It's the spirit of optimism and joy in those lyrics, though, that this post wants to focus on. Anyone who has lived in the UK will know what a hopeful and joyful expression it is to 'see the sun in wintertime'.
In Manhattan, Woody Allen's character asks and answers a fundamental question: Why is life worth living?
It's a very good question. Um... Well, There are certain things I guess that make it worthwhile. Uh... Like what... okay... um... For me, uh... ooh... I would say... what, Groucho Marx, to name one thing... uh... um... and Willie Mays... and um... the 2nd movement of the Jupiter Symphony... and um... Louis Armstrong, recording of Potato Head Blues... um... Swedish movies, naturally... Sentimental Education by Flaubert... uh... Marlon Brando, Frank Sinatra... um... those incredible Apples and Pears by Cezanne... uh... the crabs at Sam Wo's... uh... Tracy's face...
I thought it may be fun to answer this question myself and, like Woody, the noises like a blocked drain are never far away. I bet he agonised over this monologue/voiceover - I'd love to see the draft. I bet it had heaps of corrections.
Anyway, I thought I'd give it a crack.
Why is life worth living? Okay, for me I would say Woody Allen movies for one thing, and, like him, Groucho, naturally, and the memory of my father' smile as we would connect over Marx Brothers movies is another...all of The Beatles albums, of course, but especially the feeling I get listening to Don't Let Me Down and George's guitar surge in the album version of Let It Be and the opening of Come Together or Hard Day's Night and Paul's count off to start I Saw Her Standing There.. Charlie George...Wordsworth's Tintern Abbey...the Tao Te Ching...Star Wars, of course and the books of William Goldman and Nick Hornby...uh...Bill Murray, Shakespeare's Henry V...those incredible images of Turner's....Picasso's Guernica in the Tate Modern...the next edition of The Guardian and Mojo are definitely worth living for...um..Walden by Henry David Thoreau...the promise of Arsenal's next season..walks with Jacky along the embankment towards Westminster...the hamburgers at Burger Fuel...and um...Hendrix, his recording Electric Ladyland and that start to Voodoo Chile (Slight Return)...Big Swifty, of course and...uh...Emily Blunt...The Catcher In The Rye by Salinger...John Ford's The Grapes Of Wrath and Henry Fonda's Tom Joad...the taste of Coca Cola..the picture of my parent's on their honeymoon...um....and... hearing David Crosby's laugh...hearing Joni Mitchell's Hejira and Big Country's live album one more time...my memories - of the angels in my life...of our children...and, uh...Jacky's face...
Love and peace - Wozza
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