KNIGHTHOODS

The Beatles and Mick Jagger have all received knighthoods for their service to music, the Beatles in 1996 and Jagger in 2003.  Jagger's honor, like the man, has been much more controversial.   Jagger, of ironic,  devilish music,  a countercultural icon, and a checkered personal life is now Sir Michael Phillip Jagger, gone all respectable. Keith Richard has chided Jagger for accepting the honor, saying that this is is not what THE ROLLING STONES  are all about.  It does seem odd. The author of "Under My Thumb,"(I Can't Get No)Satisfaction, and "Sympathy for the Devil," has been awarded such an honor.  He once called the queen "the chief witch," and she stymied his award for several years.  Queen Elizabeth scheduled to be elsewhere at his ceremony, leaving Prince Charles to do the honors.

So perhaps the Lady Gaga, who is nearly nude in many videos, and whose songs, persona, and fashion styles have been criticized as immoral and vulgar, will be made a Dame one day. One thing's for sure, they probably won't use BAD ROMANCE  as a background music video.

YESTERDAY..AND TODAY, BEATLES BUTCHER ALBUM COVER1966

Speaking of Gaga's meat dress, it is startling to realize that the idea was not new to her. Even the Fab Four experimented with this look.  In 1966 Capitol Records planned to issue their ninth compilation record.  For various reasons the "nice group" planned to change their image to show they were aware of life's cruelties.   In a surreal photo shoot created by an Australian photographer, Bob Whitaker, he posed them in butcher's smocks, with sausages and meat draped around them, and decapitated dolls completing the bizarre look. 
  John Lennon in particular wanted this picture because he was tired of the Beatles' reputation as innocuous compared to the rebellious Rolling Stones.  Another reason he stated was that the cover reflected the groups' commentary on the Vietnam war.
Disk jockeys and those who had received advance copies strongly protested the cover, and it was withdrawn after one month. Capitol Records discarded many of these in a landfill, while others had the offensive photo covered over with a generic picture.  The surrealistic photo shoot pictures can be seen here:

 http://www.neatorama.com/2012/09/13/The-Beatles-Troublesome-Butcher-Album-Cover/

THE LONG DARK TEA-TME OF THE SOUL, BY DOUGLAS ADAMS

Another oldy but goodie , TEA-TIME was published in 1990. I hadn't read any Adams since I  slogged through "LIFE, THE UNIVERSE, AND EVERYTHING," and learned that the answer was 42. Bleah.

Throughout most of this book I was thinking, "This is wonderful. Why didn't anybody tell me that Douglas Adams was a comedic genius." An explosion in an airport is declared an Act of God.  But which god? Adam's world building is similar to Terry Pratchett's, and quite fun. But when I reached the end, he didn't stick the landing.

I realized that Pratchett's conclusions are sharply defined. While he doesn't  beat you over the head, you are not left, for example, in any doubt as to why a few City Guards wear sprigs of lilac in their helmets on a certain day. (NIGHT GUARD.)The ending truly satisfies the long buildup.

With Douglas Adams, I am not sure quite what happened.  The payoff doesn't reward the reader. I am reminded of Neal Stephenson who creates a fine story line in an alternate universe, and then throws it away. I would have rated Tea-Time as a five, but I'd drop it to a three for not finishing what he started. It's still worth a read.

BAD ROMANCE LADY GAGA MUSIC

 I had barely taken notice of Lady Gaga, being only aware that she had outrageous costumes, such as the meat dress. I hadn't listened to her until I heard "BAD ROMANCE" at a store.  I really enjoyed the lively beat and chorus.  Then I watched her video, was confused, and hated it. The white wedding dress with the polar bear skin train was just odd, and the explanation for the video didn't help.  I'd have dropped Gaga, but my sister sent me the link to a parody, "BAD PROJECT." This is the lament of a graduate student who's been lumbered with a bad lab project and hates her life. As a former biology geek, and witness to my sister's wrestles with her PhD., I identified completely.
“Bad Project” http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fl4L4M8m4d0
There are many, many Gaga parodies out there, not surprising because she's almost a parody herself.
If you brave the original, you'll be rewarded with 
 “Bad Romance Women's Suffrage” an unexpectedly touching video about the fight for women's suffrage.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IYQhRCs9IHM

The inimitable Weird Al's “PERFORM THIS WAY,” parody of “BORN THIS

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ss_BmTGv43M

The best complication of the parodies:http://lookatmenow.hubpages.com/hub/The-Best-Lady-Gaga-Parodies-on-Youtube

I'm really attached to “Bad Project” and “Bad Romance Women's Suffrage.”Give them a try.

A FALL OF MOONDUST, ARTHUR CLARKE (1960)

I've been re-reading some favorite books, and this one is an old friend. Set in the near future, a fascinating tourist destination on the moon is the SEA OF THIRST, filled with a peculiar kind of moondust which has developed over billions of years. As the tourbus SELENE returns to the base, a huge underground cavern collapses, and the bus falls into the pit. The bus is trapped underground with the pilot PAT HARRIS, and twenty-two passengers. Luckily, one of the tourists is COMMODORE HANSTEEN, a distinguished space pilot who welds the passengers into a team to survive. Besides Pat's viewpoint we follow several others, especially CHIEF ENGINEER LAWRENCE, who must rescue them. The dust puts up trap after trap for LAWRENCE--first the heat exchangers fail, and the passengers risk heat stroke. Then the other systems of the bus fail slowly, and the passengers experience oxygen deprivation, a further fall of the bus into the now muddy dust, and finally a fire.  Each challenge is met with creativity by LAWRENCE, but the SEA OF THIRST seems to be malevolently toying with him.


It's a great yarn, made better by  CLARKE's excellent writing. "(The dust) had reached the lower edge of the windows; now it was creeping up the panes; and at last it had covered them completely. Pat cut the motors before they tore themselves to pieces, and as he did so, the rising tide blotted out the last glimpse of the crescent Earth.  In darkness and in silence, they were sinking into the moon." Gives me chills every time.

THE NOVICE'S TALE, BY MARGARET FRAZER

Set in a 15th century English convent, this series stars the pragmatic Benedictine nun Sister Frevisse. She's in the Brother Cadfael vein, someone whose real-world experience prepares her for challenges outside the cloister, but she's unique, and not an imitation.

The devout novice Sister Thomasine, two weeks away from her final vows, is forced back to worldly concerns when her braying virago aunt Ermentrude arrives at the convent determined to wrench her away from her prayers. When Ermentrude dies the "crowner," (coroner) wants to sweep the case under due to Ermentrude's hard-living, hard-drinking life. When Frevisse proves that it's poison, Sister Thomasine then becomes the main suspect and the crowner is eager to hang her. In a wonderful scene, Thomasine claims sanctuary while the angry nuns sing Dies Irae in a face-off with the sheriff's men.

The convent life glows under Frazer's hands. Although it's all but impossible to believe the devouts loved their eight daily services, she makes us believe that they do. Her historical details are fascinating. Of note, her character Joliffe, a traveling actor who solves mysteries, made his appearance in a Frevisse novel and now has his own series.

BLAMELESS, BY GAIL CARRIGER--character, Prof. Lyall

Another note about this werewolf/vampire series: I recently listened to the CD and fell in love again with Prof. Randolph Lyall, the always correctly dressed and greatly put-upon Beta of the London Woolsey Werewolf pack. His huge Alpha, Lord Connall Maccon, gets ridiculously drunk over a personal crisis. (It takes formaldehyde, as werewolves are not affected much by alcohol.) Knowing that the Alpha is incapacitated, a "loner" wolf comes to challenge for the control of the Woolsey pack, and Prof. Lyall must fight in his leader's place. He's much smaller than most weres, but has skill, speed, cunning, and over a century of experience. During the fight the drunken Alpha Maccon arrives and literally tosses Lyall to the sidelines. Lyall hates being untidy, even in wolf form, and he cleans up the blood "surreptitiously licking his ruff like a cat." Wonderful character.

And the series also has the flamboyantly gay vampire Lord Akeldama, who's invented the Pink Slurp drink--blood mixed with champagne. Now you're all set for the next W-V party. Be sure to get the cravat straight.