Saturday, January 02, 2010

Make it a Nancy Sinatra / Lee Hazlewood kind of year

Nancy Sinatra is a classic 60s icon for the ages. Her collaborations with songwriter Lee Hazlewood (he of the consciousness-exploring gunslinger image) helped make America one of the greatest places in the history of Earth's habitation of humankind. Let's explore the philosophical life lessons of pop music's dynamic duo.

Hang tough in 2010, everyone. Know when it's best to just walk away from a psychotic situation. Sometimes having the right footwear is your best defense.


Make time for romance in your life. It doesn't always have to be with a person. Sometimes passions run deep for the concepts that make life worth living: food, wine, art, silver spurs, a nice string arrangement. Just enjoy in moderation, especially with the spurs.


Your narrative doesn't always have to make sense. It might be complete nonsense. As long as you have a mythical, sweet-singing goddess to break in and alter your key changes, you'll be fine.


Let your freak flag fly. Maybe someone will come along and make a video of it. And it will include a hot air balloon. I think if you keep a positive attitude and wear a polka-dotted item of clothing once in a while, this can come true.


And if the blues set in, don't let them do you in. Just learn some blues chord progressions. Cathartic!


A seminal moment for me was meeting these two backstage at the Filmore in '95 when Nancy was touring to promote her album, "One More Time." My dad, who has an excellent radar for greatness, made a beeline for Hazlewood (a surprise guest at the show), shook his hand and told him how cool he was. You can be sure that if my dad makes a point of crossing the room to shake your hand to tell you how great you are, you're pretty fucking great. We clustered around Nancy like preteens at a Beatles concert while she urged us to sample the crafts services offerings so they wouldn't go to waste. I have it on very reliable source that she is a most kind-hearted soul. I do not doubt this one iota. If only 2010 could be so great. Here's to hoping.

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