"My Way" Cover Songs

The two songs I decided to compare were Frank Sinatra's "My Way" to Sid Vicious of the Sex Pistols version of the song. The two songs vary a lot, in lyrics, vocals, instruments and overall meaning of the song. Frank Sinatra's version is very refined, with good vocal quality and overall feeling of inspiration. In Frank's song there is more of an orchestra sound/instrumentation to the music. The song seems to represent a certain finale of life, an acceptance of what has been and the life he lived. Frank presented the song in a very respectable manner, standing center stage in a tuxedo.

Sid Vicious's version of the song is much different from Sinatra's original. In the clip I found, which is the music video, Sid starts out singing in a mockingly kind of way, with a very deep, ballroom kind of voice. After the first lines in the song, the music changes to a faster pace and Sid breaks into his normal voice and singing style, the of the punk rock style. Sid moves around a lot during the performance, bouncing around with the microphone stan and sometimes getting on his knees while singing. In this version, it seems its about breaking the rules and going against convention. This is shown through the way Sid sings, starting out seemingly sounding like Frank Sinatra and then switching to his real voice, a way of saying "I really am doing it the way I want to" or "I tried your way and I don't like it". A lot of my feelings about the song also come from my knowledge of the Sex Pistols and what they stood for. They were a band from England at the edge of the Punk Rock scene, expressing the anger of the working class. These views seem to come alive in Sid's cover of the song "My Way".

There were also a good bit of differences in the lyrics of the two songs, with Sid's version being more explicit. I underlined where there were differences in the lyrics.

“My Way” Frank Sinatra

And now, the end is near;
And so I face the final curtain.
My friend, I’ll say it clear,
I’ll state my case, of which I’m certain.
I’ve lived a life that’s full.
I’ve traveled each and every highway;
And more, much more than this,
I did it my way.
Regrets, I’ve had a few;
But then again, too few to mention.
I did what I had to do
And saw it through without exemption.
I planned each charted course;
Each careful step along the byway,
But more, much more than this,
I did it my way.
Yes, there were times, I’m sure you knew
When I bit off more than I could chew.
But through it all, when there was doubt,
I ate it up and spit it out.
I faced it all and I stood tall;
And did it my way.
I’ve loved, I’ve laughed and cried.
I’ve had my fill; my share of losing.
And now, as tears subside,
I find it all so amusing.
To think I did all that;
And may I say - not in a shy way,
No, oh no not me,
I did it my way.
For what is a man, what has he got?
If not himself, then he has naught.
To say the things he truly feels;
And not the words of one who kneels.
The record shows I took the blows -
And did it my way!

“My Way” Sid Vicious

And now, the end is near
And so I face the final curtain
You cunt, I’m not a queer
I’ll state my case, of which I’m certain
I’ve lived a life that’s full
I've traveled each and every highway
And more, much more than this
I did it my way
Regrets, I’ve had a few
But then again, too few to mention
I did, what I had to do
And saw it through with out exemption
I planned each chartered course
Each careful step along the highway
And more, much more than this
I did it my way
There were times, I’m sure you knew
When there was fuck fuck fuck-all else to do
But through it all, when there was doubt
I shot it up or kicked it out
I faced the wall and the world
And did it my way
I've laughed and been a snake
I’ve had my fill, my share of losing
And now, the tears subside
I find it all so amusing
To think, I killed a cat
And may I say, not in a gay way
Oh no, oh no not me
I did it my way
For what is a brat, what has he got
When he wears hats and he cannot
Say the things he truly feels
But only the words, of one who kneels
The record shows, I fucked a bloke
And did it my way

Written on the Body Voice 2

Voice 2; Personal

I found Jeanette Winterson's Written on the Body to be a fairly interesting and intriguing novel. One of the things that I mostly thought about was the identity of the narrator, although I must admit that I didn't notice until half way through the book that a gender was not specified. As soon as I figured that out for sure (by reading the back of the book for confirmation) I switched the gender back and forth between male and female. Overall, I personally found the idea of the narrator as a woman as easier to imagine. I enjoyed the complexity of the relationships in the novel. The relationships were very relatable to me and I could put myself in her (I say her because that's how I pictured the narrator) shoes. I can understand the different intensities of the intimate relationships and the hurts and the heartaches that follow the endings of those relationships. One of the most relatable relationships to me was that of the narrator's and Louise and the way it ended. I have had a serious relationship that ended because it was thought to be for the good of the other person. It's hard to estimate how much pain you will feel after a relationship is over, especially when you think it is ended for the better. I can definitely relate to the regret that the narrator felt after leaving Louise, an empty void that can't be filled. I also thought that the novel had a lot of interesting, thought provoking lines in it. Some that I underlined are:
-"You said, 'I love you.' Why is it that th emost unoriginal thing we can say to one another is still the thing we long to hear? 'I love you' is always a quotation. You did not say it first and neither did I, yet when you say it and when I say it we speak like savages who have found three words and worship them. I did worship them but not I am alone on a rock hewn out of my own body." (pg. 9)
-"You never give away your heart; you lend it from time to time. If it were not so how could we take it back without asking?" (pg. 38)
-"It's the cliches that cause the trouble." (pg. 71, although it is seen multiple times throghout the rest of the novel. I found this line very interesting.)
-"Is happiness always a compromise?" (pg. 74)
-"Love belongs to itself, deaf to pleading and unmoved by violence. Love is not something you can negotiate. Love is the one thing stronger that desire and the only proper reason to resist temptation." (pg. 77-78) I find this one very interesting because love really is like this. There are no decisions. You either love or you don't. Right?
And finally...
-"It's a great leveller the hole, for no matter what fanciness goes in it, rich and poor occupy the same house at last." (pg. 177) I particularly enjoy how much sense this line makes. I also like how it comes at the end of the book, almost as a way to tie things up.

Written on the Body Voice 1

For this blog I am going to use an academic/critic voice.

Jeanette Winterson's Written on the Body was a very well written and entertaining piece of work. Winterson takes the reader through the highs and lows of one disastrous relationship after another, attempting to explore the narrator's unsatisfied desire. The narrator's true identity is never revealed but is relatable in multiple ways. Through the emotional hardships, mostly brought on by themself, the reader can easily find ways to relate to the narrator. Yearnings for women and men, for married life and solitarity, the narrator explores all the options. Most of the relationships seem to be fairly meaningless to the narrator, as one after another is thrown away in hopes of "the grass being greener on the other side". Until one day the narrator goes too far, and realizes just how important their relationship with Louise was. Soon after leaving Louise because of her medical condition, the narrator breaks down and accepts the truth about her emotional bonds with Louise. The narrator discovers that they truly love Louise and has made a huge mistake leaving her. The end of the novel focuses on the narrator trying to reconnect with Louise but never ended up finding her.

I just stumbled upon this poem and found it to be very interesting and wanted to share with someone. I put the words below but on the site that I found it there was also a video, which unfortunately I don't know how to put here, so I'll just give you the link to it. I think its worth listening to him read it, definitely.

Here am I - Anis Mojgani
we all wanted that high school sweetheart
we wanted to be young in the 50s with meatloaves
and sock hops
and lawns, lawns so perfect they looked like Clark Gable was kissing them

we wanted to be thirteen and alive and meet a girl that was thirteen and alive
and walk with her past the grandstands, to sit and hold hands, to sit and kiss, to sit and sit, like it was something you would miss, but that never was

we once went to bed like between the bed sheets was a valley with dinosaurs still breathing
and how we capture these triceratops?
and brontosauruses?
but even they were opened up with the smoke that rose out of the homes and the corners that we once climbed through,
the streets and the footballs which we once threw,
the school desks upon which we once drew,
the windows that sat open through we once flew,
before the outside world of parking spaces and dead friends came flooding on in
and we forgot what we wanted
and we became what we become: waitresses and bartenders, city employees and temp positions, we are junkies and one kiss poems and we cry the stars
as we write our scars onto dumpsters
and electric boxes
because the only thing that we can hear is our hearts
and the only ones listening are the streets

that the blood that breaths through the letters we leave
and we dream to rise ourselves up out of these burning buildings
but instead we get buried somewhere beneath

because I know my life is like some high school kids notebook
a high school kid that shuffles back and forth between school and home
stacking the letters and the pictures too close for anyone outside of his own imagination to read
because it's through the ink that his heart beats,
that his heart breaths
and we all just wanted to write these notes

check if you like me
check if you don’t
check if you'll date me
check if you won't

because we all wanted the love songs to be true
and we did love dinosaurs once
and we wanted the stars to hold our hands,
to lick the teeth to fuck us,
but they ended up fucking us,
so let your smile twist
like my heart dancing precariously on the edge of my fingertips,
staining them like that same high school kid licking his thoughts,
using his sharpie tip writing:

"I was here / I was here mothafucka / And ain't none of y'all can write that in the spot that I just wrote it in / I’m here mothafucka and we all here mothafucka and we all mothafuckas, mothafucka / Because every breath I give brings me a second closer to the day that my mother may die / Because every breath I take takes me a second further from the moment she caught my father's eye / Because every word I carry is another stone to put into place in the foundation that I'm building / Because the days can erase something that I never saw / What all of us wanted and what none of us got /What we all had and have and what we all forgot / That we all wanted to be something / That we all became something / And it might not be the shit we once though we'd be when we were kids but something is still something and like some cats say, something is better than nothing / Feet are smarter than an engine / And dreams are stronger than thighs / And questions are the only answers we need to know that we are alive as I am when I have the mind of a child, asking why is 2 + 3 always equal to 5 ? / Where do people go to when they die? / What made the beauty of the moon? / And the beauty of the sea? / Did that beauty made you? / Did that beauty make me? / Will that make me something? / Will I be something? / Am I something?”

And the answer comes: already am, always was, and I still have time to be

Skim

I found Skim to be a fairly interesting read. I found the relationship between her and Ms. Archer was interesting and slightly inappropriate. I found their kiss to be awkward and it made me wonder what Ms. Archer's motivations were. You would think that she would realize that a student would take that the wrong way and attach something else to it rather than just see it as a random kiss. And then for Ms. Archer to stop teaching and move away. I'm still trying to figure out if there was more to that or if it really was related to Skim in some way.
I also enjoyed the way Skim's relationship with Lisa evolved. I thought it was interesting how they eventually parted ways, almost like the only thing they had in common was not liking things.
A surprising thing that I found was that as I was reading, I took the cover off and found that on the hard cover of the book it was designed to look like a real journal. For some reason I really enjoyed that, it made the story seem more "real" I guess.

Desire

One thing I think that is most desired by women, is love. And a meaningful, intimate, caring relationship with another. Not even in a completely sexual sense, but as a best friend, confidante, partner, etc.













Family, religion and education are three things I think most women desire.

La Perdida

La Perdida was the first graphic novel I have ever read and at first I was feeling a little hesitant about it, but also excited to explore something new. At times I found myself reading the novel as I normally would, by ignoring the pictures and just focusing on the content of the written words. But I tried to keep reminding myself to also look at the pictures and consider their content and sometimes they proved to be surprisingly helpful.
Overall, I enjoyed the story line. I thought it was interesting that Carla wanted to pursue her Mexican heritage but it made me wonder why she had to do it so desperately? I mean, completely up and leave and move to Mexico with no real idea of what you're doing? That almost seems like she's running away from something rather that trying to run through to it.
The loving relationships in this novel were interesting. From the get go I didn't like Memo's character and his relationship with Carla and thought he was on a type of power trip with her. I also found it strange when he hit on her, because it seemed like there was such a large age gap and it seemed that most of the time he didn't really like her. Carla's boyfriend (whom I can't remember his name at the moment) seemed like just a low life bum and she should have dumped him a long time ago, especially rather than moving in with him.
One part in the novel that I questioned was how could Carla be so naive about Harry's kidnapping, especially after she gave all of his information to all her "friends"? I like to think I would have been more aware and that it wasn't just coincidental timing that after she talked about him he was kidnapped. I can't imagine what it would feel like to eventually find out her circle of friends was wrapped up in it and then brings the crime to her own house and involves her in it. Being captive in your own home must feel much worse than just being held captive. I think it was smart of her to leave a note for her brother's friend but also a long shot since she just dropped it on the street. I wonder if she would of had more of chance of help when they still required her to go to work?
Overall, I enjoyed the novel and found the graphic novel set up to be interesting and helpful.