, and Robert Guillaume, Rowan Atkinson, Whoopi Goldberg, Cheech Marin, Jim Cummings, and Madge Sinclair

Field of Dreams (1989) – directed by Phil Alden Robinson; also starring Kevin Costner, Amy Madigan, Ray Liotta, and Burt Lancaster

[andreablog2]

Get all of them off my tv. I need an award show where the nominees are like: Halle Berry, Juliane Moore, Viola Davis, Meryl Streep, Octavia Spencer, Penelope Cruz. Leonardo DiCaprio, Will Smith, Idris Elba, Javier Bardem. Sophia Coppola, Spike Lee, David Fincher, Martin Scorsese. Omg like where is Natalie Portman, Lupita Nyongo. The movies should only be about historical events or character studies, cheaper set design, jewell tone dresses. Stuffy atmosphere and have Ellen host it. Beyoncé sings. Fuck this shit.

[maximumwobblerbanditdonut]

Sing me a song of the Outlander cast at C2E2 ⚔️ Welcome Sam Heughan (Jamie Fraser), David Berry (Lord John Grey), and Charles Vandervaart (William Ransom)! Prepare your kilts – Photo Ops and Autographs are on sale now: link in bio.  

Calling all Sassenachs ⛰️ Here’s your opportunity for an exclusive Sam Heughan Q&A, Photo Op and Autograph, and small meet and greet session. Packages are on sale now and very limited, secure your spot: C2E225.com/SamHeughan  

C2E2 tickets are selling fast and ticket prices increase on February 5. Buy yours now and save: link in bio.

👉Can’t make it to the show and still want an autograph? Check out @collectsignet for send-in autographing opportunities.

Grant DeArmitt: Grant DeArmitt (he/him) likes horror, comics, and the unholy union of the two. As Popverse's Staff Writer, he criss-crosses the pop culture landscape bringing you the news and opinions about the big things (and the next big things). In the past, and despite their better judgment, he has written for Nightmare on Film Street and Newsarama. He lives in Brooklyn with his partner, Kingsley, and corgi, Legs.

Sam has a complete Jaime Fraser outfit at home for C2E2 in Chicago. It includes a kilt, jacket, boots, sword, sporran, Jaime's wig and hat, and even the prosthetic scars he wore on his back, all thanks to the Outlander costume designers. He won’t spend extra money to enhance his costume as a random Jaime at the convention. 😂

He could dress up as Jaime for his Sassenach winter tour in Chicago in February and earn some money 💸

Posted 30th January 2025

[jules-has-notes]

Boy Bands in 5 Minutes — VoicePlay music video

People have been singing together since there have been people, but the specific phenomenon of boy bands really took form during the mid-20th century. In that grand tradition, VoicePlay had been performing a medley of songs from their mainstream counterparts infused with their own trademark silliness at live shows for years. With a few tweaks and a lot of hard work, they created this incredible audio-visual tour through decades of pop, rock, motown, and hip-hop hits. Sit back, relax, and enjoy the ride. That is, if you can resist dancing along.

Details:

title: Boy Bands in 5 Minutes

original songs / performers: "I Want It That Way" by Backstreet Boys; [0:16] "I Want You Back" by The Jackson 5; [0:42] "I Wanna Hold Your Hand" by The Beatles; [1:02] "Ain't Too Proud To Beg" by The Temptations; [1:23] "Walk Like A Man" by The Four Seasons; [1:54] "Candy Girl" by New Edition; [2:05] "Poison" by Bell Biv DeVoe; [2:23] "You Got It (The Right Stuff)" by New Kids on the Block; [2:39] "Thank You" & "Motownphilly" by Boyz II Men; [3:08] "The Hardest Thing" by 98 Degrees; [3:29] "I Want It That Way" (reprise); [4:03] "Pop" by *NSYNC; [4:29] "Best Song Ever" by One Direction; [4:50] "Fake Love" by BTS

written by: "I Want It That Way" by Andreas Carlsson & Max Martin; "I Want You Back" by Berry Gordy, Freddie Perren, Alphonso Mizell, & Deke Richards; "I Wanna Hold Your Hand" by John Lennon & Paul McCartney; "Ain't Too Proud To Beg" by Norman Whitfield & Eddie Holland; "Walk Like A Man" by Bob Crewe & Bob Gaudio; "Candy Girl" by Maurice Starr & Michael Jonzun; "Poison" by Elliot "Dr. Freeze" Straite; "You Got It (The Right Stuff)" by Maurice Starr; "Thank You" by Dallas Austin & Boyz II Men; "Mowtownphilly" by Dallas Austin, Michael Bivins, Nathan Morris, & Shawn Stockman; "The Hardest Thing" by Steve Kipner & David Frank; "Pop" by Justin Timberlake & Wade Robson; "Best Song Ever" by Wayne Hector, "John the Blind" Ryan, Ed Drewett, & Julian Bunetta; "Fake Love" by "Hitman" Bang Si-hyuk, Kim "RM" Nam-joon, & Kang "Pdogg" Hyo-won

arranged by: Geoff Castellucci

release date: 14 June 2019

My favorite bits:

easing into things with harmonies of a memorable song from their own youth, then jumping back to the early stuff

Earl at nearly 40 sounding just as good as preteen Michael Jackson on those high vocals

the clever camera wipe transitions that allow them to change outfits and positions to reflect each group

the rhythm section doing some air instrumentation during "I Wanna Hold Your Hand" 🎸🥁

J.None actually not being too proud to ask his bandmates to come back after they jazz-square-slide away

using the whip pan to and from the gossipers to make another costume change

Geoff pushing past Earl, which propels Eli off screen and into the right order for the next dance sequence

the beautiful juxtaposition of the "Single Ladies" choreography done to "Walk Like A Man" 💃🕺

the airy decending sounds Layne makes as they all fall down and the camera spins into the next song

getting back to their barbershop roots for "Candy Girl"

bracketing "Thank You" with the unmistakeable bell chords from "Motownphilly"

Layne doing the quick change "wrong" and yanking off his dickie with dramatic flair as he starts beatboxing again

the whole montage of "Pop"-able items, particularly the intense Bubble Tape™ stand-off, and J.None being showered in bubbles

playing up the dork-itude of the One Direction dance moves

that chromatic descent transitioning into the final song

the delightful floof of Geoff's hair as he rebounds the cascading movement back down the line

that lush ending, complete with Eli's fantastic riff

Trivia:

○ This video was the result of a Patreon poll, and the option the guys least wanted to win, because they knew how much work it would be. But they committed to it like the professionals they are, going all out on the music, costumes, and choreography.

○ The medley is an update / expansion of the previous version they had been performing at live shows for many years. They took the opportunity to swap out some songs in the earlier arrangement for others by the same artists:

Jackson 5 — "ABC" ⇒ "I Want You Back"

Four Seasons — "Sherry" ⇒ "Walk Like a Man"

*NSYNC — "Bye Bye Bye" ⇒ "POP"

One Direction — "What Makes You Beautiful" ⇒ "Best Song Ever"

○ To get the dance moves right, they called in a ringer — choreographer Kristin Denehy from The Sing-Off competition show and live tours, who they'd also worked with on their "Cheerleader" video several years before.

○ The group of gossipers during "Walk Like a Man" is all of VoicePlay's spouses at the time — Nick Perez, Kathy Castellucci, Cyndi Stein, and Ashley Jacobson.

○ The sandwich delivery guy in "Thank You" is the fellas' longtime friend and collaborator Rek Dunn. Given that Boyz II Men are proud Philadelphians, he's probably handing over a cheesesteak.

○ Eli sings some of the Korean lyrics in the closing BTS section. Given that he speaks Japanese, he was probably the most likely of the guys to get the pronunciation right. (And judging by the YouTube comments from BTS fans, he did a good job.)

○ When Geoff was rehearsing the choreography at home, he got some personal coaching from Kathy and little William.

○ The guys also had group dance rehearsals at a local studio.

extracted from Geoff's Instagram farewell post for J.None

○ Things got a little out of hand while they were filming the bubble wrap section of the "Pop" montage.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by VoicePlay (@thevoiceplay)

○ They got their act together for the transition to the next song, though.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by VoicePlay (@thevoiceplay)

○ The long day of filming and dancing aggravated Earl's old foot injury, so he spent the next day wearing a brace to help it recover.

○ The streaming audio version is separated into 4 tracks with 3 or 4 songs each, primarily due to licensing restrictions.

○ The 4:2:Five boys had opened for 98 Degrees at Sea World all the way back in September 2001, just a few months after they'd released their first professional EP. When VoicePlay appeared on the fourth season of The Sing-Off in 2013, working with Nick Lachey again was a little bit of a reunion.

[hyacinthi-mortem]

Anderperry fluff- wizard!Neil

I wrote most of this while in the car lol, I hope u enjoy :p

Info:

• this au is set 10 years later than the original dps, so they would've gone to hellton in 1969, I wanted to be able to use Bowie

• songs used are Lady Stardust and Soul Love by David Bowie

• there's another wizard!Neil au post that will help the first part make a bit more sense if you haven't already seen it but it's not necessary to understand this

——————————————————————————

June 1974

The smell of fresh pancakes wafting through the air shakes Todd from his sleepy daze, and he stumbles out of bed, drawing the blanket closer like an oversized cloak as he walks towards the door, and watches as a tendril of soft blue light flips the record over and gently sets it down, the needle falling into place, and listens for the sound of static taking over the silence before the first notes of a song invade Neil's brain, mixing with the magic flowing through his veins as he cooks.

On the windowsill Neil's cat Oberon basks in the sunlight, fur shining a coppery brown, and the golden blur cast across the kitchen highlighting the warm yellows of the walls against the pale greens of tiles, a harsh shadow cast against the backsplash behind Neil as he sways, a soft smile gracing his lips.

A gentle blue light surrounds the bowl of batter and pours it into the cast iron pan resting on the stove, as Neil begins to chop fruit, the sweet smell lingering in the air, quietly singing along as he does.

'People stared, at the makeup on his face, laughed at his long black hair, his animal grace...'

Todd smiles, leaning on the doorframe as he listens to neil sing, and the soft hum of his magic fills his senses. In that moment, to him, the air feels alive, electricity pulsing through it and settling around him; he can almost imagine tendrils and coils of warm blue light reaching towards him, embracing him, and drawing him in deeper, and deeper, until he is surrounded by it, by the part of Neil he could never have believed was real.

'That maybe there was a chance Neil could, the boy he could never have believed would maybe, just maybe love him like that too.'

'...Boys stood upon their chairs

To make their point of view

I smiled sadly for a love

I could not obey

Lady Stardust sang his songs

Of darkness and dismay...'

He relaxes, and as he watches the scene unfold Oberon steps down from his perch, and pads over to Todd, bringing Neil's attention with him. And even after all this time, in the soft light Todd thinks he can see the hawthorn crown gracing Neil's head, the summer sun lighting up his face and bringing with it a sparkle in his eyes that feels like all the stars in the sky are shining just for him.

"Todd! I didn't see you there, I-"

Neil smiles, a sheepish grin plastered on his face as he realised he's been caught.

"This was supposed to be a surprise." He laughs, and walks over to Todd, brushing the soft blond hair from his eyes as he leads him into the kitchen, humming along to the music in the background.

"Well who wouldn't love to wake up to you cooking breakfast" Todd smiles as Neil brushes the hair off his face, and if he notices his fingertips linger just a moment longer than they usually would be doesn't let it slip.

He pulls a chair out and lets the blanket slip from his shoulders as Neil turns the stove off, bringing to the table plates laden with berries and pancakes, and the blue haze of his magic surrounding them slowly disappears into the morning.

Conversation fills the air as they eat, and he just can't get enough of that soft lilt to Neil's voice, Todd could hear him talk for hours on end, letting the feeling of contentment wash over him like magic, as he gazes into those caramel eyes

----------------------------------

Curled up on an armchair after a long day of dealing with customers, Todd sips at a cup of peppermint tea, steam fogging up his reading glasses when he lifts the mug to his face. After setting the tea down he takes the glasses off, rubbing the sleeve of his (Neil's) jumper over the lenses; watching over the top of his book as Neil sets up the record player, as he lifts the needle and drops it in place, listening for the faint crackle before a song begins to play.

Once again music fills the room, various candles dotted around flicker to life, and Todd relaxes, the faint glow of candlelight setting his mind at ease.

"Dance with me?"

He glances up in surprise as Neil stands in front of him, a hand outstretched that he takes with ease-

"Always."

As he's led into the center of the room, book abandoned on the side, the music gets louder, the soft blue light of Neil's magic surrounding them as Neil's arms wrap around Todd's waist, while they begin to sway together, the evening slowly fading away as they dance and sing, Todd's eyes reflecting the golden stars that are blinking into existence above their heads, stars that are just for him,he thinks, as he smiles and leans into Neil's gentle embrace listening to him sing along, voices merging together in the flickering light until they collapse to the floor, exhausted, and lay together, a tangled pile of legs and arms with his head on Neil's chest listening to his heartbeat while the record plays along into the night.

'New love, a boy and girl are talking

New words, that only they can share in

New words, a love so strong it tears their hearts

To sleep through the fleeting hours of morning'

Todd thinks, 'maybe, just maybe, in this moment they could live forever.'

----------------------------------

[mckinleypowerhour]

if you got to assign a future occupation to each member of the new directions, what would they be?

addison harris - belly dancer

adelaide devereaux - odur judge

adrian cruz-dumont - sports mascot

ali vogel - singing waitress

blaine anderson - consierge

catrina clark - soccer mom

david karofsky - truck driver

finn hudson - magician

freddie merrick - drag queen

hunter clarington - pole vaulter

jake puckerman - mime artist

jesse st. james - professional high school student

keke akana - mystery shopper

kc - zumba instructor

lizzie jules - background actor

mason mccarthy  - yeti researcher

marley rose - fortune teller

max moore - bodyguard

puck - firefighter

quinn fabray - fireworks designer

rachel berry - professional yodeler

ryder lynn - live art model

sam evans - porn star

sebastian smythe - nanny

spencer porter - stunt double for children

sugar motta - sugar baby

taylor lincoln - undercover agent

tina cohen-chang - professional bridesmaid

[wingsoverlagos]

Lewisohn vs. Sheff, revisited

David Sheff's 1980 interview of John and Yoko was the first source I thoroughly plumbed for comparison to Mark Lewisohn's Tune In. It was interesting, engaging, and, most importantly, available at my library, so I picked it as my not-quite-arbitrary starting point.

My source was All We Are Saying (2000), the book made of this interview transcript. At the time, I was asked if there was a chance the discrepencies I'd found were actually errors or changes on the part of Sheff. I didn't think it was likely. In two of his citations to this source, Lewisohn notes transcription errors in All We Are Saying, so surely he would've done that with any other errors he encountered.

Wrong! I came across a YouTube video with 3+ hours of audio from this interview, which allowed me to properly check several of these citations against the source. This is not the full interview audio--I believe it's a supercut of the clips from the Sheff interview that were used in Elliot Mintz's Lost Lennon Tapes radio series--but roughly half of the quotes Lewisohn used are included.

Most of the differences I found between the audio/All We Are Saying were minor, with one exception. I've taken down my original posts and compiled all my updated comparisons here. I've retained some of the images from All We Are Saying where I feel they are still useful in addition to my own transcripts/links to the available audio.

I'll lead with that "one exception", and put the other updates under a cut. This is the notorious "Hitting females" quote, and the audio has introduced quite the puzzle

Tune In 10-9 vs. Sheff (1980) 2:12:10

Lewisohn's version above, Sheff's (2000) version below. I initially assumed Lewisohn had made up the first line of his version of the quote (highlighted in pink), and stuck it onto an actual quote from the interview (yellow). Rather than bringing any clarity, the audio muddies the water further. Take a listen. Audio transcript [emphasis mine]:

JL: That’s Paul and me. His main lick, but lots of the words and parts and bits from me and possibly the others in the studio. All that [sings] “I used to be cruel to my woman and beat her…” That’s me because I used to be cruel to my woman physically. Any woman, y’know. I was a hitter. I couldn’t express myself, and I hit. I fought men, I hit women. I was violent. That’s why I’m always on about peace, you see, it’s the most violent people who go for love and peace, and I sincerely believe in love and peace, but I am absolutely a violent man who has learned not to be violent and regrets his violence. [Sheff interrupts] DS: …the chorus or just the idea for it? JL: Is this Getting Better? Getting Better is his chorus and then both together writing the sort of Chuck Berry-ish sounding, but I know that input about beating was from me and references to school and things like that.

This is the discussion of "Getting Better"--in All We Are Saying, this is where John says the line quoted by Lewisohn. But John Lennon does not say, "I will have to be a lot older before I can face in public how I treated women as a youngster." Not in this context, at least. There are condensed/other edits to some of the Lost Lennon Tape clips (see the discussion of Tune In 16-8, below), but there's no cut here. Sheff spends most of the clip trying to interrupt John, and at the place in the audio where we should hear the "youngsters" quote, John and Sheff have a brief exchange--if there was a cut here, I don't see how it wouldn't be obvious.

So wtf is happening here? I can see two possible scenarios: (a) John does say the "youngsters" line, possibly with Lewisohn's "Hitting females" line, elsewhere in the interview, and Sheff decided to wedge it into this part of the transcript; (b) John never said that, and Sheff, perhaps feeling a tinge of guilt for persistently trying to derail John's train of thought, made up a line that he thought nicely summed up John's remorse.

If scenario b is true, it's farcical--Lewisohn would be quoting a fabricated John Lennon quote, and then further fabricating his own addition. But who can say? If you have audio of this quote--or if you're David Sheff and would like to explain things to me--I would be indebted if you sent it my way.

The rest of the less-interesting audio comparisons are below the cut.

Tune In 3-6 was originally noted as having minor errors; Lewisohn's transcript was actually correct, so it's been removed from the original post.

Tune In 9-13 vs. Sheff 1980 (1:44:28)

The changes I originally noted are actually faithful to the audio source. There's one minor change made in Tune In vs. the audio: the sentence ending in "bitter" doesn't end, but continues, "and the underlying..." The audio segment cuts off before the final sentence/fragment, "It was very traumatic for me."

Tune In 16-8 vs. Sheff 1980 (1:47:26)

As it appears in Tune In:

This one took some puzzling. In the audio on YouTube, there are four different versions derived from two separate retellings of this story. Numbered in order of appearance, there's Version 1, Version 2, Version 3, and Version 4. Version 3 and 4 are two separate retellings of the same story. Version 1 is the same as Version 4, with a small omission early in the clip. Version 2 is cut together from parts of Versions 3 and 4. The quote that appears in Tune In is closest to Version 4, which I've transcribed here:

I would say to the others, when they were depressed, or we were all depressed, y’know, thinking the group was going nowhere and this is a shitty deal, and we’re in a shitty dressing room. I’d say, “Where are we going, fellas?” and they’d go, “ To the top, Johnny” in pseudo-American voices, and I’d say “Where’s that, fellas?” and they’d say, “To the toppermost of the poppermost,” and I’d say “Riiiight.” And then we’d all sort of cheer up.

There’s an unmarked omission after the first “When,” “are” is dropped between “Where” and “we,” “Johnny” is added at the end of the “poppermost” bit, and there are a few small omissions in the second to last sentence. I’ve underlined the last sentence in yellow because it’s still up in the air. It isn’t in any of the above clips, but that doesn’t mean much, since they all cut off where it would otherwise appear. It also isn’t in All We Are Saying, so I’m somewhat inclined to believe it’s a Lewisohn Original, but that's only a hunch.

Tune In 16-15 vs. Sheff 1980 (25:51)

Tune In above, All We Are Saying (p.23) below. My transcription [parts quoted in Tune In emphasized]:

There was a lot of drinking and carousing when we were in Germany, but the stories built out of all proportion. Over the years, they became like legends, you know. If you go to Hamburg now, you’ll hear stories you won’t believe, about me and the other guys and the other rock ‘n’ rollers from Liverpool that were ther

I've retained the original screenshot from All We Are Saying; as you can see, both Sheff and Lewisohn took some liberties there. In Tune In, much of this quote is omitted without indication; what Lewisohn does use is chopped and moved around. I really don't hear the emphasis he puts on "boy's fun," either.

Tune In 21-3 vs. Sheff 1980 (1:19:24)

I originally speculated that this quote was invented by Lewisohn, or at least very loosely based on a kinda similar section about New York. But John does actually wax poetic about France, though Lewisohn’s version still has some problems.

My transcription [parts quoted in Tune In emphasized]:

When I first went to Paris, I was about 21-or actually, I was 21 in Paris, but- The thing was all the kissing and the holding that was going on in Paris. It was so romantic just to be there and see them even though I was 21 and sort of not romantic. I really loved it, the way people would just stand under the tree kissing, and they weren’t mauling each other, they were just kissing.

There’s an unmarked omission after “was so romantic.” The audio clip cuts off after “they were just kissing,” so it’s possible John said the “I really loved it” line again, but it may just be cut-and-pasted from the middle of the quote.

Tune In 28-41 vs. Sheff 1980 (1:51:13)

My transcription:

That’s Paul’s song. He was trying to write a ‘Soldier Boy’ like the Shirelles track. He wrote that in Germany or when we were going to or from Hamburg and back. I don’t think-- I might have contributed something. I can’t remember anything in particular, it was mainly his song.

Sheff's transcript is mostly correct here.

The final sentence in Lewisohn’s quote is fine, but his “I think we helped him a bit” is of his own invention. John says “I don’t think—I might have contributed something,” which is substantially different in certainty, along with who might have helped Paul--"I" meaning John, or "we", meaning the rest of the Beatles.

Tune In 30-2 vs. Sheff 1980 (1:51:32)

Tune In above, All We Are Saying (p.168) below

My transcription:

in the other bedroom in my house at Menlove Avenue in Woolton which was my auntie’s place, the suburbs. I remember the day and the pink eiderdown on the bed…

Both Sheff and Lewisohn omit "in Woolton" as well as "the suburbs"--can't have John Lennon living in the 'burbs! Lewisohn also omits "my house", and brings "auntie's place" forward in the quote.

Tune In 33-18 vs. Sheff 1980 (1:48:15)

This quote appears in the endnote text itself:

My transcription [parts quoted in Tune In emphasized]:

Well, I can’t say I wrote it for George in that way. I was in the first apartment I’d ever had that wasn’t shared by fourteen other students, gals and guys at art school. I’d just married Cyn, and Brian Epstein gave us his secret little apartment that he kept in Liverpool for his sexual liaisons separately from his home life. And he let us- Cyn and I have that apartment. And my mother had always—she was a comedienne. And a singer, but not professional, but y’know, she used to get up in pubs and things like that. And she had a good voice, she could do Kay Starr and all the rest. She used to do this little gag called—that apparently she’d done to me when I was one year old and two year old, when she was still living with me, which was from a Disney movie, [singing] ‘Want to know a secret? Promise not to tell. You’re standing by a wishing well’ Okay? That’s from a Disney movie. So, I had this sort of thing in my head and I wrote it, and just gave it to George to sing. I thought it would be a good vehicle for him cause it only had three notes, and he wasn’t the best singer in the world, he’s improved a lot since then, but in those days, his singing ability was very poor because (a) he hadn’t had the opportunity and (b) he concentrated more on guitar playing than writing songs and singing. So I wrote that sort of--not for him as I was writing it, but as soon as I’d written it, I thought, “He could do this.”

This may seem like a whole lotta transcript for a one sentence quote at the very end, but it will be relevant soon. For now, the sentence itself--I don't consider it erroneous to omit false starts, so that in itself isn't a problem, but Lewisohn corrects John's false start by introducing phrasing he didn't use. He also omits "as I was writing it."

Standard Lewisohn Probs, nothing to write home about, but I paid closer attention to the body text that goes with this citation, and I noticed another issue. Here's the passage from Tune In:

Check out the highlighted passages. "Do You Want to Know a Secret" is "first-born" in the Lennon-McCartney songwriting partnership as codified by Brian Epstein. This is odd. How, exactly, does Lewisohn know this was the first song to come out of this period? John doesn't give a date in the Sheff interview--he places the creation of this song at some point while he lived in Brian Epstien's Falker Street flat, where (cmiiw) he and Cyn lived for a few months. Lewisohn says, "Rarely lacking motivation anyway, the agreement was spurring Lennon and McCartney to step it up as composers, to generate songs the Beatles could use in the studio." To me, "step[ping] it up as composers" implies the creation of multiple songs in this time period, and if that's the case, how can we say "Do You Want to Know a Secret" came first?

It seems a strange thing to say conclusively, another trumped-up tally in the "John" column of Lewisohn's pointless Lennon vs. McCartney dick-measuring contest.

Sources:

Lewisohn M. 2013. The Beatles: All These Years Vol. 1: Tune In. New York (NY): Crown Archetype. [ebook]

Sheff D. 1980. Interview with John Lennon and Yoko Ono. Partial audio available from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PRDfBGagFkU&t=1582s

Sheff D. 2000. All We Are Saying: The Last Major Interview with John Lennon and Yoko Ono. New York (NY): St. Martin’s Griffin. 229p.

[serpentinesheldonserpentine]

Next Ten

Brian Eno: Ambient 1:Music For Airports

Bruce Springsteen: Darkness On The Edge of Town

Chet Baker: Chet Baker Sings

Chuck Berry: The Great 28 (Comp)

Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young: Déjà vu

David Axelrod: Songs of Innocence

David Bowie: Station to Station

Don Covay: See-Saw

Doug Sahm: Doug Sahm and His Band

Dr. John: Dr. John’s Gumbo

[outlander-online]

Throwback to this video of David Berry singing Boyz II Men.

[mammameesh]

B is for Berry

@a-noble-dragon and @leofdaeg-sand

The taste of berries is on Patrick's lips. He can't get rid of that taste. He's not sure if he wants to. His brain is ricocheting, not knowing where to focus, on the 'we' OR the fact that David was running away from an ex? That he now wants to be friends with.  David joins him in the kitchen.  David rubs Patrick's shoulders with his big strong hands.  "Honey, can we try something?"  Patrick nods, mute.   David flanks him and puts his warm hand on Patrick's navel. "Take a deep breath for me, just like when you're singing."  Patrick obeys.

[whump-card]

Forged Divinity Chapter 10: Leannan Meets Jeanette

2302 words

CW: institutionalized slavery, religious themes, dubcon (not explicitly described), abuse, choking, Google Translate

Previous, Masterlist, Next

~~~

Amos 6:4-5

You lie on beds adorned with ivory and lounge on your couches. You dine on choice lambs and fattened calves. You strum away on your harps like David and improvise on musical instruments.

~~~

Leannan didn’t see Phineas much for the next two days. The Council – minus the elusive fourth member – dined together, and Leannan joined them, eating fine meals of fish and potatoes with tart berries and cream for dessert. But beyond that, Phineas was off doing God-knows-what.

James visited Leannan once more, but seemed to lose his nerve before he could do anything, escaping with a lame excuse about ‘business to attend to.’

Leannan explored the Council building a bit. It was full of rooms, all connected by hallways, floored with time-worn linoleum. Some of the lesser-used rooms had sagging ceiling tiles, or were filled with little desks and chairs, stacked on top of each other in three-dimensional mazes of metal and plastic.

He stopped exploring after receiving one too many leering remarks from the guards dotted around the building. They weren’t allowed to touch him, by the Council’s decree, but that didn’t stop them from cornering and ogling him when they got the chance.

The only guard who offered a shred of kindness was the Captain, DuPont. He broke up one such gathering, snapping at his subordinates to get back to their posts, before looking Leannan up and down appraisingly. Leannan returned the look; DuPont was a barrel-chested man with dark skin and hair and a shadow of a beard, authoritative and burly.

“You good?” DuPont asked.

Leannan nodded quickly. “Yes, sir, thank you.”

DuPont smiled at him oddly, then reached out and ruffled Leannan’s hair.

“You let me know if they bother you again.”

~~~

What Leannan didn’t find while he was exploring was the fourth Councilman. He was close to cracking and asking someone who they were – but then he met her.

It was evening, and Leannan was walking back to his room after a long outing to Donda Island’s market. He was provided a small allowance of bartering chips, and today he had spent it on perfumes and rouge. It had taken him all afternoon, as he had stopped to talk to every vendor and passer-by who would humor him. He now knew more about Donda Island and its holdings, its imports of textiles and its exports of berry wine and leather; the ever-shrinking fishing business, the struggling dairy farms, and peoples’ anxieties about the coming second summer, when unimaginable heat would descend upon them.

He’d also learned that their view of Phineas was less than favorable.

He was sorting through this information in his head, trying to come up with the best way to present his findings to Phineas, when a sound made him stop outside his bedroom door. Drifting from further down the hall was an unearthly humming. He recognized it immediately, and it sent a flutter through his stomach: an organ.

He’d always thought that ‘organ’ was an appropriate title; the one back in Iowa City had loomed like a great living creature, breathing and singing through what seemed like hundreds of throats and mouths. Leannan had always stared up at it in awe, hardly able to keep singing along himself.

He stood frozen for moment before quickly entering his room and leaving his purchases on the vanity, then returning to the hallway to follow the noise. It lead him along the corridor, one silent step in front of the next, until he determined the door it was emanating from. He was loathe to interrupt the music, but he had to know. He knocked.

The drone stopped, and a woman’s voice called from beyond.

“Come in!”

Leannan opened the door, and stepped into a room far finer than his. The bed was larger, and had a grand canopy of fringed damask, and there were a pair of armchairs and a teatable, in addition to a wardrobe. There was no vanity, but instead two – two! – full length mirrors in one corner. There was a distinct smell; some sort of pine resin smoldered in a dish on the teatable, filling the room with pungent smoke. The main point of interest, however, was a very thin and wan woman sitting in the bed, propped up by countless pillows. In her lap was a long, flat, black box, with a row of black and white keys, just like an organ. It had blinking lights, and wires ran out of it to some sort of contraption sitting in a fading sunbeam on the floor. Electronics, Leannan identified, though he didn’t know much about the stuff.

The woman was staring at him, the bags under her eyes doing little to weaken her icy, piercing gaze.

“You must be the holy concubine,” she intoned.

“Yes, madam,” he replied, offering a little bow.

“I’m Jeanette Faverolle. The missing Council member.” A hint of bitterness tinged her voice. “But you’re not here to listen to me complain. You came for the music, yes?”

“Yes, madam,” he echoed.

“Please,” she waved a hand, “Call me Jeanette.”

“Yes, Jeanette.”

“Sit. I will play for you.”

Leannan perched in one of the armchairs, and Jeanette set her fingers to the keys. Leannan couldn’t help but be a little disappointed; what had sounded so unmistakably like his long-lost home through the muffler of doors and walls sounded tinny and small coming directly out of the electronic keyboard. But it was still the sound of an organ, and it was still music, of a sort; Jeanette moved across the keys at random, slowly drawing out one chord before moving seamlessly to the next, building an eerie soundscape. Leannan closed his eyes and leaned forward, as if he could submerge himself in the noise.

Leannan wasn’t sure for how long he sat and listened, only that he had relaxed fully into the chair, sprawled in it most unbecomingly and completely at peace, when Jeanette quite suddenly lifted her hands from the keys and plunged the room into silence.

Leannan sat up quickly, straightening his shirt. Jeanette was staring him down. The evening light from the windows had faded into darkness, and the room was lit only by a single lantern at Jeanette’s bedside, which cast eerie shadows over her gaunt face.

“You belong to the Council as a whole, yes?” she asked.

“Yes, Jeanette.”

“Therefore I am entitled to a quarter of your time, yes?”

“Yes, Jeanette.”

She nodded brusquely. “Return to me tomorrow, after lunch.”

“Yes, Jeanette.”

“You are dismissed.”

“Yes, Jeanette.” Leannan stood, hesitated, then inclined his head to her. “Thank you.”

Her lips pursed, and her eyebrows pinched.

“Thank you,” she said quietly.

Leannan nodded again, and quietly left.

He walked slowly back down the hallway, dying of curiosity. What ailed the Councilwoman? Why was she never at any of the meetings or dinners? Why had Brochard and James never mentioned her?

His thoughts were cut short by Phineas, fast approaching. Leannan stopped walking and lifted a hand to wave, but Phineas reached him in a rush, catching his waist and fisting a hand in his hair.

“Hej, stranger,” they purred, and kissed him.

Leannan wondered why Phineas was suddenly so touchy after two days of ignoring him, but Phineas explained.

“I shot a deer,” they murmured, nipping at Leannan’s ear.

“Congratulations,” Leannan giggled.

“Come with me.” Phineas practically dragged Leannan to their room, and Leannan spent the next twenty minutes with his head between Phineas’ legs. Afterwards, Leannan crawled up to lie next to Phineas and tried to tell them about what he had learned at the market, but Phineas shoved him off the bed.

“Shoo!” they said unambiguously.

Leannan tried not to be disappointed. Maybe Phineas had more important things to do – but Leannan still felt that the information he’d gathered was valuable. Regardless, he left, returning to his own room – and bumped right into James, who was leaving it.

“My apologies, Master James!” Leannan said immediately.

“Leannan – I was looking for you, I…” James grabbed Leannan’s upper arm and pulled him further into the room, closing the door. He had a wild look in his eye that set Leannan on edge. “I was looking for you, just – hold still…”

James’ hands closed around Leannan’s throat and squeezed.

Leannan had no warning, no time to prepare, and was hit with a jolt of genuine fear. James was supposed to be timid, he was supposed to be all bark and no bite… and yet. Leannan grabbed the Councilman’s wrists and tried to speak, but James was already crushing his throat closed, and it hurt. Horrible little squeaks and croaks were all that could escape Leannan’s mouth. James’ jaw clenched and his eyes were crazed and his arms shook as he clutched Leannan’s neck as tightly as he could. Leannan felt his head growing hot with trapped blood, and knew his face was turning red. Ordinarily when being hurt unexpectedly he would take in air, calm himself, and breath through it, but that wasn’t possible now. His vision started to go gray and fuzzy, and he found himself struggling instinctually. His feet dug into the floor, his shoulders twisted, and his hands yanked on James’ arms. It all only made James grip him tighter, growling something threatening in French. Finally, a coherent thought made its way through Leannan’s adrenaline-soaked and oxygen-deprived brain and he forced his body to fall slack, and rolled his eyes up into his head as if he were passing out. At this, James cursed and threw him to the floor, where Leannan spasmed and sucked in a painful breath through his battered throat. He wheezed helplessly as James stood over him, panting.

“Fucking peasants!” James shouted, “Think they’re above it all! Think they’re better than me?” He lifted his foot back to kick Leannan, tapped it to the ground as he hesitated, then shot it home into Leannan’s gut with a shout of rage. Leannan couldn’t stop the ragged cry that was forced out of him, and he curled up into a ball.

James began to pace, rambling in French.

“Ils demandent toujours ce qu'ils ne peuvent pas avoir!” He punctuated his last word with a second kick, this time to Leannan’s shin. Leannan flinched and whimpered, still disoriented. He didn’t have a plan. He couldn’t handle this.

“Taxes this, taxes that, maybe if you worked a little harder!” James circled around and kicked Leannan in the back, just below his ribs. Tears sprang to Leannan’s eyes, and he urged them on, sobbing.

“Master James!” he wheezed, “Please...”

“Oh, what, are you going to ask for something you don’t deserve too?” He loomed over Leannan, chest heaving; but then he seemed to deflate a bit as he took in Leannan’s pitiful figure on the floor.

“I suppose you do deserve some thanks. That was very… refreshing.” James rolled his shoulders, and his hand drifted to his belt. “Very… helpful.” He contemplated the thought a moment longer before stepping over Leannan and walking to the door.

“I’ll send someone to check on you,” he said, almost sounding regretful, and left.

Leannan rolled slowly onto his back, allowing himself to cry for real. He hadn’t liked that. Not at all. He kept misjudging James, and getting caught off-guard. He lifted a hand and pressed probing fingers to his throat. He didn’t need to look in the mirror to know he wore a necklace of handprints. He sat up, tears rolling down his cheeks. He wanted to go back to Phineas – but he knew Phineas wouldn’t be interested in his whining.

He had to do his duty. He had to endure.

He brushed the tears off his face and forced on a smile, but it only lasted a few seconds before he sobbed again. He didn’t want to have to endure anymore.

“I’m sorry,” he whispered to God, “I’ll be okay in a minute, I swear, I’m sorry. I can do it, just give me a minute!”

He pulled up his knees and hugged them to his chest, hyperventilating slightly as he looked around. His room – the room that was supposed to be all his – didn’t feel safe anymore. He hadn’t even realized that he’d felt safe there in the first place until it was taken away. It felt wrong, now. It felt… It felt a way he couldn’t name. It felt bad, that was all he knew.

So he sat, and cried, and slowly calmed down. He was just starting to struggle to his feet, wincing as muscles flexed under new bruises, when someone knocked on the door. He wiped his hands across his face and straightened his clothes before going to answer it.

It was the pale, frizzy-haired woman, bearing a tray with a steaming earthenware mug on it.

“Yes?” Leannan said, then balked; his own voice shouldn’t have surprised him, but it did, coming out painfully hoarse and low.

“Councilman Faverolle sent you some honeyed tea, monsiuer,” the woman explained, her eyes running up and down Leannan’s figure. Not in the way people usually looked at him, though. Instead of lustful, she looked concerned; her eyes flitted particularly around his neck. She had a sharp, nervous gaze, like a small bird.

“Oh!” Leannan spoke through the pain, “How thoughtful of him!” He lifted the mug from the tray. “Thank you, madam…?”

She tucked the tray under her arm, tilting her head a little funny at being addressed with madam. “Just Maeve.”

“Thank you, Maeve,” Leannan rasped, smiling as best he could, “You should call me Leannan, then.”

She looked at him a moment longer, then nodded.

“You’re very welcome, Leannan. Goodnight.”

“Goodnight.”

Once she was gone, Leannan walked to his bed, nearly limping from the pain in his lower back. He set the tea down on his bedside table and stripped, dropping his clothes carelessly to the floor before crawling into bed. He took up the tea and hunched over it, enjoying the warmth despite the summer night.

He was being rewarded. He could endure.

~~~

Previous, Masterlist, Next

Taglist: @angst-after-dark, @sunshiline-writes, @flowersarefreetherapy, @thecyrulik

Let me know if you want on or off the taglist!