thursday soundbites, no. 3

When I was still a slave to Bra and Panty Land, one of the double-edged swords about standing around in that place for eight hours was the musical selection piping through the speakers. A double-edged sword, I say, because some of the stuff -- in fact, quite a lot of it -- was really good music, music I either already knew and liked or music by artists I was interested in and came to like.

So that's the good edge of the sword. The bad edge? They played that GD music on a loop, and there weren't that many songs in the repertoire. So after a while, no matter how much I like "Pumpkin Soup" by Kate Nash, it started to get on my nerves. Particularly because, you may recall, this was the song in which they felt the need to bleep out the word 'bum.'

There was only one song that never seemed to cross over from "fun to sing along to because I know all the words" land into "want to commit sepukku because my ears are bleeding from the repetition" territory.

That song was called "Hanging On Too Long," and it's by that little bird in the picture, Duffy. (To be fair, Duffy is actually my second-favorite British soul singer of the moment, coming in a close runner-up to Adele.)

She's a recent Grammy and BRIT Award winner for her debut album Rockferry, but I do have to issue one disclaimer before you run out and buy it. I don't exactly love everything on Rockferry. In fact, had I jumped off a building while working at Victoria's Secret, the song "Serious" would likely have been noted near the top of my suicide letter. That is mostly because I find the lyrics and melody noxious, though, and little to do with Duffy herself. I mean I can't deny she sings the hell out of the song, even if it makes me wish I were in a live reeanctment of Alfred Hitchcock's The Birds.

All tangents aside, Duffy has a growing spot in my heart. And it's all because of this song, which I now hope I have not talked up too much so as to leave you disappointed that it didn't live up to my worship service. Ah well. Enjoy.

Duffy - "Hanging On Too Long"



cheers,
elizabeth