From: owner-joni-digest@smoe.org (JMDL Digest) To: joni-digest@smoe.org Subject: JMDL Digest V2011 #219 Reply-To: joni@smoe.org Sender: owner-joni-digest@smoe.org Errors-To: owner-joni-digest@smoe.org Precedence: bulk Unsubscribe: mailto:joni-digest-request@smoe.org?body=unsubscribe Website: http://jmdl.com JMDL Digest Friday, July 29 2011 Volume 2011 : Number 219 ========== TOPICS and authors in this Digest: -------- Re: Edith and the Kingpin - last few lines [Anita G ] Edith and the Kingpin [Stewart.Simon@sunlife.com] Re: Edith and the Kingpin - last few lines [Dave Blackburn ] Re: Edith and the Kingpin [Catherine McKay ] Legends of the C, Edith, and bluesy S&L [Walt Breen Subject: Re: Edith and the Kingpin - last few lines I think this sharing of imagery is really great! It's amazing to me, because I always saw cobra over cats. Yet there they are purring. It is so obvious to me now, Mark (and Cat(herine). As you put it, Mark: "Consider this in conjunction with the line 'the man with the diamond ring is purring/all claws for now withdrawn'. There is an implication there of a dangerous, feline animal like a tiger that could easily deal a painful, injurious swipe." Never saw that quite so clearly as today! It is fascinating that we all pick up on such different things. It takes me on to field theory, thinking about what's foreground, background and what we see and what we don't. Anita ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 28 Jul 2011 08:16:35 -0500 From: Sharon Watkins Subject: Joni's Austin Concert 1974 In Spring 1974 Joni did a concert in Austin, Texas. Does anyone out there have video of this show, or can you direct me to a website that does? I have searched in vain. I had a ticket to the concert but no car. A friend dropped me off at the concert but could only pick me up well before the concert ended. By the time the opening act finished and Joni took the stage, it was nearly time for me to meet my ride. I think I only saw Joni perform 3 or 4 songs by the time I had to leave. As you can imagine, I shed many tears and it was excruciating to walk out hearing Joni's beautiful voice become fainter and fainter. I never had another opportunity to attend one of her concerts. I would love it of I could find a DVD of the concert or an upload on the web. Many thanks to you all! Sharon Sent from my iPhone ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 28 Jul 2011 10:14:40 -0400 From: Stewart.Simon@sunlife.com Subject: Edith and the Kingpin In the 2008 Mojo magazine interview Joni was discussing her song writing and said, -: "Sometimes you write about the exact thing you saw, but other times you take something that happened over here and put it with something over there. In 'Edith And The Kingpin,' part of it is from a Vancouver pimp I met and part of it is Edith Piaf. It's a hybrid, but all together it makes a whole truth." Edith Piaf was a famous French singer. She was known to have addictions to morphine and alcohol. In 1935 Piaf was discovered in the Pigalle area of Paris by nightclub owner Louis Leplie. Leplie was murdered and Piaf was questioned and accused as an accessory, but was acquitted. Apparently Leplie had been killed by mobsters with previous ties to Piaf. http://jonimitchell.com/library/view.cfm?id=1834&from=search http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C3%89dith_Piaf - --------------------------------------------------------------------------- This e-mail message (including attachments, if any) is intended for the use of the individual or entity to which it is addressed and may contain information that is privileged, proprietary , confidential and exempt from disclosure. If you are not the intended recipient, you are notified that any dissemination, distribution or copying of this communication is strictly prohibited. If you have received this communication in error, please notify the sender and erase this e-mail message immediately. - --------------------------------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 28 Jul 2011 07:56:29 -0700 From: Dave Blackburn Subject: Re: Edith and the Kingpin - last few lines Loving this discussion and getting back to looking closely at Joni's work. I agree with Bob that this song and indeed all of HOSL has brilliant and dense lyrics in abundance, many of them more cryptic than those that came on the albums before or after. I'm thinking the line "they dare not look away, you know they dare not look away" is a way of saying they have a profound co-dependence that keeps each other both validated and in check. Edith has a literal drug dependency but also a strong need to run with the wild animal that makes her feel desirable, despite the "tired face(s)", and the kingpin needs her for his trophy. With her he feels untouchable - the plain clothes cops even give him a pass - but it is only because he's in a "small town" that he's a "big man", and he knows it. Only in this provincial setting can he make it as a kingpin; his power is limited. He needs Edith's dependence on him for his sense of importance. So, "his eyes hold Edith" and "his left hand holds his right", which he is gripping "so tight." That sounds like vulnerability to me - he knows it could all disappear for him. Dave On Jul 27, 2011, at 9:17 AM, Anita G wrote: > I began to think about what would happen if Edith or the Kingpin DID > look away. What would happen? What would they see? What would their > experience be? In my mind, I envisage two cobras almosy hypnotised by > each other (charm to sway). If one looks away, will the other strike? > Or maybe all 'tired faces' who have been gently lifted to the spoon > would be appear to them both, vividly. It's such a brilliant lyric, so > much about power and relationships, I wondered if anyone else had > thoughts about these final lines and what images they evoked. > Anita ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 28 Jul 2011 17:17:24 +0100 From: Anita G Subject: Re: Edith and the Kingpin I didn't know about the Mojo interview, Stewart, nor that the Edith was inspired by Piaf. Of course, Piaf's most famous song 'Non, je ne regrette rien' has taken me straight into linking to 'No Regrets, Coyote!' It's one of those light bulb moments. Anita > > Edith Piaf was a famous French singer. ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 28 Jul 2011 11:23:28 -0700 (PDT) From: Catherine McKay Subject: Re: Edith and the Kingpin I know what you mean. Now that we've got this information, it seems so obvious, doesn't it? It would never have occurred to me that the "Edith" in question was Piaf, even though Joni has mentioned her before and how her parents used to listen to Piaf when Joni was a young girl. D'oh! - --- On Thu, 7/28/11, Anita G wrote: > From: Anita G > Subject: Re: Edith and the Kingpin > To: Stewart.Simon@sunlife.com > Cc: "jonipeople LIST" > Received: Thursday, July 28, 2011, 12:17 PM > I didn't know about the Mojo > interview, Stewart, nor that the Edith > was inspired by Piaf. Of course, Piaf's most famous song > 'Non, je ne > regrette rien' has taken me straight into linking to 'No > Regrets, > Coyote!' It's one of those light bulb moments. > Anita > > > > > Edith Piaf was a famous French singer. ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 28 Jul 2011 19:19:52 -0600 From: Walt Breen Subject: Legends of the C, Edith, and bluesy S&L Hi gang, Been trying to catch up with the digest after being offline for three days or so. I've forgotten who mentioned Legends of the Canyon, but I just saw it myself last week, borrowed from the SFPL. A few tidbits I hadn't heard before. I liked the discussion of Edith, which has always been one of my favorite songs (such vivid characters, also in Scarlett Conquering!). I was away from the list (and life in general) in 2007, so I was wondering how much discussion went on w/r/t Elvis Costello's version of Edith. (Anybody else read the book -- I think "Torch Song" is in the title, that compares the two artists?) I loved the film noire take he had on it, although in some ways, it made the song drag -- UNTIL the third verse, when he changed time signatures from a loping 4/4 to a slightly swinging 6/8. I don't know if it qualifies as "subtle", but I just heard it the other day (a friend showed me how to torrent this week, and I've gone mad with it -- good ol' Walt, ten years behind the times as always -- this normally means that the format is endangered), and it struck me again. Given Costello's extreme care with such nuances, he clearly saw the third verse as differing in tone from the first two; I see Edith and The Big Man observing and circling eachother in the shadows in the first two verses, and entering into a slow dance in the third, their eyes fixed on each other, engaging in what will be an interesting power struggle. Among the things I downloaded (on one of the Unplugged collections) was a live recording of lousy sound quality of clearly Joni playing guitar, but I didn't recognize the song at all at first; then snatches of lyrics began to rings bells -- at first, I thought it must be a cover -- and finally i realized with a shock that it was a bluesy version of Shadows and Light. Anybody ever catch this live? Very interesting take. Best to all, Walt ------------------------------ End of JMDL Digest V2011 #219 ***************************** ------- To post messages to the list, send to joni@smoe.org. 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