First, I admit to owning one (30 gb video version, black), and second, confess to playing it more through my Bose or in the car (definitely not a Bose in there) with one of those fm transmit devices than to actually podding up with earbuds, though this may be due to the nature of my work and the hours I keep. I spent some excellent time during summer evenings watching videos on its tiny screen, earbuds in, podded out on my porch.
The point ? Over at Two Dishes But To One Table Evan, the author, has a response to someone asking how many songs on his ipod begin with the "5 W" question words: who, what, when, where, and why. This seemed interesting, especially as Evan termed it, these are "the questions I walk around listening to." As confessed, I haven't done much walking with them lately, but I was curious to see what would turn up. Alas, apparently there is a paucity of questions in the songs I spend time with, but here is the result of my search of my ipod library. Out of 316 items:
Who is this Man ? ; Bob Telson/Lee Breur Gospel at Colonus
What A Wonderful World; Armstrong
What a Bore; Muzzle
When We Collide; KD Lang
O Brother, Where Art Thou ? (Album)
Why do the Nations So Furiously Rage ? (Handel, Messiah)
•Unless you count the album title for O Brother, Where are Thou ?, it is interesting that the only two songs that actually ask a question come from oratorios.
•No where’s or why’s on my list, at least not as the first word or a question.
And so I decided to check for "how ?," the artful question that binds the five W’s into a narrative. I found three, but note that only one is interrogative, asking in what mannner; the other two express magnitude:
How Shall I See You Through ? (Gospel at Colonus again)
How Great Our Lord; Randy Newman’s Faust
How Far You’ve Come The Wallflowers, Rebel, Sweetheart
Image: St. Patrick's Day Ice Storm, 2007
