星期二, 5月 27, 2008

近來雜記及尋秦記有感

同事W君搬家,老婆強制他只可佔用一半書櫃,而此君藏書亦豐,真要盡數打包、搬運、開封、上架也是一大工程,於是同事皆知嗜讀小說的我就非常lucky地接手了兩百本上下的書,其中包括遠流出版的一套101本的西洋偵探小說:謀殺專門店,以及黃易的尋秦記。小黃看到這一落一落的書,先是大皺眉頭,但看上了這101本『巨著』(精裝的磚塊書)陳列出來可以讓書房更『氣派』,又可以順便逼迫我清理架上的專業文件、資料,索性花了一個晚上的時間幫忙清理、排列書架,讓我省了不少工夫。當然,過去割省不下的一些資料我也清了出去做資源回收(遂塵封進記憶深處),一些工作上要用的工具書則擺到公司去(免得公司座位的書架空空如也,讓雜物給佔領了)。

W提到他有尋秦記時,我非常興奮、期待。因為偶爾看過幾集古天樂演出的港劇,覺得是非常有想像力的故事,兼且黃易在科幻小說也相當有名,我其實對他也有一些好奇。這一陣子開始K起尋秦記,才發現跟電視的落差還不小哩!首先是項少龍其人,港劇實在頗為美化這個角色,書裡的他(特別是前三、四集)實在可以算是色狼一隻:P,古天樂只能算是風流多情而已。不過,進行到五集之後,故事越來越精彩,穿插著戰國時代的名人軼事、征戰謀略,反而港劇不及小說(只可惜我對戰國歷史不熟,不然應該可以看出更多樂趣)。雖然項某人到了後來已經不是那麼地用下半身思考,不過這個角色註定要從頭到尾貫穿全書,所以一定一路平安到結尾,再加上書中所有的女人(不論何性情)盡皆拜倒在他的盔甲下、臣服在他彷若韋小寶前世的18摸功夫下,實在是個無趣之極的人物(倚天的張無忌亦然,但倚天的戰爭好看!)。

目前『用功』到第14集的我居然挺喜歡書中龍陽君這個角色(也是很奇怪啊我:D)。

星期日, 5月 25, 2008

小藍入手

其實這是回憶文了,不過為了自己畢竟有持之以恆(雖然使用得不大頻繁),所以還是記錄一下。

===============

話說更早之前,大約是2007秋,第一次看到T2的小芒果,是Ruby的愛駒,後來還陪她參加鐵人賽、環半島、...。非常驚訝於看起來不怎樣的小摺騎起來居然很穩!因為小車先入為主給人的感覺就是較輕、不穩,而且姿勢不像淑女車可以坐得直挺挺的,更增加不穩定感。

過了一陣子,弟弟也在瘋騎單車,公路車、小摺、改車、...玩得不亦樂乎,然後單車練習曲上演,油價狂漲,回到工作崗位的我也隨著工作漸上軌道,運動時間縮減(考慮騎車上班);對於可以方便帶著跑的小折越來越心動。沒想到不論T2、T3都非常搶手,訂了藍色T2之後,又隔了一、兩個月才入手。

我的愛駒小藍(攝於20080801):

星期二, 5月 06, 2008

American Pie -- Don McLean

在第一時間知道Don McLean要來台灣,我估量著17:30一下班直接衝台北,是趕得上這場演唱會的,便馬上買了門票。原先,我是衝著『Vincent』這首歌,但在演唱會上聽到了『American Pie』、再查過歌詞後,發現它遠較『Vincent』更動我心;也許是因為『American Pie』的曲和詞都較前者更為強烈、直接。
===
American pie Don McLean

A long long time ago
I can still remember
How that music used to make me smile
And I knew if I had my chance
That I could make those people dance
And maybe they'd be happy for a while
But February made me shiver
  with every paper I'd deliver
Bad news on the doorstep
I couldn't take one more step
I can't remember if I cried
When I read about his widowed bride
But something touched me deep inside
The day the music died
So...

*Bye, bye Miss American Pie
Drove my Chevy to the levee but the levee was dry
Them good ole boys were drinking whiskey and rye
Singing this'll be the day that I die
This'll be the day that I die

Did you write the book of love
And do you have faith in God above
If the Bible tells you so?
Now do you believe in rock and roll?
Can music save your mortal soul?
And can you teach me how to dance real slow?

Well, I know that you're in love with him
'cause I saw you dancing in the gym
You both kicked off your shoes
Man, I dig those rhythm and blues
I was a lonely teenage broncing buck
With a pink carnation and a pickup truck
But I knew I was out of luck
The day the music died
I started singing(*)

Now, for ten years we've been on our own
And moss grows fat on a rolling stone
But that's not how it used to be
When the jester sang for the king and queen
In a coat he borrowed from James Dean
And a voice that came from you and me
Oh and while the king was looking down
The jester stole his thorny crown
The courtroom was adjourned
No verdict was returned
And while Lenin read a book on Marx
The quartet practiced in the park
And we sang dirges in the dark
The day the music died
We were singing(*)

Helter skelter in a summer swelter
The birds flew off with a fallout shelter
Eight miles high and falling fast
Landed foul on the grass
The players tried for a forward pass
With the jester on the sidelines in a cast
Now the half-time air was sweet perfume
While sergeants played a marching tune
We all got up to dance
Oh, but we never got the chance
'Cause the players tried to take the field
The marching band refused to yield
Do you recall what was revealed
The day the music died?
We started singing(*)

Oh, and there we were all in one place
A generation lost in space
With no time left to start again
So come on Jack be nimble, Jack be quick
Jack Flash sat on a candlestick
'Cause fire is the devil's only friend
And as I watched him on the stage
My hands were clenched in fists of rage
No angel born in hell
Could break that Satan's spell
And as the flames climbed high into the night
To light the sacrificial rite
I saw Satan laughing with delight
The day the music died
He was singing(*)

I met a girl who sang the blues
And I asked her for some happy news
But she just smiled and turned away
I went down to the sacred store
Where I'd heard the music years before
But the man there said the music wouldn't play
And in the streets the children screamed
The lovers cried, and the poets dreamed
But not a word was spoken
The church bells all were broken
And the three men I admire most
 the Father, Son, and the Holy Ghost
They caught the last train for the coast
The day the music died
And they were singing(*)

===

Vincent的詞曲都較為優美、隱譅,而American Pie直接、強烈,直擊人心;也許是我的年紀還不夠,後者給我的震撼更強。長長一大串的歌詞就像是敘事詩般(由"Long long time ago"開始,整個情緒就進到歌裡,像聽故事一般),歷數美國自50、60年代至太空時代的大事,而少年、單純的Don McLean也開始面對社會、世界的快速變遷,以前單純的音樂(Rock、Country)不再,純粹的信仰不再、政治、社會現象亦然。

整首歌每一段都可以看出一個主題,雖然都沒有明文直指某人、某事件,不過以我所知也約略可以猜測一些出來。後來上網一查詢,甚至有人以『達文西密碼』來看待此歌,因為作者始終不對歌詞做解釋,任由他人猜測。

此歌被『美國The Recording Industry Association of America』選為20世紀世界名曲的第5名。

相關資料:
清韻民歌網:美國批密碼
Understanding American Pie
The Official Website of Don McLean and American Pie