By Maki
According to superstition anyone who hears an owl hoot three times is going to have bad luck. After a weekend of listening to songs about our apparently not-so-wise-winged-friends, I must be in for shed-loads. If I were superstitious that is, of course.
From now until the dawn
Time is his
And from the bough he starts his silent glide
From the thicket to the ground
Slapp Happy hit on one of the main reasons many of us are in awe of the owl. It owns the night and moves so effortlessly and silently through the darkness that it does seem sinister, menacing even.
But beautiful as well. To my ears the most beautiful song nominated this week was The Owl of Love, Shara Worden’s voice will linger long after the column is written, and the topic put to bed. Haunting, which seems appropriate as owls are the only birds that can happily coexist with ghosts if you believe in them, of course.
So what do they get up to during the day you ask? Well if Death and Vanilla are to be believed it seems they dress up as humans and run around in the woods.
I’ve been reading up on owls and have discovered that if you dream of owls all sorts of things can happen. Most of them are quite unnerving; getting into fights; dying (very unnerving that one); meeting the devil; a risky or compromising situation; the list is almost endless.
And apparently the colour of the owl in your dreams is of paramount significance as well. Thank god it’s the Lady in Strawbs’ song that is Fuschia. I wouldn’t have stopped worrying otherwise. What could it mean?
The Night Owl is a common figure in song. There were probably more Night Owls nominated than any other. Which, given the nocturnal nature of the beast, got me thinking that perhaps we’re a little too literal when coming up with popular expressions. Anyway, my favourite tautologists this week were Messrs Rafferty, Chandler and Dale with their Owls of a Nocturnal Persuasion.
Canned Heat’s Owl Song doesn’t actually mention owls but is a self-referential “bluesy testament[s] to himself” written by Al "Blind Owl" Wilson. There are several massive holes in my musical education and there is a conspicuously large, Canned Heat-shaped one. I love this place for prompting me to do something about these things.
Owl Eyes is about as confusing lyrically as anything by Devendra Banhart that I have heard but it’s mesmerising and whimsical and I just loved it. If he resubmitted it as “Monkey Testicles” for Primate Reproduction week, I’d probably re-list it!
And to end we observe the owls boarding Noah’s Ark. Elis Regina’s A Corujinha has the sweetness and melancholy that she does so perfectly. Truly bewitching, like the echo of an owl’s plaintive hoot on misty, moonlit night.
The All Night Owl A-List:
Slapp Happy / Henry Cow – The Owl
Clogs ft Shara Worden – The Owl of Love
Death and Vanilla – California Owls
The Strawbs – Lady Fuschia
Gerry Rafferty – Night Owl
Gene Chandler – Night Owl
Dick Dale – Night Owl
Canned Heat – An Owl Song
Devendra Banhart – Owl Eyes
Elis Regina – A Corujinha
The Beaky B-List Playlist:
Ma Rainey – Black Cat Hoot Owl Blues
Kevin Ayers – The Owl
The Lovin’ Spoonful – Night Owl Blues
Silver Apples – The Owl
Laurie Anderson – Beautiful Pea Green Boat
Sparklehorse – Spirit Ditch
TV On The Radio – Stork and Owl
Agnes Obel – Parliament of Owls
Saint Etienne – Night Owl
Dead Kennedys – I Am The Owl
Guru’s Wild Owl Pick:
Antonio Machado’s poem for children “Sobre el Olivar“ sung by Enrique Montoya accompanied by Paco de Lucía. The Barn Owl is central to this story.
Over the olive grove
The barn owl was seen
Flying and flying
Field after field after field
Among the olive trees
The white farmhouses.
And through a large window
The barn owl flew
Into the cathedral.
These playlists were inspired by readers' song nominations from last week's topic: Never too witty: songs about owls. The next topic will launch on Thursday at 1pm UK time.
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