So Many Dishes

Giving this prompt to a singer is like letting a bull loose in a field filled with red flags. Where to turn first? I once saw a t-shirt that said “70% of my brain cells are filled with song lyrics,” and I immediately thought, is that all? After all, 54 years after my senior recital, I can still remember most of the lyrics, in three different languages. Add in countless popular songs, the standards I learned from listening to my mom sing, theme songs from tv shows like Car 54, Where Are You? and The Addams Family, and you can see why I think 70% is conservative.

I grew up loving Broadway musicals, and memorized a lot of those songs, too, although I didn’t sing them for anyone but myself. One of my favorites from my oldest Broadway collection is Summertime from Porgy and Bess. I’ve always loved that song, and I finally got the chance to sing it a few years ago. Then, last month, when we were on the river cruise, I ended up singing with the pianist in the lounge on the last evening. We were there during the heat wave, and he said, “it’s been so hot, why don’t you sing Summertime? It’s so appropriate.” So I did, and he was right. The song just evokes a sultry day, when you don’t feel like moving.

I could have made a case for a lot of other songs, but I found a recording of me singing Summertime exactly two years ago today. I think that’s a sign I made the right choice.

Note: apparently you need to open the post in Reader in order to access the video.