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I was watching a band busking in the square the other day. They were quite good and it got me thinking.
Very few of us are blessed with the ability to sing completely in tune, and perfect pitch is a quality possessed by but the chosen few. But most of us try to belt out a tune now and again whether it be in the pub on karaoke night, or in the shower using the spray head as a mike.
That’s like life, isn’t it? We try, but no matter how much effort we put into it we don’t always get it right. And songs mirror life. They can be melancholy or uplifting, funny or sad. Some once said ‘Life’s a song – sing it’.
There was a song doing the rounds many years ago by a band called the New Squeakers (or something like that). In it, they said they wanted to ‘teach the world to sing in perfect harmony’. A noble aspiration, but sadly one which will probably never be achieved.
On that note, or the closest one you can get to it, let’s all sing a song!
Oh dear, that was not such a good idea after all
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© Ayr/Gray.’
Thanks to Jenne Gray and C.E.Ayr for hosting The Unicorn Challenge.
If only we could sing together in harmony, how much better life would be.
I couldn’t agree more, Sadje.
🙏🏼🙏🏼🙏🏼
Congratulations! If there was a contest you would have won. I speak English and although not well-read, I do read and can probably infer meanings of words that I’ve seen before or just skip over them. But today I found a word in your story that I had never seen nor heard before. I found it in the dictionary, but I could not find a synonym for it in the thesaurus.
What is this word? I’m not telling you, but I have probably done a bit of _ _ _ _ing here on WP. Maybe you will reply with my mystery word?
If I have the right word, and I think I do, it means playing music in the street or another public place for donations.
Spot on!
I suspect you are referring to the fifth word in the first sentence, something you might benefit from financially were you to venture outside and have ago!
I suspect you are right. And I suspect you don’t know how to count. And you might suspect I was once a kindergarten teacher. 😉
I suspect I will be staying inside.
I can only count as far as five, Miss. I should have said 5+1!
Nice write, Keith. Now I can’t get that blasted song out of my head! Eye roll.
Thanks, Nance. Sorry ’bout that! It does go a bit!
Yes but not as much as Disney’s “It’s a Small World”! Gotcha back, Keith!
You are so naughty! How could you do that?
Haha! Count your blessings I didn’t post the actual video. That would have been just too horrible!
I have only one thing to add to this dialogue – Awimbawe awimbawe…
You’re welcome!
That’s all I need!!!
…especially not if I’m singing along.
Although I can always ‘Imagine’!
Good story, Keith.
Thanks, Jenne. You could always lip-sync, no one would know!
My entire family used to do that in church! A row of Grays mouthing lustily, and not producing a discordant note. Which wouldn’t have been the case if we’d actually sung!
Song, no matter how out of tune it is, does bring the people together. After all, Coca Cola thought this song would do so, while drinking their product!
I’m a fabulous singer. In my car. With the windows up. And the radio drowning me out 😉
Absolutely so, Dale, Coca Cola certainly thought so!
Our poor cars do have a lot to put up with!
I say they succeeded because for many people, this song will forever be associated with them.
They do! Thankfully, they can take a lot 😉
A great response to the given prompt. Such a hopeful song from back in the day…the coming Age of Aquarius with “harmony and understanding.” How we dreamed before the twin towers came down! Today the song sounds more like, “This land is my land. I’m taking over.” Pardon my cynicism. 😉
Thanks so much. I take your point, Christine!
Oh, the dancers……………………………… some things you cannot un-see
I know what you mean, Di, the girl in yellow really made me cringe!
It makes you wonder what they were actually hearing to dance like that!
I’m all in!
Great!
So true signing is so fun even out of tune, I find it enjoyable.
Who needs perfect harmony?
Exactly eh. Sorry for the typo. I just noticed in my earlier comment, I wrote “signing” instead of “singing”
I didn’t notice that! I had a deaf customer at my pub who used to sign his song on karaoke night!
Sign language singing…brilliant! Thank you Keith.
Singing is fun, and I promise, I only do it when alone or in the balcony at church where no one has to hear me but sweet Becca, and she never complains. My husband is in the choir, and I help the choir by not singing!
Haha, that’s brilliant, Mimi!!!
What an excellent story. That perfect combination of a situation familiar to most, with characters we can identify with… hinting at something that seems heartbreaking out of reach.
Songs bind us. When one sings from the heart, it doesn’t matter if it’s out of tune 🎶
I think the message is that some songs are best left unsung by some singers!