One of the saddest days in the year for me are Father’s Day, it is the one where it becomes clear that I have no children and nieces and nephew aren’t a substitute. It is a day dreamy concern (I don’t like the responsibility of a woman or a cat so it would be a form of hell…) but when you hear songs like this it triggers something. Less the urge to continue the Iman line and much more the urge to be loved. Both are selfish, of course. And both work much better as daydreams…
1 Father And Daughter – Paul Simon – Paul Simon’s ode to his daughter” “I believe a light that shines on you will shine on you forever and though I can’t guarantee there’s nothing scary hiding under your bed, I’m gonna stand guard like a postcard of a Golden Retriever and never leave ’til I leave you with a sweet dream in your head.”: so clear and uncluttered in its love – A
2 – St. Judy’s Comet – Paul Simon – Another song for his child, a lullabye, this time his son is the recipient. Best line? Where he makes his famous Daddy look so dumb – A
3 – Put It There – Paul McCartney – Famous fathers and their children continued, Macca reconciles with his son and it is so Paul like to find the peace in the argument. It’s all that matters in the end – A
4 – Back Seat Of My Car – This is a masterpiece, one of Macca’s finest constructions and to my mind better than anything on Band On The Ru , the orchestrated soaring arrangement never get in the way of the father and daughter: busy hiding from the world, a father and daughter see the world stationery- A+
5 – Beautiful Boy – John Lennon – Nobody is quite sure (I actually read somewhere it came from a mid-40s English poet) but most people attribute “Life is what happens to you when you’re busy making other plans” to cartoonist Allen Saunders. Be that as it may, he sure didn’t sing it the way Lennon did in this lovely song and heartbreaker, as indeed, Lennon won’t be around to watch his song grow up – A