A Waltz & Ramble with Matilda & Tom

It was a viewing of the 1959 movie On the Beach the other evening that set me on a Waltzing Matilda ramble. The old song features frequently in the movie's soundtrack, presumably because the film adaptation of Nevil Shute's famous novel On the Beach is set around Melborne, Australia. Time: the aftermath of a nuclear World War III, in 1964, just 5 years after the movie's release. In 2013 we might tend to feel quite smug that such a disaster was averted, and has been kept at arm's length ever since. A 2006 re-interpretation of the novel, made for TV, might wipe out any feelings of smugness though - haven't seen that version yet.



When the movie was first released the fear and possibility of a nuclear conflagration was very much alive in people's minds, the film would have packed far more of an uneasily sharp edge, back then. In black and white, it's a low key affair, considering the subject matter. Nevil Shute (more about him in an archived post HERE) projected that legendary "stiff upper lip" style well, and though he and the movie's director, Stanley Kramer disagreed about certain aspects of the adaptation, the movie in general manages to retain the general atmosphere of the novel. There's no mass paranoia, just a quiet and rather eerie acceptance of the situation, with a determination to carry on for as long as feasible. Waltzing Matilda, with its air of serene melancholy fits right in, even though the song was really written about an itinerant worker who steals a sheep, and chooses to commit suicide rather than being caught by the police - far cry from nuclear annihilation!

All through the movie I kept remembering another song in which the Waltzing Matilda melody is used....Tom Waits' Tom Traubert's Blues. The song became popular in the UK in the 1970s after Rod Stewart sang a version of it - but his doesn't pack nearly the same punch of the original, which is the only song of Tom Waits that I truly enjoy. Oddly, my husband hadn't ever heard it before, it must have tanked on the US market. If I were making an apocalyptic movie in 2013 I'd choose Tom Waits' song as suitable accompaniment to (gods forbid, but they probably won't) the last days of humanity on Earth.

Tom Traubert's Blues lends itself to a variety of interpretations, but according to Waits it was written about "a friend of a friend who had died in prison", with references to alcoholism, lost love, and a general feel the "skid row" lifestyle. I used to think the song was about a soldier in the Vietnam war. The lyrics are capable of bending and blending themselves to encourage a variety of interpretations.



Wasted and wounded, it ain't what the moon did
I got what I paid for now
See you tomorrow; hey, Frank, can I borrow
A couple of bucks from you to go
Waltzing Matilda, waltzing Matilda?
You'll go waltzing Matilda with me

I'm an innocent victim of a blinded alley
And I'm tired of all these soldiers here
No one speaks English and everything's broken
And my Stacy's are soaking wet to go
Waltzing Matilda, waltzing Matilda
You'll go waltzing Matilda with me

Now the dogs are barking
And the taxi cabs parking
A lot they can do for me
I begged you to stab me
You tore my shirt open
And I'm down on my knees tonight
Old Bushmill's, I staggered
You buried the dagger
In your silhouette window light to go
Waltzing Matilda, waltzing Matilda
You'll go waltzing Matilda with me

Now I've lost my St Christopher now that I've kissed her
And the one-armed bandit knows
And the maverick Chinamen and the cold-blooded signs
And the girls down by the striptease shows go
Waltzing Matilda, waltzing Matilda
You'll go waltzing Matilda with me

No, I don't want your sympathy
The fugitives say that the streets aren't for dreaming now
Manslaughter dragnets and the ghosts that sell memories
They want a piece of the action anyhow, go
Waltzing Matilda, waltzing Matilda
You'll go waltzing Matilda with me

And you can ask any sailor and the keys from the jailer
And the old men in wheelchairs know
That Matilda's the defendant, she killed about a hundred
And she follows wherever you may go
Waltzing Matilda, waltzing Matilda
You'll go waltzing Matilda with me

And it's a battered old suitcase to a hotel someplace
And a wound that will never heal
No prima donna, the perfume is on
An old shirt that is stained with blood and whiskey
And goodnight to the street sweepers
The night watchman flame keepers
And goodnight, Matilda, too.



Tom Waits is one of nature's true oddballs. I did a post about his natal chart in 2009 - extract below:
Tom Waits, born 7 December 1949 at 7:25 am in Pomona, California. (Astrodatabank).
This singer, songwriter, composer and occasional actor doesn't immediately strike me as a Sun/Mercury Sagittarian with Sagittarius rising. His demeanor, his broken-down, hard-lived-in crackly voice, and the unrelenting melancholia seeping through his songs seems far too downbeat for bright and breezy, extravagant Sagittarius.





Neptune (creativity) sextile Sun is a helpful link for a song writer/composer. Jupiter, his Sun's ruler is in Aquarius conjoined with Venus, planet of the arts . Perhaps an Aquarian penchant for the unusual and unexpected is playing into the picture via his stage persona. Aquarius can be sensed in some of his more socially concerned lyrics.

Mars conjunct Saturn (a difficult combination of two planets often seen as having negative connotations) in Virgo form a challenging square (90*) aspect to Tom's natal Mercury, planet of communication. This Mars/Saturn link could well account for his draw towards the downbeat of life. His natal Moon in sensitive, moody Cancer just five degrees from Uranus, planet of the unexpected and rebellious echoes the peculiarly dismal impression Tom Waits projects.

The best way I can think of to describe Tom Waits' singing, to anybody who hasn't heard it, is "like the sadder, darker side of Louis Armstrong". Unexpected!

MUSIC MONDAY ~ Tom Waits. Adam Lambert.

Tom Waits, born 7 December 1949 at 7:25 am in Pomona, California. (Astrodatabank).

This singer, songwriter, composer and occasional actor doesn't immediately strike me as a Sun/Mercury Sagittarian with Sagittarius rising. His demeanor, his broken-down, hard-lived-in crackly voice, and the unrelenting melancholia seeping through his songs seems far too downbeat for bright and breezy, extravagant Sagittarius.






Neptune (creativity) sextile Sun is a helpful link for a song writer/composer. Jupiter, his Sun's ruler is in Aquarius conjoined with Venus, planet of the arts . Perhaps an Aquarian penchant for the unusual and unexpected is playing into the picture via his stage persona. Aquarius can be sensed in some of his more socially concerned lyrics too. This article refers: "Tom Waits and the Return of the Political Ballad"

Mars conjunct Saturn (a rather difficult combination of two planets often seen as having negative connotations) in Virgo form a challenging square (90*) aspect to Tom's natal Mercury, planet of communication. This Mars/Saturn link could well account for his draw towards the downbeat of life. His natal Moon in sensitive, moody Cancer just five degrees from Uranus, planet of the unexpected and rebellious echoes the peculiarly dismal impression Tom Waits projects.

The best way I can think of to describe Tom Waits' singing, to anybody who hasn't heard it, is "like the sadder, darker side of Louis Armstrong". Yes, unexpected!

I recall once, back in the UK, when my husband was staying there with me, we came across a recording on-line of Tom Waits singing "Somewhere" from West Side Story. We were fascinated! The husband copied it at once, sent it to his son (a graduate music major) with a note saying "You've never heard this song sung like this before!" I've found that one on YouTube, as well as my favourite from Tom Wait's repertoire:

"Tom Traubert's Blues"



"Somewhere"







MUSIC MONDAY UPDATE

We watched (well, semi-watched) the AMA Awards last night, toggling back and forth between the Awards and MASH repeats. I only really wanted to see Adam Lambert's performance, which closed the show, but we saw bits and pieces of the rest during commercial breaks. Not a lot to interest us, although Lady Ga-ga's number was fun, and as Himself said "It's so bad it's good and I like it!" Adam's number, "For Your Entertainment" was way over the top, risque - verging on "nasty". His voice didn't come across as the powerhouse it really is, and although I enjoyed hisnumber as a bit of fun (and that's what entertainment is supposed to be) I think he can do so very much better. The audience didn't seem too enraptured, and he flipped a finger at the end of his number. Not good. He's getting a lot of bad press today, I do hope he hasn't blown it (no pun intended).

Well - that's Aquarius/Aries for ya.

I note that Saturn in early Libra was opposing his Aries Moon yesterday - not exactly at the time of the show, but near enough to symbolise a bit of bother. He's appearing on Letterman's show tonight and promises to show us a different side of himself in the number he will sing.

Funny thing I've just noticed - Adam Lambert has Aquarius Sun & Aries Moon, so do I, and so does Alan Alda of MASH . One of 'em was watching t'other two last night.