RAINY NIGHT

Can't remember when I made this video, but I know I've posted it before.
I decided to rehash it simply to set a mood. My present mood.

It's a rainy, melancholy, sleepless night: a night made for hot tea and honey, freshly-baked pound cake, purring cats, a softly ticking clock....and the restless breath of a bitterly chilly wind stirring treetops and remnants of tattered leaves.

Silence. Solitude. Languid hours that conjure distant memories and the comforting echoes of places and lives that no longer exist. For a brief and precious moment the past seems alive again, almost real enough to feel the warmth.....
but the echoes inevitably vanish
with the rudely persistent ticking of the clock. 
Please don't go......

The haunting song Marlene Dietrich sings in this video is Bitte Geh Nicht Fort (Please don't Leave Me). She's singing it in German.


It was written in 1959 by Belgian singer/songwriter Jacques Brel, and the original French title is Ne Me Quitte Pas.

Brel was inspired to write this when his mistress Zizou (Suzanne Gabriello) left him. He didn't consider it to be a love song, but rather "a hymn to the cowardice of men."

Many singers have interpreted this song over the years - among the best were Nina Simone and (perhaps) Edith Piaf.

My absolute favorite, however, is Dietrich who - in my biased opinion - makes all others pale in comparison.

Also - for some incredibly strange reason - I prefer this song sung in German rather than the original French.

 


Note: your kind comments on my previous post meant a lot. Thanks!

(video is best viewed full-screen) 

PLEASE DON'T GO

Please don't go!
Well, actually I don't care if you go. But I hope you'll stay long enough to watch my latest video. It's a tribute to Marlene Dietrich, singing Bitte Geh Nicht Fort (Please Don't Go).

This song is originally titled Ne Me Quitte Pas (Don't Leave Me) and was written in 1959 by Belgian singer/songwriter Jacques Brel. It was a lament for his girlfriend Suzanne Gabriello (Zizou) who left him. Zizou was pregnant.

Brel denied being the father of the baby. Zizou eventually had an abortion. Later, Jacques Brel said that Ne Me Quitte Pas was never intended as a love song, but rather as "a hymn to the cowardice of men."

Marlene Dietrich sings it in German - and in my humble opinion her rendition is far superior to Brel's. Dietrich recorded it several times and each version is unique  (I've heard this song by numerous other singers and none of them impressed me).

I was initially never a big Dietrich fan. I thought her talent was minimal and she was over-rated. When I was in my late teens, however, I discovered some of her recordings and my harsh opinion softened immensely. She was a mesmerizing singer and a superb cabaret performer.

I first saw Der Blaue Engel (The Blue Angel) in one of those artsy Los Angeles movie revival houses. Perhaps my disdain for Dietrich was perpetuated by the fact that in Engel she was not only a mediocre actress but also a heartless bitch. 

When I was around 18 or 19 I saw the 1947 flick The Golden Earrings (with Dietrich and Ray Milland) on the late show. The Hungarian theme won my heart, and Dietrich admittedly made one helluva intriguing gypsy.

I also like the exotic intrigue of Morocco (1930) and Shanghai Express (1932). Director Josef von Sternberg didn't exactly discover Dietrich (as he claimed) but he certainly did invent her.

So what about my video?
It's a humble tribute to the essence of Marlene Dietrich - singing one of my favorite songs. To perpetuate the "mood", I've set it against the backdrop of a rainy night.....

Cheers, Jon 

video best viewed full screen