I'll Be Seeing You
[ Sammy Fain/Irving Kahal ][ Various Artists ]
I'll be seeing you in all the old familiar places
That this heart of mine embraces all day through
In that small cafe, the park across the way
The children's carousel, the chestnut trees, the wishing well
I'll be seeing you in every lovely summer's day
In everything that's light and gay
I'll always think of you that way
I'll find you in the morning sun
And when the night is new
I'll be looking at the moon
But I'll be seeing you
I'll be seeing you in every lovely summer's day
In everything that's light and gay
I'll always think of you that way
I'll find you in the morning sun
And when the night is new
I'll be looking at the moon
But I'll be seeing you
* * * * *
While we're on the subject, I'll post on one of my favorite sappy songs of a bygone era - "I'll Be Seeing You" though I didn't bother to look for a copy of my favorite version by Billie Holiday. Rosemary Clooney should be enough. The divine Miss Holiday is sampled in three romance flicks - A Time of Destiny (1988) with Timothy Hutton and Melissa Leo, William Hurt as the heavy; Stealing Beauty (1996) by Bernardo Bertolucci featuring Liv Tyler in her luscious glory (and oh, check the pubes of Rachel Weisz in this one, it's one of the movie's defining moments for me, hehe); and The Notebook (2006) with Rachel MacAdams and Ryan Gosling.
I also like The Chairman Frank Sinatra's version, but while Ol' Blue Eyes in his take carries a confident reassurance, Lady Day's fragile but full-bodied and sensual poignancy does the trick for me.
"A Time of Destiny" is at best in capturing the mood of late '30s - early '40s Europe. As for the rest, well, it degenerates into melodramatic goop. Still, I was into a "Romantic" phase at the time and this movie resonated with me. Timothy Hutton was still a matinee idol at the time, but looking at Melissa Leo's current publicity shots, you wouldn't have believed she was a plausible ingenue. The movie and "I'll Be Seeing You" are forever linked in my memory banks.
I watched "Stealing Beauty" only after I saw the vidcaps of Liv Tyler's exposed breast and the aforementioned Ms. Weisz (sue me, I'm shallow). The movie hardly saw distribution in the Philippines and I wouldn't have touched it were it not a Bertolucci film. Actually, the movie is WAAAY BEYOND its value vis-a-vis those vidcaps (much more nudity, hehe), though admittedly this is not one of Bertolucci's best. Still, he captures the visceral qualities of a young woman's coming-of-age.
I panned "The Notebook" the first time I saw it, which is the normal treatment chick flicks get from me, but over time it has achieved some re-watchability. Though Rachel MacAdams gets a lot of credit for this one, Ryan Gosling's understated but intense performance provides a good counterpoint (and he captures James Garner's spirit here, too). I'm not surprised he received an Academy Award nomination for his role in "Half Nelson". And of all the luck, he ends up with Ms. MacAdams in real life, too.
For all those people floating on clouds at the moment, this song is a great "goodnight and goodbye" song. An orchestral arrangement would be a great lift too, for that slow dance (preferably with soft lights, if not moonlight). And to lay it on nice and thick ---
You are standing in a garden in the early evening, the grass and the flowers are wispy with new-fallen dew, and soft lights come on just about at that, sending pocket rainbows everywhere in your line of sight. Through that mild kaleidoscopic haze, your eyes mist up a little even as a slight breeze steps in from somewhere. You don't know where it's coming from, but it enfolds you like a fleeting embrace. There is a slight shiver running down your spine as you take in the aromas of the garden, fresh and sweet and filled with secret longing for a trip down nostalgia lane.
It's a fine time to be alive.
(AND THEN) ----
(PURRRRURRRRUUUURRRUUUUUUTTTT!!!)
Your friend lets out a great big fart in the middle of that romantic scene! HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!
Something like this really happened, though we were in a retreat instead of going at an all-nighter on chick flicks. Tagaytay, 1995. I wouldn't want to mention my friend's name (or if my friend is a he or a she). We were actually having a Closed-Eye Process (which should be rightfully called autogenics) with our mentor Br. Vic Franco. We were getting to the nice part (Br. Vic was utterly mesmerizing us) when the BIG BAD FART came on.
Our mentor did his best to patch it up with a self-amused segue and tried to get us back to point. But the mood definitely had shifted. It was all we could do from chortling, but we had it under control until somebody let out a big guffaw and then the floodgates opened --- everyone convulsed into laughter and the group threw itself into stitches. Yup, mission accomplished. The group was on the same page and we actually focused very well for the rest of the session. I don't remember the rest of that session except that we had to push our buddy Robert's car on the way back home, and of course the No-Flush incident, which I'll take up in another piece.
See, it's for moments like these that we should celebrate the role of love in our lives.
As for all of you whom I consider my friends, I'll be seeing you. Here and everywhere.
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