Tom the backroads traveller hosts this weekly meme.
September 2018 - Toronto ON
I warned you that I would be Elton fixated for a while after seeing his farewell concert.
"Candle in the Wind" is a threnody with music and lyrics by Elton John and Bernie Taupin. It was originally written in 1973, in honour of Marilyn Monroe,who had died 11 years earlier.
New word to me!! Threnody????
A threnody is a wailing ode, song, hymn or poem of mourning composed or performed as a memorial to a dead person. The term originates from the Greek word θρηνῳδία (threnoidia), from θρῆνος (threnos, "wailing") and ᾠδή (oide, "ode"), the latter ultimately from the Proto-Indo-European root *h₂weyd- ("to sing") that is also the precursor of such words as "ode", "tragedy", "comedy", "parody", "melody" and "rhapsody".
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The lyrics of the song are a sympathetic portrayal of the life of Marilyn Monroe. (The song's opening line "Goodbye, Norma Jean" refers to Monroe's real name, Norma Jeane (more commonly spelled Jean) Baker.) Taupin said the song is about "the idea of fame or youth or somebody being cut short in the prime of their life. The song could have been about James Dean, it could have been about Montgomery Clift, it could have been about Jim Morrison ... how we glamorise death, how we immortalise people." The single release of the original song reached No. 11 in the UK charts in 1974. Taupin was inspired to write the song after hearing the phrase "candle in the wind" used in tribute to Janis Joplin.
A threnody is a wailing ode, song, hymn or poem of mourning composed or performed as a memorial to a dead person. The term originates from the Greek word θρηνῳδία (threnoidia), from θρῆνος (threnos, "wailing") and ᾠδή (oide, "ode"), the latter ultimately from the Proto-Indo-European root *h₂weyd- ("to sing") that is also the precursor of such words as "ode", "tragedy", "comedy", "parody", "melody" and "rhapsody".
.
The lyrics of the song are a sympathetic portrayal of the life of Marilyn Monroe. (The song's opening line "Goodbye, Norma Jean" refers to Monroe's real name, Norma Jeane (more commonly spelled Jean) Baker.) Taupin said the song is about "the idea of fame or youth or somebody being cut short in the prime of their life. The song could have been about James Dean, it could have been about Montgomery Clift, it could have been about Jim Morrison ... how we glamorise death, how we immortalise people." The single release of the original song reached No. 11 in the UK charts in 1974. Taupin was inspired to write the song after hearing the phrase "candle in the wind" used in tribute to Janis Joplin.
Here in Toronto at the MZTV Museum we have her television.
Outside the Four Seasons in Beverly Hills LA
Los Angeles CA
Savannah GA
Las Vegas NV
London England
Las Vegas NV
Birmingham England
Los Angeles CA
On a bus tour in Amsterdam Holland the guide referred to this bridge as the Marilyn Monroe.
...Jackie, a wonderful collection of iconic images of Marilyn. Threnody is a new term for me too. Thanks for sharing and I hope that you enjoy your week.
ReplyDeleteI've heard Threnody used before, but in a different context.
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