So Long Marianne

Posted by mickleinapickle on Tue, 30 Jan 2018

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cZI6EdnvH-8

This song takes me back to 1973... a village called Oberjoch (over the hill) in the Bavarian Alps in December. Six feet of snow! I was learning to ski with 49 Field Regiment, Her Majesty's Royal Artillery. Just six of us squaddies plus instructor. We went to a local gasthaus one night and bumped into some young ladies from a German finishing school. They were strictly supervised by a formidable matron and a bull of a middle aged male teacher. The girls were 16/17 and giggling and fluttering in our direction. We were sinking our beer and girding our loins. The matron was glaring in our direction. Then (as if to break the stalemate), the male teacher produced a guitar and started singing, 'So Long Marianne'. We all joined in: six callow soldiers, ski instructor, young ladies from the finishing school, matron, busty barmaid, mien host and all. If memory serves me right... I kissed the prettiest girl in the room.

 

Anyroadup...
I forgot to pray for the angels
And then the angels forgot to pray for us

Comments

Submitted by celticman on

oh, we were once young

 

Submitted by mickleinapickle on

There's yet another song here, Celticman...

 

Submitted by airyfairy on

I'd never listened to much Leonard Cohen until I went to uni in 1973 and fell in love with a guy who was a mega fan.  This reminds me of many evenings spent sitting on rough carpets, nodding wisely as I pretended to know all  the words.  By the time I did know all the words, I'd realised that an appreciation of Leonard Cohen was the best thing about the 'relationship'.  

Submitted by mickleinapickle on

It's amazing how a song can bring back so many memories, Airyfairy. Thanks for your comment.

 

Submitted by Ray Schaufeld on

I enjoyed this slice of memory, Shackleton.

i was not sure about Leonard Cohen when I first heard him. I was 15 and he was a bit beyond my surburban horizons 'I think he overdoes it' I said to a friend. Also I was repelled by the line in Suzanne 'for he's touched your perfect body with your mind'. Talking about perfect bodies, wasn't that a bit vain? And the way he draws out the words in his Canadian drawl....

These days Suzanne is one of my favourite songs. I imagine Suzanne in her charity shop gear 'wearing rags and feathers from Salvation Army counters'. When she feeds him 'tea and oranges that come all the way from China' is she giving him china tea or is 'tea' being used in old-style transatlantic sense of hashish? I get the picture of a young man feeling out of his depth with an older  hippie lady and being awakened and open to the experience.

One LP that was an instant hit with me was Bowie's 'the rise and fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars. Loads of energy. And of course it was 'about Mars' or thereabouts so he could do what he liked!

Submitted by mickleinapickle on

Cohen was a poet as well as a singer/songwriter. That may well be the reason his songs had hidden meanings and often unfathomable meanings. A bit like many of us poetic types I suppose. He had the reputation of singing 'songs to slit your wrists by'. I've always rated him, but maybe now that I've done got old... I appreciated his music even more... perhaps because of the memories. Thanks for the comment. Take care.