| Atlantic Crossroads Festival continued |
| Flat Stanley accompanied me to Signal Hill today and tried to dive into Georges Pond, but I held him back. He also checked out Quidi Vidi Lake, where the Regatta is run on the first Wednesday of August. It's the longest continuously run sporting event in North America.
I also checked out the flora on Signal Hill. Everything was brightly colored today, even the lichens. Pinks, blues and reds dotted the brightly colored grass on the Hill and made you think �summer�, even though the weather was saying �fall.�. But then I turned my eye seaward and a scene straight out of Norman Rockwell caught my eye. A grandfather and his daughter were perched precariously at the edge of the hill, flying a kite. He was making it dip and dance and she stood beside him, clapping her hands and reveling in the joy of the windy day. Wow, what a photo! It was fitting that the kite scene play itself out here, where Marconi used a kite on a very windy December day in 1901 to elevate an antenna so he could receive the first trans-Atlantic radio signal, an �s� in Morse Code (�), sent 3425 km from Poldhu, England. With that scene firmly etched in my mind and wanting to be saved on the hard drive, I drove back to Jim and Lillian�s by the high road. As I passed a break in the houses, I had the perfect view out the Narrows. I had to pull over and capture the moment. The people who live here on this street have a million dollar view every single day. Priceless! I spent the afternoon on the sofa (chesterfield here in Newfoundland), editing photos and checking emails. I washed my Festival T-shirt and hung it out to dry on the line, figuring the wind would dry it. But it was too cold and the lack of sunlight prevented it from drying. I had to use the iron to dry it! I was a little nervous about the night, since I had to man the door at the Ship myself, no help from Lillian. We spelled each other last night but tonight was a solo effort. Everyone at the Ship was so kind and helpful! I cannot say enough about the staff there. They were great. Attendance that night wasn�t great though. The few who came, stayed, and enjoyed the sets. I can�t blame the people for staying home � it was cold and miserable outside. The weather here has been days of opposites. One day it�s so hot you have to keep the door open and the next day the heat is on. Go fig. Oh yeah � what is it that Colleen Power�s song says � �You and me are like Newfoundland Weather, we�re hard to predict. Can it get any better? With thunder and lightning and a love turning sour, conditions are subject to change in the hour.� Yup, it�s true. You never know WHAT it�s going to be like since morning to night can represent several seasons in 12 hours. Ger Wolfe opened this Sunday evening with a song called On the Banks of the White Rocks. Of course it was in Irish so I don�t now how to spell that title. You�ll have to be content with the English one. This evening Ger�s set was full of songs that I was not too familiar with. No problem though. It�s Ger � it�s got to be good! As Deep As the Ocean came next, from Ger�s current album, Heaven Paints Her Mantle Blue. He�s already hard at work on a new album he told us, so I�d better hurry and get the ones I don�t have! Darker than the Darkest Night �which is very dark� followed. During this song, someone leaned over to me and commented that Ger had played a session at Bridie Malloy�s that afternoon and played the fiddle! This man is full of surprises! I know he plays a darn good guitar and he plays whistle and harmonica. And now fiddle. Wow! The Irish lesson came next as Ger taught us to count to two in Irish � �in, do.� Those two words were the chorus for a song of the same name � In, Do. I enjoyed listening and participating. Hopefully I�ll hear it when I have the whole Ger Wolfe collection of albums. Carrying on a conversation with Ger is quite and adventure and an education. His accent is so thick you can cut it with a knife and in the middle of the conversation, he�ll throw out some Irish phrase. When you look blankly at him, he realizes he�s lapsed into Irish and goes on to explain what he said and what the translation would be. Often he apologizes profusely as he does this, but I personally love it. I learn a bit of a new language and the nuances of Irish grammar and idioms that I�d never otherwise get to hear and know. It�s a great reason to seek Ger out for a conversation. Curra Road, the song that stuck in everyone�s head in March followed our �one, two� lesson. He mixed up the verses a bit from how it is on the CD, but who cares? It�s HIS song and it�s wonderful. I relished hearing it live and in person again. I don�t think I�ll ever get tired of it. It�s an example of how I�d like my students to write. I�m always telling them to write so it paints a picture in my mind. That�s just what this song does. I KNOW that Curra Road and I�ve never been there. In fact, my students drew their own Curra Road after listening to it in the Spring. They recognized right away what I meant about painting a picture in my mind. Here�s Geraldine�s version: A new song about an old woman and a bird feeder was next, She Scattered Crumbs - Jim teased him about it all week. He called it the Polish birdfeeder song. (long story) Ger ended his set with Heaven Paints Her Holy Mantle Blue. His parting words? �Let�s hope it warms up. I didn�t bring any stockings with me.� Socks are stockings and jumpers are sweaters. I learned something new. Ken Cotter was up next and opened with Still Canal. The first time I heard it, I thought it was Steel Canal. Either way, it�s a great song and it sticks in your head for a while after you hear it. Coronation Street was next and as Ken put it, �It�s not about the television show but it could be about treating people as if they are in a soap opera.� The best lines in this song that make your ears stand at attention � �highways of happiness littered with Golden Arches.� Hmmm. Chew on THAT one! Red Bus in London was about wreckage in the streets and terrorist activities. Ireland and England have certainly seen their share of terrorist activities in the past and present. River Valley Road was written on the other side of the world � Singapore � �where it�s very hot.� The next song, Ken explained was started right here in St. John�s in December when he was visiting. He started walking the Signal Hill Trail at the Battery at 10:30 and it was a fine, sunny day. By 11:30 the fog was so thick, he couldn�t see a thing. I think the song is called 24 Hour News. See? Colleen�s not the only one writing about Newfoundland weather! All About Love was written after sitting in Church and hearing Paul�s Letters to the Corinthians � �Without love I am nothing.� Ken said if it�s good enough for St. Paul, it�s good enough for him! The Gig�s Never Over was an audience participation song and ended Ken�s set. Great choice, don�t you think? Colleen Power came in next and she had her own little fan club in the Ship. They were delightful � harmonizing and whistling. It was great. She�s a super singer and puts on a good show. All the performers gave a good show this evening despite the small attendance. It was good for the soul. Danger, Danger (sung in French � dahnZHAY) was the first song in her set and we had a great time whistling. The fan club even whistled in harmony! Colleen explained it as �love is dangerous and confusing but we can�t live without it.� Chickadee came next. I don�t think it was on the setlist but Jim was heckling her about whistling and Ger�s birdfeeder song, so she sang it for Jim. The song I was quoting earlier followed on Chickadee�s heels, Newfoundland Weather. She talked about being in Connecticut visiting her aunt and being fed Newfoundland Pea Soup (it�s good, believe me). I don�t remember why she mentioned that though. Then she sang my all-time favorite Colleen Power song, The Leaving Song. She plugged her new CD. �It�s six months old. I guess if it was a baby, you�d still call it new.� I sang happily along from my post at the door. She closed her set with Torbay Road from the new CD, sent out to Brian Callahan. Jim came up next on the roster and started with his crowd pleaser, Rising of the Moon. I think it�s a favorite of his as well. Jim sang his version of Curra Road next. I was so excited when he told me he was recording it on his new CD, Midnight Rover. I already explained to you why I love it so much. But I neglected to tell about the haunting melody. It�s very unusual, almost Eastern-sounding. A Pair of Brown Eyes came next. The audience seemed to respond well to this song. It�s not a favorite of mine but Jim does a great rendition, which can also be heard on his new CD. He followed this with Rhythm of the Goat, another favorite of mine from his Gypsy album. It was the first Jim Fidler song I ever heard when Great Big Sea sang it one evening in Philadelphia in 1999. The other song I heard that night, Downtown Girl, came next. I always like to hear Downtown Girl, even though Vic teases me that it�s my theme song when I�m in St. John�s. Jim last song was A Song for Newfoundland. This is a call to Newfoundlanders to stand up for their island. To be proud of its history and all it will accomplish in the future. It�s a call to think �we can� rather than �we can�t.� I think it�s his favorite on his new album. Jim and Lillian left right after his set for to go to Erin�s, and I was alone |