Written for MLMM Monday Wordle #449.
Our prompt words this week are: follow, future,
happiness, inspire, lie, mistake, monument,
secure, short, stunned, thought, and walk.
Here’s where the prompt took me.
Tag: Artist
Desert Sky
Written for The New, Unofficial, On-Line Writerβs Guild.
This week the three prompts for OLWG #368 – We Both Know
are (1) an old Patti Smith song, (2) need more blue in the shadows
and (3) when I left El Paso. Here is my first story for OLWG.
Jenna pulled off the long empty stretch of highway and killed the engine. The view of the desert skyline was too stunning for words. She stepped out of the car and leaned against the door, the hot sun beating down on her face and shoulders. The late afternoon sky was intense, deeply saturated with shades of cerulean, and Jenna smiled. As a fledgling artist, she always found fault with her own artwork, declaring the colors βlacklusterβ; she was more at home with a camera than a paint brush. Natureβs palette didnβt need more blue in the shadows cast by the sun or more green in the desert grass. It was perfection.
Easing her way back into the driverβs seat, Jenna caught a glimpse of herself in the rearview. The delicate gold chain with the heart from Miguel was dazzling in the desert sun. Jenna lifted the heart to lips and closed her eyes.
Reaching for her cell phone, Jenna snapped a photo of the desert and sent it to Miguel; then she called him. After three rings, her call went to voice mail. Jenna didnβt care; the time was right. She left a message:
βHey, babe! Can you guess where I am from the photo I sent? In an hour Iβll be home. Home. Just saying the word fills my heart with joy. When I left El Paso, I had no idea the photo shoot would keep me away so long. I miss you so much, mi amor. I canβt wait to be in your arms once again! I love you, papi.β
Jenna pushed the engine button and started heading home. About ten minutes into her drive, she hear the familiar strains of an old Patti Smith song coming from her phone β¦ Miguelβs personal ringtone. She pulled over to read the message:
βJenna, mi amor! Iβve waited this long. Whatβs another hour? Te amo!β
Smiling at the sight of the desert sky in her rearview, Jenna hurried home β¦ home to Miguel.
NARΒ©2024
This is βDancing Barefootβ by Patti Smith
All text, graphics and videos are copyright for The Sicilian Storyteller, The Elephantβs Trunk and The Rhythm Section and are not to be used without permission. NARΒ©2017-present.
Wacka, Wacka, Macca!
Written for Glynβs Mixed Music Bag Week #30 where we
are asked to write about a song by a group or solo singer
beginning with the letter M or N. This is my contribution.
When I was a teenager, my father and I would have the same disagreement at least every other week. It all revolved around my fatherβs comments regarding Frank Sinatra. His words never changed: βIf you want to listen to Frank Sinatra, go ahead. Iβll be in another room.β
And, even though I knew what he was going to say, I asked anyway: βWhy donβt you like Frank Sinatra, Dad? Heβs a great singer!β My father would reply βI know heβs a great singer and performer but heβs a lousy, no-good womanizing bum who hangs out with gangsters and is a disgrace to his Italian roots. I like Sinatra, the βartistβ but I have no use for Sinatra, the βmanβ!β
Of course, I couldnβt resist fanning the flames just a bit more by saying something like βFrank Sinatra doesnβt even know you exist! Itβs not his personal life but his artistic contributions that people should care about.β And weβd dance around that argument for half an hour or so until my mother finally threatened us with bodily harm.
So, isnβt it ironic that I am now saying something quite similar to what my father said all those years ago?
And itβs all about my featured artist today. I never dreamed I would be featuring Paul McCartney today (or any other day). If I were to rank The Beatles in order by my personal favorite, Paul would come in 5th! All kidding aside, Iβm not a fan of Paul McCartney, the “man”, but I freely admit that he is one of the most talented musicians to have graced us with his work. Today Iβm showcasing two of his pieces from his incredibly prolific solo career.
The first song is called βDonβt Let the Sun Catch You Cryingβ which is done very much in the style of a jazzy Billy Joel. This is NOT the Gerry and the Pacemakersβ hit we all know and love. Written in 1946 by Joe Greene, this number is included on the 1990 LP by McCartney called βTripping the Live Fantastic.β Letβs have a listen.
This is βDonβt Let the Sun Catch You Cryingβ by Paul McCartney.
The second song is a piece entitled βUsed To Be Badβ which harkens back to the sounds of The Steve Miller Band and ZZ Top (not surprising since it was co-written by McCartney and Miller). This one is a bluesy number which keeps going from start to finish and can be found on McCartneyβs 1997 βFlaming Pieβ LP. Upon its release, the time was ripe for McCartney to deliver an album steeped in Beatles lore and thatβs exactly what he claimed βFlaming Pieβ was all about.
This is βUsed To Be Badβ by the one and only Macca.
I hope you enjoyed hearing a little McCartney today as well as my personal reflection and the videos I chose for you. I hope you Paul lovers aren’t too pissed off!
Big thanks to Glyn for hosting Mixed Music Bag every week.
Thanks for joining me today and spinning some tunes.
See you on the flip side. π
NARΒ©2024
All text, graphics and videos are copyright for The Sicilian Storyteller, The Elephantβs Trunk and The Rhythm Section and are not to be used without permission. NARΒ©2017-present.
The Elephant's Trunk 